Our Stories

“Are you ready?”

The question rings out from the audience of Kaukauna High School’s auditorium. It is directed at a group of students on stage, posed for the start of something they’ve been practicing for weeks. There are a few nods and nervous glances, a few confident answers in the affirmative, and then there is a brief, preparatory silence that precedes the downbeat of a high-energy jazz piano’s musical introduction.

“Jazz Fever” is the theme for the 2024-25 season’s P.A.T.H.S. program. The program represents a partnership between the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center and a class of students at Kaukauna High School who have chosen to take a chance on signing up for something totally new to them.

P.A.T.H.S. (Frank C. Shattuck Performing Arts Touch the Hearts of Students Program) is a collaboration effort that empowers students by engaging them through the arts. Through hands-on workshops, community connections, and access to world-class Broadway experiences, students break free from limiting patterns and discover new possibilities.

Each year, students in the program participate in an arts project, and then, after showcasing their work, they are given the opportunity to attend the touring Broadway show that inspired the project.

Educator Amber Ortega says that she has seen the program’s mission in action for many years now, and though each year the styles of art and shows are different, the process is reliably cathartic.

“I think any chance we can give my students an opportunity to step outside their comfort zone and find something new about themselves and experience something new, like that’s always a very rewarding experience, not only for the kids, but for the adults in the room who get to watch them evolve into these people who are excited about what they’ve accomplished during the program,” Amber said. “So, it’s fun.”

This year, with touring Broadway production Some Like It Hot partnering with P.A.T.H.S., the idea of a “Jazz Fever” dance number was born.

Many of the participating students admitted that at first, the prospect of learning a dance and having to perform it was not an idea they were sold on.

“I was telling myself that I would just not come to practices. But then I ended up actually loving it,” one student shared.

In order to make it happen, Fox Cities Performing Arts Center Education Programs Manager Sammi Steltzl reached out to Katie Nooyen, owner and director at Encore Dance Academy, to gauge her interest in assisting to bring the idea to life.

Katie said she loved the idea and was eager to meet the students. She wanted to design a dance that was slightly challenging, but “not unattainable for them,” especially learning at a rate of one half-hour class each week.

“Having the opportunity to work with people who are non-dancers that didn’t necessarily choose this – they chose this opportunity or decided to participate in this program, but it wasn’t like ‘I want to do dance’ – it was really, really cool to watch their growth through this. And I’m just so proud of and impressed by how far they’ve come, not just dance-wise, but personally too, and kind of opening up and trusting,” Katie said.

The ability to open up and trust is a big piece that Amber says she watches for as well.

While the adults embraced the lessons they experienced secondhand from watching the students engage with the work, the teens had a lighter perspective on it all, leaning into the recreation element.

“Oh, my experience was very fun. I liked spending time with the people and getting to know the teacher that was teaching us, and I really liked her enthusiasm about the whole thing,” said Niina, one of the participating students.

“A lot of people don’t get to experience things in their high school life, so this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for everybody who is scared to do huge things. [We] had this little group that [we] could join and just make people feel comfortable,” shared another student, Sequioa.

And the value of continuing to return to the task in the name of improvement? That message came through too.

“If we were able to show ourselves that we can have consistency for this, why not be able to bring the consistency to something else?” said student Chasity.

After weeks of practice, the time came. The culmination of the hard work put in to learning the steps was realized in a finale performance for their teachers.

The students took to the stage and waited for the familiar tune to play, this time, for their private audience and a few cameras.

At the end, many said they were glad for the experience, and a few even found it opened doors for them.

“I kind of liked it, like being in front of an audience. And I wonder how it would feel in front of a bigger audience,” said student Sirley.

With their firsthand dance experience successfully concluded, next the P.A.T.H.S students attended 12-time Tony-nominated (4-time Tony-winning) Broadway musical Some Like It Hot. Their evening out included a meal before the show. Most said it was their first-ever live Broadway viewing.

After everything, Amber said that she believes this program was a great opportunity to provide levity in the lives of teens in need of it. And she believes that impact will be felt exponentially.