PBS Wisconsin Music & Arts

The 2018 Jerry Awards broadcast is funded in part by Julie and Larry Midtbo, A. Paul Jones Charitable Trust, Mary Ellen and Joe Sensenbrenner, Thomas Terry, The Focus Fund for Young Performers, and Friends of Wisconsin Public Television.

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I think theater's important because of this idea of creation that you're doing in creating a story. I think the most important thing theater does is spark conversation. Theater portrays a lot of messages. It's a nice break from reality, but it's also a really great way to learn. It's really deeper than people think. It motivates people to make a change. I don't think you get the feeling that you get when you're seeing a show anywhere else. There is not one show where you don't feel sadness and happiness and excitement. You get to transport them for two hours out of maybe a really bad day, or a really great day, and create a great story for a bunch of people. Putting on a show together and stepping into this different sense of reality, I think that really brings us all a lot closer together. It can really raise some pretty big issues and then leave people thinking in the very end of the show. That's why we do the performing arts, to think about what it is to be human and to become a better person.

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Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!

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Welcome to the 2018 Jerry Awards. We're here tonight to encourage, recognize, and honor excellence in high school musical theater. My name is Tim Sauers, and I'm the host for tonight. Please welcome to the stage the Jerry Ensemble.

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Light the candles Get the ice out Roll the rug up It's today Though it may not be anyone's birthday And though it's far from the first of the year I know that this very minute Has history in it We're here It's a time for Making merry And so I'm for Making hay Tune the grand up Dance your shoes off Strike the band up It's today Welcome to the 2018 Jerry Awards!

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We are the Jerry Ensemble, representing both the southern Wisconsin and northern Wisconsin regions, and we are here to start this show off with a bang! It's a time for making merry And so I'm for Making hay Tune the grand up Call the cops out Strike the band up Pull the stops out Hallelujah It's today Hey!

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Was that incredible or what? Ah. So, congratulations, everybody. What a great opening.

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So, um, to participate in the Jerry Awards, schools agree to have their high school musical adjudicated by a team of reviewers. Reviewers turn in a set of critiques. The school gets the written critique, and along with nominations. At the end of the year, when we finish our last weekend of eligibility, we announce our recipients for the year, have great rehearsals, and put on this big show. Schools must reside within 100 miles of the Madison community, 100 miles of the Milwaukee community, with our partnership with the Marcus Center for Performing Arts, or 100 miles from Wausau community with the Grand Theater as our partner there. Now, how do you say we have Aquinas in the show tonight?

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Yeah. From La Crosse-- they're from La Crosse, and they're in the show tonight. So how did they get in? Do you ask. We let them.

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It's like a family at Aquinas. We're not just theater friends. Like, we're actual friends in real life too.

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Small casts are so great because you are able to get so close with every single person.

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They are quite the energetic group and I've guided them as best as I can. It's great that we all get to come here with our director, Mr. Bosgraaf, Since this is his last year, I know it meant a lot to him to have a small school get this honor. He really strives to have us be the best that we can be. You're gonna do great. You sound amazing. I'm so excited for them and for the school.

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Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Bless the Lord, bless the Lord Bless the Lord Bless the Lord, bless the Lord Bless the Lord, bless the Lord, bless the Lord Bless the Lord, bless the Lord My soul Oh, bless the Lord My soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul Oh, bless the Lord my soul My soul

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Grant us all from Earth to rise And to strain with eager eyes Towards the promised heavenly prize We beseech thee, hear us come sing about love Love, that calls us first to be Come sing about love, love That made the stone and tree Come sing about love, love, love, love Love, love, come sing about love Love, love, love, love Come sing about love We beseech thee Hear us, love, love, love, love, love Love, love, we beseech thee Hear us

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How'd I let you slip away when I'm longing so To hold you, now I'd die For one more day, 'cause there's something I should have told you Yes, there's something I should have told you When I looked into your eyes Why does distance make us wise? You were the song all along And before The song dies I should tell you, I should tell you I have always loved you You can see it in my eyes

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Mimi

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When the daylight ends And the moon ascends I would rather be Just the moon and me When I feel her pull Then my heart is full And the night is Softly, sweetly calling Fester, look and see La la la la la la La la la la La la la la la It's a dream that's coming true When the moon says I love you You La Ah

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Death is just around the corner Waiting high upon the hill Someone buried In an avalanche That's the kind of gig I could really dig Marriage often disappoints you Not each husband is a gem So I'll mourn knowing Death is just around the corner Coming after them If life's all plums I'll muddle through some But when death comes I hope it's gruesome, ha-cha Death is just around the corner And you have to heed the call Don't ask why For your death is just around the corner You and I Happy being both the mourned and mourner Say goodbye Because death is just around the corner Coming for us All

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Careful the spell you cast Not just on children Sometimes the spell may last Past what you can see And turn against you Careful the tale you tell That is the spell Children will listen Though it's fearful, though it's deep Though it's dark and then you may lose The path, though you may encounter wolves Though it's deep, you can't just act Lose the path, you may encounter wolves You can't just act, you have to listen You have to think There are always wolves There are always spells There are always beans where a giant dwells So into the woods You go again You have to every now and then Into the woods, no telling when Be ready for the journey Into the woods, but not too fast Or what you wish, you lose at last Into the woods, but mind the past Into the woods, but mind the future Into the woods, but not to stray Or tempt the wolf, or steal from a giant The way is dark The light is dim But now there's you, me, her, and him The chances look small The choices look grim But everything you learn there Will help when you return there The light is getting dimmer I think I see a glimmer Into the woods you have to grope But that's the way you learn to cope Into the woods to find there's hope Of getting through the journey Into the woods, each time you go There's more to learn of what you know Into the woods, but not too slow Into the woods, it's nearing midnight Into the woods to mind the wolf To heed the witch, to honor the giant To mind, to heed, to find, to think To teach, to join, to go to the festival Into the woods Into the woods Into the woods then out of the woods And happy ever after

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Come with me To see something strange unfold Hear the weirdest tale that was ever told From this rare depiction Some will swear it's fiction Yet each peculiar twist That I tell is true And you shall see it in plain view Right before your eyes, marvel as magic Is on display Right before your eyes All might seem tragic, but then it's okay Poof! A new surprise Right before your eyes

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Ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah-ah-ah Ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah-ah-ah Ahh Alone and waiting And wailing Whining and waning Wanting and wasting and woe Waiting, fixating, debating, lose-weighting, Ice skating, lactating, and so We wait to laugh

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We wait to cry We wait for every hopeful breath Waiting for a lousy Vicious, rotting, rancid Flushed out, fetid Frenzied, fatal Death Whoa-oh-oh-oh whoa-oh-oh-oh

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So I've been in "Les Mis" a couple times as a kid, and I've always looked at Thnardier as the coolest character in the show. He's just the coolest, like, creepy little, you know, oily man. I think that's the coolest part. I spent a lot of time off stage looking at all these different versions of Les Mis and creating my own version. There's a little bit of me in there, but when I hear that music start, when he comes onstage, he changes into a whole new person from what I am. Which is cool. It's a lot more fun.

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Oh, welcome Monsieur, sit yourself down And meet The best innkeeper in town As for the rest, all of them crooks Rooking the guests and cooking the books Seldom do you see Honest men like me A gent of good intent Who's content to be Master of the house, doling out the charm Ready with a handshake and an open palm Tells a saucy tale, makes a little stir Customers appreciate a bon-viveur Glad to do me friends a favor Doesn't cost me to be nice But nothing gets you nothing Everything has got a little price Master of the house, keeper of the zoo Ready to relieve him of a sou or two Watering the wine, making up the weight Picking up their knick-knacks when they can't see straight Everybody loves a landlord Everybody's bosom friend I do whatever pleases Jesus Won't I bleed them in the end?

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Will, you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. You teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime. But you teach a man the Alabama Stomp, well! You feed his soul! Come on, Jerry Awards! Let's do the Alabama Stomp! Come on, y'all! - Whoo-hoo!

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Whoo!

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Whoo! Everyone dies, Edward Bloom, but your death is glorious. Let me show you, what's your concern? Are you scared of hearing one thing new? When you could learn something secret That could help you through In one good turn I can show you counterfeit from true Life begins when you know how it ends

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Shim, sham, I'm a little lamb from Alabama Flim, flam, I'm a little lamb from Alabama I'm a little miss praying for a kiss Just a little Lamb from Alabama

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I can see America, dependable and true Open sky and passers by congratulating you Find the open highway and you've hit the mother lode Go crazy out there on the Happy, out there on the, finally Out there Be the hero every time You get the chance If the music stops continue with the dance On a wing or on a prayer You'll only get there with your voice Be attentive, be inventive Be the first one to rejoice With a story in your heart You won't need any other choice You're a hero fighting dragons, winning wars Be the hero, and the world Will soon be Yours!

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"Next to Normal" is about Diana Goodman, who struggles with bipolar and has elements of schizophrenia. And it's about her going through her journey with her husband and her daughter. This piece offered us a moment to talk about mental disease, which is a huge, resonant thing in our culture, something that needs to be talked about. It's really teaching about people with these disorders. Just talking about all the different options and what mental illness does, I think it sparked a lot of conversation. And we can keep moving forward and there is hope at the end of the road.

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We need some light First of all, we need some light You can't sit here in the dark And all alone, it's a sorry sight It's just you and me We'll live, you'll see Night after night We'd sit and wait for the morning light But we've waited far too long For all that's wrong to be made right Day after day Wishing all our cares away Trying to fight the things we feel But some hurts never heal Some ghosts are never gone But we go on We still go on And you find some way to survive And you find out You don't have to be happy at all To be happy you're alive And when the night is finally gone And when we see the new day dawn We'll wonder how we wandered for so long, so blind The wasted world we thought we knew The light will make it look brand-new So let it, let it Let it, let it Shine! Shine Shine! Day after day We'll find the will to find our way Knowing that the darkest skies Will someday see the sun When our long night is done There will be light There will be light, there will be light There will be light When we open up our lives Sons and daughters, husbands, wives Can fight that fight There will be Light There will be light There will be light There will be Light

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When you're an Addams, you need to have A little moonlight When you're an Addams You need to feel a little chill You have to see the world In shades of gray You have to put some poison in your day That's the way when you're an Addams You need to have a sense of humor Ha ha ha ha, when you're an Addams You need to have a taste for death

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Who cares about the world outside And what it wants from you When you're an Addams You do what Addams always do

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When you're an Addams You gotta have a lot of passion When you're an Addams You need to really love your wife At least once a day You're happy when your toes are in the mud You smile a bit the moment you smell blood

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When you're an Addams You need to grab a bow and arrow When you're an Addams You need a moment to explode Just pour a potion - Flip the switch And wait till things get hot When you're an Addams, you have to really Stir the pot When you're an Addams, you have a very special duty When you're an Addams You're obligated to the clan It's family first and family last And family by and by When you're an Addams The standard answers don't apply When you're an Addams You do what Addams do or die

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Standing in this room Well, I wonder what comes now I know I have to help her, but hell if I know how And all the times that I've been told The way her illness goes The truth of it is no one really knows And I've never been, day the act Gets more and more absurd And all my fears just sit inside me Screaming to be heard I know they won't, though Not a single word I've been here for the show Every high, every low But it's the worst we've ever known She's been hurt and how But I can't give up now 'Cause I've never been alone I could never be Alone

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Do you wake up in the morning And need help to lift your head? Do you read obituaries and feel jealous of the dead? It's like living on a cliff side Not knowing when you'll dive Do you know, do you know What it's like to die alive? When a world that once had color Fades to white and gray and black When tomorrow terrifies you But you'll die if you look back You don't know The sensation that you're screaming But you never make a sound Or the feeling that you're falling But you never hit the ground It just keeps on rushing at you Day by day by day by day You don't know, you don't know What it's like to live that way Like a refugee, a fugitive forever on the run If it gets me, it will kill me But I don't know what I've done

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You know your problem, kid? You ain't got no philosophy.

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There's an old Australian bush song That Melba used to sing A song that always cheered me When I was blue Even Melba said This bush song Was a helluva song to sing So be quiet Whilst I render it for you When your instinct tells you that disaster Is approaching you faster and faster Then be like the bluebird And sing tweet tweet, tra-la, la la, la la Be like the bluebird, who never is blue For he knows from his upbringing What singing can do And though by other birdies in the boughs he May be told that his efforts Are perfectly lousy He sings on and on till his troubles are through Tweet, tweet, tra-la, la la, la la

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It ends with you It ends with me It ends the way a story's ending is supposed to be When I first listened to it, I was like, "I need to do this song." 'Cause it's just so emotional, it's so driven by the plot. And the message is just so beautiful. It ends with faith It ends with love Everything in your life coming to a close, wrapping it up in a pretty bow, but revisiting everything that you've experienced in the last moments of your life. I know I wasn't perfect I know my life was small I know that I pretended that I knew it all But when you tell my story And I hope somebody does Remember me as something Bigger than I was It ends with Sons It ends with wives It ends with knowing when the pavement bends We find our lives So let it come and let me go Show me the waves And let them flow It all ends well This much I know

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Jumping into this whole rehearsal process was kind of scary to begin with, but I'm so thankful for the people in my medley because they're so kind and genuine and talented, and I appreciate them all so much. So you can keep your fiddle and your bow Give me a P-I-A-N-O oh oh I love to stop right beside an upright Or a high-toned baby grand

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I love a piano I love a piano I love to hear somebody play Upon a piano, a grand piano, it simply Carries me away I know a Fine way to treat a Steinway I love to run My fingers o'er the keys, the ivories And with the peddle I love to meddle Not only music from Broadway I'm so delighted if I'm invited To hear a long-haired genius play So you can keep your fiddle and your bow Give me a P-I-A-N-O oh oh I love to stop right beside an upright Or a high-toned baby grand

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With time rushing by What would you do? With the clock running down What would you do? The young always have the cure Being brave Being sure and free But imagine If you were me Grown old like me With neither the will nor wish to run Grown tired like me Who hurries for bed when day is done Grown wise like me Who isn't at war with anyone Not anyone

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There's darkness in me As deep as this valley And things that I've done I cannot repay The days I regret are too many for countin' And sins river water Cannot wash away But if you can turn this whole valley to golden And burn till the colors of paradise shine Then maybe your bright morning light can discover A diamond of hope in this dark heart of mine Morning light Shine on me Shine Find a diamond of hope In this dark heart of mine

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I can't see the reason it can't be The kind of world where we all get our chance Oh no The time is now and we can show them how Just turn the music up and let's all dance, yeah Now all things are equal when it comes to love But that ain't quite true 'Cause when push comes to shove The blacker the berry The sweeter the juice I could say it ain't so But darling, what's the use? Darker the chocolate, the richer the taste And that's where it's at Now run and tell that Oh yeah, run and tell that Hey, hey, here we go Run and tell that Run and tell that Run and tell That

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It's really cool to see the older kids in the community and the school helping out the younger kids, 'cause there's, like, junior high students or sixth-graders who are in the show. And they may not have big parts, but they're in those big group numbers like "Super Cal." They're all part of that. So it's a whole group effort where everyone always tries to help each other out. And you have to be patient a lot of times, and repeating things multiple times, but it's really-- it bears great fruit because you're working together and producing something that's fantastic. When trying to express oneself It's frankly quite absurd To leap through lengthy lexicons To find the perfect word A little spontaneity Keeps conversation keen You need to find a way to say precisely what You mean Supercalifragilistic expialidocious Even though the sound of it Is something quite atrocious If you say it loud enough You'll always sound precocious Supercalifragilistic expialidocious Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle aye Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle aye Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle aye Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle aye You know, you can say it backwards, which is suoicodilaipxe citsiligarfilacrepus. She may be tricky, but she's bloody good! So when the cat has got your tongue There's no need for dismay Just summon up this word And then you've got a lot to say Pick out those 18 consonants And 16 vowels as well And put them in an order which Is very hard to spell S-U-P-E-R C-A-L-I-F R-A-G-I-L I-S-T-I-C-E X-P-I-A-L-I-D O-C-I-O-U-S! Smarty pants! S-U-P-E-R C-A-L-I-F R-A-G-I-L I-S-T-I-C-E-X-P I-A-L-I-D O-C-I-O-U-S S-U-P-E-R C-A-L-I-F R-A-G-I-L I-S-T-I-C X-P-I-A-L-I-D O-C-I-O-U-S Here we go! Supercalifragilistic expialidocious Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious If you say it loud enough You'll always sound precocious Supercalifragilistic Supercalifragilistic Supercalifragilistic Expialidocious Supercalifragilistic expialidocious

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Last night I was so nasty Well, he deserved it, but even so That George is not like this George This is a new George That I don't know Somehow it all reminds me Of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde For right before my eyes a man that I despise Has turned into a man I like It's almost like a dream and strange as it may seem He came to offer me Vanilla La

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Ice Cream

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There's a somebody I'm longing to see I hope that he Turns out to be Someone To watch over me Won't you tell him please To put on some speed Follow my lead Oh how I need Someone to watch Over me Someone to watch Over me

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Me Who am I? A far from perfect guy A bum who wants to do what's right But often does what's wrong A kid whose voice is way off-key But loves to sing a song A guy who dreams like a lion but wakes up like a lamb Me, who am I but the guy I am That's who'm I Who am I? A far from perfect guy A jerk who wants to do what's right But often does what's wrong A drip whose voice is way off-key But loves to sing a song A dope who dreams like a lion But wakes up like a lamb Me, who am I but the guy I am That's who'm I

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I can see that you got quite a mind for your age. Why, one think, and you're dragging me right onto the stage! Now I'm here, there's no telling 0 with a cat such as me and a thinker like you. Oh, the thinks you can think Oh, the thinks you can think If you're willing to try Think invisible ink, or a gink with a stink Or a stair to the sky If you open your mind, oh the thinks you will find! Lining up to get loose! Oh, the thinks you can think When you think about Seuss! Seuss! Seuss! Seuss, Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Seuss! Oh, the thinks you can think Any thinker who thinks Can come up with a few Oh, the thinks you can think Think a trip on a ship To the Vipper of Vipp Or to Solla Sollew Think of beautiful Schlopp With a cherry on top! You don't need an excuse Oh, the thinks you can think When you think about Seuss, Seuss Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Think of nobody here, and the feeling of fear And the darkness of night, ooh ooh ooh All alone in your room as you're facing your doom Think a glimmer of light, ah-ah But I hope you're prepared to be scareder than scared 'Cause this ain't Mother Goose Danger's right on the brink When you think about Seuss Seuss, Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Oh, the thinks you can think Think and wonder and dream Far and wide as you dare Oh, the thinks you can think When your thinks have run dry In the blink of an eye There's another think there If you open your mind Oh, the thinks you will find Lining up to get loose Oh, the thinks you can think Oh, the thinks you can think Oh, the thinks you can think Oh, the thinks you can Think, oh, the thinks you can think When you think about Seuss When you think about Seuss When you think about Seuss Seuss, Seuss

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Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Seuss, Seuss Seuss, Seuss, Seuss Seuss!

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This is our seventh year of participating in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards, or the Jimmy Awards. There are 40 programs from across the country who send one female and one male representative. We are there for a week, and we work on group numbers, and we do medleys like they do here at the Jerry Awards. And they put on a show in a week, and at the end of that week, the judges who came to see the rehearsals and the show determine a winner, a male and female, who receive a scholarship. To be eligible for our program, you had to be one of our leading performers, and tonight we gave out 57 of those awards. On Memorial Day, we had a special audition with 25 of them. Being able to go and perform in New York on a Broadway stage, it's... a dream come true. It's really something I'm looking forward to. Well, I'm not in a tower And I'm not locked away And no magic spell could have forced me to stay I'm still keeping hope That she'll come around And she'll understand I need out of this town I'll see outside a world So this small town can see That I dare to imagine a world bigger than me And if I close my eyes and I shut them real tight And I make a wish with all of my might I wish one day she'll see this is part of a plan Just the start of a dream A dream I've always had And if I close my eyes And I shut them real tight And I make a wish with all of my might I wish one day she'll see this is part of the plan Just the start of a dream And this is all that I dream All of my dream Well, I wish And I wish Yes, I wish

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I did this last year, and just going to New York and sort of getting a taste of working in a Broadway atmosphere, and a lot of hard work, constantly going. It was really interesting. It was helpful. Because of that, I was asked to audition for "Dear Evan Hansen," which is crazy. I never would have thought that would have happened. Somebody need me too much Somebody know me too well Somebody pull me up short And put me through hell And give me support for being alive Make me alive Make me alive Make me confused Mock me with praise Let me be used Vary my days But alone Is alone Not alive Somebody crowd me with love Somebody force me to care Somebody make me Come through I'll always be there As frightened as you To help us survive Being alive Being alive Being alive

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When it comes to the Jerrys, you're seeing all these different kids from all these different walks of life and different places. These people are truly just amazing performers. They just blow me away. Schools involved in the Jerry Awards are getting better and better and better. I see them walking through these corridors talking and building friendships. It's so fun being able to be with other people that love musicals just as much as you do. It's just like a whole new world opens. You meet people that you would never talk to. I wish they had this when I was a kid. Everybody is cheering each other on. It's just how welcoming everyone is, and how friendly and how excited they are to be here. I see it, as, like, a blessing, because, you know, I've never had this opportunity before. But they'll never get to be part of the family That we have made 'Cause a geek's got style And geeks got pride A geek steps out in the open

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She's got nothing to hide No, I'm not afraid Of what anyone says at school The more I see the geek in me The more I think I'm cool

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More I think I'm, more I think I'm cool Whoo! Whoo! Whoo! Hey! Whoa! Whoo! Whoo! Embrace your inner geek, no you won't seem weak It'll make you stronger

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The only real weakness Is hiding your geek-ness for any longer

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Embrace your inner geek C'mon, let it speak, it's the freak inside you Who cares what others like? If it's what you like you should let it guide you Don't try to keep it At bay Deep down you're a geek You're a geek You're a geek Deep down you're a geek anyway Ba ba ba ba ba ba Ba ba doo doo doo doo doo Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba Doo doo doo doo doo Doo doo doo doo doo Doo doo doo doo doo! Dow!

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Our supporting and our leads tonight in their finale number! You were a great audience. Take a bow, everybody.

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This 2018 Jerry Awards broadcast was funded in part by Julie and Larry Midtbo, A. Paul Jones Charitable Trust, Mary Ellen and Joe Sensenbrenner, Thomas Terry, The Focus Fund for Young Performers, and Friends of Wisconsin Public Television.