'Frozen' a red-hot hit at Lakewood Ranch High School

When Emmaline Caswell, a senior at Lakewood Ranch High School, takes the stage during a musical theater production, she transforms.

In that moment, she is whatever character she is playing. 

"I become a different person and that's my favorite part of it," Caswell said. "I can push away all the things that happened during the day and I get to live (the character's) life for however long the show is. I was destined to do something in theater." 

On April 24, Caswell played Pabbie, the lead troll in the Lakewood Ranch High School production of "Frozen."

She wasn't alone in making a transformation.

Junior Daniela Vallarta played Bulda, the other main troll in "Frozen," and also was the costume manager. Vallarta stressed theater is a fun pursuit for anyone no matter their interests and helps in growing confidence and self expression. 

"If you want to get into a technical field, engineering, building, or grow group skills, it's amazing for that," Vallarta said. 

Skylah Siegel, a senior, played Anna and was also the musical director. 

"It's such a relief and a joy seeing everyone enjoying your hard work," Siegel said. "Rehearsals can be stressful and there's a lot that goes into it that people don't usually see." 

Emma Mandzik, a senior, played the lead of Elsa. She said theater is the place to find safety and passion for what she loves. 

She also choreographed all the dance numbers which included various lifts. 

"This is some of the most original choreography I've done and I made some of these numbers from scratch," Mandzik said. "This has pushed me in that sense." 

Jess Lubbers is the theater teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School. He loves giving his students responsibility and then watching them rise to the occasion. 

"I take on the role of a producer," Lubbers said. "I get to sit back and enjoy the show."