NIC student performs in “The Little Mermaid”

As the lights grew dimmer and the music went into a crescendo, person`s of every background erupted onto the stage. They worked hard to give the performance of their life, with passion in the eyes of every person trying to make it into the world of the arts.

Chanel Grutta, a 17-year-old high school student, bounced onto the Kroc Center’s stage, with a smile on her face. There seemed to be such an eerie feel in the room as the audience sat, captivated. Every aspect of the arts show how individuals are capable of such magic. And to perform and share that magic takes dedication and passion. This show was put on by the Coeur d`Alene Summer Theatre on August 26. A show like this one took time, planning, and precision, among other things.

Grutta has previously taken classes at NIC and plans to go in the future to become prepared for the world of the arts. Dancing is her passion, and she has be doing it for 11 years. She hopes go on to become a professional dancer.

“The artistry and the feeling I get when I start to dance is what motivates me to keep goals in mind…always,” Grutta said.

Grutta first became interested in the arts when she saw “The Wizard of Oz,” and pondered the theatrics and how it was made into one of the most well-known and commercially successful adaptations based on the 1900 novel, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” by L. Frank Baum.

Two other influential people who drew Grutta into the world of the arts and to inspired her to dance were Misty Copeland, an American Ballet dancer for the American Ballet Theater, and Robert Louis “Bob” Fosse, who was an American dancer, musical theatre choreographer, director, screenwriter, film director, and actor.

Grutta is inspired to attend NIC because of the opportunities it presents within the history and writing of the performing arts. NIC can help her to reach her goals of becoming the professional dancer she wants to be. What motivates her is the artistry and feeling of performing.

“[It’s] the rush. I don`t feel like I am in reality.”