LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. — The sound of construction might not be music to most ears, but it is for middle school students in Lehigh Acres. The Lee County School District is a building a brand new theater for students.
"I was literally jumping up and down," Veteran Parks Academy for the Arts student Yliana Colon said.
"It feels awesome like it feels like I'm being like heard," said Lemuel Teal Middle School student Isabella Martinez.
"I was so excited! I was like oh my God, no you're joking," Colon's friend Serenity Bronson said.
Each student described how it felt when they learned the cafeteria stage curtains will close. Neither school has a proper auditorium, so they rehearse and perform there instead.
But, that's going to change.
Watch Lehigh Acres Community Correspondent Ella Rhoades' report below:
"We were like all squished into like one space here, and it was very hard to like move our instruments," middle school student Namiah Prudent said.
The Lee County School District is building a $55 million black box theater for both schools to share. The project cost also includes a new roof and HVAC at Lemuel Teal Middle School.
The theater will be 20,689 square feet and have 484 seats.
Whether it's a dance recital, band performance or play, these Lehigh students won't need to drive far for their fun.
"A lot of the students that go here are in Lehigh or like live near Lehigh, and we have to go to Fort Myers, and it's far away to perform," Colon said.
Martinez said she can't wait for when it's time to take center stage.
"It's now like giving me a better chance to pursue my dream of being on stage," she said.
A dream turned reality that band students like Noah Brown feel more than grateful for.
"One thing I would like to say is like thank you like so so much for giving us this opportunity for us to play here," Brown said.
While crews work on the construction, the show must go on in the cafeteria. When they finish the theater in November 2025, the students are ready to break a leg.
The Lee County School District has not announced a name for the theater yet. They plan to get the community's input on a name.
