Western Sierra Collegiate Academy stages 'Saving Paradise'

While the calendar reads 2011, theater arts students at Western Sierra Collegiate Academy, a 7-12 charter school open to all, were time travelers in their spring musical, "Saving Paradise." The April 12 production told the story of a community rallying to save a theater, tracing the journey of a family through the 1960s to the 1980s and the present day, using music from the 1980s popular music group, Styx. "Saving Paradise" showcased a myriad of artistic talents, including contributions from Western Sierra's performing arts, music and visual arts departments. Tesia Carney, 18, wrote the script after Western Sierra students asked her to create a storyline for the spring musical."The students inspired me to write the script," said Carney, who also wrote the script for Western Sierra's 2010 spring musical. "Before the show I told the students how much it meant to me that they were going to bring my work to life. The feeling...there's nothing like it," she said. Theater Arts instructor Miken Dayton said Western Sierra students had a hand in every part of the production."More than 50 students participated in "Saving Paradise," including choreography, costume creation and stage management," said Dayton. "It's nice to see so much talent going into every aspect of our spring musical." In August 2009, the founders of the Rocklin Academy network of charter schools opened Western Sierra Collegiate Academy in Rocklin, offering college preparatory classes open to all students. Western Sierra is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and currently serves students in seventh through 10th grades and will expand to 12th grade. Authorized under the Charter School Act of 1992 and chartered by the Rocklin Unified School District, Rocklin Academy is a tuition-free public elementary school.Rocklin Academy offers its high-performing academic program on two shared campuses. Rocklin Academy is the first public school in the greater Sacramento area to offer the nationally recognized Core Knowledge curriculum.