Senior Jake Beckmann is a tech crew member for a program called BreakDown STL. BreakDown goes to high schools around the St.Louis and St. Charles areas to teach teens about making healthy choices. Their mission statement is “BreakDown STL educates, equips and empowers teens to make positive life choices regarding relationships, sex, drugs, alcohol, self-harm and suicide by providing culturally relevant preventive health education.”

“It’s definitely something that people should take a chance at,” Beckmann said. “The way the kids react after the performance, you can definitely tell that some have been facing tough situations, but have been on the down low about it, because nobody wants to be that kid with problems, so after the production, they will come and talk to us. A lot of kids like to open up and tell their stories, even the kids that make fun of it before it. You can see them compose themselves definitely after the show.”

BreakDown STL has auditions in early April for people who are willing to take part of the production. They have four parts you can try out for: tech crew, which works with the lights and audio, drama, which puts on the performance, the dance team, which does interpretive dance between the acts, and off-stage, which is a peer mentoring program. The people on off-stage go to schools once a month and talk to kids going through problems at home or problems at school.

“It was so moving and powerful, it delivers a really important message,” Junior Dan Borrelli said. “I think it’d be good for everyone to experience.”

BreakDown was started ten years ago by Jenna Imergoot and Kate Sickles to help teenagers go through troubled times. BreakDown has 40 teenagers either in high school or college advocating for smart choices.

“I thought the performance was great,” Senior Jacob Drum said. “They got a good message across and I think it would help the students at north become more aware of their actions.”

BreakDown might be coming to FHN before the end of the school year. Principal Andy Downs and Activities Director Mike Janes are going to go to a show to make sure it is suitable for our school. BreakDown has been to other schools in the St. Charles area, such as Timberland and Winfield.

“BreakDown changed the way I look at everything, it showed me I’m not the only person who is against drinking, drugs, sex, it also taught me to approach people in a different way,” Beckmann said. “It taught me to open up, be more outgoing, it definitely took me out of my shell.”