First Act’s Middle School Overnight Camp is always my favorite week of the summer. When I heard that High School Musical Jr. was our show this year, somehow my excitement for this week grew exponentially. My first camp experience with First Act was a High School Musical summer camp when I was five years old, and I cannot comprehend that I am now directing the musical with the same organization!

Before the 9 to 5 movie and musical we know and love, there was a movement that inspired both. 9to5 is an organization created in 1973 by clerical workers to respond to the inequities, unfairness, and outright harassment and discrimination they were experiencing in the workplace. These courageous, tenacious, and fierce women organized and banded together to advocate for themselves and for a better future for working women. 9to5 still exists today, fighting every day for equal wages, paid family leave, and a harassment-free workplace. Their work continues to advance racial and gender justice through community-led advocacy as they seek widespread, long-lasting change.