RELATED: Bay Area students see private viewing of 'Hamilton' in SF
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They left full of ideas, encouragement and completely star-struck.
Student performers took to the stage to show off their skits inspired by "Hamilton."
Some were floored by the fact that they were on the actual stage of the musical. "Yeah, that was crazy," said student Shayna Mason. "I kept on replaying the soundtrack in my head while I'm on stage."
Oakland Tech High School was one of several in the Bay Area invited to perform and meet some of the cast members of the musical, like Ryan Vazquez, a San Jose native who plays James Reynolds in the show. "Both of my parents are coming. It's going to be wild to have family here," he said. "And to be seeing a show that they would have seen anyway, but now I'll be in -- so it's going to be crazy."
RELATED: Hundreds stand in long line ahead of 'Hamilton' in San Francisco
During the question and answer portion, students got some advice from the professionals. Many of the students want to pursue a career in the performing arts.
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"Everybody downs me for wanting to pursue the arts, so to hear somebody say it's good, it's really good," said student Cali Chew.
She said it's really what she wants to do.
"To just persevere through everything and to take whatever steps you can to make a name for yourself," said Jeremiah Juzix, another student.
After lunch, no media, only students were allowed back inside the Orpheum to watch the musical and get the thrill of a lifetime.
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