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As an 11-year-old chorus girl in a community production of "Annie Get Your Gun," Herriman resident Michelle Willis never dreamed that one day she would be writing and composing full-length musicals of her own.

Willis' second full-length musical, "Once Upon a Thyme," premiered recently. The musical was performed by students at Fort Herriman Middle School and put on by the Herriman City Arts Council.

"Princess and the Pizza," Willis' first musical that was based on the children's book by Mary Jane Auch, was produced last summer and included 92 children in the community. The production was a success.

"Although we had permission from the author and publisher for those performances, they could not contract with us to offer the production to any other communities because they were considering selling the musical rights to a larger corporation," Willis says.

Dismayed at seeing her work stopped there, Willis and her husband, Spencer Willis, decided to come up with a new story line that was all their own and to compose the score and script to go with it.

"After our show last June, I had an idea for a new musical. [My husband and I] tossed the story line around for a few months, made up crazy twists and turns and funny endings, and laughed a lot," Michelle Willis recalls.

Michelle Willis created the rough idea of the plot, along with most of the characters, while her husband smoothed out transitions and added depth to the story.

In November, they put their ideas into a 70-page script.

"I then took the lyrics I had written and set them to music," she says.

Willis is no newcomer to composing. She has penned 19 children's operas, more than 50 choral works and has won various awards. Her latest, "Once Upon a Thyme," included 16 original songs.

"The great part about this musical is that it's completely orchestrated, but no live musicians are needed" at the performance, she says.

Set in a world of 17th-century romantic mayhem, "Once Upon a Thyme" features a main character, Prince Florian, who is pressured by his parents to choose a bride and take the throne before his evil cousin, Lord Witherall, does. Florian, though, is more interested in being the royal gardener than the next king.

The king and queen continue to pique his interest in the maidens of the kingdom, Florian doesn't fall for the expected maidens. Instead, he finds someone from outside. To add mirth to matrimony, the script is chocked full of garden humor to accompany Florian's passion for gardening.

Willis was the musical director for the performance of "Once Upon a Thyme," while Kim Doyle directed and choreographed the production. Doyle, who also choreographed Herriman's community performance of "Bye Bye Birdie" and parts of "Princess and the Pizza," volunteers on Herriman's Arts Council with Willis. Having had a love for dancing since she can remember, Doyle volunteers her time for the sake of being involved in something she loves.

Before creating dance movements, Doyle first reads the script to find out what is happening before and after the song.

"I like to listen to the music and stand up and feel what movement comes to me," Doyle says. "Then I sit down and go through the music again and visualize."

Of course, Doyle has meshed the movements that can be used with the abilities of the dancers and the size of the group for each song.

"Sometimes you have to be flexible in the process," she adds.

To stage "Once Upon a Thyme," Herriman middle school students and Arts Council volunteers practiced five hours each week. Willis and Doyle took turns watching each other's children during the rehearsals, while the students were learning the songs, dialogue and dance for the musical.

Doyle says the kids are the most rewarding part of her job.

"I love it when you can see that they really enjoy the songs. They just lighten up. That is the treat."