Izabella Arnold says she’s still catching up on sleep after her lead role as Tracy Turnblad in Warwick Academy’s production of ‘Hairspray’.The comedy musical was hailed as a professional quality show, and Warwick Academy’s Phoebe Purvis Memorial Hall was packed from the January 26 opening night through to January 29th. Year 12 student Izabella, 16, has come far in theatre, from her humble induction as a teacup.“I’ve only been into theatre four years, which is much shorter than most of the people who are really serious about it. My grandparents live in Galveston, Texas, and while we were visiting we found a theatre camp at the dance school in Clear Lake. I played the teacup in ‘Beauty and the Beast’,” she said.“I’d been taking voice lessons since I was ten, and dancing for years with In Motion and the Somerset School of Dance, but my first experience of theatre was incredible, even if I had to wear a plate on my back. “The fun of it all, of constantly being different people I loved it. And when I looked up to the leads in that play, they were flawless. That was what I aspired to become.”A part in a school production of ‘Sleeping Beauty’ led Izabella to audition for the title role in Shakespeare’s ‘Henry VII’ at the 2008 Bermuda Shakespeare Schools Festival, for which Warwick Academy cast girl students in the male roles.“That was when the acting started to take off,” she said.“I did my first proper musical with the school. I went from playing a king to being a plant I split the lead role of Audrey in ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ with Hannah Dill.”After that, another school play gave her a chance to perform as Banquo, in Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’, at which point Izabella made the break from school productions to the Bermuda Musical and Dramatic Society (BMDS).In 2009, the BMDS decided to produce a play mixing young and adult actors, and directors Jenny Burrell and Lisa Maule chose the stager version of Edith Nesbitt’s ‘The Railway Children’.Based on a last-minute audition, Izabella found herself cast as Bobbie one of the title children and another main role.“That was the first time they took the risk of doing a main show with children, and Jenny and Lisa helped me along a lot.“It was a huge role for a 14-year-old to pull off, and it allowed me to experience a new type of audience. Being on stage in the Daylesford Theatre in front of Bermudian theatre-goers, we all knew we had to really be on our game.“Jenny directed and she treated us all like adults. I had a real sense of responsibility.”Six months later, Izabella took another lead, as Mrs Johnstone in Warwick Academy’s production of the Willy Russell’s musical ‘Blood Brothers’.“Dark” is how she summed it up: “It was the icing on the cake to get that role, but it’s pretty depressing given that her two sons die. It was a show with a strong message, and with the singing and acting there were a lot of challenges.”In October of last year, Izabella returned to the Bermuda Shakespeare Schools Festival as an assistant director.“I was working alongside Richard Cunningham, who also teaches maths at Warwick Academy, and we put together Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’.“Again, it was dark. Mr Cunningham used the music from the horror movie ‘28 Days Later’. I had auditioned to perform in the Shakespeare Festival but being asked to direct was an exciting thing to add to my resume.”It culminated in the school’s production of ‘Hairspray’, the stage version of a distinctly edgy comic film by John Waters. Warwick Academy’s version appears to have surprised even the school with its level of sophistication. “I’m only just getting my sleep habits back in shape,” Izabella said.After graduating in 2012, Izabella hopes to study drama but wants to keep an option of working in the family business, Arnolds Family Market Limited.“Either option, it’s a lot of work. What I really want is to pursue acting. I’ve got to cram in over the next two years before I can prove myself there.”