Homewood-Flossmoor HS grad prepares to head to New York City for Jimmy Awards

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Jazmin Rhodes is a "theater kid" who just graduated from Homewood-Flossmoor High School, and she's about to be on Broadway.

She's a finalist for the Jimmy Awards, where she'll compete with students from all over the nation.

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Rhodes gave ABC7 Chicago an inside look at one of her final rehearsals before she headed to New York City.

"It's really intense, all of the best actors and actresses from across the country, over 100 of us this year," Rhodes said.

Rhodes was a winner at the Illinois High School Musical Theatre Awards. She's been training with Broadway In Chicago for a theater boot camp in New York.

Professionals will sharpen her skills for the spotlight, as she competes for the "Jimmy."

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"Me and my family come from humble beginnings, growing up and seeing my parents, all that they did to make sure me and my sisters had enough, and now all they're doing to make sure we have the life that we love," Rhodes said. "To be performing at the theater where 'The Lion King' on Broadway is held: That was one of the first shows I ever saw, ever, with my grandma, which inspired my love for theater, so it's completely full circle."

Homewood-Flossmoor won best production at the Illinois awards for "Urinetown," starring Rhodes.

She's got a loyal support team.

"Every once in a while a kid comes along, and you just get the feeling, and say, 'How am I going to support this student and get them where they need to go, and give them all the tools I can?'" said Annie Calderon, director and theatre teacher at Homewood-Flossmoor.

"I've been doing this awhile, and it's once in a blue moon you see a kid who has the spark and the talent and the personality," said J.R. Willard-Rose, teacher and theatre director.

Rhodes has seen her name in lights on a theater marquee in Chicago, but the Big Apple is next.

"To be able to say I'm making my Broadway debut at the Jimmy Awards, it's such a crazy sentence I never thought I'd be able to say. So, to have that be my reality, it's a blessing," Rhodes said.