CHICAGO (WLS) — Sophia Leverett, a student from the south suburbs, is in New York on Thursday, rehearsing for her Broadway debut!

Sophia is among the gifted teenagers nationwide competing for a Jimmy Award next week. She expressed to ABC7’s Hosea Sanders that she feels truly at home in the spotlight.

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“My brain just flips a switch, I just hone in and look at a spot and I’m there,” Sophia said of being on stage.

Sophia, of Frankfort, just graduated from Providence Catholic High School. She has been performing all her life!

“During church, I would always arrive early for practice, singing loudly. At every moment, whether in the morning or around the house, you’d hear me singing in the shower,” Sophia revealed. “Then I thought, OK, it’s time to take it seriously. High school brought opportunities, and I decided to pursue them.”

Sophia’s parents, Ophelia and Walter, and her twin brother, Luke, believe her life has been a rehearsal.

“She approached us and said, ‘Mom, I can cry on cue,’ and then she did, which frightened me!” Ophelia shared. “When the performance happened, we were amazed by her singing ability. We considered encouraging her, but she’s also an honor student who excels in math and science. We might have a future doctor on our hands.”

“To see her work her craft and to see it come to fruition, it’s a tremendous sense of pride,” Walter said. “I am passionately excited when we do theatre things together, because I see other elements of life, and I love it.”

“She’s always been the same sister to me, but I’ll always be impressed at what she can do, always goes beyond and beyond,” Luke said.

So, is Sophia ready for Broadway?

“I think it’s a great opportunity to sharpen your craft. Iron sharpens iron,” Sophia said. “Theatre, it celebrates life. It celebrates humanity. To the people who have helped me, I’ve always considered myself a mosaic of them, of people who have supported me, of life in every step, and I will take them with me in every step to the Jimmys!”

Both Illinois contestants, Sophia and Jamaur Houston, have just moved forward to a group that makes them eligible to be finalists at the main event.

The Jimmy Awards will be presented on Monday night.