GUELPH -- One of the stars of "Hamilton" joined a group of Guelph students for a special virtual performance.

The semester started off on a helpless note.

"I had heard of the studies that singing wasn't a good idea in groups or in person, so I wasn't really sure what was going to happen," Grade 12 student Sophie Wilhelm said.

But, it ended with a celebrity surprise.

"It was just such an incredible honour, honestly," Wilhelm said.

"We had one of our online rehearsals and I told them I had a bit of a surprise for them and they couldn't believe that a Broadway actor was going to do a video with them," teacher Dan Austin said.

Austin wanted the students at Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute a bit of extra inspiration, so he invited Joseph Morales to join them.

"I knew this year was going to be a big challenge," Austin said. "I kind of just took a gamble on this and figured I would find Joseph Morales on social media, send him a message and see if he was interested."
Morales, who starred in the Toronto production of "Hamilton," was interested and willing to share the love.

"The experiences I had in high school and in college and the mentors that I was fortunate enough to work with all shaped me into who I am today as a human being and as a performer," Morales said.

Morales recorded his part from his home studio in L.A., bringing the performance together through the magic of editing.

"To give his time to these students, that he doesn't even know, you can't put a price on that," Austin said. "That's such a gift for them and it teaches them the value of arts education, even in this challenging time."