Hundreds of kids surprise beloved theater director with gift to save her program

Nashville may be the home to many country superstars who sing songs about life, love and everything in between, but it's also home to a special theater for kids who sing about the same things.

At The Theater Bug in Nashville, a group of kids come together to dance, act and sing their hearts out.

And they're able to confidently be their true selves on stage with the help of the theater's artistic director and founder, Cori Laemmel.

"I always tell them they are just bottled positivity," she told "Good Morning America."

Theater has always been important to Laemmel, who spent time in theater programs as a kid. With the majority of theater education beginning in high school, she started The Theater Bug to expose younger kids to the theater.

Her program serves over 350 kids every year who have put on a plethora of performances like "Much Ado About Nothing" and "The Two Gentlemen of Verona."

The talented mother also goes above and beyond by writing original plays and musicals based on important social issues for kids like childhood cancer, bullying, social media and mental health. Overall, using theater productions as a platform to provide educational resources for the kids and even bringing in trained professionals to discuss each issue at hand.

"There's nothing they can't do right now and I want them to walk into any room the way they would walk into the bug," she said.

Laemmel has dedicated her career to the kids of The Theater Bug with her mission to inspire young people and to build confidence by motivating them through the performing arts.

She's built a community of passionate performers and now they've come together to say thank you for being a light.

"She tells me and makes me feel every single day that I matter," said Ayla Williams, a performer at The Theater Bug.

"She has taught me to be myself, and to be brave and to keep going no matter what," said Kari Belle King, another performer.

Because of her kindness and selflessness, "GMA" and her performers thanked her on Thursday with the surprise of a lifetime.

"There are so many people I love in this room, it's amazing," Laemmel said live on "GMA."

With the CMA Awards just the night before, her good friend, country singer Dierks Bentley, whose kids attend The Theater Bug, along with "GMA" co-host TJ Holmes, surprised Laemmel with $20,000 to help save her program, which is losing their space in 2020.

Adventures by Disney is also giving Laemmel and her family a trip to New York, including tickets to "Frozen" with a private dance workshop at a Broadway dance studio.

"You guys have absolutely no idea how incredible these kids are," Laemmel said. "They're the best humans that exist and to be able to build something that raises the level of the Bug to the art that they're making and to the kindess they'e putting into the world is just such a gift."

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and "Good Morning America."