Tucked under the high roof of the PAC on Thursday evening, a crowd of excited audience members took their seats and awaited the start of the OLCHS Talent Show. Nervous energy was emanating from behind the curtains, and everyone was eager to see what kind of talent the night had tucked up its sleeve. 

Mr. Kallenborn took the stage to introduce the very first act, Oliver Rabideaux. Oliver started the show off with a rendition of “Stereo Hearts”, originally by Gym Class Heroes and Adam Levine. The audience was engaged and supportive from the first act to the last. A lively crowd was vital because the performers’ fates rested in the audience members’ laps. Alongside a panel of judges, the crowd had a chance to cast their votes and put their two cents into who would go home with the first, second, and third-place prizes.

Jayla Clark, known on stage as Soulanna, set the stage aflame with the fire of her performance. The drumline, closing the first half of the show, impressed every judge and audience member with their focus and cutting-edge precision. The drumline’s cohesive and unique performance took home the first place prize at the end of the night.

Lanisa Rosales (vocals and guitar) and Rosie Caprio (drums) performed an original song written by Lanisa. Mia Reyes transported everyone in the building to someplace dark and gloomy with her performance of “Bloodletting”, originally by Concrete Blonde. 

While many talented musicians took the stage, Nate Swan brought an unorthodox, but nevertheless impressive, talent to the stage when he announced a Nascar race displayed on a projector in front of the crowd. Although not many people in the audience may know Nascar as well as Nate, everyone was riveted by his passion and knowledge. 

If you were especially observant throughout the night, you may have caught a glimpse of Jet Palaez before he performed, clad in a red jumpsuit and mask reminiscent of a horror movie. When he finally took the stage, Jet captured everyone’s attention with his guitar accompaniment to Slipknot’s “Duality”. The stage only consisted of Jet, his guitar, and his amp, but that’s all that was needed to captivate a theater full of people. His energy, skill, and confidence earned him third place overall. 

Last but certainly not least, Amber Trigg sang “Selfish”, originally by Madison Beer. She possessed complete control of every run and swooping note, which gave her second place overall. 

While the judges were deliberating over which acts would place (they had an extremely hard decision to make, everyone brought their best!), the audience was guided through Mr. Biga’s account of every U.S. senator, and Mr. Denton’s touching performance of “Sweet Child O’ Mine”. The evening approached an end, and the PAC was lit by small pinpricks of light as everyone turned on their phone flashlights and waved them in time with Mr. Denton’s voice. 

Every performer stood on stage for the last time while Mr. Kallenborn announced those who would be receiving prizes. Congratulations to Jet Palaez, Amber Trigg, and the OLCHS Drumline! 

It was a heart-warming night, full of students taking the stage to be vulnerable and perform their passions, and their peers and community members did nothing but handle them with care and unconditional support.