Fundraisers are vital to any sport or club at Verona High School and the Spotlight Players Association is no different. On January 7th, the 9th Annual Talent Show was held in the Verona High School Auditorium to support the plays performed at VHS.
This year’s talent show was a great success with a total of 27 acts. Performers ranged from elementary school students to high school students. Spotlight Players’ very own Shannon Garner, Cara McGinley and Fil Babalievsky hosted the event for the second year in a row. Cara McGinley says her favorite part of the evening was “hosting with Shannon and Fil. It’s our last year so it is a special feeling.”
Cara continues, “All the profit from ticket sales, entrance fees and refreshment sales go directly to a fund of the Spotlight Player’s Parent Association” for the school’s upcoming spring musical, Little Shop of Horrors as well as the Thespian musical All Shook Up.
Younger children sang solos or duets, performed dance routines, and played drum ensembles and piano solos. The auditorium was packed with parents, family, friends and other Verona natives. Entrance tickets also served as a raffle tickets. Between acts, raffles were held for calendars, grab bags, Little Shop tickets and gift cards for the audience.
Many high school students performed, such as Kelsey Mitchell, Ahnie Simonian and Evan Yee; Ryan Yeates and Chris Ehrich performed together as well. Shannon Garner and Katie Egan sang a Taylor Swift duet, and Katie also played “My Best Theory” by Jimmy Eat World with Seniors Alison Sprong and Evan Yee.
“The best part of the night was playing with Katie and Evan,” says Alison Sprong. She continues to say the night was a “fun way to raise money to benefit the spotlight players”.
The talent show’s profits will be displayed at the spring’s musical, Little Shop of Horrors, on March 1st, 2nd and 3rd at the Verona High School Auditorium.