In an evening of powerful musical performances, the SHS theater department presented the 2021 Variety Show on Thursday, October 21 and Friday, October 22. 

Directed by Mrs. Micheletto, Mr. Palazzolo,  Mr. Inendino, and Mr. Graffeo, the show, a compilation of angelic voices, talented musicians, and majestic dancers, was certainly a night to remember. 

“The Variety Show is one of my favorite weekends of the year; there are so many talented students here, and we feel lucky to be able to showcase some of them,” reflected Mrs. Micheletto. “This year’s group was particularly lovely–so supportive of each other both on and off stage.”

Even with COVID protocol, the show went off without a hitch. With all performers in masks and adhering to distancing requirements, emcees Brandon Saam and Kallia Memtsas wove together the acts to help create a cohesive event. Saam and Memtsas told jokes and prepared the audience for each performance.

”As an emcee, I’m in a unique position where I get to introduce the students who are showcasing their talents, and also take part in the show myself, which is really cool,” Emcee Kallia Memtsas said.  

The evening began with a performance by the jazz ensemble performing “Hullabaloo” by Alan Baylock and culminated with the SHS Choraliers performing “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd. The show also highlighted Nicole Setiawan’s violin dueling with Alan Medina’s saxophone, original and improvised piano pieces by Melanie Medina and Simeon Nedev, and various musical and dance numbers. The audience erupted for Aylana Springfield, who performed a stirring rendition of Adele’s “All I Ask.”

The song “All I Ask” is a song that means a lot to me,” Springfield stated. “I know as humans with feelings and emotions we have all felt heartbroken over a loss of someone you deeply loved. So to express that feeling of having just one more time to be loved by that person provides a sense of comfort. So I wanted to give that feeling from personal perspective and experience. Knowing I brought joy, happiness, and even tears to the crowd means the world, to know I’m doing something right.”

In all, Variety Show offers performers an opportunity to connect and collaborate with their peers. 

“The show was a great experience and both the cast and crew were so supportive of one another,” cast member Michah Keir commented. “I had a lot of fun and really connected with my peers through great songs and corny jokes.”

While this year’s cast demonstrated their talents, the tech crew worked hard to put all of these talented performances together. Adding lighting, background music, and effects, the tech crew helped create a one of a kind experience.  

“Anything the [performers] need in order to put on their best performance is what tech does,” Senior Joshua Holmberg said.

Senior Jacob Hernandez, sound crew head, notes that “in the SHS theater department, we use a lot of equipment to allow performers to project their own voices so that the audience can hear it, as well as any other things like music and instruments.” 

The SHS theater department now moves to its fall play Life is Short, which opens November 18 and runs through November 20.