MC’s Got Talent, Montgomery College’s talent show, held April 7, certainly lived up to its name, as audience members watched several MC students show off their talents for a chance to win a scholarship.
The second annual MC talent show garnered a lot of attention and lots of new talent. There was only one returning performer from last year. Packed with singers, dancers and other performers, the Theater Arts Arena was filled with excitement, nervousness and, of course, anxiety. Nevertheless, while the performers were shaking off that last bit of sweat, the audience could not wait to see all the talented performers who made it through the auditions.
Valerie Cabrejo opened the show by singing to the ever popular “Someone Like You” by Adele while playing the piano. This performance was well received by the audience and the judges, especially since the song is by a well-respected Grammy award winner. However, Cabrejo was not the only one to choose a song by Adele for her performance. Leslie Castillo chose “One and Only” for her performance. Singing with a strong and powerful voice, the judges seemed to enjoy her performance as well.
In addition to singers, there were other performances. For example, Kyle Mitcham decided to show off his beatboxing talents, which many seemed to enjoy. As a supplement, he wore a shirt that lit up with music bars, catching the attention of everyone in the room. Drummer Kevin Andrade also chose to wear a shirt that glowed in the dark. In addition, his drumsticks glowed in the dark and he wore a metal mask for part of the performance. What a way to stand out!
Amber Marth decided to show off her hula hooping skills, which many people, including the judges, were very impressed by. Spinning that hula hoop around her waist, neck, elbows, legs and other body parts, it was hard to believe that she only started last year! She even used a glow in the dark hula hoop, in addition to a regular one. No wonder her performance was well received!
One performer who really seemed to enjoy being on the stage was junior, Aurora Aviles. Aviles was the only belly dancer, impressing the judges with her dancing abilities. “It is a beautiful dance, and I was hoping to share that with everyone,” said Aviles. “I like it because it is so different from hip hop and Latin music, and it’s not easy to [belly] dance.” What made her skills particularly impressive is the fact that she learned how to belly dance on her own.
By the end of the performances, only one thing was on everyone’s mind: who are the winners? Cabrejo won first place, Marth won second place and Samuel Charles, who performed Lionel Ritchie’s “Hello,” took home the third place prize. Each of these students will receive scholarship money. According to Student Senate member Miguel Resendiz, the main organizer of the event, the amount of each award is still being calculated.
So why did the Student Senate decide to bring back the talent show from last year? Simply put, it helps out the student population. “It addresses a lot of needs that the students talked to [the Student Senate] about,” said Resendiz. “They say they want more opportunities for scholarships. They say they want to enhance campus life…The talent show accomplishes that. It enlivens campus life.” According to Resendiz, the Student Senate is already planning to bring back the talent show next year. Another year, another set of talent? Who could say “no” to that?