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Talented Students (and Teacher) Take Stage

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    Students slowly filed in and quickly filled up the Woodland auditorium- a sea of turquoise ribbons. It was time for Woodland’s Talent Show, a senior project by Heather Strandholt to benefit the Teal Ribbon Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation.
    A very emotional and sincere introduction was given by Strandholt, saying that the reason she chose ovarian cancer as her charity is because her grandmother was diagnosed. She encouraged everyone in the audience to consult their doctor about having this disease.
    The opening number in the show was Strandholt’s grandmother’s favorite, “The Rose.” The performers embodied the emotions of the song. Because of this extreme dedication to the content, the song invoked an extremely emotional reaction from the crowd.
    After the heart-felt opening number, the show opened to the other acts. First up, Elizabeth Martin and Sarah Parker took center stage for their duet, “Run to You.”  Then the next few acts shifted from the vocal art to the movement art: dance.   Samantha Savvidou was first with her graceful, lyrical performance. All her moves were smooth and her performance was emtertaining.
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     Taylor Byrne also performed a dance. She had great presence on stage and her moves were noticibly upbeat and energetic. Most impressive was her slow decline into a split.
     The last dance put focus back on the reason for the evening. Sarah Rocks performed another lyrical dance, her movements were smooth and flowing, captivating the audience.
     But it was Corinne Marshall who brought smiles to the faces of the audience with her rendition of “Taylor, the Latte Boy”- an instant crowd pleaser. This funny yet challenging piece showed off Marshall’s impressive range and control.
Following Marshall, Gwen Kirkland sang another funny and entertaining song. “Philosophy” was easily relatable to students and again showed off an amazing voice.
      Strandholt was next to sing and this time she did a duet to her mother. It was a touching performance and a beautiful display of the inherited talent in the Strandholt family.
     Marshall finished off the student section of the show with a duet with her dad. Before beginning she dedicated the song to her aunt who was battling with breast cancer. She then sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” with small variations that made it her own.
     The obvious talent and dedication of the student performers was soon superceded by the appearance of Danielle Shove, Woodland English teacher, and her band, Undercover.   The highly-anticipated show was preceded by a great crowd, forming a mosh pit in front of the stage.  Shove’s students held up signs proclaiming their love for their beloved teacher and rockstar. All that was missing was the band. Not for long.
   Undercover started with a bang as Shove and her band belted out their cover of “Sugar We’re Going Down” by Fall Out Boy. The crowd went crazy, waving their arms and bobbing their heads to the beat. 
   While initially skeptical about the show, Shove soon acclimated herself to the new venue and really rocked the house with a medley of classic rock hits by bands such as Guns N’ Roses, Journey, Linkin Park, The B-52s and, of course, Bon Jovi.
    Undercover really proved themselves to be a talented group – without a doubt the best band to ever play at Woodland. From the ear-shattering riffs of “Welcome to the Jungle” and “Livin’ On a Prayer” to the teen anthem “Don’t You Forget About Me” and the classic “Love Shack.”
    When asked about the show, Shove was incredibly enthusiastic.
   “It was awesome – not gonna lie,” said Shove. “I’m shaking. That may be the best crowd I’ve ever performed for.”
One of Shove’s biggest fears was that the Woodland audience was going to just sit in their seats and listen to the music – a far cry from the bar scene she is used to playing.
   “I expected people sitting in seats in an auditorium, but that was incredible,” said Shove.
    Despite a few setbacks, such as a malfunctioning mic and a parking ticket from the Beacon Falls Police Department, the band genuinely enjoyed playing the benefit show at Woodland.  Lead guitarist and vocalist Kevin Ouellet was pleased with the outcome.
   “[The night] went great and it was for a great cause,”Ouellet said. “We had an awesome time.”

4 thoughts on “Talented Students (and Teacher) Take Stage

  1. Jami January 6, 2010 at 2:34 pm

    you forgot an act…kasey smith and jami archambeault performed love song by sara bareilles.

  2. Kasey January 13, 2010 at 1:17 pm

    The acts by Kasey Officer who performed “Brave” by Idena Menzel and Gwen Kirkland who performed a song from a musical….Both were accompanied by Mr. Lewis on piano.

  3. Kasey January 13, 2010 at 1:23 pm

    I correct my first statment. Only the performance by Kasey Officer was missed.

  4. Heather S February 13, 2010 at 7:53 pm

    Hey guys, thanks for doing this story! I don’t know if you’ll see this, but I was wondering if you could somehow send me the pictures since I can’t save them from the flash slide show. Thanks!

Comments are closed.