This year’s talent show was a hit! With hosts Lucien Santoro (freshman, Performing Arts), Katie Lamaina (sophomore, Performing Arts), Rafa Recto (freshman, Health Science), and Carson Clemas (senior, Air Force JROTC), ACIT’s Got Talent returned to the stage without a hitch.

In addition to exceptional hosts, this year’s judges are also worth noting for their unique backgrounds and difficult task in determining the winners of the show. These judges included faculty and students who have their own experiences in show business.

The Judges

Mr. Gallo, the band director and teacher of Instrumental Music, Music Appreciation, and The Evolution of Music, has spent decades working as a professional musician, and is trained in multiple instruments.

Ms. Pickett, school counselor for JROTC, Cosmetology, and the Media & Graphics Programs, has been dancing since 2006, competed in several dance competitions, and taught ballet and tap.

Ms. Zeuner, teacher in the Performing Arts Academy and Dance Club advisor, founded the dance program at Absegami High School, worked as an adjunct professor of dance at Stockton, and founded the Kinetic Poetic Dance Company.

Ava Faretra and Dominic Roberts were both this year’s student judges. Ava, a junior vocalist student in the Performing Arts Academy, won first place in last year’s Got Talent with her vocal performance of “When We Were Young,” by Adele. Dominic Roberts, a senior dancer in the Performing Arts Academy, is our current reigning Mr. Red Hawk.

The Recap

There was never a dull moment in this year’s program. Every act demonstrated an impressive level of talent and variety.

Marangelly Caballero got the show started with an upbeat cover of “No Me Queda Mas,” by Selena.

Next, the dance trio SJT (TaShyah Sample, Theo Sample, and Joslynn Whaley) showed off their dance moves in a hip hop routine.

Tianna Calderon had us thinking a bit about what we would do if it was the last day on Earth as she sang “The End of the World,” by Billie Eilish.

Luis Geda (aka Dr. Redhawk) brought the audience in on his piano-playing, vocal performance, getting everyone to sing along to his rendition of “ Save Your Tears” by The Weeknd.

Next, Kayla Chalchi-Hudson brought the house to tears with her singing of “ Dancing in the Sky,” by Dani & Lizzy.

Bringing back the feel good vibes, Chris Caracci’s piano cover of “Yoshi’s Island Athletic Theme” by Koji Kondo uplifted the audience (and made gamers very happy!).

Another Selena song, “Cobarde,” was performed spectacularly by Rubi Reyes Hernandez.

This was followed by the dance team Pandora (Azucena Perez, Breyannah Santos, and Fernanda Vasquez) with their flawless routine to “Crazy Over You” by BLACKPINK.

The well known song “Jar of Hearts,” by Christina Perri, was brought to life by Zuely Albelo.

The band Vancuso (Steven Fernandez, Luis Geda, and Alex Mendoza) performed their own take on Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” in their show-stopping second-to-last act.

To close, the talented dance duo known as The Slay Girls (Cynthia Deocampo and Vivian Velasquez-Banegas) stunned the audience with their choreography.

The Winners

In the end, the first place prize of $75 and the chance to judge next year’s show went to Luis Geda, whose display of singing while playing the piano astonished the audience.

Second place, with the prize of $50, went to The Slay Girls who rocked their dance performance.

Third place, with the prize of $25, went to the dance trio SJT (TaShyah Sample, Theo Sample, and Joslynn Whaley) with their hip hop performance.

The show ended with many thanks to everyone involved in making the show happen: Mr. Allen, Mr. Stratoti, Stage Crew, Mr. Abate, Mrs. Coslop, Mr. Costantino, Mrs. Giercyk, Mrs. Guyon, Mrs. Mike, Mr. Ney, Ms. Petrella, Mrs. Ricci, Miss Ragone, and all of the judges.