As Chapel Hill High School sophomore Sara Gordon looked into the crowd and saw her peers and family, as well as many unfamiliar faces, she channeled her nerves into excitement as she hit the first high note in her cover of the parody of “Part of your World,” by Christina Bianco, and gave an outstanding performance.
Many other students from Chapel Hill High School shared a similar experience with Gordon as they performed their acts at the 2018 Junior Follies.
The show opened with students from the Chapel Hill Improv Group providing a spin-off skit of the Netflix series Stranger Things. Throughout the show, the Improv Group provided comedy for the audience, performing a skit introducing each act.
The enthusiastic tone of the show was set with a rock performance from the Chapel Hill teacher band Corporal Punishment. Members of the band include biology teacher William Richards, drama teacher Thomas Drago and Student Assistance Program Specialist Jim Wise.
Many acts throughout the show included talented vocal performances. Duos, a capella groups and soloists captivated the audience’s attention with their singing voices. Chapel Hill junior Delia Vaisey sang a solo to her original song “Who Wouldn’t Be?” and received cheers from the crowd as she executed the last vocals and notes on the piano.
“Follies season is one of my favorite times of the year because it is a break from everyday life and a great opportunity to share anything creative I have been working on. It’s also just crazy fun in general,” Vaisey said.
As Chapel Hill seniors Tucker Wright and Grace Tate sang a rendition of Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” and Chapel Hill junior Lizzie Mabe played the piano, the auditorium filled with phone lights to accompany the bittersweet performance. After the remarkable duet, the crowd cheered as Tate became filled with emotions and left the stage smiling with tears of joy.
Along with her solo performance, Gordon also sang with her a capella group, Ladies and Gents. The school’s only co-ed a capella group, Ladies and Gents featured solos from every member of the group during its Maroon Five medley.
“Junior Follies is such a great time where you get to perform and spend time with friends,” Gordon said.
Along with the number of singing performances, the Chapel Hill High School Dance Club provided excitement with stellar dancing, and the Chapel Hill Drumline played a cover of the introduction of the Pirates of the Caribbean.
“I really enjoyed seeing the unique performances like the people who played instruments or danced,” senior London Graham said. “I was very surprised to see people I recognize from the hallway perform so amazingly.”
Junior Follies ended on a high note as each member involved in the show rushed the stage and began dancing as the the band Some Antics played original rock songs.
For those interested in being apart of Junior Follies next year, Rachel Broun, a member of the Junior Class Council, provided some advice.
“If you want to audition next year, I would suggest contacting the junior class council and the advisers, who are Mr. Manning and Ms. Rajan,” Broun said. Normally preparation for the show begins in November, and auditions are held in December with all of the proceeds to go funding for the district proms.
