Highline’s Got Talent was able to bring people together to witness the contestants’ array of talents. Students, faculty, and even family members, showcased individual skills and abilities and showed off their passions in a celebratory environment to their community.

Talent shows are timeless, and Highline’s display of skills took place on Thursday, May 8 in Building 7 which provided the stage for students to express themselves. Even though the show has started off a little rocky due to the technical issues, everyone was still able to enjoy the show of talent that Highline brought to its audience. 

Talents ranged from cultural dances, singers, and drum shows. Three judges were set up in front of the stage. After each performance, contestants were paid a well-deserved compliment. Winners were picked by an audience vote, and food was catered by Jumpin’ Jambalaya.

Nine contestants ensured nine different showcased talents. As the contestants were each given a special introduction from two of the hosts, they then had a video played of them talking a little bit about themselves and their talent.  

The first contestant was Ellis Darrow, who has been singing for at least 10 years. He started in elementary school, and was part of his high school’s choir, and did theater for two years. Throughout his performance there were some issues with the microphone and with all of his experience Darrow was able to overcome it and perform the song Santa Fe from the musical “Newsies.”

Darrow said their favorite part was “hearing the audience cheering and clapping for all the contestants. Everyone worked their butts off for the show and I’m glad their efforts were recognized and encouraged.”

Amelia Povalok sang “Fly Me to the Moon.” They have been singing since they could remember. Povalok said, “The best part would be Nadine’s performance. She was the cherry on top and was the best choice for the last performance. We started great and we ended great.” 

Nadine, who has been singing since she was three years old and feels it’s her way of releasing her emotions, was the last performer of the show and ended it with a bang by singing “The Greatest” by Billie Eilish. During her performance you were able to hear all of her emotions and the hard work she’s put into singing.

Jayden Mulamba showed off his talent of dancing. He was able to bring different genres of music into his performance and successfully wowed the audience. 

The top three performers were each given a trophy that they were the best at, Povalok got one for wooing the judges, a different contestant got one for originality, and Mulamba got one as well. While a select few got trophies every contestant got medals.

Leona Oliveros, one of the judges at the show said, “I had a ton of fun at the talent show, and was especially impressed by the audience turn-out. I’ve been at Highline for three years and this was the most crowded event I’ve seen so far.”

Heleya DeBarros, another judge, said, “I was so impressed with the turnout! This just shows you what can happen when we put together brilliant collaborations on campus between our many wonderful departments. Shout out to the PSC, GSA, and CLS! I love seeing students, faculty, and families make the campus come alive.”