One Last Spotlight

The lights go up on the stage. Surrounded by friends and family, the seniors begin to perform their songs. The lights go up on the stage. Surrounded by friends and family, the seniors begin to perform their songs. As the showcase ends and the auditorium fills with applause, a sense of excitement and sadness fills the room — this is the last showcase at Jefferson Academy for some.

The senior showcase consists of drama club seniors performing a song, a scene or another creative piece.

“I will be doing ‘Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again’ from ‘Phantom of the Opera,’ ‘It Takes Two’ from ‘Into the Woods’ with Ashton, and ‘Six’ with all the senior girls,” senior Abbi Goltz said.

The seniors worked hard for their final performance at JA.

“I started preparing in January for my solo, so about four months,” senior Sofia Araujo said.

The showcase is one of the last solo performances the seniors will give in the drama club and in high school.

“I’m really quite sad. Being able to do these showcases has been so much fun for me throughout the years, and I feel like there’s so much I’d still love to perform. I do believe, though, that this will probably be the best one, and I’m so excited to be able to do it with the best people,” Goltz said.

The drama club has become a close-knit family for its members, and many non-seniors are sad to see the seniors go.

“I’m sad that this was the last showcase with the seniors,” freshman Kendyl Leifheit said. “Even through all the sadness and longing, I was so fulfilled seeing others’ dreams coming true. The whole night was so unifying, and I felt so loved by all of these wonderful people. I wish they weren’t leaving.”

When the showcase ended, emotions ran high throughout the auditorium.

“My favorite part of the showcase was not only getting to show my friends and family what I had been working on, but also spending time with my theater family and getting one big last hurrah before the next show,” Araujo said.