The second annual “Sedona’s Got Talent” competition, hosted by the nonprofit Parangello Players for students from Sedona Charter School and West Sedona School, took place at the Sedona Performing Arts Center on Thursday, March 6, featuring 18 acts, funded through a grant from the city of Sedona.

Students from the two schools competed for bragging rights and for a school trophy. For the second consecutive year, SCS took home the top honors.

The students competed in two different age groups this year, with SCS third-grader Leila Flores winning the third-to-sixth grade category with her rendition of “I Won’t Grow Up” from “Peter Pan” and SCS second-grader Louis Bourque winning first prize in the kindergarten-to-second grade cohort with a vocal performance of Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things.” Each winner received a trophy and a $100 prize, while second- and third-place contestants received prizes of $50 and $25.

“Performing arts are no longer widely taught in schools. We believe they provide a valuable curriculum that enhances students’ creativity, diction, English skills, public speaking and stage presence,” Parangello Players president Elyce Monet told the audience. “All of these students have worked incredibly hard over the past six weeks to prepare for tonight’s competition.”

“It’s funny because Lilu [Cordova] is my bestie and we have completely different songs,” Flores said while watching Cordova take second place in the upper-class category by performing Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.” “It’s not the same as the performance I did last year by Shania Twain. I’ve learned a lot of different things about how to sing this year and perform. I had more personality with it this year because last year I didn’t dance, I just sang.”

“When I first started practicing ‘I Will Always Love You,’ I struggled to understand the song. It seemed difficult but I practiced constantly in my room, using a karaoke version to help me learn,” Cordova said. “[Singing] just brings so much joy to my life.”
WSS fourth-graders Wylenn Segle and Peyton Gonzales took third place in their age group with a dance routine to the song “Austin” by Dasha.

“It feels really good. I got a hundred bucks, a giant trophy. I won two, actually, because I got a first place in the Sedona Charter Talent Show — and now I got one in the mega talent show,” Bourque said after being announced as the winner for his division. “I’m going to try and do as much as I can with the [money]. My basketball team, we’re going to Z Claw, and I might spend the money on some tokens for the team … and we’re going to eat at my dad’s restaurant, too.”

Bourque has been practicing almost every day and credited his mother with giving him the idea for some stage banter by shouting out “I love you, Sedona” to the crowd.

“I sang Benson Boone because he’s a really famous singer, and I love that he praises God, and believes in God,” Bourque said.
WSS second-grader Crux Segel won second place among the underclassmen by performing “Riptide” by Vance Joy, while Oliva Locksley, a WSS second-grader, took third place singing “The Dot Song” by E. Arrow.

“I like how [‘Riptide’] goes,” Segel said. “Because my dad used to sing that to me when I was a kid. I like being in the performance and singing in front of people is the most fun part.”

He was accompanied by his father, Trevan, on guitar, and was followed by Savia Spyra singing “Hey Soul Sister” by Train.

“Singing was my favorite part of tonight,” Spyra said, adding that she learned to “have courage” from the experience.

“My four kids have spent months practicing and getting ready for their performances,” Trevan Segl said. “Having that opportunity to be able to showcase yourself is pretty incredible … It’s beautiful to see the kids excel on their own.”

Locksley said that she chose to perform “The Dot Song” because when she first enrolled at West Sedona School in November, her class often sang it.

“I decided on it because I know my whole class loves it,” she said.

The opening act for the night was SCS first-grader Anastasia Zub, who sang “Let It Go” from “Frozen,” which she performed in both English and Ukrainian in honor of her mother, who immigrated to the United States 15 years ago. Her father also built a set with lighting for her performance.

“We were dancing and doing gymnastics and best friend moves to ‘Best Friend Song’ because we are best friends,” WSS second-grader Rowyn Fox said after performing with Cali Lewis.

“We practically both like the same things, and we just really love being each other’s friends,” Lewis said. “We met in first grade, we were in the same class. My favorite memory of that year was meeting her and trying to do back tucks but always failed. It was so fun. We know how to do it now.”

“My favorite part of singing was being on stage. It wasn’t scary because everyone was singing along,” SCS kindergartener Clara Jones said after singing Raffi’s “The More We Get Together.”

WSS first-grader Reign Rampel recited his original poem “Doggy Doggy.”

“My favorite things to write poems about are dogs and sharks because sharks swim in water and I like swimming,” Rampel said.

SCS sixth-grader Aria Weed sang “Teeth” by 5 Seconds of Summer.

“I chose it because it really fits my vocal range and it’s full of emotion,” Weed said. “I want to make a difference in the world. I want to make the world a better place by making all people treated equally. And I want to deliver a message through my music.”

“I sang ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift because I love how she sings and how she sings songs with confidence,” WSS third-grader Jenicka Villagrana said. ”The secret to confidence is that you believe in yourself and you know that if you don’t make it to the finals you’re still good at it.”

WSS fourth-graders Ellie Rodal, Kiersa Boone, Arabella Griffin and Isaac Joyono performed to Britney Spears’ “Oops, I Did it Again.”
“There’s lots of movement and we had lots of fun,” Boone said. “[We learned] that we’re brave and that we can know that we can be on stage,” Rodal said. “But that we can still make mistakes,” Joyono added.

Taralynn Allen, a fourth-grader at WSS, performed Olivia Rodrigo’s “Deja Vu.”

“I just like how the song goes, and I feel like singing is my passion. I like how the song goes high and low and then it goes, like, super flowy,” Allen said.

WSS fourth-graders Westlyn Segle and Ivy Epperson performed a dance to one of their favorite songs, “Count on Me” by Bruno Mars.
“We moved to the same neighborhood when we were like two,” Epperson said. “It helps learn to not be afraid of being on stage. But the hardest part was getting all the moves down.”

SCS fifth-graders Ashlynn Doyle and Bella Marie Barre performed a dance routine with hula hoops to “Feel It Still,” by Portugal The Man.
“I learned to be confident in myself and go out and perform,” Barre said. “It made me more brave and got me out of my comfort zone. This was our last year with Miss Elyce, so it’s pretty special.”

SCS third-grader Chole Stumpf performed Taylor Swift’s “Clara Bow.”

“This is my first time doing ‘Sedona’s Got Talent,’ so I was actually pretty scared to do it,” Stumpf said. “I’ve learned a lot from Miss Elyce. She has taught me a lot. She told us recently she’s moving to California in April.”

The students presented Monet with a token of their appreciation following the show. Monet arrived in the Verde Valley in 2017 and said that she will be relocating to launch a new streaming service.