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Arts & Entertainment

Delco Idol and Delco Idol Jr. Get First 40 Contestants

After two long evenings of over 200 auditions, the Delco Idol competitions are on.

MEDIA–Monday and Tuesday brought out a record number of 200 young and talented locals hoping to be the next winner. Before the auditions Artistic Director, Jesse Cline addressed the crowd of nervous singers with direct honesty.

"I'm not looking for imitations. I am not a fan of tribute bands," said Cline. "You are playing your music, not someone else’s."

Cline said he believes the best performers have a sense of honesty and truth about their talent. He also reiterated with the crowd that though this may be a competition it should still be fun, and if it's not fun it isn't worth doing it.

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When the crowd was asked if they were nervous, barely any hands went up, but the Media Theatre staff knew better.

"People are nervous. I can feel the tension," said Box Office Manager Matthew Baehr. He also noted the Delco Idol Jr. competition was "picking up some steam."

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The contestants for both Delco Idol and Delco Idol Jr. waited patiently in the theater with parents and friends. A few were rehearsing while others caught up with friends.

Aubrey Dangle, 17, was trying out for the first time. She picked a song with a lot of emotions, but felt very comfortable singing Alicia Keys' "No One." If she won, she planned on using the grand prize money for her senior trip to Florida.

Bridget Yingling, 17, attends Springfield High School and plans to study musical theatre in college. She was auditioning with "How to Return Home" by Kerrigan and Lowdermilk. Musical theatre writer Kerrigan is the daughter of Yingling's director and both artists greatly inspire and influence Yingling.

Friends Chris Infantino, Katie Stecklair, Jordan Robbins, Jason Tyler Armstrong, Carley Katz, and Maggie Molen gathered together for support and a few preaudition laughs. Armstrong had just picked his song that night; he referred to his selection from the musical, Hair, as "epic."  They all love musical theatre and hope to pursue it as a career.

Natalie Walden, 15, decided to perform a song that would show off her vocal range, "The Light in the Piazza." She never traditionally trained, but has always been singing. She has been in Les Miserables, Annie, and also participates in choir.

"I have a really positive attitude towards it [DelCo Idol] and I'm really excited to be a part of it. I think it would be a really fun experience," she said.

Cindy Buonopane's son Ricky, 11, always sings. He's a member of the band Lil'Rock and has played at the Hard Rock Cafe in Orlando. Ricky seemed pretty confident of his audition, but his mother was another story.

"My heart was pounding. I get nervous when he gets in a competition," said Buonopane.

The auditions were filled with plenty of talent and a variety of musical styles. Cline said about 50 percent of the auditions were comprised of show tunes with the most popular show being Wicked. Another 40 percent were pop songs and a few other standouts performed country music. Carrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats" was a crossover hit that several singers took a crack at.

Even if a contestant didn't make it to the final cut, Cline wanted each performer to take away a lesson from the experience. During one audition he directly asked one particularly flustered contestant who flubbed her song, "What did we learn from this?" 

He told another contestant to stop listening to herself and just sing it, the result was a better audition.

"It's dishonest to lead people on. Sometimes you just have to say 'you need to do this,' 'you need to do that.' Because if you don't you are wasting your time," explained Cline.

By the end of the night there were 40, instead of the usual 30, contestants competing for the title of DelCo Idol. There are another 40 little kids with big voices ready to sing their way to becoming the next DelCo Idol Jr. Cline advises contestants to begin carefully choosing the first three numbers. These songs should represent the singer's individual talent, range, and style, but also show variety. Cline recommends not trying out new material, perform pieces they are comfortable with; they key is always to be yourself.

Patch congratulates all the contestants for the DelCo Idol.

Below is the top 40 who will be competing starting on July 6.

The 2011 DelCo Idol contestants are:

Rebecca Alexander, 18, Newtown Square
Jason Armstong, 17, Newtown Square
Kyleigh Bleacher, 14, Ridley Park
Danielle Brown, 18, Media
Kasey Brown, 14, Kennett Square
Jack Crenscenxo, 19, Wilmington, DE
Ray Crozier, 15, Garnet Valley
Riley Duffie, 21, Glen Mills
Emma Elliott, 14, Wynnewood
Carlie Fresh, 16, West Chester
Tre Fountain, 14, Prospect Park
Rosaleen Gallagher, 19, Secane
Molly Jo Gifford, 14, Delaware County
Michael Hall, 17, Wallingford
Melanie Herrarra, 18, Wallingford
Ben Iffrig, 16, Springfield
Christopher Infantino, 15, Media
Carly Katz, 16, Broomall
Julie Keyes, 18, Garnet Valley
Amber Lallo, 16, Glen Mills
Brian McFadden, 24, Drexel Hill
Camille Mola, 19, Springfield
Maggie Molen, 16, Garnet Valley
Ashley O' Conner, 24, Prospect Park
Emily Peterson, 21, Phoenixville
Anna Phillips, 15, Lansdowne
Jordan Robbins, 18, Malvern
Dan Romano, 23, Upper Darby
Jenna Sharples, 14, Berwyn
Jessica Sharples, 19, Berwyn
Ambria Smith, 15, Media
Diana Springer, 22, Malvern
Katie Stecklair, 16, Southampton
PJ Syfrit, 23, Glen Mills
Elizabeth Van Horn, 16, Media
Natalie Walden, 15, West Chester
Zachary Workman, 17, Brookhaven
Bridget Yingling, 17, Springfield
Katherine Young, 22, WayneMichael Mann, 13, Aston
Cara Turner, 15, Delaware County
Michael Mann, 13, Aston

 

The DelCo Idol Jr. contestants are:


Alex Castellano, 11, Newtown Square
Beada Briglia, 10, Media
Dan Briglia, 11, Media
Alex Buonapane, 11, Brookhaven
Katejolie Carney, 12, Delaware County
Aidan Cole, 12, Wallingford
Kerry Collins, 8, West Chester
Josh Feldman, 7, Chadds Ford
Amber Duncan, 12, Wallingford
Noelle Fala, 13, Garnet Valley
Patrick Gaughan, 11, Wallingford
Lauren Grajewski, 12, Newtown Square
Jason Heyes, 13, Media
Michelle Heick, 9, West Chester
Brianna Jaffe, 9, Media
Blake Jelus, 12, Broomall
Julia Lowman, 10, Wallingford
Harrison Kracht, 12, Media
Rachel Liney, 9, Media
Andrew Loper, 13, Springfield
Tess Mallon, 13, Havertown
Paul Mariani III, 11, Ardmore
Brianna Mazzola, 10, Glen Mills
Paige Mazzola, 8, Glen Mills
Noah Mendell, 13, Wallingford
Claire O' Neill, 11, Ambler
Makenna Mink, 10, Glen Mills
Danny Murphy, 12, Delaware County
Jo Nicholson, 13, Media
Teanna Rico, 11, Essington
Erika Roberts, 13, Rose Valley
Teddy Rosenbluth, 12, Swarthmore
Meghan Rossi, 13, Philadelphia
Abigail Schwartz, 11, Media
Christopher Smith, 10. Media
Emily Smith, 9, Media
Gregory Smith, 12, Media
JD Triolo, 9, West Chester
Michael Walczak, 13, Glenolden
Alexandra Zeh, 12, Wayne

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