The curtains lift as the stage is flooded with fluorescent light, harmonious sounds cut through the air and fill the auditorium with a thrilling ambience. Pop Show is truly a performance like no other where students in the choir program serenade the audience while executing a variety of dance styles during the showcase.

“Choir teaches you a variety of genres and Pop Show is one of the extreme genres, especially when compared to stuff like folk music,” senior Roberto Fernandez said. “It integrates today’s society and pop culture from the 90’s.”

The show theme this year is “Vintage” and the show contains a lot of songs that will give the audience a blast of the past.

“All the songs we perform are oldies, from before the 2000’s, unfortunately no Taylor Swift,” senior Joylynn Jogee said.

Typically, the performance is held later in the year during the spring but it was moved to the fall semester due to conflicts with NACDA and TMEA. This new timing has caused some disruptions among many student schedules in choir.

“I’m involved in multiple organizations including Vision and the Fall is our busiest time of year with competitions and football games so it’s been really stressful,” senior Vanessa Rubio said. “I have to balance making up choir rehearsals that I missed for Vision when I also need to focus on my AP classes, ACC classes and college applications”.

Pop Show has been a Vandegrift choir tradition for many years now, and it’s always an event these students eagerly look forward to each year. Several songs from past productions are still ingrained in the memories of some performers to this day.

“My freshman year, the lights on the stage were blacked out and everyone had flashlights and we turned them on and off in time with the song, Bohemian Rhapsody,” senior Akash Shah said.

In order to prepare for their debut, performers were swamped with rehearsals and run-throughs in order to ensure that the production they put on stage was stunning. The hard work all pays off in the end though when these talented students take the stage and proudly showcase everything they have been working on. 

“When the lights come on, all your worries go away because you see people you recognize in the audience and you smile at them and you forget everything else that was stressing you out when you perform,” Jogee said.

Students are given some freedom to create their own production and they use this opportunity to debut performances that show off their individual ideas. One of the most anticipated performances this year is a JLo medley dance performed by a senior, Roberto Fernandez.

“I am doing a special performance, something that isn’t a norm at Vandegrift, I have backup dancers, a backing track I harmonize with and I work around the whole stage while most people only use half the stage,” Fernandez said.

The show put on by the choir department this year is definitely one for the books but unfortunately, it’s the last chapter for the seniors of the program. 

“I am in shock that this is my last pop show and I am so proud of everyone’s work they have put it and I already know I am gonna get emotional,” Rubio said. “Pop Show has been an experience, and it’s something I will remember for the rest of my life.”