Excitement Plus at LA's Next Great Stage Star Finale
By: Don Grigware Feb. 13, 2012
On Sunday February 12 LA's Next Great Stage Star brought its annual six-week singing competition to a rivetingly pulsating conclusion @ Sterling's Upstairs @ Vitello's. Twenty contestants who began on Sunday January 8 performed, and 14 judges then narrowed the group to five finalists. Not an easy task, as this year's contestants were all immensely talented vocalists who gave their all to every single performance! Once the five finalists were announced, each performed one more time in order for the judges to pick a winner. Lovely Chelsea Emma Franko from Apple Valley took the top prize. In second place is Carrie St. Louis. Tyson Pyles and David Michael Laffey tied for third place, and in fourth, sweet, petite Justine Huxley. Audience had assigned points to the contestants for the first five weeks and the judges weighted these results as part of the final voting.
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Highlights of the afternoon included: from Carrie St. Louis, the eleventh hour delight "Disneyland", "Once Before I Go" by Laffey, a thrilling "The Fire Within Me" from Franko, who dynamically opened the show and set the bar way high for everyone else to follow, a rousing "Sing Happy" from Huxley and the rarely sung "The Lady Must Be Mad" from Pyles. In the final round Laffey soared with "Use What You Got" from The Life, usually sung by a female, and Franko hit the mark with Streisand's "Piece of Sky" from Yentl. James Lent once again served as musical director and Michael Sterling the affable host. When judge Tony winner Sammy Williams was announced, Sterling followed it with a film clip of his Tony win and speech for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for A Chorus Line from the 1975 Tony Awards. This proved inspirational to one and all, especially to the twenty contestants waiting in the wings to go on. Verbal comments from the judges about each performance were eliminated this time to keep the afternoon rolling along at top speed, and indeed it did. A very enjoyable afternoon that came in under three hours! |
| According to strict contest rules, the winner receives $1000 in cash, and all 5 finalists receive their own gig @ Sterling's and guaranteed auditions for top casting directors, agents and musical theatres in LA and for Glenn Casale @ Music Circus in Sacramento. This was a great finale ending six-weeks of LA's annual one-of-a-kind entertainment. We'll look forward to LA's Next Great Stage Star 2013! |
(photo top: from left to right, Chelsea Emma Franko, Tyson Pyles, Carrie St. Louis, David Michael Laffey and Justine Huxley)
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When I talked with all five winners of LA's Next Great Stage Star 2012, I could see that they all have one big plus in common: they all love theatre with a feverish passion and are willing to work endlessly for their craft.
First place Chelsea Emma Franko hails from Apple Valley (in the desert before Barstow) and attended a local 2 year community college. She adored playing Ado Annie in Oklahoma at Performance Riverside and has also done Val in A Chorus Line. When she saw Thoroughly Modern Millie she became hooked on Sutton Foster's talent and knew that she too belonged in the theatre. She cannot see herself doing anything else. For our sake, I hope she endures forever!
Second place Caroline (Carrie) St. Louis from Palm Desert has been an opera major at USC. As a young girl she played a milk maid in Oliver and longs to do theatre as opposed to opera. She would love to do Sweeney Todd - maybe Mrs. Lovett in a few years - and any role in Into the Woods, such as Cinderella. She certainly has the looks and charm to match that role!
Third place Tyson Pyles (tie) from Fresno has the handsome good looks to make anyone swoon. He also has an energy that just won't quit. Both qualities make him a perfect candidate for a successful leading man, and maybe even a comedic character man eventually. Since he performed Titanic in high school, he took the cue from idol/actor Brian D'Arcy James and wants to make his livelihood in theatre. He feels "blessed" to have been chosen in this fine group of performers.
Third place David Michael Laffey (tie) from San Pedro trained to be a firefighter in 2008, but after essaying Satan in Jerry Springer the Opera, he knew he had to keep doing theatre. For that performance he received a Best Actor nomination. He sings with gusto - is a dancer as well! - and definitely belongs on stage as a leading man. Would make a great Billy Bigelow in Carousel!
Fourth place Justine Huxley from Sherman Oaks adores singing Stephen Sondheim. She did a beautiful job on his "What More Do I Need" in the last round of the contest. She loves the opportunity to convey "emotion and personality" within a song. She is also a successful working voice-over artist and has recently recorded a murder mystery on audio book.
These five versatile performers are definitely winners and their theatrical passion should keep them actively working for years to come on the legit stage.
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