Johnson Middle School held their annual talent show, known as the “Spring Thing,” on May 24. The theme of the year was the decades, and the student hosts introduced the popular occasion dressed in attire from the 70s to the future.
“Teachers who attend the show are often surprised by the various ‘hidden’ talents of their students,” said Technology Support Specialist BJ Burke. “The kids feel like rock stars when they hear the applause from their parents and their peers.”
Sixth graders Alexandra Richardson and Rebecca Stern opened the event with a performance of the song “Popular” from the musical Wicked. Following this act, seventh grader Brooke Buckley danced to “To Build a Home,” and eighth grader Grace Ward sang to “Supermarket Flowers.” Nina LaRusso performed both vocally and on the piano to the song “Better Place.” Other vocal performances included “Speak Now” by Ainsley Roof, and an Adele medley by Allyssa Petit-Maitre and Mollie Kippenberger.
“I’ve been in the Spring Thing crew every year and I thought it would be fun to participate again,” said eighth grader Amanda Melish, one of the hosts. “Our show is unique because of the variety of acts we have.”
Brookie Arena read the poetry pieces “Untitled” and “Shipping Packages”, and later, Hawa Lukwago had a dance and gymnastics routine to “Cut to the Feeling.” Maanas Goel performed a skill demonstration with a Rubik’s Cube. Finally, to conclude the first act, Darrel Whidden, a teacher at Canton High School and the Stoughton Music Center, performed a medley of piano lessons through the decades with a twist on “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.”
“It is great to see teachers who are willing to share their passion with their students outside of the classroom,” said Burke. “Mrs. Calandrelli and Ms. Smith ignite a spark in these kids that very often follows them into high school and beyond.”
Kicking off the next act, Yash Shroff performed “Adventure of a Lifetime” by Coldplay on the drums. Another musical performance included in this act was eighth grader Scotty Cameron’s entertainment medley on Bari Sax. Some students choose to show off their dance routine including Molly Malone who danced to “Fix You,” while other dance acts included Sami Goldman’s performance to “First Burn,” and a classical Indian dance by Hansini Gundavarapu.
“A unique quality of my act is that almost no one plays the bari sax,” said Cameron.
Other students in this act chose to showcase their vocal abilities, including eighth grader Erin Ledwith who sang “Almost There,” and eighth grader Alexandra Azar who sang “Million Reasons” by Lady Gaga. Two of the hosts, Joe Glynn and Danny Fredette performed monologues called “Dream” and “The Last M&M Samurai.”
“I have participated in [the Spring Thing] since sixth grade and it’s so fun that you get to share your talent with other people,” said Azar.
One of the most anticipated components to the “Spring Thing” is the staff act. This year, various members of the staff competed against each other in a lip sync battle, mouthing the words to famous songs like “ABC” by the Jackson 5, “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” by Cyndi Lauper, “U Can’t Touch This” by MC Hammer, “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen, and “Can’t Stop the Feeling” by Justin Timberlake. At Johnson Middle School, the students and staff hope to continue to show off their talents in the annual “Spring Thing” in the future.
“There’s something magical in students showing off their different talents and I love to see that come out in the Spring Thing,” said chorus teacher Kimberly Calandrelli. “Everyone is so encouraging of one another. A lot of hard work goes into the show and it’s great to see it all come together.”