Spartanum Dazzles in Post-COVID Return
By Kayla Rosati ’22
Every year East Longmeadow Public High School hosts its talent show: Spartanum. This year however was particularly important, as it marked the first Spartanum show since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. After a two-year wait, the show did not disappoint its audience.
Featured acts varied from the full ELHS orchestra to the more solitary performances of individual bands. Jenny Shin, Miranda Flood, and Aaron Hamilton kept the audience thoroughly invigorated between performances as MCs.
Xavier Torres, who provided the vocals and guitar for a rendition of Lithium by Nirvana (accompanied by Elliot LaRoque on bass guitar and Mitch Aarons on drums) regarding his own experience auditioning, practicing, and performing.
“Ever since I learned to sing and play it’s always been a dream of mine to get on stage and perform.” Torres said. “I’ve been self-taught at guitar for two years. The first song I learned was Smoke on The Water by Deep Purple.”
Despite their seemingly natural stage presences, rehearsal was necessary for all of the performers.
“At first it was rough,” Torres said, “but Mr. K gave us pointers and tips. Then we had it down, and he said it was the most improvement he had ever seen in one rehearsal. I was rehearsing twice every other week. I tried my best to stay consistent. At least 48 hours in and out of school all together, maybe more. Time flies when you’re having fun.”
As it usually does, ELHS maintained a sense of community and positive energy during every aspect of Spartanum. Those involved with its production helped make it a very welcoming environment for performers to display their unique passions to a captive audience.
“The only stressful part was performing the first night. I was not expecting the audience’s reaction.” Torres said.
Throughout the show, audience energy remained consistently high. Some acts even encouraged audience participation, such as clapping to the rhythm or singing along. As the night came to a close, each performer received their own spotlight moment in a projected slideshow, thanking them for their dedication and hard work. Everyone took their final bow, thus marking the end of Spartanum’s glorious return from its extended hiatus.
