Meet Top 20 for Suburban Chicago's Got Talent
A lone tap dancer will face a musician-dominated field for Suburban Chicago's Got Talent, the summer competition back for its fifth season. There are plenty of familiar faces this year: Nearly half the acts in the Top 20 were contestants in past years.
The general public will get to see them perform when they take the stage at 6 p.m. Sunday, June 26, at the Prairie Center for the Arts in Schaumburg.
Which contestants advance to the next round depends upon two big factors. First, the three-judge panel needs to be wowed. Then, the general public will weigh in.
Videos of each act will be uploaded to dailyherald.com next week, and fans can vote on their favorites. The contestant with the most online votes will be guaranteed a chance to move on. The contestant with the most cumulative online votes throughout the competition wins the Fan Favorite prize, which is still to be determined.
The ultimate winner of Suburban Chicago's Got Talent receives a STARter Kit valued at about $5,000. It includes the chance to open for a national headline act at the Arcada, career mentoring by Onesti Entertainment and professional video and still photo shoots of a live performance and production.
Winners will be announced after a free concert at the Taste of Arlington Heights on Saturday, Aug. 6.
For 2016, Suburban Chicago's Got Talent is co-sponsored by the Daily Herald, Onesti Entertainment, the Prairie Center for the Arts in Schaumburg, the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce, Valli Produce and Salon Lorrene.
Top 20 contestants
Annie Young Gospel Blues Band
Hometown: Annie Young from Elgin, Bill Crampton from Streamwood, Joe Misek from Algonquin
Talent: band
Favorite artist: Michael W. Smith
Brianne Cannataro
Hometown: Schaumburg
Talent: tap dance
Favorite artist: Fred Astaire
Abbey Collins
Hometown: Manhattan, Illinois
Talent: singer and guitarist
Favorite artist: Taylor Swift - she was able to set her goals young and succeed.
Fenced In
Hometowns: Meghan and Caitlin Foley of Villa Park with Dominic Giase of Lombard
Talent: rock band
Favorite artists: The Script and Colbie Caillat, because they have a similar style to us and they also write songs with a lot of meaning, which we think is very important in our own band.
Alex Guzman
Hometown: West Chicago
Talent: singer
Favorite artists: There are so many great artists out there today that it's so hard to choose. I love Beyonce, Rihanna, Adele, Bruno Mars, etc.
Sheridan Hurtig
Hometown: Mundelein
Talent: singer
Favorite artists: Ed Sheeran, as he seems to be a genuinely nice and sincere person who makes beautiful music.
Joelle
Hometown: Arlington Heights
Talent: singer
Favorite artist: Jessie J
Jesse Leon
Hometown: Melrose Park
Talent: singer
Favorite artists: The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson
Logi & the Finger
Hometowns: Rob Porcelius and Nicko McCurley of Libertyville
Talent: singer-songwriter/band
Favorite artists: Probably old Steve Earle.
Ken Markovic
Hometown: Darien
Talent: singer-songwriter and guitarist
Favorite artists: The Avett Brothers, Pigpen Theatre Co., Paul Simon
Rachel McPheeters
Hometown: DeKalb
Talent: singer
Favorite artists: Too many to name. Early influences were The Judds, Tanya Tucker, Shania Twain and Faith Hill. Later, all female pop stars became my idols. Now I enjoy dabbling in songs traditionally sung by males: George Michael, Aerosmith and Counting Crows.
Nate Mitchell
Hometown: Lombard
Talent: singer
Favorite artist: John Mayer
Monk 9
Hometowns: Tom Repetny of Oak Lawn and Joe Kernan of Bellwood
Talent: band
Favorite artists: The Beatles! We just completed our first U.K. tour.
Danny O'Brien
Hometown: Geneva
Talent: singer and guitarist
Favorite artists: Radiohead
Osvaldo Paese
Hometown: Des Plaines
Talent: singer and guitarist
Favorite artist: Bob Dylan
The Pack Drumline
Hometowns: Perry Mister of Aurora, among others
Talent: percussion band
Favorite artists: “Drumline” and the Blue Man Group
Rhea
Hometown: Richmond
Talent: singer and guitarist
Favorite artist: The Violent Femmes
Garrett Ryan
Hometown: West Dundee
Talent: singer-songwriter
Favorite artists: Ed Sheeran, The Fray
San Star Sandberg
Hometown: Geneva
Talent: singer
Favorite artist: Billy Joel
Skyline Semblance
Hometowns: Rachel Frazier of Naperville, Adam Frazier of Naperville, Jake Frantz of Naperville, Kyle McComb of Joliet, Joia Nicholson of Glen Ellyn
Talent: acoustic/rock band
Favorite artists: William Fitzsimmons. He has inspired my songwriting and guitar style ever since I started listening to him eight years ago.
Top 20 judges
Ron Onesti: President and CEO of Onesti Entertainment Corporation, which runs the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles and produces outdoor concerts and festivals throughout the area.
Lisa Soukup: Dean of students at Prospect High School with a master's degree in film and literature from Northern Illinois University and a master's in educational leadership from Concordia College. Soukup was the technical director and stage director for the Rolling Meadows High School Theater Program.
Barbara Vitello: A Lisagor Award-winning writer, the Daily Herald's principal theater critic and legal affairs reporter.
Host
Rob Pileckis: The Chicago resident has hosted events like the Screen Test Student Fest film festival, Summer Breeze concert series and the Schaumburg Youth Orchestra's “Presto!” holiday concerts. He's also conducted interviews onstage with celebrities like opera star Danielle de Niese and Robert Osborne from Turner Classic Movies. For his day job, Pileckis works as production supervisor at the Schaumburg Prairie Center for the Arts.
Suburban Chicago's Got Talent Top 20
See the Top 20
Location: Prairie Center for the Arts, 201 Schaumburg Court, Schaumburg, (847) 895-3600 or
prairiecenter.orgShowtime: 6 p.m. Sunday, June 26Tickets: $10Upcoming shows: Top 15 Sunday, July 17, and Top 10 Sunday, July 31Info: