Suburban Chicago's Got Talent: Top 15 perform in Schaumburg
Meghan Foley may have been bullied in middle school, but she was the one who brought judges and audience members to tears - in a good way - Sunday night in the Suburban Chicago's Got Talent contest at the Prairie Center for the Arts in Schaumburg.
The soon-to-be Willowbrook senior performed her original song "Fearless," dedicating it to everyone who has fought or is fighting cancer.
"You've got to put up your best fight/when the darkness squeezes in you've got to make your own light," the Villa Park teen sang as one of 15 finalists in the summerlong contest.
"Music is my way to reach people," Foley said afterward. "It gives me confidence."
Judges - two of which admitted the song brought them to tears - offered Foley a couple suggestions, but marveled at her music.
"The song got to me," said Ron Onesti, a judge and president and CEO of Onesti Entertainment Corporation, which operates the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles. "I couldn't even speak."
Monday night, videos of each performer will be available at dailyherald.com. Readers' votes will decide who will advance.
"Who knew there was this much talent in the suburbs?" said Barbara Vitello, a judge and Daily Herald Theater Critic and Legal Affairs Reporter. "We may have suspected it, but this confirms it."
Laura Kuper, 15, also brought judges to tears with her interpretation of "Hallelujah," dedicated to her grandmother.
Five of Sunday night's performers will be cut before the Top 10 go at it again Aug. 2, and finally on Aug. 8 at the Taste of Arlington Heights, where the winners will be announced.
Arlington Heights-based band Burke Valley continued its strong showing and started off the night with a funky, sultry original song that immediately unleashed the audience's energy.
"The feeling just came through," said John Flamini, chairman of Schaumburg's Cultural Committee. "You could feel it in the audience."
The grand prize is a STARter Kit, which includes promotional photos, a performance as an opening act for a major headliner at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, and more.
Readers may vote for their favorites at dailyherald.com/entertainment/talent, and the contestant with the most online votes is guaranteed a spot in the Top 10. The act with the most online votes throughout the competition also wins a Funjet Vacation for two.
In addition to Onesti Entertainment, Suburban Chicago's Got Talent is sponsored by the Daily Herald, the Prairie Center for the Arts in Schaumburg, AMITA Health, Rohrman Auto Group, Salon Lorrene and the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce.