There is “American Idol” and “The X Factor”—with Mamaroneck’s phenom Carly Rose Sonenclar—but Westchester has its own singing competition: Westchester Teen Idol, held for the Saturday after Thanksgiving at Irvington’s Town Hall Theater.
A fundraiser for PMT Productions, a Pleasantville-based community theater, Westchester Teen Idol this year winnowed down a list of more than 100 contenders to 25 finalists, who perform before three judges and, typically, a sold-out house.
Tomorrow’s emcee is WHUD’s Kacey Morabito and the judges are Broadway veterans John Treacy Egan (“Sister Act,” “The Producers”) and Mary Bracken Phillips (“1776,” “Annie”) and Ben Hartley (“The Little Mermaid”).
Contestants are 13 to 19 and aren’t exclusively from Westchester; this year’s seventh-annual competition includes acts from Jersey, Long Island and Connecticut, too. Winners receive prizes including a professional headshot and singing lessons.
Here are this year’s finalists: Brittany Bonamassa of Yorktown Heights; Danny Bronico of Bedford Hills; Allison Cane of Bronxville; Brooke Chaco of West Harrison; Christopher Cheeseman of Montvale, N.J.; E.J. Couloucoundis of Darien, Conn.; Julia DiMarzo of Poughkeepsie; Carina Florio of Pleasantville; Breigh Hammel of Pleasantville; Kristen Huttunen of Brewster; Dean Klebonas of Oceanside; Jinji Martine of Croton-on-Hudson; Kylie McDonald of Fishkill; Erynn Legna McLeod of White Plains; Heather Rose of Montrose; Sarah Rossman of Rye; Mikey Rubin of Chappaqua; Max Schoetz of Chappaqua; Jessyca Silva of Yonkers; Lauren Spatafore of Rye Brook; Rachel Stagg of West Harrison; Noel Tyminski of Tinton Falls, N.J.; Emily Ultan of Pleasantville; Rosie Veltri of Port Chester; and Elizabeth Vuksanaj of New Rochelle.
The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and a few tickets are still available, at $25.
Here’s a look at last year’s “Westchester Teen Idol” winner, Cayla Pettinato of Harrison.
Cayla was a standout in her high-school musical last year, “42nd Street,” at Harrison, winning a Metropolitan High School Theater Award for her vocal performance as Peggy Sawyer. Here’s my writeup on her then. And here’s a video in which she was featured.
