Langley Has Talent producer and committee chair Peter Luongo is looking forward to Saturday night.

That’s when 13 acts will compete in the LHT finals, and the chance at winning the grand prize of $2,500.

If the semifinals were any indication, it should be quite a show, starting at 7 p.m. on April 18 at Christian Life Assembly.

“It’s absolutely incredible competition,” Luongo told the Langley Advance earlier this week. “I was just looking at the list of competitors and I cannot believe how difficult it will be for the judges to make a decision [on who wins] this year. If all the contestants perform anywhere near the level they did in the semifinals, it’s going to be a 13-horse race. It’s going to be very, very tight.”

An the semifinals held March 28 at CLA, the judges deliberated for roughly an hour after the final act exited the stage, before determining the finalists.

The finalists are:

• Loannis Tsigonias – vocalist

• Caitlyn McKenzie – trapeze

• Rachel Sault – spoken word

• Stephanie Amadasun – vocalist

• Josh G. – rapper

• Sara Garber – piano and vocal

• Her Brothers – band

• The Horvats – vocal and guitar

• Amanda Wormald – silk aerialist

• Alaina Orr – lyrical dancer

• Dante Arias – dancer, and

• Hayley Bouey – vocalist

• The audience favourite (semifinalist 13) is the Trinity vocal trio.

Luongo said the overall quality of the acts is the best in LHT history.

With finalists including a cirque performer, trapeze artist, slam poet, rapper, a band, and singers, “the array of talent alone would rival any performance in any community, on any stage,” he added.

Judges Jolienne Moore, Michael Robards, and Leah Emmott will return for the final, with guest performances from last year’s winners (the musical duo of Jesse LeBlanc and Kathleen Dunn), the 2014 third place finisher (dancer Paige McLachlan), and instructors from Langley’s Cirque school.

Since its inception, LHT has had the support of all four Rotary clubs from Langley, and the goal is to shine a spotlight on Langley’s diverse talent while at the same time pushing forth the vision of a performing arts theatre being established in the community.

“In fact, you could not have a better showcase to display the need for a theatre,” Luongo said. “When you look at all the different types of performers, it really does help you to understand that the stage can be used in so many different ways, if we had a performing arts theatre in this community.”

Find ticket information for the final, click here.

Langley Advance