“Caripalooza is such a cool experience!” were Brandon Dougan’s first words when asked how to describe Carihi’s annual talent show.
Dougan is a grade 11 student at Carihi and knows how to rock an electric guitar. This year’s show that took place on Wednesday, May 11, was his second time being a part of the extraveganza.
Caripalooza, a name created by combining Carihi and the popular music festival Lollapalooza, has been an annual tradition at Carihi for many years. Each year, it brings young (and old) talent to the stage by offering students and teachers alike an opportunity to showcase their talents in front of an audience of students, staff and others.
“It’s great to be able to perform in front of your peers rather than a group of parents,” said Dougan.
Which is really what sets Caripalooza apart from other talent shows. Students are granted an afternoon off from their courses to take part in the show and support their peers as audience members.
“The crowd is always super generous to anyone who goes up on stage, every act gets a great reaction! I really like that support as a performer.”
Dougan on guitar, along with Max van Lieshout on the drums, Dustin Hutchinson on bass, Thomas Fluckiger on piano, and Jeffrey Lindenbach, Austin Chiasson and Charis Tazumi on vocals performed a cover of Trooper’s “Two for the Show”. The band closed the show with an instrumental medley that included songs such as Europe’s “The Final Countdown”, A-ha’s “Take on Me” and ended with the theme from the popular television series “Trailer Park Boys”.
This year’s show was a massive success with 23 acts that featured many of the school’s talented musicians, singers and dancers. The audience was entertained by the show’s hosts, Cory Bukauskas, Devon MacLean and Henry Gillespie-Graham, who performed skits and told jokes between the acts. Even the teachers took to the stage! Former Carihi teachers, Bill Young and Kai Taylor joined teachers, Rudi Kreis, Joe Shields and principal Sean Toal for an epic cover of Metallica’s version of “Whiskey in the Jar”.
“The performers get to work with a professional sound man” said Dougan, “so being in the show is a good experience for those who want to get into the performing industry. Overall, it gives you professional experience on a stage.”
For grade 11 student Charis Tazumi, being in the show led to another chance to sing again later this summer.
“This year, Caripalooza allowed for me to get another performance opportunity in the community,” she shared.
Tazumi is no stranger to the Carihi stage.
“I’ve been doing [Caripalooza] since I got to Carihi in grade 9. What’s amazing, I’ve noticed, is that at every Caripalooza I’ve gone to and been a part of, the students and the staff and anyone in the audience are super supportive. People are very kind no matter what your act is. They’re just super excited for you and want to support you. That really reflects Carihi’s spirit, which I love being a part of!”
