Santiago Night Live hit the stage on October 19-21, showcasing a compilation of scenes written and performed by Santiago’s own incredible talent from Advanced Theater 3 and 4. From the amusing parody of Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen, to the gentle Disney medley that brought the show to a nice close, SNL captured the audience’s attention from start to finish. Mrs. Beyer, the fearless leader of this annual daunting endeavor, did a fantastic job directing and facilitating the whole show. However, the true brilliance of SNL lied in the relatable humor Santiago’s Theater students were able to portray, both in their writing and performances.

Act 1 began with a high energy opening performance of “I Hope I Get It” from A Chorus Line, showcasing the performers as true triple threats proficient in acting, singing, and dancing. Sophia Hogue (12), the show’s choreographer, offered a fresh new take on a theater classic, and it was definitely nice to see a stronger focus on the technical aspect rather than the comedic tone the rest of the show took on. It established the perfect mood –cheerful, exuberant, and lively — before segueing into the rest of the first act.

One of the more iconic moments of the first act was the closing of the scene “Bad Auditions”, written by Melanie Villalobos (12), Juliana Kilgore (10), and Isabel Agajanian (12). In the scene, auditions are being held for a play, and throughout the course, terrible auditions take place, including a duo who performs an aggressive heavy metal song and a magician who drops her cards, revealing the trick. The casting directors grow incredible aggravated, and when the last auditioner of the night enters the stage dressed somewhere between a homeless person and a librarian (Melanie Villalobos’s unnamed character), they have little hope. However, as the song plays, Villalobos begins to strip her unstylish garb to reveal she is not only beautiful, but she has the voice of a Disney princess. This homage to Victorious, the origin of the concept, allowed for incredible audience reaction, and the stands were raging as Villalobos flawlessly executed “Freak the Freak Out.” This was definitely a high point of SNL that left the audience on the edge of their seats and hungry for more.

Some of the funnier scenes of Act 1 were “The AP” by Sam Carlsen (11), where a girl is sent to a Purgatory-type classroom for dropping an AP class, Pilot Problems by Juliana Kilgore, where a pair of pilots experience blindness and random vocal inflections, and Rap Thursdays Part 2 by Rocco Novello (12), a continuation of a concept in last year’s SNL where a rap battle occurs between students and a teacher.

Act 2 highlighted Kate Crissinger’s (10) intellectual talent, both in her comedic timing and dark humor. Sage Sullivan (11) crafted the most accurate Kim Kardashian impersonation, and Faith Orta (12) dominated the stage with her lip sync to “I Need a Hero.” One can mourn for Christina Duncanson’s (12) loose wig in “Thanksgiving Dinner”, but this mishap only added to the cleverness of the whole show. The Disney Medley provided a nice closing, with props going to Sam Carlsen for his performance of “One Jump” from Aladdin.

Altogether, Santiago Night Live was hilarious, great fun. It was abundantly apparent the cast enjoyed themselves as much as the audience did, and this is really what made the experience so enjoyable as a viewer. If the Santiago theatre department continues in this fashion, we should be expecting a lot more from them this year. Be sure to keep an eye out!