Sara Roberts photos

This Is Me!

By STEPHEN FLANAGAN JACKSON

As the klieg lights cast alluring rays of blue, green and red across the small stage, the large crowd in the cafeteria/auditorium of Wimauma Elementary School began to appreciate what the letters WGT stand for: Wimauma’s Got Talent! That talent was on display from the opening choral ensemble by the WGT chorus, through seven interesting student variety acts, and then back around to the WGT choral ensemble for a rousing finale on the evening of May 16.

Talent Show hosts Gabriel Garcia and a very excited Camila Fuentes, under the direction of Misti Rakowitz, prepare to announce the various performances of the Wimauma’s Got Talent event May 16.
STEPHEN FLANAGAN JACKSON PHOTO

The talent show came to be three years ago as a result of Wimauma Elementary’s afternoon clubs, which allow students to stay after school and participate in various activities, according to Wimauma fifth grade teacher, Misti Rakowitz, whose creativity, energy and patience provided the impetus for the awesome production.

“I approached my principal, Ismael Lebron Bravo, and our music teacher, Andrew Lack, with the idea of featuring the kids in my dance club, as well as others in a talent show at the end of the year,” remembered Rakowitz. “With the administration’s okay, our art teacher jumped on board with us as stage designer, and here we are three years running.”

This year’s show and set design were based on the school theme: “This is Me.” The theme stems from the movie The Greatest Showman, a musical inspired by the life of the legendary showman P.T. Barnum. This year’s production had a circus and carnival feel to it. The show is meant to celebrate an individual’s unique talents and differences, according to Rakowitz.

“This is the hit of the town!” exclaimed Karen Fletcher, the assistant principal of Wimauma Elementary School, which includes about 630 youngsters in Headstart, pre-K, and Kindergarten through fifth grade.

Lack is the music director of the show. His students have been working with him since January every Monday and Wednesday afternoon on the choral ensemble, which features soloists, duets and trios, all backed up by an excited group of first- through fifth-grade singers.

Julia DeJarnette is the art/stage director/designer. She works tirelessly to create the stage props and decorations. She includes students, like fifth grader Belen Santiago who helped her to create the audience backdrop, which hung in front of the red curtain. This year DeJarnette even received a grant from the board members of the Metaphysical Society, who generously donated $250. This allowed the purchase of the beautiful red sequined backdrop and other small items for the students like the cheerleaders’ pom poms and hair bows. In addition, student artwork was featured as the WGT program cover designs.

Rakowitz chairs the talent show and works with what are termed the variety acts. These students have been working with her since January, each and every Wednesday. The variety acts this year featured a range of dancers with a variety of styles and ages, first through fifth grade. The Wimauma Cheerleaders started the show with a cheer that was written by third grader Lilia Vargas Abarca. The Wimauma Dance Club ended the variety act portion of the evening with a dance choreographed to the school’s theme song, “This Is Me,” from the hit movie The Greatest Showman.

Other amazing staff include Ronald Estes, music and sound; Socorrito Claudio, videographer; Sara Roberts, photographer; Kristen Holland and Shari Storch, backstage crew; and the Wimauma PTA, who sold concessions, including freshly popped popcorn, which really gave the audience the carnival feel; and countless others who helped with stage set up and tear down.

What makes Wimauma such a special place to work, according to Rakowitz, is the staff collaboration in events like the WGT show. “What you saw tonight was not the result of one individual but the work of many passionate and dedicated teachers, willing to go above and beyond to give our students the opportunity to let their talents shine! Our students, their families, and our staff are one of a kind!” exclaimed Rakowitz proudly.

The Wimauma’s Got Talent Chorus Set #1 prepares for its opening number under the guidance of teachers, from left: Sara Roberts, Misti Rakowitz and Lekecha Burroughs.
STEPHEN FLANAGAN JACKSON PHOTO