Rising stars take the stage at cafe samo

On January 26 and 27, the Samo choir program hosted its annual Cafe Samo show, leaving an adoring crowd in awe of the students’ talent. Each act was carefully picked through an audition process led by Brooke Aron (’24), Justin Xu (’24), Walden Sullivan (’25), Sam Rubin (’25), Madeline Bryce (’24), Hope Hamilton (’24), Sarah Linowes (’24) and Valentina Manco (’24), and ultimately 21 acts were selected to play both nights. Upon being chosen for the show, students had just 10 days to prepare for the final culmination of their hard work. 

The concert is student-coordinated, and directed by leaders Aron and Hamilton. Aron reflects on the considerations when choosing the soloists and performances, especially as auditions were open to all choir levels, but only 20 spots were available. 

“We wanted the show to be jam packed with fun songs that featured all grade levels and many students per number. It was difficult because there were so many good auditions!” Aron said.

Saturday and Sunday opened with student-led acapella groups Beatyshop and T-Tones, and Valkyries and Barbershop, respectively. Following these performances, Azeliya Woldemariam (’24) gave a powerful rendition of “Forget You” by CeeLo Green. Woldemariam's confidence on stage and striking voice was the perfect fun opening for the night. Some standout acts were Linowes’ soulful rendition of “Dreamer”, “Sway” performed by Ansel Brodkin (’27) and Julia Orsolini’s (’24) moving recital of “In the Kitchen”. Before a short intermission, Aron closed the first act with a jazzy and energetic performance of “Tears dry on their own”. 

The second act featured nearly a dozen breathtaking songs, including Juliett Rojas’ tender rendition of “Lose Control” and an acapella performance of “Dreams” by Sienna Goetz (’24), Hamilton, Orsolini, Linowes, Lilly Bennett (’24), Aron and Manco. Concluding a great show, the entire cast of singers performed “Somebody to love”.

While the singers certainly stole the show, the production couldn’t have come to fruition without the help of accompanying musicians and an impressive tech team. Adam Silverman (’25) featured in many songs, displaying major skills in his guitar solos on both electric and acoustic guitar. Salo Singer (’25) and Henry Sullivan’s (’25) violin in “Dust in the wind” and Elianna Radusky’s (’25) Cello in “Dreams” were both impressive. 

Cafe Samo serves not only as a display of Samo’s best musicians, but also a learning experience for the students dedicating weeks of their time in preparation for the event. From the lighting, to the sound and stage structure, the final show quality was a true feat.  

“I was proud of how it was executed and how quickly it was pulled off. As for the tech side of things, the Farzams helped so much with sound, lights, and stage management,” Aron said.