For students who have a talent they wanted to show off but were too nervous to audition for a talent show, a class at Portage High School had a solution.
On April 17, the Saga class hosted an Open Mic Night. The event was from 5-9 pm and featured all kinds of performances. Anyone could sign up to be in the event, as no auditions were necessary to perform in hopes of taking the fear of auditioning out of the equation for performers.
The Saga class at PHS is in charge of putting together a book of, stories, poems and other artwork made by students from the high school students who submit their work.
At the end of the year, the literary magazine Saga is sold to the students for five dollars apiece.
Open Mic Night took place in the PHS Commons area, where a temporary stage was set up for the performers and tables were moved towards the “stage” for spectators to view.
Acts started at 5 pm and included everything under the sun.
There was not only singing, but much more. Throughout the event, there were singers, dancers and musicians. Even some performers chose to share poems or stories that they wrote.
Sophomore Zoe Spencer played her flute for the audience.
“Performing in front of a large group was nerve-wracking, but the reward following the performance was amazingly sweet.” Spencer said. “It’s nice having upperclassmen that you look up to clap for you and tell you that you did something that made them happy.”
Another performer, singer Miriam McWaters also enjoyed herself.
“I was a bit nervous about messing up, but it was a comfortable environment so it wasn’t too bad,” McWaters said. “I felt good after and it was nice to sit back and watch the other performances.”
During the show, last minute signups were available for those who initially did not sign up. After everyone who signed up had their turn, followed by the last minute sign ups, the event became an actual open mic night, were anyone who wanted to could perform.
At six, there was a brief intermission for those who wanted snacks.
There were concessions being sold to help raise money for Saga. Pop, water, Capri Sun, coffee, pizza, Rice Krispies, brownies, cookies, granola bars and chips were all sold. These items were priced between 50 cents and one dollar.
“The whole night was a really great time, it definitely met my expectations,” McWaters said.
