Long before the curtains rise and the stage lights dazzle the crowd, the school’s variety show comes to life in quiet chaos. Behind every spotlight cue and dance number is a team of students and staff working tirelessly — building sets, stitching costumes and fine-tuning every beat to make the final performance look effortless. While the audience sees the magic, few know the marathon of rehearsals and late-night tech runs that make it possible.
English teacher Douglas Gross highlights the variety show’s major impact on students, parents and teachers.
“The Variety Show showcases students who aren’t normally on stage,” Gross said. It really puts the spotlight on someone who has a lot of talent.
The Variety Show is for people who are talented in a variety of things. It can be something as simple as singing or dancing or as unique as karate, roller skating, or the light crew. Performers can be solo or in a group; some even do it in their own band. They even have special ed students performing a number on opening night.
Since the Variety Show has been around at Palatine for the past 40-50 years, it has become a very well-known show around the school, often called the “V-Show.”
The biggest challenge of having the variety show in the spring is that people have spring sports and don’t really have a lot of time to practice.
“Some students are conflicted about participating in the variety show due to a spring sport,” Gross said.
Since the time frame is really short to have practices and rehearsals, it’s only about two to three weeks total of practicing after auditions.
Gross says his favorite part about running the variety show is the people he works with, some of the directors, and getting to know students on a more social level in a very short time frame. He also loves learning what talents students have that he may not have known about while teaching them.
Gross believes it is important to have a variety show.
“It’s a chance to highlight kids who normally don’t get highlighted,” Gross said.
For example, students who are really talented at singing but don’t want to join the choir — or maybe don’t have the time — have the ability to join the Variety Show to express their talents.
The Variety Show is a place where people of all types and talents are able to come together in a unique and fun way. Anika Tsau, a senior who performs covers and sings original songs, especially loves this aspect of the show.
“I’ve performed in the variety show since my freshman year, and it’s always so cool to watch it all come together,” Tsau said. “Everyone has worked really hard to make each act special, and that creativity really shines through onstage.”
The Palatine Variety Show happens on Thursday, April 10, and Friday, April 11, at 7 p.m., where students get the opportunity to see the talent Palatine High School students. It costs $7 for students and $10 for adults. Tickets are being sold in the cashier’s office.
