Zajac named 2021 Shining Star CLE
by Melissa Martin
The third time was definitely the charm for Broadview Heights resident Calista Zajac who, after competing in the Shining Star CLE singing competition for the past three years, took home the coveted first-place trophy in this year’s contest.
“It was really exciting to win and a truly humbling experience after being involved for the past three years,” Zajac, 16, said. “It was such an honor to be performing with such amazing talent.”
A junior at Magnificat High School in Rocky River, Zajac won the final round of the competition with her rendition of “Being Alive” from the musical “Company.”
“It’s usually a traditional song sung by a man, but I’ve always loved it and I thought it would be really cool to gender bend a song,” Zajac said. “I also thought the song had a really great message in how important it is to share our lives with other people instead of staying insolation, especially since we’ve all had experience dealing with isolation this past year.”
Zajac, who placed fourth in the Shining Star CLE competition in 2019 and third in 2020, is currently rehearsing for the role of Mary Poppins in Magnificat’s upcoming production of “Mary Poppins,” which opens Nov. 19. Her resume of theatrical work to date also includes the roles of young Cosette in the Great Lakes Theater production of “Les Miserables,” and Iris in “The Nether” and Sofia in “Dance Nation,” both at the Dobama Theatre.
With plans to pursue a degree in musical theatre once she graduates high school, Zajac has also starred as Tina Denmark in “Ruthless” at the Beck Center for the Arts, Winnie Foster in “Tuck Everlasting” at the French Creek Theatre and as Matilda in “Matilda the Musical” at Magnificat.
In addition, she has appeared at Feinstein’s 54 Below in New York City in “Broadway Kids Backwards” and “Starbound Kids Sing Godspell.”
For this year’s Shining Star CLE, Zajac faced more than 200 high school students from more than 60 Northeast Ohio communities. After three preliminary rounds of competition, those contestants were whittled down to 10 finalists.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Zajac and the other nine other contestants were forced to compete virtually on Aug. 29 for the chance at the grand prize of a $10,000 college scholarship, $2,500 for their school’s music department and an opportunity to perform with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra at Cleveland’s Severance Hall.
The four finalists were decided upon by event judges, which included Jim Brickman, an award-winning songwriter and pianist formerly of Shaker Heights; Rashad Chambers, the founder and president of Esquire Entertainment; Telly Leung, an actor, singer and songwriter; Trisha O’Brien, a contemporary jazz singer from Cleveland; Carl Topilow, founder and music director of the Cleveland Pops Orchestra; and Gina Vernaci, president and CEO of Playhouse Square.
Viewers who watched the competition via online streaming platforms then determined placement of the final four contestants by casting their votes via text message or online poll.
Olivia Nelson, a senior at Chardon High School, placed second and earned a $5,000 college scholarship. Alexandra Newman, a freshman at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, earned third place and received a $2,500 college scholarship. Emelia Aceto, a junior at Highland High School in Medina, earned fourth place and was awarded a $1,000 college scholarship.
The Shining Star CLE competition serves as an annual fundraiser for Beachwood’s Menorah Park and the Montefiore memory care unit. This year’s competition raised over $430,000 for Menorah Park’s memory care services. ∞