ANDOVER — The Quota International of Andover has crowned its first Merrimack Valley Idol.
The club hosted a competition among local vocalists, on Saturday, Nov. 17 at the Wyndham Andover Hotel.
And the winner is Ilia Paulino, 17, of Lawrence. She is a senior at Central Catholic High School in Lawrence. She has been singing for four years and has performed in ACTING OUT’s 2011 productions of “Hairspray” and “Putnam County Spelling Bee.” In 2012, she placed first in Merrimack Valley’s Got Talent.
The contestants came from Andover, Lawrence, Haverhill, Methuen, Dracut, Bradford, Beverly and Pelham, N.H.. and competed for $500 in prize money and the chance to open a future performance by the New England Tenors.
The dozen contestants were chosen during auditions held in early October.
Judges for the event were local theater-group leaders Josie Walker, Elly Seavey and Mike Fay. Walker is a retired Andover Public School music teacher, director/producer of Merrimack Jr. Theater, founder of Confetti Kids and The Jellybeans. Seavey is a retired Andover Public School reading specialist and producer/director of the DCS Children’s Studio for the Arts and Summer Theater Ensemble. Fay created TTS Players as the performing arts arm of his TTS Inc., which also includes That’s the Spirit Sports.
