He was the last act, and after nearly three hours and 34 performances, Gino Cosculluela took the stage by storm at the Miracle Theatre in Coral Gables with his lyrical dance to My Way, made famous by Frank Sinatra.
Moments later Cosculluela was named the grand prize winner of Young Talent Big Dreams, the largest countywide talent competition of its kind in Miami-Dade County, run by Actors’ Playhouse and presented by The Children’s Trust.
The Florida Christian School junior took home a $500 cash prize and a trip for two to Los Angeles for the Teen Choice Awards in August, courtesy of WSVN 7 News, among many other prizes.
Trained by Dance Attack Miami Studios in West Kendall, Cosculluela has been dancing for 11 years.
“It’s a way of expressing everything I can’t express through words,” he said.
Cosculluela also expressed gratitude to the judges for giving him some sage advice throughout the competition.
“They told me to continue with my passion and keep showcasing to the audience and not just to myself, and to me that was a huge help,” he added.
“We take the time to give them feedback so they can grow,” said Earl Maulding, director of children’s theater, education and Young Talent Big Dreams at Actors’ Playhouse. “The changes I see in these kids as they go through the preliminaries, to the semis with some feedback and then to the finals — it’s really hard to describe, but I love watching it every year.”
Having competed for several consecutive years, 11-year-old Doral Academy student Moana Fujiwara finally achieved her goal of placing first in the individual musical instrument category with her virtuoso classical piano rendition of The Entertainer. Fujiwara also played in a winning musical quartet with three other students from Doral Academy Elementary, Doral Academy Preparatory School, Devon Aire K-8 Center and Dr. Rolando Espinosa K-8 Center.
Spoken word category winner Tamika Dolisca, an eighth grader at Holy Cross Lutheran School in North Miami, writes poetry and short stories. She’s even written a novel and is working on a screenplay.
“One day I started writing everything down and it just became my life. I love it. That’s how I understand myself and how I understand other people,” Dolisca said.
Her winning piece ended dramatically with the line, “Perfection broke me, but imperfection made me.”
The original composition category was perhaps the most competitive, with first place going to Ransom Everglades student Lily Kaplan, 14, who accompanied herself on vocals with guitar. Kaplan is the lead singer and guitarist in a band that raises money for Young Musicians Unite, a program that provides peer-to-peer mentoring and free music programming through schools to underserved communities in Miami.
Ta’Keria “Queen K” Tanner, a 14-year-old student at Norland Middle School, changed the lyrics to a previously recorded tune to become the first participant in the contest’s eight-year history to win a vocal category with a rap song.
“There’s a lot of violence going on in our community, so I thought I could be the voice of our youth throughout the nation to promote positive reinforcement and positive vibes,” Tanner said.
Pint sized Adriana Figueredo, 9, a student of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic School in South Miami, beat all the older contestants in her vocal category with her dynamic Broadway-style performance and oversized personality.
“How the arts help kids thrive, build their self-esteem, help their academics and build culture in this community is exceptionally important, which is why The Children’s Trust is very proud to sponsor this event,” said James R. Haj, president and CEO of The Children’s Trust.
“I don’t think there is a partnership anywhere like the one we have with The Children’s Trust,” said Barbara Stein, executive producing director of Actors’ Playhouse. “It’s a dream come true for any organization. This is a model for how public-private partnerships make things happen in a community.”
The competition typically begins in January with up to seven preliminary auditions across Miami-Dade County through April before the semifinal and final rounds, involving dozens of judges who are local celebrities and industry professionals from the performing arts community.
Other winners this year include a group of dancers from Sunny Isles Beach K-8 who study at Natalie Dance Academy, as well as a singing duet from Westminster Christian School and G.W. Carver Middle School.
Young Talent Big Dreams is modeled after reality TV talent shows that offer similar opportunities to contestants through a series of auditions, performances and professional mentoring. One vocal category winner in last year’s competition, Doral resident Angelina Green, went on to garner the coveted “golden buzzer” at America’s Got Talent on NBC.
