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St. Louis teens perform at the Fox Theatre in annual talent competition

Janna Linae Schmid is a finalist in the Teen Talent Competition.
(Photo provided)

The Fox Performing Arts Charitable Foundation is putting on its fifth St. Louis Teen Talent Competition on Friday, April 24 at the Fox Theatre.

Of the 39 acts that competed in the semi-final round, 12 will compete in the finals on the Fox Theatre stage for more than $30,000 in scholarships, prizes and awards.

One of those competing is Janna Linae Schmid, a senior at Eukeka High School. Schmid is a singer and dancer and will perform “I Can’t Do It Alone,” from the musical, “Chicago.”

“I’ve always really liked to sing,” Schmid told “Cityscape” host Steve Potter on Friday. “My parents have all these home videos of me playing the piano badly,” she joked.

Schmid said one of her first moments as a performer came when she was nine years old singing “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.”

But there’s more than singing and dancing at the event next Friday.

“Just like the weather in St. Louis, if you don’t like it, wait and there will be an act for you,” said Tony Parise, the writer and director of the Teen Talent Competition.

The event will also include jazz, classical and hip hop music as well as contemporary dance. The Teen Talent Competition is free but requires tickets that can be obtained through Metrotix.

Kathryn Ballard is the executive director of the Fox Performing Arts Charitable Foundation. “[The competition] develops them as people who appreciate the arts and who will attend the arts in the future,” she said.

In the fall, Schmid said she plans to pursue a degree in musical theater at Oklahoma City University.

St. Louis Teen Talent Competition

Cityscape is produced by Mary EdwardsAlex Heuer andEricaSmith.The show is sponsored in part by the Missouri Arts Council, the Regional Arts Commission, and the Arts and Education Council of Greater St. Louis.

Alex is the executive producer of "St. Louis on the Air" at St. Louis Public Radio.