It would be an understatement to say show choir students were merely excited when they found out Charisma’s theme for this season. The 2018-2019 show choir theme is “Powerful Women Throughout History.” Upon hearing this, many young women at City High were thrilled about portraying such a complex message. Ana VanBeek ‘21, one of the soloists for Charisma, is thrilled to be apart of sending such an important message to women and girls of all ages.

“[In Charisma’s show,] we are reiterating that girls have made a really big difference. As we are in men’s shadow in a lot of ways it is important that we show that we are actually our own people and we have made very many successes in this world [without] the help of any guy,” said VanBeek. “I play sports and I just feel like when I’m playing there’s not as much hype as there is for when guys are playing. It’s really cool to be in something that gets a lot of hype and appreciation for, no matter if they’re are guys or girls. That’s really important to me and special.”

Charisma’s setlist this year includes many popular songs and artists with dedications to powerful and inspirational women in each number. “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga is dedicated to the artist. “Wings” by Little Mix, which includes soloist Vanbeek, is dedicated to Amelia Earhart, “Defying Gravity” from the musical, “Wicked” is dedicated to Peggy Whitson, and “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten is dedicated to Emmeline Pankhurst. The setlist closes with “Come Together” by the Beatles, as a message to the audience symbolizing women uniting to create change.

Charisma debuted these songs at their first public performance of the season, ‘Works in Progress’, on October 29. During the show, Charisma’s message touched the hearts of many people in the audience. The message of female empowerment left many women and girls feeling a newfound sense of belonging and importance, including Sierra Josephson ‘21 who attended ‘Works in Progress’ with her sister.

“I thought that Charisma performed very well. It was a great performance,” said Josephson. “I think that society’s views of women are that they are less and weaker than men. Despite several laws to prevent this, women are still paid less and treated as less. Charisma’s theme [shows that] women can make the world a better place and inspire others around them.”

Charisma is in their second year of performing, breaking off from the previous prep show choir, City Lights, as an all-female show choir. Their next performance is the Winter Show, on December 15 at 3:00 and 7:00. This show features 4th Ave. Jazz Company, Charisma, jazz bands, and several special acts. Charisma participants are very eager to perform this show for City High students and the community, showing people what it really means to be a woman.