Bakat Interact 2009

As one of the main highlights in the interact calendar, Bakat Interact 2009 was nothing short of a spectacle. Bakat Interact is an annual project by the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu (RCKK). It is essentially something of a talent contest involving singing and dancing among Interact clubs sponsored by RCKK. Since we won the Bakat Interact the previous year, we were to be the host school for this year's event.

Before we faced head on against the other schools, we picked our school's finest in singing and dancing from our very own Bakat Convent. Students from Form 1 till Form 5 turned up for that competition/audition and put on an interesting show. Sadly we couldn't pick everybody to represent the school but we needed the best of the best and from there we found our shining stars.

Practices started immediately, preparations for the sale during Bakat Interact were to be made and the organizing committee had tons of PR work to do.No time was wasted, as there wasn't any time left to waste.

Time was up. As you entered the Menara Tun Mustafa on the 12^th of April 2009, it was a show all on its own. In the atrium, all you could see were dancers practicing for the umpteenth time, singers vocalizing, musicians tuning their instruments, Interactors from different schools selling food and drinks and spectators buzzing with excitement.

As the show was about to start, everybody lined up to enter the auditorium, gave their tickets and were ready to be amazed. The 1,300 seats were filled almost instantly and you could feel the excitement building up as the minutes went by.

Everybody was screaming their lungs out when our two lovely MCs, Mohana and Debra took centre stage. The loud shrieks and hearty cheers could even be heard from outside the auditorium. After the MCs could finally announce the 1^st act, everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY went wild!

Nobody else screamed louder than our girls when it was our school's dance troupe's turn to show everyone what they were made of! All anxiety went out the window after hearing the deafening roars of the audience and they gave it their best.

The dances the schools performed ranged from traditional to hip-hop. 

Our singers crooned their way into everybody's hearts while the other schools rocked our socks off. 

Every one of the performances were breath-taking and received no less then a standing ovation from the audience. The judges even had a hard time judging the few that were singing over the hundreds that were shouting. The audience had to be constantly reminded to tone it down.

After all the contestants had performed, the judges retired to a quieter place to discuss and our invited performers came out and entertained us. There were performances by the winners as well as contestants from the 2008 Bakat Interact. As usual, the crowd was screaming at the top of their lungs.

The judges came back, a sign saying that the results were in. When the MCs came into view with an envelope, silence swept throughout the auditorium for the first time that day. Fingers were crossed and silent prayers were made as they announced… The best showmanship award went to SM All Saints! SM Lok Yuk in third place! SM All Saints in second! And SM Maktab Sabah the champion!! The crowd went berserk!

Overall, the Interactors and students throughout Kota Kinabalu who participated in Bakat Interact proved how this was an event not to be missed. As a result of our joint efforts with the Rotarians, it was truly an event that brought together teenagers of various ages to share common ground - discovering our own talents. All of us have high hopes that initiatives like these are what youth these days would embark in.

AJD