Sue Serio and Bill Vargus to Emcee Media Theatre's VOCALIST 2014

The Media Theatre's summer singing contests "The Vocalist" (starting July 9) and its Junior counterpart (begins July 13) will have a popular husband and wife team emceeing the weekly event. FOX-TV's morning anchor Sue Serio returns for her fifth summer with "The Vocalist" and Bill Vargus returns to emcee the "Junior" version of the competition. Previously titled "Delco Idol", the contest will be sponsored by Iron Workers Bank of Media and Aston.

Sue Serio, seen by thousands of viewers on FOX-TV'S "Good Day Philadelphia" weekday mornings, looks forward to returning to the summer's singing sensation. She will emcee the Wednesday night contest in which talented youth ages 14-24 vie for the title of "The Vocalist 2014".

"Summer without The Media Theatre's singing contest is like a summer without the sun," Serio said, as she is always quick to remind the region of her on-air weather personality. "It's a main ingredient to the summer months in Delaware County. I'm very happy to be a part of this event and, to me, all of the contestants are winners simply because they put their hearts out there on the stage and give it everything they've got. It's a privilege to be involved."

Bill Vargus agreed. "Some of my favorite memories are on The Media Theatre stage, and we are thrilled to assist with this important aspect of the theatre's mission." Vargus was seen as "Dr. Dolittle" two years ago and shared the stage with Serio in a production of "Love Letters". He's going to be back this fall as the very tall and humorous Lurch in "The Addams Family" musical.

In "The Vocalist" contests singers perform weekly for large audiences at The Media Theatre. They choose songs they like singing at first, until the final week when they must perform one show tune, bridging the contest to the theatre's mission of music theatre and education. Contestants are rated in several categories by Artistic Director Jesse Cline and guest judges. Those with the highest scores move on with the lower scores being eliminated. Eventually, there is a top 15 who move onto the final week.

"This contest has its origin in the reputation of The Media Theatre's music theatre company as an educational theatrical organization," Cline explained. "Its intent remains to give young people a weekly showcase to highlight their talent for appreciative audiences. "The Vocalist" is a competition, of course, which adds to the excitement for everyone including the contestants. But the most important thing is the learning process for those involved."

The vocalists are, for the most part, from Delaware County, although a few reside in Chester and Montgomery counties as well as Wilmington and Philadelphia. The criteria states that contestants must live within a 55-mile radius of The Media Theatre.

Cline added, "It's also a very interesting and entertaining unique weekly concert for the audience. It's never the same twice, and you get to see young performers before they move on to other aspects of their career."

For tickets to "The Vocalist" or "The Addams Family" call The Media Theatre at 610-891-0100 or visit mediatheatre.org. The 2014 contestant list for "The Vocalist" is listed at mediatheatre.org, where you may also place votes for a favorite contestant to assist them in remaining in the contest each week.

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