As spring blossomed and summer encroached on the campus of Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech), one of the most anticipated events of the school year, Air Guitar, was held on May 23, 2025. Leading up to it was a spirit week with music related themes that paved the way for this annual event where students showcased their many talents.
Air Guitar and the accompanying spirit week marked the final major event hosted by the Associated Student Body (ASB) in the 2025 school year. Head coordinator of these joint events Jackie Mendes ‘25 reflected on the trials and successes in preparing such a large event, stating, “We had less people try out this year, and on top of that, people started to drop out of Air Guitar about two weeks before, so we had to do last minute auditions … It’s a ton of planning.”
Throughout the week, different dress-up themes were put on and encouraged to build up to Air Guitar, advertised through posters in hallways and on ASB’s Instagram. On Monday, Dragons paraded through the halls in their musical merch, with the option to nominate someone to be DJ for the day. Tuesday brought more festivities, with a “dress as your favorite artist” day, followed by a “white lies” day, where students wore a white T-shirt with a white lie on them and were able to play games set up by ASB in the quad.
Thursday, where ASB began setting the mood for Air Guitar, was a “Surfin U.S.A” themed day wherein students wore tropical summer attire. Finally, Air Guitar included all the themes coming together with Coachella day, where students could wear boho inspired outfits coordinated to mimic the desert music festival.
Some days proved more successful than others, with “Surfin U.S.A” and “white lie” day getting lots of participation among students and teachers. Dan Baker, a well known chemistry and Bioscience Academy teacher, participated when he could, stating, “Sometimes high school students don’t seem too excited to participate, and if I can show some enthusiasm maybe more would be involved.”
Air Guitar Set list:
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Rebeca Hu ‘28 – plume dancing
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August Banando ‘27 – Anything But (Hozier)
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Xander Clark ‘25 – Yes I’m A Mess (AJR)
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Penelope Serrano ‘28 – Vienna (Billy Joel)
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Amelia Schmidt ‘25 – Problems (Mother Mother)
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Eponine Larsen ‘28 – Viva La Vida (Coldplay)
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Brooklyn Brown ‘28 & Emerie Heglund ‘28 – Rise Up (Andra Day)
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Group performance – The Witch (Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
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Josiah Rodriguez ‘27 and Benjamin Barnett ‘26 – Vincent (Don McLean)
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Kai Robles ‘28 – Creep (Radiohead)
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Kloey Juarez ‘26 – Back to Black (Amy Winehouse)
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Angela Hua ‘28 – Interstellar theme on piano
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Dylan Arevalo ‘26 & group – self-written rap
On May 23, the day of Air Guitar finally rolled in and was set to start at 1 p.m. after a shortened day with six 30 minute class periods. Throughout the day, students claimed spots on the quad in front of the stage and prepared to see the 13 acts involving dancing, music and skits.
Besides this, students could purchase tickets at the student store and redeem them for treats like root beer, chips and burritos where the funds went to school clubs and pathways. They also had the option to buy food items and goodies from food trucks, including Pizza Man Dans and Mister Softee in the back parking lot.
After the lunch period, Principal Johnson was introduced by the two hosts of the event, Lauren Fossati ‘25 and Camila Duenez ‘26.
Johnson kicked off the festivities by awarding the Tanner Aubert award to Collette Parsignault ‘28 for her positivity and ability to inspire staff and students. Fossati and Duenez then proceeded to introduce the first act of the afternoon, Rebecca Hu ‘28, as she performed plume dancing, setting the show in motion. The next acts primarily included a diverse range of solo musical acts like Penelope Serrano ‘28 and Eponine Larsen ‘28 singing performances of Billy Joel’s “Vienna” and Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida,” respectively. Other acts included unique performances, such as the five member group performance of the witch hunt scene from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” and Angela Hua’s ‘28 solo piano performance of Hans Zimmer’s theme from “Interstellar.”
Throughout the performance, the packed audience gave what Mendez called “a lot of participation” through applause at the conclusion of their favorite performances. The ninth performance, for example, received positive feedback and included Josiah Rodrigeuz ‘27 and Benjamin Barnett’s ‘26 performance of “Vincent” by Don McLean. Barnett, prior to his performance, stated, “I’ve loved singing for a really long time … I decided Air Guitar would be a really nice opportunity to perform with my friends.”
These groups were ranked by a trio of teachers, Claire Adams, Justin Frazier and Emily Hunt, who volunteered for the position. Adams explained her angle on the process, stating, “It’s nice just seeing the other side of students, to see … what they’re like outside of the classroom and what other talents they have.” Frazier ran through what he looks for while judging, outlining the importance of “originality, do they look like they’re having fun? … how is the audience responding?”
The eventual winners would include the aforementioned plume dancing performed by Hu, Kai Robles ‘28 and Josiah Rodriguez’s ‘27 cover of “Creep” and, after taking home first with her 2024 Air Guitar performance of Adele’s “Skyfall,” Kloey Juarez ‘26 and her singing of Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black.”
Shortly after his success on stage, Robles stated “I’m feeling very happy and very ecstatic … I hope everyone enjoyed it,” and went on to explain what the song meant to perform as well. “Everytime I think of the lyrics I think of everyone that has made me feel different or like I didn’t belong. So I just feel like I can really relate to that song in many ways,” Robles said.
The final act, however, was the winner of “fan favorite,” brought by Dylan “Lil’ Pickle” Arevalo, after the infamous Cabrillo concert in 2022. Lil’ Pickle, with his own DJ and hype group, performed original songs and concluded Air Guitar with energy. Reflecting on his performance, Lil’ Pickle said, “We was turned up … Music has been part of my life forever … it’s calling something inside me.”
As students and staff alike made their way out of the quad, the importance and excitement of Air Guitar resonated with many as the last major event in many senior’s high school experience came to a close. Olivia Brightly ‘25, would reflect on this, stating, “[Air Guitar] is kind of marking the end of the K through 12 school experience and we’re probably not going to have this experience in college or adult life.”
As ASB cleaned their streamers, plastic palm trees and backdrops, turning the Coachella paradise back into Foothill Tech, students slowly exited the campus filled with new memories and the pride of performing, ultimately leaving the final event of the 2025 school year behind.
