It was an evening of thrills and shrills, song, dance and the odd Nemo head.

By the time Flagler’s three-hour version of American Idol was over Tuesday at the Flagler Auditorium, Wadsworth Elementary’s Sophia Paterno Peper was named Flagler County’s Youth Entertainer of the Year in the junior division, and Caitlin Hanna, Zack Harris and Jeff McDevitt of Flagler Palm Coast High School took the honor in the senior division for their performance of “Take Each Day,” a song written by McDevitt.

For McDevitt, a prolific songwriter, and Hanna, the victory isn’t yet the end of a very good month for their stage conquests: Later this month the pair, along with fellow-FPC student Boyd Fulmer, will represent Florida in the 85-singer choir of the National Honor Ensembles in performance at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

The “Entertainer of the Year” award was started last year. This year’s edition was the first time the competition was broken down into a junior and senior division, with performers from kindergarten to 6 grade in the junior division. That was done because in previous years, younger students were at a vast disadvantage when classed against older, more polished performers. “Each year,” Massaro said, “it’s gotten bigger and bigger.”

Taking second place in the junior division was Daniel Dillard of Bunnell Elementary for dancing to “Wall to Wall.” Third place went to Cassidy VanBrink of Imagine School, for her rendition of “Tomorrow.” In the senior division, second place went to Abigail Recker of Palm Coast High School, for singing and performing “My Head.” Haley Emery of Matanzas High School won third place for singing “Only Hope.” You can watch a complete video of the acts in their auditions at the Youth Center, below, above the chart.

Twenty-five acts performed. The judges were Carol Ogg, Sherry Bach, Vincent Checchi, and Trevor Tucker, a school board member. (See the chart below for a complete list of performers by school.)

The fifth annual Spotlight on Flagler Youth talent show was organized by Cheryl Massaro, director of the Flagler County Youth Center, the joint county-school board operation that gives local students a place to go after school. The Youth Center, whose turnstiles turn about 20,000 times a year (there are no actual turnstiles there, but you get the idea), is located on the campus of Flagler Palm Coast High School. The talent show is a fund-raiser for the organization, which is also funded through an annual $100,000 grant from the county and staffed by the school board.

The senior trio’s song by McDevitt caught the evening’s mood:

You have to hold on to each day as it comes
You got to go far …you got to go high… you got to reach the sky

Watch the audition montage:

Spotlight on Flagler 2010: All the Performers and Winners