A girl draped in black emerges from behind the curtain. She is a shadow until she walks onto stage, where a spotlight gleams onto her figure. With tightly braided hair, a hunched posture, and a signature frown, she is Wednesday Addams. As she takes over the scene with her brilliant voice, you barely remember who she really is: Alyssa Wong, one of the most talented and ambitious singers at Great Neck South.
Alyssa began her singing career in fourth grade. A lack of Asian representation on the big screen dampened her television dreams; nevertheless, this obstacle simultaneously motivated her as she proceeded to audition for and play Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz in fourth grade at Lakeville. Here, some could say a star was born.
“That’s what got me into theater,” she recounted with a smile.
Last year, Alyssa performed in her off-Broadway debut in the musical Heathers, playing Heather Chandler. She described it as a “dream role” and the biggest out-of-school show she has done. “It was the most pivotal moment for me because it gave me the motivation that I could do this as a career. It was my biggest step before going into music professionally.” However, her favorite role so far was Wednesday in the Addams Family. She gushed, “the whole production, the directors, backstage, everything—it was all so amazing. And I got to do it with all of my close friends.”
Ms. Ilana Meredith, the drama teacher and director of all South High musicals, met Alyssa just before freshman year and has been in awe of her since. “She’s a very talented performer, but she’s also exceedingly dedicated. She takes everything very seriously.” Speaking of her compatibility with others, she said, “She helps other people along as well, helping them with memorizing lines or working on staging.”
Ms. Meredith also noted the improvement in her voice over the years and her versatility in her roles, from Laurey in Oklahoma to Wednesday in the Addams Family—two vastly different parts.
On another stage, Alyssa doesn’t act—she is herself. Broadway vocals transform into rock melodies as she dances in front of a crowd, feeling the music produced by her accompanying band. She belts out notes seemingly impossible to reach—but, of course, she does.
Introducing: Shock Therapy. While most know Alyssa from her parts in our school’s musicals, she also plays pop and rock music through her band, whose name fits perfectly with its gratifying, headbanging tunes. Inspired by the likes of Paramore—especially Haley Williams, its lead singer—she formed a band in 2021 with students all over Long Island, from here to Manhasset to Port Washington.
“We have mainly been doing cover songs, but we just started to write original songs. We’re hoping to record our first original by this year,” she said excitedly.
A leader from stage to club, Alyssa is passionate about women’s rights and aspires to continue its advocacy as she builds a career for herself. She concludes that if she is to have a platform, she must use it for the good of the community. But she refuses to wait to grow older to spark change: as president of the Female Empowerment Society Club, she has held a rally calling for women’s rights, aided by Assembly woman Gina Sillitti and Senator Anna Kaplan, which was even featured on News 12.
“Right now we’re working with the Art Club to make a mural in our school,” she said. “To show how beauty and strength lie within feminism.”
It doesn’t stop there: she’s captain of Girl’s Fencing, too. Inspired by her brother, who now fences at Boston College, she has fenced for nearly six years—and quite successfully. The team wins Counties every year, a success that she attributes to the whole team and every captain before her who have made it possible. “[My brother] has helped me throughout the process to learn how to be a good captain for the team. I’m definitely not the best fencer on the team. But I feel like you don’t have to be the best to [be a leader].”
Through all of her feats, Alyssa emphasizes one overarching theme: persistence. “I think that if you want something, it’s not just gonna come to you. You can’t wait for someone to come to you. You have to take that first step. You have to be the one to send the email, to reach out on Instagram. You have to make your own luck.”
