Clockwise from top left: Star Moralez, 15, of Coos Bay sings “Give Me One Reason” by Tracy Champan; Alyssa Birrer, 15, of North Bend sings “Show Off” from “The Drowsy Chaperone”; Destyni Fuller, 13, of Bandon sings “Let It Rain” by Amanda Marshall; and Mariah Rogers, 14, of North Bend sings “We’ve Only Just Begun” by The Carpenters during the Bay Area Teen Idol semifinal on Aug. 28. The four advanced to the Sept. 20 final. World Photos by Alex Powers

COOS BAY — The level of competition has never been higher.

The event has never been so fiercely contested.

The contenders have never been more different.

The Bay Area Teen Idol contest has seen a lot of superlatives in its fifth year, and next weekend’s finale promises to be the biggest of them all.

After eight weeks of competition, just eight days remain until one of four finalists takes the title Saturday, Sept. 20, at the Bay Area Fun Festival.

The contest began in July with its deepest field of talent ever, but it’s largely been a two-way race between Alyssa Birrer and Star Moralez, who have alternately scored first each week.

What makes things harder than ever for the judges is that many people consider both singers to be better now than any previous winners were at the time they won.

“I think it’s a very talented group this year,” said Kim Handsaker, who has judged the competition for all but its first year. “We’ve had talent every year, but every year I feel that the kids bring it up a level.”

The level of competition was a surprise to judge Barbara Bates, who had never seen the contest before this year.

“I’ve been in a lot of different contests, but I haven’t seen one quite like this,” Bates said. “This town’s got a lot of talent. Generally, you don’t find that much talent in one town.”

Another reason judging the contest is especially difficult is that Birrer and Moralez have dramatically different styles of singing and performing.

“You can’t compare them,” Handsaker said. “Their styles are different. Their personalities on stage are different.”

For those among the audience who began neutral but now strongly prefer one or the other, it usually comes down to which style they prefer. But that isn’t a factor for either Handsaker or Bates, the two members of the judging panel who have seen all of this year’s performances.

“I try to look at each individual performance for what it is,” Handsaker said. “I like both of their styles.”

Bates said she was comfortable with all types of music.

“You can always look at phrasing, her comfort level with the song, how she pulls the audience into it,” she said. “Can you imagine how boring it would be if we all sounded alike?”

As the final nears, Handsaker and Bates assessed the unique strengths and weaknesses of the four finalists.

The performer: Alyssa Birrer

Standout performances:

• “Faithfully,” Journey

• “For Good,” from “Wicked”

• “The Trouble With Love,” Kelly Clarkson

• “I Will Survive,” Gloria Gaynor

• “Show Off,” from “The Drowsy Chaperone”

As last year’s runner-up and the only three-year veteran of the contest, Birrer, 15, carried the mantle of front-runner to a leading five first-place finishes. An aspiring Broadway singer/actress, Birrer is known for the power of her voice and her showmanship. She used many of the open-choice rounds to perform Broadway numbers.

“When Alyssa gets up and she’s in character, that’s when she blows you away, because she’s a great singer and a great actress,” Handsaker said.

Birrer’s greatest moments, however, have come from the strength of her versatility when she broke away from the niche of actress — on “Faithfully,” which remains the contest’s peak, and “For Good,” at the Blackberry Arts Festival, when she finally showed a vulnerability that judges prized.

“When you do Broadway, you’re putting on a show,” Bates said. “At the Blackberry, she stepped out. She just stood up there and sang from her heart. … I liked that.”

Judges said Birrer will need to do it again if she wants to win.

“When she’s vulnerable and open, that’s when there’s no stopping Alyssa, because she does everything else right,” Handsaker said.

The painter: Star Moralez

Standout performances:

• “If I Ain’t Got You,” Alicia Keys

• “Summertime,” Janis Joplin

• “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” Mama Cass Elliot

• “Give Me One Reason,” Tracy Chapman

• “Crazy,” Patsy Cline

Like Birrer, Moralez is a 15-year-old with a powerful voice who is in her second year as a title contender in the contest, with three top scores under her belt. But the similarities end there.

Moralez is a bluesy, soulful singer who emphasizes her own personality.

“She colors a song,” Bates said. “She can paint. She outlines it and then she fills it in with different colors. It’s like seeing a regular-cut jewel and then a cushion-cut jewel with many different angles.”

But to do that, Bates said, Moralez must stay true to herself.

“You’re not going to appeal to everybody 100 percent of the time anyway,” Bates said. “You can’t be somebody you’re not, because it’s going to show.”

Handsaker agreed Moralez got off-track for a few weeks when she tried to match what Birrer was doing.

“There were weeks when she was trying to act,” Handsaker said. “She’s much more powerful when she’s just Star. … I love that the last few weeks she’s really found that.”

For Moralez to take the prize, Handsaker said the key is to focus.

“She has got so much energy and so much power,” Handsaker said. “Early on it was all over the board. It wasn’t focused. When she focuses, she’s incredible. When she’s focused, I don’t think there’s anything she doesn’t do right.”

The patriot: Destyni Fuller

Standout performances:

• “I’m Gonna Take That Mountain,” Reba McEntire

• “Letters From War,” Mark Schultz

• “For Freedom,” Jimmy Needham

A first-time contestant, Fuller has created a niche with Christian music and patriotic songs. She has impressed judges with the passion she shows for the things she sings about, despite occasional pitch errors.

“Destyni is very passionate when she sings,” Handsaker said. “You can really feel her believing it.”

Bates described Fuller as a delightful, well-rounded performer and “a very spiritual being.”

“She not only sings with her voice, she sings with her body,” Bates said. “She gets into it.”

Early in the contest, Handsaker said Fuller’s motions were a little too big, but since then they’ve become more natural, and she appears very comfortable on stage.

At 13, it’s too early to tell the singer Fuller — or the other finalists, for that matter — will become, Bates said.

“A woman’s voice doesn’t start developing until they’re in their 20s,” she said.

The potential: Mariah Rogers

Standout performances:

• “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend,” from “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”

• “How To Save a Life,” The Fray

• “The Tide Is High,” Debbie Harry

Rogers, 14, said she entered the contest to get over her stage fright, and the judges agreed she’s come a long way.

“I think the thing that’s impressed me most with all of them is how much they’ve improved,” Bates said. “With Mariah, I’m seeing more growth from beginning to end. … She’s a little budding flower that keeps getting better and better.”

Though she doesn’t consider herself a country singer, Rogers has a bit of twang that tends to make almost anything she sings sound like a country version. However, it hasn’t interfered with her pitch.

“Mariah’s been the one throughout this contest that’s been the most pitch-perfect,” Handsaker said. “She’s grown so much since that first week when she was scared to death. … The next step is to really project herself, to get out there and own the stage.”

Final thoughts

Bates: “They’re gonna have to pull out all the stops. … It’s anybody’s game at this point, depending on what happens.”

Handsaker: “I really don’t know who’s going to win. … Whoever wins this year, the others have to come back next year.”