The 2009 Bay Area Teen Idol contestants rehearse one of the group songs Tuesday in a room at the Newmark Center. This year, 18 contestants will vie to be the new Teen Idol in competitions that will start on July 9 and end in September during the Bay Area Fun Festival. World Photos by Lou Sennick

COOS BAY — The contestants are excited.

The parents are excited.

The organizers and the judges are excited.

It’s two weeks from the start of Bay Area Teen Idol 2009, and the anticipation is visible and audible. Faces brighten, voices lift and some people actually bounce up and down when they talk about it.

“It’s an exuberant group,” organizer Stephanie Kilmer said Tuesday as rehearsal was letting out.

In a Newmark Center room too small for its 22 occupants,  enthusiasm at the group’s second rehearsal demonstrated why the kids and adults involved give a substantial portion of their summers to Teen Idol.

As the rehearsal was winding down, no one was enjoying it more than Thaddeus Miller. While the contestants were getting their first listen to one of their group numbers, the 13-year-old danced in his seat to the disco tune, starting a trend that a few others picked up.

 “I love this kid,” said veteran contestant Star Moralez.

Though it’s her third year in the contest, Moralez showed as much enthusiasm as the first-timers, some of whom have waited years for their chance to compete. Her voice was often the loudest as they ran through the group songs.

Moralez, 16, was last year’s runner-up and is one of five returning contestants, along with finalist Destyni Fuller. Also returning are Karissa Fults, Kara Shore and Allison Warrick.

Auditions in May drew about 35 hopefuls — the most since the inaugural competition in 2003. But with only seven elimination rounds between the opening and the final, organizers had to make their biggest cut at the outset.

Eighteen contestants will take the stage on opening night, July 9. Some who competed last year didn’t make it, Kilmer said.

Reigning Teen Idol Alyssa Birrer is also back, pledging to perform with the contestants faithfully each week. She too got excited when talking about spending a fourth summer in the program.

Organized as a drug-, alcohol- and tobacco-free summer activity for Coos County teens, the contest has become more than a talent competition for its impassioned followers.

For those involved, their drug of choice is Teen Idol.