IU Sing

Enthuiatia Qock 6taAo iu Sing acts embody theme, attract atntionby Naomi Blum

A s the last notes of the duet hung in the air, the lights gently dimmed into complete darkness. A slight rustling could be heard as bodies scuttled across the stage and moved into position behind the curtain. Suddenly, a high voice screamed "Let's get ready to shuffle!" With a flash, the curtain rose, colorful lights decorated the stage and students dressed as playing cards began to sing and dance with enthusiasm. This colorful and lively act, "52 Card Pick-up," presented by Kappa Kappa Gamma and Phi Kappa Psi eventually earned the team both the Division B Title and the Overall Award at the annual IU Sing competition. Held at the IU Auditorium the weekend of Feb. 16.17, the event's theme, "Rock and Roll All Night," combined the singing and dancing talents of 47 groups into 27 acts over two evenings. "There was so much that went into it," said sophomore Kelly Robertson, songleader for Kappa Kappa Gamma. "We weren't expecting to win. I covered my mouth (in disbelief) to scream when they announced that we won because I just couldn't believe it." Members of Kappa Kappa Gamma and other organizations said emotions were indeed inflated at the award ceremonies. After all, Robertson said, months of work were condensed into seven-minute performances. Many songleaders began brainstorming and organizing their acts in October. Songleaders were responsible for working out the details of theme, story line, music, choreography and costumes for the groups they organized. Senior Sean Nolan, songleader for Phi Kappa Psi, like most songleaders, had been involved in IU Sing both as a performer and a leader. He said the position presented many challenges to himself and to the group. "Every songleader has their own ideas," he said. "You just have to throw them all out and narrow them down with everyone else. After Winter Break, we all have to come together and make the show take form." Because of the lack of residence hall participants who remained from year to year, songleaders in the dorms faced different kinds of challenges. In addition to the challenge of finding a songleader who also had practice as a performer, many residence hall participants were freshmen and unfamiliar with the logistics of the performance. Never having seen IU Sing, they were unsure of which characteristics the judges looked for in a successful act. "We really didn't know what to expect as

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Members of Delta Chi and Zeta Tau Alpha perform their "Shower" act Feb. 16, the opening night of IU Sing at the Auditorium. The duo was one of the 27 acts who participated in the two-day event.

freshmen," said one of Collins' songleaders, Jenny Smith. "As a songleader I just did what came naturally. We (freshmen) did what we felt and weren't really aware of what the judges were looking for. Luckily, we had some upperclassmen who helped advise us." The other songleader from Collins saw the situation as an advantage. "It was good to a large extent," said sophomore Kevin Zeck. "There was fresh energy in what was happening. They (freshmen) didn't know what to look for and they could think of anything randomly." Although groups from the residence halls did not fare as well at the final awards ceremony, Willkie, Collins and Foster placed in the top the six in both divisions. In Division A, Alpha Gamma Delta and Lambda Chi Alpha won first place followed by Phi Mu and Sigma Pi. Kappa Delta and Alpha Tau Omega won the George E. Schlafer award with their Robotix act, which embodied the spirit of the event. Two individuals were also honored the Saturday evening at the awards ceremony. William Wiggins, a professor in the Afro-American Studies Department, won the Herman B Wells award which recognizes individuals who contribute to the University and the students. Sophomore Kimberly Broznowski was also honored with the first annual Ken Sloo Award for her work as a songleader and producer. Most students agreed that aside from the awards, IU Sing was simply a great opportunity to perform and interact with each other. "It was just a lot of fun," said sophomore Caren Chessisk, a Delta Gamma performer. "You had to act supercheesy and all the way through it we were asking ourselves why we're dressed so stupidly. But we realized that performing just made the silliness worth it." El

Matt McClain

Portraying Father Time, freshman Chas Barnard of Phi Kappa Psi performs with sophomores Kristen Hamilton and Jen Wittman and freshman Lindsey Schy of Delta Delta Delta. In the skit based on the change of seasons, Mother Nature tried to convince a discouraged Father Time to turn time back on.

Master of Ceremonies junior Aric Eikum entertains the audience between skits. Eikum and the other MCs were popular additions to IU Sing and facilitated the exchanges between the 27 participating groups. Photo by Matt McClain.