The African Students Association’s Afropollo talent show rocked Ryan Family Auditorium on Friday night, showcasing student musicians, dancers, singers and even a slam poet for about 400 people.
Modeled after performances at the famous Apollo Theater, Afropollo relies on audience participation. Attendees are encouraged to cheer, yell, and, above all, boo to determine which act is worthy of the $300 grand prize.
“It’s great,” said audience member Sam Trusley, a Weinberg senior, of Afropollo’s interactive format. “It’s a way of allowing people not to always be polite about stuff.”
Upon taking the stage, performers were asked to honor their hosts and rub an African drum set in the corner of the stage. Each act was granted at least 60 seconds to perform before the audience could voice its opinion. A student dressed in a cocktail dress and heels would then strut below the stage, brandishing a white sign with “Audience” written in glitter. At this signal, the audience members determined the performers’ fate: to be cheered or jeered.
If met with applause, performers like freshman Shannon Powell, who won the competition with her rendition of “Listen” from “Dreamgirls,” were allowed to continue their set. Those deemed unworthy by the audience, however, had to deal with the “Sandman,” a male student wearing a red pig-tailed wig, cat-eye glasses and a skirt over rolled jeans.
Just a few minutes after beginning its routine, the all-female a cappella group Significant Others was booed. On cue, the Sandman emerged from behind the curtain to smack one member’s butt with a broom before literally sweeping them off the stage, dancing as he tried to herd the girls out into the wings. In retaliation, the singers pounced, attacking him with hugs.
“It was definitely a different kind of energy than any audience we would ever perform for,” said Gwendolyn Straeffer, a Weinberg freshman and member of Significant Others. “All of us were nervous when we saw everyone get booed.”
As for the Sandman, Straeffer said the group enjoyed his shtick.
“We made a pact beforehand that we would all jump and give him a big hug, but it didn’t really work. He got scared and ran away, so we kind of ended up chasing him off stage,” she said. “The more people gave us negative energy, the more positive we pushed out.”
Although McCormick freshman Divya Kathuria was sympathetic towards acts that were booed off stage, she said the performers should be ready to take some heat.
“The booing’s kind of mean, but I mean, it’s a show,” she said.
Last year’s champion, Bhang Squad, was once again a fan favorite this year. The bhangra dancers, clothed in brightly colored traditional costumes, began their routine with two dancers hoisted onto a third. Later, the crowd went wild when the dancers paused to “whip their hair” to Willow Smith’s hit single. But the routine hit its high point when one dancer raced onstage, back-flipping midair before landing upside-down with his ankles on another dancer’s shoulders.
“I liked Bhang Squad for their pure enthusiasm,” Trusley said. “Dancing like that in the context of hip-hop is really cool. It was super ethnic and contemporary.”
In addition to the free pair of Urban Outfitters sunglasses everyone received, audience members could win a range of prizes donated by sponsors through raffles or dance competitions. In total, ASA received about $3,000 worth of sponsorships, said ASA events coordinator Lydia Hsu, a Weinberg and SESP senior.
“Our goal was to maximize the number of audience members and to make a really good show that’s actually competitive,” Hsu said.
[email protected], contributing writer
