Ursinus College Students Put Talent on Display for a Cause

There were resident advisors in their underwear, fraternity brothers in orange prison jumpsuits and dance team members running around with “swag” signs. And it was all for a good cause!

Saturday, March 19, marked Ursinus College’s 29^th annual Airband event, and an event it was! The college’s Residence Life staff worked tirelessly to recruit students to perform in and attend the event, and their efforts raised more than $2,500 from the 2011 event. This year, all proceeds from ticket sales and act registration benefitted Frankie’s Fight, a nonprofit foundation created in Philadelphia to aid those whose lives are affected by childhood cancer, both patients and their families. The organization’s presence at the Airband was felt strongly, not only by the “Bald kids rock” T-shirts for sale at the door, but by the overlying spirit of the event that so strongly focused on this reason that brought us all together on Saturday night.

The drive behind the students’ want to help was unprecedented, and they worked tirelessly in the months before the event to make it a successful one.

Starting in February, a campus-wide call was made for students to get together in groups and create acts to perform for a packed Lenfest Theater in Ursinus’ Kaleidoscope. Students were given very few guidelines or restrictions for their acts, freeing the stage to let the performances take whatever form their creators envisioned. This year brought to the stage several of UC’s fraternities and sororities, the college step team--Seismic Step, a group addressing social iconoclasm, and last, but not least, the members of Residence Life themselves.

Ursinus sorority Sigma Sigma Sigma opened the night with “Never Say Never,” an interpretation of Hollywood today that quickly turned into a hilarious Beyoncé-Lady Gaga dance-off.

Phi Kappa Sigma followed the act with their “Jailbreak,” the production that won both the “Best Comedy Act” and “Best Overall” categories after final judging this year. This is the fraternity’s second year in the champion’s circle, taking home another consecutive win of “Best Overall.” Fraternity brother Zac Klock, who was part of the team for both victories, reflected smilingly on what went in to the members’ preparation for Airband. “We [had] been joking about planning Airband since our victory last year but the planning accumulate[ed] over the year.”

 It turns out it takes quite a bit to be the second-year Airband champs, though. The Phi Kaps started their practices at the beginning of the semester, when the “Jailbreak” idea was presented by Eric Derr and finalized. From a few hours a week in the early stages of choreography to the several hours every night they practiced in the week before the Airband event, the brothers of Phi Kappa Sigma dedicated themselves to making the routine and getting it perfect. “Nick Ferrante was really instrumental in the choreography, but it also required input and brainstorming from the whole group. Every member was extremely dedicated and ready to work at practice,” Zac said.

So what’s the craze about? That sounds like a lot of work! For Zac, it’s a no-brainer. “It is a lot of fun to get together on a regular basis with so many of my brothers to dance, [and] I love the rehearsal process and all the fun and hard work we put in. The actual performance is always so much fun, because it is finally your chance to show everyone what we have been working on. The entire night of Airband is a blast and one of my favorite events here at Ursinus.”

Seismic Step answered the defending champions with their presentation of “Seismic Sag and Swagger Jackets,” a colorful combination of step and dance that won the event’s Best Choreography award. Next were Tau Sigma Gamma; “The Adventures of Pete and Pete,” a comical skit following two of Ursinus’ favorite campus safety officers through a usual week, and “Social Iconoclasm,” an act that left many heads spinning after the Grim Reaper appeared on stage while what seemed to be a Big Foot of sorts passed out bananas to the audience members. “Social Iconoclasm” took home the “Best Costume” award for 2011.

The sisters of Phi Alpha Psi then took over their show with “Chronicles of Reimarnia,” a musical of sorts following a group of friends through what turned out to be a not-so-usual weekend night on Ursinus’ campus. Preceding the grand finale was the sorority Kappa Delta Kappa, with a creatively titled act called “What Ursinus is Really Talking About.” The performance combined the stress of writing a paper and graduating on time with the three ghosts of Christmas from Scrooge’s classic tale, and the sisters took home the “Most Creative” award for their efforts.

Closing the show, last but not least, were the members of Residence Life themselves, walking audience members through a unique “Night at the Oscars” involving boxing, a dance-off, and a whole lot of short-shorts for a whole lot of male RAs in their rendition of "Black Swan." Though the act went without reward from the judges, it most certainly was a crowd pleaser.

Students lingered at the event after its close, hungry for more of the wonderful performances and not wanting the laughter to stop. Airband participant representing both Seismic Step and the RA staff, Pat McAndrew, summarized the night flawlessly. "Airband is an amazing event that not only brings the Ursinus community together for a hilarious and fun night, but is also geared toward a good cause for helping others. You can't go wrong with that!”