By Gisselle Hernandez, Features Editor
Kappa Delta decided to shake things up for their spring Shamrock week by hosting their first Shamrock Talent Show to raise more than $2,000 for their philanthropy, Prevent Child Abuse America, last Friday at Lovett Auditorium.
The stage acted as both a place for the performers to showcase their talent while also having the audience occupy half of the stage. There were 12 acts on the evening’s agenda, each representing a Greek organization on campus. Each team paid $80 to participate and audience members paid $10 at the door.
Jacey King, vice president of community service at KD and senior from Henderson, Kentucky, was the coordinator for the event. Since being elected in November, King said this was her first big event and despite still being somewhat of a rookie, she was sure it was a success.
“It was just about what I expected. Being new at it, I was a little stressed, but with the help of my committee and my sorority we got through it well,” she said. “I started preparing for tonight around the beginning of December.”
KD had done various other events for their Shamrock week, like laser tag and a basketball tournament. King said she wanted to try something different that could also be fun.
“We did basketball before and that was all-day event and I could see how some people didn’t like sitting around,” she said. “So, I wanted something where everyone could be engaged.”
The sorority raised more than $2,000, with 80 percent going to their regional headquarters and 20 percent to their national headquarters.
There were three judges for the talent show and the first act was by the band Lethargic Superdudes, who are in Phi Kappa Tau, singing one of their original songs. The second act was Alpha Omicron Pi, with two sisters singing and rapping “Airplanes” by B.o.B. and Hayley Williams.
The audience then witnessed a magic act by Alpha Sigma Phi brother Canyon Kenny and although it took two tries for it to work, the audience was amused by the performance. For the first time in perhaps all history, there was a synchronized swimming team from Lambda Chi Alpha taking over Lovett’s stage, doing backstrokes and butterfly strokes in the air behind a blue tarp, fully-clad with goggles and sunscreen.
A pair Alpha Gamma Rho brothers serenaded the audience with a song of their own, followed by Sigma Pi’s Eric Johnson playing a classic on the piano while the audience joined in: “A Thousand Miles” by Vanessa Carlton. More singing ensued with Sigma Phi Epsilon singing “Three Wooden Crosses.” Pi Kappa Alpha’s Noah Houser also sang a country classic: Rascal Flatts’ “God Bless the Broken Road.”
The sisters stepped it up, bringing strong vocals of their own with Sigma Sigma Sigma performing a Lady Gaga song, followed by the Alpha Sigma Alpha duo performing Adele with singing and piano. A Delta Zeta sister had a choreographed dance empowering feminism, and Alpha Delta Pi’s Hailey Smith also performed a song, being the last act of the night.
While the judges tabulated the results, the audience were encouraged to socialize and take photos with performers.
Jessica Louis, sophomore from St. Louis, said her favorite act was the Pike brother who sang Rascal Flatts. It was her first time attending a KD Shamrock event, and thinks KD really holds their philanthropy close to its heart.
“It’s an amazing opportunity for us to be able to get involved as other organizations,” she said. “It goes to an amazing cause and I also love how Murray’s atmosphere has all the different Greek life organizations getting involved with each other’s philanthropies.”
After consulting, the judges gave their final results, naming Alpha Sigma Alpha winners of both awards: the Jamming with Shammy award, which was based on spirit points the sorority accumulated by taking photos with KD’s four-leaf clover mascot during the week, and the Talent award, which went to Madison Jessee and Sarah Stellhorn.