The talent and creativity of San Diego State students ignited the night on Tuesday at the Aztec Green in front of the trolley station. This year’s Homecoming Talent Show displayed a wide variety of performances, featuring representatives from competing student organizations. From acoustic solos to dance numbers, this year’s talent show had it all.
Associated Students Vice President Kevin Hancock and Vice President of External Relations Jacqueline Karczewski hosted the event, providing jokes and commentary throughout the show. The show opened with the SDSU Twirlers, who literally ignited the night with their flaming batons. The flames sent a burst of warmth into the chilly night and roused the crowd before the night’s performances.
Sixteen teams performed at the talent show and were judged for crowd appeal, presentation and poise, creativity and originality of talent, and overall performance. The judges consisted of representatives from Aztec Shops, Union Programs and Services and Aztec Pride Committee.
The first performance was the Residence Hall Association’s all-male a cappella performance of OneRepublic’s “Counting Stars.” These smooth vocals set the bar high for all following contestants. Other performances included standouts from Alpha Epsilon Pi, SDSU Entrepreneur Society and Alpha Phi Omega.
“There’s a lot of really creative acts,” kinesiology junior Debbie Pugliese said. “Everyone is cheering for everyone, no matter what organization.”
The light-hearted atmosphere of the night served as an indication for the spirit of Homecoming. The crowd of about 200 students and community members showed their Aztec pride by cheering and chanting for all performances.
Homecoming Court nominee and A.S. President J. Cole noted the importance of Homecoming through events such as this.
“It’s an opportunity to gather the entire Aztec community and unite the campus,” Cole said. “It’s awesome to see all these diverse orgs come together.”
The diversity of the campus was reflected in the acts presented. Notably, Phi Gamma Delta and Alpha Gamma Delta’s performance, a three-man band’s rendition of “It’s a Mad World,” excited the crowd with its rock vibes. The Student Veteran Organization did a stomp routine, complete with trash cans acting as drums — almost like a much more masculine version of “Pitch Perfect”’s “Cups.” The uniqueness of this performance earned a loud applause from the audience.
Powerhouse’s performance of a solo dancer with an on-stage rapper was a crowd favorite, gathering the biggest cheers of the night.
Despite this tough act to follow, Theta Chi charmed the audience with an old-school boy-band act. Dressed in matching ties and blazers, the men sang “My Girl” with a line of men dancing back up.
Kappa Sigma closed the show with a solo acoustic performance of “Ghost Man” by Pacifier. This polished act allowed the night’s talent to end as well as it began.
The Talent Show concluded with the announcement of the winners of the commercial portion of the competition and lastly, the winners of the talent show.
For the commercials, third place was awarded to the Educational Opportunity Programs Student Advisory Board. Second place was awarded to business fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi, and the Asian Pacific Student Alliance secured first place.
For the talent, a third-place tie was awarded to Alpha Kappa Psi and the Asian Pacific Student Alliance. Second place was awarded to Student Veteran Organization. This year’s talent show winning team was awarded to Powerhouse’s entertaining dance performance.
Without a doubt, the judges had difficulty choosing the top four performances. Every act showcased the skill, diversity and enthusiasm of the student body and captured the spirit of Homecoming.
For information regarding the remaining Homecoming events this week, check out the event calendar.
