Star Search raises record amount
By Erin Ryan and Cara Quackenbush
On Friday night the ladies of the Alpha Phi sorority hosted the 14th annual Star Search, an event that benefited the Sept.11 charities. The proceeds exceeded $17,000, the most the sorority has ever raised in the history of the annual event.
To begin the evening, event chairperson senior Katya Trotta led the auditorium in a moment of silence to remember the victims of Sept. 11.
In addition to the usual skits and dances, a "Battle of the Bands" was added to the program, drawing more non-Greek participants than past years. Throughout the evening, a total of six bands and eight lip-synching groups made a portion of the gym floor their stage.
But despite portable stage lighting and a large sound system, many audience members left before the end of the showcase complaining that they couldn't hear the performances.
Technical problems included repeated electrical blackouts, microphones that didn't work, unprepared music queues and improperly tuned instruments.
The Delta Gamma sophomores, one of the many Greek affiliates to perform, choreographed a dance to "Lady Marmalade." The spotlight went out for about a minute during the performance, but the girls continued dancing.
As sophomore Alexis Ferguson, one of the event planners, pointed out, putting together a show like Star Search takes a lot of work, which the university would have helped with last year. This was the first major Greek event attracting large numbers of students since President Paul Locatelli's decision to withdraw all school support for any Greek activity.
Though fraternities and sororities are no longer allowed to publicize events, sell tickets, or recruit new members on campus, Star Search sold more than 300 tickets, exceeding last year's sales.
"I'd just like to point out that without the school's support we've raised $7,000 more than last year and it's really important to show that even though the school doesn't support us any more, philanthropy is still very very important to us," senior Amy Perko, Alpha Phi president, said.
According to Alpha Phi senior Bridget Anderson, the technical difficulties can be attributed to poor acoustics in the gym, and the most important thing is that more people were involved and more money was raised than ever before.
"I think because of the circumstances of not being able to do it at Mayer Theater anymore, the lighting and sound wasn't very good. It was in a foreign place so people got frustrated," Anderson said. "But you do what you have to and just make the best of that."
Winners of the lip-synching numbers were the Delta Gamma Seniors on the ladies side and "Yellow House," also known as the Pike seniors, on the men's side.
The winner of the band competition was Naked Thursday, formerly known as The Recipe.