By Kenna Dieffenwierth, Staff Writer
Wednesday, Oct. 23 the Caribbean Student’s Association (CSA) hosted a talent show in Selby Auditorium to showcase some of Saint Leo’s talented students.
The name of the talent show was “So You Think You’ve Got Talent 3: Pink Paradise.”
“They totally stole that from ‘So You Think You Can Dance.’ Anger!” said Sophomore Marie Ryan.
The entry fee to attend was 2 dollars. People who wore pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month got in for 1 dollar. It was scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m., but actually started around 7:50 p.m.
Selby Auditorium was packed. There were so many people in attendance that some had to sit on the stairs. Everyone was excited to see their friends and fellow students perform.
There were twelve acts total. The first contestant, Bianca Grant, began singing and then danced. The music and routine changed throughout the performance. The second contestant, Josh Lim, sang while playing his acoustic guitar. The third contestant, Cassandra LaVoie, also sang while playing her guitar.
Following Cassandra’s performance, six bold volunteers were requested from the audience to participate in an impromptu dance competition. This started out as a competition for dancing in general but quickly escalated to a “twerking” contest. The host jokingly scolded those dancing by insinuating that their moves were not appropriate for a Catholic school. The winner was Jessica Torrent. She had the crowd in an uproar with her bold moves.
The fourth contestant was Daniel (Danny) Francois who delivered a spoken word performance. The next act was composed of Natasha Amrisma and Tanganyika Smith. They were introduced as a “dynamic duo” and sang a duet. The following contestant was Keke Williams who also sang a song.
Due to microphone issues, there was a short intermission at this point. When the audience returned, there were multiple dancing competitions for audience volunteers. This time it was specifically twerking competitions. The winners of the dance-offs received tickets for free entry to CSA’s party on the weekend.
After this twerk fest, the Saint Leo Dancers performed a routine. Their energetic dancing was followed by Samuel Aelly who played the piano while singing. The next contestant sang a song as well. She asked not to be named. Jenifer Morales was eleventh in the line up and sang a song in Italian. The final act was a song sung by Erica Zigon.
The crowd was very involved and supportive throughout the night. They cheered for every contestant and often sang along with the performers who sang more popular songs. If a contestant was nervous, the crowd encouraged him/her with enthusiasm.
The Saint Leo Dancers came in third, Danny Francois came in second and Samuel Aelly placed first. This was an exciting evening full of energy and entertainment.
