As the spring semester at UMB draws to a close, students (and professors) may feel the pressure of those final papers and exams. The UMB Talent Show Club (TSC) gave the community the opportunity to let loose on Friday night, May 6 at the Snowden Auditorium with “The Variety Extreme.” The show appealed to a wide range of interests, and included hip-hop and rock performances, dance, poetry and a wrestling act. Chuck Zeogas, president of the TSC, and Catharine Sauer, TSC treasurer, hosted the show.
Savin Ill, an instrumental hip-hop, rock, jazz, and funk fusion group rocked the auditorium with their seven-piece set. Their act included a DJ who worked the turntables while the rest of the band just jammed. Samantha Cecconi, the female vocalist of the group sang backup. Mike, a.k.a., “Man@Arms,” worked the turntables but also emceed with Luke, a.k.a “Dynamic.” Savin Ill has a show coming up at the Middle East on Saturday, May 22. Check out their website at www.savinhill.com.
The Regional Wrestling Federation (RWF) took the stage with three acts that were quite entertaining. The acts were equipped with strobe lights and heavy rock music to accompany the wrestlers’ entrance. A screaming mom in the audience didn’t hesitate to yell obscenities like, “Kick his ass!” and “That’s my baby up there!” Another woman actually retorted, “Hey, chill out lady!”
The wrestlers of the RWF were reminiscent of acts from the WWF. One scrawny wrestler wore a hot pink, 1980s hair-band wig, a Poison t-shirt and had a cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth. The others were decently built and didn’t falter to rip their shirts off upon entering the auditorium. The wrestling act wouldn’t have been nearly as entertaining without the egging on from the audience-especially screaming mom.
September Twilight, a five-piece rock band, gave an exceptional performance. The group resembles the musical style of bands like Incubus or A Perfect Circle. Although the band itself was tight and had a catchy sound, the lead singer had a tendency to drown out the rest of the band. Regardless, the band had a good hard rock feel to it and was really loud. September Twilight is an established band with credentials from the Emergenza competition.
Other acts from the show included poetry by Ruth Bernard and Karamu Sillah, who is a member of the Student Senate. The African Hut Club performed African-style dance and Tara Delmonico, world champion baton twirler, demonstrated her art. Neidine Lynch, vice president of the TSC, organized a fashion show, swimsuit edition.
All of the proceeds benefit The Yellow Brick Road Project, which is a non-profit organization established to enable women who have experienced domestic violence and abuse to become financially and emotionally independent. Following the show, the TSC held an after-party with pizza from Patty’s Pantry and a DJ.
