The lights dimmed, the cameras began filming, and the action commenced. At 8:08 pm on Saturday, January 22, the 2022 Andrews University Talent Show officially began. This grand spectacle was filled with multiple original pieces and incredibly skilled performers. In all, there were ten acts, and each one made the show one to remember. It was also a show of stories; stories of family, love, and the best of friendships. Beyond the beautiful notes and tragic jokes, it can be said that the audience could hear the stories behind them all.
The event began with an opener involving an intricate Gymnics performance filled with drama and tremendous feats of flexibility and strength. This gave way to one of the first great stories of the night. Before it began, the host, Angel Pereira (MDIV), gave us some insight into the first act of the night. Jonathan Lutterodt (freshman, nursing) was set to perform the song, “this is how you fall in love,” with two friends, who could not make it to the show due to unfortunately catching the coronavirus. Jonathan decided that the show must go on and was able to get Gianna Bacchiocchi (sophomore, biology pre-med) and Ethan Emde (sophomore, business finance) to join him. They did an absolutely beautiful rendition of the song and turned a tragedy into a triumph. There were also two original songs performed during the event. One was by Mateo Banks (senior, finance), called “Wife Type” and the other was by Evin Nazya (senior, psychology) and named “Under.” Both of these student artists have music on Spotify.
A recurring story throughout the night was one of friendship. During one such performance, Samantha Cardwell (sophomore, music) and Torrey Joo (sophomore, psychology) sang “She Was Mine” by AJ Rafael. Torrey strummed his guitar as the two of them sang their duet, which was filled with near angelic harmonies. Another moving song that was performed among friends was “Something Just Like This” by the Chainsmokers. This was done by the band 13 Roses — with Grayson Slikkers, Joshua Ashley, Nathaniel Chung (junior, religion pre-med), Matthew Lechleitner (freshman, engineering), and guest member, Hannah Ashley (sophomore, undecided). When asked why they chose this name for their band, they told the crowd that they researched the meanings of different amounts of flowers, and they found that 13 roses represent eternal friendship. They further explained that they had pretty much all known each other for the majority of their lives, and they were playing this song with their forever friends.
13 Roses finished their energetic performance, and then came the moment everyone was waiting for. The show was coming to a close, and it was time for the audience to vote and the judges to deliberate. As this was happening, the Gymnics team came back to the stage and brought to life stories from the Bible, and ultimately the story of Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, through their breathtaking stunts. When they were finished, and the judges had finished their deliberations, three winners were announced. In third place was Jonathan Lutterodt’s soulful performance with Gianna and Ethan. In second place was “The Berrien Buccaneers,” who were two individuals, Franky Paypa (junior, pre-physical therapy) and Joshua Bojorquez (senior, informatics and graphic design), who had a stunning performance filled with violins, pirate themes, a launchpad, and of course some pirate dancing.
The first place performer was Christine Neveu-Cathian (masters, youth and adult ministry), who had one of the most beautiful stories of the night. She sang the iconic Whitney Houston song, “I Have Nothing,” and she did absolute justice to this time-honored piece of art. She told the audience that she was taught this song by her father, and whenever she sings the song she is brought to the point of tears. While she is able to talk to her dad over the phone, in an all-too-familiar tale that many can empathize with, she has not seen him in years. As she sang, her passion was clear and the audience responded with cheers and waving flashlights throughout the piece. When asked what she believed made her performance stand out, Christine said, “I sang with all my heart . . . I give glory to [God’s] name first and foremost.” She then had this message for anyone who may want to participate in the talent show next year: She wants anyone who is thinking about performing, “to believe in yourself . . . and to just enjoy.”
Before this talent show, I asked Jonathan Woolford-Hunt (junior, global studies and communication) how he thought the show would go and whether he had enjoyed his experiences with it in the past. He responded, “I’ve gone to this Andrews University talent show for a few years now . . . in the past I’ve had a lot of fun here so I came hoping this year there could be some talent that really stands out and that speaks to me.” After the show, I got an answer to this from a few audience members. Savannah Tyler (freshman, speech-language pathology) said that, to her, “some performances were memorable.” I also asked a group of individuals [Sheala Worsham (junior, architecture), Barbara Bend (junior, architecture), Mackenzie Arant (junior, architecture), and Simei Munoz (junior, social work)] how they felt. They all answered, “it was great!” I also asked them whether the event lived up to their expectations and most said, “yes, yes it did,” and “of course,” with Sheala even saying “I would say it exceeded expectations, it was really good.”
I also spoke with T Bruggemann (junior, computer science and physics), the Executive Vice President of the Andrews University Student Association. My first question was, “what did it take to bring this event together?” His answer was, “It took a lot of planning, specifically from our social vice president, Taylor, and her team.” “We’ve had practices [and] auditions,” and, “a lot of people have helped with those and with setting up tonight.” I also asked him whether he believed the event was a success. His answer? “Yeah, I think it was. People seemed to enjoy it [and] we had a very large turnout, so yeah I would say it was.” With all said and done, this was truly a show to remember.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.