By Cooper Nelson
GCU News Bureau
A lot was learned from last year’s Lip Sync: GCU has a number of creative students, the men’s basketball team can rock the Arena on and off the court, babies don’t belong onstage, and things can get very frothy very quickly.
Much of the same can be expected from this year’s event, which is scheduled Thursday from 8 to 10 p.m. in GCU Arena. Students and staff can expect another lineup of over-the-top performances and wild dance moves that generate roaring laughter. This year’s event theme is “Neon Phenomenon.” The audience is encouraged to dress in bright, wacky, fluorescent colors to cheer on their friends and peers.
Lip Sync has been a popular campus event for years, but last fall’s rendition of “Ice Ice Baby” by GCU’s Frothy Boyz pumped up an Arena crowd of nearly 800 people and set the tone for future events. One act, built around the "Circle of Life" theme from "The Lion King," even used the infant son of GCU administrator John-Paul Reiger as a prop.
Challengers to dethrone the champs include a GCU remake of “Rack City” by rapper Tyga, a possible Harry Potter sighting, a performance set to viral Korean Internet video sensation “Gangnam Style,” and a routine by Deep Abyss, a group of GCU students who’ve anointed themselves the “Southwestern United States’ premier boy band.”
GROOVIN' IN THE 'NEON' GLOW | |
Aside from the acts mentioned in our story, GCU student groups scheduled to perform at Thursday's Lip Sync event include:
-- Prescott and Canyon hall residence directors -- GCU men's basketball team -- GCU cheer squad -- ASGCU leaders -- Groups nicknamed "The Creeps" and "Food in the Fridge That’s Rotting Because It’s Been in the Fridge for 3 Days" |
“Of all the GCU events, L ip Sync is undoubtedly one of the biggest and most anticipated events of the year,” said Anthony Mann, GCU student activities coordinator, who helped organize the event with Associated Students of GCU.
The well-choreographed Frothy Boyz, made up of juniors Steve Fullerton and Stephen Egeberg and senior Trent Bruns, will offer a defense of their title. The Boyz refused to disclose too many details about their performance but promised it would be entertaining and fun.
“We do it for a good show. We just want to entertain people,” Fullerton said. “One thing we can say is people will ‘dig’ our props.”
The judges selected for the event include some of the best senses of humor and judges of talent on campus: Canyon Hall residential director Chelsea Ellis, music minister Gabe Salazar, discipleship coordinator Danielle Rinnier and men’s head soccer coach Petar “Drak” Draksin.
The ASGCU activities team, led by team director Jordan Hester, added a few surprises to the evening, such as special performances and mystery emcees. With the featured lineup of student acts and anticipation built from last year’s success, Thursday night’s event has the potential to be a memorable evening.
Contact Cooper Nelson at 639.7511 or [email protected].