The Student Activities Board hosted their very first talent show on Monday March 20, 2023, from 3-5 pm in McGuire Hall.
The talent show consisted of three categories: Triple Threat, which may include singing, dancing, or playing an instrument, Comedy, and Spoken Word/Monologue.
These three categories were represented by students of all years. The acts ranged from poetry and piano to intimate dance and impressions from beloved animated characters. Olivia Hawley, a first-year student at Saint Xavier University, performed Rihanna’s song “Stay” from the album “Unapologetic”.
Although Hawley has performed in her high school’s choir before, this was a different experience for her. She states, “This was a positive experience for me. The audience was affirming, and it really brought us together as students here at Saint Xavier University. It was so cool to see the hidden talents from the other performers”. Another performer, Z Blachowski, who performed under the category Triple Threat with a vocal and instrumental rendition of “Goodbye” by Bo Burnam, states, “I tend to play around a lot on the piano, so I just wanted this opportunity to explore the idea of a talent show. Even though I play almost every week, I still get nervous, but nerves lead to opportunities for mistakes, and you just have to push past them”.
Despite some nerves, Blachowski achieved their goal and audience members reported back favorably.
Hailey Henry, a first-year student and audience member showed her enthusiasm towards the performances. She states, “It was nice to see the safe environment that Saint Xavier has towards the students that are brave enough to get up there and perform. It was so much fun and motivating to see the crowd’s encouragement and praise towards the performers”.
Although this event was a full showcase of Saint Xavier’s talented students, it introduced several new prospective outlooks, future events, and a welcoming environment among fellow students.
A member of the Students Activities Board, Jenin Hasan, incorporated this idea of community and inclusion with her pop culture trivia intermission, engaging the audience in discussion and collaboration.
As did Lui Gallardo, a Director of Programming and Logistics on the Student Activities Board. They discussed the movement behind the idea of the talent show in which the idea of diversity, inclusion, and student voice played a role in the decision-making factor.
They explained that this event and many other previous events have all been in the best interest of the Saint Xavier student body, and we can expect more events in the future that share a positive impact on our community.
And that future may be sooner than anticipated!
The talent show was used to showcase not only talent, but other events going on this week, such as the Pop-up Tattoo shop and the shopping trip to Oak Brook Center, but it doesn’t stop there.
Giuliana Islas, President of Drama Club and writer for the Xavierite, used this space to promote Drama Club’s newest production, She Kills Monsters, that will hit the stage on April 14th and 15th at 7:30 p.m.
In the same performance genre, a performer in the spoken word category, Layla Alexander also known as XXVI, released information on the new Registered Student Organization called Black Ink, a creative writing club where members can express themselves through anything ranging from short stories to small poems and plays.
All are welcome to join these events or groups by visiting theden.sxu.edu.
The recipients of the cash award for Saint Xavier’s first ever talent show will be announced later in the week.