By Cassie Gerhardstein
Senior Features Writer
To anyone who missed the freshman talent show: I’m sorry. The Anchored class broadcasted their talent Saturday night in Hughes auditorium at the annual event and set the bar high for the incoming freshman class.
The evening kicked off with roaring applause as Male Class Sponsor Sean O’Connor introduced his female counterpart Kristin Knapton as she made a grand entrance riding a bike down the aisle of Hughes Auditorium waving a flag. O’Connor and Knapton served as hosts for the night and facilitated the show like pros. Between Knapton’s hilarious outfit changes and O’Connor’s cello obsession, the hosts doubled as comedians and put on quite a show themselves.
The performers boasted a variety of skills, from singing to cat impersonating. The show began with a soulful, acoustic version of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” performed by Stacey Ballinger and Mindi Wafford.
Many celebrities made an appearance at the show as performed in a monologue by Brooke Butterworth. The performance included hilarious impersonations of Sarah Palin, Kristin Chenoweth, Justin Beiber and many others, ultimately leading to a dramatic turn in the final impersonation: Jesus Christ. Butterworth did an amazing job portraying Jesus bearing the cross as he begs his children not to be defined by the media and the unattainable standards that society sets.
The audience enjoyed a taste of France with Naomi Friedman’s rendition of the upbeat French tune “Loin de Paname.” Complete with a beret, Friedman sang in fluent French and her sweet, clear voice was the perfect accompaniment to the happy piano tune.
Although all of the individual acts were great, talent also came in numbers with the many groups that performed. Brooke Butterworth, Alli Acuff, Emma Fitch performed a song from “Shrek the Musical” called “I Know it’s Today.” The song follows the character Fiona on her search for love. The trio killed it, not only with their vocals but also with their wardrobe, which consisted of variations of Fiona’s signature green dress.
The show would not be complete without a couple of tributes to the hugely popular Disney movie, “Frozen.” Sarah Grace Bloyd and Thia Berggren paid their respects to the hit movie with a creative mash-up of the Frozen tune “Let it Go,” and the new pop song “Let Her Go;” while Dan Carlson and Jeremy Davidson opted for a more comical performance of “Reindeer are Better than People.” And yes, the song was complete with reindeer antlers.
After 18 acts celebrating the talents of the Anchored class, it only makes sense that the night would end with the Anchored class hymn. All of the acts joined together on stage to lead the audience in “In Christ Alone.” As the voices filled Hughes, I was reminded not only of how talented our student body is, but also how cool it is that we go to a school where we can celebrate our talents and give the glory to God.