Carissa Marsh
Staff Writer
Every spring, students from both Greek and non-Greek groups come together to put on a musical extravaganza that has become a Pepperdine tradition: Songfest.
This year’s Songfest theme is “Patent Pending.” For 2005, Songfest is about inventiveness, design, creativity, imagination and engineering. Each group’s 12-minute mini-musical centers around a popular invention and the unique story behind its creation.
This year, audience members will hear stories about the invention of Fisher-Price’s See ‘n Say toy, deodorant, the Hula Hoop, the greeting card, dentures, the flashlight and Spam.
Songfest began in 1973 when the school moved from Los Angeles to the Malibu campus. At the Los Angeles campus, there was a similar event called “Spring Sing” that was held in the school cafeteria.
Now, 32 years later, Songfest 2005 is the largest show Pepperdine has had in more than a decade with more than 350 participants. This number includes mostly students but also faculty, staff and alumni. Sam Parmelee, executive producer and director of Songfest, said he is excited that so many people are involved this year.
“This is the largest show we have had in 10 or 15 years,” Parmelee said. “This year’s show looks promising.”
There are six student groups and one faculty/staff/alumni group participating in the event. Along with these seven groups is a cast of six student hosts who guide the show, introduce each act and perform their own musical numbers between groups.
The student groups involved in Songfest are Delta Gamma, Psi Upsilon, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Kappa Alpha Theta, Delta Delta Delta, Sigma Chi, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Pi Beta Phi, Gamma Ghkkkkket Sigma, the Underdogs (a freshmen group) and Front of House.
Front of House is the faculty/staff/alumni group directed by Chris Van Velzer, Student Organizations coordinator and Greek advisor.
The groups are accompanied by an orchestra under the direction of Chris Stivers.
Among the different Songfest groups there is a sense of fun, pride and competition. Groups must do a lot to win the coveted Sweepstakes award, the grand prize of Songfest.
Each group has only two weeks to practice for Songfest and practices are usually held late at night, typically from 10 to midnight every night. The groups choose their own music, design their own set and costumes and write their own script. Each group is given a budget of $400.
There are rules the groups must follow while creating their mini-musicals. Each performance can only be 12 minutes long and within this time period only 2 minutes can be allotted for dialog. Music must also be arranged in at least a two-part harmony for a substantial portion of the performance.
A panel of judges critiques each group’s performance based on five categories: music, choreography, set and costume, theme and enthusiasm. After the final performance Saturday night, the points are totaled and the awards are presented.
In the past three or four years, Songfest has had sold-out performances and tickets have sold very quickly. To allow more people to experience the show, an extra performance was added for Tuesday evening.
Weeks of practicing and seven sold-out performances makes Songfest a serious time commitment for all the students involved. However, most agree that it is worth the time, effort and lost sleep. And for some students who have leadership roles, such as director, producer or choreographer of their group’s performance, the time commitment and preparation began long before the two-week-designated practice period.
Kelly O’Rear, a junior public relations and religion major, is the musical director for Gamma Ghkkkkket Sigma, whose group name comes from the names of the three originators of Songfest. Gamma Ghkkkkket is a non-Greek group that comes together each year because of the group’s shared love for Songfest. O’Rear worked on music direction, teaching and production for the show.
“Teaching the music is a little difficult, but I had a lot of help,” O’Rear said. She said it was a complex process because of all the different ranges of ability within the group.
“It takes a lot of patience and it is tedious, but it is worth it,” O’Rear said.
Though O’Rear is a member of Alpha Phi, she became a Gamma Ghkkkkket for Songfest. O’Rear said she values the unique mindset of the group.
“It’s more about the relationships you build than putting on a show,” O’Rear said. “We desire to put on a very good show, but its more about the process.”
Kapua Kauhane, a freshman psychology major and also a member of Alpha Phi, agrees with O’Rear.
“Gamma Ghkkkkket is more about cooperation and teamwork, so there are not really any solos,” Kauhane said. “It’s about bringing everyone together and creating a shared feeling of friendship and respect.”
Casey Gillam, a senior business major, has been involved with Gamma Ghkkkkket and Songfest since his sophomore year.
“I was invited to a meeting, and I fell in love with it,” Gillam said. “Gamma Ghkkkkket is why I am still at Pepperdine.”
Gillam said his favorite part of Songfest is the weeks leading up to the performance.
“The best part is the hours we spend together as friends,” Gillam said.
For many students, just putting the show together is rewarding.
Charlotte Botsford, a junior creative writing major, is one of the producers for the Delta Gamma and Psi Upsilon group. As a producer, Botsford has been working on the show since October, meeting deadlines and going to meetings, while still managing to make it to class.
Though it required a lot of dedication, Botsford said she believes the experience is worth the effort.
“It is really cool to create something,” Botsford said.
Friendship is a common thread throughout all the Songfest groups. Keiy Murofushi, a sophomore sports medicine and nutrition major, is a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, which partnered with Tri Delta and Theta for the show. Murofushi said he has participated in Songfest twice because it is fun.
“My favorite part was getting to know people and goofing around with my friends,” Murofushi said.
Murofushi said he admits, however, that practicing for the show is more than just fun and games.
“It’s almost like (another) class because you learn a lot of different things,” Murofushi said. For him, balancing a hectic practice schedule with class work was the most difficult part. But Murofushi said he believes the chaos of Songfest pays off in the end.
This year, for the first time in Songfest history, there was an all freshmen group, The Underdogs. Stephanie Kupfer, music major, is part of the group. Being a freshman can be challenging enough, but this group took on Songfest and also conquered the chaos that Murofushi experienced.
“The practices were physically and mentally exhausting,” Kupfer said. “But the progress we made throughout Songfest was amazing.”
At one point the commitment almost became too much for Kupfer, who thought about quitting the show. But she said she is really glad she stuck with it.
“I am really happy with our group,” Kupfer said. “We all gave 120 percent. We took everyday people and made them stars.”
For the finale, all the groups come together to sing “The Great Inventor,” an original number written by musical director Chris Stivers. It is an upbeat number that celebrates all the hard work and dedication that went into creating the show.
And in return for all their effort, the cast members of Songfest 2005 said it will likely be an experience they will never forget.
Songfest will be performed tonight through Saturday at 8 p.m. in Smothers Theatre. An additional matinee performance is scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. Tickets for Saturday’s performances are sold out.
Call the Center for the Arts box office at ext. 4522 for more information.
03-17-2005
