Pasquerilla East Hall will hold their annual event, “So You Think You Can Sync?” battle at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Washington Hall. The production, modeled on Jimmy Fallon’s lip sync battles, will include a wide variety of performers and styles.
Samantha Scheuler, a senior assistant rector from Pasquerilla East Hall, emphasized the community building aspect of the event.
“It will just be a great time for our community to get together and show the rest of campus what Pasquerilla East is all about,” Scheuler said.
Performances will include mash-ups, classic rock and Britney Spears songs, as well as selections from “High School Musical” and “Annie.”
Performance styles will be as diverse as the song selections, Schueler said.
“Some are really choreographed, and some go the traditional route of really imitating the performer that sings the song,” she said.
The proceeds from this event will benefit Hannah’s House, an organization providing shelter, emotional support and programming to pregnant women of all ages. All of Pasquerilla East’s signature events support this charity.
Schuler said she hopes students will take this opportunity to assist an important cause while watching a great performance.
“Who doesn’t like a talent show? Who doesn’t like people being vulnerable, putting themselves out there, getting a little goofy?” she said.
The committee that planned the event has been working hard since August to put together a professional production, Scheuler explained.
“It’s been a lot of planning and a lot of work at times over the last month, so I’m really hoping it just feels like a celebration,” Scheuler said. “I really hope that the five girls who have helped me plan this really enjoy it and can relax a little bit afterwards.”
Pasquerilla East junior, committee member, and event stage manager Maggie Marino said she has enjoyed her work on the committee.
“It's definitely been a nice experience, doing things that I haven’t really done before,” she said.
Marino said that as stage manager, she has worked closely with the sports marketing department in order to learn how to oversee the logistical minutiae of the event.
“Basically in sports marketing one of the main things when you’re on the floor is just telling people when they can go on ... and making sure they’re off at the right time ... so that everything goes smoothly, so that’s basically what stage managing is,” Marino said.
The committee is trying to take advantage of all of the facilities available to them in Washington Hall, Scheuler said.
“A lot of the groups when they came to dress rehearsal weren’t expecting us to be as prepared — like with a stage manager, a lights person and a person on audio — as we were,” Scheuler said. “It was kind of cool to show them how prepared we were and how serious we were about the event.”
Freshman Clarissa Younkle, another member of the planning committee, said she was similarly surprised by the technical features involved in the preparation for the event.
“I didn’t expect it to be that involved a performance,” she said.
Younkle said that the event was originally scheduled to take place last spring, but it was postponed because many performers dropped out.
“So this year, when we wanted to do it again, we really had to make sure that we had people that were committed and that wanted to do it.” she said.
The dress rehearsal, which took place Sunday, was an important part of the preparation for the event, Scheuler said.
“We were at Washington Hall all day figuring out lights, sound, stage cues and props, and making sure the groups really felt comfortable on stage with their choreography and overall performance,” Scheuler said.
Next week is Pasquerilla East Hall’s spirit week, and Scheuler said this event will fuel dorm festivities.
“Dorm spirit is kind of at an all-time high right now” she said.
Similarly, Marino said that the event builds a stronger dorm community.
“It definitely brings people together,” she said.
Tickets are $5, and they can be purchased either at the box office in LaFortune Student Center or at the door.
Younkle said that all Notre Dame students can have a great time at this event.
“You can get extreme comical relief from a very stressful week in a short amount of time and support a charity, so why not?” she said.
