Audiences booed students in the Kaye Auditorium, as the Sandman, played by student Jonathan Jackson, appeared shirtless with a giant afro swept the acts off the stage with a broom.
The performers were okay with it though — it was just how the show worked.
On Wednesday evening, Nov. 7, Program Board hosted their first ever Apollo Amateur Night.
Actor and producer, Ralph Cooper started Amateur Night at the Apollo in 1934 in Harlem, New York City, N.Y. According to Amateur Night’s official website, “It quickly became the leading showcase for many young, talented, new performers.” Some of the big names that have performed at the Apollo include Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and James Brown.
Owl Radio’s DJ Thunder set the mood in the auditorium with energetic music, like a Sexy and I Know It/Gangnam Style mashup, as around 700 students trickled inside around 7:50 p.m.
Twelve acts performed that night. Out of the 12 acts, 10 were musical acts, ranging from rock and roll to rap. The other two were dance acts that didn’t compete, but performed for entertainment.
The competing performers took the stage one by one. Within approximately one minute into their performance, the Sandman walked behind the performer with a sign that read “Cheer or Boo,” and that was the audience’s cue to support the act or tear them to shreds.
The original New York Amateur Night’s Sandman was actually called “The Executioner.” C.P. Lacey had the role and was responsible for making sure that only the praiseworthy acts were allowed to stay on stage.
According to Amateur Night’s official website, “When the Amateur Night ‘bad talent’ alarm rings, Mr. Lacey dons his Executioner costume and quickly sweeps the offender off the stage.”
And that’s exactly what the Sandman did at FAU. If the act was booed he, swept the act off the stage, with a custodial broom. On the other hand, if the act was cheered on, they were able to continue their performance for two to three minutes.
“We wanted to keep it as close to the original Apollo Night as possible,” vice chair of the event, Akeem Edwards said.
Edwards and Ilana Simone, Program Board showcase chair, worked together to pick the format of the show.
“I wanted to mimic the event here and thought it would be cool to get the audience involved,” Simone said. She came across the Amateur Night at the Apollo while researching talent competitions.
She was worried that the audience wouldn’t participate at first, but they did right off the bat. “Luckily we had a really good crowd and they exceeded my expectations,” she said.
Eventually, the four judges picked their top three acts. Female singers Rancene, Porshia J and TySwasey made the cut.
Rancene soulfully sang, Etta James’ I’d Rather Go Blind. Porshia J sang an acoustic mashup including songs, Diamonds Are Forever, Diamonds, Juicy and Umbrella. TySwasey sang a personalized version of Frank Ocean’s Thinkin Bout You, changing the lyrics to make it her own.
The audience had the chance to decide who their favorite act was by cheering for them; the noise level was measured on a decibel meter.
The competition finally ended up as a tie between Porshia J and TySwasey. Both performers walked away with a recording contract with FAU’s record label, Hoot/Wisdom Recordings.
DJ Thunder played some hip hop, like Bands A Make Her Dance by Juicy J, as the audience made their way out of the auditorium.
“We’ve tried to keep events fresh and different this year,” Program Board director Lexi Rosario said, “And this event was in alignment with that goal.”
