“Mommy made me mash my M&M’s. Oh my!” Now up the octave.
Vocal warmups like these filled College Terrace on Nov. 9, as Epic Glee prepared for their invitational — a no-pressure time for the club to debut some songs they have been working on.
Epic Glee is the only show choir on the SUNY New Paltz campus. Their fall invitational this year featured performances by them and other performance groups at New Paltz.
One of Epic Glee’s co-directors, Julie Brown, opened the show. “We are so happy that you decided to spend your Saturday with us. Very coveted time,” she said. On this Saturday, a crowd filled the seats of College Terrace for an afternoon of song, dance and jazz hands.
New Paltz’s SMACC Dance Crew, a “hip-hop, jazz funk, dance hall, vogueing and K-pop inspired group,” performed first. Five dancers took the floor and gave it their all to an upbeat four-song mashup. They kept their energy high and the audience engaged while they hit every beat head on.
Up next on the stage was Nova, a K-pop dance crew at SUNY New Paltz, affiliated with the Asian & Pacific Islander Student Alliance. Their number was upbeat, precise and impressive to watch. Some dancers from Nova were also in SMACC, highlighting the interconnectedness of the New Paltz dance community.
The stars of the day, Epic Glee, performed next. All dressed in pastel pink and blue, the group looked uniform and ready to perform before they even took their spots on stage. They began with their rendition of “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen, featuring three soloists. Next they performed “Paper Rings” by Taylor Swift, also featuring three soloists. Other members harmonized while hitting every chasse, shimmy and twirl with a smile.
The last group to perform was the New Paltz Dance Association. Dressed in blue, nine members performed a more technical jazz number, with leaps, pirouettes and sass to display. This routine was taught to them by one of their own members, who also performed that day.
With more time in their program, Epic Glee invited audience members and performers to step up and participate in an open mic, singing or dancing to whatever they wanted. Seven members of Epic Glee took the mic and each sang a solo. The audience cheered at every belt and riff sung and gasped over the familiar favorites heard. After all, it is inevitable – a former theater-kid can’t resist Dear Evan Hansen.
With no competition and just a passion to perform, each group at the invitational delivered an afternoon of musical joy to anyone who came to witness. The performers’ energy fed every whoop and cheer from the audience and reminded them of the importance of doing something they love just because they love it – and brought out their inner Gleeks.