Chalk full of talent
Waynesburg University has taken many national competitions and has made them its own, and all of them have attained popularity on campus.
Among such competitions is WU’s Got Talent, Waynesburg University’s version of the popular television show, “America’s Got Talent.”
On Feb. 21 at 8 p.m., students, parents and faculty packed the Goodwin Performing Arts Center to attend WU’s Got Talent, an event that allows students to showcase their various talents.
This year’s competition offered the crowd an assortment of talents, including dance, song, instrumental and comedy performances.
Natalie Abraham and Aaron Schuster who performed an acoustic version of “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons were awarded third place and a prize of $50.
Second place was awarded to senior athletic training major Stephen Holt who performed a combination of hip hop and step to a mash up of songs. Holt received a $100 prize.
First place went to Jenna Schmiedel and Elizabeth Champlin who performed “Royals” by Lorde a cappella, winning the grand prize of $200.
The first performance of the evening was a performance by freshman business administration major Blaze Hildebrand, who played the drums to the song “She’s Country” by Jason Aldean.
Hildebrand shared with the audience that he is the drummer for the Jason Aldean Tribute Artist, a band that travels as far as Honolulu, Hawaii.
Sophomore business finance major Pedro Torrez performed a comedy routine that he wrote over a period of three weeks.
“I like comedy, so whenever someone says something that I think is funny or has the potential to be funny, I write a note in my phone and elaborate upon it later,” said Torrez.
Torrez most enjoyed the positive feedback from the audience.
“I enjoyed and appreciated hearing the laughter of the audience,” said Torrez. “It really helped that there was a good environment, because I felt welcomed. Placing wasn’t as much of a concern as making people laugh, so I was very happy with my performance and am looking forward to doing it again next year.”
Freshman nursing major Amanda Schneider performed a solo dance routine to the song “Demons” by Imagine Dragons.
Schneider acquired her ability to dance while attending the Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School.
Junior forensic chemistry major Tara Faggioli sang “Let it Go” from the Frozen Soundtrack.
Faggioli dressed in a handmade costume of the character Anna from “Frozen” that she mended herself.
She Wolf, a group comprised of sophomore criminal justice major Emily Haywood, junior public relations major Michelle Dunseath and junior public relations major Danielle Schuyler, performed a hip-hop routine to the song “Monster” by Eminem featuring Rihanna.
Schuyler said that with only days left before their performance the She Wolf group was forced to make many adjustments to their routine.
“After overcoming various issues, being able to finally get on stage and actually perform was very rewarding,” said Schuyler. “We were nervous about not being in sync, but once we got on stage, it felt like something had just clicked.”
Once all the performers had taken the stage, voters texted in the designated numbers of their favorite performers.
While votes were being tallied, the 2012-13 WU’s Got Talent winners, The Snapbacks, performed a hip-hop performance to “Dark Horse” by Katy Perry, a recent No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.