On Saturday, September 26, McAlister Auditorium played host to ukuleleist, pianists, singers, and freshmen bands alike in the Phi Mu Alpha Family Weekend Talent Showcase. They had wonderful acts and an enthusiastic crowd that was ready to cheer on fellow students. For those of you who weren’t there, here is a quick look at how the night went.

There were 9 different groups that performed and they were all extremely talented. The group TuneTownes from Townes 300 dazzled the crowd by singing and playing guitar. Freshman Ben Lang amazed the audience with his ukulele skills. Then McKenna Luzynski, Furman famous baton twirler, did a dance routine to Pirates of the Caribbean. Ian McConnell put on an impressive show when he sang an original song from his debut album Hold Me Back. Third place winner Andrew Clinkscales, played the piano while singing Bon Iver’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me”. A freshman band, Drummerless, also performed an original song.

Performing towards the end of showcase was second place winner Abby McDougall who excited the audience with a Scottish Fiddle Medley on the violin. Jerez Chen went second to last, performing a dance routine to a pop smash-up. And the winner of it all, making the crowd go crazy, was Paul Yoon, who astonished everyone with a “fingerstlye guitar.”

This event could not have happened without the hard work and dedication of sophomore Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia brother TJ Turner who was the main person running the operation, in collaboration with 25 Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia brothers. Turner held weekly meetings so that he could update everyone on progress, and brainstorm ideas with them for tasks to perform the following week. Turner had to balance putting on the event, with his normally busy school days but this did not distract him from his responsibilities of putting on the production and having support from his PMA brothers really helped make the talent showcase successful. Along with the PMA brothers, Turner also worked closely with Patty White of Parents’ Programs and the McAlister Auditorium staff, as well as the faculty judges and our own President Elizabeth Davis, Ph.D, who was the talent showcase’s MC.

Putting on this talent show was no easy task. All of the planning, auditions, and execution fell under the jurisdiction of the PMA brothers. Turner had to make sure that he was on top of all of the organization in order to meet deadlines for posters, posters, and publicity. All of the PMA brother’s efforts paid off in the end as they sold over 600 tickets to the talent showcase! Despite the late nights of balancing homework and the talent show, Turner was quick to emphasize how rewarding of an experience putting on the Family Weekend Talent Showcase was for him and how much he enjoyed being able to do something for Phi Mu Alpha and Furman. The event was a huge success and everyone involved hopes for an even better turnout next year.