Thursday, 4/24/97 Students sing their hearts out at annual
spring event ‘Spring Sing’ to benefit UCLA Jonsson Cancer Research
Center
By Jasmine Pachnanda Daily Bruin Contributor No UCLA student can
escape talking to URSA. Although you grow impatient at the words
"Information entered must be in a specific format," and cringe when
classes are full, sometimes you wish you could hug her when she
announces your passing grade. Tonight, the fate of many UCLA
students is placed with URSA once again at Spring Sing’s "Avenue of
the Stars." Organized by the Student Alumni Association, the
real-life URSA will be a part of this annual event. URSA, along
with UCLA professors and alumni, will serve as judges for this
talent competition, hosted by MTV’s Chris Hardwick of "Singled Out"
and UCLA Comedy Club member Mike Phirman. "If you want to know who
URSA is, you should definitely come to this," financial chair and
fourth-year student Elizabeth Espinoza advises. The George and Ira
Gershwin award will also be presented, this year to Randy Newman.
However, to everyone involved, Spring Sing is more than just about
competition and awards. It brings together the students of UCLA to
celebrate the talent and diversity represented in the student body.
Featuring more than 20 different acts, from ensemble productions of
Broadway musicals to solo musicians, over 200 UCLA students make up
the cast, with more working behind the scenes. "All the acts are
really great. There is a really nice variety," Espinoza adds.
"There is one guy who sings as if he is in a stadium and does all
the echoing." The acts are split up into five different categories
including solo, duet, production, ensemble and band. Taken
together, Spring Sing promises to provide a wide variety of
entertainment. Last year’s Spring Sing winner, the a cappella group
Ja’a, is back singing a "tribute to Michael Jackson and his
brothers," according to member Paul Santos. "It’s fun and it’s a
tradition," Santos adds, as it is for most groups who don’t care
about the competition. "Just performing in Spring Sing is enough
for us," second-year student Walter Yim says. "It’s a really nice
opportunity to sing with all these great a cappella groups who are
like, our idols," Yim adds while listening with admiration to Ja’a
practice. Yim, part of the a cappella group Vibe, is participating
in Spring Sing for the first time. Yet, some performers are not as
anxious to share the details of their acts before showtime. "It’s a
secret but we’ve put lots of time and effort into this and I think
it will show through," first-year student Brad Chen mysteriously
says of his act. Chen and other members of Pi Kappa Alpha are
working with Delta Delta Delta on a revised version of "Grease." In
addition to the numerous musicians and bands, the Pilipino singing
group Tinig ng Samahang will perform the piece "My Way Home," which
was written by some of the members. Reflective of the name of their
group which means "Voices of the Samahang," member and fourth- year
student Michael Trias admits, "It sounds good because everyone
sings from the heart." But heartfelt performances also mean a lot
of work. According to executive director Fernando Mills, many
changes were incorporated into this year’s production, including
the incorporation of the UCLA Jonsson Cancer Research Center as a
beneficiary of the profits of tonight’s show. "My whole goal was to
broaden the purpose of Spring Sing," Mills says. "I want this to be
more of a community experience and wanted to show UCLA as a force
in the community by reaching out to another cause." In addition,
the format of the show has been altered. Rather than having a dance
troupe perform between segments as in prior years, between-act
entertainment this year consists of a screen set up in the
background with skits projected onto it, comedy bits between the
hosts and a house band. "There are lots of new things that we are
trying to throw in this year. The UCLA student body is not a static
group and we wanted to meet some of these changes," Mills says. In
order to incorporate other art forms in Spring Sing, a pre-show
festival features vendors, local merchants and a display of part of
the UCLA art collection alongside student paintings, sculpture and
photography. One staple of Spring Sing is the George and Ira
Gershwin Award presented each year to someone who has "changed the
face of music," according to Mills. Newman, who has been a
prominent figure in music since the 1960s, started out as a
country-pop artist and has gone on to compose movie scores such as
"Toy Story" and "James and the Giant Peach." The entertainment at
this year’s Spring Sing is as diverse as Newman’s work. Who knows –
maybe URSA will even end the show with "Thanks number one Bruins
for coming to Spring Sing." MUSIC: Spring Sing starts tonight at 8
p.m. at the Los Angeles Tennis Center, preceded by the pre-show
festival at 6 p.m. Tickets are on sale at the Central Ticket Office
for $5.