By KATIE MALZBENDER
For The News-Letter
To say "standing room only" would be a lie because there wasn't room to do much of anything on Saturday, Apr. 21 as the AllNighters performed to a sardine-packed auditorium.
It might have been that the crowd was just feeling extra happy after a day at the Spring Fair Beer Garden, but, more likely, the cheers persisted throughout the nearly two hour performance because of the excellent song choices and nearly flawless execution that left the audience wondering why the AllNighters don't perform more often.
And it wasn't just the Bloomberg auditorium that was jamming with the AllNighters.
This year, for the first time, the performance was broadcast live over the internet to adoring fans and alumni from across the United States to as far away as Japan and France.
The show opened with Coldplay's "Lost" and the soloist, junior Anthony Collins, gave a convincing (and perhaps improved) portrayal of Chris Martin. Collins returned to the stage later to close the show with Jason Mraz's "I Won't Give Up," which further convinced the ladies in the audience that they want to date an AllNighter.
The beer-filled crowd went wild and was the perfect audience for such frat favorites as "Wagon Wheel" by Old Crow Medicine Show and "Chicken Fried" by the Zac Brown Band.
The general inebriation level in the room didn't prevent anyone from going crazy for classics like "Take On Me," originally by Aha! and "Kiss From a Rose" by Seal.
The AllNighters performance of Zac Brown Band's "Knee Deep" with crowd-pleasing solos by junior Ryan Thompson and sophomore Johnny Thibau sent the girls in the room into a frenzy of a cappella induced adoration.
Junior Sabrina Schoneberg's favorite song - although she admitted it was almost impossible to choose - was "Winter Winds" by Mumford and Sons.
"The arrangement was absolutely wonderful and the soloist [Rob Grande] really did a great job of performing." She also "really loved their rendition of "I Won't Give Up" [originally by Jason Mraz]. It was just really moving."
Following tradition, the sexy man-music was interrupted for a three song set by Nothing But Treble, an all female a cappella group from Cornell University. Their long journey was well worth it, especially when they closed with a soulful rendition of "Say My Name," which was met with cheers from the crowd, most of whom will go crazy for any throwback to the 1990's.
Every year, the AllNighters send off their seniors with gifts, plaques and a song. This year, Aidan Fisher, Paul Han, PK Smith, and Rob Grande will be graduating and leaving eight big shoes to fill for next year's new additions to the group. Smith, who has been a member of the AllNighters since his freshman year, echoes the sentiments of all four seniors when he says "No organization that I've been a part of over the past four years has meant more to me or been more rewarding. I'm happy to have ended my tenure on such a high note." The graduating seniors know they're leaving a legacy at Hopkins. According to Smith, "this year's group has easily been the most enthusiastic and musically talented, so [he] knows the university can expect stellar performances from them for years to come."
And that tradition will be celebrated next spring with the AllNighters twentieth anniversary show. Based on the fire-code smashingly high numbers in attendance at this year's show, we suggest that the AllNighters look into booking Shriver for the occasion.
Couldn't make it to the show, or just can't get enough AllNighters? Check out their youtube channel with full recordings from their spring show! And you haven't missed your chance to see the AllNighters live (and for free!), as Octopodes, Vocal Chords, Kranti, Ketzev, and your beloved AllNighters will be competing in the Battle of the A Cappella Groups on May 4th at 8:30 PM in Shriver.
