[natural sound: Acapalooza room noise]
Each Fall during Family Weekend, parents of musically gifted Wildcats flock together for one aca-mazing event.
[natural sound: Undertones singing]
RACHEL MCCANN: Acapalooza is a partnership between Family Engagement and Northwestern University Dance Marathon or NUDM. It’s an event that we’ve been hosting the last few years where we have all the a cappella groups come perform, and it raises money for our beneficiaries, which this year are Chicago Hopes for Kids and the Evanston Community Foundation.
That was Weinberg sophomore Rachel McCann, the special events chair for Northwestern University Dance Marathon, also known as NUDM. NUDM is Northwestern’s oldest and largest philanthropic organization, and its main event is a 15-hour dance marathon in the Winter that raises money for charitable organizations across the Evanston and Chicago communities. Acapalooza is one of the additional fundraising events hosted annually by NUDM, and this year it took place in a completely new setting.
MCCANN: So in previous years, we’ve been doing it in the evening on either Friday or Saturday night during Family Weekend because it’s a great way for families to see their children perform. But this year there’s a lot of other stuff going on at night: there was the volleyball game last night and then the Second City show tonight. So we had a really cool opportunity to do it during this brunch, where–last year they did the brunch, but they wanted some sort of entertainment, and it was a great way to merge both of those conflicts and bring Acapalooza to the Family Weekend brunch.
[natural sound: Undertones set into applause]
On Sunday morning of Family Weekend, the Louis Room inside the Norris University Center was teeming with excited parents and passionate performers alike. After an impressive set from The Undertones, Medill senior and Undertones president Nicole Tan overflowed with pride.
NICOLE TAN: Oh my god, it was so much fun. It was a little, Acapalooza was a little different this year, but I honestly, I really liked the format of the brunch and it was a lot easier to see everyone’s faces and it honestly felt a lot more intimate than if we were just performing on a big stage like in McCormick Auditorium and just looking out into the crowd. So, yeah, I honestly really loved it.
TAN: There were definitely a lot of smiles in the crowd which is just, it’s exciting to see because again, when you’re in an auditorium, it’s harder to see people’s faces and I love looking at people and engaging with people when we sing. So it was definitely exciting to see that they were engaged and enthusiastic and there were some familiar faces in the crowd as well as unfamiliar faces and yeah, I think it was a really good mix.
Members of the Acapalooza crowd also appreciated this year’s format. Here’s JP Park, parent of School of Communications freshman Ethan Park, who is a member of The Treblemakers.
JP PARK: The energy is definitely the one, the stage presence, the energy, the force of everyone just working, you know, in unity and harmony. That was just absolutely beautiful to see.
PARK: I love the parents just coming together and — we’re all strangers, but we’re making connections through our children. But also it’s just a camaraderie of just supporting one another. I think that that’s something that really blessed me and impressed me.
[natural sound: Treblemakers singing]
With a perfect blend of music, community, and philanthropy, Acapalooza once again brought families and performers together for a memorable Family Weekend. As NUDM gears up for its main event in the winter, Acapalooza set an inspiring tone for the fundraising efforts to come.
MCCANN: If you want to register to dance, go to go.NUDM.org. and if you want to get more involved, you can email exec@NUDM.org to learn more.
For WNUR News, I’m Sofi Pascua.
