Cheers Resound for Performers at Apollo Night

Hundreds of students and parents braved rain and snow to queue up outside the packed Lowell Lecture Hall on Saturday night to catch the Black Students Association’s annual Apollo Night.

Apollo Night, modeled after the Amateur Night at Harlem’s Apollo Theater, allows the audience to pick their favorite of competing performers by cheering or jeering.

Before the show, co-emcee Lawrence E. Adjah ’06 instructed the audience, including parents visiting for freshman weekend, to “get up and dance.”

The audience on Saturday night was vocal and energetic when they enjoyed acts, but if a performer failed to please, the sold-out auditorium resounded with boos, at which point the “Sandman,” a post filled this year by Jay R. Lundy ‘09, ran on stage with a broom to sweep away the offending act.

“Sure, everyone’s nervous, even if they know their act is good,” said Cecilia C. Ekperi ’09, who had several friends in the show. But she questioned the severity of the audience, saying it was more like a talent show than a real Apollo Night, since no one wanted to boo their friends off the stage.

The only two acts were chased off stage were Harrison R. Greenbaum ’08—who offered a wise-cracking magic show—and the dance group Impulse.

Most groups were lucky enough to gain the audience’s approval. Jared B. Lucas ’09’s clear falsetto rendering of Maxwell’s “This Woman’s Work” was interspersed with whistling, applause, and cries of “That’s right, Jared!”

The winning act, featuring the robotic dance moves of Brian D. Lee ’06 and Olakunle O. Oladehin ’07, received wild applause. One student held a huge sign that read “Don’t you wish your blockmates could DANCE like ours?”

Oladehin and Lee’s act was dubbed the winner of a $250 prize based on the cheers of the crowd when each act lined up on stage at the end of the show. The crowd cheered so loudly for the dancing duo that the emcees had no trouble declaring them the winners.

For some of the show’s more serious acts, the audience showed their appreciation with silence rather than cheering. During a saxophone performance by Marcus G. Miller ’08 and Louis Fouche ’07, many members of the audience rose to their feet and stood still, some singing softly to “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” known as the black national anthem.

Eight-year-old Jason Rose, the younger brother of Evan M. Rose ’09, stole the show at intermission with his impromptu break-dancing routine, which included a rendition of the dance move known as “the worm.”

“Apollo Night is characterized by the huge variety of acts, and by the energy of the audience and the performers,” says Nana Menya Ayensu ’07. “It provides an opportunity to perform for talented Harvard students who might not otherwise be able to, being so focused on th eir studies and careers.”

Apollo Night is held in memory of DeShaun Hill ’99 and C. Nabri Stephens ’99, members of Black Students Association who were killed in a car accident in 1997. All proceeds, which Adjah said exceeded $2,000 this year, go to a charity organization. This year, the proceeds will be donated to Students Take On Poverty (STOP).