By Mary Panico
The fall 2011 semester came to an entertaining end on campus, as the Black Student Union and Asian Culture Society teamed up to present “Talent Hunt – Next Stop: Hollywood.” For just $2 a person, viewers were able to experience a total of 10 remarkable live acts during the evening of Dec. 14.
BSU President Daisy Correia explained that both clubs had put on a series of auditions to choose the acts. “Eventually it came down to the top 10 who earned the chance to perform in the show,” Correia said.
Percival Auditorium was nearly full as James Lucas, emcee of the show, started out the evening with some personal comedy to get the crowd going. Then the show began with ukulele player Vyctoria Pantano, who played a medley of popular songs. Saindy Claude took over the stage next, with a beautiful performance of a scene from the play “Cold Blooded Murder.”
Lyrical rap stylings were next on the program, as Edwin Diaz and his friends boldly amped up the crowd. It was at this point in the show that Lucas filled some time with Hollywood Trivia, awarding BSU/ACS key chains as prizes.
The remainder of the first act included Kia Yang’s cover of Bruno Mars’ song “Talking to The Moon,” followed by the dance duo of Brittney Ty Wallace and Megan Smith. Their dance was choreographed to the song “Endangered Species” by Dianne Reeves, and their outfits truly captured the heart of the song.
During the 15-minute intermission, students were encouraged to buy baked goods that would help benefit both of the clubs sponsoring the event.
Following intermission, an eight-person band called FSUnison, consisting of violins, cellos, bass, piano, and percussion, covered a song by Lady Gaga. It was truly an interesting sound to hear Lady Gaga being covered in a wide array of instruments.
Shalaya Washington, otherwise known as Red Shaydez, stepped up to the plate next with her original slam poetry and rap music. The crowd fell in love with her continuous positive energy during her performance.  Next up on the stage was Christopher Burns, with an a cappella rendition of the Josh Groban composition “The Prayer.”
Before the final act of the night, comedian and musician Mitchy Dee gave the crowd a taste of his musical palate by playing original songs titled “Fast Food Date,” “Making Out,” and “Dreams.” The audience could not stop laughing as he sang hilarious lyrics and rhymes about his experiences with dating and life.
Campus favorite Hyo-Shin Kim provided a grand finale featuring his magical talents. His final act concluded by taking a piece of string, inserting it through his nasal cavity, and then pulling it out of the corner of his eye. The audience and the judges were highly impressed, awarding him the first-place position in the end results.
“I feel like it was a really successful event,” Correia said. “I got really good feedback and I would love to do it again next year!”