kick-off
October 3, 2024
Behind the scenes of a ‘fire’: the teamwork of stage managers
This year’s annual Kick-Off event at Goshen College was marked by dynamic performances, unexpected challenges, and teamwork behind the scenes. With meticulous coordination of stagehands and managers, Kick-Off demonstrated not just the talent of the performers, but also the vital contributions of everyone involved, setting the stage for an unforgettable night. As the show began, Dontaye Albert, a senior theater major, took center stage with his “cow” and set an energetic tone for the performance. Later, Phil Witmer-Rich made a grand entrance but forgot his mic. Fortunately, the crew members were prepared with extras. Someone from the tech box quickly...
September 19, 2024
Who should perform at Kick-Off?
Yeehaw, it’s almost time for Kick-Off. As seniors who know everything, we’d like to humbly offer a few suggestions for who should perform. Kevin Miller Being married to President Becky must be great, but we want Kevin to have an opportunity to define himself. What would his act be? He’s major gifts officer, so one good option would be to throw money into the audience. He’s also a singer; perhaps a stirring rendition of One Direction’s “What Makes You Beautiful” could be in the cards? All we know is that he deserves some applause from students to get out of...
October 5, 2023
Rodriguez juggles to take first place at Kick-Off
Kick-Off, the annual talent show held by the Goshen College Campus Activities Council (CAC), was held last Saturday in Sauder Concert Hall. As a long- standing tradition, students and staff alike looked forward to the evening with many classes the day before buzzing with conversation in anticipation for the acts and outfits that would be presented. Kevin Schultz, assistant director of residence life, was in charge of the planning this year. “We had weekly meetings to delegate tasks and come up with ideas or solutions to barriers,” he said. “Each member of CAC was assigned tasks based on their skill...
October 5, 2023
Kick-Off 2023, in photos
The residents of Kenwood House lift Phillip Witmer-Rich during their performance of “I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie.” Photos contributed by Comm-Mar Jocsan Barahona Rosales and Fatima Shana prefaced their piece with “In the beginning, there was the groove.” Photos contributed by Comm-Mar Dimestore Folklore (Luisa Dutchersmith, Ana Yoder, Maddie Bollinger and Tyson Miller, left to right) perform “Dancing in the Moonlight.” Photos contributed by Comm-Mar The Queen Singers, the first act to perform, sing “I’m Every Woman” by Chaka Khan. Photos contributed by Comm-Mar The baseball team carries on their yearly tradition of cheering from the front row. Photos contributed...
September 30, 2022
Students showcase talents at Kick-Off
Goshen College hosted its annual Kick-Off competition on Saturday, Sept. 24, in Sauder Concert Hall. Kick-Off is a long-standing tradition that allows students to showcase their talents. The 12 acts featured included a stand-up comedy routine, interpretive dancing and a wide variety of musical acts — all performed for a crowd of students and staff that often jumped to their feet to clap and dance. The theme for this year’s event was black and white, and many attendees could be spotted following the theme with their outfits. The Campus Activities Council (CAC) created a list of faculty members with strong...
October 14, 2021
Worth a thousand words: Kick-Off 2021
Isabella Ruiz performing an original composition for voice and ukulele. Dantaye Albert performing his comedy routine “Being Black at Goshen College.” Wendo Kisila delivers a poem on the video screen with an in person interpreter. The members of Howell House performing a “Mama Mia” dance medley, featuring lead singer Agusta Nafziger. The dance group tied for third place. Goshen Panic, an ensemble made up of Sam Scheele, Benjamin Good-Elliot, Isaac Fisher, Birch Baer, and Jonathan Orjala, trumpet. Bohan Lin and Julia Jun, performing “Peace is a Promise You Keep” by Addereth Worship.
October 14, 2021
Kick-Off makes a comeback
Goshen College students showcased their talents at the annual Kickoff event in Sauder Concert Hall last Saturday. The 15 acts of the evening demonstrated a wide range of unique abilities including singing, playing instruments, comedy and much more. While last year’s live performance was limited to only seniors (others watched it on over live stream from dispersed locations), this year saw a return to full in-person participation, with mask-wearing being the only COVID-19 restriction, besides the cancelation of the traditional after-party. The band The Runaways won the contest with a cover of “Runaway Baby” by Bruno Mars that brought the...
March 12, 2021
‘Two High’ triumphs in Sauder
Elena Meyer Reimer and Antoinette Mpawenayo claimed the kick-off crown in Sauder Concert Hall on Feb. 27 with their performance, “Two High.” Both Reimer and Mpawenayo weren’t expecting the results. “I have never performed in front of judges. I do circus to help build my self-esteem and also entertain and teach people in my community, so winning through circus was definitely a different feeling,” said Mpawenayo. Having previous experience with their respective skills presented both Reimer and Mpawenayo with an advantage. They were confident when it came to preparing for the actual performance. “We both had background experience so we...
November 7, 2018
Nimoy Vaidya evolves through dance
In 2016, Nimoy Vaidya and Phillip Chan took first place in Kick-Off for a b-boying routine — an art form similar to breakdancing — that took about a month to prepare while practicing about eight hours per week. In September, Vaidya reclaimed his title as king of Kick-Off, becoming the only student to ever win Kick-Off twice. This time, however, Vaidya led a group of b-boys known as Barnett’s Boys, a group named after Skip Barnett, longtime GC professor and international student advisor. Joining Vaidya were students Hajin Kim, Josiah Phiri, Levi Glick, Natan Nafziger, Ian Keim and Andrew Nussbaum....
October 3, 2018
Kick-Off highlights student talents
Hundreds of people filled Sauder Concert Hall this past Saturday to see who’d come out on top at “A Night at the Oscars.” Of the 25 acts that auditioned, Kick-Off 2018 featured 12, showcasing a wide variety of students and talents. “This year’s show was exciting because we had more acts that weren’t exclusively music,” said Corie Steinke, associate director of community life and Campus Activities Council (CAC) advisor. The Goshen College event was emceed by Alia Byrd and Amy Castillo, alongside other members of CAC. Planning for the event began even before school started, deciding on factors such as...
September 18, 2018
Kick-Off auditions to take place next week
Goshen College is once again carrying an annual its tradition — Kick-Off. Auditions will begin this week. Marisa Marquez, chair of the Campus Activities Council (CAC), described Kick-Off as a “big talent show for all of campus to be a part of.” [blocktext align="right"]“[Kickoff is a] really good night to actually see the campus spirit,” said Amy Castillo, CAC’s campus and community events chair.[/blocktext] The theme this year is “A Night at the Oscars.” The group described the process of preparing for Kick-Off as “time consuming and meticulous” but agreed it is worth it in the end. According to Gi...
October 5, 2017
Kick-Off features variety of acts
The Goshen College student population flooded into Sauder Concert Hall Saturday night to see for themselves if “Goshen’s Got Talent.” With 15 acts involving more than 30 people, this statement was an appropriate theme for Kick-Off 2017. This essential part of Goshen College culture was emceed by senior Kevin Florentin and junior Alia Byrd. These two, along with the other members of the Campus Activities Council (CAC), did the planning for the event, beginning even before the school year started. “From the theme to every decoration detail, to the acts themselves and every transition in between, CAC along with ITS...
December 1, 2016
Kick Off cancelled for Spring 2017
The rumors are true: there will not be a spring Kick Off next semester. The decision to eliminate spring Kick Off came about after administration reviewed student activities and organizations. They assessed Goshen College’s programming goals and became concerned that GC was limiting programing opportunities by dedicating resources and energy to Kick Off events. “There is agreement that spring Kick Off is a successful event; however, it is duplicative, showcasing many of the same individuals in multiple acts,” said Launa Leftwich, dean of students. Many considerations were included in the decision such as: level of student participation, venues, overhead costs,...
September 29, 2016
Kick Off 2016: An enchanted evening in Sauder
Students enjoyed an enchanted evening at the Disney-themed 2016 Fall Kick Off, hosted by the Campus Activities Council. In between the acts, the audience got to see skits performed by CAC members, who were dressed as Disney characters. Cinderella ran across the stage, looking for her lost shoe, and Maleficent and Kristoff sang a duet together, ending with Kristoff sadly walking away. In total, there were 15 acts, with performances ranging from original songs to bands to dancing and skits. “I thought that Kick Off was really good this fall,” said Roxy Gehring, a sophomore. “One of the things that...