Travis Crowley wins Baruch’s Got Talent 2012

Baruch’s Undergraduate Student Government hosted “Baruch’s Got Talent” on Friday, March 16 in Mason Hall. The annual event is geared at showcasing student talent and raising money for Relay for Life.

Sixteen separate acts had the participants presenting their talents to their families, friends, professors and peers.

The judges’ panel consisted of five individuals, each of whom voiced their own opinions of each act. The panel included President Mitchel Wallerstein, Santiago Mueckay, Cynthia Roldan, Elisabeth Greenberg and Viktoriya Kruglyak.

The talent show began with a musical backdrop by DJ Sanity during which hosts Chris Catalano and Malcolm Johnson danced their way to the stage. These hosts introduced each of the acts and kept the night running with light-hearted banter.

Students were not merely performing for bragging rights, but also for cash prizes: $500 for first place, $300 for second place and $150 for third.

Baruch’s radio station, WBMB, also introduced a brand new prize to the Talent Show’s best singer: free studio time at their offices.

Blowing the audience away with his singing and impressive guitar playing, Travis Crowley won both first place and WBMB’s special prize. The second place prize was given to the Wanted Ashiqz dance group for their whimsical choreography. Third place was awarded to Ambrose Eng, Zeehan Wazed, Anthony Vito Rodriguez and Zien Quan for a breakdancing act.

In each act the performers attempted to wow the judges and win high scores.

Ariana Solis opened the show by singing Adele’s hit, “Set Fire to the Rain.” Hitting some high notes, Kruglyak admitted to Solis, “You did a very good job and really sang from your heart”. But, Solis’ score was not high enough to rank as one of the night’s top performances.

For the second act, Eng, Wazed, Rodriguez and Quan swept the stage with their breakdancing skills and intricate dance moves. The precision of the dancers genuinely impressed Wallerstein.

Singer Brian Lung and pianist Rama Santayana worked together to produce harmony in the third act. Lung’s performance caught the ear of many people in the audience, but not necessarily Kruglya’s. “Brian, your voice is flawless, however, I expected much more with regards to your stage presence,” she said.

Baruch’s Dance Team opened up the fourth act with choreography to Beyonce’s “Run the World.”  Their organized and uniformed dance moves captivated the audiences. Roldan commended the girls for their performance. “You guys were definitely in sync. I am so proud to see you bring power to women with your performance,” she said.

The fifth act, however, didn’t get as much praise from the judges. Downtown Collective’s rapping style evidently needed more work in comparison to the other acts. Greenberg saw potential amongst the rappers and said, “I think with some more practice, you guys can become much better.”

Contemporary dancers and singer Paola Martinez, Abraham and Glasmary Paulino provided the sixth act by singing the second Adele song of the night, “Rolling in the Deep”. Though they may not have scored as high as the other performers, Mueckay praised them for their bravery in committing to Adele’s biggest hit.

The seventh act brought the crowd to their feet. Mugsy, the performer, gave a hip-hop beat that the audience loved. Before the judges got a chance to speak, Catalano fervently admitted, “I would buy his album tomorrow if I could.”

Juandon Sabb opened the eighth act with six dancers, two background singers and one vocalist. Though the choreography may have been a bit unpolished, according to Kruglyak, Roldan thought that Juadon Sabb showcased great energy and excited the audience.