Live Performance Review

The Acabellas and Premium Orange Winter Concert Review
By John Flemming

Dalton auditorium had a human ebb and flow to it, threatening to burst open the exit doors at any second. Every single seat was occupied and the aisles littered with eager bodies searching for an inch of floor to make do for a seat. The ushers stopped admitting people into the event ten minutes before its starting time, turning away dozens of angry individuals – who, like those denied before them, tried every trick in the book to sneak in but to no avail.

The volume of individuals that attended was matched only by their high expectations for the soon-to-begin show; after all, the Acabellas and Premium Orange troupes are an esteemed organization in the Kalamazoo College community. Certainly, previous performances have merited this distinction.

Fashionably late, the Acabellas took the stage first in front of the roaring crowd. The pitch whistle, always curiously entertaining to those who can’t hear the difference in pitches, was blown and the always-effervescent ensemble of ladies started their performance with a beautifully done rendition of “Help!” by the timeless Beatles.

The next few songs were short of memorable, but the ability to recreate, and sometimes enhance, songs with a few concerted “hmms”, “ho0os”, and “dip-dos” coupled with sometimes brilliant singers never ceases to amaze. Particularly, “Strawberry Wine” by Deana Carter, stood out as the Acabellas’ best number with Kristine Sholty using her delicate yet passionate voice to capitalize on the song’s slow, melodic peaks and valleys typical of country songs.

However, while the Acabella performance was enjoyable, it was severely hindered by the fact that they elected to include songs that they sang during their fall performance like “Disturbia”, “It’s Raining Men” and the inappropriate but uniquely vulgar “Baby Got Back” by the musical genius of Sir-Mix-A-Lot (or, as he now prefers to be called, Jonathan Coulton). While this last song seems to be a crowd favorite amongst the college students in the audience, it sometimes can cast an awkward cloud over the family-filled auditorium.

After intermission, the co-ed Premium Oranges, who always seem to present the better performance – and most certainly did – started their half of the show with “Morningside” by Sarah Bareilles. Like the Acabellas, the Premium Orange troupe included songs from their fall show: “Desperado”, “Kiss From a Rose” and “Viva La Vida”. Unlike the Acabellas though, they improved on these numbers by having Daniel Tobes and his deep, soulful voice sing “Desperado”.

And, as usual, Brendon Schramm delivered his amazing rendition of “Kiss From A Rose”, that literally left members of the audience, some who hadn’t had the fortune of hearing him before, shaking their heads and muttering “wow”. Tanav Popli’s convulsionary spectacle put on during his “Vida La Vida” number, invoked images of Joe Crocker, and Popli’s enthusiasm and energy went a long way in carrying the number, which at times struggled with hitting the right notes.

Overall, these two choral student groups produced a very entertaining event that establishes their place with some of the other great Kalamazoo College productions like Frelon and Monkapult. But, as mentioned before, they should be cautious with repeating songs because they may turn away loyal fans that interpret their lack of new material as taking the audience for granted.