When the lights went off in the auditorium just before 3:30 p.m. on April 7, the audience went silent as Yeni Cho (12) and Dustin Yoon (12), UNICEF co-presidents, welcomed the audience to the annual UNICEF x Tri-M Teacher Student Talent Show. A total of nine groups displayed a variety of talents, ranging from dancing to playing the traditional Korean instrument kayageum.
However, according to Patricia Song, UNICEF treasurer, the talent show had a low audience turnout that made the event less profitable than previous years. According to Dustin, all of the profit from the talent show will go towards raising money to buy school supplies for Cambodian children and fund their Dream House Project, which aims to build a house for a family.
“Although we were not able to raise as much money as we did last year because of the lack of student turn out, the show itself was very successful,” Dustin said. “I believe that talent shows have always been a meaningful way to raise funds so it is a tradition that our club hopes to continue. We were not expecting an exact number of people, rather we were hoping to see more support for the cause.”
One explanation for the lack of turnout may be the chosen date for the talent show. A big afterschool event, such as the talent show, is usually held on a Friday, when both students and teachers are considered to be more relaxed due to the weekend the next day. However, this talent show being held on Tuesday was another possible reason why UNICEF could not raise as much money as they did last year.
“We really had no choice even though we knew the show overlapped with Forensics [along with] soccer and swimming practices,” Dustin said. “All we can really do right now is to try and raise our funds by doing more bake sales, and thinking of what other events we can hold to make up for this.”
Nevertheless, the show featured a variety of performances including the performance to “Roly Poly” by T-ara put on by female SIS faculty. This marked the first time administrators participated in a talent show, as nine female faculty danced in matching black fedoras, glittery construction gloves and all black outfits.
“I was the start of the fiasco,” said Hye Yong Min, Chief of Communications. “I had always known about UNICEF’s hard work in fundraising so I wanted to participate and show students that there are a lot of staff members who are always here to support the students.”