The broad, open worship space of Hendricks Chapel was filled with heartfelt performances on Saturday evening in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Main Squeeze and The Mandarins, two all-female a cappella groups on campus, came together to host “Pink is the New Orange: A Breast Cancer Awareness Revue.” Auditions for the open mic night were held a month in advance, the only criteria being that the performances had to have an uplifting message, said Main Squeeze senior and coordinator of the event, Sydnee Corriders.

“There were some rough sleepless nights, but it came together so I’m really happy. And we raised a lot of money, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Corriders, a psychology and child and family studies major.

One-hundred percent of the proceeds went to support Laurie’s Hope, a breast cancer support program at the YMCA of Greater Syracuse. The program helps women who are battling the disease get through it — physically and emotionally.

Corriders said the two a cappella groups agreed the money raised should go to a local group, rather than one on the national scale. They also decided to reach out to the entire Syracuse community, rather than just students on campus.

“Breast cancer affects everyone, so we really wanted to have a large scope for the performers,” Corriders said.

There were three singers from the community who performed. One — the youngest in the performance — was 13-year-old Mariah Adigun, who closed out the event by singing a rendition of Mariah Carey’s “Hero.” She received the only standing ovation of the night.

But the majority of the evening was not about showing off one’s talents. It was about portraying the loaded meaning behind the artwork. The rest of the night was filled with duets, a monologue from “My Sister’s Keeper,” a performance by Juiced Dance Troupe and one student who performed original spoken word poetry.

Standing alone on stage behind a mic while wearing a pink tie in support of breast cancer awareness, Hernz Laguerre Jr. delivered one of the standout moments of the night with his poetry. Laguerre said he became interested in the event through a friend’s Facebook post about the auditions. He said he has a personal tie to breast cancer: His grandmother died from it when he was only 5 years old.

“I’ve been in support of it for a long time, and I just wanted to share my art with other people,” said Laguerre, a sophomore broadcast and digital journalism major and member of the Syracuse football team. “I always appreciate it when people appreciate my thinking, because that’s what my poem is, it’s what I think and just me saying it out loud.”

Originally, he said he intended to perform the piece with which he auditioned, “Beauty in Every Crevice.” But, he said, it “wasn’t done cooking yet” and so decided to perform one of his tried-and-true pieces that he calls “Eyes on the Judged.”

“It’s just about newness, about a new season in life,” he said. “It’s getting rid of the old and coming in with the new.”

Throughout the concert, members of both Main Squeeze and The Mandarins read breast cancer statistics, such as the number of women currently affected by it, before introducing each act. At intermission, the groups announced a raffle for baskets filled with items from businesses on Marshall Street, including gift cards to Bleu Monkey Café and coupons for Chipotle Mexican Grill.

As the concert came to a close, Corriders came onstage to announce that, with $1 raffle ticket sales alone, they raised $214. Then, members of both a cappella groups came on stage to perform a mashup of Katy Perry’s “Roar” and Sara Bareilles’ “Brave.”

“I think the joining of the two girl groups is something that should have happened a long time ago,” Corriders said. She said she hopes the concert becomes an annual event, but, as a graduating senior, she won’t be around to watch it happen.

Still, Corriders said she was pleased with the turnout and the amount of support the concert had from the Syracuse community.

After the concert ended, Tessie Battista-Kenney, the breast cancer coordinator and family and teen director at the North Area Family YMCA, posted in the Pink is the New Orange Facebook page, thanking all of the performers for such a special night.

She wrote: “We attended last night and were blown away by the voices, dancers, readings and the outpour of support you generated. Thank you again for thinking of us.”

Published on October 21, 2013 at 12:54 am

Contact Kristin: klross01@syr.edu | @kriskross22