This past Friday, seven talented groups of singers hit the stage in the Villanova Room for A Cappella SpOlooza. The annual event serves as a fall showcase for the school’s a capella groups and a fundraiser for this year’s Special Olympics Fall Festival. This year, seven of Villanova’s eight groups were featured: Vocal Minority, Measure Up, Sirens, Spires, Minor Problem, Haveners and Nothing but Treble. The ever-talented Supernovas did not take part in the concert. Each group sang two songs arranged by one of their members, all featuring new repertoire for the semester. 

The program had the privilege to welcome two special guest hosts, who will also compete at Fall Fest this year. At the program’s intermission, members of all of the a capella groups joined together with local Special Olympics competitors to sing a “Unified Song.” The unified students and athletes sang “Sweet Caroline,” with the audience chiming in to join.

Some of the highlights of the evening included Vocal Minority’s performance of AJR’s hit single “100 Bad Days.” The all-male a cappella group opened the show and got the crowd warmed up for the email. They were followed by the co-ed group Minor Problem, who brought back their performance of Ava Max’s “Sweet But Psycho,” featuring junior Kristen Mahoney on the solo. Measure Up — the University’s newest a cappella group – and the Sirens also performed prior to the intermission Unified performance.  

The event concluded with performances from Nothing But Treble, the Villanova Spires — whose performance of Juice’s “Audrey Tell Me” showcased the group’s new sound — and the Villanova Haveners. As students and performers filtered out of the room, the air was buzzing with excitement, because we were one weekend closer to Fall Fest and campus could not contain its excitement for the unofficial kick-off event. Watching the community come together to support Villanova Music Activities and Special Olympics highlights the University’s interconnected community and network of support.

The a capella groups will be at various events throughout the year and will be hosting individual concerts at the end of the semester. Students can visit Student Life’s Performing Groups page or see the Campus Activities Team’s Events Calendar for more information.

This year, Fall Festival will take place on the weekend of November 1st to 3rd. Students can visit the Special Olympics page on the Student Involvement website or contact [email protected] for more information on how to get involved.