After years of wiping off sweat dripping from the ceiling, capacity overloads, and DJs alternating between “Low” by Flo Rida and “Wagonwheel” by Rusted Root, the traditional Homecoming dance the Saturday night of Homecoming weekend will no longer take place. Instead, the school will host a more casual, all-inclusive dance named ‘Alumnapalooza.’
The event, held on the Armstrong Quad, will feature a student band that has not yet been formally announced and local Colorado band Woodshed Red. The bands will set up on the Armstrong veranda.
“There’s a couple reasons we changed the nature of the event,” said Assistant Director of On-Campus Programs for the Office of Alumni Kristie Damgaard. “First of all, we were running out of capacity because of all the enthusiasm from students and alumni the past couple years. Also, we wanted to promote a student band and a main headliner instead of a DJ.”
Without the confines of a tent, attendees will not to wait in line until capacity decreases nor will the event end preemptively due to capacity issues like last year. The only line of the whole night will be for the beer garden.
“It is still a dance, and people will still be dancing,” said Anita Pariseau, the director of alumni relations and assistant vice president for advancement. “It will just be open air and more like a festival than a dance.”
Although the school has yet to promote the event to students, they have received predominately positive responses from alumni.
“For a lot of alumni, this is a returning memory for them since it more resembles Llamapalooza, hence the name,” Damgaard said. “I think it will be a great community event for everyone.”
The first student band will play from 8-8:45 p.m., and Woodshed Red will play from 9-10:30 p.m. In addition to live music, there will be s’mores stations around the quad. Entry for students and alumni is free. For the entire schedule of events of Homecoming, visit https://www.coloradocollege.edu/other/homecoming/2015-schedule-of-events.dot.
Look out for interviews with the featured bands in the next two editions of The Catalyst!