BY JOEL SEGURA / PHOTOS BY JOEL SEGURA / SLIDESHOW PHOTOS BY NATASHA BRENNAN

This past Thursday, Feb 19, the Choral Department held their first ever Choir Cafe. A coffee-house style event held between the O Building and the Bulldog Cafe in which singers came out and performed in front of an audience in a calm environment. Coffee was sold by Penn and Painter Coffee, while pastries were sold inside the Bulldog Cafe for $1 to $3.

The event, though being a first for Choir, seemed to go smoothly. With few technical difficulties throughout the entire night, the audience and performers all seemed to enjoy the event.

“It turned out a lot better than I thought. I really liked the environment. It was outside and everyone that I talked to seemed to like it,” said senior Denaya Payne.

Though the event was held outside and with limited chairs, the Choir department had placed blankets in a basket for the audience to grab and sit on the grass with. This very casual seating in addition to the low lighting really showed the relaxed atmosphere Choir was aiming for.

In addition to the calm setting one could go inside the Bulldog Cafe for pastries or take some photos in a photo booth.

“It was a super casual event and had a really calming environment thanks to the laid back seating arrangement and the lighting,” said senior Viviana Madrigal.

The environment was not the only thing that helped bring in the audience, the main show was the performers of course. With many different style of singers, guitarist, ukulelist, acapella and multiple performers singing at once. This varied style of performances allowed for the audience to remain entertained.

“We made about $300, all profit from the pastries and coffee sold, so I felt the event was really successful,” said senior Kylie Buckles-Hall.

With the success that came out of Choir Cafe it can only be assumed that more ideas like this will come now that Choir Director Tyler Wigglesworth has taken over the Choral Department.

“Over all I thought it was pretty successful. It was a new type of event and to see that everyone that came enjoyed it was awesome,” said senior Joanne Mora.