Laughter and music will once again be brought to the Plattsburgh State campus in April when Springfest, the two-day event funded by the Student Association, kicks off with an affordable comedy show and concert specifically tailored for the PSUC student body.
Marlon Wayans, the comedian most famous for his roles in “White Chicks” and “Scary Movie,” will perform his comedy show Thursday April 25 at 8 p.m. in the E. Glenn Giltz Auditorium in Hawkins Hall. Brooklyn rapper Jay Critch will then take the stage in the Field House on April 26 at 7:30 p.m.
The Student Association funded the event with a budget of $73,000, after the idea to revive the formerly annual event, which was out of commission for nearly 10 years, was pitched by ad-hoc Concert Coordination Committee Co-Chair Shiyiheeim Nartey-Tokoli, whom had been brainstorming the idea since his freshman year.
When Nartey-Tokoli campaigned for the vice president of finance position, one of his initiatives was to bring a large-scale spring event to campus. Since receiving approval, the committee was established and Co-Chair Joe Lewis partnered with him to organize the event and months of preparation, the pair is excited for all their hard work to pay off and for the students enjoy this opportunity.
Lewis and Nartey-Tokoli said that the goal for the event is to bring back an event that students will enjoy, anticipate in the future and evoke school pride in the the student body.
“We want Springfest to be a common term,” Lewis said. “Like ‘Oh, did you go to Springfest last year?’ We want people to have pride and be able to say ‘Yeah, my school puts on a Springfest.’”
The committee issued an online campus-wide survey a year ago to gather feedback about what kind of entertainment and music genres PSUC students wanted the most, and of the more than 2,000 responses the results were comedy and rap/hip hop. Then after a rigorous decision making process, Wayans and Critch were selected.
The pair wanted to host an event that appealed to as many students as they could as a way to build community and to actively participate in something they would enjoy.
“Rarely on this campus has there been an event that was really able to bring out everyone on the campus,” Nartey-Tokoli said. “Like, we’ll have little small events that bring out a certain group or section of the campus, but it’s rare to involve everyone. An event like Springfest has not only the capacity, but the opportunity, to bring out everyone.”
Marketing Sales Chair of the Concert Coordination Committee Morayo Okesola personally anticipates participating in the events, and is convinced the students will rally behind it because of the exciting nature of the event.
“I know a lot of people say there’s nothing to do in Plattsburgh,” Okesola said. “But this is good entertainment for everyone and we look forward to things like that.”
But Nartey-Tokoli isn’t stopping there. To have as much student involvement as possible, on March 28 auditions will be held to find a student host for the events as well as musical openers for the concert. For more information contact Nartey-Tokoli directly.
The concert committee is currently searching for volunteers to help unload supplies along with other tasks, and anyone interested in participating should contact Nartey-Tokoli or Lewis directly, or go to the Springfest Facebook page at @sunyplattsspringfest.
Tickets go on sale Monday and are available for purchase at the Information Desk in the Angell College Center or online at www.plattsburgh.universitytickets.edu for $9 each, or $16 for both. General admission tickets are $20 each with no bargain deal.
