The Sirens hosted their annual Holiday Concert in Tyler Haynes Commons at the University of Richmond on Dec. 5 in tandem with Off the Cuff, Choeur Du Roi, and the Octaves.
The Holiday Concert showcased the four talented acapella groups that performed a mix of traditional holiday classics and modern seasonal hits while dressed up in holiday-themed outfits.
The audience was fully packed leading students to venture up to the second floor of Tyler Haynes Commons for a better view of the stage.
“I honestly didn't expect this many people,” said Sirens member Cady Cummins.
The Sirens, an all-female acapella group, opened the performance with “Frosty the Snowman” by Perry Como, a well-known classic. This set the tone for a night of holiday cheer, followed by a duet of “Santa Baby” by Eartha Kitt, and wrapped up their opening segment with "Underneath the Tree” by Kelly Clarkson.
The packed audience cheered for the Sirens and welcomed Off the Cuff, opening their set with “White Winter Hymnal” by Fleet Foxes, which included coordinated clapping and snapping choreography. They continued with a duet featuring modernized lyrics to “Baby It's Cold Outside” by Idina Meneal and Michael Bublé, bringing laughter to the audience. They ended with a fun classic “You're a Mean One, Mr.Grinch” inspired by Jordan Smith.
Off the Cuff member Svea Erickson hopes that audience members were able to take a break from studying and truly see the payoff of each group's preparation for the event.
“The audience doesn’t get to see us bond, they don’t get to see us work on the songs for hours. I hope that it's a nice break for them from reality, and my goal is to make it as much fun as it is,” Erickson said.
Choeur Du Roi, more commonly known as Chords, took the stage after, opening with “O Holy Night,” their annual classic. Following this, they performed the modern holiday hit “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber. They ended with “Mary Did You Know,” showcasing the group’s range. Audience members cheered for the multiple soloists’ creative runs and powerful belting.
Chords music director and senior Clayvon Grimes said that one of his favorite songs from their set was “Little Drummer Boy.”
“I love Pentatonix and enjoy covering their arrangements,” he said. “The song has a fun rhythm to it and I loved the harmonies in the song. It was fun to put together.”
The Octaves, the oldest all-male acapella group performed next, livening the crowd with a classical “White Christmas,” and ended with a surprise song “Party in the USA,” swapping out lyrics to make the anthem more UR-specific.
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Octaves member Dara Kavanagh said that one of his favorite memories about the preparation of the concert was when they threw out the idea to sing “Party in The USA.”.
“One or two Wednesdays ago, the first time we threw out the idea about “Party in the USA”, we were having so much fun with preparing the other songs as well,” said Kavanagh.
To close the show, the Sirens ended off with “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” by Mariah Carey. The lead singer, senior JoJo McShane, invited the audience to sing along, closing off the concert on an uplifting note for all who attended.
“I feel like everyone had their own distinct vibe, but they all sang so well, the soloists were all amazing performers,” said sophomore audience member Jacob Wigglesworth.
The concert offered a variety of performances, highlighting the talent, creativity, and teamwork of each acapella group. The event not only showed the effort behind each performance but also created a warm, festive atmosphere that brought everyone together in celebration.
Contact writer Dulce Guadarrama@richmond.edu.
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