Winners of Punk ‘N’ Pie 2011, the “Beatles.” | Katie Juranek/THE CHIMES

Despite a last minute change of venue and time, Biola students and friends packed out Chase Gymnasium Friday night for the annual Punk ‘N’ Pie talent show, put on by Associated Students.

Students showcase talent in variety of acts

The evening showcased a fun assortment of musical and dance numbers, as well as solo performances by students. Social board chair and event organizer Amanda Tegtmeier said that each year’s challenge is to pick acts that display both talent and entertainment quality. This year’s 11 acts featured everything from a troupe of singing ghosts to a Smeagol impersonation.

The student pop punk band Pidgeoto joked that they were the primary act responsible for the event being moved indoors due to noise reasons. They brought an entertaining performance of “My Girl” by the Temptations, starting out with a chill feel, and ending in signature style with band members rolling around on the stage and jumping off the platform. Pidgeoto clearly had a following in the audience, and engaged the crowd well.

“There’s your punk, now enjoy your pie,” lead singer Kris Yee thanked the crowd.

Other musical numbers included a seven member Jazzercise Band dressed in white; Sky and the Scattered Lights featuring two strong female vocalists; the Punk’d Up Kids who kicked the evening off on a mellow note with the Civil Wars song “Poison and Wine”; and Zombie House, a group of guys who performed a tribute to 90’s Christian music. A quirky singing group called Wendy and the Ghosts consisted of five girls dressed in sheets and bows who sang along to a music video.

The Xopoc dance troupe, which has added five guys to their squad this year, brought an edgy performance dancing to the song “Cracks” by the Freestylers. Their impressive lighting and choreography ended the evening dramatically, and earned them second place. Acoustic guitarist Rob Frampton claimed third place for his solo piece, taking the opportunity to remind the crowd that he played for God’s glory alone.

First place winners impersonated Beatles as act

But the group who won the crowd’s heart and the judges’ vote for first place was a four man act impersonating the Beatles. Senior music and worship major Brian Albright, who donned a black wig for his part as John Lennon, came up with the idea for the act with his friend, senior film major Jeremy Hubin.

“It was a lot of fun. Everyone was really into it,” Hubin said.

Their remarkably realistic rendition of “I Want to Hold Your Hand” had the crowd singing along at the top of their lungs, and everyone was moving something during the catchy follow up “Twist and Shout.”

“The Beatles, totally!” senior communications major Chantelle Gibbs said for the act she felt deserved to win. “I just told them I think they should play a whole concert. It was simple, fun and enjoyable.”

Location change due to noise complaints

Afterwards, students mingled in front of the gym to enjoy their piece of the 100 pies AS purchased from Costco for the event. The overall budget for Punk ‘n Pie including setup, decorations, and food was around $5,000 according to Tegtmeier, although it may end up being slightly more due to costs incurred in the location change.

The change in venue came as a last minute decision by vice president of university services Greg Balsano, after neighbors turned out en masse at a La Mirada city council meeting last week to complain about the noise of Biola’s events.

“We’ve heard this before, but we heard it very strongly,” Balsano said. “It can be to the point where they can’t hear their television sets with their windows closed.”

Balsano said the decision to move Punk ‘N’ Pie, one of Biola’s largest and loudest events, indoors was an act of good faith towards the neighbors that Biola was listening to their concerns, especially in light of the new university master plan, which has just been submitted to the city for approval.

“If you’re not careful, a little thing like one loud concert can provoke someone to organize the whole neighborhood against you and that would have huge ramifications on our facilities plan,” Balsano said.

The decision, however, gave AS organizers less than 48 hours notice to adjust the venue and time, resulting in some scheduled acts, and even the original MCs to drop out. Hundreds of hours of planning were lost and two days of set up had to be accomplished in a mere three hours. But, despite the event not looking exactly like the original plan, organizers were still happy with the results.

“We felt like it went really smoothly, despite not being on Metzger lawn, it went really well,” Tegtmeier said of the evening.