Students participate in Open Mic Night
StuCo organized and led their annual Open Mic Night at the Country Club Cafe Tuesday, Nov. 12
November 13, 2019
A humming espresso machine, hot beverages and pastries, a packed cafe and a classic karaoke rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” all contributed to the Country Club Cafe’s enjoyable ambiance at Open Mic Night Tuesday, Nov. 12.
Organized, publicized and led by StuCo, the event was held from 6 to 8 p.m. with roughly 50 students in attendance. A steady stream of performers showcased stand-up comedy, lip-syncing, karaoke and even push-ups.
One of the crowd favorites was senior Anna Paden. As one of the first acts of the evening, she sang “Honesty” by Pink Sweats and ended Open Mic Night with the song “Sandcastles” by Beyoncé. According to Paden, the relaxing atmosphere created great conditions for performing.
“I think the best part about performing was just the calm ambiance in the place; it’s just a warm, inviting place, and you don’t feel that nervous,” Paden said. “You feel like everybody has your back.”
According to junior Ellie Boone, Paden’s performance of “Sandcastles” was, “hands down, probably the best ever.”
Likewise, Paden’s favorite performance was the duo of StuCo members Boone and junior John Fraka. With Fraka playing guitar and Boone singing, these two were another another crowd favorite, performing both “Valerie” by Amy Winehouse and “Sweet Creature” by Harry Styles.
While performers were centerstage throughout the night, students like junior Kylie Overbaugh opted to sit back with a coffee and soak in the entertainment.
“I enjoyed the chill atmosphere, being able to just drink coffee and listen to people perform,” Overbaugh said. “It’s just like really nice and not to be pressured to have to do something, you can just like listen and chill and have a good time.”
For Kylie, the event was an opportunity to stay involved and get to know more about her peers.
“I came out tonight just because I like to be involved in school events. I went to the talent show last year, and I wanted to go the Open Mic Night but didn’t get a chance to,” Overbaugh said. “So this year, I was like ‘why not?’ And it’s always fun to see the talents students have at Mill Valley.”
Boone, the StuCo leader and organizer of the event, was happy with the large turnout – which kept the cafe packed for most of the evening – and attributes it to StuCo’s publicity efforts.
“We just did a lot of publicity; we used Instagram, and we used Twitter … and we also made sure that we publicized it in school. I told everybody to just talk to people [about the event]. That would be the most effective way of doing it,” Boone said. “Then, in the foyer, the day of Open Mic Night we played some music and handed out [information] cards, and that was how we publicized.”
