On Saturday, November 19, the Rensselaer Union and UPAC hosted Union After Dark: Great Gatsby night. Many different groups hosted several activities, ranging from a spaghetti and marshmallow tower building contest, to juggling, to a 1920s costume contest. At each activity you participated in, you received a raffle ticket, which could be used to enter the contest to win one of a number of prizes, including an Amazon Echo Dot, a battery bank, a Lego set, a Bluetooth speaker, a Cinema Bulk pass, and a free dinner with Assistant Dean of Student Living and Learning Randi Mogul. There was also a selection of free food, including pizza, desserts, and a root beer keg open to those who came.
The moment I entered the Union, the free excitement hit me—performances by the Crippled Pimp, Eighth Wonder, and the a cappella group Duly Noted. After this, the spaghetti and marshmallow building contest began, kicking off my night of fast-paced, high intensity tower building action. My team and I were able to utilize our engineering skills to construct a three-foot-high structure out of just spaghetti and marshmallows! Immediately following this was the Vermonster competition—in which we attempted to eat 20 scoops of ice cream in the McNeil Room. Our team’s three-hour fast before the competition was not enough to carry us to victory, however, as the competition was intense. The winning team ate all their ice cream in under three minutes!
Other activities included a performance by a jazz duo, RPIgnite, and PULSE. A costume contest and capoeira lessons were held in the Shelnutt Gallery, and several other activities were held, including video games, casino games, and black and white movies, to name a few. Overall, UPAC’s Union After Dark Great Gatsby Night was a fun-filled and action-packed night.