By: Kitty Cheung, Staff Writer

Ever wondered about the creative side of SFU students? Curious about our musical and artistic community?

SFU’s Got Talent will be held this Friday, March 15 from 4:30–7:30 p.m. in the Leslie & Gordon Diamond Family Auditorium. This second annual musical production is hosted by SFU Peak Frequency, a club for student musicians, in collaboration with the SFSS.

The event will feature twenty different acts, spanning musical, artistic, cultural, and more. This year’s show will be MC’ed by Gordon Lai, the former president of Peak Frequency. Students will perform in front of judges and a live audience, competing for the title of the SFU’s Got Talent Winner for 2019. Cash prizes are offered for the first, second, and third places, with a People’s Choice category being voted in online by audience members. $250 is offered for the first-place winner, $100 for the second, and $75 for both the third-place winner and People’s Choice winner. Admission is free.

Marylou Villegas, winner of 2018’s SFU’s Got Talent, finds that “having an outlet like SFU’s Got Talent is so important” in managing student stress. In an email interview with The Peak, Villegas writes, “So many students, like myself, tend to be in and out of campus once classes end. It’s a great chance for you to get your head out of your textbooks and take a well-deserved break for once.”

While some may view SFU as more of a commuter school, fellow vice-president Tony Yu begs to differ. He views events such as SFU’s Got Talent as an opportunity for building community. “It was a delight to see all these different SFU students come to showcase all their various talents,” says Yu on judging auditions for last year’s show. “There’s so many interesting people, so many interesting things that can be going on in this school.”

To future performers who may be hesitant about signing up for next year’s show, the Peak Frequency executives are full of encouragement.

Yu assures that “we’re always happy to showcase various kinds of talents and skills at our show,” to which their club president chimed in to mention that last year’s show even included a roller blading comedy duo, Pulp Friction

“Often times I see people who have incredible amounts of talent, but they have trouble recognizing it,” says club president Jeffrey Leung. “One of the goals of SFU’s Got Talent is to bring that to the surface, to show everyone that there is talent,” Leung says.

“The process from your first audition to the actual performance will entail a variety of emotions,” Villegas writes, “but always remember your talents were never meant for you to keep hidden!”

“This event happens once in a year so don’t miss out on the opportunity to witness what SFU has to offer,” Villegas proclaims to prospective audience members. “Word on the street the acts this year are stepping up their game so make sure to bring your love and your friends for an unforgettable night!”