KU News Release

April 4, 2007
Contact: Ann Eversole, Student Success, (785) 864-4060.

KU announces winners in 58th annual Rock Chalk Revue

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LAWRENCE — Rock Chalk Revue, the student-run show that mixes song and dance with pop culture parody and campus satire, staged its 58th annual production March 8-10 at the Lied Center at the University of Kansas.

KU students wrote, produced and acted in each of the five original skits that comprised the show, crafting different stories and settings to portray the “Hawk Wild” theme. They competed for individual and group prizes announced during the show that recognized noteworthy student philanthropy as well as outstanding performances, videos, interpretation of theme and other creative achievements.

Considered one of the top student philanthropies in the United States, Rock Chalk Revue includes three nights of performances plus months of volunteering for Douglas County and the Lawrence community organizations, including many of the United Way. KU students from fraternities, sororities, residence halls and scholarship halls handle leadership, community service and fundraising roles.

This year, KU students contributed 12,222.46 volunteer hours to about 30 United Way agencies as part of their Rock Chalk Revue activities.

Since 1991, Rock Chalk Revue has raised more than half a million dollars; United Way has been the recipient of the donation since 1983. The record single-year donation was $52,000 in 2003. The 2007 Rock Chalk Revue gift will be announced later this year, said Ann Eversole, longtime Rock Chalk Revue adviser and assistant vice provost for Student Success. Other KU staff members in advisory roles are Ruth Stoner, Student Success budget and personnel administrator, business adviser; and Rueben Perez, director of the Student Involvement and Leadership Center, community service adviser.

Winning 11 of the top 14 awards, “ ’Til Dance Do Us Part” was voted by a panel of judges as best overall show for Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and Beta Theta Pi fraternity. The show also won top group awards for best production number, best use of costumes, best original song, best script, best choreography and best vocal performance by a chorus and the top four individual awards, including best actor and actress and best supporting actor and actress.

Alpha Gamma Delta sorority and Theta Chi fraternity’s “Phantom of the Library” won awards for best set and best interpretation of the theme plus the audience choice award based on $1 votes from showgoers for their favorite among the five skits. “Little Prom on the Prairie” presented by Delta Gamma sorority and Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity won the best pre-show video award.

Other skits selected for this year’s Rock Chalk Revue were “Set in Stone” by Gamma Phi Beta sorority and Delta Upsilon fraternity and “Love Spell” by Pi Beta Phi sorority and Phi Kappa Psi fraternity.

Rock Chalk Revue activities are coordinated by a student-run advisory board that also selected a theme for each year’s show. Coed groups interested in performing in the 2007 show began creating scripts in fall 2006, then submitted detailed synopsis notebooks and video presentations to an independent panel of judges. The five shows for the revue were announced in late November. The Advisory Board is made up of 22 student leaders. This year those in the senior leadership positions on the board were Rob Willliams, Manhattan senior, executive producer; Jamie Lamb, Lenexa senior, executive director; Ryan Staub, Wichita junior, assistant executive producer; and Matt Dupy, Salina senior, business manager.

Cassie Gutman, Eden Prairie, Minn., senior and member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority, received the trophy for the most charitable individual with 677 volunteer hours. Emily White, Lawrence senior and member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, earned the community service most charitable award runner-up with 381volunteer hours.

For raising the most money overall, Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity earned the most charitable organization award with about $5,000 in donations.

Twenty-four organizations won group volunteer awards based on four levels of donated hours per person. The gold award, recognizing at least 12.90 hours per person, went to Alpha Chi Omega sorority and Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Alpha Chi Omega was also named the most community service-dedicated organization with 13.56 hours per person. Kappa Kappa Gamma as the runner-up with 12.98 hours per person.

Alpha Gamma Delta won the silver award for per-person volunteer hours in the 11-12.90-hour range. Bronze award winners for an average 9-10.9 hours per person were Chi Omega sorority, Douthart Scholarship Hall and Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. Honorable mention citations went to Delta Delta Delta, Delta Gamma, Gamma Phi Beta, Pi Beta Phi, Sigma Delta Tau and Sigma Kappa sororities; Beta Theta Pi, Delta Chi, Delta Upsilon, Kappa Sigma, Phi Delta Theta, Phi Kappa Psi, Pi Kappa Phi, Sigma Phi Epsilon and Theta Chi fraternities; and Grace Pearson, Margaret Amini and Sellards scholarship halls.

Other awards given by judges:

— Best original song: Kappa Kappa Gamma and Beta Theta Pi for “Sweep Her Off Her Feet,” written, composed and performed by Jesse Roberts, Hutchinson junior, for “ ’Til Dance Do Us Part.”
— Best actress: Allie Chalfant, Overland Park junior and member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, for the title role of Kim, the bride-to-be who enrolled her fiancé in ballroom dance classes before their wedding, in “ ’Til Dance Do Us Part.”
— Best actor: David Price, Salina senior and member of Beta Theta Pi, as Phil, a man whose dance lessons transform him into a ballroom star in time for his wedding in “ ’Til Dance Do Us Part.”
— Best supporting actress: Laura Davis, Saint Jacob, Ill., senior and member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, for the role of Maria, who showed off her Latin dance skills with flamboyance and attitude.
— Best supporting actor: Jesse Roberts, Hutchinson junior and member of Beta Theta Pi, for his portrayal of Ivan, an eccentric Russian dance instructor-showman and co-owner with his wife of a ballroom dance school.

This year, the executive directors gave awards for each show’s best individual male and female chorus members and incident-specific awards for each show. Winners, listed by show in order of performance, are:

— For “Set in Stone,” Taylor Allison, Southlake, Texas, junior, Gamma Phi Beta, and Greg Laketek, Inverness, Ill., senior, Delta Upsilon. Executive directors award for Best Urination on Stage by a Prehistoric Animal.
— For “Love Spell,” Ashley Jones, Mission Hills junior, Pi Beta Phi, and Phil Carr, Topeka junior, Phi Kappa Psi. Executive directors award for Best ’80s Flashback Moment.
— For “Little Prom on the Prairie,” Julie Kessinger, Leawood senior, Delta Gamma, and Michael Garcia, Overland Park senior, Sigma Phi Epsilon. Executive directors award for Best Performance Under Pressure with Technical Difficulties.
— For “Phantom of the Library,” Amanda Ostgulen, Lenexa senior, Alpha Gamma Delta, and Jonathan Larance, Spring, Texas, senior, Theta Chi. Executive directors award for Best Frightening Appearance Scaring the Bejesus Out of Audience Members Sitting Close By.
— For “ ’Til Dance Do Us Part,” Darcy Austin, Tulsa, Okla., senior, Kappa Kappa Gamma, and Ben Geheb, Danvers, Mass., senior. Executive directors award for Best Caught-in-the-Act Shocking Shoe Moment.

Individual award winners as well as students in lead or revue production roles and those on the advisory board are listed below by hometown, level in school, major, parents’ names (when available), high school and Rock Chalk Revue achievement.

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