Video by Katie Mahaffey | Broadcast Reporter and story by Clarissa Anderson | Reporter
It’s the time of the year again for Pigskin Revue, one of Baylor’s major homecoming traditions. The first performance was at 7 p.m. Thursday, and the next showtimes will be at 6:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. at Waco Hall. today and at 8 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets were sold out almost as soon as they were made available during the summer.
“Our coordinator for ticket operations said that one of the shows sold out in four minutes, so it’s definitely something that people love and enjoy and cherish,” said Chelsey Art, Orange graduate apprentice for student productions.
Pigskin Revue is a showcase of the top eight Broadway-style acts chosen from All-University Sing during the Spring semester. Sing acts last seven minutes and are created by Baylor sororities and fraternities, as well as Sing Alliance, an organization created to give all students an opportunity to participate in Sing. Because Pigskin only includes the top eight acts, organizations try to make an impression during Sing so that they can be counted as one of the best.
“Pigskin Revue was established in 1958, by Marie Mathis, director of the Student Union Building, who also founded All-University Sing,” The baylor homecoming section at Baylor.edu states.
The student organizations performing in Pigskin are Pi Beta Phi (1st place), Kappa Omega Tau (2nd place), Chi Omega (3rd place), Alpha Chi Omega, Delta Delta Delta, the combined group of Kappa Kappa Gamma and Kappa Sigma, Phi Kappa Chi and Zeta Tau Alpha.
Every year, the lobby is decorated for Pigskin with displays to show the role of tradition in the event.
“This year our lobby display is going back through the history of Pigskin,” Art said. “[We’re] trying to find something through each decade from the acts, whether that’s a costume or a music score or the program, and we’re trying to keep it on the sixes, since it’s 2016, so we’re looking for 2006, 1996, all the way back as far as we can go.”
Even when an organization is chosen to participate in Pigskin, the organization still has a lot of work to prepare for Pigskin. Organizations face the pressure of having to exceed audience’s expectations of their next performance.
“Once they make it to Pigskin, they make it a point to improve something and make it look better than before, just to make sure that they’re doing the best that they can,” Art said.
Sing occurs around the time of spring recruitment for sororities and fraternities, so since those students are not initiated yet, they are not able to participate. As a result, new members are first able to participate in Pigskin. Sophomores and other members who were not part of Sing fill the places of seniors and are taught the routines.
Since Pigskin occurs during homecoming, alumni have the opportunity to revisit an event that they were once a part of or watched when they were students. Current students also have another chance to see some of the acts from Sing if they were unable to attend.
“Everybody can find something to love, whether it’s the shenanigans of a fraternity who’s doing this really outlandish theme or like the cutesiness of goat-herders,” said John Abiassi, San Antonio sophomore and member of the Student Productions Committee.
