By Abby Rathburn | Staff Writer
As the walls of Waco Hall begin to echo with songs and dancing, campus gears up for All-University Sing 2026. While opening night promises entertainment and dramatic reveals, what goes unnoticed is the real cost behind producing it all.
Although each organization varies in its allocation of funds, every organization invests hundreds of dollars into the production. Luckily, Baylor helps to reimburse its students, according to Delta Tau Delta Senior Head Sing Chair and Houston senior Vaughn Johnson.
“They give us a stage budget of $4,000, $3,500 plus $500 extra for a practice base, but it’s basically $4,000,” Johnson said.
Without these funds, Johnson said many organizations would struggle to afford participating in this production. Even so, each organization must still budget for its own contribution to the overall production cost.
Arlington senior and Beta Upsilon Chi Sing Chair and Treasurer Miles McCavit said he had to prepare for the dent Sing would make in their treasury.
“Starting out, we had to budget $5,000 to $7,000 out of our budget just from the fall to prepare for the spring, to make sure we had enough money in the spring to start,” McCavit said.
While this may be true for McCavit’s organization, each organization approaches budgeting for the event differently. Beta Upsilon Chi covers a portion of its members’ costuming expenses, with the remaining costs paid out of pocket by participants.
Zeta Tau Alpha takes a different approach, according to Oley, Pa., senior and Costume Chair Charlotte Fisher.
“Our costumes are included in the dues,” Fisher said. “You definitely have to find affordable ways to cut corners and where you can just do things yourself just to save money.”
Unlike BYX and Delta, Zeta is doing a paired act with the men’s fraternity Sigma Chi. Fisher believes it has been eight years since Zeta’s last pairing and wanted something special for her senior year. Even this presented new challenges.
In addition to monetary cost, Sing is a time-sucker, especially for members serving on executive committees.
“This particular act, I would say it’s probably over 200 hours of effort from me, whether that be choreographing, teaching practices, working on our backdrop, building our props, getting costume stuff or budgeting,” Johnson said.
Depending on the number of participants, even standard participants must plan for at least six hours per week of Sing practice. As a combined act, Zeta and Sigma Chi have a total number of 190 participants — a packed stage.
Zeta Sing Chair and Kingwood senior Camille Burton said the time commitment differs between participants.
“So it’s three hours on Sunday, three hours on either Monday or Tuesday, depending on their time commitment … most of the people out there are just practicing two days a week for three hours each,” Burton said.
To keep their people motivated, leadership uses various engagement methods. Most stick to positive reinforcement through words of affirmation or even treats.
“We give out candy, gushers and snacks to try and incentivize them to do good,” Burton said.
As the countdown to opening night begins, the pressure on leadership continues to grow. It seems as if all of their hard work over the past year-plus will be based on a few performances.
“I mean, we only have two more weeks of it, and so I keep trying to tell myself just get through it, but also, like, enjoy it because you’re never gonna be a part of something like this again,” Burton said.
All in all, each of these members has stepped into their role with the shared goal of celebrating this time-honored Baylor tradition.
“There’s something special about it, and I wouldn’t subject myself to the amount of work it takes to make it happen if I didn’t believe that,” Johnson said.
