At the end of night Liz Vaughan '08 was crowned the Dartmouth Idol. Marley McMillan '09 took second place and Kaitlyn Sheehan '09 was third.
Vaughan's powerful voice emanated from her slim frame and resounded through the air, doing justice to Aretha Franklin's "Think." Vaughn succeeded in commanding the room with her voice alone. Her crying out of the refrain "freedom!" had me reaching for an American flag and praising democracy.
The show opened with a group performance of the song "Singin's What I Do" by all of the Idol finalists. As the group sang and danced together, the awkward synchronized movements harkened back to the choreography of a middle school choir and revealed that maybe this part wasn't quite what the contestants had signed up for. Still, that was no sign of the performances to come.
The first Idol to take the stage was Dana Daugherty '10, who sang Mary J. Blige's "Family Affair." Though the song didn't give Daugherty the chance to display the best of her vocal abilities, she brought intensity and energy to the song from the get-go and had everyone in the auditorium on their feet in seconds.
Kyle Lad '09's mellow performance of "Neon" by John Mayer provided a drastic contrast to Daugherty's intensity. Throughout the entire song, Lad sported an affable smile on his face and an air of complete ease while grooving with what the judges called "creative" dance moves. Lad's voice was perhaps best described by Idol judge Max Ross '11, who likened his vocals to a high quality Papermate pen as opposed to a generic Staples brand pen. Lad was followed by Vaughan.
A few moments after the band started playing "Bailamos" by Enrique Inglesias, Andrew Kang '11 suavely glided onto the stage and took up position front and center with his microphone. Not long into the track, the band changed the music's rhythm and Kang confusedly turned around. But that was all just an act, for the band abruptly transitioned into Justin Timberlake's "Senorita," and Kang busted out some hip-hop moves, winning over the audience with his cool demeanor and smooth sound. His performance was the most unexpected and entertaining of the night. Worst class ever? I think not.
Next, McMillan slowed the tempo down with Faith Hill's "Stronger." The audience was quiet and motionless as her strong, clear vocals had everyone's attention fixed. I would have sworn the song was written about her own heartbreak.
"If there's a dry eye tonight, you have no soul," declared host Shayla Mars '11, after McMillan's performance.
The last finalist to hit the stage was Sheehan, who sang "Ain't No Other Man" by Christina Aguilera. After introducing herself in a timid, quiet voice, Sheehan unexpectedly unleashed resonating vocals that matched - if not bested - the pop diva herself.
The idols then reunited for another group performance of a Broadway Medley, but this time with longer solos that showed off their skills and personality more. Just when you least expected it, the contrived choreography returned, but was executed with a greater show of enthusiasm all around.
Throughout the night, the judges themselves put on a show. Ross and Tim Chingos '08 competed to come up with increasingly outlandish analogies to describe the performances. From Ross describing McMillan's voice as "creamy, delicious soup" and Sheehan's as a "steak performance," to Chingos telling Daugherty (after her performance of "Family Affair"), "I don't know about your family, but I'd love to have an affair with you," the entertainment did not end with the songs.
Special guest judge, actress and comedian Aisha Tyler '92, evoked laughter (and confusion) through her incongruous use of the word "stupid" to praise the contestants. Eventually, she was called out on the archaic slang, and the judges switched to using variations of the word "sick" to commend the idols, including illnesses like "bubonic," "Ebola" and "tuberculosis" as compliments.
The second round of performances was notably toned down compared to the first, but featured stunning arrangements from the band and revealed a greater range and different musical side of the finalists.
Kang had the judges fawning over him after singing Elton John's "Your Song," and McMillan picked up the tempo this time around with "Say a Little Prayer For You" by Aretha Franklin. Daugherty's chocolaty, rich voice came through in Corinne Bailey Rae's "Like A Star" and was synced beautifully with the band. Barbara Streisand's "Don't Rain On My Parade" allowed Sheehan to showcase her classic voice, which was reminiscent of Broadway in its 1920s heyday.
Vaughan's flawless and seemingly effortless performance of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from "The Wizard of Oz" was showstopping. She received a standing ovation and even prompted musical director Walt Cunningham to get up from the piano to hug her.
Dartmouth Idol could certainly give American Idol a run for its money. In place of the artificial Ken doll host who calls himself Ryan Seacrest, the pompous Simon Cowell, drug-addled Paula Abdul (you know she must be on something) and bland Randy Jackson, Dartmouth Idol had personable, genuine, hilarious individuals - and enough musical ability to make American Idol look like a fifth grade talent show.
