The Undergraduate Student Government (USG) held its fifth annual Light the Brook event on Thursday, Nov. 10.
During Light the Brook, lampposts and trees in the Academic Mall are lit up with fairy lights, marking the start of the holiday season.
Before the tree and lamppost lighting, attendees enjoyed various performances from campus organizations. This year’s event featured more performances than before, and was held at the Staller Steps for the first time.
The event took place at the fountain by the Humanities building in previous years.
“I liked this one [better] than last year because you could sit down and watch it and be comfortable, because last year we were standing around,” Nicholas Tavares, a junior health science major, said.
Stony Brook’s three a cappella groups — the Stony Brook Vocalists, the Pipettes and the High-C’s — all performed.
Following their routines, Jubilé Latino, Stony Brook’s “Latinx-Afro” dance team and Taandava, the Indian classical dance team, performed. SBU Flow’s routine was inspired by poi dancing, a Polynesian art form where the dancer twirls an inflamed baton. The Spirit of Stony Brook Marching Band closed out the event.
“My favorite was the Indian dance group. And they were doing it barefoot in this cold weather, which was pretty impressive,” Sarah Golden, a senior biology major, said.
The performances were slightly delayed. The president of the Undergraduate Student Government, Sowad Ocean Karim, said the delays were intentional and caused by students lining up for food before the event.
“It would have been disrespectful to the performers if they started performing and everyone was at the hot chocolate line,” Karim said.
Yajvin Dabbiru, a senior biomedical engineering major and a member of the marching band, said that the approximately 15-minute delay led to the band waiting for 30 to 40 minutes outdoors before their performance.
“Overall the event was good but felt lacking in overall structure as it pertains to the festivities and purpose of Light the Brook,” Dabbiru said in an email to The Statesman.
According to Karim, the event also cost $2,000 more than last year. This does not include the audiovisual equipment or Culinart’s desserts, which President Maurie McInnis’ office provided.
Students interviewed by The Statesman rated the changes positively, and as an improvement from last year.
“I came here the COVID year, and we had a small, quaint Light the Brook. It’s so exciting to see that school spirit is back, and it’s nice to see the event on a bigger scale,” Golden said.
