Suffolk University was taken by storm by GrooveBoston on Thursday. Presented by Program Council and the Student Government Association at Royale Boston, GrooveBoston brought a unique dance party experience to students just outside campus.
The night was filled with booming, upbeat dance music and remixes of popular songs as well as light displays.
“Some people have been calling it a rave but its not. Its really a concert experience,” said Joe Nordlie, committee chair of PC traditions and special events committee.
GrooveBoston, which caters strictly to colleges, is a truly unique experience, tailoring each of their shows to the audience of students they are performing for. Although they generally perform in the Northeast, GrooveBoston has created shows across the country for various different colleges.
“Its more of a reactive approach than a proactive one,” said Nordlie. What makes GrooveBoston unique is that ,as the night goes on, they determine what lights to use and music to play based on how the audience is reacting, resulting in a unique show designer for that specific audience while the performance is still going on.
The theme of this year’s tour is Cohesion. This theme of unity and togetherness was exemplified throughout the night as students from different majors and campus organizations joined together to enjoy a night of music and dance.
In addition to hosting the nighttime event, GrooveBoston also invited select groups on campus for a backstage VIP tour in the afternoon to learn more about what GrooveBoston does as well as how they create their shows.
Although GrooveBoston seeks to bring an unforgettable night to college campuses, they also strive to use music to make a difference. GrooveBoston has partnered with the House of Blues Music Forward Foundation to create the Rage for a Cause campaign, a partnership in which GrooveBoston will donate a portion of the proceeds they receive to music education programs.
The event had a turnout of 425 students.
“I definitely see it as successful,” said Nordlie. “I was happily surprised with the turnout and everyone I talked to had a great time.”
The event proved to be successful for students, Rage for a Cause, and even Program Council itself.
“This event tested PC’s programming ability as well as our outreach … it was something we enjoyed and look back on as successful,” said Nordlie.
In addition to GrooveBoston, PC will also be working with Royale Boston in order create Suffolk’s Spring Concert, starring pop star Jessie J.
“Although it’s expensive, it’s the best option,” said Nordlie of the venue.
Although PC had considered several different venues, they decided that Royale was the best option because of its proximity to Suffolk. The spacious and elegant atmosphere of Royale made it a perfect fit for GrooveBoston as well as other PC sponsored events in the future.
