Cross-dressing, strip dancing and inter-house mockery were all part of Songfest 2005, held in the Union Ballroom on Wednesday.
Songfest, where many of the sororities and fraternities put together songs poking fun at different campus groups and each other, is a traditional part of Homecoming week.
Traditionally, Songfest has had one winner from the sororities, one from the fraternities and a coed winner, but this year an overall winner was named.
“We thought it might be fun to have a group-wide winner,” Senior Class President Lissy Black said.
Pi Beta Phi won the overall award for its cheerleading skit.
“The Pi Phis were great with costumes and dancing. The whole cheerleader act was incredible,” Scott Sontag, a junior in economics, said.
The Sigma Chis won the best men’s song, in what Songfest judge Spencer Thompson described as a “hard choice.”
They dressed up in suits and mocked everyone from Beta Theta Pi to an LDS fraternity.
“It’s a pretty big tradition for Sigma Chi, we’ve been practicing for the last three weeks,” said Matt Jensen, who directed the Sigma Chi skit.
Jensen said Sigma Chi also won Songfest in 2002 and 2004.
Another favorite was the Beta fraternity’s skit.
“Beta was the funniest,” Penny McRinaly, an art history major, said.
The Betas did a gangster rap with cutout cardboard cars.
Thompson said that if Beta had mentioned the theme even once they might have won.
“The biggest thing was if they incorporated the theme,” judge Andrea Muhlstein said.
Contestants were judged on creativity, choreography, theme, lyrics and overall performance.
The Delta Gammas won best women’s performance.
As far as John Ashton, alumni director, can remember, this year there were more non-greek performances then ever before. ASUU and a group that called itself The Commuters entered.
The Commuters won the coed prize.
The Commuters sang about the life of being a commuter student and driving on a busy road to school every morning.
“The purpose was to destroy the mentality that commuters don’t like the U and don’t participate in activities,” said Patrick Muir, manager of The Commuters and Chronicle assistant news editor.