The lights come up on the Goldstein Auditorium stage, revealing no drums, no speakers and no guitars. A group of singers in a U-shaped formation is all that is on stage, and their voices are all the audience will hear at this year’s After Hours performance.

This Thursday at 9 p.m., six of Syracuse University’s student-run a cappella groups will showcase their talents for the A Cappella Council’s biggest concert of the semester. After Hours is a biannual end of semester event set to showcase talent from the Otto Tunes, The Mandarins, Orange Appeal, Main Squeeze, Groovestand and Oy Cappella.

In past After Hours concerts, each group performed three of its best songs to 800 to 1000 audience members in Schine’s Goldstein Auditorium.

Since shows are usually at 6 or 7 p.m., After Hours’ later start time creates a different atmosphere from most a cappella events, said Quinn Cartelli, senior history major and current president of all-female group The Mandarins. Many concerts, like those during SU’s Family Weekend and at other colleges and venues, pale in comparison to the excitement and energy surrounding After Hours, she said.

“Everybody’s super excited and the crowd’s really into it,” Cartelli said. “It’s usually a packed house, which is nice because we can really feed off of the audience.”

Having the concert in Goldstein also improves the concert’s atmosphere. Before its current location, After Hours was held in Hendricks Chapel, said Scott Casanova, associate director the student centers and programming services.

As the coordinator of the entire technology infrastructure for the performance, Casanova said Goldstein’s improved audio technology is crucial to improving the sound of the voices and the ambience of the concert.

Each group brings its own spin to the concert, which is the only joint a cappella concert this fall semester. But despite the differences, all of SU’s a cappella squads share a special bond through music and performance, Cartelli said.

Lauren Green, a senior public relations major and member of Main Squeeze, said this show is her group’s favorite of the year. She loves the sense of togetherness that After Hours brings to all the a cappella groups, since they don’t usually get the chance to perform together.

“It’s really cool because we all get to hear what the others have been working on, like what songs and what people have solos,” Green said. “It’s really cool to see how the other groups have grown throughout the year, as we’ve been growing and working on different types of music and showcasing different voices.”

The best part about After Hours is the exposure that each group gets as a result of new audience members who have never experienced a cappella, said Alex Alpert, a senior vocal performance major and member of all-male group Orange Appeal. People who would not normally go to an a cappella concert are more likely to be at After Hours because they get to see every group perform, Alpert said.

“It’s something every group looks forward to at the end of the semester, and everyone involved works their hardest to put together the best possible performance,” Alpert said.

It’s not just the student performers who have a special place in their hearts for the semester-ending concert. Casanova has a great appreciation for this performance and each group’s dedication to and attitude toward After Hours, and loves that this is one of the few SU concerts with entirely student performers, he said.

“Unlike the national artists that we have here at Schine, the students aren’t here for the paycheck, they are here to perform; that’s what they’re getting out of it,” Casanova said. “They really enjoy doing it, and it’s an atmosphere of fun that you don’t always get from professional acts.”

CORRECTION: In a previous version of this article, Scott Casanova, associate director the student centers and programming services, was misquoted. The Daily Orange regrets this error.

Published on December 9, 2015 at 11:20 pm

Contact A.J.: ajgersh@syr.edu