KE70’s Dinner and Dance

Writer: Lee Lin Hui

Photos: Wu Hanzhu and Yue Yinglong

It would have been no wonder if the A2 bus driver thought he was in the wrong era when waves of KEVIIans boarded the buses last Saturday. It was our annual Dinner and Dance (DnD) that night and KEviians were wearing all form of ‘bling bling’ clothes, bell bottom jeans, colourful hair bands and quirky glasses. It did not take long before the lobby of the Kent Ridge Guild house was filled and cam-whoring was at an all time high. Even the legendary Afro hair wig appeared to grace the occasion! At 7.30pm, the doors to the ballroom finally opened and everyone streamed in to see what was in store for the night.

Everyone loves a good bout of cam-whoring!

Our very sporting GH RF looking every part the 70's dude

Our own KE band, AFK, started off the evening and went on stage to hit a high note. They rocked on the definitive songs of the 70s like ‘I Love Rock N Roll’, ‘Pretty Woman’, ‘Grease Lightning’ and ‘You’re The One That I Want’. I must say that AFK sounded much better there than in the dining hall, probably due to the fancier acoustic equipment. It was a fantastic start to DnD, getting people into the mood and everyone started mouthing the lyrics and swaying their bodies to the rhythms.

AFK rocking the house!

Mae Yue and her attention-grabbing blue wig

Next was a dance by the pageant contestants! Everyone’s eyes were focused on the stage when the five eye-popping ladies walked up with umbrellas covering their faces. As soon as the music started, they wasted no time showing off what they were blessed with and making the most of their sex appeal. The audience went crazy and cheered wildly for their favourite female contestants. Then it was time for the girls to drool as the mouth-watering hunks of the various blocks hopped onto the stage and stripped off their ponchos, revealing the bodies they had been hiding behind normal, everyday clothes. The contestants were brimming with confidence and were clearly enjoying their time on stage. They began to mambo to the disco songs of 70s with the girls playing hard to get and the guys swinging their bodies to get their attention. The couples even walked down the stage and brought the dance closer to the audience! This 6 minute dance was mind-blowing. Who knew that they could groove so well!

Teasing the audience

Showing off what they've got

Looking smoking hot

The guys take the stage

Now the guys are showing off what THEY've got

Playing hard to get

Driving the audience wild

I have to mention the amount of hard work and commitment they had spent practicing through the night till 4am; as well as put in a special mention of the man behind the dance, Benjamin Ho, and the supportive Esther, who was there to ensure things went smoothly.

DnD is not all about the crowning of our Hall King and Queen, it is also about everyone having fun. Our first game was ‘Blind as a Peg’. 5 guys and 5 girls were chosen and paired up. The girls were blindfolded and disorientated and had to find the clothes pegs on their partners’ clothes. The guys, on the other hand, could only use their voices to guide their partners to the pegs. It was hilarious when Denis hesitated when he did not know how to guide Deborah properly, before saying, “go ahead and touch my boobs”! Later, the hosts increased the difficulty of the game by getting the girls to retrieve the pegs with their mouths. Surprisingly, Gehui pwned her competition and skilfully bit the pegs off her partner’s shirt and pants; leaving Pau in the wake of her dust.

Getting into the spirit of the game

Someone seems to be enjoying himself

The pageant contestants were up on stage again, dressed in 70’s outfits. This time, they had to act out scenes from various movie clips impromptu. First to start were Deshawn and Jobina. They had to recreate two lovers running in a field of flowers. It was so adorable to watch them stop and check their hair before hugging each other.

Lovers reunited

Jerwin and Shereen had to act out a scene from King Kong where it grabbed its love from a platform. After a little discussion, Jerwin swiftly swept Shereen off her feet as she struggled and screamed in his arms. Everyone was impressed and cheered!

Not too sure if King Kong did exactly that, but it works for us

Adriel and Sharlyn had to re-enact how John Travolta was rejected in a scene from Grease. It was funny to see Adriel drop on the floor upon his rejection while Sharlyn extinguished a cigarette on the floor and looked away.

Dramatic proclamation

Oh, the dejection of rejection

Andy and Jerusha had to dance  and produce some very groovy moves. They looked good swinging their hips together before Andy stole the limelight by ‘unscrewing’ his head like in the clip.

Now, that's hot!

Grooving for all they're worth

Lastly Song Kai and Lisa had to act out a classic car wash scene. Everyone was expecting Lisa to be very seductive but all jaws dropped when Song Kai placed his hands on the side of his chest and started playing around with his ‘boobs’. I vaguely remember someone spit his food out when Song Kai was in tune witho his gay persona. (Sorry Song Kai, no pictures. Even the cameraman couldn’t bear to take the shots.)

Turning the tables on a flabbergasted audience

A second dinner game was played right after this, and “Game of ball” was its name. 5 guys and 5 girls were again chosen. This time, the guys and the female pageant contestants and vice versa were lined up in a row. The game proceeded by passing a ball, lodged by the chin and chest, to the next in line without using their hands. The guys were very fast and managed to complete 2.5 rounds in a minute, such a fast pace that the host could not help but wonder if this game is a hall CCA. The girls did not take it lying down though, and practically threw themselves on the male pageant contestants. Unfortunately, Mae Yue had some trouble passing the ball and slowed the girls’ progress to 2 rounds in a minute, giving victory to the guys.

Making good progress

Next in the programme line-up was a dance by NUS Dance Blast. Oh boy, were they good. They wowed everyone by showing the various hallmark dance moves of the 70s. The guys practically dislodged their hipss and shoulders and wiggled their knees while the girls contorted their bodies. They danced to very memorable songs that probably reminded the RFs and Hall Master of their youth. There was no doubt that NUS Dance Blast was spectacular!

Putting on a hell of a show

Spectacular dancing indeed

When I said DnD is also about everyone having fun, I really meant EVERYONE. The next game was ‘Don’t Forget The Lyrics!’ and the RFs and Hall Master were the contestants! GH RF, Mr Jenson, represented West Wing; CD RF, Prof Chong, represented East Wing; and Hall Master, Prof Ho, represented well, himself. All of them brought their spouses up on stage to share the limelight (or to share the embarrassment =)). There were 3 categories: Classics, Mambo and Upbeat. Mr Jenson chose Classics and sang ‘Yesterday’. His wife sang while he danced. Both of them were very loving as they completed filling up the lyrics. Prof Chong chose Upbeat and sang ‘The Thing You Do’. It was really cool to see our lively RF swing his hips and shake his booty. What was cooler was the East Wingers bailing their beloved RF out when he was stuck with the lyrics. Soon, it was Prof Ho’s turn and ‘Square Rooms’ was his song. He got stuck as well, but instead of the whole hall coming to his rescue, it was Mr Jensen who responded and told Prof Ho to just sing his surname out! It was really funny!

Here's Mr. Jenson with the Classics

Prof. Chong getting down with it!

Master getting in on the fun!

It was finally our favourite Q&A session with the pageant contestants. They entered the spotlight with their evening wear. I must say that a good wear can really bring out a person’s best features. The guys and girls looked stunning as they strolled down the aisle.

Q: If you were a flavour of an ice cream, what would it be and why?

Deshawn: Vanilla. It is plain and simple.

Q: You are stranded on an isolated island, what is the first thing you do?

Jobina: Explore first and find something pink because the host is pink.

Q: Do you consider yourself as a giver or a taker and what is it that you give or take?

Jerwin: A bit of both. I would give as much as anyone would give and take as much as anyone would.

Q: What do you think is an intolerable habit of your romantic partner?

Shereen: He must not be vainer than me. He must not be hotter than me.

Q: Choose a drink that best describes you and why?

Adriel: Strawberry milk because it is really sweet and nutritious too.

Q: 1 deck, 52 cards. Choose a card and why?

Sharlyn: Queen of Hearts. I can be star in ‘Alice in Wonderland’.

Q: If you could be on a cover of a magazine, which would it be?

Andy: PlayGirl magazine because I could refresh your day when you wake up.

Q: If you get back to the 70s, what would you do?

Jerusha: Shall find a designer and ask why they wear so little clothes on them?

Q: If you could be a Valentine’s Day gift, what kind of gift would you be?

Song Kai: I would be a nice dress like what Lisa is wearing so I can protect her. (Protect? You sure about that? =P)

Q: How would you describe your ideal partner?

Lisa: He would have to be tall, strong and spontaneous and big.

This year’s DnD lucky draw prizes were donated by our very generous RFs and Hall Master and they were very very attractive. They included printers, speakers with each one getting bigger and bigger, hard drives with each one getting smaller and smaller, and digital cameras. Tension rose exponentially as the lucky draw approached top prize: an Itouch! People began holding onto their ticket. Then ‘7’, ‘0’ (“Aaww” started to sound off), ‘0’ (Tearing of tickets could be heard), ‘3’ (“Aahh” follows)! Excited Su Shu raised his hand and waved his ticket and went to collect the much coveted top prize. Congratulations to him.

The uplift in mood was explosive when the graduating seniors put up a special dance for the hall! They received the loudest applause and cheers from the audience. It was heart warming when Zichun told the audience, “Carpe Diem, and seize the moments you have in hall!”

Time for the seniors to show us what they've got

What a show!

The audience settled down for the relatively formal part of the night’s programme, the MAB prize presentation ceremony. Louis took over as emcee, and the winners of the MAB awards were announced and invited on stage to receive their tokens. This year saw many winners from each category, acknowledged for their dedication and hard work from the start of the academic year till now. The award winners are as follows:

Outstanding leaders (Admin)

– Chen Kok Pun (JCRC)

– Eddie Tan Jie Leung (AB block comm)

– Lim Sien Long (XQRJ)

– Adrian Chia Choon Kwang (Hallplay)

Outstanding leaders (Sports)

– Ang Wee Leong Patrick (Road Relay)

– Xu Cunzhi (Soccer)

– Jerwin Aligguy (Volleyball)

Outstanding leaders (Culture)

– Collin Ho (Hallplay)

– Ong Chin Ee (Choir)

– Xu Nan (Chinese Drama)

Outstanding Freshman

– Kenneth Choong Hoe Kong

– Jerusha Lieow Lengse

Outstanding KEVIIan Award

– Lim Aik Leong

Finally, it was the last event of the night, the prize presentation ceremony. This year’s best dressed male went to Nelson, who dressed as Elvis Presley.

It's Elvis!

Best dressed female went to Cindy (Guan Long), who looked especially hot in her all pink outfit and hair! Kudos to them!

Why hello, Cindy

Best Dressed Table

Then it was the pageant contestants’ turn. After a round of voting on funkygrad.com, E Block’s Adriel and GH Block’s Lisa won Mr and Miss Popularity respectively;

Miss and Mr Popularity

GH Block’s Song Kai and CD Block’s Shereen won Mr and Miss Charismatic;

Miss and Mr Charismatic

Lastly, CD Block’s Jerwin and GH Block’s Lisa were crowned Hall King and Hall Queen!

Our New Hall King and Queen!

It was a wonderful evening, filled with excitement, embarrassment, laughter and good friends. This would not be possible if not for our DnD Committee putting in such a huge effort to organise this event, our SCRC for their generous support and our pageant contestants for putting up a fantastic show. Thank you, one and all!

It was truly a fantastic night!