Forget the gold. To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the VISA Talent Show is taking a trip around the world.
VISA, or Volunteers for International Student Affairs, hosts its final event of International Month on Saturday at the O’Connell Center. The show starts at 6:30 p.m. and is free to the public.
The Japanese Club, India Inc., CaribSA, Filipino Student Association, Dancin’ Gators, Club Creole and Sabor Latino are all competing with 10-minute routines to grab the first-place trophy.
Advertising junior Monica Desai, this year’s talent show director, said VISA wanted to create its 50th annual talent show differently.
The crew created an introduction to the show that displays dancing throughout the decades.
“It’s basically a journey through dance,” Desai said.
The journey plays off International Month’s “30 Days Around the World” theme, which began March 11.
Saturday’s talent show is the last stop.
Each of the seven teams must incorporate their heritage into performances, Desai said, to take audience members around the world of their culture.
For Hispanic teams such as Sabor Latino, attendees go through countries in South America and Spain. CaribSA and Club Creole will bring in Caribbean moves.
The VISA talent show isn’t just any competitive show.
Teams make Saturday’s show a priority, and Desai said her favorite part is seeing how every group works toward winning.
“It’s really, really awesome to eventually see they’ve been practicing endless hours a day for this,” she said.
Each team expresses their creativity through integrated outfit changes and props in their routines.
“It’s not just a two-minute performance where you sit down and it’s over,” Desai said.
“It’s 10 minutes of telling you a story — where they come from, what they do, how they dress — all while entertaining you.”
One aspect VISA has been working on is improving the show’s professionalism.
Desai was last year’s talent show stage manager, and she wanted to switch out of student hosts. That vision brought GLoZell, a UF alumna and YouTube comedienne, to the O’Dome.
This year, VISA is bringing actor-comedian Brian Dunkleman, who’s better known for co-hosting “American Idol” season one with Ryan Seacrest.
The talent show’s professional image matches its growing attendance, Desai said.
The VISA Talent Show gets bigger annually, originally starting in the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Now, it’s in the O’Connell Center, where 3,000 to 4,000 students attend.
Saturday night, audiences can prepare to travel through Latin America, Southeast Asia, Africa and the Caribbean.
“It’s great that people can come out to a show like this for free and be entertained by organizations they’ve never heard,” Desai said.
“You’re going around the world in one night.”
