University Productions president, Alexandra Fotinopoulos, ’17, made it her goal to create an inclusive place on Lehigh’s campus for all members of the community after experiencing a sense of segregation as a non-Greek student.
With UP’s most recent event on the UC Front Lawn on Sept. 1, featuring teenage DJ duo Louis the Child, Fotinopoulos felt as though the organization was one step closer to accomplishing her goal.
“I wanted to have everyone — Greek members, athletes, non-Greeks, artists, musicians — at our events,” Fotinopoulos said. “So I thought of how nice it would be to have an event right in the middle of campus on the lawn instead of others having MoCos or barbecues or individually hosted events.”
The event was free and open to all Lehigh students. Students lined the walkway in front of the UC for a buffet of free food, drinks and dessert.
Students 21 or older were also able to enter a semi-enclosed area, where beer and wine were served, a feature that UP believes attracted students who otherwise may not have attended.
“For those in Greek life, what attracts them?” Fotinopoulos said. “Alcohol and partying is one of the things. It’s sad to say, but it’s so true. This is true for not even just those in Greek life, but college students in general, especially if you’re 21.”
Once students arrived at the start of the event, singer-songwriter and Whitehall Township native Tim Harakal took the stage. Harakal played for about an hour leading up to the main act, Louis the Child.
Louis the Child, a Chicago-based duo consisting of artists Robby Hauldren and Freddy Kennett, started its show with a remix of Zella Day’s “Compass.” The rest of its set consisted of remixes of songs including the Chainsmokers’ “Closer” and Miike Snow’s “Genghis Khan,” as well as its original songs “Weekend” and “It’s Strange.”
The show, set up at the bottom of the UC Front Lawn, drew a crowd that covered nearly the entire lawn.
“I think that it’s really nice as an outdoor concert,” Chloe Hoffnagle, ’20, said. “It feels like a real concert, except that you don’t have to pay for it and it’s on campus, so you can come and go as you please.”
Another big goal for UP this year is to improve its branding. The club updated its logo, pushed a promotional video for the event on Facebook, and connected to Lehigh students by naming the event Camp Lehigh, a name that many students associate with the first week of school.
They also ran a Snapchat competition before the show. Students had to send a Snapchat of a face-swap with either Hauldren or Kennett to UP, and the top snaps were awarded with a meet and greet with Louis the Child. Brandon Merluccio, ’18, was one of the winners.
“They were young, and they were very down-to-earth people,” Merluccio said. “They’re just dudes who happen to be famous for music that they make, but they’re still people so it’s pretty cool.”
There are four separate UP branches: special events, music, comedy and arts, and excursions. Louis the Child was planned and hosted by both the special events and music branches. The branches all have different areas of focus, but overall UP said it hopes to make a name for itself on campus by continuing with events such as this one.
“We want to let everyone know that UP is doing this event … we want to actually be recognized as a club here at Lehigh, that’s why we have all of those different branches,” Fotinopoulos said. “Hopefully after Louis the Child, that success will resonate.”
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