Disclaimer: this article was written by someone who has never participated in Step Sing, if you’re in Step Sing, obviously you’ll probably prefer watching it in person.
After almost four years of attending Samford University, I have never participated in the tradition known as Step Sing. It is not my area of expertise. My area of expertise is watching the most popular Samford tradition.
I know the ins and outs of consuming Step Sing. I’ve even tried, and failed, sneaking into the show for free. The sneaking-in method, while the potential reward seems high, is not worth it, because the best way to watch Step Sing is through the free live stream.
As someone who has attended the show in-person multiple times, and watched the live stream for almost every showing of Step Sing that I didn’t attend in person for, I can confidently say I will not be purchasing a ticket to Step Sing ever again.
When you watch in person you miss one of two things that make Step Sing viewership most worthwhile, while missing out on some of the best perks of live stream attendance.
Depending on where you are sitting, you will either miss the beauty of Step Sing formations, which is one of the best parts of the shows, or you will miss seeing the details of the individual performances of your friends who you came to see in the first place.
When you watch the live stream, you get the best of both worlds. You get to see the beautiful formations as if you were sitting in the balcony, and you also get to see your friends individually as the camera typically pans through each group.
You also get to gain a new appreciation for the costumes, and how gross Pi Kappa Phi’s rat costumes were or how 2022 Dudes-A-Plenty clearly shaved their legs for their lifeguards show in 2022.
Obviously, the live stream can’t match what it’s like to feel the awkward energy of someone going on stage thinking they won sweepstakes when they didn’t, but a watch party can satisfy the absence of crowd excitement.
Without a crowd you’ll also be free to judge and commentate aloud on amateur tumbleweed wranglers and your classmates and friends dressed as dogs, milkmen, moths, plumbers, floppy tube men or other ridiculous things.
Plus, you’ll save money by not purchasing a $35 ticket, which is more than the total cost it was for me to go to the Arizona State versus Texas college football playoff game, just in case you were wondering.
With that extra $35 you could host or attend an even better Step Sing watch party by purchasing at least two hand tossed buffalo chicken pizzas from Dominos, which is what I did last year for Step Sing.
If you are feeling more inspired and are at least 21 years old and live off campus, you could buy at least a Dominos’ pizza and a six pack to share with a friend, which is something you definitely can’t get during an in person viewing at the Wright Center on Samford’s dry campus.
One more perk, if not the greatest perk of all, of watching the live stream is that you are already ready to host all your stepper and singer friends at your place for a Step Sing after party.
None of them will want to host a Step Sing after party. They are just too tired to plan anything. Meanwhile, you will have all the energy, and some of the money saved, to throw a phenomenal after-party.
However, for all intents and purposes, you should all definitely keep paying $35 to go to Step Sing in person because I want the live stream to stay free for me after I graduate.
Editor-in-Chief
