Fall Block at VCU

FALL BLOCK AT VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY

By Kelsey Mejia

(RICHMOND, September 21) - Colored spotlights and hundreds of anxious spectators circled the Stuart E. Siegel Center Saturday night in what resembled the start of a rock concert. But there would be no rock stars performing that night. It was the 23^rd Annual Virginia Commonwealth University Fall Block Step Show.

Fall Block at VCU is not just a step show; it is an entire week of events to showcase what Greek Life and the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), the organization of all nine historically black Greek letter organizations, is all about.

“Fall Block is like homecoming here,” said Michael Perkins, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. “Since our homecoming is in the spring, this is our big fall event.”

September 15 was the first day of fall block. A High School Step Team Competition took place in the student commons in which area high schools came to compete for the opening spot during the competition on Saturday. Potomac High School from Woodbridge, Va. took the top prize.

Tuesday was a chance for all NPHC organizations to showcase a portion of their routines at the Pre-Show Cookout/Step Exhibition and Wednesday a ‘Why Be Greek Forum’ was held to answer questions about NPHC. An Ice Cream Social took place Thursday and a Wing Night in the Break Point game room was held Friday night.

But Saturday night, it was about who could bring home the trophy for the best step, a tradition that dates back to slavery.

African studies show that the African “Boot Dance” was developed in the coalmines where slaves worked in boots given to them to deal with the rough terrain. On Sundays, their days off, slaves would stomp in their work boots which became known as “boot dancing”. Boot dancing resembled the sound of African drums which reminded the slaves of their home land. They would accompany the dance with stomping and clapping in rhythms.

In the early part of the 20^th century, the first eight out of the nine black fraternities were formed. White Greek organizations would sing and chant on campuses so Black Greek organizations made stepping their trademark. At their Inter-Fraternity Conferences, they used stepping as a friendly call and response competition. It has evolved into the stepping observers saw Saturday night at VCU.

Stepping was also made popular by hit movies like “School Daze” and “Stomp the Yard”.

Potomac High School opened the show Saturday night to a loud uproar from the audience. “I’m from Woodbridge and I live close to Potomac,” said Allan Moody, a sophomore at VCU. “I was impressed with their step.”

Seven of the nine fraternities and sororities stepped beginning with Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. and ending with Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. In between routines, DJ B-Sounds from Power 92.1 entertained the crowd as the host. DJ 5’9 played popular music in the background while the NPHC organizations “party-hopped” doing choreographed steps to the music.

When the two-hour long show was complete, the winner of the sororities was Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and the members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. took the title on the men’s side. Second place went to Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. took the third place prize.

“I feel like the Deltas deserved to win,” said Josalyn Coleman, a spectator. “Some people should have placed that didn’t but everyone did pretty good.”