Coca-Cola hosts "Showtime At The Apollo" Competition for CIAA Students at Annual Basketball Tourney
Coca-Cola hosts "Showtime At The Apollo" Competition for CIAA Students at Annual Basketball Tourney
·Student auditions held between Jan. 26-Feb. 5 on five
CIAA campuses
·Grammy winning artist Patti LaBelle to perform at CIAA
Tournament Show in Charlotte where grand prize winner will be
named
Atlanta, GA, January 25 – The competition won’t just be
on the court at the 61st annual Central Intercollegiate Athletic
Association (CIAA) Basketball Tournament in Charlotte. Some
talented students will be competing for the chance to appear on the
stage of the famous Apollo Theater through a competition that kicks
off with auditions beginning this weekend on five CIAA campuses,
and culminates with the special Showtime at the Apollo finals on
March 2, sponsored by Coca-Cola.
Auditions are open exclusively to CIAA students and will be held
between January 26-Feb. 5 at Fayetteville State University, Johnson
C. Smith University, North Carolina Central University, Virginia
State University and Bowie State University.
Competing acts for Showtime at the Apollo may include singers (solo
or group), dancers, musicians, comedians, rappers and other
specialty acts. The first 50 acts to sign up at each school will
audition for Showtime at the Apollo producers and a live
audience.
Twelve students or groups will be chosen to compete on stage at the
CIAA Tournament Showtime at the Apollo event. Five winners will be
chosen during the campus auditions; the seven remaining contestants
will be selected by the show producers. The final competition will
be held on Thursday, March 2, at 10:00 p.m. at the Charlotte
Convention Center. Also performing will be Grammy Award winning
singer, Patti LaBelle, who will light up the stage with some of her
greatest hits.
The grand prize winner of the CIAA event will earn a spot on the
nationally syndicated television show Showtime at the Apollo which
is taped live at the famed Apollo Theater in Harlem, NY. The winner
will also receive two round trip airline tickets to New York, hotel
accommodations, and $1,000 spending money.
Ticket prices for Showtime at the Apollo at the CIAA with Patti
LaBelle are $37.00 for adults and $25.00 for students. Tickets may
be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets. Proceeds from the event
will benefit the CIAA scholarship fund.
“The sponsorship by Coca-Cola of Showtime at the Apollo
during the CIAA is a continuation of our long-term partnership with
the Apollo Theater which dates back over 20 years,” said Doug
Coffed, vice president, Southeast Region, Coca-Cola North America.
“Bringing the Apollo experience to the CIAA helps us connect
with students in a fun, relevant and exciting way, while helping to
raise scholarship funds for the CIAA colleges and
universities.”
Coca-Cola North America is the longest standing corporate partner
and the exclusive soft drink sponsor of the CIAA. The Coca-Cola
Company is the world’s largest beverage company. Along with
Coca-Cola, recognized as the world’s most valuable brand, the
Company markets four of the world’s top five soft drink
brands, including Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, and a wide range of
other beverages, including diet and light soft drinks, waters,
juice drinks, teas, coffees and sports drinks.
The dates and times for each audition are as follows:
JANUARY 26
Fayetteville State University
Seabrook Auditorium
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
JANUARY 27
North Carolina Central University
BN Duke Auditorium
11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
(Students from Saint Augustine’s College and Shaw University
are invited to audition)
JANUARY 28
Johnson C. Smith University
Biddle Memorial Auditorium,
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
(Students from Livingstone and Winston-Salem State University are
invited to audition)
FEBRUARY 4
Bowie State University
Myers Auditorium
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
FEBRUARY 5
Virginia State University
Anderson Turner Auditorium
11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
(Saint Paul’s College and Elizabeth City State University
students are invited to audition)
