The lights have dimmed and the cameras have been put away until next year.

The 1997 Varieties show, “Catch a Rising Star,” stole the spotlight with its final shows on Friday and Saturday nights, after three consecutive weekends of competitions and performances.

Jessie Smith, Varieties producer, said she was thrilled with this year’s performances. “The talent that was showcased was wonderful,” she said.

Hard work and long hours paid off for some Iowa State students as winners were announced at Saturday’s Sweepstakes performances. The weekend shows consisted of the top performances, including emcees, skits and vignettes, from the semi-final competitions.

Mike Elskamp, a senior in management information systems, and Jim Condon, a junior in marketing, directed the first-place FarmHouse Fraternity and Gamma Phi Beta skit.

“It was an honor, especially because all three skits were great. It was really tough competition,” Elskamp said.

Condon said, “It’s great that we won; that’s always an honor. But the friendships we made with the Gamma Phis are even more important.”

Elskamp and Condon said their group began practicing every night for about two hours the first week of October.

About 250 students participated in this year’s Varieties. More than 150 students performed this weekend.

ISU President Martin Jischke attended the show Friday night. He was serenaded by The Wonder Years, the second-place vignette group. Other administrators judged some of the performances.

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And the winners are

The results of Varieties 1997 are as follows:

Best Emcee Performance: “Farewell to QT” – My Mom’s a Fat Cow

Vignettes:

1st: Decades 2nd: The Wonder Years 3rd: Monte Carlo

Skits:

1st: “Rebel with Fur and Claws” – FarmHouse/Gamma Phi Beta

2nd: “Special Delivery” – Phi Delta Theta/Kappa Kappa Gamma

3rd: “Stuck in Here Tonight” – Pi Kappa Phi/Delta Zeta