The Wisconsin Singers perform at spring graduation, 2024. Jake Piper/The Daily Cardinal
Taylor Kaufmann
What are the most popular clubs that come to mind at the University of Wisconsin-Madison? Chances are that you think of highly-rated, university-affiliated clubs specifically promoted through the school.
The Wisconsin Singers are a performance group who have been representing Madison for more than half a century, and have been unaffiliated with UW-Madison for over twenty years.
The lack of affiliation means the Wisconsin Singers cannot use UW-Madison’s famous mascot, Bucky Badger, on any of their merchandise, performance or promotions.
It also means the program receives zero funding from the university.
Because the program is run by at least 60% students, they are awarded one ‘RSO Outreach’ email a year. Junior dance captain, Owen Harris, said the team sends one email out around recruitment time in the spring.
Members are required to outreach on their own. “We all hang posters, text friends and family and even chalk all over campus,” Harris said. “It takes a lot, but it’s always worth it.”
With the lack of promotion provided from the university, the program opted to find a different sponsor. This is when they began their partnership with The Union.
The Union provides the Wisconsin Singers with numerous outreach opportunists including emails and special promotions within their news sources. Memorial Union is also where they perform their annual, on-campus premiere to kick off their traveling season.
The Wisconsin Singers’ largest form of recruitment is their dance camps they provide to students across the country. When the group travels for a performance, they arrive early enough to teach the young performing groups of the school district two eight counts of the show’s choreography, led by Harris.
During this time, younger students are able to see the ins and outs of what being a Wisconsin Singer could look like for them. After the dance portion the team all sits and performs the question and answer portion of the camp, highlighting how magical being a singer can be.
During intermission of these performances, the group promotes their merchandise tables as well as their donation boxes. These boxes are one of the only ways Wisconsin Singers can continue their long lived tradition.
After explaining the concept of ClubCrush, Harris said Wisconsin Singers would be a great candidate for the app.
He said the club’s current struggle is that students don’t understand the commitment of the program and often back out mid season. “When people hear we are a performance group on campus, they think acapella,” Harris said. “Obviously acapella groups are a commitment, but Wisconsin Singers is more drastic.”
This disconnect is where the group has the hardest time retaining performers who have auditioned.
For Wisconsin Singers, ClubCrush’s ‘long-term commitment’ feature would be perfect for students wanting to join. The program’s profile would include the large commitments required for the group as well as past and current performers’ comments.