It is that time of year again. It is time to ask: Who will be the next UW Idol?

This Friday, the sixth annual UW Idol competition begins. Students are welcome to sing their hearts out to the judges and see who will go on to win the prizes and titles. It starts at 9 p.m. in the A&S auditorium. 

“UW Idol is a huge event that is widely attended by students. We usually have a large audience and almost 100 students who audition,” Julianne Friesen, lead student programmer for Friday Night Fever, said. For these open auditions, students will perform a 30-second a cappella song of their choice.

“It’s better to sign up early in the Campus Activities Center, because we only have 100 audition spots, but we will accept on a first-come, first-serve basis any student who wants to audition the night of open call, time allowing,” Friesen said.

One student auditioning for the first time is theatre and dance major Sadie Trigg-Catalano. 

“I’m trying out for UW Idol because it’s great to get the chance to do what I love, and it’s even better when it might entertain others at the same time,” she said.

Trigg-Catalano will sing “Gravity” by Sara Bareilles. “I prepare by practicing ‘till I can’t stand it any more, and constantly reminding myself not to freak out and that there’s nothing to be nervous about,” Trigg-Catalano said.

To pick the winners, UW Idol has three people affiliated with the university judge the performances. This year’s judges are currently in the process of being selected.

“The FNF team selects judges based on their musical background. We try to get professors of music, previous UW Idol winners, and music [or] voice performance majors. We want our judges to appreciate the music, be able to provide the students with good feedback and be able to select the best singer,” Friesen said.

Students do not have to have a voice like Carrie Underwood to win something either. “Some of the auditions get pretty creative, which is why we give away ‘The William Hung Award,’” Friesen said.

Prizes for the competition include a first place prize of $1000, a second place prize of $500, a third place prize of $300 and an audience choice award of $100.

After Friday’s auditions, 15 semi-finalists and five alternates will be selected. At 9 p.m. Feb. 4 in the A&S auditorium, the semi-finals will be held with each semi-finalist performing a song of their choice. Each alternate will get to perform a song of their choice during the intermission.

“Even if you aren’t auditioning, UW Idol is fun, exciting and something awesome to do for free. You never know what might happen at UW Idol; it’s just as entertaining and unexpected as the American Idol TV show. So come and support your fellow students,” Friesen said.

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