Alpha Phi Alpha Presents Fifth Annual Battle on the Burning Sands Step Show

by Lillyan Baker, student newswriter, (254) 710-6805
The fifth annual Battle on the Burning Sands Step Show, hosted by the Baylor Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., will take place at 10 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, in Waco Hall on the Baylor University campus.
The show will feature eight acts, and judges will award first and second place prizes in both the fraternity and sorority division.
The step show will feature celebrity guest host Alex Thomas, a comedian, actor and hip-hop dancer from Los Angeles. Thomas has worked for Will Smith as a screenwriter for the television show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, starred as Jaime Foxx's sidekick in The Jamie Foxx Show and appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
"The show is more exciting than the movie Stomp the Yard," said Jeremy Miller, a senior finance major from Houston and a member of Alpha Phi Alpha. "It is a chance to see Waco hall in a different way with this dynamic event."
Proceeds from the event will benefit the Waco community. Last year Alpha Phi Alpha used the proceeds from the event to replace items necessary for the Boys and Girls Club, including two industrial sized gym fans, new equipment and water bottles. Alpha Phi Alpha members also took 40 children from Wiley Middle School to Medieval Times in Dallas after they earned exceptional scores on their Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test.
Miller believes that the Burning Sands step show is one of the most anticipated events for National Panhellenic Council Greeks across Texas. Last year 2,000 people attended the event and this year Alpha Phi Alpha expects the show to sell out.
In 2005, the Baylor Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity began hosting Battle on the Burning Sands. Each year Alpha Phi Alpha invites a celebrity guest host. Past celebrities include Big Tigga, former host of 106 & Park: BET's Top 10 Live, Fonzworth Bentley, who has been seen on MTV shows like Making the Band 2, and Shawty, who has been featured on shows like Wild'n Out and BET Comic View.
Presale tickets are available for $15 at the Baylor ticket office in the Bill Daniel Student Center (SUB) and at Marilyn's Gift Gallery until Saturday, Jan. 31. Tickets will be available at the door for $20.
For more information, contact Miller at Jeremy_Miller@Baylor.edu.