Kamini Purushothaman, Contributing Photographer

From Friday at 8 p.m. to Saturday at 8 a.m., student artists came together to share 12 hours of creativity spanning music, dance and film.

Taking place at Hopper Cabaret, the sixth annual All-Nighter featured 27 different acts. Started by Michael Gancz ’22 in 2018, the event has become a beloved tradition for Yalies eager to showcase their talents in a supportive environment.

“At one point in the event, I had to pause and take in the sheer number of people singing and dancing to the band performing,” said Ciara Lonergan ’25, this year’s director for the All-Nighter. “It was truly awesome to realize that my team’s efforts had created such an exciting atmosphere.”

Lonergan’s team was composed of four other students: sound operator Mela Johnson ’25, light technician Cam Wiggs ’26, acts coordinator Chloe Shiffman ’26 and stage manager Cody Skinner ’27. Skinner is also a reporter for the News. They also had the aid of two alumni, Gancz and Jason Salvant ’24.

The team sent out a Google Form in February for performers to sign up and reached out to acts from previous years. They solidified their lineup in March. While they promoted the All-Nighter on Instagram, the team intentionally refrained from publicizing their lineup. This decision was based on a central philosophy of the All-Nighter — that audiences find out who’s performing in the moment, increasing the chance that they see artists they might not have known about or bought tickets to see.

“It was the sickest thing I’ve ever heard,” said Rhea McTiernan Huge ’27 of the EDM trombone set she watched at 5 a.m. McTiernan Huge was a vendor at the All-Nighter, selling her handmade jewelry at the event.

The All-Nighter was an enriching experience for performers and attendees, who Lonergan said danced along to band performances. McTiernan Huge noted that the event exemplified Yale students’ dedication to the arts and expressed her gratitude for being able to experience it.

Lonergan said that many people came for their friends’ performances, were drawn in by the heterogeneity of the other acts and ultimately stayed at the event. Lauding the All-Nighter’s supportive environment, she attributed part of its success to the diversity of performances it encompassed.

Lonergan said the All-Nighter’s independence gives the team more agency in choosing acts, allowing them to accept a broad range of creative work. Funded by a CPA Award, the All-Nighter operates independently of any campus group. This year, they featured stand-up comedy, short films and Latin dance. In past years, the event has included interactive art installations. 

“Because it’s an all-night event, all the people there really wanted to be there,” said Nicholas Lee ’27, who performed at 2:20 a.m. as part of the student band Flannel. “Knowing we could trust our audience gave us a lot of liberty to perform what we wanted to.”

For Flannel that meant playing music by artists like Amy Winehouse, whom the group members admire but would have been hesitant to perform for less musically inclined audiences. 

Still, even the most passionate performers and guests get tired, so the All-Nighter featured three intermissions for attendees to converse, recharge and covertly micro-nap.

As the night waned, Lonergan led sunrise yoga for the event’s attendees. After the All-Nighter’s final musical performance, a recorder performance by Brandon Yee ’25, she gave her closing remarks. Thanking guests for attending, Lonergan shared her sentiments about how rewarding the experience was to plan and watch come to life.

“The festival is 12 hours of student excellence,” she said. “It is such an incredible experience to see the insane range of talent that the undergraduate community has to offer.”

Hopper Cabaret is located in the basement of Grace Hopper College.