Spookapella made its debut on Sunday Oct. 27 with spooky performances of Halloween-inspired songs. The event was hosted by Zac Gondelmen ’26 and Esther Rubin ’26, who welcomed the audience on a whimsically haunted tour of Brandeis’ a cappella clubs. However, their chipper attitude was quickly substituted by Rather Be Giraffes’ stunning performance which sent shivers running down spines. It all began as they led the way with their version of “Creep” by Radiohead. The song captured the essence of Halloween while remaining expertly sung. 

With that, the bar was set high right out of the gate. To follow, Company B led us back in time with their performances of Billy Joel’s “For the Longest Time” and “Mr. Sandman” by the Chordettes. As the longest running a cappella club on campus, their tunes harkened to classic songs and styles. However, their true trademark, as pointed out by the hosts, is that Company B performs music more than 25 years old. Knowing this made it disappointing to hear the small range of musical stylings sung. In the future, hearing ’80s synth or ’90s hip hop rendered in Company B’s classic a cappella style would be interesting.

Next up was VoiceMale who, adorned in onesie costumes, took the stage. Per their seemingly romantic aesthetic, they performed “As the World Caves In” and an original song, “Permanent.” What truly stood out was, despite having one soloist per song, the voices of many members were beautifully highlighted with accompanying high notes and riffs. The best costumes also came from this group, with President Loki and Gru from “Despicable Me” stealing the show. 

Up the Octave continued Spookapella with Little Mix’s “The Cure” and an amazing rendition of “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo. The song was thematically on point and gave the audience a chance to listen to something culturally relevant with Rodrigo releasing her “Guts” world tour film on Oct. 29. After this contemporary display, Too Cheap For Instruments whisked us to the 16th century with “Green Sleeves,” a song written during the rule of Henry VIII. The ethereal energy of the group was only helped by wearing angel costumes and folksy musicality. Finally, the group brought us back to the present with the Appalachian-inspired “You Can’t Catch Me Now” from “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” A portion toward the end of the song where all members sang the chorus together was particularly powerful. Manginah then performed a mashup between “Celestial” and “Castle On a Hill.” The arrangement was exciting and lively, though the group currently has fewer members than most and is especially lacking with lower vocal parts. Nonetheless, they held their own and got the audience engaged. 

Brandeis’ Starving Artists continued the show mimicking “Pitch Perfect’s” Barden Bellas. This reference carried through their performance with a pitch pipe joke and misstating their name. Their version of Justin Timberlake’s “Cry Me A River” was extraordinary as their soloist showcased his falsetto talents while backed by a symphony of incredible beatboxing and harmonizing. Lastly, Proscenium, a musical theater and Disney-centered group, sang “Why Are All the D’Ysquiths Dying” from “A Gentleman’s Guide to Murder.” Their piece de resistance was a classic song known to an entire generation: “Take a Hint” from the hit television series “Victorious.” Even the audience could not resist singing along to close out a spectacular evening. With that, Spookapella came to a close as groups mingled and sang their way out of Sherman Function Hall, likely already thinking of what to perform next year. Though until then, you can still support each club at their semester shows later this fall!