Masked faces will soon take over Salt Lake Community College’s Taylorsville Redwood campus. The popular, masked, hip-hop group, Jabbawockeez will entertain students in the Lifetime Activities Center next month. This soon-to-be event has created a lot of excitement around campus. “I’m really excited that they’re coming; it’s about time someone like that comes here,” says SLCC student, Claudia Cuellar. Marci Thorne, Student Life and Leadership Vice President of Fine Arts and Lectures, surveyed some SLCC students and peers, and found a remarkable interest in Jabbawockeez. The group won the first season of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew in 2008, hosted by Mario Lopez. Their popularity has exploded since the win, scoring them appearances in Step Up II, America’s Next Top Model, and music video “Pose.” Thorne contacted Jabbawockeez’ agent and received no reply. After talking with other fine arts committee members and peers about the agent’s neglect, she learned that the agent would not work directly with her because he wanted to maintain professionalism he claims students do not possess. Thorne has been working with a local agent since December and negotiated the contract, which was finally signed three weeks ago, detailing the particulars involving the group appearance. The contract states that the Arts and Cultural Events group will dole out almost half of their yearly budget on this event alone. With a yearly budget of $110,000, the event is going to pull a total of $50,000 from the budget. Included in the total cost is a ten percent commission for the agent. Thorne said that she is hoping to recoup some of the expenses with ticket sales, but that is not the goal. She wants students at SLCC to be exposed to the arts. Another driving factor for Thorne is her desire to do something that helps SLCC stand out. “I wanted to do something that would put Salt Lake Community College on the map,” Thorne said. She also stated that BYU and Utah both have athletic programs and events that set them apart from other schools. She wanted the community college to have something too. The event will be held in the Lifetime Activities Center (LAC) gym after a debate over the venue. The Student Life and Leadership board put it to a vote after deliberating over where the venue location should be. In the end, the LAC won out with a 52-6 vote over the Grand Theatre. Thorne said that she thought the vote was swayed because of the numbers. The LAC gym holds 5,000 people, while the Grand Theatre holds 1,100 maximum. Jabbawockeez performance will be held on April 2, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. The tickets are $5 for SLCC students, two ticket maximum, and $15 for general admission. To purchase tickets, go to smithstix.com or visit the courtesy desk at the Taylorsville Redwood, South City, or Jordan Campuses.