The early evening rain did not discourage anyone from attending, and the arena and the stands were soon filled last Wednesday night at Nagyerdei Stadium, where the university's talented Hungarian and international students tuned in for the main spectacle with a warm-up welcome show. The performers included the Marching Band Wind Orchestra, students majoring in voice at the Faculty of Music, students from Könnyűzenei Intézet [Institute of Pop Music], and the band named Impact Project, with members like Rector Zoltán Szilvássy, Chancellor Zoltán Bács and Vice-Rector József Tőzsér. This time, their combo performed a cover of Gyöngyhajú Lány/White Dove for the university community.
Not long after 8 pm, the countdown began, followed by a flashback to memorable moments in the history of our university over the past centuries. The symbols of the institution called gerundium-s also appeared, the university fanfares were duly sounded, and more than a hundred foreign students inundated the arena with the national flags of their respective countries, showcasing the diversity of the international community studying here.
The entire university community, including guests from Debrecen and abroad were then welcomed by Rector Zoltán Szilvássy and Chancellor Zoltán Bács, together with György Kossa, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Count István Tisza Foundation for the University of Debrecen, and Kevin Németh, President of Students’ Union.
Tibor Kapu addressed the thousands of freshers crowding the arena by recalling his own personal experiences.
“I have been to quite a lot of similar events, but surely never seen such an awesome start of the school year. I also have a special message for the first-year students: it is no problem if you do not yet know what career you want to pursue later: the only thing that is important now is that you are in the best place! Believe me; perseverance, a pure heart and humility will for sure lead you to your goal. I, myself, did not know either what I wanted to be way back then, yet I became an astronaut and now I’m standing here on the stage of yoUDay, which is fantastic,” said Tibor Kapu, who had prepared a surprise gig for the evening, specifically for this event. He sang and played the guitar, accompanied by two of his friends who are musicians, performing the song [This is the House (Ez az a ház) written by the band Tankcsapda.
The two mc-s, Betti Gábor and Árpi Burai from the radio station FM90 Campus Rádió, arrived stylishly in a BMW and introduced two star performers with close ties to Debrecen: Bogi Nagy and Gergő Dánielfy. Their songs, such as A szívem kék [My Heart Is Blue], Elmegyek [I’m Leaving] and Nem búcsúztam el [I Have Not Said Good-Bye] created a fantastic atmosphere, with Gergő Dánielfy even descending to the arena to join the young people singing the popular lyrics.
The audience also joined in to sing the hits of ByeAlex és a Slepp, with thousands of voices roaring out the well-known words of pieces such as Fekete [Black], Csokko, Bangkok and Emlékszem [I Remember].
A huge welcome and rounds of applause were given to the winner of this year's Megasztár contest, Máté Gudics, who appeared on the stage several times during the show, just like to Zita Melánia Antal, Jennifer Szirota and Fruzsi Erdős, who are regular contributors to yoUDay, as well as to the band Abrakazabra. Besides the music, the 350-square-meter stage was also an impressive sight when it was filled with dancers from Debrecen dance groups R&B Dance Debrecen, Valcer, and Feeling Dance Studio, together with Aserdus Fire Jugglers, DEAC cheerleaders and Hortobágy Folk Dance Ensemble, which joined yoUDay for the first time this year.
The band Bagossy Brothers Company also brought their greatest hits to the academic year's opening show in order to prompt the whole stadium to sing and dance along with them as they played Visszajövök [I Will Come Back], Olyan Ő [He/She Is Like], Van egy ház [There Is a House] and Fújj meg szél [Blow Wind].
The night still had some exciting moments in store, as it marked the conclusion of this year's first “Fresher of the Year” contest. The winners of the prize received not only the title, but also a UniPass Gold card, which grants them free admission to all events at the University of Debrecen for a whole year, including next summer’s Campus Festival. Out of more than 800 applicants, four guys and four girls were short-listed, and votes could be cast for them during yoUDay. The winners were presented with the symbolic UniPass Gold card on stage by the director of the stage show, Veronika Végh.
The two-hour-long musical production was once again concluded with a gigantic laser show, but the participants could still go on partying at the Retro Party in the stadium, where Abrakazabra performed covers of the biggest hits of the 2000s. Following that, an afterparty awaited those who wanted to have even more fun at Nagyerdei Víztorony [verbatim: Big Forest Water Tower] and the venue named HALL until dawn.
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