In a blur of flashing lights, slanted ramps, and Minecraft music, students gathered on Thursday for an evening of performances, games, and free merchandise for the annual Glass House Rocks.

The four undergraduate student councils, alongside Columbia Esports and Grupo Quisqueyano, hosted the event in Lerner Hall. The student councils have been coordinating the event since mid-November: a fête featuring dance and musical performances, an arcade, free merchandise, an esports tournament, and a Dominican Independence Day celebration.

After the cancellation of last year’s performances at Glass House Rocks due to a boycott by several performance groups, the event returned for a Minecraft-filled evening.

To match the event’s theme, the councils hosted an esports competition. Inside the room, attendees could “chill” while playing games such as Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart.

Started in 2005, Glass House Rocks arose in response to student distaste for the Lerner Ramps. For one night, the infamous slanted ramps, typically used as “vestiges of passage,” transform into a space for performances and celebration.

“We took what was supposed to be a student center and took it in our own terms,” Anand Chitnis, CC ’25, vice president for campus life, said. “The ramps aren’t actually a reservable space on campus, and so it’s kind of cool that we’re able to take it over in this way.”

This year’s theme, Glass House Blocks, highlights Minecraft—a nod toward a niche part of Columbia’s recent history. During the pandemic, students came together to create “LionCraft,” a virtual campus built inside the video game. While students were unable to physically gather on campus, ingenuity prevailed.

As Lerner lit up with pink and green lights, pulsing with music, dance groups took to their stage for the evening—the ramps. The performers spread across the space, facing the audience members standing across from them on the other side of the building.

With performances from Ijoya, Dhoom, Bhangra, Raas, Raqs, Taal, CU Generation, and Ballet Folklórico Mi Gente, the evening boasted a wide range of dance styles.

Ijoya, Columbia’s African dance group, performed an electric set with energetic music that overlaid cheers from the audience. Dancers wore colorful outfits with pops of pink and yellow to their second performance at the annual event.

“Performing for Glass House, I remember my freshman year, was really fun,” Chinonye Nnajiofor, CC ’26, president of Ijoya, said. “So I’m glad to be able to do it again.”

Ballet Folklórico Mi Gente, Columbia’s first ballet folklórico dance club, donned colorful skirts for its Glass House Rocks debut. The group—whose goal is to showcase Mexican culture and diversity through dance, movement, and learning—performed pieces from the Mexican states, Jalisco and Baja California.

“It was really nice to perform and just show our Mexican heritage here,” Gabriela Tobar, BC ’27, and co-founder of the group, said. “We had been working so hard … it’s just something very exciting.”

As the dance performances came to an end, the musical performances commenced in Wang Pavilion, featuring Bacchante, Pizmon, Clefhangers, Metrotones, Kingsmen, Sharp, Sur, and Columbia Pops.

Several dance groups abstained from performing at Glass House Rocks last year. In an Instagram post released on Feb. 21, 2024, Ijoya, Raw Elementz, Sabor, and ONYX announced that they were boycotting the event, citing student solidarity and demands for divestment from companies with ties to Israel. Eventually, all of the performances were cancelled in response. This year, Raw Elementz, Sabor, and ONYX once again boycotted the event—restating their demand for divestment in a Feb. 27 Instagram post.

“A lot of the teams have said that dance is political, and I have to agree,” Amanda Nelson, SEAS ’27, treasurer of Ijoya, said. “We do stand in solidarity with them, but as a smaller team, we do feel like dancing is part of our culture. It’s how we resisted in the face of … the colonizers of our ancestors. I think this is our form of resistance, dancing and continuing on and celebrating what we have, but also being in solidarity with the groups around us.”

According to Chitnis, the four undergraduate student councils altered their approach to communicating with performance groups this year. Given the cancellation of last year’s performances, the councils prioritized transparency and communication, balancing the event’s needs with those of performance groups.

“Especially after the way things rolled out last year, we were looking at ways that we can ensure that both students knew and our performers knew, and that we knew that this is an event that is really representative of students and their will to come together,” Chitnis said. “And so ‘LionCraft’ is a great way to enshrine that.”

In honor of Dominican Independence Day, Grupo Quisqueyano—Columbia’s Dominican heritage and culture student organization—originally planned to include speakers and a small performance in the Broadway Room during Glass House Rocks. However, according to Chitnis, their speakers and performers had “last minute cancellations on the day of the event,” leading to the council’s inability to update their signage and social media.

Glass House Blocks combined a childlike curiosity for games with vocal and dance performances, creating a lively space that energized performers. The event transformed the mundanity of Lerner into a space filled with games, music, and community.

“I feel like a lot of people associate school spirit with football games, but I think at Columbia, like the nature of the school being in the city, a lot of the school spirit I feel a lot more during these performances,” attendee Natalie Kwok, CC ’28, said. “They’re just so inspiring to see because everyone is so talented.”