Friday, the Rotunda will glow for the 25th annual Lighting of the Lawn. The tradition that began with simple string lights has since grown into a full-scale production featuring light shows, drones and thousands of attendees packed shoulder-to-shoulder on the Lawn. Throughout the night, there will be performances by 26 groups including the Virginia Sil’hooettes and the University Singers.
This year’s theme, “Remix: A quarter century of Light,” looks back on the event’s origin — fostering community and gathering in remembrance of the lives lost Sept. 11, 2001 — while leaning into how both the event and University community have since become enriched with old and new traditions.
For Merritt Brazell, Lighting of the Lawn co-chair and fourth-year College student, this theme serves as an opportunity to reflect on the traditions that have both left their imprint and evolved over the past 25 years.
“[Remix] is about taking the past 25 years of student life and experience at the University of Virginia and holding it in a similar space,” Brazell said. “It’s a tribute to [how] our traditions transformed and everything that it means to remember and to celebrate the University community.”
Rebecca Denton, Lighting of the Lawn co-chair and fourth-year Batten student, said that the 25th anniversary of the event pushed her and her team to think beyond nostalgia. With the festive performances and light shows complete with drones lined up, Denton hopes to unite the community by showcasing the ways it has changed since the event first began.
This year, through a partnership with the Honor Committee, the first 5,000 LOTL attendees will receive CrowdSync wristbands that synchronize with the music and lighting cues — technology featured in major artists’ concerts such as Taylor Swift or Coldplay. Denton said the wristbands, an interactive element of the show, are designed to enhance audience engagement.
“Within [the] Remix [theme], this kind of is a way to bring the audience into the show itself,” Denton said.
The drone show, introduced last year, will also return in expanded form. This time, the display will double in size, with 200 illuminated drones rising above the Lawn during the final sequence.
Planning for the event stretches far in advance of the day-of festivities. Brazell and Denton were selected as co-chairs in May and hit the ground running almost immediately. They spent the summer assembling their executive team, which takes place through an application process, writing grants and proposals and familiarizing themselves with the logistical maze required to run one of the University’s largest annual gatherings.
The broader LOTL committee now includes 65 students, organized through Class Councils and the Alumni Association, with 15 students serving on the executive board. Brazell emphasized the teamwork involved in ensuring that such a big night runs smoothly.
“I feel like you could compare it to building a bridge,” Brazell said. “You start on both sides of the river, and we’re at this stage [where] we’re trying to make sure things meet in the middle.”
Performances traditionally run until just before 9 p.m. and are managed by the LOTL Programs Committee. However, the hard work of putting them on is managed by the performers themselves. For Yukta Ramanan, Virginia Belles president and fourth-year College student, preparation for her group’s performance is a quick yet meaningful sprint. The Belles traditionally perform with the Hullabahoos, and this year the two groups will close the show together.
Preparation for their performance involves multiple steps over the course of a week, including soloist auditions and rehearsals with the Hullabahoos. However, Ramanan said they still make the most of that time along the way. Many Lawn and Pavilion residents even open their homes to students looking to mingle during the festivities.
“The day of is a lot of fun, so it’s just party central,” Ramanan said. “And then we hang out on the Lawn and then go perform.”
For Ramanan, who is also a current resident of the Lawn, Lighting of the Lawn is an opportunity for her to share that which is near to her heart with the rest of the University community.
“There’s something so magical about how many people are at the event and how many people you get to sing for,” Ramanan said. “I love LOTL and I’m very excited to have my [Lawn] room this year … [it's] nice to have a home base for big events that demand us to be on the Lawn.
For many students, especially for those experiencing Lighting of the Lawn for the first time, the night represents something deeply personal. First-year College student Maryam Aamer has had the tradition on her radar since before she enrolled at the University.
“Passing by the Rotunda everyday on my way to class fills me with so much awe that I really go to U.Va.,” Aamer said. “To see the Rotunda light up for the first time [at LOTL] is such a special experience and a tradition I’ll get to experience for the next four years.”
That sense of shared meaning is what Brazell hopes students will reflect on as the lights rise Friday night.
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