This Saturday evening, September 10th, Lancer Productions held Welcome Back Bingo in the Lankford Ballroom. The event was a full house, every seat filled, every Bingo card gone. Rows of tables and chairs were filled with excited Longwood students, crossing their fingers as they chose their allotted Bingo cards, excitedly eyeing the collection of prizes in the front of the room, ranging from Sour Patch Kids and Starbursts to Swedish Fish and Snickers, from Rio and The Green Mile to Fool's Gold and Shawshank Redemption, from Monopoly and Poker sets to bean bag chairs and Charmin Ultra Strong toilet paper rolls. Whenever a person won a Bingo game, they would be eligible for a raffle of a $100 American Express gift card. Stacks of dime-sized, transparent, plastic red circles cluttered the tables, soon to be snatched at hungrily by Lancers. Emily Brooks, a Sophomore at Longwood, has been a part of Lancer Productions since last spring. Brooks was happy to see such a high attendance for Bingo Night this year, saying that, "It's always popular every year. It's always a really big event. So, we knew it would be successful… People get really excited about it!"
The excitement echoed that of sports stadiums, "ughs" and aw "yeahs" resonating around the room. I heard some of the most spiteful claps yet this entire year for Bingo. You would not believe how overtly vocal people would be about someone saying "B 3" instead of "B 13". People were about to riot any second. I would not have blinked my eye if someone threw over their table in anguish. When someone won one round of Bingo, you would swear bloodshed would be unleashed any moment when a person took a liking to the Swedish Fish or became tempted by the Diet Coke, the prizes others held their eyes on.
Describing the night as "phenomenal," Shawn Gaines, a Junior at Longwood, was not afraid to share just how exciting he thought Welcome Back Bingo really was, Lancer Productions style. "I had a blast."
Gaines happily noted that he attends Lancer Productions events "every weekend." Gaines was lucky enough to win a bag of candy M&M's and Snickers, along with a $10 Applebee's gift card. Leaving that night, Gaines was happy to say that, "The Lancer Productions is doing a fabulous job."
The rules of Bingo were the same, nothing new or showy. The different styles of Bingo gameplay utilized included not only regular vertical, horizontal, and diagonal style, but also where the Bingo card had to have the red discs make the shape of an X, a T, an L, or just touch the corners.
This was not just Bingo. This was war. And if you didn't get that, you must not have been there. The sound of the rattling of the Bingo balls revolving in the spherical metal framed cage was so intense you would think it was the background music of a Chuck Norris action sequence. This wasn't your mammy shmammy Grandma's version of sit me down and give me a cup of hot cocoa, pat me on the back and call me Mary Bingo. You will get shot in the face as you moonwalk down the Ballroom to claim your Orville Redenbacher bucket like a grade-A boss. No lies. I have never felt so ticked off at someone else's happiness in my whole life.
Thankfully, it was not a night of complete loss and frustration. I was lucky enough to win a prize. Clutching my bag of Sour Patch Kids as I exited Lankford that evening, I knew I had gambled my night well – not only on which Bingo cards I chose, but also on trusting Lancer Productions to do a great job once again.
Brooks says that Longwood should expect another Bingo Night next year. "It's definitely going to happen."
Suggesting students to not only attend Lancer Productions events, Brooks also says, "Feel free to come to meetings on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. if you'd like to help contribute to your on-campus programming."
Check out the Lancer Productions website at lancerproductions.longwood.edu for more information on later events happening throughout the year.
