Highlights From Rochesterfest’s Teen Night

It was a beautiful evening to get outta the house and give your parents a break as kids of all ages enjoyed another Teen Night for Rochesterfest.

Ever since I was brought on full-time in 2008, I've had the pleasure of hosting Rochesterfest's Teen Night, and every year the kids keep getting more and more fun.

Last night was no different, as Gabriel the Hypnotist once again stole the show with his usual brand of entertainment by putting several of Rochester's youth under his spell.  The large crowd present gathered around the Treasure Island main stage and howled with laughter as a select number of teenagers did what they were instructed by dancing and acting out different characters/celebrity's to the audience's delight.

Also featured was the annual Pannekoeken Pie Eating Contest, to which 10 random youngsters were given a delicious strawberry Pannekoeken with a mountain of whipped cream.  The winner would receive a year's worth of free Pannekoeken!

A new feature to this year's Teen Night was the Video Game Tournament under the tent on the south side of the park.  Games like Super Smash Bros, Ultimate Street Fighter IV and even classics like Tekken 3 were all present for a Round-robin tournament with plenty of prizes!  The crowds under the tent were fairly large most of the night, and you could clearly hear the hoots and hollers from the matches taking place from the main stage.  I think this will easily become a new staple when it comes to Teen Night!

Another hightlight to the night were the "Minute to Win-It" games in which a number of kids would compete in various competitions to win a crisp $5 bill.  They ranged from "Junk in the Trunk", a game where contestants would have to shake ping pong balls out of an empty kleenex box strapped to their backside, to the "Money Grab", where the kids had to somehow measure how many pennies were in a pop can and line them up from 5 coins inside to 40.

Last on the agenda was the Lip Sync Contest, which is super popular these days having been featured on shows like Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.  Many kids, both young and old, came up on stage and did their best choreography to the song of their choosing.  Everything from "Call Me Maybe" to the "Harlem Shake" was picked, and the kids didn't disappoint.

Here just a few of the snap shots that were taken.

If you'd like to know what else is happening this week for Rochesterfest, just go to Rochesterfest.com!