Visitors to the UCen enjoyed a variety of free entertainment Tuesday at the third annual Winter Carnaval.

The event’s attractions included live music, a dance exhibition and a magician. Gary Lawrence, assistant director of marketing for the UCen, said the preparations for the event were extensive, and that he tried to get as many campus organizations to participate as possible.

“We do a lot of planning for the festival,” Lawrence said. “We really tried to get UCSB organizations involved this year.”

The Skyline Dancers, a multicultural dance group at UCSB, performed a short dance routine in the UCen. During the break between the group’s two performances, John Mitchell, the club’s adviser, entertained the audience with a baton-twirling exhibition. Jennifer Jones, president of the Skyline Dancers, said she was pleased with how the group performed.

“We got a lot of positive feedback,” Jones said. “It was a great performance.”

The UCSB Pep Band and Brazilian funk band Bat Makumba also lent their musical talents to the festival. The San Francisco-based Bat Makumba played an informal jam session in the Hub throughout the day and performed a two-hour concert in the afternoon. During the show, members of the band changed instruments frequently and even got audience members to participate in a conga line. The concert had a small turnout, but lead singer and guitarist Alex Koberle said he enjoyed playing for the audience.

“I always have fun,” Koberle said. “The people who were here responded really well.”

Freshman philosophy major Maggie Mull said the band made such an impression on her that she planned to attend their show at Absinthe in downtown Santa Barbara on Wednesday night.

“I thought it was really awesome – it was flavorful,” Mull said. “I’m definitely going to go tomorrow.”

Next year, Lawrence said he hopes to have KCSB broadcast live from the event. He also said he would like to have the Capoeira Club perform, and that he would welcome the return of jugglers to the festival, which have performed in the past but could not be contacted this year.

“The more things we find out about campus organizations, the more we can add to the event, and the more fun people have,” Lawrence said. “Each year, it gets a little bit better.”

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