Click on the image for more photos from UVL.

On a bitterly cold Thursday evening, hundreds of NYU students braved the cold and lined up outside of the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts for the 10th annual Ultra Violet Live, the finals of NYU’s annual Inter-Residence Hall Council-sponsored talent competition.

Junior Sonia Malani, senior Gina Peters and freshman Brendan Cabone, all of whom are CAS students, were near the front of the line and had been waiting in the cold for about an hour and a half.

“It was freezing,” Cabone said. “I’m so excited for the show.”

Upon entering the Skirball Center, students were greeted with glow sticks, beach balls and the electronic stylings of DJ duo ChillBrave.

“It seems like a pretty similar set up as last year,” Peters said. “I think it’s going to be a great show.”

UVL was hosted by Emmy-award winning Tisch alumna Kristen Johnston of “3rd Rock From the Sun” fame. She began the show with a question and answer section instead of a monologue, describing her Twitter obsession, best film experience and how it felt to fall out of a window on “Sex in the City.”

“I’m in heaven [because] I’ve got a mic, a spotlight and a captive audience,” Johnston said to her audience.

A variety show of singing, dancing and comedy, UVL showcased 15 performance groups, each representing a dorm, including acts from commuters and Abu Dhabi students. The panel of judges included NYU alumni such as actor Ryan Raftery, CollegeHumor writer Jenny Jaffe, Broadway actress Ryann Redmond and comedian Michael Showalter.

“It was so nice to be back,” Raftery said. “It was amazing to see all the performances, especially from people not all from Tisch.”

Interludes included gift giveaways and surprise guest performances from actress Jackie Hoffman, comedian Judah Friedlander and Spin Doctors lead singer Chris Barron. Johnston also read tweets that audience members were posting.

A $1,000 grand prize winner was chosen at the end of the show, in addition to three $500 category winners. Jacob Schmid from Lafayette won Best Solo Performance, Rubin representative Evelyn Haettenschwiller and her group Evita won Best Band and the Audience Choice award went to the Third North band With Snack.

“It felt amazing,” said Haettenschwiller, a Clive Davis freshman and lead singer of Evita. “The way the band performed and everyone being here, it just felt right.”

But Tisch junior Tyler Johnson of Carlyle Court won the grand prize.

“My UVL experience was less about my act and more about watching so many lives take the next step in their talented journeys,” said Johnson. “It was truly inspirational and humbling. I’m still in shock.”

“My favorite moment had to be Tyler’s performance,” Raftery said. “He acted the part of a winner.”

The show went an hour over, at nearly three and half hours long, but the audience never lost energy. “It went a little longer than we hoped, but I’m thrilled at how it went,” said IRHC president and Gallatin senior Olivia Baackes. “Between the host, the performances and the prizes, we were all so pleased.”

“I didn’t fall off the stage, started Twitter wars, made some funnies and made it through the show,” Johnston said to close the show. “Go Violets.”

Peter Slattery is a staff writer. Email him at [email protected].