The Juvenile Urban Multicultural Program held “Love Island: JUMP Edition” on Saturday at the multipurpose room in C4, promising drama, chemistry and chaos inspired by the reality show “Love Island.” The annual “Love Games” event featured food, audience participation and a poll system that influenced the events of the show, creating an interactive experience that kept the audience’s attention.

The multipurpose room was filled with tropical decorations, including beach balls, flamingos, flowers and Hawaiian flower necklaces draped over each chair for attendees to wear. Onstage, balloon letters spelled out the words “Love Games.” Attendees sat down, waiting for the show to start onstage.

“The show incorporates a lot of different rounds, while also incorporating some sort of audience interaction,” Janielys Moya, JUMP’s treasurer and junior majoring in philosophy, politics and law, said. “So we’re going to have the audience essentially be in charge. They’re gonna vote for who they wanna keep and who they wanna get rid of and then there’s gonna be, if you scan the QR code, opportunities to participate.”

Tiffany Wong, a junior majoring in political science, welcomed everyone to the event and acted as a host for the show. She introduced eight contestants with pre-recorded spoof videos based on the reality show, bringing them onstage one by one as they emerged from behind the curtain.

Each contestant embraced a vibrant, tropical aesthetic. The women wore flowers in their hair and vibrant dresses all in different colors, while the men sported white beach shirts, shades and relaxed attire.

Afterward, the contestants played a round of games. The first was called “Red Flag Green Flag,” a game where the host reads relationship scenarios and contestants raise a green flag if they think it’s healthy or a red flag if it’s a warning sign. After a chaotic round, the men chose who they wanted to be with and each of the eight contestants was paired off into four couples.

In the next game, the audience texted wild questions to the host to ask each couple individually, stirring the pot for contestants in the “villa.”

The audience shared questions and requests through the online poll system, asking about outrageous subjects like body count, past relationships and even FaceTime calls. Contestants answered in ways that got the audience active in discourse and commentary, creating the vibe of watching an actual reality show with the rest of the attendees.

Throughout the evening, the “Love Games” event shenanigans continued. Couples came out to dance together and participate in fun activities during each round. During a brief intermission, a variety of CopperTop pizza flavors were served to everyone and guests socialized, sparked romantic connections and bonded with one another. Attendees and contestants took pictures at the tropical photo backdrop and enjoyed the Caribbean-like ambience.

Jibellys Javalera, co-fundraiser for JUMP and senior majoring in human development, was one of JUMP’s members who developed the idea for a “Love Island”-themed Love Games. She discussed the match-making involved in the event and the dynamics of dating in college.

“I think dating in college depends entirely on your intention,” Javalera said. “If you are someone who comes here and is very open and is willing to get to know people, you will have an easier time dating. But at the same time, this is a place where people are exploring and finding out who they are. So it’s not going to be the cleanest thing, it’s going to be very messy and you just have to come here with that mindset that, ‘Hey, they’re learning, I’m learning, my feelings might get hurt, but that’s okay — that’s part of the learning process.’”

Javalera also shared how the event was in preparation for “JUMP Weekend,” an annual event starting March 5, where JUMP brings up to 80 eighth-grade students from the New York City area to participate in a three-day interactive weekend. The event promotes higher education while giving students from New York City the opportunity to pursue it.

Overall, “Love Island: JUMP Edition” brought people together in a lively, chaotic environment that fostered fun, love and appreciation.