The University of Maryland has offered its students many ways to relieve exam-season stress, from recommended study plans to calming extracurriculars. But this university’s Student Entertainment Events offered an alternative approach on Thursday: a pop-up rage room.

Held in Stamp Student Union’s Atrium, “Wreck the Halls” was a holiday-themed event where students could safely release their anger by smashing things to pieces.

The looming threat of exams was on students’ minds as they prepared to enter the rage room.

“I feel like it’s a good stress reliever because of finals coming up,” said freshman public health science major Riley Schnable while in line for the event.

As people ate dinner in the food court downstairs, many eager students lined up outside the Atrium, waiting for the chance to break something. The sound of breaking glass echoed through the building.

“I was just like, you know what? I have a lot of things to get off my chest. I need to be here right now,” said senior information science major Chinaemelum Anadu.

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Upon entering the Atrium, students could decorate white mugs and saucer plates with markers. Because the rage room itself can only hold one person at a time, participants let their artistry flow while waiting for their turn to destroy.

When the time came, students donned layers of safety gear to protect from broken glass. Participants then entered a pop-up tent where they could place their porcelain victims on a wooden table and smash their new glassware with a bat.

A few students even chose to keep their artwork, exiting the Atrium with their new dishes intact.

SEE’s student leaders said the idea for a rage room came after attending a National Association for Campus Activities conference. The lead-up to finals season seemed like the perfect time to have students let loose.

“We wanted to provide a place for people to … take a step away before things really get rowdy,” said senior immersive media design and information science major Elle Burke. Burke serves as SEE’s special events and traditions co-director alongside sophomore finance major Antonia Mavrakis. “So the goal is to bring people together, but also tear things apart.”

To set the rageful tone of the night, the Atrium was lit with red and purple mood lighting as popular alt-rock music played through speakers. The perpetual sounds of shattering glass mixed with the thumping rhythms of Paramore, Billie Eilish and My Chemical Romance.

While students waited for their turn to wreck, they could watch bat-wielding participants through the pop-up tent’s transparent window, adding some community entertainment to the night.

Mavrakis said Wreck the Halls not only served as a stress reliever but also as an exciting opportunity to try something new.

“A lot of people as they were coming in, we heard them saying, ‘I’ve always wanted to do a rage room,’” Mavrakis said. “And this is your opportunity to do it completely free of charge.”

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In addition to mugs and saucers, SEE also offered other glassware to destroy and alternative breakable items such as kitchen supplies and old VHS tapes.

“I didn’t know I could break a blender like that,” junior psychology major Michelle Rodriguez said after her turn in the rage room.

For her customizable glassware, Rodriguez chose to write down the people and things that had recently been frustrating her. She then smashed them to bits.

“The experience, I rate it a ten out of ten,” said Anadu. “Even though I had to wait in the line for like an hour long, I also got a lot of things off my chest that needed to be released.”

With this unique offering, SEE hoped to appeal to students across campus as finals season begins.

“I think our mission is always to get as much programming out to as many people as possible,” said Mavrakis. “Just being able to bring the UMD community together … to just do a bunch of fun stuff. Because honestly, what is college, if not a chance to explore different things that you’re into?”