Entertainment – Page 12 – The Transcript

House of Peace and Justice hosts a musical bash

The House of Peace and Justice (P&J) hosted a night with live music from three bands last Friday.

WV White, Tom Ghoulie and Spaceman Spiff performed. Juniors Mark Chalmers and Sam Carpenter and senior Harris Schaeffer make up Tom Ghoulie.

“The goal was to have a good time and just jam like we normally do,” Carpenter said. “We just wanted to sound as good as possible and create a positive vibe for the crowd.”

The band also posted on the event Facebook page stating “The music is of the gnarliest degree, combining the beach bum house tones with a little bit of rock and roll and psychedelic surf.”

The Spaceman Spiff band members are sophomores James Ormerod, Jake Simpson, Evan Snapp and Kevin Rossi. They describe their music as “channeling the energy of the universe into our music, [projecting] a funk-your-face-off kind of style into the open ears of today’s youth.”

WV White features Tyler Travis, an OWU alum, and Alfie Cicone, John C. Fisher and Tayler Beck. Their music is described as “Midwestern existentialism and sonic surrealism. Suburban ennui turned up all the way. Flora and fauna undisturbed.”

During the concert, the scene was set with low lighting, a laid-back crowd and projected videos on the ceiling of various random scenes. The concert was also intended to be a food drive for the Delaware Country Food Pantry. Students were asked to either donate non-perishable food items or donate food points.

Avant-garde theatre troupe returns to the stage at OWU

An experimental theatre troupe performed at Ohio Wesleyan to a semi-packed Gray Chapel.

It was Bread and Puppet’s second time performing at OWU in the last four years.

The troupe invited OWU theatre students to perform alongside them, giving them only three hours of training and rehearsal before the performance.

Junior Sarah Shulman was one of the theatre students to perform on Tuesday, April 20.

“I love experimental theatre,” Shulman said. “It’s a very invigorating experience.”

“It’s very visceral,” chimed in junior Hannah Simpson, another theatre student who performed in the piece.

The performance is a form of political activism. In it, director Peter Schumann performs a monologue called “Sermon to the Cockroaches,” which is meant to be quintessence of the political activism portion of the performance.

“The cockroach is the symbol for the underneath the above system. It’s a despised little thingy of an animal region that was not much visited by humans and it’s the survivor of many disasters already and possibly of the future, (the) survivor of new events,” Schumann said.

The event was a house project for seniors Noah Manskar and Rob O’Neill, both of whom live in the Peace & Justice (P&J) House. Manskar is on the journalism board at OWU, and has ties to the Transcript.

When asked what he hopes audience members took away from the performance, O’Neill said, “To always question what people in power tell you.”

Manskar and O’Neill said the visit, which cost $2,725, was paid for with donations from academic departments, organizations, clubs, or other Small Living Units (SLUs). According to O’Neill, the Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs (WCSA) denied funding for Bread and Puppet’s visit.

“I think it’s great that the students were so resourceful in getting funding all on their own for this,” said Ed Kahn, professor of theatre and dance at OWU.

Schumann, a recent émigré from Germany, is the founder of Bread and Puppet. He began in 1960 in New York City and began touring all over Europe, as well as in the U.S., in places like San Francisco and New England, according to the group’s website.

Musical comedy has students laughing

By: Liz Hardaway, Transcript correspondent

Sophomore Reggie Hemphill and Senior Luke Scaros, both portraying police officers, rehearse a musical number for the show. Photo courtesy of Alanna Easley.

There is nothing dry about “Urinetown: the Musical,” the self-aware and witty comedy that opened at Chappelear Drama Center on April 17.

“Urinetown: the Musical,” written by Greg Kotis, explores corporate control and environmental concerns with a comical, modern-day Romeo and Juliet love story.

Directed by professor of theatre Ed Kahn, the musical took place in a fictional town with a water conservation problem. Urine Good Company, a monopoly, allowed the townspeople to do their business in public restrooms with a price.

However, Bobby Strong, played by freshman TJ Galamba, along with others couldn’t afford to pay as described in the wonderful “Privilege to Pee” sung by senior Brianna J. Robinson.

A corrupt Senator Fipp, played by junior Christian Sanford, and power-hungry CEO Caldwell B. Cladwell, played by senior Ryan Haddad, work together to raise the fee to pee.

Freshman TJ Galamba rehearses as Bobby Strong. Photo courtesy of Alanna Easley.

After meeting Hope, Strong’s overly optimistic love interest and daughter of the evil Cladwell, played by senior Grace Thompson, he decided to follow his heart and lead the lower-class citizens to fight for freedom.

Ohio Wesleyan’s theater, music and dance departments did justice to the self-referential musical, with clever commentary from a sassy narrator, Officer Lockstock, played by sophomore Reginald Hemphill, and an innocent rebel, Little Sally, played by junior Sarah Shulman.

The vocals of the performance were exceptional, with soulful melodies from Robinson and a deep bass from Hemphill. Thompson’s voice even mirrored Hope’s merry personality, with luminous ballads evoking the innocence of a Disney Princess; birds were about to fly onto her fingertips.

The audience could not forget they were watching a musical with the overly obvious special effects and a narrator reminding over-eager characters to not reveal any spoilers. As the plot thickened, the sarcasm of the musical always provided comic relief.

“It’s humorous, it’s very self-aware and makes fun of the conventions of musicals while also utilizing them,” said followspot operator, senior Emma Buening.

Organization was a key component within the play, with the cast and crew working since after spring break. Ensembles were choreographed to the last step, and the lights and sound programmed to each second. The collaboration and hard work that went into the designs for the set, costumes, props and every other condition for the performance were undeniably impeccable.

Though entertaining, the musical did tackle social issues such as corporate greed and excess resource consumption. With many green programs being implemented on campus, it is no wonder Kahn chose a tale of a monopolized dystopia plagued with draught and gluttony.

“Urinetown’ provided a witty and informative take on the importance of water conservation,” said freshman Evelynn Wyatt.

Not the typical story, “Urinetown: the Musical” encouraged the audience to find its balance between realism and idealism to handle obstacles.

“Ironically, it is the show’s ‘villain’ who poses the important question, ‘But what of tomorrow?’ Perhaps there are lessons to be learned from both sides, as we strive to follow our hearts,” Kahn said.

Senior art students look ahead in “Ongoing”

Senior Mackenzie Schroeder's "Business 1." Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck. — Senior Mackenzie Schroeder’s “Business 1.” Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck.

While many students are just beginning to brace themselves for the storm of finals only a few weeks away, Ohio Wesleyan senior art students are starting to breathe easier. On Saturday April 18, the Bachelor of Fine Arts seniors opened the doors to “Ongoing,” their last undergrad art show.

“We decided on ‘Ongoing’ for our title because we thought it represented us as artists,” publicity chair and senior art student Kim Lewis said. “With graduation coming up, this time in our lives can seem like an ending of our artistic processes, but in reality we have much more to work towards. Our work is ongoing in that we will always be working on our craft.”

Ben Quick's "Fall of the Rebel Angel." Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck. — Ben Quick’s “Fall of the Rebel Angel.” Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck.

Through a BFA focus on metals, Lewis created a series of wearable art that interlaces the fragility of thread and fibers with the rigidity of copper and nickel.

“I love my work that is in the show and I can’t wait to share that with everyone,” she said.

As per every year, the diversity in artist mediums was immense. From computer imaging and photography, to metals and ceramics, the senior art students showcased a breadth of talent among many fields.

Senior Ben Quick – truly a product of the Ohio Wesleyan art department with both parents as professors – rejects the label of choosing one specific interest within art.

“I identify myself as a sculptor, however, the pursuit of printmaking, panel painting techniques and encaustic painting are modes that I still feel passionate about,” Quick said in his artist statement. “When people ask, ‘What is your medium?’ it strikes me as limiting to define my work by a single medium.”

While Quick recognizes the restrictions of labeling oneself as an artist, he centered his final undergrad works on one theme: horses. To portray this interest he created a series of vastly different pieces. A large metal sculpture of a horse head wrapped in dark purple strips of cloth serves a contrast to the creamy white ceramic “Spliced Horse head”.

Abbie Love's "Dela-weird." Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck. — Abbie Love’s “Dela-weird.” Photo courtesy of Adelle Brodbeck.

“I try to imbue my sculpture with qualities that make them recognizably related,” Quick stated. “I want them to communicate when situated in the same room.”

Sophomore gallery management student Leia Miza attended the opening after working many hours prepping the museum to appear as cohesive as possible.

“Some of the hardest pieces to display were the black and white photographs, just because there were many of them,” Miza said.

Miza said that overall she is happy with the exhibit’s layout, and thinks that the seniors are satisfied as well. “We tried really hard to display their work in the best possible way. We cared about each individual piece and hopefully it showed.”

She said that some of her favorite pieces in the show include senior Leah Budde’s ceramics and senior Ruby Bemis’ metalwork.

A few of the other stand out pieces include senior Mackenzie Schroeder’s stoneware “Business” series ,senior Colleen Bodee’s haunting “Egotism” charcoal series and senior Abbie Love’s handmade photography booklet “Dela-weird” that documents the local atmosphere.

“Ongoing” will be on display at the Ross Art Museum through May 10. Museum hours are 1-5 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. Thursday, closed Saturday and Monday. Admission is free.

OWU professor is in love with Ohio’s landscape

By: Cassie Ingram, Transcript correspondent

During his senior year of college he decided to start painting landscapes. Little did he know where it would take him. Now an art professor at Ohio Wesleyan University, Frank Hobbs is pursuing his dream of painting beautiful landscapes.

“Nature has always been important in my life, but I didn’t start painting landscapes in earnest until my last year of college,” said Hobbs, associate professor of fine arts.

Already a fairly established landscape painter back in his hometown of Virginia, he fell even more in love with landscapes once he moved to Ohio in 2007.

After Hobbs gained a teaching position at OWU part-time assistant professor Nancy Murray drove Hobbs around the area and gave him an “enlightening discourse on the geology, biology and botany of the region,” Hobbs said.

“I could already see the places I’d want to return to and paint,” Hobbs said.

Starting in 2007, Hobbs has been producing landscape works of different areas in Ohio.

Gallery 22, sponsored by the Delaware Art’s Castle and located at 22 Winter Street next to the Strand Theatre, is hosting Hobbs and about 30 of his landscape paintings of Ohio. His technique is different from most painters, and is “very stylized,” according to some viewers of the show. His paintings are fuzzy, not quiet crystal clear, but you can tell what they are easily.

The show at Gallery 22 is only a small retrospective of work that he’s done since his arrival in 2007. The rest of the work has either been sold or located in various galleries that are representative of Hobbs.

Ray Wollschleger, a studio and pastel portrait artist in Delaware that has a studio in the back of Gallery 22, has seen all of Hobbs paintings in the Gallery and had a lot to say on the topic.

“He has a great sense of perspective, and it’s very appealing and well set up,” Wollschleger said.
“Most artist’s pallets and artworks are influenced by a time and place that they are doing their work in.”

“I wanted to give viewers a sense of the beauties and idiosyncrasies of the place they call home,” Hobbs said.

Award-winning musical brings satire and singing to OWU

An evil corporation charges people for peeing in order to control water consumption in the Tony Award-winning Urinetown: the Musical, coming to Ohio Wesleyan on April 17.

Senior Ian Boyle describes the play as a satire of capitalism, social irresponsibility, bureaucracy, corporate mismanagement and municipal politics.

The musical was chosen by the show’s director, theatre professor Edward Kahn, who said rehearsals have been going smoothly.

“A musical brings additional people into the collaboration,” he said. “Vocal coach Jennifer Whitehead, choreographer Rashana Perks Smith and music director James Jenkins have all added so much to the production, as have the cast, designers, stage managers and crew.”

Understanding the style of the show has been the biggest challenge for junior Hannah Simpson, who is portraying Josephine Strong.

“Since it is a satire, it is important to differentiate between which lines were written to be delivered straight and which lines are more…involved,” said Simpson.

She said she thinks students will enjoy the witty and thought-provoking script.

“If nothing else, people should come see the show to watch their friends dance around onstage for two hours,” she said. “You can’t beat that.”

Freshman TJ Galamba plays Josephine’s son, Bobby Strong, who leads the resistance against the water conservation company.

He said balancing rehearsal with class and work has been challenging but rewarding.

Musicals can be difficult because actors must bring their characters to life while also singing and dancing, Galamba said.

“People should see it if they just want to have a good time, but at the same time the show makes you think about the human condition of consuming resources, so if you want food for thought it’s definitely a show to come see,” he said.

Urinetown: the Musical will play in the Chappelear Drama Center at 8 p.m. on April 17, 18, 24 and 25 and at 2 p.m. on April 26. Tickets are $5 for faculty and staff and free for OWU students.

Culture Fest a success

By: Houston Smith, Transcript correspondent

Long food lines, diverse performances and a speech by Ohio Wesleyan President Rock Jones characterized Culture Fest, which took place Sunday, March 29 in the Benes Rooms as part of Horizons International.

Horizons International is a student-run organization formed exclusively for foreign students. The organization sponsors performances and events like this to promote various cultures and traditions from around the world.

Jones attended the event and shared a metaphor about the culture at Ohio Wesleyan. He spoke about a tapestry of diversity, and how each individual thread is woven together to create something special.

“The ultimate beauty is the collection of the whole,” Jones said.

Hundreds of men and women crowded in the Benes Rooms for festivities and food. There was a variety of cuisine offered from all over the world. Members from each club served their culture’s respective foods to students, faculty and parents. Some clubs made their own food for the event while others purchased it from restaurants.

“It’s better than Smith,” said junior Luke Steffen.

Culture Fest represented many clubs at OWU and showcased the talent within each organization.

One performance featured men and women in white t-shirts stomping around in unity. Their style of dance was called “stepping,” where the body is used as an instrument to create intricate rhythms and sounds. This traditional dance started in African communities and spread to other cultures, according to the Step Afrika website.

White and yellow ribbons hung from the ceiling while students whirled around in purple, white, and salmon clothes. The choreography in many of the dances was rehearsed for months prior to the event.

The OWtsiders, a co-ed, a cappella group performed the song “Same Love” by Macklemore. Skilled voice changes and different pitches created a unique sound that drew cheers from the crowd.

Drake Bell talks musical influences, performing at OWU

Sports editor Matt Cohen interviewed Drake Bell on Saturday, March 28 shortly before he went onstage in the Gordon Field House.

Transcript: What’s your go-to pick up line?

Drake Bell: Um, I don’t know I don’t have a favorite.

T:Who influenced you the most when going into music?

Bell: Elvis, The Beatles, Beach Boys, Lil Richard, Eddie Clarke, Stray Cats, a lot of old people.

T: Growing up, did you like music or acting more?

Bell: There’s nothing to compare to playing live on stage in front of a live audience. It’s awesome being creative and being on a movie set, but there’s a lot of sitting around, a lot of waiting until they’re ready for you. Working on sitcoms is fun because it’s fast passed and you do have a live audience. But there’s nothing to compare to live performing. That’s the best.

T: What’s the coolest venues you’ve played at?

Bell: The coolest ones are actually in South America and Central America. Brazil, Mexico, the latin fans take “fan” to the whole next level. It’s the most intense and a lot of fun.

T: What were your first thoughts when hearing about the OWU concert?

Bell: That it would be awesome to come play. I love playing, seeing new places, meeting new people. Doing these colleges have been a lot of fun because all the people in the crowd are usually just a little younger than me. So it’s awesome I can do whatever I want, you know? I don’t have to cater my performance toward the younger kids.

T: Have you played a lot of colleges during the tour?

Bell: Yeah a few, don’t ask me which ones. Notre Dame, Berkeley was a lot of fun. Yeah the college thing has been a lot of fun.

T: Have you kept in touch with anyone on Drake and Josh?

Bell: Yeah I talk to Josh all the time and I just saw Miranda the other day we went to the Children’s Hospital together. We worked on a cartoon together not that long ago. I’m actually working with the Dad from the show, Jonathan Goldstein, on a new project that I’m producing and he’s directing. We were a pretty tight knit group.

T: What’s coming up next for you?

Bell: Touring and now I’m doing the voice of the Flash. Now I’m the Spiderman and the Flash, that’s pretty cool.

Ohio Wesleyan to host Tournées French film festival

Ohio Wesleyan will be hosting six different French films on campus as part of the Tournées French film festival.

These six films will be March 27 through April 16 and will be presented in French with English subtitles.

The professor organizing the festival, Ana Oancea, teaches French in the Modern Foreign Languages department, is in charge of “obtaining the grant funding, liaising with distributors, scheduling the screenings and inviting students and professors to introduce the films.”

“The Tournées film festival is a highly regarded event, one which I first attended when I was an undergraduate,” Oancea said. “Now a professor, I saw hosting the festival as a rite of passage.”

“Together with other colleges and universities, OWU was chosen to host the festival from a large pool of applicants based on an application I prepared,” said Oancea. “The film selection was made by my composition and conversation students. I think the selection committee was pleased to see students and faculty cooperate so closely.”

The films will be shown on the following days; March 27, Dans la Maison; March 31, Le Passé; April 4, La Grande Illusion; April 6, Elle s’en Va; April 14, Augustine; and April 16, Grigris. The films will be shown in Benes B at 7 p.m. These six films were selected by students in a French composition class taught by Oancea.

Elle S'en Va movie poster. Photo courtesy of allocene.fr. — Elle s’en Va movie poster. Photo courtesy of allocene.fr.

Junior Victor Soder said, “The company that owns the rights to the film festival puts out a list of recent and classic films and we picked films we thought would be interesting to watch.”

Ohio Wesleyan students and faculty will lead pre-screening discussions before each movie begins. “The faculty members introducing the films are free to take discussion wherever they think will be most interesting,” said Oancea. “They will seek to enrich the audience’s understanding of the film, delving into both artistic and technical aspects, and because these are foreign films, they will also invite us to ponder the cultural differences.”

Oancea said, “The festival lets students and faculty put the topics discussed in our classes in larger, and very current, context. It also gives us a chance to share our interests with the wider community: the festival was advertised to the local high schools, and film enthusiasts in Columbus.”

“The grant application of the French-American Cultural Exchange Foundation entailed explaining the rationale for the film selection, and how the films relate to the French curriculum at OWU,” said Oancea.

Juan Rojas, professor of Spanish in MFL said, “through the showings we have the chance to experience elements of other cultures, and in this case it also represents an extension of what our students are learning in their French courses – a unique opportunity.”

This is the first time OWU has hosted the Tournées.

Sex in the café

By: Gopika Nair, Transcript correspondent

It isn’t every day that Ohio Wesleyan students walk into Bishop Cafe to find silicone-based condoms, lubricant and an assortment of sex toys lying scattered on the tables.

Curious glances, suppressed smiles and bold jokes was the popular attitude of the crowd until Megan Andelloux, the person who instructed that the objects be kept there took to the stage.

A clinical sexologist and certified sexuality educator, Andelloux witnesses such student responses regularly and she is on a mission to break some taboos.

Andelloux, the founder of the Center for Sexual Pleasure and Health, visited OWU on Tuesday, March 24 to give a talk titled, “Purring into Pleasure: Exploring Female Desires and Orgasms.” Extra seating arrangements had to be made to accommodate all the students in attendance.

Andelloux has an effortless and charming manner about her that put the audience at ease. It is not difficult to understand why.

She said that the center was created when she realized that people had a lot of questions about sex, but there wasn’t a platform that could address their concerns.

Andelloux said that talking about sex can awkward and uncomfortable, but discussing it is important.

“I don’t think people talk about it in intelligent manners,” she said. “I think that we snicker about it.”

Andelloux’s own upbringing was conservative, raised in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. She said it took her parents nine years to accept her career choice, but they are supportive now. In fact, six years ago, her mother protested for sex workers’ safety and healthcare, and this happened only by talking openly about sex.

Addressing the students, Andelloux said, “Today, you’re going to hear me say things like ‘clit owner’ and ‘penis owner’ because not everyone who has a clit identifies as female and not everyone who has a penis identifies as male.” Her words earned finger snaps from the audience.

She covered topics ranging from orgasm techniques to butt play in a frank and engaging manner. While discussing sex, she was inclusive of all genders.

Andelloux talked about embracing sex and dispelling the negativity surrounding sex. She also set out to help the audience understand that everyone’s bodies are different.

“It’s important to feel safe in our bodies,” she said. “I think that we’re taught to fear our bodies instead of rejoicing them.”

Her candid, no-nonsense approach eased the seeming disquiet that had prevailed initially, and the students responded to her constant encouragement to ask questions. She also offered prizes from the collection of sex toys to those who did.

An attendee at the talk, freshman Alanna Easley, said that it helped her learn more about sex. Having attended a Catholic school, she was taught that abstinence is good.

“Women are portrayed in media in a certain way,” Easley said, “but [talks like Andelloux’s] help people realize that that’s not what they are and that’s not what they’ll ever be. We should accept that and learn to be comfortable with our bodies.”

Freshman Mel Fizdale said the talk helped her further understand the difference between consensual sex and nonconsensual sex.

Earlier during the interview, Andelloux said that one of the reasons she is proud of her career choice is because she has helped sexual assault victims learn to love their bodies.

On their way out, students hovered by the tables with the sexual goodies, and excitedly rummaged through them.

Those were free samples from Andelloux. Greater still in value will be the sense of freedom she gave to the students to discuss topics often considered taboo.