Category: Entertainment

Ohio Wesleyan senior makes history with theater production

By Maddie Matos, Arts & Entertainment Editor

The weekend of Oct. 4 brought colonization and modern times together at Ohio Wesleyan University’s production of Cloud 9.

The show was directed by senior Ares Harper, making it the first show to be directed by a student in over 45 years.

Cloud 9 is divided into two acts that correlate with one another. The first act focuses on a British family in colonial Africa circa 1880. The family dynamic plays a key role in the plot of the show. Various characters are forced to suppress their sexual desires and orientations due to the social structures of the times they live in. This allowed the audience to draw obvious parallels between sexual oppression and colonialism.

“The show brought up a lot of serious questions
 and social commentary,” sophomore Hannah Carpenter said.

The cast of seven students were asked to play 18 different roles in the show. Each character in the first act had a correlating character in the second act. Some characters switched their gender in the show as well, adding a unique aspect to the show.

The second act was set in modern-day London. This act was more lighthearted, allowing the audience to laugh while still understanding the themes of the show

“It was a good way to interweave humor with an important subject matter without it being convoluted or overdone,” sophomore Claire Yetzer said.

The audience received the show well, with standing ovations at the end of the program. Some actors got high praise as well for their roles in the show.

“I liked Edward in both the first and second half
 he seemed honest and genuine,” Yetzer said.

Edward was played by freshman Jasmine Lew in the first act and sophomore Logan Kovach in the second act. The character is a gay man who must suppress his sexuality in the first half, and then in the second half come to terms with what he identifies as.

“It was interesting to see him in both the Victorian era and the modern era,” Carpenter said.

Each character had to grapple with their needs and desires to better themselves. The connection to the show was strong among the audience, with both Yetzer and Carpenter feeling the show offered insight into the need for self-enlightenment.

 

Two Eras Collide at One Historic OWU Performance

By Maddie Matos A&E Editor

The weekend of Oct. 4 brought colonization and modern times into one show at Ohio Wesleyan University’s production of Cloud 9.

The show was directed by senior Ares Harper, making it the first show to be directed by a student in over 45 years.

Cloud 9 is divided into two acts that correlate with one another. The first act focuses on a British family in colonial Africa circa 1880. The family dynamic plays a key role in the plot of the show. Various characters are forced to suppress their sexual desires and orientations due to the social structures of the times they live in. This allowed the audience to draw obvious parallels between sexual oppression and colonialism.

“The show brought up a lot of serious questions
 and social commentary,” sophomore Hannah Carpenter said.

The cast of seven students were asked to play 18 different roles in the show. Each character in the first act had a correlating character in the second act. Some characters switched their gender in the show as well, adding a unique aspect to the show.

The second act was set in modern day London. This act was more lighthearted, allowing the audience to laugh while still understanding the themes of the show.

“It was a good way to interweave humor with an important subject matter without it being convoluted or overdone,” sophomore Claire Yetzer said.

The audience received the show well, with standing ovations at the end of the program. Some actors got high praise as well for their roles in the show.

“I liked Edward in both the first and second half
 he seemed honest and genuine,” Yetzer said.

Edward was played by freshman Jasmine Lew in the first act and sophomore Logan Kovach in the second act. The character is a gay man who must suppress his sexuality in the first half, and then in the second half come to terms with what he actually identifies as.

“It was interesting to see him in both the Victorian era and the modern era,” Carpenter said.

Each character had to grapple with their needs and desires to better themselves. The connection to the show was strong among the audience, with both Yetzer and Carpenter feeling the show offered insight into the need for self enlightenment.

Looking at Objects from Our World Through the Eyes of Alum Stephen Donaldson

By Hailey de la Vara, Transcript Reporter

 

 

The Mowry Alumni Center is now featuring “Blue Light,” an exhibit commemorating Ohio Wesleyan alumnus Stephen Donaldson.  

The installation features photography of landmarks, landscapes and objects, with one common element: a blue light source.  

According to Donaldson, the purpose of the exhibit is to provide the audience with a striking visual experience. The photographs displayed were taken over a 17-year span, in places such as New York, Massachusetts and Italy.

“For this project, five of the twelve images were created using artificial sources of light, and all but one of the rests were created long after sunset, or before sunset, in situations when there was no direct sunlight available,” Donaldson wrote.

After working 13 years in the finance and electronic industries, Donaldson decided to “throw it all away” and pursue his dream to photograph the beauty of the world.  His photographic journey became a vital component of his life and led him to write three books about his newfound passion.

Donaldson currently resides in Great Barrington, Mass., where he photographs weddings and conducts lectures at schools, universities, and professional organizations.

With the exhibit showing until November 15, students are encouraged to come visit the Mowry Alumni Center to view these stunning photographs and have a unique visual experience. Four photos are located on the first floor of the alumni center, and the remaining eight photos cover the walls of the second floor.

To view more of Donaldson’s photography, go to http://www.sgdphoto.com

 

OhWoo Game of Games Begins With A Bang

By Maddie Matos

Arts and Entertainment Editor

mrmatos@owu.edu

A classic Ohio Wesleyan University event was revamped on Sept. 14 as a new way to build community on campus.

Hosted by the Campus Programming Board (CPB) and Residential Life, the first ever OhWoo Game of Games event was a combination of games and an improv show. This event used to be called Stuyin’ Up but has been renamed and moved to the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center Benes Rooms for the night.

Over 30 students and staff members came to the event. Students were provided food and drinks from AVI Foodsystems.

“We [had] a good turnout, with people participating and playing the games, and winning prizes so I think it [went] pretty okay,” junior HannahJo Grimes said.

For the first hour of the event, students were able to win different prizes if they won the game. The Residential Assistant’s (RA) on campus decided on the games and prizes, such as laundry detergent and movies.

The games were in a minute to win it style, giving competitors one minute to complete a challenge. The speed and constant revolving of games was a huge hit.

“Minute to win it games are super fun and people tend to get really into them,” junior Madison Haggerty said.

Both Grimes and Haggerty are on the Resident Life staff. They were accompanied by a small group of other RAs’ on campus as well as members of CPB.

Preparation for the event was slim, with both programs having to work quickly to make it happen.

“This event was thrown together with pretty short notice, we have a new staff that is throwing this event together in just the last couple weeks,” Grimes said. “They usually have a lot more time to plan it, so I think that they have done an amazing job for the short amount of time they had. But everyone wishes they had more time to put it together.”

Both programs collaborated on the event to create more buzz and allow the event to be improved from previous years.

“We joined forces to have more brain power and ideas for the event,” Haggerty said. “Each area tackled several elements, so the work load wasn’t overwhelming for one group.”

The second half of the night focused on the improv performance. Campus Programming Board brought the group MISSION improvABLE to campus. The group uses popular show styles and techniques to engage with the audience.

The event was well received by students, despite small challenges that Residential Life and Campus Programming Board had.

“Even without that extra time, we are still putting on a really great event,” Grimes said.

Social Advocacy Met Sewing At OWU

By Maddie Matos

Arts and Entertainment Editor

mrmatos@owu.edu

Advocacy and art combined and took new form at the most recent installation on campus.

The Social Justice Sewing Academy debuted its gallery inside Beeghly Library at Ohio Wesleyan University on Saturday, Sept. 8.

Open to the Ohio Wesleyan and Delaware communities, the gallery consisted of a presentation and workshop for participants.

The exhibit is part of the university’s 2018-2019 Sagan National Colloquium (SNC). The focus for this year’s SNC programing is how art can impact the world.

The Social Justice Sewing Academy was founded in 2017 by Sara Trail. Trail wanted a creative way for students to portray their ideas about social justice and what it means to them.

The academy teaches children to sew and use those skills to create a block of fabric that will later be incorporated into a quilt. The blocks can be about any issue that the artist cares about.

“It gives youth the forefront in issues,” Trail said in a video message to the audience. Due to a cancelation in her flight, Trail could not make it to the program, which had an audience of over 15 people.

The program started as a post collegiate endeavor, but the idea for it has always been in Trails’ mind.

“My dream is to open a non-profit to teach people to sew,” Trail said.

Social advocacy was a huge factor for Trail when creating the program. She has hosted workshops in underprivileged areas across the United States, such as Chicago and Berkeley. These areas allow Trail to reach out to students to educate them.

“I want to give young people the tools…to understand,” Trail said.

The work the academy has done has been featured across social media and news outlets. Trail herself was already well known in the sewing community for her previous collaborations with Simplicity, a well-known fabric and sewing company. Throughout her career, Trail felt that sewing could do more for people than they realize.

“Sewing is more than a hobby,” Trail said.

The presentation was well received, with over half of the audience staying for the workshop. The experience allowed people to learn new skills and see what an impact their art and voice has in the community.

“Workshops like this make it look possible and doable,”  junior, Miah Gruber, said.

Tri Delta rides the buck of the bull for St. Judes

By Kienan O’Doherty, Editor-In-Chief

The block was hot for Delta Delta Delta’s (Tri Delta) latest philanthropy event.

The sisters of the OWU sorority hosted their second annual Deltas on the Block on Saturday, April 12. Among the amenities included Dan’s Deli, a mechanical bull, and an ice cream truck.

Students, faculty, and family members alike flooded Fraternity Hill to help Tri Delta support their longtime partner St. Jude. However, the best part is Tri Delta doesn’t keep a single cent of the proceeds raised, and none goes towards marketing.

“I thought it went really well, there was a great turnout and people seemed to have fun.” Tri Delta President Leah Crawford said.

The most popular activity was the mechanical bull riding. Students gathered around the inflatable structure and laughed as one by one people were thrown off the bull. Delta Tau Delta Fraternity member John Bonus said the bull riding was the best.

“My favorite part was watching our Delta Tau Delta President Francisco Mejia try to ride the bull and fell off.” Bonus said.

The Pitch Black acapella group sang one last time

By Maddie Matos, A&E Editor

The popularity of acapella has grown in recent years on college campuses, and Ohio Wesleyan University’s acapella group Pitch Black have taken advantage of it.

The group performed their last show of the year on April 20 in Milligan Hub. The show was attended by over twenty people.

Pitch Black has ten members from all years. The group is all female and led by senior Christina Hunter, who enjoyed her time in the group.

“If you’re looking for something to do on campus, join an acapella group, honestly,” Hunter said. “It’s really cool, you make a lot of friends and get to jam out constantly.”

The group performed ten different pieces. Many of them were melodies of different pop songs and others were normal pieces. Some members were able to give solo performances throughout the set.

The final concert was a celebration of the year, with the pieces performed being some of the most popular and best pieces the group has to offer. The concert was well received by members and the audience.

“Our final concert went so well! I was very proud of all of my beautiful ladies for not only sounding great, but looking fabulous while doing it,” member Maggie Veach said. “We had great energy and the audience really seemed to enjoy our performance, making it so much better.”

OWU has three different acapella groups and host the annual A’Cappellooza event. The popularity of this artform has allowed non-music majors or minors to express their passion for singing.

“By arranging our own pieces, we are also able to express individuality through our songs and arrange the sound in our own manner,” Veach said.

The crowd responded positively to the group, with claps and cheers at the end of each song, followed by a standing ovation at the end of the set. Refreshments were served after the performance as well.

Pitch Black members are close with one another. Members have become close with one another and offer support when anyone needs it.

“They are very supportive and are willing to help me out in situations where I need help,” Veach said. “They are also very understanding and accommodating, when students such as myself have such busy lives. These girls are always a bright spot in my day, and it means the world to me.”

“11:11 Make a Wish” senior show stuns

By Jesse Sailer, Sports Editor

The artwork of Ohio Wesleyan’s senior fine arts majors and minors are finally showcased in the Werner Gallery and the the Richard M. Ross Art Museum after several months of preparation.

Work done by fine art majors are shown in the Ross Museum while the fine art minors work is shown in Werner.

The artwork submitted for the senior show isn’t required to be work from the artists concentration, but rather the work they think is the strongest they’ve produced throughout their college career.

The inspiration behind “11:11 Make a Wish”, the title given to the senior show, comes from one of the many meanings behind the odd trend.

The repetition of 11:11 is a message to keep going, and no matter the path you’re on, you’ll find where you need to be no matter what.

Senior Shelby Ksiazek came up with this title as she thought it perfectly reflected the mindset of all the seniors.

“It was a relief to see it come together the way it did, I couldn’t believe my artwork was worth what it was, it was nice to see everything pay off,” Ksiazek said.

Each senior was allowed to submit as many pieces as they wanted but the final works that would go in the show was decided by the fine arts department.

The senior show collectively exhibits the work of 11 artists with artwork spanning their entire four years at OWU.

Jenna Chambers (Ceramics): Jenna finds a connection between the reconstitution of clay into new forms and the ever changing landscape around her, all the while building a relationship with a medium that is both frustrating and alluring at the same time.

Mariah Chery (Printmaker): Mariah expresses her inner self through a timeless medium and uncovers her own identity with her ancestry and present life.

Margaux Hackett (Sculpture): Margaux finds that the abstractness of the human form can be implemented into three dimensional works as it allows her to work on a whole new level.

Natasha Heusinger (Ceramics, Drawing): Natasha found a constant in her life when she found clay and an interest in ceramics in Japan. The combination of her personal drawings and ceramic throwing allows her to embed a part of herself into her work.

Shelby Ksiazek (Photographer, Mixed Media): Shelby has been surrounded by mixed media since a young age and pursuing the arts has allowed her to blossom and find a way to express her inner turmoils in a way that words can’t.

Corrine Rice (Photography): Corrine has always found a passion for art and has cultivated a love for the process put into each piece. Through photography she’s created a visual journal that explores her experiences with the outside world.

Syed Abuzar Raza (Drawing, Painting): Syed lives for the natural beauty of art and the patterns within. Through repetition and expressive movements in his work, he creates textures that mirror the vibrance of life.

Ellen Sizer (Sculpture): Ellen juxtaposes her metal work with color in a way that evokes more feeling for the mixed patterns and textures but has you thinking the pieces are visually blurred, completely contradicting the sharpness of the metal.

Rachel Spotts (Ceramics): Rachel plays with the malleability of clay and the freedom it allows her to shape the clay personally to her movements. The process of tearing down and reconstructing the clay leaves her pieces with distinct but simple marks.

Nicholas Tobias (Ceramics): Nicholas learned to push the limits when it came to ceramics and learned to navigate the uncertainty that comes with working with it.

Andrew “Mac” Willard (Photography): Mac finds a love for light and shadow and how it plays with the subjects of his photos, he looks to communicate emotions and expressions through the use of color and light.

“Having my own work up for the first time was one of the proudest moments of my life so far.” Willard said. “It was beautiful to see so many different works of art coexisting together,” said Willard.

An “important and complex” show hits the OWU

By Maddie Matos, A&E Editor

As spring comes to Ohio Wesleyan campus, the theatre department’s annual musical arrives with it.

The musical this year, Cabaret, tells the story of two people falling in love during the rise of the Nazi party in Germany during the 1930s. The show is based off the original 1966 musical written by Joe Masteroff, Fredd Eb and John Kander.

Students have been working on the show since February, with show dates on two different weekends.

The show has many dark elements to it, with the rise of racism and defying society, making it something that audiences could identify with in modern society.

“This show is very topical and has a lot of comments that are relevant today even though it’s set in the ‘30s.” assistant stage manager Logan Kovach said. “It’s not afraid to make people uncomfortable, and to push them to reevaluate things,”

The show opened on April 13 to a large crowd. Audience members such as freshman Hannah Carpenter enjoyed the performance and the message the show had.

“I enjoyed how talented the whole cast is, and how complex the show is,” Carpenter said.

Junior Ares Harper, freshman Miko Harper and senior Daniel Brothers all have leading roles in the show. The whole cast is composed of seventeen students and a large backstage crew.

The show has many interest points for audience members, leaving little predictability or boringness to overwhelm.

“I will say this is one of those shows that tricks you a little bit.” Carpenter said. “You think you’re going in one direction and you’re having a good time and then suddenly the rug is pulled out from under you,”

The music style in Cabaret is jazzier and more seedy than traditional musicals, helping to provide an eerie tone to the show. Some of the characters in the production are seen as anti-Semitic or homophobic, a topic that is still prevalent in modern society.

The crew of Cabaret have been working hard to ensure the audience enjoys the show, while also learning what it means to be a backstage player in the theatre world.

“Being a part of the management team has let me ride along through the entire shows process from a perspective I’m not entirely used to,” Kovach said.

The show addresses many topics and ideas that could potentially make audiences squirm, but in a way that will make audiences think.

“I think it’s an important to come and see this show,” Kovach said.

French film shows viewers the ups and downs of growing old

By Maddie Matos, A&E Editor

As people grow older, new challenges are presented that are hard to overcome with age. 

Ohio Wesleyan University’s TournĂ©es French Film Festival presented a film that brings the issues of age to the forefront. 

The film, Things to Come, was directed by Mia Hansen-LĂžve tells the story of a professor, Nathalie Chazeaux, reaching her late middle ages. As she is teaching her younger students, she is overcoming the struggles she finds associated with growing older.

The Tournées festival theme is strong female leads this year. The theme allows women directors or stars to be showcased in a field that is often dominated by men. The festival theme also fits in with the lessons that French students are learning.

“My seminar is structured around various rebellious figures in French culture and literature, including rebellious women authors and characters, and the festival theme is ‘Strong Female Lead’ in recognition of the complex female characters of the selected features, as well as their female directors and script writer,” professor Ana Oancea said. 

The department of modern foreign languages has hosted the festival for four years. Ohio Wesleyan shows six films, five being recent films and a classic film. The goal of the festival is to present French films to American students on college campuses and let students experience a new style of filming.

“In my experience, French films have fewer aggressively commercial elements than American films.” senior Katherine Romeo said. “More often the film seems more focused on communicating a story than say the audience leaving feeling as though they understood everything and had a good time,”

Students in the school’s French club and Oancea come together to bring the festival on campus. Oancea writes and submits a grant to the TournĂ©es board to host and have the rights to the films. 

“The grant through which the festival is made possible is nationally-competitive, so it’s a great honor to be selected,” Oancea said. 

The film’s protagonist also brought the question of a liberal arts education and its importance to the film. As a professor at a university, Chazeaux teaches her students the importance of education across all mediums and reminds herself of these lessons as she matures. The films message of education was a drawing point to the people who chose it.

“This film, ‘L’avenir’ or ‘Things to Come’ in English was chosen because it deals with a very modern concern — the lesser perceived importance of the humanities,” Oancea said. 

Students and staff alike enjoyed the film, and the message it gave to viewers, and showed that people across the world are all connected.

“One of the most accessible ways to access another person’s story is by consuming film.” Romeo said. “By showcasing French films, we can see more clearly the way we are distant but also the ways we are alike,”