Street April 17, 2014 by The Daily Princetonian

The Daily Princetonian

Thursday April 17, 2014

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At this time of year, the word “thesis” conjures images of hardcovers and bound pages, not films and art exhibitions. The latter represent the work of seniors pursuing creative theses in their final year of independent work. Senior writer Zoe Perot offers a glimpse into the pieces created this year in creative writing, theater and visual arts. Staff writer Nina Wade spoke with students completing creative theses in the dance and film departments.

ART OF THE THESIS COURTESY OF BRADY VALASHINAS

FILM D

PHOTOS COURTESY OF NICK ELLIS

ayna Li ’14, a politics concentrator, originally thought of her academic and creative theses as vastly different, but gradually found similarities between the two ideas. Her politics thesis is on international sex trafficking, while her film “The Pretty People,” which runs around 40 minutes, is a closerto-home take on interpersonal exploitation. Li noted that her film adviser described her project as “kind of like sex trafficking,” without knowing the topic of her Politics thesis. The original idea for “The Pretty People” actually came from a story she wrote for a Creative Writing Class during her sophomore year. “The Pretty People” explores the theme of friendship through the president of an academic society/ cult, a cocaine dealer who coerces his girlfriend to sell for him and is ultimately caught. “The coke dealer, and the whole situation, it wasn’t at a Princeton-type institution, it was supposed to be on the Upper East Side, but I thought it would be cool to do it in a Princeton environment,” she said. In his narrative film, Nick Ellis ’14 also deals with issues of displacement in a different regard. In an email interview, Ellis described his project, titled “Straight for Satan,” as “a dark comedy about a closeted soccer player who struggles with his identity at a Catholic school.” Ellis, a religion concentrator, was interested in themes of

self-discomfort and redemption. Though Ellis didn’t want to write from experience, his adviser “really encouraged me to push out of my comfort zone,” he said in an email interview. “I’m grateful now, even though the whole process made me really insecure and defensive.” Nick Ellis is a former senior writer for the Street section of The Daily Princetonian. Not all film theses are based on personal experiences, however. Brady Valashinas ’14, a documentary filmmaker, approached his creative thesis from an observational, removed perspective. He chose to concentrate in anthropology because he wanted something that he felt would work well with film. “Ethnography is a huge part of anthropology, and it’s kind of like documentary filmmaking,” Valashinas explained. “There are all these amazing stories, true stories, out there, that just aren’t being told or can’t reach a wider audience,” he said. His documentary follows a Cirque du Soleil performer named Brandon Pereyda who works as an aerialist in the Zumanity show. Valashinas had been previously interested in Cirque du Soleil and reached out to some troupe members, including Pereyda, through a neighbor. “It’s not like a ‘day-in-the-life’ movie, but it looks at everything from his training to how he prepares — we went to his mom’s house and interviewed his mom, we learned about how he grew

up,” Valashinas said. “It’s putting a face to a performer on stage.” Creating a narrative was the hardest part, Valashinas added. “Most documentaries, like a competition film, have a clear story. But he was actually out of the show when we did it,” he said. “He was still performing in the show, but he wasn’t doing his [own] act.” He and Ellis, who accompanied him, were the only two filming. “We had three different microphones, two different cameras, tripods, Steadicam, and we had to make sure every day that we were filming the sound was good, the light worked, the cameras were charged,” Valashinas said. Unlike the other three, Michael Cummings ’14 did not produce a final film. Rather, as an English major in the screenwriting track, he wrote a screenplay. Cummings described the piece as “a crime thriller about a business school dropout getting rich counterfeiting designer sunglasses in the mid-90s.” He drew inspiration from his father, who was a policeman in the ’90s. The idea for the film, titled “American Dreamers,” was conceived during his sophomore year. “I knew, regardless of whatever, I was going to write this,” he said. “Every year I write a screenplay [...] it just so happened that I could write it with the help of an adviser in the department.” Cummings enjoyed writing a

script that could be “more accessible and entertaining” but still had “scholarly merit.” Cummings strove to give his piece a popular appeal but also engage with deeper subjects. “On the surface, it’s just like a crime thriller, but thematically it deals with feelings of death and immortality and trying to become something larger than yourself, all with this guise of fake goods at the front of it,” he said. Speaking of their film projects in general, the students noted the exhaustive demands of the process. “Editing has been a lot,” Valashinas said. “Labor of love, definitely, but I think a lot of people don’t know how much labor goes into it.” Ellis found his film to be even more time-consuming than his written thesis. “I’m working off of my 15th or 16th draft,” he said in an email interview. “Sometimes [during shooting] actors wouldn’t even have time to eat, so we’d provide meals and Snickers bars. Lots of Snickers bars.” The final product, however, provided the students with a very different opportunity than their written theses. “There’s a quote from a director at the Oscars, I forget who, that said ‘Making a film is a transformative experience,’ ” Li added. “I think even more [than a thesis], because it deals with our interactions on a day-to-day level.”

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any seniors affectionately — or not so affectionately — refer to their thesis as the “book” they wrote. For Vivienne Chen ’14 and Cameron White ’14, this description is quite literal. Both seniors in the Creative Writing department were selected to write novels for their senior theses. Chen and White knew even entering as freshmen that they wanted to pursue creative theses. However, until they were selected during their junior spring, neither was sure they would get the chance to do so. “You apply for the creative thesis your junior year, spring

semester. To be qualified for the department, you generally have to take three to four creative writing classes, and each of those you also have to apply for,” Chen said. “It’s unfair that you can meet all the requirements and still not be accepted [for a creative thesis], but defenders argue its exclusivity is what makes the program prestigious and worthwhile.” Chen wrote a novel that takes place in two parallel timelines: Shanghai in the 1930s and modern day. “It concerns a young Asian-American woman trying to uncover her grandmother’s life before the Japanese occupation of Shanghai in 1937,” she said. “The thesis was originally

a short story written for creative writing class after I returned to Shanghai a few years ago to find it wholly different — yet eerily similar, to different parts of its own cultural history.” White had also intended to base his novel on a work he began to write during his sophomore year for CWR 345: How to Write a Novel in Twelve Weeks (or at least make a start). The class lived up to its name: students were expected to spend the twelve weeks writing as much of a novel as possible. “Come junior spring, I realized that the novel was no longer where my mind was,” White said. “I had different experiences, and

I needed to work on a new novel.” White’s new conception is a story that takes place in the summer of 2013, focusing on an AmericanChinese film production. Many students can attest to the woe of the writer’s block, but writing a novel presented its own unique challenges for both authors. “Writing a (good) novel in less than a year is a pretty impossible task. I knew this from Day 1, but as the deadline approaches, I’m trying to negotiate the fact that my work cannot be perfect, and will not be for a long time,” Chen said in an email. For White, the greatest challenge was balancing two separate theses. While his home depart-

ment, East Asian studies, approved the creative thesis, it also required him to write a regular thesis for the department. Despite these challenges, both students have gained important experience and have learned a lot about the writing process over the course of the past year. “I started writing the summer before senior year and came back in the fall with about 70 pages. Very few of them still exist in the thesis,” White said. “It’s really a rewarding experience seeing the changes. My thesis adviser and I talked about how a story can always keep changing, and the creative thesis is a great way to learn that.”

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EDITOR

The Daily Princetonian

Thursday April 17, 2014

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continued: the art of the thesis

treet sat down to talk to four seniors in the dance department: Tess Bernhard, Casey Brown, Samantha Gebb and Sarah Rose. Working with other dancers since September, the four created dance sequences, each around 10 minutes long, for “Re[VERB],” a senior showcase. In the dance department, the optional thesis can be satisfied through either performance or, as the four girls chose, a creative exercise in choreography. “I’d performed a lot, and I really like performing, but there’s a huge challenge in choreography that isn’t there in performing,” Gebb explained, who attempted to illustrate a similar idea in both her architecture thesis and her dance thesis by establishing movement as an alternate form of communication and also a formal device of creating shapes and constructing a world. Her dancers map out patCOURTESY OF M. TERESA SIMAO AND JACLYN SWEET

o apply for the theater creative thesis, students submit a proposal to write, act, direct or stage a play. Students then go through an interview process where they must offer more information about their proposal and their planned production. Street spoke to Mark Watter ’14, Rachel Alter ’14, and Evan Thompson ’14, three theater certificate students who were selected to pursue a creative thesis in the department. The process itself is competitive, especially with a group of students vying for the chance to see their artistic vision come to life. According to Mark Watter, “Actors are confident, cocky, self-conscious and competitive, so it’s a tricky environment, and definitely competitive.” There are a variety of theories on why a certain project may be chosen and also many different ideas of what qualities are critical when presenting. Watter believes that his proposal was chosen partly because he demonstrated it was a feasible undertaking. “Part of the selection process is the theater department asking ‘Do we think this production will happen?’ So for my proposal I recorded one song to show that the music really will happen.” Watter said. “I also think the prac-

terns on stage with LED lights attached to their fingers and toes, weaving in and out of the visible or pseudo-visible realms. Aiming to create a dance out of unexpected movements, she and her dancers created a white PVC-pipe cube in the fall semester, a “reverse jungle gym,” which you may have seen around campus in December. Though Gebb admits that her focus ultimately shifted more to the movement of the lights, this cube and the way people moved through it served as the basis for her choreography. Bernhard looked forward to choreographing a thesis project after performing in several as an underclassman, and she saw the project as an opportunity “to incubate a dance.” For her piece, Bernhard tried to showcase both her dancers’ individuality, and “how that individuality is compromised when they dance together as a group.” She asked her dancers to choreograph their own so-

DANCE Rather than a single extended showcase, Brown’s thesis is comprised of five vignettes, three to six minutes long, interspersed between the show’s other pieces. Each of them are inspired by individual ideas. However, the series of vignettes have through-lines connecting them, which take various forms including a certain costume or particular way of walking. Coming into the process with many ideas, she decided to fine-tune all of them instead of choosing just one. “I came to the project trying to re-imbue a sense of magic or spirituality or a kind of heightened existence on stage,” she said. “I wanted there to be an element of ‘yes, human, but yes, something more.’ ” Brown’s creative process began in performance workshops where she worked in collaboration with her dancers to create

dance solos and phrases. Then, she weaved the smaller segments together to create longer pieces. The dancers also use specific vocalizations in each piece to help Brown express the worlds she envisioned. Each of the seniors noted the immense support they had received from the dance department. Bernhard, who had originally expected dance to be a hobby in her time at Princeton, was encouraged to prioritize dance by the department. Gebb, too, said she loved how the department affected her relationship with dance. “You can talk to any of [the advisers], and they’re all really interested in your work,” Gebb explained. “We’re not at all conservatory, and they don’t try to make it such, yet they still present all of these opportunities for us. You can do whatever you want in the department.”

THEATER

ticality of my show, since it was very low budget, helped it get approved.” Watter acted as the lead in “Hansel/Gretel,” a rock and roll musical. Watter decided on this proposal because he felt that being a musician had become a bigger part of his life and “the show sort of bridged the gap between theater and music.” He performed the show over reading period, touring it around different venues on campus like a “real band.” “One of my favorite moments was when a gender studies professor and two of my favorite theater professors came to see the show, and they said afterwards that it had really been about the character, and not about caricaturing a woman or a trans person, which is exactly what we were going for,” Watter said. Alter has pursued her theater creative thesis not as an actor but as a playwright. As an English major, Alter’s play, “Margo in Margoland,” will serve as her required departmental thesis as well. “I knew coming in as a freshman that I wanted to pursue playwriting professionally,” she said. “I’ve been taking playwriting classes since the summer before 10th grade, and have taken different dramatic writing classes

every year at Princeton. The classes have definitely prepared me, mainly by introducing me to other playwrights on campus.” “Margo in Margoland” is a magical realist adaptation of Euripedes’ Medea, and it takes place within the protagonist’s own imagination. Alter was inspired by “Re: Staging the Greeks,” a global seminar she participated in during her sophomore summer. The seminar took place in Greece and focused on connections between ancient Athens and modern Greece through drama. While on the trip, performances by other students and discussions led Alter to think more deeply about the characters’ contemporary relevance. “Someone mentioned that he thought one of [Medea’s] speeches has a lot of connection to ‘Rolling in the Deep’ by Adele. I was shocked at the similarities, because Adele is someone who I think has lyrics that really resonate with me,” Alter explained. “So that got me thinking about a Medea-figure, asking ‘how does a woman with this much anger navigate the world?’ And that ended up being the idea for my thesis.” The process of writing and production has been a long and continuous one. Alter has written at least four drafts but since her play is being pro-

duced, the writing process continues to be ever-changing. “The script isn’t cemented. In rehearsal today, we cut lines and changed them. I go to rehearsal and leave with ideas about revision based on the actors’ and director’s feedback,” Alter said. She foresees rewriting and reworking moments in the class until the actual performance date. “When I interact with the cast and directors people add new ideas and propose things that I had never imagined. And that scares me a bit, because people talk about the thesis as being a personal culmination ... an individual accomplishment,” Alter said. “But the best parts of theater to me are the collaborations. So it’s both exciting and scary to have so many other people involved with my thesis.” Thompson performed as “Leo Bloom,” an accountantturned-Broadway producer and lead character in the musical, “The Producers.” Fellow theater certificate student Mary Lou Kolbenschlag ’14 joined Thompson in the musical as the characters Ulla and Franz. Thompson’s role in the production was unique because although he proposed the musical, he was an actor and not the director. “At the first meeting it was interesting, because when you propose but aren’t the di-

VISUAL ARTS S treet sat down to speak with two students in the visual arts department, Lauren Schwartz ’14 and Yuliya Barsukova ’14, about their creative theses. To enter the program, prospective students apply in their sophomore spring. The track requires four to six studio classroom courses and two to four art history courses. “There is then junior independent work

los and picked moves from her own improvisational exercises to create group sequences. A lot of her inspiration came from her studies of biology, particularly flocking, and “how easy it is for the simplest organisms to come together and move in synchrony,” she explained. Rose’s piece began with a simple idea: “I wanted to see if I could take pedestrian and abstract movements and alter people’s perception of them based on the context I’m putting them in,” she said. “Is something like running your hands through your hair pedestrian because we see it in everyday life, all the time?” She felt that composing choreography as part of her senior thesis provided an opportunity to grow that she wouldn’t find as easily after graduation. “Going out into the bigger dance world, you’re not going to have that same sort of feedback system,” she said of the built-in advising system on campus. “It’s like a once-in-a-lifetime chance.”

and the senior thesis show, complete with oral defense,” Schwartz explained. Schwartz’s show, titled “For[Bilder],” features two parts. The first is a series of portraits on a large scale, based on photographs. They are painted in acrylics on canvas with metal leafing. The second part consists of clothing created from recycled painted canvases.

Barsukova’s exhibition, titled “Cause Y Knot,” showcases a variety of art and sculpture, made using a 3D printer. “A lot of my inspiration came from youth, technology, rebellion, lifestyle — the idea of being young and energetic and experimental, wanting to have fun,” Barsukova said. However, these are not the only theses that Schwartz and Barsukova will submit this

rector, you obviously have a vision for the show, but the director ultimately makes the vision come together,” Thompson said. “We settled on a broken down but bigbudget aesthetic. We wanted to give it the air of being thrown together.” Thompson knew since applying to Princeton that he wanted to do a creative thesis and that he wanted to pursue a theater certificate before he knew what his major would be. Thompson remembered opening night as a special and important night not only as the culmination of his year’s work but also of his entire theater career at Princeton. “We had a big house for opening night on Friday in a big theater so it was just so much fun. The big audience makes you feel like you’re surfing on the energy that they give you. I was on cloud nine the whole time,” he said. “It’s the most incredible adrenaline rush. I’ve never skydived but I imagine it wouldn’t be so different.”

COURTESY OF EVAN THOMPSON

COURTESY OF RACHEL ALTER

spring. Schwartz is also a student in the German department while Barsukova concentrates in history, and both had to juggle writing extensively for their majors while producing exhibitions. “This is operatively for me a double-major in all but name, since they’re technically prohibited by the University. But it is a second thesis,” Schwartz said. “For me, it has just as

much weight and importance and work, and I take it just as seriously as my major departmental thesis.” Despite the challenges posed by completing two theses, both Schwartz and Barsukova feel that it was an important and necessary part of their experience. “Honestly, it’s hard to put out even one thesis, but I like challenges and being in the process of doing things; I like projects and working nonstop, and I think that you need to do things, be trying new things, so I am happy with my choice,”

Barsukova said. Schwartz feels that the artistic and academic are equally important parts of herself and wants to pay homage to both her academic and artistic educations in her senior independent work. “I am a scholar and an artist; to stop creating art — honing a skill set uniting my body and mind, exploring the world visually, developing a philosophy and mode of articulating exactly that which cannot be put into words — would hinder the socalled ‘hard academic’ work I do elsewhere,” she said. PHOTOS COURTESY OF LAUREN SCHWARTZ

The Daily Princetonian

Thursday April 17, 2014

TRUCKFEST

BRICK BY BRICK

AN ALTERNATIVE PROSPECT 11

Arts and Transit Project

CARA ZAMPINO

HARRISON BLACKMAN

Contributor

Staff Writer

pril 25 will be a far cry from your typical Charter Friday. For the first time in recent history, all 11 eating clubs have united to organize a fundraiser aimed at fighting food insecurity in Mercer County, N.J., by selling — quite fittingly — “street food.” Dubbed TruckFest, the event will feature 11 food trucks from the surrounding area, including New Jersey, Philadelphia and New York. The idea of TruckFest was born seven months ago, when the community service chairs from the different eating clubs came together to brainstorm possible events for the annual Inter Club Community Fundraiser. According to Justin Ziegler ’16, one of the organizers of TruckFest and a member of the Pace Council for Civic Values, the ICCF traditionally entailed each club hosting its own members-only event. The proceeds from all of the clubs were then pooled to support a single cause that the officers of the clubs had agreed upon previously. Unlike the events from earlier years though, a major goal this year was to create a more public fundraiser and raise a larger contribution. Austin Sanders ’14, another primary organizer of TruckFest, suggested the idea of having an event similar to “Truckeroo,” a food truck fair in Washington, D.C. Truckeroo began as a monthly summer festival in 2011 and brought 17 food trucks and over 18,000 people to its first event, according to its Facebook page. Although the Princeton event will not cater to as large of an audience, the organizers said that they hope it will bring together both campus and town involvement. “We wanted to do something that brought together the students and the town, and this seemed like a good way to do that — as a big festival,” Sanders said. TruckFest will feature free performances by two student bands: Gorilla Gorilla and Caroline Reese & the Drifting Fifth. Students and community members can nosh on a variety of artery-clogging, ambrosial goodness, ranging from sweet treats by Undrgrnd Donuts to hotdogs from The Dapper Dog. More of a green and lean kind of person? There will also be a variety of healthier options including gluten-free cupcakes, wraps and Princeton’s own Tico’s Eatery and Juice Bar stand. With the slogan “The Alternative Prospect 11,” TruckFest puts a playful twist on a Princeton tradi-

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COURTESY OF JOE MARGIOLES

tion. Rather than going to all of the eating clubs in one night, the goal of “The Alternative Prospect 11” is to stop at all of the food trucks. “We might have a punch card, because for each club, a truck is associated with it. So we might have a punch card that represents each club and each truck, and if you go to all the trucks, then you’ve done the ‘Food Truck Prospect 11,’” Sanders said. Planned by the Interclub Council, the Pace Council for Civic Values and the Princeton Prospect Foundation, TruckFest will donate all proceeds to the Send Hunger Packing Initiative — a collaboration between the Mercer Street Friends Food Bank and the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen. The initiative provides qualifying low-income schoolchildren with backpacks filled with nutritional, kid-friendly meals for the weekends. According to Feeding America’s most recent study, 15.6 percent of children are food insecure in Mercer County. Only 63 percent of that food insecure group are eligible for nutrition programs, which means their family’s income is at or below 185 percent poverty ($42,642.50 for a family of four). “We decided that — we’re eating clubs, we’re doing food trucks, let’s focus on food insecurity,” Ziegler said. “The more important reason is that it’s a really great cause that needs the money … We’re supporting local efforts to fight hunger that need the money now, and I think that’s the most special part.”

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of TruckFest is that most likely, every dollar spent on food will go straight to charity. This differs from many other fundraising events, in which only a fraction of the profits go directly to the cause. Naturally, this unique facet of TruckFest, in addition to its overall unprecedented nature, made the event especially difficult to plan. The organizers of the event conducted significant preliminary fundraising to cover overhead costs so that all of the proceeds may go to Send Hunger Packing. Additionally, they had various negotiations with the University and town throughout the planning process. Throw into the mix the opinions of 11 very different eating clubs, and the task seems nearly impossible. According to Kathleen Cordrey ’16, another organizer of TruckFest, overcoming these logistical challenges represents the fundraiser’s greatest success. Cordrey added that events like TruckFest will help foster a better attitude toward the eating clubs. Rather than viewing them as purely social outlets, the clubs can also begin to establish themselves as organizations that care to engage with the community on a larger scale. “It’s a great event. I think it’s really fun — everyone loves food trucks, and it could be the start of a great tradition,” Sanders said. Now that you have the scoop on TruckFest, one question remains: Can you finish the Alternative Prospect 11?

ASK THE SEXPERT

he day after former University President Shirley Tilghman was nominated for the presidency, a student came into her office, imploring her to consider the plight of the arts on campus. The series of discussions with student groups that followed helped lead to one of the largest campus expansions in Princeton’s history. While most are familiar with the temporary difficulties of construction—such as the maze of fences obscuring Forbes College and the relocation of the Dinky—the plans for the Arts and Transit Project are as necessary as they are ambitious. Not only does the Arts and Transit Project seek to bring Forbes into the campus community with an expansion of public student spaces, it will create a unified physical home for the Lewis Center of the Arts, whose programs are currently scattered across various buildings on campus. The Arts complex will be completed in fall 2017, and Tilghman expressed optimism at its success, especially considering the Lewis Center for the Arts’ tremendous impact since its conception in 2006 through a $101 million gift from Peter B. Lewis, the former University Trustee and CEO of Progressive Insurance who passed away last November. “It’s probably the most ambitious extension of the campus since the E-Quad was developed [in 1962],” Princeton historian W. Barksdale Maynard ’88 said, also noting that the Dinky’s relocation removes railroad track that “has been in everyday use since before

I’ve been hooking up with the same girl for a while, and we talked about it and decided that we were ready to have sex. The only thing is, we’re both virgins, so we really have no idea what we’re doing or what to expect. On the plus side though, since she’s already on birth control, we won’t have to use a condom, which I’ve heard can make sex less pleasurable. Any tips?

— First-time-foreverything

Dear First, It’s great that you two had an open and honest discussion about your sexual wants and needs. In terms of advice, I would tell you to keep up the good communication! It’s important for both partners to be clear about their desires. In terms of actual “sex tips,” a lot of websites offer straightforward advice that might be more helpful than what you find in popular magazines — some places to start might be Planned Parenthood’s site, “Understanding Sexual Pleasure” or the FAQ section on sexetc.

org. Ultimately, what’s most important is what feels good to you and your partner! After studying up, you might still want to head to McCosh Health Center to pick up your 10 free condoms. Even though your partner is taking an oral contraceptive, which helps to prevent pregnancy, there is still a risk of sexually transmitted infections. Being a virgin can mean very different things to different people. For some, it might just mean no penetrative sex, while for others it might mean nothing more than kissing. And even if it only means kissing to both of you, there is still a risk of transmitting infections, like herpes. Furthermore, some people may identify as being a virgin if they are currently abstinent, but have had sexual intercourse previously. For peace of mind, I would recommend that you both make appointments to get tested for STIs at Sexual Health and Wellness Services. It’s cheap, convenient, and you can easily schedule an appointment online. HIV testing is free, and it’s only $14 for a test for gonorrhea and chlamydia. Until you and your partner get and share your results, it is safest to use a condom.

For some, using a condom can dull physical pleasure or may lower sexual excitement. However, condoms come in many sizes and varieties, including flavored, ribbed, extra lubricated, etc. Some exploration may help find one that provides the most pleasure for both you and your partner. Once you’re sure that you’re not at risk for STIs, then you can reconsider whether condoms and the pill, oral contraceptives alone or another form might be the best protective method for the two of you. The staff at Sexual Health and Wellness Services would be happy to discuss your options, and they also provide a wide range of contraceptive products, either free or at a reduced cost. Be safe and enjoy yourselves!

— The Sexpert Interested in Sexual Health? The Sexpert is always looking for members of the community to join the team of sexual health educators who, along with fact-checking from University health professionals, help write these columns. Email sexpert@dailyprincetonian.com for more information and questions about sexual health. Don’t be shy!

a plaza with an underground forum to which all of the buildings open up. Architect Steven Holl designed these buildings to evoke some of the sentiments of the campus typology, McCoy explained. “While it’s contemporary in its sense of material, composition, form and space, it’s a modern building that has a deep appreciation for campus traditions of making courtyards, portals and gateways, and even a sense of scale and composition.” In this manner, the complex’s “Gallery” tower will have similar proportions to the tower of Blair Arch, which it faces on a grand axis that spans Blair Walk. Aside from the details of the building’s design, the construction of a major arts complex appears to be a large shift in campus construction, as most recent construction projects have been related to the sciences, such as Frick Chemistry Lab and the new Neuroscience and Psychology building. While the Departments of Dance, Theater and Music will receive new spaces in the complex, the Program in Visual Arts will remain across campus in the Lewis Center’s current site, 185 Nassau, and The Program in Creative Writing will remain in the nearby New South building. “Having these things happen all over campus is actually important and enriches the overall community,” Tilghman explained. “I think [the Lewis Center for the Arts] is really fulfilling its mission, and if it’s doing it now, imagine what it will do once it has a real home.”

COURTESY OF PLANETPRINCETON.COM

Q&A PUO conductor

MICHAEL PRATT OLIVER SUN

This week, she discusses “the first time.” Dear Sexpert,

the Civil War.” This is not the first time the Dinky has been moved, however. The train station had been located just south of Blair Hall until it was moved to its more recent location near present-day New South in 1918. The Dinky’s recent relocation for the Arts and Transit construction has been a source of controversy for the University, prompting six lawsuits from a community group named “Save the Dinky,” which was founded to challenge the relocation. “The name ‘Save the Dinky’ implies the Dinky is being threatened,” University Architect Ron McCoy GS ’80 said. “We have tried very hard throughout the process to enhance the Dinky experience … by providing a better sense of arrival.” The new Dinky station and the relocation of the WaWa will be completed by the end of 2014, McCoy said, adding that the new WaWa building will have a green roof covered in vegetation for use as a lab program for University research. The two former Dinky buildings will be converted into restaurants, creating community spaces near a currently isolated corner of campus. “Forbes College really lives on the absolute periphery of the campus,” Tilghman said. “This seemed like an amazing opportunity to reach out and bring both the Graduate School and Forbes into what feels like the gestalt of the campus.” The arts development will consist of four buildings: a black box theater, a dance theater with adjoining acting and dance studios, a music rehearsal space and

Senior Writer

The Princeton University Orchestra presents its final concert of the year on April 25 and April 26. Street had an opportunity to interview conductor Michael Pratt about his work. Daily Princetonian: Can you talk about your musical background and how you got started working with the PUO? Michael Pratt: Well, I have been on the music faculty for 37 years, and my musical background was the Eastman School of Music. I got a fellowship to the very celebrated summer conducting program at Tanglewood, run by the Boston Symphony. I met a man there named Gunther Schuller who was a major mentor for me, and I moved to Boston to work for him with the New England Conservatory. At the end of that year, I received a call from the music department of Princeton University, who said they needed an orchestra conductor and if I could come and audition. DP: How has the orchestra changed in these 37 years? MP: It has gotten bigger, it has gotten deeper, it has gotten better, and it has many more students who are technically advanced. The orchestra has gotten to the point where there is pretty much nothing in the standard symphonic repertory that it couldn’t play, given enough rehearsal time. When I

first came here, we did a production of a Mozart opera, “The Magic Flute.” You don’t need that many people for a Mozart concert — 40, 45 will do it — but we still had to bring some ringers in to help fill out the orchestra. Now, the University Orchestra’s membership is around 110, and there is a second orchestra, the Sinfonia, which has been in existence for 20 years. In total there are between 160 and 170 students on the Princeton campus now who are playing in an orchestra of one kind or another. DP: The PUO will be performing Mahler’s Third Symphony in its upcoming concert. Can you talk a little about this piece? MP: An orchestra’s first priority is to get more students to come to concerts, and especially students who have not been to a concert like this. Duke Ellington once said that there are only two kinds of music: good music and bad. I think that people who like good music, even if they have never been to an orchestra concert, will love this. Mahler’s Third is about the length of a moderate-size movie. People should think about coming to a movie, where the visual images are what they see on the stage, but the soundtrack is so compelling. The movie is about Mahler’s exploration of the totality of creation and the totality of the universe. There’s so much color, so much

light, so much happening. I think that if anyone has any relationship at all to concert music, or even if there’s other music that they like, such as folk music, they should come to check this out. DP: What are the most challenging and rewarding parts of conducting the PUO? MP: I’d say it goes hand in hand with conducting any orchestra. Conducting is multitasking. You have to be able to hear what is going on, and you have to have at the same time a very clear idea of what you want it to sound like. You have to know what to say to get the musicians to make it sound the way you envision it. With this orchestra, an orchestra of very smart and ambitious students who are doing a lot, it’s always a challenge. Everybody is spread too thin. But it also goes hand in hand with the fact that the orchestra is a collection of students from all over the University. You look at the stage: they are all good musicians. But they are also economists, politics majors, chemists and students of French literature. They have in common music and the fact that they are good enough to have gotten into an orchestra of this level.

This is an abridged version of the interview. For the full Q&A, please go to dailyprincetonian. com/category/street

The Daily Princetonian

Thursday April 17, 2014

page s4

diSiac spring show ‘On the Edge’ of perfection ABIGAIL WILLIAMS Street Editor Emeritus

his weekend, diSiac Dance Company brings “On the Edge” to Frist Film/Performance Theatre. “On the Edge” highlights all the choreographic intricacy and innovation we have come to expect from diSiac, and will be sure to please longtime fans and new audiences alike. The show features many fresh, original and nuanced performances, but the overall performance quality is inconsistent: certain pieces shine while others recycle choreographic and lighting tropes. Despite momentary missteps, “On the Edge” traverses exciting new terrain and emphasizes diSiac’s impressive range. The show kicks off with an energetic piece called “Thugtropolis,” choreographed by Tola Emiola ’14, Maechi Uzosike ’17, Adin Walker ’16 and David Wang ’14. “Thugtropolis” might be the show’s opening number, but the piece drops the audience into the middle of the action rather than drawing them into the show gradually. The piece samples five different hip-hop/rap songs and moves through each quite quickly without much room for connection or transition. In this way, “Thugtropolis” sets the tone for many of the hip-hop pieces in “On the Edge” – diSiac flies through song and lighting changes so frequently in their hip-hop performances that no one theme or color palette is able to stand out. While the dancers hit their moves aggressively and do so in unison, the jarring light and musical changes undercut their hard work. One hip-hop piece in the show that stands apart from the rest is “On the Edge of Moving On,” choreographed by Kristi Yeung ’14. This piece is set to “Heart Skipped a Beat” by The xx, a song about

needing someone even after they’ve left you behind. Dancers delve into the complex emotions surrounding messy break-ups without the interruption of the clashing song changes that distract the audience during some of the other pieces in the show. The fact that “Heart Skipped a Beat” is not a typical hip-hop song choice makes Yeung’s choreography all the more compelling. Yeung’s piece stands out for its freshness and innovation. “On the Edge” has a very strong first act, replete with stunning lyrical moments. Colby Hyland ’16 creates a mesmerizing experience with his piece “On the Edge…Literally,” set to Paper Route’s song “Dance on Our Graves.” Eight dancers in stark black costumes move

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ‘On the Edge’ Pros: Impressive lyrical

performances, stand-out choreography. Cons: Inconsistent performance

quality, dim lighting.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: through visually exciting formations, interpreting the music and Hyland’s choreography beautifully. The short duet between president Allison Metts ’15 and Austin Giangeruso ’14 is show-stopping. Another choreographic triumph in Act One is “On the Edge of Desire,” created by Kristen Johnson ’17 and Maria Yu ’16. This piece features eleven female dancers per-

forming to the song “Go” by Delilah. “On the Edge of Desire” is intensely sexy, but not because of floor gyrations or hairography — this piece explores the sensuality of each female dancer through subtle movement and emotion. The dancers connect with each other through touch and with the audience through expression and unity. Metts is a former associate design editor for The Daily Princetonian. While Act I features beautiful choreographic moments, Act II blows the competition away with its power and innovation. Maeve Drablos ’13 and her sister Katie Drablos kick off the second act with their piece “Ants Marching (On the Edge).” The piece, set to “Ants Marching” by Dave Matthews Band, showcases Austin Giangeruso ’14 as a man who breaks the mold of traditional dance to expose his peers to new styles of movement. The partnering between the three female dancers and the three male dancers in the choreography is flawless, and the dancers never once lose their energy. Giangeruso’s own piece, “On the Edge of Self Discovery,” soon follows, again exploring fresh movement and complex rhythms. Set to Bon Iver’s “Woods,” the piece works with the song’s moments of silence as well as its elevated musical intricacies. As the music becomes more complex with rhythms overlapping and interweaving, the choreography becomes increasingly difficult. The effect captivates, as the dancers move perfectly in unison despite the song’s chaotic rhythms. Finally, Act II experiences a moment of near perfection in “On the Edge of Nirvana,” choreographed by Kalin Stovall ’15. Set to Sam Smith’s “Nirvana,” a must-listen, Stovall’s dancers interpret the music and her choreography impeccably. While diSiac shines choreographical-

ly, the performance quality of “On the Edge” wavers across the board. While shadowy silhouettes can highlight a dancer’s beautiful lines, the lighting in “On the Edge” is often too dark, which hinders the audience’s ability to experience each dancer’s expressions and emotions. When the lights do brighten up, the expressions of the dancers are not always in sync, ranging from engagement and excitement to indifference. Finally, frequent blackouts during certain pieces can disrupt the show’s continuity and jolt audience members out of a consistent viewing experience. However, these lighting and performance missteps are not enough to detract much from the overall creative quality of diSiac’s spring show. “On the Edge” may not be perfect, but it is certainly on the edge of perfection.

STREET’S

TOP TEN Contested Class Council Positions

1 3 5 7 9

Class of 2015 president

2 4 6 8 10

Class of 2016 vice president

Class of 2016 social chair

Class of 2017 president Class of 2017 social chair

Class of 2017 treasurer

N/A

N/A N/A

N/A

CAMPUS PICKS MUSICAL ‘The Drowsy Chaperone’ MERRIL FABRY :: PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR EMERITUS

HAMILTON MURRAY THEATRE Thursday, 8 p.m. show, 9:30 p.m. discussion Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m.

What’s better than a 1920s musical comedy? Nothing … Except maybe a parody of a 1920s musical comedy within another musical! The Tony-winning “Drowsy Chaperone” is coming to Princeton in a joint Princeton University Players-Theatre Intime production directed by John Somers Fairchild ’15. If you go tonight, you’ll also get the chance to stay afterward for a talkback discussion with Lisa Lambert, who wrote the music and lyrics for the show, moderated by theater professor Stacy Wolf. The titular chaperone may get drowsy during the show, but you certainly won’t!

ART Chrysalid MERRIL FABRY :: PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR EMERITUS

LUCAS GALLERY, 185 NASSAU ST. Friday, 10 a.m.

MERRIL FABRY :: PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR EMERITUS

Grind Arts Company debuts with ‘Sweeney Todd’ CHITRA MARTI Contributor

he Grind Arts Company, a new theater company established on campus earlier this year by Eamon Foley ’15, will present its first production, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” April 24 – 27 at Jadwin Loading Dock. Yep, the performance is taking place at Jadwin Gymnasium Loading Dock. Offbeat? Yes. Risky? Yes. Grind Arts Company? Yes. Grind Arts Company focuses on pushing boundaries and taking risks in collegiate theater, Foley explained. Foley directed “Nine” last year with Princeton University Players, and the show, he said, he was a huge success. “I felt like fucking Mother Teresa, I brought art to the world,” Foley said of his experiences directing “Nine” for PUP. “I finally felt like this passion of mine wasn’t so selfish; it was community.” But when he wanted to do an unconventional take on Sweeney Todd,

he ran into a roadblock with PUP, simply because his vision was too technically risky. “They were nervous about completing the technical elements, which was really upsetting, because I felt that there were actors on campus who were excited about doing something different — they wanted risky,” Foley explained. “I felt like [on] this campus, it was time for risky, and the fact that risky had gotten in the way was infuriating.” So, Foley forged his own path, founding Grind Arts Company to make his vision of Sweeney come to life. “I was like, I have two years left on campus. I’m trying to be a director in real life. This is my education,” Foley said. “We had to have the company to do the show.” When it came to the show itself, Foley need three things: money, space and actors. He spent his summer meeting with potential sponsors and investors for

GRACE JEON :: CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

Allen Hernandez ‘16 (left) and Deirdre Ricaurte ‘16 (right) in the upcoming production.

the show, but ended up funding most of it through a successful Kickstarter campaign launched in February, raising $5,167 in one month. He found his space similarly unconventionally, as most theater spaces had already been taken by the time the company was founded, and he was not allowed to use certain other outdoor spaces. “The story is, I needed to find a space … and I walked around this campus,” Foley said. “I came to the Jadwin Gym loading dock, and something about it was so amphitheater. It was so broken down, disgusting amphitheater. It was just begging to tell a story. I found it through this back walkway, not the correct way to get there. I found all these different spots ... all the stuff that Princeton doesn’t want you to see.” There were meat-grinders already there, Foley said, as though the dock was just waiting to put on a production of “Sweeney Todd.” Working closely with Nick Robinson, Director of Campus Venue Services, Grind Arts secured the space for the show. “People don’t think in this artistic way, that there’s this need to tell the story there; they think ‘No, from 8 to 3 we have trucks going in and out of here, we can’t have a show’ but [Robinson’s] excitement, I think, got people behind it,” Foley said. “I’ve been working with Public Safety, Fire Safety. It’s amazing the complications that come with having an outdoor space.” Graham Phillips ’16 plays Anthony in the show, and said the edginess drew him to the production. Both Phillips and Foley said that they felt that they did not fit into the current theater scene and that they realized many other students also wanted to try something new and pre-professional. This is Phillips’ first show on cam-

pus, and although he does work professionally off-campus, he said he had never really gotten into the University theater scene. “I just sort of delusionally saw it as Broadway Junior, in a way, as people’s first experiences trying to do something that seems professional, and I didn’t see what I could take away from it,” Phillips said. “And Eamon came to me, and made me realize that collegiate theater that’s outside the professional realm is so special because it’s outside the professional realm — because you can take risks without having twenty financiers and other interest groups that are sort of homogenizing all of your ideas.” The cast, Foley says, is “literally off the chain,” and includes many students who have worked both on campus and professionally. The show features, along with Phillips, Ben Taub ’14, Deirdre Ricaurte ’16, Olivia Nice ’14, Heather O’Donovan ’16, Lachlan Kermode ’17, Allen Hernandez ’16, Michaela Milgrom ’16, Erin Purdie ’15, Ryan Gedrich ’16, Chris Prisco ’14, Nathalie Ellis-Einhorn ’16 and Charlie Baker ’17. In thinking about the future of Grind Arts Company, Foley hopes it stays on campus, but would like to continue his work with the group after he graduates. “When we think about theater differently, it’s not just ideas. We think about theater differently so we can culminate new theater. It’s not just for fun, and fucking around and throwing around the idea of like some drug-induced, trippy Seussical,” Foley said. “It’s like, if you really want to do that drug-induced, trippy Seussical, and you have that vision, then by God, hopefully this project can show people — pursue that! Do that! Follow your vision!”

Take a break from your work (and feel artsy and cultured at the same time) to go see Chrysalid, Maura O’Brien’s senior thesis exhibition for the Program in Visual Arts. The exhibit covers a variety of mediums, from large, colorful oil paintings to installations that reflect the wilderness of Minnesota. O’Brien is also exhibiting her woodblocks beside her vibrant prints of trees, allowing viewers to see the process as well as the final product. Chrysalid is sure to spark your creativity, and perhaps incite a desire to go camping.

PERFORMANCE PRINCETON ATELIER DOUBLE BILL BERLIND THEATER Friday, 6:30 p.m.

What is the legendary Chinese hero the Monkey King doing alongside a worldclass musical improv group? No, it’s not a weird superhero team-up movie. The Princeton Atelier and Program in Dance are presenting a “Double Bill” this Friday night, featuring the world premiere of Act IV of Fred Ho’s martial arts musical fantasy, “Journey Beyond the West: The New Adventures of Monkey,” followed by a performance by musical theater improv group Baby Wants Candy.

CONCERT BEN FOLDS RICHARDSON AUDITORIUM Saturday, 7:00 p.m.

If you’re looking for something a bit quieter, but no less enjoyable, for your Saturday evening, then you’re in luck: singer-songwriter Ben Folds will be bringing his beautifully melodic brand of music to campus this weekend. With student country-folk band Caroline Reese and the Drifting Fifth and local artist ELLAY, this show is sure to be a stunner.

@StreetThursdays