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@PPUGlobe November 14, 2018
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On Oct. 13, the Playhouse hosted a Grand Opening Gala event. The gala featured performances by students in the Conservatory of Performing Arts (COPA) and a dinner to an audience of hundreds consisting of local and theatrical celebrities. The show was intended to showcase the talents of musical theater and dance majors to impress the public, high-profile members of theater companies and donors to the Playhouse. While the Gala was generally well-received by its audience, the casting left some people of color in COPA feeling unrepresented. Some students started a group aimed at responding to the gala by improving representation of people of color. Only a few black student performers were cast in the gala performance. Tyquan White, a sophomore musical theater major and member of the group, said that all dance and musical theater students were asked to audition for shows in the gala, yet only four performers of color
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COPA students allege lack of representation By Mitchell Drake Staff Writer
Miss Coco Peru shares her experience in activism in drag with students Dylan Kersten reflects on consumerism as the holiday season approaches Women’s Basketball team opens 2018 season with a strong win
were cast. “They had to have seen us,” White said. Justin Rivers, a freshman musical theater major, commented on the placement of students of color in the gala performance. Rivers claimed that the placement of the black performers behind white performers is an act of colorism – prejudice against people with a particularly darker skin tone. “When the audience sees the color of [the] person of color, they match their color to the performers around them and literally blends colors together – tricking the audience into believing the show is diverse,” Rivers explained. “Color should not matter in an academic, professional setting.” White was not chosen to perform. He was required to work various positions around the Playhouse during the gala, and operated an elevator for guests. He expressed outrage at the image presented at the gala event, as “students that were white were performing, black [students] were working.” White also expressed anger at how he was operating the elevator for actors, direc-
Issue 12
MISS COCO PERU MEETS PPU
Katie Williams | The Globe
Miss Coco Peru visited Point Park’s GRW theater last Thursday to tell stories and give words of wisdom. Miss Peru recalled significant moments of her life, like meeting her husband for the first time on a nude beach in Spain, and coming out to her parents as transgender. Read the full story in the Features section, page 4. tors and high-profile members of the theatre community that he and other students wanted to impress and network with to gain future career contacts and experience. “They would never have known that I auditioned,”
COPA page 2
PB AND J GOES A LONG WAY
Katie Williams | The Globe
Students gather in the Lawrence Hall lobby to make sandwiches for the homeless. This “simple act of kindness” was presented by the Department of Community Engagement as part of Courageous Conversations: Hunger and Homelessness Awareness.
New seasonal USG “yeas” resolution to bars pop up constitution downtown USG By Jacob Berlin For The Globe
By Amanda Andrews
Students will have multiple places to get in the holiday spirit by drinking some holiday spirits, while also helping charitable causes. Two new holiday popup bars, Auld Lang Syne and Jingle Bar, will be taking over restaurant spaces in and near Market Square by the end of next week. Auld Lang Syne, named for the traditional holiday song, will occupy real estate on the far dining room side of the Oyster House. Located at 20 Market Square, this venue recently housed the Zombie Den - a Halloween pop-up bar from the makers of the ScareHouse haunted attraction in Etna. Last year, the Oyster House played host to Miracle, a nationwide chain of holiday bars which will be utilizing space on Liberty Avenue for this year’s iteration. Jen Grippo, owner at the Oyster House, said Auld Lang Syne will be offering crafted cocktails, beer, wine and light bites. Additionally, Michael McCoy and Brian Laing, veteran drink specialists who curated the Zombie Den’s cocktail list, will be returning to arrange an expert list of sipping options for the holiday season. One of the holiday popup bar staples is charity work, and a portion of sales at Auld Lang Syne will benefit the Women’s Center and Shelter. The exact hours haven’t been finalized, but
United Student Government (USG) unanimously passed Resolution 1112018 at Monday’s Legislative Body Meeting. Resolution 1112018 called for the removal of By-Laws 202.1 and 202.21 in USG’s constitution as they were in contradiction with the executive accession process outlined in the constitution. Parliamentarian Matthew Spadaccia clarified the definition of executive accession in regards to USG’s constitution. “That is just the way [to determine] who’s next in line to the presidency,” Spadaccia said. “So first it starts off with the president, then if the president leaves, the vice president moves up, and then if both of those move up the president pro-tempore [takes the President’s position] - so the same way [it works] in the United States government, that line of succession to the presidency.” The now null and void ByLaws, however, listed an alternative process of executive succession, where the president had some control over appointing positions. “Those By-Laws, they give the president power to appoint somebody if the vice president resigns, dies, or [is] removed from office and gives the president power to appoint someone in that position,” Spadaccia said. “But if that’s not the case, if that position were to be vacant, the president pro-tempore would move to that position and the Legislative Body would
BARS page 3
USG BEAT page 2
USG Beat Writer
Weather Forecast Today: Mostly Cloudy H 52, L 40
Thursday: Cloudy, H 43, L 30 Friday: Partly Cloudy, H 49, L 43 Saturday: Rain, H 55, L31
Sunday: Cloudy, H 34, L 24 Monday: Partly Cloudy, H 35, L 29 Tuesday: Cloudy, H 39, L 29
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