W E E K D AY E D I T I O N | F E B R U A R Y 12 -14 , 2 0 18 | T W I C E W E E K LY I N P R I N T | O U D A I LY. C O M
OUDAILY
For 101 years, the student voice of the University of Oklahoma CAITLYN EPES/THE DAILY
Adam Gribben, founder and CEO of 1907 Meat Co., unloads boxes of meat behind Couch Restaurants Feb. 1. OU Housing and Food gets about half of its meat from local vendors like 1907 Meat Co. and Peach Crest Ranch.
LOCAL LIVESTOCK Area butchers, ranchers supply almost half of OU’s meat as result of student commitment to locally sourced food
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hree years ago, Adam Gribben was selling meat from local ranchers out of four blue Igloo coolers in the back of a friend’s bike shop. It was his attempt at fixing an agricultural system that had left small farmers in its dust, but the startup company was quickly fading, sustained only by a devoted base of around 25 buyers. It wasn’t until Gribben had a purchase order from OU in hand that his meat processing company, 1907 Meat Co., took off. To d ay , G r i b b e n o p e ra t e s a butcher shop in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and he drives a 1907-labeled van stocked with meat from three cows and three pigs packaged in dozens of boxes to several locations across campus every Thursday. Both sides of the business allow him to sell beef supplied by small operations run by Oklahoma ranchers. OU buys roughly half of its meat from unconventional, local beef and pork suppliers that include 1907 and Peach Crest Ranch, a farm in Norman, said Dave Annis, OU’s Housing and Food director. As a result of a student-inspired commitment to providing local food on campus that started years ago, 40 percent of OU’s total food, including eggs, meat and vegetables, is locally sourced. Housing and Food selects vendors like 1907 and Peach Crest based on the ability to meet a certain set of standards for raising livestock, the availability of the product when OU needs it and the economic impact made possible through the relationship, Annis said. “That’s part of what we enjoy doing, too, is finding folks that, like Brad (Burnett, OU’s ‘Egg Man’) or like Adam, that need a little bit of backing or need a little bit of help to get something up and running,” Annis said. 1907 MEAT CO. Gribben, an Oklahoma State University electrical engineering alumnus, was working a steady job at a Dallas engineering firm after college when, on one of many plane rides required for the job, he picked up a book called “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan. The book, which explores the widespread impact of simple food choices, sparked his interest in the food industry. But it was the dirt roads he often biked while visiting
ANNA BAUMAN • @ANNABAUMAN2 friends in Stillwater post-college that led him to trace these systemic issues in agriculture to his own backyard. “I knew there were all these farms from riding our bicycles down all these dirt roads, gravel roads, for tens — if not hundreds — of miles,” Gribben said. “You’d see ‘em out there, so I just started talking to farmers, and once I started discovering that, ‘Oh man, there’s a bigger problem here.’” Even in an agricultural powerhouse like Stillwater, home to Oklahoma State University’s College of Agriculture, grocery shopping was limited to places like Walmart that primarily stock processed foods from national corporations, leaving the small, local farmers out of the picture. But where Gribben saw a problem, he also envisioned a solution. While researching, Gribben discovered a gaping hole in the supply chain — processing plants. Per his estimates, slightly more than a dozen kill floors, where livestock are slaughtered and processed, remain in the state. This means farmers are forced to ship out of state, which leaves the local food chain effectively closed. “If you’re looking to give back to the local farmers or try and help them out of a jam, there is a manufacturing step between cow and hamburger,” Gribben said. “And that is the processing facilities.” Gribben sought to use his butcher shop and restaurant, which serves local food and also sells wholesale to OU, to connect these broken links by bringing together the farmer and the local consumer base. At the start, however, Gribben’s new concept seemed doomed. He had fewer than 30 buyers he could count on monthly. That’s when he caught a lucky break and attended a local food conference put on by the OU group Students Against a Factory-farming Economy. He left with contacts in OU Housing and Food Services and, soon, a contract to supply one head of cattle and one hog per week to the university. “To be honest, without OU, we wouldn’t have even made our shot — we didn’t have that much demand when we first started,” Gribben said. “Since January 2016, these guys have been pulling agriculture single-handedly out of a closed-market channel, and hopefully others will pick up. OU can’t
haul the mail just by itself, although it’s trying.” Gribben has built a network of local ranchers, around 20 at its peak, whose livestock he purchases and sells to OU. He demands transparency from each, and though he does not require certifications for grass-fed or organic, he asks that they grow livestock humanely treated and free of hormones or antibiotics. He has his mantra — “good for the animal, good for the customer, good for the farmer” — and is able to pay 50 cents to a dollar more per pound to farmers because of the higher quality. “You can actually save the world on OU hamburgers,” Gribben said. “I’m not going to say we’re saving agriculture single-handedly, you know we’re a drop in the bucket, but it’s a big bucket so even a few drops helps.” PEACH CREST RANCH Standing on the crest of a hill overlooking her pastures where cows graze freely, Susan Bergen can see OU’s football stadium jutting up along the horizon. The ranch, which sits less than 10 miles from campus, is linked to OU in more than just proximity — it helps supply beef and pork to feed students on campus. Like Gribben, Bergen is working against a conventional agriculture system. Between the ranch in Norman and another in Sulphur, Bergen supplies pasture-raised livestock, meaning cows graze freely on untreated land and are slaughtered at an Animal Welfare Approved location. Bergen first became concerned by the issues associated with conventional agriculture while overseeing a peach farm, one of her family’s many operations, more than a decade ago, where a full hazmat suit was required to spray chemicals on the fruit. “It doesn’t take lot to be somewhat conscious of ‘Maybe I don’t want to be putting that in my mouth.’ If I don’t want to put it in my mouth, I don’t want to sell it to you,” Bergen said. “In ‘05, I said ‘No more.’ So that started me looking at where we were going, so here I am 13 years later, really having a lot of success in going a different direction.” Bergen’s ranches now include cows that graze freely with no hormones or antibiotics and pigs raised in a similarly humane way.
OU purchases one cow every other week and two pigs per week from Peach Crest, Annis said. Christie Cochell, who works at Peach Crest, said she is impressed that OU includes local farmers in its food supply system. “It is unique that they have these programs at all,” Cochell said. “We can appreciate being able to be included at OU and that there are people on campus that are excited about it.” Bergen said she believes it is important to consider the way food choices can impact a wide area beyond just the food industry. “Every time we spend a dollar, there’s a consequence to that. Every time we Amazon Prime something in, there’s a consequence to that — it’s a cardboard box, it’s a moving truck, the amount of consumer waste on those type of decisions is astronomical,” Bergen said. “There’s huge consequences to the choices that we’re making. I don’t think we’re looking at that. So my hope is that we would all become more aware of just where our food comes from and the consequences of those choices.” Bergen employs many ranchers and farmers, including Jonathan Moore, an OU alumnus who graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering last May. His interest in agriculture led him to accept an offer to work for Bergen when the unique opportunity presented itself. Moore said competing with big-business farmers is difficult and only made possible by the hard work he puts in around the clock. While most of his days involve feeding, watering and corralling pigs, he must also take them to slaughter and understand market trends. “You just have to have 10 different hats — you do all the jobs,” Moore said. “You have to shop around, you have to know the right prices ... it’s just constant, constant work. Everyone else goes home at 5, while you still have a whole other job to go do.” AGAINST THE GRAIN People like Gribben and Bergen are anomalies in a food system that is built to accommodate largescale farms and ranches. OU’s relationship with these local partners stemmed initially from student-driven desire to know where their food came from. Bridget Burns, founder of
Students Against a Factory-farming Economy and a 2014 graduate of OU, was instrumental in bringing the local food movement to campus and said she thinks it’s crucial to have student involvement. “I think it’s important for students, as a very significant part of the university community, to not only have that knowledge, but to have a voice in how the dining services (are) run and what type of vendors we support,” Burns said. Gribben also stressed the importance of the students’ voice in bringing about change. “It was the students that demanded this and got it, so you are very lucky that you have an administration that listens and even does something like this,” Gribben said. “This is the only one, as far as I know, that said, ‘Okay, if you guys want it, we will go make our bestfaith effort to make this.’” But Annis said OU Housing and Food must balance the student desire for humane and locally sourced food with a tight budget, so OU will most likely not be able to purchase any more locally sourced meat than it currently does. “If our customer came to us and said, ‘Yeah we really like this initiative, we want you to buy more local beef,’ we’d look into it,” Annis said. “But up to this point, our students are also very vocal about ‘We want you to keep our costs down, we don’t want to see our costs continue to rise.’ So, as best as we can, we’re trying to balance what we do — provide as much local product, whether it’s beef or vegetables or whatever, as much local product as we can within the budget that we have.” Burns said she recognizes that OU has taken important steps in forming relationships with local vendors and hopes to see the commitment continued in the long term. “I’m really excited to see what the university community can build for Oklahoma,” Burns said. “And I think that building a space where students and faculty and farmers and workers and environmentalists can work together, and talk about a food system that is better for everybody, is a very worthy thing to do.” Anna Bauman
anna.m.bauman-1@ou.edu
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• February 12-14, 2018
NEWS
Emma Keith, news managing editor dailynews@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666 oudaily.com • Twitter: @OUDaily
Professor finds home in US Cuban native learns from students while teaching Spanish KAILEY FRALIX @kailey_fralix
José Núñez’s 20s were significantly different than most people’s. Rather than finishing college or working his first job, Núñez was packing his bags and moving to the U.S. from Cuba to start a new life. Núñez is now finishing his master’s in Spanish literature at OU, where he also works as a Spanish professor, but his journey to that point was quite a challenge. In his early 20s, Núñez applied for a visa to come to the U.S. through a Cuban immigration program. “After sending your information to the American Embassy in Cuba, computers will randomly select your number and your name and then, if you’re lucky enough, it’s like winning the lottery,” Núñez said. “Instead of money, they give you a visa to come to the United States.” Six years later, Núñez had finished his bachelor’s degree in economics and was in his second year of law school in Cuba when he heard a knock on his front door. He opened the door to find an envelope with the American eagle sticker and his name written on it. “The postman was like, ‘Congratulations, here is your visa.’ I was like ‘What? What do you mean? You’re crazy!’” Núñez said. “I had completely forgotten about it. I wasn’t expecting it.” At the time he received his visa, relations between Cuba and the U.S. were not ideal.
KYLA GILLETTE/THE DAILY
Professor José Núñez speaks to a reporter in his office Feb. 6. Núñez teaches three Spanish classes at OU.
“I got kicked out of my university, and I was kicked out of my job as an economics professor,” Núñez said. Three months later, he arrived in Miami, Florida, where officials processed his paperwork, social security and visa. “I came to the United States without any family or any friends,” Núñez said. One of Núñez’s friends from Cuba had contacts in Oklahoma City. These people invited Núñez to come live with them, which is
how he ultimately found Oklahoma and OU. Though Núñez knew he wanted to continue his career as a professor in the U.S., he had yet to learn English, he said. “My English was zero — I knew no English,” Núñez said. He began teaching himself by buying dictionaries, watching TV and talking to people. It took Núñez five years before he could speak and understand English. Learning English wasn’t
the only problem Núñez ran into. The U.S. would not accept his Cuban education. He would have to start over again, all the way back to high school. “I said, ‘Okay, if that is what it takes to get it done, I will do it,” Nunez said. Kate Amin, a health and exercise science sophomore who has had Núñez as a professor for the past two semesters, said he goes above and beyond in the classroom. “He really cares about us,”
Amin said. “He always asks, ‘Hey what’s up? How was your weekend?’” Amin said Núñez not only teaches his students but also takes the opportunity to learn from them as well. “He always says, ‘I’m teaching you the Spanish, so you have to teach me the (English) slang.’” Núñez’s students found his story very motivating — they even painted him a canvas with the outlines of Cuba and Oklahoma connected by a line, representing his
journey to the United States. “As a class, we wanted to do something nice for him,” Amin said. “He got really emotional and started crying.” Núñez’s work doesn’t stop at teaching. In addition to working as a professor and pursuing his master’s, Núñez is an interpreter at the OU Medical Center in Oklahoma City. At the medical center, Núñez works with sensitive and complex interpretations, often with patients who have experienced trauma, who have an altered mental status or who are at the end of their life. Mary Gremillion, who is Núñez’s supervisor at the medical center, said that Núñez moves across campus all day long. “Literally all day they wait on interpreters like José to go from case to case so that the information provided to patients is explained with accuracy,” Gremillion said. Núñez is regarded as an outstanding employee at the hospital, Gremillion said. “ He is always w illing to help and go beyond,” Gremillion said. “He can be counted on for every situation. He is a phenomenal individual.” Núñez has lived in the U.S. for 15 years now. Shortly after he came, his family followed. His mom, sister and cousins now live in Miami, Florida, and Núñez sees them every few months. “My typical day is work and school and then work and more school, but I love it,” Núñez said. “ I w ouldn’t chang e it.” Kailey Fralix
kailey.a.fralix-1@ou.edu
Norman offers shooter response training NPD teaches how to handle active shooter situations SIERRA RAINS @sierrarains
Norman law enforcement is training the community on how to properly handle active shooter situations while not dwelling on the fear associated with them. The Norman Police Department began offering free active shooter response training to the public in December 2017 and has since seen a large amount of participation in its classes, said Lt. Jay Callaghan, an NPD active shooter response trainer. Callaghan said more than 200 people from the Norman community signed up for
the first four installments of classes in December — a reaction Callaghan said he believes is a result of the large amount of active shooter situations that have happened within the last year around the country and close to home, in neighboring states and even in north Norman. “Unfortunately this has become the norm, and these events originally took place sporadically, and now it seems like these events are occurring weekly,” Callaghan said. “These are conversations that I’m glad citizens want to have, especially with law enforcement.” In the NPD’s active shooter response training, citizens are taught a three-step principle of run, hide and, as a last resort, fight, Callaghan said. It is important that people learn to have situational
awareness and, above all, try to escape in these situations, Callaghan said. “Obviously there are a lot of other variables that come into play, but we tell people if you can get out, get out,” Callaghan said. Tim Tucker, patrol lieutenant and active shooter response prevention trainer for the OU Police Department, said the NPD active shooter training is modeled similarly to the training he provides for faculty and staff at OU, which has been in place since around 2005. Tucker said he does not have the answer to stop active shooter situations altogether, but he believes training people on what to do in those situations is valuable. “I’m definitely not a subject matter expert in this, I don’t have a solution to the
problem, but what I can do and what other law enforcement agencies can do is educate their citizens about these events,” Tucker said. “And, hopefully, in the unfortunate circumstance that one of these do occur, we could save some lives.” In his classes, Tucker said he teaches the same three principles as the NPD, with a similar focus on situational awareness and getting out of the building. Tucker said his training involves drills in which a participant is given a banana in place of a gun and attempts to attack the rest of the group. Tucker said these drills show the importance of quickly reacting to the situation because in the simulation, the groups of people who froze for even a few seconds were found by the
attacker. “You cannot overstate how important it is that, when you first receive the stimulus of an event like an active shooter, you’ve got to move as fast as you can that instant — you can’t afford to wait three seconds and move,” Tucker said. “In all of our drills, everybody who has without hesitation aggressively moved out, so far we’ve yet to have a single one of those persons ever got by the bad guy.” Tucker said he wants people to understand how to handle these situations efficiently by training at least once a year, similar to preparing for severe weather, but what he does not want is for them to dwell on their fear of an active shooter situation. “At the end of the day, we want everyone to understand we’re not in that big of
a threat here, but once a year you need to dust off your ‘severe weather plan’ and make sure everyone understands what to do,” Tucker said. “What is important is our OU family and how we are good to each other and people here love and care about each other.” Callaghan said the NPD will continue to hold classes throughout the month of February and possibly even further if desired, and Tucker said the OUPD is willing to train anyone who wants to reach out to the department. The next NPD active shooter response training classes will take place at 3 p.m. on Feb. 12 and 19 at the Norman Investigations Center, Callaghan said. Sierra Rains
sierra.m.rains@gmail.com
Dean of Price College first candidate to publicly announce application to be OU’s next president The dean of OU’s Michael F. Price College of Business, Daniel Pullin, has applied to be the next president of the university. In an email to The Daily on Feb. 9, Pullin said he was nominated and encouraged to apply for the position. “It is exciting to consider the presidential search not only as the operational moment in which a new leader is chosen, but, rather, as an opportunity for all of us to dream about the future of the University and the impact it will make on future generations in Oklahoma and beyond,” Pullin said in the email. Pullin said in the email he intends to participate in the process as “it has been outlined by the community.” “I am not sure if the process will evolve as we get closer to the moment of decision, but I’m going to give it my all and hope other applicants do the same,” Pullin said in the email. “Oklahoma deserves nothing less.” The Daily has reached out to several possible candidates, of which two have responded. Among those who responded was Oklahoma City University President Robert Henry, whose executive assistant told The Daily in an email that Henry was nominated but “declined to be considered.” A spokesperson for the search committee to replace President David Boren said the committee will not be disclosing specifics of the search process, including names of potential candidates themselves. Members signed a confidentiality agreement preventing them from commenting on the details of the process, according to undergraduate representative Cameron Burleson. It is unclear if the committee asked applicants to sign a similar agreement. Nick Hazelrigg, @nickhazelrigg
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February 12-14, 2018 •
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Allison Weintraub, A&E editor dailyent@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666 oudaily.com/a_and_e • Twitter: @OUDailyArts
Norman friends brew creativity
Local duo opens brewery with everchanging flavors ABIGAIL HALL ahall@ou.edu
On a quiet, unsuspecting road off North Flood Avenue sits 405 Brewing Co., a local craft brewery. Trae Carson and Jonathan Stapleton, business par tners and b est friends, began selling beer as 405 Brewing Co. in 2015. In early 2017, the duo officially broke ground on the brewery’s taproom, where c u s t o m e r s c a n e n j oy a beer in the same space it’s brewed in. 405 Brewing Co. is best known for its barrel-fermented sour beer, which has been featured at local events such as the Normanhosted Oklahoma Wine Wa l k a n d B re w Fe s t i n October 2017. The entire brewer y is open to customers — the front entrance and the larger back area where the duo makes the brew, as well as the back patio when weather permits. The front entrance is filled with white tables and chairs for regulars to sit in when they stop by during the brewery’s open hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. THE BREWERS Carson and Stapleton were childhood best friends in Norman. Their fathers had been members of the s a m e f rat e r n i t y , A l p ha Sigma Phi, during their time at OU, which ignited a lifelong friendship. Carson and Stapleton went separate ways during their own college days, with Stapleton studying advertising at OU and Carson studying business at Greenville University in Illinois. When Carson returned to Norman, the pair continued their friendship and began to pursue their dream of opening a brewery together. Carson’s initial interest in craft beer began when he was in college in 2005. He began trying new varieties every week with a college buddy. They tried more than 100 beers over the next two years. Through
this, Carson said, he found a respect and appreciation for the diversity and flavors that it offered. “Our beer is about creating memories and bringing our community together,” Carson said. In 2007, Carson went on a Midwest beer-drinking tour with Stapleton and other friends. Within a year after this trip, Carson and Stapleton decided to finally learn how to brew beer. The duo taught themselves through reading, experimenting and seeking advice from stable breweries, which began the nineyear journey to establish 405 Brewing Co. Today, Stapleton is the brand ambassador, focusing on accounts and managing the taproom, while Cars on spends his days in the taproom brewing their beer. The two friends work hard, but they would never be able to sustain the taproom without local volunteers that help them bottle and serve their drinks, Carson said. Because of the laborious nature of working in a brewery, Carson and Stapleton reached out to the Norman community to help them with their dayto-day operations. Today, more than 25 individuals from the Norman community gain experience and learn about working in a brewery by volunteering for 405 Brewing Co. THE BEER Carson refers to their beer as transferring creativity into liquid art. Carson said their brew philosophy is FDR, which stands for “F--- the Damn Rules.” The duo exper iments with a variety of styles and flavors, such as Grapefruit Sour, a kettle-soured beer fermented with saison yeast and Ruby Red grapefruits, or Cool for the Summer, which is brewed with white wine yeast and limes. Carson and Stapleton learned the rules of brewing in order to break them. Carson is adamant that there is a beer for every occasion, regardless of brand. The inspiration for 405 Brewing Co. is founded in creativity and the use of unique formulas and new, innovative ingredients. The duo began the business out
of a desire to experiment with alternative methods and novel techniques in creating beer. For example, they use wine tanks during the fermentation process. “We don’t believe in adhering to styles or guidelines — we just make beer,” Carson said. 405 Brewing Co.’s beer is licensed solely in Oklahoma for now, with accounts in Norman and Oklahoma City. In Norman, 405 Brewing Co.’s beer can be found at locations including Scratch Kitchen and Cocktails, McNellie’s Abner Ale Hous e and GP 405, which is the hotel lounge in the Marriott Conference Center at National Center of Employee Development. At 405 Brewing Co., the taproom is a welcoming environment that is home to the eight beers the business currently holds on tap. Due to the nature of 405 Brewing Co.’s mission to be constantly creating art, the brews made are ever-evolving. A brew on tap this week might be gone in a month, never to be made again, Carson said.
THE COMMUNITY Carson’s wife, Jana, said the crowd is a regular flow of both older locals and OU students. Jana Carson works alongside the duo, helping with the administration and business side of things. She enjoys working with her husband and Stapleton, as she has witnessed their journey firsthand. “It’s fun to see it, be a part of it and be involved — because it is such a community thing,” Jana Carson said. 405 Brewing Co. hopes to be a beacon within the Norman community as a space where locals can congregate and build friendships, Jana Carson said. To promote this, they have partnered with a Coloradob a s e d y o g a i n s t r u c t o r, Natalie Moses of Grounded Resources Yoga. Their collaborative event “Yoga and a 405 Brew” was held Sunday, Feb. 11 at 405 Brewing Co.’s taproom. Attendees took part in an hour-long yoga session with Moses and then received a 405 Brewing Co. beer while socializing post-yoga.
CALEB WELLER/THE DAILY
An employee fills a cup inside 405 Brewing Co. on Feb. 1. 405 Brewing Co. is located on Topeka Street in Norman.
Moses said “beer and yoga” events are a growing trend, where many drink beer while holding poses. However, Moses instead structures her classes to focus on mindfulness, with drinking and socializing afterward. “(It’s structured so) you come in, you have yoga practice in a very mindful kind of way, and then you drink and socialize afterward, rather than trying to hold a glass of beer while doing poses,” Moses said. Moses has been teaching yoga for eight years, and she began traveling and teaching yoga classes in breweries in the past year.
“Everyone has a different reason why they go to yoga, but, for me, it’s to turn inward and come out of it feeling so much better,” Moses said. According to Moses, many people are intimidated by entering yoga studios, so partaking in a class at their neighborhood brewery is often a much more welcoming and relaxed environment. “Yoga and a 405 Brew” is just one community-focused event that 405 Brewing Co. has participated in. In the summer of 2017, the brewery held a local cornhole toss event and, in October 2017, took
part in Norman’s annual Oklahoma Wine Walk and Brew Fest. In the future, Carson and Stapleton hope to partner with more events within the Norman community. “It’s about the experiences of beer,” Carson said. “The memorable moments that you can have centered around beer.” 405 Brewing Co. is located at 1716 Topeka St. in Norman, and is open Thursdays and Fridays from 4–8 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 5 p.m. Abigail Hall
@heartofabigail
Oklahoma native conducts OU musical Spring production brings in guest with varied talents TIM HATTON @nottahmit
Jerry Steichen can’t sit still. This is true in conversation — when he speaks with his hands, eagerly shares his food and listens with wideeyed enthusiasm. It’s also true in his career. The Oklahoma native started playing piano when he was 5 years old, and he now lives in New York City as an accomplished conductor, accompanist and multi-instrumentalist. “I get bored easily, so I can’t do one thing full time,” Steichen said. “I’ll do a musical for a while, then think, ‘I miss doing opera.’ So I’ll do opera for a while, then think, ‘Oh, I miss musicals,’ then I’ll do that, then I’ll say ‘I really need to work with an orchestra.’” Right now, he’s in the mood for musical theater. Steichen is in Norman to serve as guest music director and conductor of OU’s spring musical, “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” which opened on Friday, Feb. 9 and will run through Feb. 18.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY JERRY STEICHEN
Oklahoma native Jerry Steichen is a guest music director and conductor for OU’s spring musical, “Nice Work If You Can Get It.”
“Nice Work If You Can Get It” features music written by George and Ira Gershwin. Many songs come from the pair’s musical theater repertoire, but others include more traditional elements. “It’s a swing band meets Gershwin, which is kind of classical,” Steichen said. “It’s jazz that’s classically inspired.” Vince Leseney, a professor of musical theater and voice, led the show’s chorus and pit
orchestra in rehearsals before Steichen arrived at OU on Jan. 28. Leseney says Steichen’s experience with a variety of musical styles is one reason he was invited to OU. “We thought it would be cool to have someone come in who is experienced conducting orchestras and ensembles to give the students some of those insights from the professional realm,” Leseney said. Despite his experience
with many kinds of music, working in fine arts was not Steichen’s first career choice. He grew up on a wheat farm in Tonkawa, Oklahoma, about 100 miles north of Norman. After attending Northern Oklahoma College, he initially thought he would work in international tax law. “I took the LSAT, I was in the 99th percentile, I was ready to go to law school,” Steichen said. “ Then, I thought, the theater majors
and the music majors are a lot more fun.” Instead of law school, Steichen enrolled at Oklahoma City University to study music performance. “I knew I wanted to be a performer,” Steichen said. “My father suggested I get the music education degree to teach, as something to fall back on, and I said, ‘Oh, law school will be my fallback.’” However, Steichen realized he liked to accompany and conduct other musicians more than he liked playing music himself. “I really enjoyed being on the other side of the footlights,” Steichen said. “It wasn’t about being in charge — it was about making the people on stage look really, really good.” From Oklahoma City, Steichen moved to Tulsa, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami before finally landing in New York City. Every time he moved, he focused on a different element of show business. He worked as an accompanist, played piano for operas and had a short stint as an administrator for the Miami Opera. Steichen credits his present success to the skills he learned and connections he made during this period traveling around the country.
“I got to New York, and my second day there, I was playing at Lincoln Center,” he said. “That grew into this varied career, doing musicals, doing opera and doing chamber music.” In the years since, Steichen has traveled extensively in the U.S. and internationally as a performer and guest conductor. He continues to work in a variety of styles. Lyn Cramer, a dance professor in the Weitzenhoffer School of Musical Theatre, is the director of “Nice Work If You Can Get It.” She said working with Steichen was special because no OU musical has had a guest conductor before. “We always have guest directors or guest choreographers, but we’ve never brought in a guest music director, so we thought this would be fun,” Cramer said. After “Nice Work If You Can Get It” finishes, Steichen will return to conducting the national tour of the the musical “The King and I.” After that, his options are wide open. “I’m at a point where I’m asking, ‘Who does Jerry want to be now?’” Steichen said. “I haven’t decided yet.” Tim Hatton
hamlin@ou.edu
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ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT
• February 12-14, 2018
New show features large set OU musical uses pieces weighing almost one ton HEATH KUYKENDALL @HeathKuykendal1
It’s difficult to describe the OU scene shop without using a word like “enormous.� Located in the Fine Arts Center, the shop is currently filled with set pieces for the University Theatre’s musical, including a glittering marble stairway, a graveyard with an opening mausoleum, a set of ornate double doors and gigantic curtains painted to look like scenes from New York City. The sets designed, built or shipped here vary in size from show to show. However, when shows require large sets, the giant shop often finds itself housing equally giant scenery. The set pieces currently in the shop for the University Theatre’s latest musical production, “Nice Work If You Can Get It,� are no exception. This set, rented from Music Theatre Wichita, weighs more than a ton when all the walls, curtain drops, moving scenery and props are taken into account. Jeff Baldwin, the technical director of the OU scene shop, said moving a show of this scale into the Elsie C. Brackett Theatre and preparing it for opening night can be a long and delicate process. “A lot of people have this misconception that we’re just going to build this show,� Baldwin said. “They think it’s just a couple of walls. But it’s not. There are weeks of meetings before the set is even signed off on. Then, you have to order all the material. Then, you have to build it in a certain way.� Baldwin, 40, is still new to OU, having only worked as the shop director since May 2017. He has been in the theater industry a little more than 12 years, working his way up from a hired carpenter to the head of OU’s scene shop. Baldwin said shows as large as “Nice Work If You Can Get It� are nothing new to him, but the sheer size of the set mandates careful planning and prepping. Meetings discussing costs and logistics lasted for several weeks before the
ALLYSSA ARENS/THE DAILY
Musical theatre junior Olivia Reid leads a dance number in “Nice Work If You Can Get It� on Feb. 8. The production opened to the public on Feb. 9 and runs through Feb. 18.
University Theatre signed off on renting the sets. In the end, it took two 18-wheelers to move the whole set from Wichita to OU. Most of the set was taken off the trucks by theater students from OU’s stagecraft class and moved into the Brackett Theatre using large, rolling scenery carts. According to Baldwin, the fine arts loading dock is 6 feet long, while many of the scene carts for “Nice Work If You Can Get It� were 20 feet long. Huge parts of scenery had to hang off the loading dock while being supported by students. Then, the students had to gently maneuver the carts into the scene shop. On average, Baldwin said it takes 15 people to unload a show the size of “Nice Work If You Can Get It.� It can take several people to unload just a single piece of scenery if it’s especially long or heavy. The unloading process generally takes around two days to complete. Once it’s inside the theater, the set has to be assembled, but it doesn’t come with any blueprints or instruction manuals. With the help of a liaison provided by the
Hurts Donut offers Valentine’s Dozens, delivery from ‘Cupid’
Universal Crossword
Siandhara Bonnet, @SiandharaB
Previous Solution
Monday- Very Easy Tuesday-Easy Wednesday- Easy Thursday- Medium Friday - Hard
Instructions: Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box.
of steel and weighs approximately 1,600 pounds, must b e ra i s e d a n d l o w e re d throughout the show. To move the scenery, the Brackett Theatre uses a double-fly purchase system. This means that for every 1 pound of scenery weight, 2 pounds of counterweight must be added if the piece is to move. That means students on the crew for “Nice Work If You Can Get It� must use 3,200 pounds of counterweight to move this section of the wall. “Not only is it a large set, it’s a touring set,� said Emma Antongiovanni, a sophomore scenic designer and undergraduate assistant in the scene shop. “You have to see what you have and what (the set) requires. Our rigging systems had to be modified to fit it. There are some modifications you have to make when working on a large touring set.� Whether modifications are needed or not, the University Theatre continues to put on shows like “Nice Work If You Can Get It� in order to give OU students the chance to work on shows that are larger than life. “Nice Work If You Can
Edited by Timothy Parker February 12, 2018
You may have heard of Valentine’s Day cards and grams, but what about Valentine’s Day doughnuts? Hurts Donut is selling Valentine’s Dozens, a dozen doughnuts decorated with pink, red and chocolate icing, for $20. Not only is the shop offering the special holiday-themed dozen, but for an additional $10, the customer can also get the doughnuts delivered by “Cupid� himself. “It’s definitely one of our busiest times of the year,� said Justin Gascot, a Hurts Donut employee. “Valentine’s and basically any holidays are our busiest times of the year.� The location has served Valentine’s Dozens since its opening, but the option to have “Cupid� deliver the doughnuts started in 2017, according to Gascot. Customers can preorder the delivery or the dozen by calling 405-283-6688. Deliveries will be made Feb. 13 and 14, and pickups are available until Feb. 28.
theater that owns the set, faculty and students build the show piece by piece. “There are probably 40 pieces in this set, but that’s just scenery,� Baldwin said. “The staircase is one piece, but it’s several individual units put together. It takes three pieces to make up the shack. There are pieces that roll, pieces to a bed and six or seven (curtain) drops. Really, there are probably closer to 75 pieces to this set.� With so many moving parts, it can take up to three weeks to complete the set, Baldwin said. Lyn Cramer, the director of “Nice Work If You Can Get It,� said she has worked on shows as big as this many times before. “Every set, no matter if it’s big or small, will give you issues,� Cramer said. “Luckily, this one doesn’t have a lot of issues. But it is a lot of work for the crew.� That’s because, Cramer said, the “Nice Work If You Can Get It� set is designed for a sizable union work crew rather than a group of college students. For instance, one wall of the set, which is made mostly
ACROSS 1 “___ Darn Cat!� 5 Small arguments 10 Unenviable destiny 14 Dingle Bay site 15 Synagogue book 16 “Need anything ___?� 17 From a distance 18 Antitheft device 19 Favoritism or prejudice 20 Loanable Halloween material? 23 Nervous 24 Recant 25 Trophies and such 28 Grounded measure? 30 Indian garment 31 Detest 33 Like slick winter roads 36 Disapprove of nearly everything? 40 A farm abode 41 Dental filling 42 ___ Bator, Mongolia 43 Dog command 44 Nears midnight 46 Love at the Eiffel Tower 2/12
49 Not frozen or canned 51 Mistaken bits of wood? 57 Yet another time 58 Cracks the books 59 Eye part 60 Sinatra or Turner 61 Star’s little turn 62 Drip through cracks 63 “___ does it� 64 Cause of insurance fraud 65 ... candle at both ___ DOWN 1 Bluish-green hue 2 Record player 3 Middle East native 4 Places to observe plants 5 Activates 6 “Graph� starters 7 “The Sheik of ___� (song) 8 Edible Tahitian root 9 Oafish sort 10 Make fillets 11 Miscellaneous assortments 12 City of Japan
13 Disheveled 21 Connecting word 22 Common pack animal 25 Makes requests 26 Be stalled in a line 27 Highfalutin’ 28 Ship-toshore call? 29 It’s corny 31 With skill 32 Squeezing creature 33 Not busy 34 Extended family 35 Strong longings 37 “Glycerine� start 38 Type of lab or fingerprint 39 Old place to go?
43 Place of many heroes? 44 Teacher’s teaching 45 Thing on your butt? 46 Let up, as rain 47 Frenzy 48 Foretelling signs 49 Gets all frothy 50 Event with clowns 52 Huge sea creature 53 “B.J. and the ___� 54 Bakery mainstay 55 Like a propped ball 56 Gullible victims
PREVIOUS PREVIOUSPUZZLE PUZZLEANSWER ANSWER
2/11 2018 Andrews McMeel Syndication 2/8 ŠŠ2018 Andrews McMeel Syndication www.upuzzles.com www.upuzzles.com
MY MISTAKE By Timothy E. Parker
Get It� opened on Feb. 9 and will run through Feb. 18 at the Elsie C. Brackett Theatre. Upcoming performances are at 8 p.m. Feb. 16 and 17, with a matinee performance at 3 p.m. Feb. 18. Tickets can be purchased
online, at the Catlett Music Center box office or by calling 405-325-4101. Heath Kuykendall
kuykendallheath@ou.edu
CLASSIFIEDS J Housing Rentals DUPLEXES UNFURNISHED $550/mo! Walk to OU! 2bd, 2 blocks from Sarkey’s Energy Center. Carpet, blinds, NEW CH/A, appliances, W/D DW: Call 203-3493
HELP WANTED Care needed for quadriplegic. Hours needed 8-11 am and 8:30-10 pm. Flexible, fulltime or part-time, $10/hour. 405-826-8695.
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HOROSCOPE By Eugenia Last
Copyright 2017, Newspaper Enterprise Assn.
FOR RELEASE: MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2018 ASTROGRAPH by Eugenia Last AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) -- Helping others may make you feel good, but make sure you don’t overdo it. Someone will overreact if you are too demanding or judgmental. PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) -Personal information you share will improve your position and reputation. Participation will encourage deeper beliefs and stronger connections. Don’t argue to prove your point; just do your own thing.
choices based on what you can handle mentally, financially and emotionally before you sign up. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Network with peers to gain a different perspective on the latest trends. Keeping up in areas of interest will give you a better idea of what you’ll have to do to be competitive. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) -- Refuse to give in to emotional criticism. Know what you are capable of, and follow through with your plans. Don’t limit your chance to get ahead or make a difference.
ARIES (March 21-April 19) -Watch your back. Concentrate on whatever will help you advance. An inevitable change should be handled openly and objectively. Take the initiative and live up to your expectations.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) -- Spend more time on personal growth and changes that make you feel good about your appearance. Associations with people you find trustworthy and reliable will help you make better choices.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) -- Look for alternatives instead of overreacting to a situation that arises. Don’t feel the need to make a move before you have heard all the facts. Focus on taking care of your responsibilities.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) -- Protect against injury or insult. Don’t share with people you don’t know well or aren’t sure you can trust. Live within your means and avoid indulgent behavior.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) -- Do things properly the first time to avoid getting into a bitter dispute over a lack of detail and precision. Intelligent ideas are only favorable if they are affordable. CANCER (June 21-July 22) -- Keep moving until you reach your destination. The momentum you build will help you outmaneuver anyone trying to compete with you. A unique twist to an old idea will come in handy. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) -- Size up what everyone else is doing and what’s available to you. Make
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Rely on your intuitive senses to help you make the right choice when it comes to personal money matters, contracts or legal concerns. Physical changes are encouraged.
February 12-14, 2018 •
SPORTS
George Stoia, sports editor dailysports@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666 oudaily.com/sports • Twitter: @OUDailySports
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AUSTIN CARRIERE/THE DAILY
Senior guard Gabbi Ortiz shoots over a defender in a game against West Virginia on Feb 3. The Sooners beat Kansas, 72-52, on Saturday.
Sooners outmatch Kansas
Oklahoma moves to fourth place in Big 12 with victory
ERICKSON DEMBOWSKI @EDubya42
Oklahoma (13-12, 8-6 Big 12) earned its third win in four games Saturday with a 72-52 victory over Kansas (11-13, 2-11 Big 12),
completing a season sweep of the Jayhawks for the third season in a row. The Sooners outmatched Kansas in almost every facet of the game. Oklahoma held the Jayhawks to a collective 27.1 percent from the field — the lowest mark of the season for an OU opponent — and just 3-of-22 from deep. In addition, Kansas
totaled a mere five assists on the night. In comparison, senior guard Gabbi Ortiz and graduate guard Maddie Manning had five assists apiece. Oklahoma had five players reach double-digit scoring, with Ortiz leading the way with 16 points on 5-of9 shooting and 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Senior center Vionise Pierre-Louis had a
game-high nine rebounds to go with her 11 points. Junior forward Ijeoma Odimgbe reached double-digit scoring for the first time in her career, tallying a career-high 11 points on 5-of-6 from the field. Saturday’s win pushed the Sooners to fourth place in the Big 12 going into the final four games of the regular season.
Oklahoma continues its road trip Saturday, Feb. 17, against West Virginia (18-7, 6-7 Big 12) in Morgantown, West Virginia. The Sooners won their first meeting against the Mountaineers, 76-57, in Norman. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. CT. Erickson Dembowski
erickson.w.dembowski-1@ ou.edu
Men lose third consecutive game Sooners fall short despite second-half comeback attempt GEORGE STOIA @georgestoia
COURTESY OF CHRIS JORGENSEN/IOWA STATE DAILY
Freshman guard Trae Young attempts to go up to the basket during the game against Iowa State Feb. 10. The Sooners fell to the Cyclones, 88-80.
No. 17 Oklahoma (168, 6-6 Big 12) lost to Iowa State (13-11, 4-8 Big 12), 88-80, after overcoming a 17-point deficit. Coming off consecutive losses to West Virginia and Texas, the Sooners hoped to get out of their slump on the road against Iowa State. Both teams struggled out of the gate, tied at 6 after the first timeout of the game. Iowa State then bust the game wide open, taking as high as a 17-point lead in
the first half and a 10-point lead at the break. Oklahoma came roaring back in the second half, cutting the Iowa State lead to just 3 points with under eight minutes to play and tying it under five minutes. The Sooners ran out of gas, though, and eventually fell, 88-80. Freshman guard Trae Young finished w ith 22 points and 11 assists. Junior guard Christian James also finished with 22 points and nine rebounds. Oklahoma will be back in action Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT at Texas Tech. George Stoia
georgestoia@ou.edu
Oklahoma puts up another high score Men’s gymnastics comes out on top against Hawkeyes MITCHELL BARNES @mitchell_e_ou
The No. 1 Sooners and No. 1 0 Hawke ye s m e t Saturday, with the Sooners putting up the highest score in the NCAA (418.850) for the second week in a row to beat the Hawkeyes (402.850). The Sooners performed well all-around, but the difference in score was also caused by the amount of flaws the Hawkeyes had. During the meet, Iowa suffered several rough landings in every event except for vault. On the Sooners’ side, stars like juniors Yul Moldauer and Genki Suzuki shined. Freshman Gage Dyer also performed well, with scores of 13 or higher across floor, high bar and parallel bars, in which he placed third. Suzuki scored 14 or higher across his events.
5
CALEB WELLER/THE DAILY
Junior Levi Anderson performs a floor routine during a meet Feb. 3. The Sooners recorded the highest score in the NCAA during their meet against Iowa on Saturday.
He sealed the win for the Sooners with a perfectlystuck landing on high bar, leading to a score of 14.500 and earning him first in the event. “I hardly remember what happened,” Suzuki said. “Anchoring on high bar is a big thing for me, and being able to stick that landing and see all of the fans cheer
brings a feeling that can’t be matched.” Moldauer, while not appearing in every event like he did last week, still managed to achieve solid scores in his four events, all of which were more than 14 except for his 13.750 performance on high bar. It wasn’t just Moldauer and Suzuki who made the
score as great as it was for the meet, though the two did win or tie for the titles in five of the six events. This performance was a team effort, and the award ceremony showed that. The Sooners nearly swept ever y award from Iowa, coming in first on every event except parallel bars. “I have my eye on national
championships, and I have a certain standard for these guys to meet. There’s always more to improve upon, including tonight’s performance. We’ll (be) back to work next week, getting ready for what’s next,” said coach Mark Williams. Several alumni gymnasts were also honored during the meet, including one who passed away on June 3, 2017. Ric Swezey died at the age of 45, leaving behind friends and family who expressed some of their fondest memories of Swezey during the meet. Between each rotation, a friend of Swezey’s appeared on the video board to tell stories of him. The Sooners are off next week, as Moldauer will head to Las Vegas for the Winter Cup to compete for a spot on the USA National Team. Oklahoma will be home again on Feb. 24 to take on Navy. Mitchell Barnes
mitchell.e.barnes-1@ ou.edu
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VOL. 103, NO. 10
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6
SPORTS
• February 12-14,2018
OU softball returns, triumphs
Sooners open 2018 season with win in GCU tournament ABBY BITTERMAN @Abby_Bitterman
No. 1 Oklahoma (4-0) beat Grand Canyon (2-2) 10-0 in five innings to claim its second victory over the Lopes in the GCU Kickoff Tournament. The Sooners jumped out to an early lead, scoring two in the top of the first. Oklahoma got another five runs across the plate in the second, as it had its best offensive game of the tournament so far. Freshman utility Jocelyn Alo hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning to get the Sooners to 10 runs. Oklahoma scored those
10 runs on just seven hits while leaving eight on base. Senior lefty Paige Lowary started the game in the circle for the Sooners, but the team would end up using four pitchers in just five innings of play. Lowary threw for one inning, gave up two hits and struck out one. Senior left-handed pitcher Paige Parker threw for two and one-third innings, and she also gave up two hits and struck out one. Sophomore righty Melanie Olmos threw one inning and gave up a walk, and sophomore utility Nicole Mendes threw the final two-thirds of an inning. Abby Bitterman abbybitt@ou.edu
CAITLYN EPES/THE DAILY
The OU softball team celebrates after winning a game March 8, 2017. The Sooners were undefeated in the GCU Kickoff Tournament this weekend.
Senior night ends with wrestling victory Final home bout of season leads to win against Edinboro CONNOR NOBLE @connornobes
T h e S o o n e r s h o s t ed Edinboro in their final home bout of the season on Saturday, Feb. 10. Oklahoma won the meet, 19-16. The Sooners celebrated senior night before the start of the meet by presenting the athletes and their families. The seniors were the highlight of the night, going 4-0 in their individual matches. The seniors accounted for all but 4 points of the team’s total score. Senior Mike Longo
capped off his final home meet with a major decision victory at the 141-pound weight class. Longo controlled the entirety of the match, securing the major after receiving 1 point for riding time. “I have nothing to lose, really. It is kind of relaxing,” Longo said. “When you are running sprints, you can really give everything you got in those final couple strides. And that is really where we are in the season — it doesn’t really matter what you did earlier in the season, people only remember what happens in March.” Senior Dawaylon Barnes picked up a 15-6 major decision at the 165-pound weight class. Despite the significance of the meet,
in a highly technical match. Senior Andrew Dixon put on a performance in the final home meet of his career. Dixon electrified the home crowd with a 9-0 major decision at the 197pound class. Junior Davion Jeffries picked up a major decision victory at 149 pounds. Jeffries won the one-sided bout by a score of 12-0. CALEB WELLER/THE DAILY
Senior Andrew Dixon grapples with his opponent during a match Feb. 10. The Sooner wrestling team defeated Edinboro, 19-16.
Barnes kept a level head and focused on his priorities. “It just flashed across my mind that tonight is my last home dual meet, pretty much ever,” Barnes said. “It means a lot to me that I won,
but you can always do more. I got the major, but I could have got the tech. If I got the tech, I could have gotten the pin. If I got the pin in the third period, I could’ve got the fall in the first. But a
major is good, and I am glad we got the win.” Senior Yoanse Mejias came into this match ranked No. 10 in the country at 174 pounds. Mejias defeated his opponent by a score of 3-2
Conner Noble
connornoble17@gmail. com
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