Vo l u m e I I I , N u m b e r X X I
Celebrating The Precious Human Tapestry
March 13, 2009
Brandeis comedians take smarts to the stage BY ALISON CHANNON Editor
Neither Myq Kaplan ’00 nor Zach Sherwin ’02 thought they’d pursue standup comedy after graduation. Kaplan studied philosophy, psychology, math, and linguistics, while Sherwin tackled politics and legal studies. To the outside eye, each seemed to be following the typical Brandeis career path. Kaplan jumped on the graduate school bandwagon, enrolling in a linguistics Master’s program at Boston University right after Brandeis, but Sherwin made the break with the Hiattendorsed trajectory earlier, electing to pursue sketch comedy with a group he started on campus. Now, nine and seven years after graduating, Kaplan (né Michael) and Sherwin (aka MC Mr. Napkins), may not be doctors or lawyers, but they are paying the bills. Born and raised in New Jersey, Kaplan made the logical leap to Brandeis for his undergraduate education. Between hitting the books and working at Usdan, Kaplan dabbled in sketch comedy with Boris’ Kitchen, but expended most of his performing energy as a musician, playing his guitar at Chums, and singing with VoiceMale.
more jokes than lyrics. Then, in the fall of 2002, Kaplan made the switch complete. For nearly seven years, he’s lived and worked as a comedian, performing in clubs and at colleges, earning enough money to make comedy is sole pursuit. And after six years working and growing in Boston, Kaplan made the move to New York last August. The son of a single mother (who happens to be a rabbi), Ohio-born, and MissouriPHOTO by Neil Reynolds raised Sherwin found his footMYQ KAPLAN ing in comedy before Kaplan. Kaplan began taking his act into Boston during his senior year, but at that point, While at Brandeis, he formed a sketch he still wanted to pursue life as a “singer- group called The Late Night Players songwriter with legions of fans.” But The with a group of his best friends. Sherwin Comedy Studio in Cambridge offered him described the group’s sketches as “very a performance slot, and so he began per- absurd and whimsical, and sophomoric, forming what he called “comedic music” and I don’t necessarily mean that in a bad way.” during his final year at Brandeis. Though Sherwin cites The Late Night Even then, Kaplan still wanted to be the next John Mayer. “I was in grad school Players’ last show on campus as one of before I decided to do stand-up for its his best Brandeis memories, he wasn’t own sake,” he said. In 2002, Kaplan began convinced that he wanted to pursue commaking the shift from aspiring musician to edy post-graduation. While the other guys aspiring comic. He found himself seeing in the group wanted to test their comemore stand-up than concerts and writing dic mettle outside the Brandeis bubble,
Sherwin wavered. “When I was graduating I was really at a loss of what to do,” Sherwin said. “I was looking at joining the navy and learning cryptology,” but after receiving a phone call from a fellow Late Night Player offering encouragement and a place to crash, “I was like, ‘I really like these guys a lot. If they think we can do it and they really want me in it then it seems like an opportunity is presenting itself.’ So I decided to do it.” After starting in small venues around Boston, The Late Night Players jumped on the college circuit, touring full time for three years. The group parted ways in October, freeing Sherwin to pursue his one-man comedic rap routine full time. Like Kaplan, Sherwin started in music. He began writing raps at age ten. “The raps I was writing were about what a thug criminal I was, which was funny because a) I was ten, and b) I was me. So that didn’t really pan out.” While Sherwin abandoned his “gangsta” aspirations, it was criminality that brought him back to rap. A few years ago he received a ticket for riding his bike on his way to work. Feeling angry and defensive, he wrote a funny rap. His friends’ positive See BRANDEIS COMEDIANS, p. 10
You want me to talk about my down there? The Vagina Monologues, 2009
BY SAM NEGIN Staff
Well, everybody, they’re back. No, I’m not talking about the in-laws or those pesky midterms that I keep hearing everyone moaning about around this time of the semester. What I am referring to, however, are vaginas. Yes, vaginas. Or, rather, “The Vagina Monologues”, Eve Ensler’s theater piece based on interviews she conducted with a number of women from all over the world, who cover a wide range of ages, races and experiences. The play was put on this year, as it has been every year at Brandeis for the past 8 years, in conjunction with V-Day, a not-for-profit charity which licenses performances of the show to raise money in support of female victims of sexual abuse. To that end, by the time this article goes to press, Brandeis’ campus will have been host to a number of vagina-related events, including cookie decorating, an orgasm workshop, and a panel discussion relating to the real life Vagina Monologues of some of Brandeis’ faculty and staff. This year’s performance of the play, like the performances of many years, was alternatively heartwarming, depressing, shocking, touching, uplifting, and disturbing, successfully accomplishing what I believe to be at least one of the play’s goals: to cover the full experience of vaginas. Whether they be heterosexual, homosexual, pansexual, shaved, hairy, in pleasure or in pain, whether they are virgins or in a concensual relationship or if they have been raped, and whether or not they have given birth, all vaginas are welcome in this play
and they are to be loved and honored. This year saw some favorite monologues return while some were seen on the Shapiro stage for the first time. The evening began, as it does most years here, with a monologue titled “Hair”, performed by Yael Rooks-Rapport. Her performance of the piece, one of the more humorous of the bunch, was tempered with the right combination of seriousness and humor that got the show off on the right foot. Rachel Copel’s reading of “The Flood”, about a 70-something woman recalling a time from her youth when, after being kissed unexpectedly by her date in his white Chevy Bel Air, she started to flood from “down there”, certainly had its funny moments, as can be expected based on the writing of this piece. However, from a theatrical point of view, it would have come across better had Copel known her lines better or, knowing that she didn’t have it all down, committed more fully to what she did know and left the rest behind. One of the real star performances in this year’s show was Michelle Miller who performed a monologue called “The Vagina Workshop”. This particular monologue is about a woman who, though she had been comfortable with her vagina before and had experienced much of the pleasure a vagina can cause (albeit unintentionally), she had not had any positive experiences with it for long enough that she was starting to get frustrated about it, and even worried that it had stopped working. At a vagina workshop she attends, she rediscovers her vagina’s potential and her control over herself. Miller’s performance of the piece, probably the longest single monologue in
the set, was brilliant. She was not only able to bring convincing life to this woman’s plight but also to stay present in each moment of the piece, creating an arc that was believable and heartfelt. The most powerful piece of the evening, whose title is not printed in the program, was performed by six of the women in the cast about a group of Japanese pleasure women during World War II. Now all in their late 70’s through early 90’s, these women still remember the pains and tortures they went through over 60 years ago. Much of what they went through is too graphic for print here, but these women certainly went through serious harm for the work they were forced into. This monologue was a new one for the Brandeis stage and, having seen it last night, I can understand why. These women have yet to be acknowledged, or apologized to, for their pain and sacrifice by the Japanese government – something they have been asking every day for a long while. Near the end of this year’s show, as the Brandeis Vagina Club’s show has done every year, the show neared its end with a monologue titled “The Woman Who Loved
to Make Vaginas Happy”. This monologue is most often performed by a woman with a big personality and this year’s performer was no exception. As Kaamila Mohamed strutted onto the stage, you could tell just by looking at her, hair teased out large and in charge, that something special was about to hapPHOTO from Internet Source pen. She started off the monologue innocently enough, but by the end was giving us her interpretations of the various moans she had experienced in her illustrious career as a sex worker. So, what is this show about? Well, it’s about many things. It’s about vaginas, for sure, but it’s about much more than that. It’s about empowering women, it’s about raising awareness of the full experience of real vaginas and the women who own them, and sometimes, it’s just about having fun. "The Vagina Monologues" by Eve Ensler; directed and coordinated by Ashley Sauerhof and Amanda DiSanto; designed and produced through the collaboration of the members of Brandeis University’s Vagina Club and V-Day 2009 College Campaign. March 6-7, 2009 at the Carl J. Shapiro Theater, 415 South Street, Waltham MA 02453. Run time 100 minutes with no intermission.
Diverse City 9
March 13, 2009
VOICES
Bernstein festival of the arts sneak preview BY MAXWELL PRICE Editor
For many students working in creative arts departments at Brandeis, the Leonard Bernstein Festival of the Creative Arts acts as the culminating event of a year’s worth of hard work and imaginative discovery. Yet the intense and varied outpouring of youthful creative energy serves not only as a showcase for talented artists, but enriches the cultural life of Brandeis for all students. The annual festival will take place this year from April 22-26, with performances and visual art installations occurring throughout campus, including the Slosberg Music Center and the Shapiro Campus Theater. The Bernstein festival is the legacy of the groundbreaking American composer and early Brandeis faculty, who collaborated in 1952 (along with other notable artists, like actress Lotte Lenya and poet William Carlos Williams) to create a forum for innovative artistic expression. The festival’s philosophy has emphasized the links between the arts and our age’s social foundations. In keeping with Brandeis’s emphasis on social justice, the festival seeks out works that foster the symbiotic relationship between artistic creation and cultural understandings at the core of our generation’s lives. Festival participants may apply for grants through the Office of the Arts, and this year’s winners offer us a window into the
multifaceted event’s overarching themes. If Bernstein’s principle of art revealing the collective feelings and spirit of a society holds true half a century after he articulated it, the winners of this year’s grants show the innovative forms that develop in a pluralistic liberal arts setting. Cultural hybrid figures prominently in the performance of Mochila, an East-meets-West ensemble that melds Arabic and Indian instrumentation with jazz, reggae, and classical influences. This cross-cultural conversation also takes place through the visual arts, notably in Danielle Garfinkel’s ’09 use of Indonesian Batik textile design to represent food logos, considering globalization and gaps in nutrition around the world. Likewise, several artists have chosen to work in multimedia formats or integrating multiple types of expression into unique works. Mu-Xuan Lin (GRAD) will unfold an original narrative through chamber music, dance, and video, while Catherine Wagner’s ’09 All Springs based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses straddles the line between theater and dance. Bekah Richards ’10 will use text, photography, and collage to explore trust and transgression in “Who Will Ever Believe in Oaths.” One of the most exciting creative syntheses lies in the intersection of art and science. The Brandeis Physics Club is constructing a solar-powered kinetic and sound sculpture that one can only hope will harness not only energy but also the imaginative won-
The perils of watching “Watchmen” BY MATTHEW FOWLER Staff
The most difficult part about watching "Watchmen" was facing expectations. Sitting down to a film that one has already read or seen in another form usually causes the viewer to compare that work to its other incarnations. From the moment the movie was announced on the opening weekend, fanboys everywhere were wetting their pants in hopes that "Watchmen" would be the next great comic book movie. To be clear, Zach Snyder’s movie about superheroes in alternate 1980s timeline is entertaining. For fans of the graphic novel, the movie follows the storytelling structure as well as the overall themes that are present in the legendary piece of literature (yes, I said literature). However, undoubtedly, the movie will lose critical favor with those who have never read the Alan Moore penned story. Watching the film is not like reading the graphic novel. The two stories, while almost exactly the same in content as well as the way they are visually shown, do not create same kind of enjoyment. That is not to say that the movie’s entertainment value is greater than the graphic novel or vice versa (I apologize for using
that phrase). The entertainment one can find in the graphic novel as opposed to that of the movie is just simply different. For example, Moore’s story is drenched in originality with regards to narrative and visual appearance. The images pop off the page and plant themselves into readers' subconscious whether they like it or not. The movie, while still highly enjoyable, seems like a retread of "300" as well as "Sin City." In all honesty, despite the different story, the movie version is something we have all seen before. To be candid, none of the performances truly stick out or resonate after the lights have turned on. "Watchmen" unlike "The Dark Knight" does not have a role that allows a member of the cast to truly take over the movie as Heath Ledger did as the Joker. However, this is due in large part to the movie truly being an ensemble piece rather than podium for a singular individual to steal the show. The movie, like the original story itself, is told in a very dark manner. With bodies and blood flying every which way (including the blood of dogs in a particularly gruesome scene) the movie stays true to the graphic novel’s tone. There are very few moments of humor because the story (despite what the grown people prancing around in costumes with wings may make you infer) is a gloomy tale of a world on the brink of Armageddon. The movie is not meant to be a campy affair (as much as Joel Schumacher probably would have liked it to See WATCHMEN, p. 10 PHOTO from Internet Source
der of natural world. Yet not all arts projects for the Bernstein festival feature such creative intermixtures. Many, such as Tim Pracher-Dix’s ’09 original play based on the lives of immigrant Brandeis custodians, serve as the capstones of students’ in-depth studies in a particular discipline. In a similar vein, several dance performances are choreographed by graduate students; Susan Dibble and the Brandeis Dance Collective will also showcase new works. The fascinating part of attending an arts festival is that each person will have a unique experience. Whether you choose to see new electronic music or classical interpretaPHOTO from The Hoot archives tions, theater of the ORIGINAL PAINTING: This portrait was featured in last year’s festival. absurd or a high tragedy, the way you view the Bernstein festival of media, however, we can only hope that will differ from the way others perceive it. this year the festival will serve as inconAlthough the content of every work might trovertible proof that the arts are alive and focus on different themes through a variety well at Brandeis.
Cynical Optimism
A final tribute to my dear friend, the Polaroid
BY SAMANTHA SHOKIN Staff
There was always something deliciously satisfying about a Polaroid snapshot. The process itself was an event—the blinding clap of flash, the moment’s anticipation, then the single square of blackened photo paper that came streaming out of a grotesquely bulky object which, by today’s standards, would be laughable to call a portable device. Somehow the act of furiously flapping a photograph in the air to get it to develop “instantly” seems ridiculously old school, and yet, longingly nostalgic. But alas—the days of instant Polaroids are no more. When I heard some months ago that Polaroid was getting out of the Polaroid business I was slightly devastated. According to Patrick J. Lyons of the New York Times: “The company, which stopped making instant cameras for consumers a year ago and for commercial use a year before that, said that as soon as it had enough instant film manufactured to last it through 2009, it would stop making that, too.” Granted, this was bound to happen sooner or later. There is really no place for Polaroids in an age where cell phones are considered inferior if they can’t take pictures. But I feel like the end to Polaroids is premature, like I never got to say goodbye—never got to formally part with a dear old friend. I shutter to think—excuse the bad pun, couldn’t resist—that the lyrics to Outkast’s “Hey Ya” will make absolutely no sense to future generations. Shake it like a what? Young’uns will ask me, and I’ll just sigh in my pathetic oldfolkiness. For all you Polaroid-enthusiasts out there: www.beforeidieiwantto.org. Check
it. Browse it. Put on some music that makes you feel artsy and act like it. Because really, you can’t compare the candid quality of an instant, less-than-perfect quality photograph with today’s abundant digital ‘pix’. How many times have you deleted an unflattering photo on a digital camera? It is the perfect imperfection of an immediate print that makes one so appealing. No editing on iPhoto, no untagging on Facebook—just satisfaction in holding the tangible form of a single instant between your fingertips. And then, of course, defying its white borders with a permanent Sharpie marker. “Summer ’95. Me+sis baking cookies.” No, it just doesn’t have the same appeal in print as it does scrawled in my five-yearold chicken scratch on the white border of a Polaroid. My relatives, as proud new parents, frantically try and document every moment of their kids’ adolescence with literally hundreds of digital photographs. But then I look at the few cherished snapshots I have in my possession and can’t help but feel that they’re so much more meaningful in their small quantity. Not to mention that everything looks so much more charmingly retro on instant film. I think to what will happen when I decide to look through a photo album one day in the distant future. All the memories I have now will be floating around somewhere in cyber space or trapped inside someone’s cold and impersonal hard drive. I want future generations to preserve the essence of the illustrious Polaroid. I want my moments to remain captured and unedited. I miss the days when photographs weren’t abused solely for my friends on the Internet to convince me that they have bustling social lives. But mostly, I’m just nostalgic. I bid thee adieu, dear Polaroid. Andre 3000’s lyrics will never be the same again.
10 Diverse City
March 13, 2009
CHORUS
“War Child” comp features superstar pairings BY DANIELLE GEWURZ Editor
Since “We are the World” and “Live Aid,” the idea of music as a force to raise both money and awareness for issues of great international import has gained traction. The “War Child Heroes” compilation provides a slightly new twist on an old idea of a compilation of covers. The artists whose songs are covered selected the artists who performed the covers. Featuring pairings like Beck covering Bob Dylan, Peaches covering Iggy Pop, Duffy covering Wings, and Hot Chip covering Joy Division, the album’s theme of placing faith in the next generation is exemplified by the idea of established artists placing their artwork in the hands of the up and coming artists of today. The opening Beck track, “Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat,” adds some of that “Guero” Dust Brothers stomp to Dylan, and it’s a solid cover. Beck recreates the same tune with an entirely different emphasis, using different phrasing to transform the track. No one is going to out-Dylan Dylan, but at least Beck approaches the track on his own terms, and it’s an interesting take. Covering Bowie has obvious pitfalls, especially with a track like “Heroes.” TV on the Radio kill it, though, bringing their
signature sound to a fantastic rendition that could be Bowie in Brooklyn. This title track is rightfully the standout of the album, proving Bowie’s impeccable taste as well as TV on the Radio’s chops, and the percussion-heavy track glides along, building to a climax and never disappointing. Less successful are some of the pop covers. Lily Allen, with an assist from The Clash’s Mick Jones, turns in a completely defanged version of “Straight to Hell.” In slowing down the track, Allen loses the urgency, Strummer’s righteous fury, and contempt in the original, which is unfortunate. The muddled result, from Allen’s careful enunciation and even tone, disappoints. The same goes for Duffy’s “Live and Let Die” cover, which lacks the vocal interest or dynamics of the original. There are some obvious pairings. Having The Kooks cover the Kinks’ “Victoria” was a poor choice and goes on far too long, but giving The Hold Steady a Springsteen tune (“Atlantic City”) is like shooting fish in a barrel. Thankfully Craig Finn reaches beyond a note-for-note cover, and it’s not a bad showing. The same goes for Peaches covering her former duet partner, Iggy Pop’s “Search and Destroy.” There’s quite a bit more pep in the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O taking on “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” and the Blondie classic “Call
Me,” well-rendered by Franz Ferdinand. On the whole, the album is fun, a solid compilation well worth more than one listen. The majority of the songs are solid, recognizable but novel and containing demonstrable talent. While that makes for a great CD, there’s a disconnect between the songs and the album’s mission. The album artwork features crayondrawn rifles and each track name and artist printed on a silhouette of a bullet rendered in a Crayola color. However, the front of the album is just tagged as, “The Ultimate Covers Album” and only in tiny print on the lower left corner of the back of the album is there any mention of the very worthy War Child project, which seeks to help children affected by conflicts across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. There’s something almost cynical about the charity album in this incarnation; the idea that consumers can be sold charity, or a good cause, in a slickly designed package that presents consciousness as hip, as a commodity that can be bought. Sure, the compilation is a great listen, and a worthwhile buy. But
Nerdy is funny for ‘Deis comedians BRANDEIS COMEDIANS (from p. 8)
feedback convinced him to put more time into comedic rapping. And it was encouragement from Kaplan in 2007 that lit a fire under Sherwin. He’s been working on his Napkins act, writing and performing in the Boston area, since December of 2007. Though their paths to comedy differed, Kaplan and Sherwin share many similarities, starting with weird names. Kaplan’s parents had more sense than to spell his name M-y-q. His birth certificate says ‘Michael,’ as does his driver’s license. “It was me as a teenager right after Prince changed his name to a symbol,” Kaplan explained. “It sort of stuck and it works well as a stage name. It’s easier to Google myself.” Sherwin’s name takes a bit more explaining. In the real world, Sherwin goes by Zach, but on stage, he’s known as MC Mr. Napkins. As an aspiring teenage rapper, he’d gone through a series of unfortunate monikers, including “Zach the Ripper.” But in his twenties, Sherwin decided to go for something more dignified. “I sort of had an epiphany one day and just sort of thought of the name and liked the sound of it,” he said. “Sometimes people think it’s a cleaning thing or that I write my raps on napkins, but none of those are true,” Sherwin added. Indeed, there’s no beautiful story behind the name, it just “signifies that I don’t take myself overly seriously as a rapper.” While Sherwin may not take himself too
seriously as a rapper, his subject matter is not exactly frivolous. He raps the anagrams of news headlines in a weekly video post on his website, while also writing raps about fascist dictators, and medical equipment. Presidents and chemistry are fair game too. “I like doing raps now about either a) embarrassing things that happened to me when I was a little kid or b) topics that are…humorously inappropriate to be writing a rap about,” Sherwin remarked. “I’m glad that the side effect is that they’re sometimes educational,” he said. “I’m not trying to be geeky or dorky…the things I write raps about are the things I find interesting.” No less the intellectual, Kaplan’s comedy makes smart funny. Amidst jokes about Prohibition, his veganism, or gay marriage, Kaplan will throw quantum physics concepts into his routine. And while he doesn’t censor himself when he PHOTO by Keith Pierce writes, (“I like to write whatever I MC MR. NAPKINS think,” he said), he’s wary of calling his comCheck out Myq Kaplan and MC Mr. edy intellectual. Napkins Mar. 20 at 7:30 at the The “I’m just trying to be myself,” he said, Oasis Coffeehouse & Gallery at the First “I’m not trying to sound smart.” Presbyterian Church of Waltham. Tickets Kaplan may not be trying to sound smart are $8 with a Brandeis ID. when he’s trying to sound funny, but after To hear more check out interviews with all, a liberal arts education is a terrible Myq Kaplan and MC Mr. Napkins at thething to waste. hoot.net
PHOTO from Internet Source
I hope that listeners consider supporting the organization itself, or becoming more involved. A vague “awareness” of the issues involved in war zones furthered through commerce does a disservice to the notion of charity and the public interest. So while the compilation is worth a listen on its own merits, it’s somewhat disheartening that War Child created it as a major outreach effort. To find out ways you can support War Child, regardless of your musical taste, visit www. warchildusa.org.
Watching “Watchmen” WATCHMEN (from p. 9)
be). When the blood isn’t spewing, Snyder borrows from noir-styled detective films of the past. This is, of course, taken directly from the panels of the original graphic novel, but nonetheless is an exciting homage to the “who done it” movies of yesteryear. Let’s get something straight. The hype and undue expectations that the "Watchmen" movie has been met with from the outset of its production will be impossible to match. No movie, unless perfectly executed, can live up to the excitement surrounding a movie adapted from a defining piece of literature (there is that word again) premiering relatively close in release date to what is arguably the best comic-book movie of all time (and I’m not talking about "The Spirit"). However, it is unfair to lambast "Watchmen" with critiques based upon how good the source material is or how much one enjoyed "The Dark Knight." Those two pieces of pop-culture history are at the apex of their respective genres. Entering the theater with the mindset that "Watchmen would position itself among that category is just crazy." Take the movie for what it is. Entertaining (and long).
Intercultural Center Calendar Revive Mumbai & SASA: "Dhamaka" Mar. 7, 10:00 p.m. – 2:00 a.m. Sherman Function Hall Admission: $3 per ticket
The South Asian Students’ Association in collaboration with Revive Mumbai, a student group organized in response to the attacks in Mumbai, present “Dhamaka”. Dance the night away with music brought to you by one of Boston’s premier DJs, DJ Thakrar. Food and drinks will also be sold. All proceeds will go towards establishing the Rabbi Gavriel & Rebbetzin Rivka Holtzberg Scholarship for Peace for young, impoverished scholars in South Asia. Come shop for a good cause, or just to dance.
I-Club: PACHANGA Vol. II Mar. 14, 10:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m. Levin Ballroom Admission: $5 per ticket, pre-sale ONLY
The best party of the semester is finally here, brought to you by I-Club! Tickets will be sold from 6 pm - 9 pm at Shapiro Campus Center and Usdan, starting Saturday, March 7th. Do get your tickets early before they are sold out! *This semester, tickets are sold ONLY as pre-sale in order to guarantee entrance for everyone.
Diverse City 11
March 13, 2009
END-NOTE “Slice N Deis’s” final episode best yet BY JASON WONG Staff
BTV premiered “Slice N Deis’s” final episode, “The Pact”, which is the sixth in the series. BTV should be proud of this one. The episode entertained from beginning to end with its interesting plot line, popular references, and outrageous humor. “The Pact” starts with Brendon, played by Alex Gaman ’09, bored with tradition and his friends who are doing homework. In reference to “American Pie,” he proposes that they form a pact to get laid in the coming weekend. Everyone agrees to try; nobody ends up with just a simple lay. We learn about each character’s weekend through their personal segments. Walter, played by Josh Reuss ’10, decides to play stalker to land a movie date with a girl. Nicole, played by Diana Benlevy ’09, tries to hook up with a not-soambiguously gay guy. Ed, played by Gdaly Berlin ’10, takes a druginduced take in making his moves on a junkie. Ronnie, played by Ted Levin ’10, snoops in the library to
secretly post himself on Craig’s List for some quick action. Brendon tries to smooth talk his way to sex over the phone. The acting was adequate in this episode, which gave a few memorable performances. Levin was brilliant in his scenes. From his secret agent stealth to his freakout with special guest Nyssa Romine ’10, he was hilarious and enjoyable to watch. Reuss’ scenes were also very well done, especially with the creative incorporation of a certain popular SNL skit. As in all episodes, Narayanan plays the most absurd character roles but in a comical way. In this episode, he conveyed a cracked out drug dealing assistant by jittering in a face mask. The quality of the plot prevailed as the most improved element in the Slice N Deis series. Producer Arun Narayanan ’10 announced that they had seven writers work on the script for this episode, up from just two that they were using previously. While the Slice N Deis crew loves to include plenty of drug and Brandeisian references alongside their outrageous
ideas, they all seemed to work much better in this plotline than in others. The plot also allowed ample freedom for the characters to express themselves in hilarious ways. The plots in previous episodes had fallen short, but it outshined other elements this time and was very memorable. Besides plot, the other elements that improved and really fit the episode well were the filming and music. Both seemed flawless and flowed well throughout it. The transitions were also creatively implemented and held the show together well. The series is starting to fall into its niche as a spoof show of everything Brandeis, college, and popular culture. The show’s references and Brandeisian twists were what first made it interesting to watch. “The Pact” was packed with these references, from the plotline to the drug usage. The humor seems like it is evolving into a fluid mix of South Park and Seinfeld splashed onto a Brandeis canvas. Slice N Deis is slowly ascending toward becoming masterful artwork.
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