TODAY’S FORECAST
HI: 74o LOW: 57o
George Mattingly | The Hosutonian
Theatre production of ‘Pirates of Penzance’ combines whimsy, humor and charm
Chance of Rain:
30%
‘Oblivion” is ego-trip for Tom Cruise, who overshadows all else
P4
Baseball back to winning ways after defeating UT- Arlington
www.HoustonianOnline.
Volume 123 / Issue 27
P4 P5
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Dancing past social norms CHEYENNE SIMPSON Multimedia Reporter While bobbing his head and moving his hips down the streets of Huntsville he attracts the curious stares of people nearby. But he doesn’t care. Many students would describe him as, “that guy who dances on campus”, but under the booming sound of his bright blue headphones, Arnold Washington is just another student. Washington, a junior health and kinesiology major, has an overwhelming passion for music and dance. While theater and music aren’t in his degree plan, which some might be surprised by, he uses these passions to express himself freely. “I have been dancing on campus the past three years,” Washington said. “I love it, I have fun and I believe dancing is an expression of self and that is what I am doing. I am an open lively free person and I show it in my dance.” Washington feels his major has everything to do with music and dance. “Getting up, moving around and expressing yourself is all about moving your body and being healthy, both spiritually and physically,” Washington said. Music from all genres inspires him as he glides through Huntsville. While artist like Adele, Bruno Mars and Little Wayne are at the top of his playlist, he prefers to hear the rhymes of 90’s R & B. The genre helped him become more comfortable expressing himself through dance. “I consider myself a 90’s baby and grew up with that iconic music and I think that’s when I really started dancing,” Washington said. Even though he is known as, “that guy who dances on campus” Washington lives out his passion through his involvement with the national music fraternity Phi Mu Alpha and playing his trumpet in the Bearkat Marching Band. At the end of the day Washington hopes that his free spirit personality brings a smile to the faces of Huntsville. “As long as I can make someone smile or help them realize they can express themselves freely too, I am happy,” Washington said. While not that many people stop him to ask him what he is doing, he loves to answer questions and talk to curious minds. “I don’t get a lot of questions but when I do I am more than happy to explain myself and help people learn about free expression,” Washington said. Washington remembers a comment that made him realize he is doing something right. He said, “I was dancing down Sam Houston Ave. when a lady pulled over and told me that every time she sees me she can’t help but smile”
Cheyenne Simpson, Stephen Green | The Houstonian
White House reporter gives insider view JAY R. JORDAN Senior Reporter
Jay R. Jordan | The Houstonian
IN THE HOT SEAT. ABC ‘s White House Correspondent Ann Compton sat in the interviewee chair for a change at the Presidential Speaker Series on Tuesday.
“When someone reads a story the lede should make them say ‘What the hell,’ but by the end of it, they should say ‘Well I’ll be damned.’” That was the advice given by ABC News’ White House correspondent Ann Compton who spoke at SHSU as a part of the President’s Speaker Series and Priority One’s Mingling with the Media. Compton has covered every Presidential administration since Gerald Ford, winning several awards and being inducted into the Society of
Professional Journalist’s Hall of Fame, as well as the respect from her peers. SHSU President Dana Gibson and Priority One advisor Peter Roussel interviewed Compton on stage at the Performing Arts Center. Gibson asked Compton to recall her emotional experience of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, which led her to the point of tears. By “the luck of the draw” she was the only broadcast journalist allowed on Air Force One with President George W. Bush. She kept up with his hurried events all day, which led her to receive a Peabody Award
for her coverage. After landing in Washington, D.C., the events became tangible. She opened a message from her eldest son who said one of his fraternity brothers was on the 93rd floor of the north tower when the first plane hit. “At that instant, a day of doom’s day scenarios, burning buildings and people fleeing in panic and terror had a human face,” Compton said. “It was of a handsome young man who had just gotten his first internship with a fancy Wall St. company, and he never knew what hit him.” —
COMPTON, page 2