www.thevistaonline.com
The Student Voice of the University
of Central Oklahoma Since
December 6, 2007
4
by Vista photographer Chris Albers
by Vista photographer Chris Albers
Local elementary school children gather in the Nigh University Center ballrooms Wednesday to sit on Santa's lap and recieve gifts donated by several sponsers.
An Angie Debo elementary student sits on Santa's lap Wednesday and poses for a picture.
UCO student helps decorate White House Seniors get shot at directing plays .
by Aaron Wright Managing Editor
A UCO student received a call from the first lady's personal interior decorator on Nov. 24, while in Washington, D.C. He asked Phredd Evans, social studies education junior and retired army Major, if he would like to come early to help decorate the personal quarters of the White House. This phone call didn't take Evans by surprise. He had taken the trip to the capital city with the sole purpose of decorating the White House for Christmas after being invited by a member of Laura Bush's staff. "Each year, the White House staff will select a certain number of people to help decorate," said Evans. Evans received this offer because of his five-year service as a White House social aide that began in 2000. He served under the Clinton administration for one year and under the Bush administration for four years. Social aides are military men and women who live in the Washington, D.C., area. They volunteer to serve as hosts at White House social functions. They greet visitors, brief them on meeting the president and first lady and formally present guests to the couple. "Our job is to make the social side of the office of the president as seamless as possible," said' Evans. Evans greeted people
by Hannah Jackson Staff Writer
AP Photo
UCO student Phredd Evans begins work on one of the areas he was assigned to decorate in the personal quarters of the White House. from all walks of life. He hosted movie stars, champion sports teams, foreign dignitaries, educators, senators and people who had just gotten off of welfare. He said it just depended on the type of event the White House staff was hosting. As head White House social aide, Evans oversaw anywhere from two to 15 events a month. During December, though, there may be around 30 events to host. This year, he had a chance to serve in a different way. He arrived at the White House on the evening of Nov. 24 with six other volunteers to
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decorate the personal quarters of the president and first lady, which consists of 34 rooms on the second and third floors of the White House. The group spent the remainder of the evening putting up wreaths, hanging garland and decorating trees. Evans said the decorative theme for the year is National Parks. There were 14 Christmas trees in all, with the main Christmas tree reaching 18 feet tall. This Christmas tree was decorated with ornaments that had been painted by a person from all the national parks. There were 432 in all, according to Evans.
"Christmas, children, is not a date. It is a state of mind." —Mary Ellen Chase
Their primary goal was to get the main tree decorated so that the first family could take their family Christmas photo in front of it. "It was a lot of pressure, but it was good pressure," said Evans. That same evening, President Bush greeted the decorators. Evans said that when Laura Bush asked if the president remembered Evans, he said he did. On Nov. 25, Evans returned to the White House to meet the other 54 volunteers who
see EVANS, page 4
Thirteen UCO seniors will display their directing abilities during The One Act Show Dec. 7 and Dec. 8. The shows begin at 5 p.m. in Pegasus Theater. "The shows are all student directed and come from my play production class," said Dr. Don Bristow, a professor in the theater department. The 13 plays will be displayed throughout the course of both nights and involve a variety of topics. There will be plays questioning the illusion of life and plays questioning the afterlife. One play is similar to a suburban housewives theme, said Dr. Robert McGill, Theater Department chairperson. "My play is based on the late '60s family...focusing on the new generation that dropped the morals and just lived," said Jimmy Pike, the senior director of "The Rock Garden." "It's a smorgasbord. One minute you're laughing, one minute you're crying," said McGill, "It's like the weather, if you don't like something, wait five minutes." The student directors were able to choose their own act, hold auditions, choose their cast and were also in charge of rehearsals. Actors and
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actresses were allowed to state a preference of director or play prior to the auditions. "All 13 of the directors got together and people read random selections," said Pike. "Then we all, very diplomatically, chose who we wanted for our shows." Students were in charge of obtaining everything from lighting and sound to costumes and sets. Campus equipment was made available to them from the department's scene shop and costume selection, but the directors were in charge of putting everything together. "When you're a director, the buck stops here. You are responsible for everything," said Bristow. The senior-level requirement to entirely produce an act has been in existence since the theater program was established about 45 years ago, said Bristow. "I think this is an extremely valuable and necessary experience for our theatre majors," said Bristow. The class also requires directors have at least 15 rehearsals, which are squeezed into about a month. "If you don't get a schedule together that'll sneak up on you pretty quickly," said Pike.
see ONE-ACTS, page 6