The Justice Logo

Brandeis University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1949 | Waltham, MA

Search Results


Use the field below to perform an advanced search of The Justice archives. This will return articles, images, and multimedia relevant to your query.





The temptation of 'The Tempest'

(03/10/20 10:00am)

There’s something about William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” that keeps us feeling pulled in by the tides of time back to the shores of Prospero’s island. And this week, the mysterious and fantastical story was told in the Laurie Theater, part of the Spingold Theater Complex. It tells the story of Prospero, an Italian nobleman and sorcerer, who was marooned on a wilderness island with his daughter, only to create a magical storm to lure an Italian ship to bring them home. The crew and passengers get lost on the island, meeting its strange inhabitants and uncovering the evil plots of Prospero’s brother. This play has something for everyone: romance, fantasy, revenge, court intrigue and questions on the nature of existence itself that have shaken theatergoers to their core for centuries.


Jumping around to Horse Jumper of Love

(03/10/20 10:00am)

On March 6, 2020, the Brandeis Association of Music and Concert Organizers hosted its second event of the year, “BAMCO Presents: Horse Jumper of Love with Boston Cream,” in Cholmondeley’s Coffee House. The event was created and organized by the group to bring the world of rock and indie punk on to the Brandeis campus. That night, Chum’s became a lively, energetic concert venue packed with eager, cheerful students and performers alike.


Voices of Soul and the Chromatones

(03/10/20 10:00am)

On Saturday night at the Mandel Center for Humanities, Voices of Soul hosted an a capella concert featuring McGill University’s Chromatones. Before this performance, my only exposure to a capella was from “Pitch Perfect” and “Glee,” so I did not know what to expect. Would the event be overly dramatic and ostentatious like its fictionalized counterpart? Part of me was apprehensive as a result, but as I looked around the lecture hall, I saw dozens of eager faces waiting to listen to some hopefully high-quality a capella. Now I was expecting an insanely amazing performance. Imagine my surprise when VOS calmly walked to the front of the lecture hall and did not say a single word. Instead, they began to sing.


Interview with Emily Pollack

(03/10/20 10:00am)

This week, JustArts&Culture talked with Emily Pollack ’21, the director of the play “R&J,” an adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” by Joe Calarco. The play reinvents the classic story by setting it in an all-girls Catholic school and tells a series of “forbidden” stories surrounding the four main characters. 



As a woman of color, the Super Bowl halftime show was inspiring

(02/11/20 11:00am)

This year’s NFL Super Bowl halftime show was fabulous, or so I thought, as I watched the festivities while doing my homework. I had resolved to stay disconnected while watching the game on Sunday, Feb. 2. The game was such a good one, and although I didn’t like all the commercials, they were nonetheless interesting (or confusing) enough to sustain my interest. The game itself held my undivided interest, and though I was not rooting for either team, I was rooting for the totality of its spectacle: the snacks, the ads, the throwback to the olden days of four TV channels and, long before I understood the game itself, the halftime show.


Quick: create and perform a play!

(02/11/20 11:00am)

On Sunday night, the Undergraduate Theater Collective (UTC) presented “Quickies,” the annual festival of student-written short plays. The nine plays were all about 10 minutes long, and were written, produced, directed, designed and acted by students. The format of these performances allow students to get involved in theater, no previous experience or extensive time commitment required. Auditions for “Quickies” were about two or three weeks prior to the showcase followed by a mere two or three rehearsals for students to perfect their short plays.



Appreciating the right to vote as an African American

(02/11/20 11:00am)

On Wednesday, Feb. 5, Trump was acquitted of all the impeachment charges leveled against him. While this does not come as a shock, it certainly reflects the current value system the American government strives to uphold. Trump’s first term as president has challenged concepts of justice and equality in American society, and his impeachment acquittal is no exception. If the Republican-controlled Senate refuses to punish a man who has continuously abused his power as president, how can the American people rest knowing that the rights currently enjoyed are not at risk of being taken away? This fear is especially true for African American voters who celebrated the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the 15th Amendment on Monday, Feb 3. This anniversary is made even more significant not only by the current state of American democracy, but also by the fast-approaching general election. 


Analyzing Trump’s State of the Union shenanigans

(02/11/20 11:00am)

President Donald Trump gave his final State of the Union speech before his re-election campaign kicks into full gear, but you might not have even realized it. With Trump’s acquittal on all charges of impeachment and the chaos of the bungled Iowa Democratic caucus completely dominating the airwaves, comparatively little ink was spilled on Trump’s address to the nation. If you’re nonplussed, you’re not alone, as congressional Democrats seemed downright bored during the proceedings. 


Critic’s Academy Award predictions

(02/04/20 11:00am)

In just under a week, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will crown its winners of the coveted Oscar statuette. “Joker” leads the pack this year with 11 nominations, but will the film’s popularity as a nominee propel it all the way to a Best Picture win? Or will the Academy’s over-9,000-member voting body cast their preferential ballots in favor of the technical feat “1917,” or be bold enough on Feb. 9 to crown “Parasite” as the first foreign language Best Picture winner? My predictions for eight of the 24 Oscar categories explain the odds behind the likely winners.


The war in Syria hasn’t improved; Americans have just forgotten about it

(02/04/20 11:00am)

Over the last week, the Russian and Syrian government forces have committed the same sort of war crimes that they’ve been committing daily since 2015 at an exceptional rate in and around the Syrian city of Idlib. More than a hundred airstrikes were launched over the course of a three day period. Warplanes have targeted hospitals and open markets, just as they have on a daily basis for the last many years. According to the Syria Campaign — an organization that I will return to in a moment — at least 1,648 civilians, including 392 children, have been killed since this escalation began in April. 



In a year that's off to a terrible start, don’t forget to laugh

(02/04/20 11:00am)

We have been thrown into a brand new decade, complete with its fair share of disasters. Two days after celebrating the New Year, the hashtag #ww3, or World War 3, was trending on Twitter. This trend was in response to the abrupt killing of a high-ranking Iranian general, Qassem Soleimani, an action that the United States promptly took responsibility for. Understandably, this enraged both the Iranian government and its people, with the Supreme Leader and numerous parliamentary figures promising  “harsh revenge” for the United States  and its allies. 


Views on the News: Coronavirus outbreak

(02/04/20 11:00am)

 On Dec. 31, 2019, the World Health Organization was alerted by the Chinese government of several cases of the coronavirus, a series of viruses that lead to respiratory illnesses, in Wuhan, a port city of 11 million individuals. Several of the initially infected individuals worked at the city's Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, which was shut down on Jan.1, 2020. As of Jan. 27, the death toll from the virus has risen to 106 people, with 4,515 people in China infected. Initially WHO was reluctant to identify the coronavirus as a public emergency of international concern. However, as of Jan. 30, WHO has declared the coronavirus outbreak a global emergency as the death toll rises to 170 in China. Do you think WHO’s delay to declare this a public emergency of international concern was a reasonable effort to limit unnecessary public panic and learn more about the virus, or an unnecessary risk? Additionally, beyond WHO's actions, how should Beijing and other world governments be responding to this health concern? 



Provost to leave Univ. at end of semester

(01/28/20 11:00am)

Lisa Lynch will depart from her role as provost and executive vice-president of Academic Affairs by this summer, according to a Jan. 21 email to the Brandeis community from University President Ron Liebowitz. Lynch first stepped into the role in June 2016. According to the email, Lynch will be taking a year- long sabbatical and will then return to Brandeis to continue in her position as the Maurice B. Hexter Professor of Social and Economic Policy in the Heller School for Social Policy and Management. Liebowitz wrote in the email that the process for selecting the next Provost will be announced shortly. The email did not specify why Lynch was stepping down. 



Celebrate CNY with DIY Dumplings

(01/28/20 11:00am)

With Chinese New Year being this past weekend, Saturday Jan. 25, the Brandeis Undergraduate Taiwanese Student Association  hosted an event on Wednesday in the Intercultural Center lounge called “Celebrate CNY with DIY Dumplings.” They explained that this is typically a time spent with family, but since we are at school and can’t be at home, the club planned an event to spend time together and celebrate the holiday.