(11/14/11 5:00am)
When you're a student, it's often hard to imagine that your teachers have lives outside of school. After all, it's the only setting in which you see them. I remember reading a book in elementary school called My Teacher's Secret Life about a class of children who spy their teacher around town and can't figure out what she could be doing outside of the classroom. As a fourth grader, the book floored me. Teachers are like everyone else. Who knew? It took me a few years to fully understand that teachers are regular people, but it can still be a bit of a shock to see them in an unexpected setting. Like at a competitive dance performance, for example. At Thursday night's "Dancing with the Brandeis Stars," three professors performed ballroom dance routines with students to compete for the glory of being crowned champion. Last year's winners Prof. Irina Dubinina (GRALL) and Jeff Plotkin '12 took home the title again during a night filled with unexpected and unique performances. "Dancing with the Brandeis Stars" began in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium with 45 minutes of ballroom dance lessons from members of Brandeis Ballroom Formation, the University's ballroom dance team. Around 12 dancers were on the floor at any given time, learning moves from various dances such as the hustle, the cha-cha and the rumba. The competition officially began at 8 p.m. Team president Danielle Vasserman '12 and her partner Dima Khazanov, a pre-champion dancer who works at Dance Fever Studios in Boston, where Formation practices, started things off with a cha-cha. Throughout the evening, Vasserman and Khazanov skillfully demonstrated various types of ballroom dance, earning eager applause from the audience. However, only the student-professor couples were in the running to win. Aside from Dubinina and Plotkin, Prof. Sabine von Mering (GRALL) and Prof. Sara Hascal (NEJS) also performed with partners Fabien Forge and Michael Keselman '14, respectively. Both these pairs were enthusiastic, if not technically outstanding. It was clear that the point of the night was to have fun and bring ballroom dance to the Brandeis community. The judges of "Dancing with the Brandeis Stars"—Vasserman, Khazanov and Associate Dean of Student Life Jamele Adams—kept the fun, silly atmosphere going throughout the night, pretending to be the real judges from ABC's Dancing with the Stars, the reality show on which the event was based. Vasserman attempted several accents, and Adams made clear that, although he knew nothing about the finer points of ballroom dancing, he was going to give the dancers critiques anyway. Aside from the three couples, several of Brandeis' other dance groups also performed, including the Salseros, B'yachad, the Brandeis Swingers and Kaos Kids. One of the most fun aspects of these performances was the groups' costumes. If you've ever caught an episode of Dancing with the Stars, you'll have an idea what I'm talking about. Both male and female dancers' outfits were adorned with glitter and sequins, and most of the groups created color-coordinating looks that added a funky element to their performances. When "Dancing with the Brandeis Stars" finally drew to a close, the runners-up were Hascal and Keselman, and von Mering and Forge came in third. However, the rankings didn't seem to matter to the crowd of students gathered on the ground floor and up the stairs of the SCC to watch their professors get down. For them, it was just another reminder that their teachers could indeed have a "secret life" they never knew about before.
(10/31/11 4:00am)
As the first snow of the season fell in Waltham last Saturday night, parents and students packed the Levin Ballroom for Fall Fest's Variety Show. It was an opportunity for Brandeis' performance groups to showcase their talents. With acts ranging from comedy to a cappella to dance, there honestly was something for everyone. Associate Dean of Student Life Jamele Adams emceed and gamely kept the crowd warmed up between sets, even when that meant shanghaiing a random sixth grader to act as his co-host or dressing up as an Angry Bird (his daughter told him to).
(10/03/11 4:00am)
Hip-hop crew Kaos Kids are known on campus for their impressive moves and stunning choreography. JustArts spoke to Artistic Director Samantha Cortez '13 and Vice President Jeralyn Hawes '12 about their best experiences as part of the group and how dance has affected their lives at Brandeis. JustArts: What are your specific responsibilities as artistic director and vice president? Samantha Cortez: I've been artistic director since last year, but now Shaquan Perkins '13 is also an artistic director. Basically, I envision what I want Kaos Kids to look like for the semester in regard to performances. I come up with ideas and themes for our performances, and I choreograph and critique other's pieces because we are student-based. Everyone in Kaos Kids choreographs, so it's not just me and it's not just Shaquan. I make sure that the choreography goes along with the idea of the piece. Jeralyn Hawes: Playing off of Sam's position, I pull our gears and make sure we're pushing people in the right direction. I come up with calendars for us. I help a little bit with the artistic direction side by putting a different flavor on music choices, or helping with transitions or the way we want to look onstage. I do a lot of our videography for documenting what we're doing as a crew, as well as editing our videos and putting them online. JA: How did the idea to teach open classes come about, and how are they going? JH: Classes are going really well. They're a lot of fun. I know that in the dance community in general, a lot of companies do open classes to promote their company, to promote different styles of dance and to get the community involved in general. Brandeis is so small, and I feel like we have a really big fan base here. We have regulars who come to every class. It's also a chance for kids who are a bit shy about choreographing a big piece for, say, Culture X—they can experiment with different choreography and work on it through open classes. It's a great learning environment for everyone. SC: I think one of the reasons why we wanted open classes in the first place was to make Kaos Kids more open to the Brandeis community. We have a lot of people come up to us and say, "I can't dance, but I love to dance," so it's a safe space for them to come. It's no pressure; you just learn the piece and have fun. JA: How does Kaos Kids develop its routines? SC: If you want to choreograph, you can. This semester we've gotten new people who want to come choreograph. Basically they show us the choreography they've come up with and we decide whether or not it would fit into the piece we're doing, or if it needs to be reworked, or if it's really good and we want to automatically put it into our piece. JH: Our executive board ultimately decides. For the most part, people are really good about sticking to our themes and choosing really good music, current music or music that's good for the set that we're doing. We haven't had any problems with that yet. JA: What does Kaos Kids have coming up this semester? SC: We have an AHORA! event that's on Oct. 15. We also have Fall Fest. We're in the Adagio Dancefest, and we're in Brandeis Dancing with the Stars, which is new. We've gotten invitations to multiple other shows and to a lot of charity events and coffeehouses. JH: We try to say yes as much as possible, but it's a hectic schedule. SC: Every semester more invitations come, and you can't say yes to everyone, but we try to do our best. JA: What have been your best experiences as members of Kaos Kids? JH: There have been so many! I feel like there are so many that don't even pertain to dance. We spend so much time with each other outside of dance. We do dinners; we have "study parties" together. I can't even think of one particular moment. SC: Well, I've been a part of Kaos since second semester freshman year, and it's been this whole new experience. Something that I didn't think would happen at my time at Brandeis, but it has. … I love to dance, and I love hip-hop above anything else, and I wanted a place where I could find that. I'm from Harlem, so hip-hop is all I really knew. ... When I came to Brandeis, I wanted a piece of that, and for me that's what Kaos is. Just being a part of the group in general is the experience. JH: I'm on the complete other side of the spectrum. I barely started dancing last year. I tried out for Kaos just to see what it was about, and it was so much more than I expected. Dance in general has been so new and exciting. Being in Kaos and growing in this whole world is amazing. Everything is a learning experience. I'm still trying to figure out how my body moves, the way I want it to move. Learning from everybody is amazing and so much fun. —Ariel Kay
(04/12/11 4:00am)
Culture X 2011: Up, Up, and Away stayed true to its name. Last Saturday, students filled the Levin Ballroom for a night of music, dance, poetry and other performances of creative cultural expression, ready to be taken on a journey that spanned cultures and art forms.The committee for this year's show was comprised of Karen Hu '12, Divya Kanneganti '11, Akash Vadalia '12 and Ann Nin Wong '11. All four took to the stage at the start of the show to explain the meaning of Culture X and its importance to Brandeis then proceeded to interact with the audience by loudly chanting "culture" and having the audience respond with "X." As for their intentions behind the theme of the show, the committee expressed that they hoped to "blow [the audience's] expectations away" with an amazing night of performances. It was with these words that the committee played an artsy video aptly set to the Far East Movement's (feat. Ryan Tedder) "Rocketeer." Far East Movement will also be performing at SpringFest in a few weeks. The film portrayed the committee's efforts leading up to the show and also featured some of the staff members of the Intercultural Center, which sponsored the show.Following the short video, emcee Dan Ding '11 introduced the first of the 22 acts of the night, titled, "BAASA Goes Hip Hop," during which members of the Brandeis Asian American Students Association performed an energetic dance number to a medley of catchy hip-hop beats. After this spectacle, members of the Japanese Student Association gathered on stage and performed a mesmerizing dance that mimicked a stormy sea.Next up was the small but enthusiastic Brandeis Cheerleading Squad. The squad, which usually cheers at the varsity men and women's basketball games, showcased its peppiness through its act, which was complete with high jumps and cradle catches. ¡AHORA! came on stage next and was greeted with particularly loud cheers from audience members anticipating the three Latin dance numbers performed by some of its members. The dances performed were the bachata, the punta/merengue and the reggaeton faja. Another dance act, titled "Dhoom" after the Bollywood film, was next, combining elements of modern Indian and American culture. The beginning of the dance was set to Justin Bieber's "Baby" and even included a Bieber impersonator, who received chuckles from the audience.Select members of the Korean Student Association then performed a striking dance that incorporated the use of fans. Audience members were so clearly taken in by the beauty and coordination of the choreography involving the fans that they cheered loudly when the dancers came together and moved their fans in unison in a wave formation. Other members of the KSA performed a more hip-hop-based dance after the fan act.One of the final performances of Act I included Sax Appeal, Brandeis' saxophone quartet, which presented a version of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and even showed off some of their dance moves to the song. Before the intermission, Students for Tibet played a short video that spread the message of its goal to "bridge the gap between the Chinese and Tibetan students" and to "raise funds for the Tibetan Children Village school," according to the description of the club provided in the Culture X program.The first performance of Act II was a touching rendition of Don Henley's "The Heart of the Matter," a song that discusses love, an element that connects all cultures. The number was sung by Stephanie Johnson '13 and Danielle Pulton '12 and accompanied by Nikhil Malik '13, Joseph Recabo '13, and Jake Weiner '13 on various instruments. Dance performances made up the majority of the second act of the show. There was an energetic Russian folk dance, "Kalinka Malinka,"which that portrayed a coming-of-age story about love. Two other lively dance numbers followed this one. The African Dance Club presented choreography that originated in Mali and that is traditionally performed to welcome guests. This piece was followed by a performance by the R3b3ls of Wahala, a group of dancers decked out in intricate face paint. Continuing with the theme of dance, the Adagio Dance Ensemble performed the piece "Conversations about Dance," during which the dancers showed off interpretive choreography set to a soundtrack of the dancers speaking about why they love to dance. Next, Amanda Dryer '13 added another kind of energy to the evening with the passionate performance of her original work, "Truth: a Letter to my Zadie," a poem she had written for her grandfather.Three more of Brandeis' many dance groups performed next. First, the Brandeis Swingers transported the audience back in time with their series of dance numbers. Then, the So Unique step team showed off their stomping talents. All of So Unique's dancers were in complete unison, and this made for an amazing presence onstage. The Kaos Kids performed a circus-themed hip-hop number next. Although they are a relatively new dance group on campus-only a year old-they proved that they are already a huge presence on campus, as the audience responded with deafening applause for their performance. After a fierce rap by Brandeis' own Saz.É (Osaze Akerejah '14), the Brandeis Salseros showed off some Latin culture with their salsa dancing. The Southeast Asian Club wrapped up what had been a terrific evening with a dance that told the story of a princess, followed by a more freestyle piece.The exciting and artistic evening showed the beauty produced when so many different cultures come together. All of the performances made for an exciting evening that really embodied Brandeis' values. To continue the celebration of the many cultures and diversity on campus, the ICC, Student Events, ¡AHORA! and the Campus Center Team sponsored a '90s glow rave after-party in the Sherman Function Hall as part of Bronstein Week.
(02/08/11 5:00am)
On Saturday, Brandeis hosted its first-ever dance marathon, joining forces with the Children's Miracle Network to raise money for the Children's Hospital Boston. The event was held in the Levin Ballroom, from 6 p.m. to midnight. Full of high-energy dancing, raffle prizes and great performances, 6 hours seemed to fly by. The most poignant part of the night occurred when two families whose lives were touched by the Children's Hospital of Boston came forward to tell their stories. Both families had come to Boston from Mexico after difficulties diagnosing their children. Both were directed to the Children's Hospital of Boston in order to have a better chance of curing them. It was a moving part of the night-their stories were depicted through pictures and film testaments, but it was when they showed their children's incredible progress that the significance of their struggles hit home. In the end, the families said it was only because of the Children's Hospital of Boston, the donations given to their research departments by organizations and funds raised through events like Brandeis' Dance Marathon that help give happy endings to their stories. When the time came to dance, the coordinators from the Adagio Dance Company brought great energy and wonderful performers to help keep the spirits high and the bodies swaying on the dance floor. The Adagio members started off with a short performance and danced to a remix of some recent popular songs, followed by a group dance lesson to keep the participation high. Throughout the night, the atmosphere was relaxed and fun. People played Twister, made arts and crafts and got their faces painted. Participants were also able to enjoy a slice of the 30 pizzas donated by Cappy's Pizza & Subs until more performers came to pump up the atmosphere.First, there was a fast, kinetic dance by the African Dance Club. There were no melodies to accompany the steps, but it goes to show that one only needs a great beat to get people up and dancing. Afterward, the club taught their dance to an eager audience. The second performance group was Kaos Kids, Brandeis' hip-hop group. Their performance was also engaging; the audience cheered throughout and had a great time trying to learn the difficult choreography. The last performance of the night was by the Israeli dance group B'yachad, who performed Shakira's "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)." It was lighthearted and had easy choreography-everyone enjoyed learning the moves to one of the most popular songs of last summer. Because of the dedication of the Adagio Dance Company coordinators and eager participation of all the people present at the event, the Dance Marathon was a definitive success. The total amount of money raised grew to over $5,000 by the end of the evening and participants can rest assured that their hours dancing will all go to a good cause.
(11/09/10 5:00am)
Breaking, turning, Michael Jackson-style sliding: Dancefest 2010 "Moves Like This," hosted on Thursday night by Adagio Dance Company, brought together students from six Boston-area schools to show a crowd of family and friends how they move. Sticking with this theme of how and why dancers choose to dance, the performance opened with a video by Nathan Hakimi '11 that showcased clips from rehearsals and got the audience excited to see their friends reveal their masterpieces.The actual dance numbers themselves didn't disappoint. The first dance, against the background of Mike Posner's "Cooler than Me," was choreographed by Adagio Co-President Julie Judson '11. With its use of chairs and costumes, it was easily one of the best Brandeis dances of the show. It was also one of the few of the evening that offered opportunities for each dancer to shine. Although each performer attracted positive attention at different points, Danielle Gurr's '11 movements were magnetic all the way through. Her every muscle moved with purpose and grace, and her facial expressions matched the powerful undertones of the music's bass line.Judson's second number, "How We Operate," was the most intricately choreographed of the night, highlighting the extent of the senior's creative abilities to tell a story and evoke emotion through movement. Gurr's number, "Bust Your Windows," which ended the show, also illustrated a song's capacity for inspiration. Her use of many dance styles in the creation of the combination kept it visually interesting and very original.The success of Adagio Co-President Greg Storella's '11 "Weird Fishes" really depended on his dancers' body language and facial expressions, and Meredith Nadeau '12 single-handedly added this necessary depth to the number. Her combination of acting and dancing took this song to the next level, and she helped to clarify the changes in emotion that Storella was aiming to emphasize in the song. His routine picked out the underlying meaning of the music and amplified it for the audience. Another standout performer of Dancefest was Rocky Reichman '13, whose stage presence and hip-hop attitude elicited screams and squeals from the audience in "I Came to Dance," choreographed by Nadeau and Sari Ladin '12. Luckily for Reichman, the fluidity of his dancing abilities matched his level of charisma. Next up was Brandeis' own Kaos Kids, the newly formed hip-hop crew that has been wowing viewers with its synchronization and hard-hitting manner since last year. With its performance at Dancefest, it was clear that there wasn't a single member among the group who couldn't hold his or her own. Additionally, throughout the rest of the dances, the people who were the most attention-grabbing also happened to be members of Kaos Kids. Outside of the group's performances, each member shone in other numbers, showing his or her individual versatility. Brandeis student groups B'yachad, So Unique and Hooked on Tap also performed at Dancefest. All three groups brought fun and simple joy to the show, which overall featured a lot of hip-hop and contemporary dancing. The branching out into Israeli dance, step and tap, respectively, added a level of diversity and broke up the show at appropriately chosen intervals. The skit that began So Unique's performance was a nice live pause from all of the recorded sound, and it drew laughter from the crowd.What really made Dancefest special were the guest performances by Simmons College, Boston College Synergy, Suffolk Wicked, Tufts Sarabande and MIT Ridonkulous. It was great to see how talented the students were, and it was a nice way to open up our campus to their family and friends. Outside during intermission, Brandeis students gathered around a group of BC Synergy members, complimenting them on their repertoire, and moments like that throughout the night showed how Brandeis students really "move."Editor's note: Rocky Reichman '13 is a Features staff writer for the Justice.
(10/26/10 4:00am)
Sean Norton '12 never saw himself as much of a dancer. In high school, he was involved in activities like fencing and music, and although he would sometimes try break dancing with his friends, he says he wasn't very good. When Norton started college, the Philosophy major and Business minor had no plans of getting involved with dance. He was quick to join a fraternity and get involved with church activities, but he did not think of joining Adagio. Two years later, Norton is one of the founders of Brandeis' first hip-hop dance group, Kaos Kids. He is the group's off-campus coordinator and has taught a dance class at Brown University. Norton now cites dance as one of the biggest parts of his college experience even though his involvement came somewhat unexpectedly.The turning point came in the second semester of Norton's first year. Will Bedor '10, one of Norton's fraternity brothers, was getting a group of guys together for Adagio's spring show. He asked Norton to join the group."I kind of thought it would be a lot of fun to do; there was not much more incentive other than that," says Norton.Norton says he loved his first dance show in Adagio, and it inspired him to want to get better. "I [thought] it was just really, really fun. We just had a really good time dancing together, and I wanted to keep doing it," says Norton.During Norton's sophomore year, Bedor approached him again, this time to start a hip-hop dance crew. The crew started off casually and was what Norton describes as a "small, tight-knit family." However, as time went on, the group started holding auditions for the group, and Norton, along with Bedor, Samanthan Cortez '13, Kayla Sotomil '10, Ben Harel '12, Yuri Gloumakov '13, Rebecca Schlangel '10 and Shaquan Perkins '13 founded what would become Kaos Kids. Kaos Kids now has 17 members and has performed at various Adagio shows, the Fall Fest Variety Show and October's Sustainability Rocks benefit concert.Last summer, Norton continued to get more involved with dance, as he "took a lot of classes with Project D in New Jersey." Norton eventually auditioned for the dance company and was accepted. Norton says that Project D "improved my dancing style and mentality when it comes to running a dance company and crew."His involvement with Project D introduced him to a dancer who gave him an opportunity to teach a student dance class at Brown University."A guy from Project D is a grad student at Brown right now, and he approached me toward the end of the summer and asked me if I'd like to come teach a class at Brown. He hooked me up with that, so that was my first time really teaching a dance class ever. I'd love to do it again," Norton says. Norton says that dance is greatly influencing his college experience by "giving [him] something to look forward to" and that Kaos Kids is helping to fill a dance niche on campus. "There's so many groups on campus, we have religious coexistence groups ... and culture groups. ... I think that one of the things that wasn't here before was a real hip-hop dance group, and hopefully we're adding to the culture at Brandeis," Norton says .In the future, Kaos Kids will be performing at events including Dance Fest with Adagio, Mela and a student's senior project, just to name a few. Norton also hopes the group will be able to perform at Brown and other off-campus events. Norton hopes that even after he graduates the legacy of Kaos Kids will continue."I would love to see everyone grow together as dancers. I want us to move together well [and] learn different styles, not just hip hop but dance as a whole, [and] be able to go out and compete with other schools such as Boston College [and] BU Fusion. Even if it's after I graduate, I would love for Kaos Kids to eventually be able to compete at the college level," Norton says.On the personal level, Norton would also like to continue his involvement with dance after he graduates. However, while Norton says he would love to dance professionally, he is unsure if it is an economically feasible option."If there was a way where I could have a comfortable life and not necessarily have to worry about income and keep dancing, I would love to keep doing it," he says.Shaquan Perkins '13 is one of the founders of Kaos Kids and also the group's logistics coordinator. Perkins, who has been involved with dance since high school, describes Kaos Kids as a "family," as does Norton, and says that the group's atmosphere is "magnificent."Perkin says that he feels that the group is helping to bring awareness of hip hop to campus and that his favorite part of Kaos Kids is "seeing my Jewish kids get down." Still, he has high ambitions for the group and says that he hopes "that the group brings hip hop to Brandeis and allows Brandeis to just accept hip hop to the campus. [I hope it] helps bring awareness to the genre and other parts of dance and I hope the group gets to perform every chance we get.
(10/26/10 4:00am)
National Collegiate Volunteers aim to utilize the talents, attributes and skills that students develop in college for nonprofit organizations to help college students gain awareness of big-picture issues throughout North America and the world.The group organized and put on the Sustainability Rocks event last Tuesday evening in the Levin Ballroom, which consisted of a fashion show, concert by the up-and-coming band Keeping Riley and a dance performance by the campus' hip-hop group Kaos Kids. The event was created in support of the sustainable fair-trade fashion company Of Rags, which combines New York and Ghana styles.The board that partially consists of Yuli Almozlino '11, Helen Mac '11 and Alan Tran '12, as well as Michal Shapiro, the NCV Tufts and Brandeis director, all contributed to the answers to all of the following questions.JustArts: What is the goal of National Collegiate Volunteers?Tania Abramova '11: The mission of National Collegiate Volunteers is to empower college students with the tools and the resources necessary to partner with local organizations in order to create high-impact sustainable projects that address the needs of disadvantaged communities in the United States. NCV's focus is not only on community service, but also on community organizing and leadership development.JA: How did NCV Brandeis decide to collaborate with "Of Rags"?TA: "Of Rags" contacted NCV in late summer asking for our support to organize an event for them on Brandeis campus as part of their Fall college tour. We are always willing to stand in solidarity with and to support other sustainable development projects. "Of Rags" has a very strong and unique mission that we are proud to support and to promote.JA: How has the student body reaction to the "Of Rags" initiative been?TA: In speaking with students on campus about the "Of Rags" initiative, we received a lot of positive feedback. Though most students had never heard of the organization, they were impressed with the work it's doing and curious to learn more. The event turnout was successful and many students bought "Of Rags" clothing and signed up to learn more about their upcoming events and work.JA: Why did you chose to bring the band Keeping Riley to campus?TA: Keeping Riley is partnering with "Of Rags" for their Fall tour, bringing a unique new sound to sustainability. They have performed with some big-name bands like OK GO and Train, but have never lost track of the importance of community service, traveling across the country to support "Of Rags" raise awareness for their cause.JA: Tell me about collaborating with student performing arts groups for this event.TA: We knew that "Of Rags" and Keeping Riley were the main focus of the event, but we also wanted to showcase Brandeis talent in order to increase the amount of support and the visibility of this organization on campus. We were very lucky to have the MT's and Kaos Kids perform. They are both incredibly talented groups and added so much to this event in terms of quality and energy. Both groups were great to work with pre show and during the performance they rocked out! We couldn't have had such a wonderful event without them!JA: What's in store for NCV in the future?TA: This Fall NCV has partnered with the Waltham Alliance to Create Housing in order to support local affordable housing initiatives, specifically in the context of environmental issues. This semester and year we are actively supporting WATCH's "Healthy Homes" initiative. NCV is currently planning a weatherization of a Waltham home, known as a Barnraising. In addition to the Barnraising (date in December TBD) we will be bringing awareness and educational events to the Brandeis community. If students, faculty or community members would like to get involved or learn more about NCV, please contact the Chair of Publicity, Tania Abramova at taniaab@brandeis.edu.
(10/19/10 4:00am)
Brandeis University's Fall Fest is an annual event that brings families of students together to enjoy a weekend of fun-filled group activities. One of these activities is the Variety Show, an ensemble presentation at the Levin Ballroom, consisting of singing, dancing, acting and comedy sketches from the Brandeis student body. It highlights the great amount of artistic work that students put into their craft and gives parents and extended families a taste of the kind of creative spirit that all Brandeis students possess. This year's show was a diverse display of talent-each group presented something unique and enjoyable. The evening was hosted by Associate Dean of Student Life Jamele Adams, who brought a great amount of enthusiasm and humorous charisma to the proceedings as the master of ceremonies. All of the pieces were segued by interludes with Adams. He kept up the audience's spirits with questions about subjects such as age and aspirations, as well as rallying pep talks. The performances themselves consisted of four main categories, dancing, singing, comedy and acting, with dances bookending the show. The various dancing troupes included Adagio's Dance Ensemble, B'Yachad, the Kaos Kids and So Unique. Adagio's Dance Ensemble began the show with a dance to the Mike Posner song "Cooler Than Me." The dance was well choreographed by Julie Judson '11, though the dancers themselves were a bit stiff. They performed a second piece later on in the show to "Bust Your Windows" by Jazmine Sullivan, which was much smoother, and overall they performed well. The Israeli dance troupe B'Yachad danced to the song "Be Ezrat Hashem" by Sarit Hadad and displayed a great bit of cultural dancing. The Kaos Kids, a hip-hop group, presented a dance to an arrangement of five songs: "One," "In The Morning," "All I Do is Win," "Outta Your Mind" and "Elevator." In these songs, they used their movements to create suggestions of everyday activities. The whole piece seemed to take the form of a car driving through traffic, an interesting image suggested merely by the power of dance. The So Unique step team provided a nice bridge between dancing and acting, as they danced without the use of background music, creating the music simply through their hands and feet. They also acted out a scene in which they were rehearsing to perform these dances in front of judges, competing among themselves to enter into a reality show competition. This idea brought a fun dynamic to the performance by giving us the illusion that we were watching them rehearse for a star-making dance routine, an idea not outside the realm of possibility judging by their talent. The remaining acting pieces were a stand-up comedy routine by Devon Hermaneau '11 and three skits by the Boris' Kitchen improvisation troupe. Hermaneau's standout moments were his jokes about starting an anti-activism club and an irony club that wasn't allowed to have anything ironic about it. He also had a funny bit about the last person you'd expect a girl to have a crush on (punch line: her father) and a self-deprecating bit about his lack of ability to do a proper segue. Boris' Kitchen's skits included "Recycle This," a hilarious bit featuring a radical girl who insisted that people should recycle their souls and that juice was accessible from a faucet. They also performed "Eat You, Brutus," which featured a spin on the assassination of Julius Caeser, and "Postmodernism," which was a funny, offbeat piece with a man surrounded by hippie postmodernists who insisted they were figments of his imaginations.The singing pieces were performed by a variety of a cappella groups, including Voices of Soul, Rather Be Giraffes, Starving Artists and VoiceMale. Voices of Soul performed "You Gotta Be" by Des'ree and a Michael Jackson medley that featured an arrangement of several of Jackson's songs including "Thriller," "Beat It" and "Smooth Criminal." The arrangements were done nicely, and the singers were very good, though they weren't always in sync. Nevertheless, they had a clear love for their chosen songs, and it showed. Rather Be Giraffes was supremely entertaining, performing upbeat and heartfelt renditions of "Scar" by Missy Higgins and "Santeria" by Sublime. Starving Artists performed the songs "Angels" by Robbi Williams and "Misery Business" by Paramore with pleasing results. VoiceMale, an all-male a cappella group, performed "Fallin' Over You" by Rockapella and "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" by KT Tunstall. They seemed to have a bit of a timing issue toward the end, but overall their voices were appealing, and they performed with heart.The night was rounded out with a final performance by Hooked on Tap, who performed a tap dance routine to the song "Sold" by Michael John Montgomery. This finale was appropriately festive, presenting a country-western tune and a fun tap dance ensemble done in the square-dancing tradition. This upbeat performance was the perfect way to end a night filled with fun and talent. Overall, the Variety Show presented an excellent sampling of the great skill of Brandeis' performers. Family and friends no doubt left the ballroom feeling delighted and proud.
(09/28/10 4:00am)
The Student Union unanimously voted to charter the Brandeis Interfaith Group. BIG is a club started by former members of Brandeis University Interfaith Leadership Development. They plan to build awareness of different religions on campus and work closely with the Interfaith Chaplaincy at Brandeis. The Student Union voted to charter the Kaos Kids, a hip-hop dance crew that wants to promote the presence of hip-hop culture on campus. Club members stated that they want to hold open classes taught by guest choreographers for anyone who is interested in learning hip-hop dance and holding presentations showcasing hip-hop culture.The Senate motioned to table the Hookah Club's request to be chartered. The Hookah Club wanted to be chartered in order to respond to the growing demand to smoke hookah on campus and to introduce aspects of Middle Eastern culture and discussion in a relaxed atmosphere. The Senate tabled the vote because of issues such as payment for the hookah materials, the legality of smoking on campus, funding such a club and whether or not the cultural aspects of the club were not already covered by existing clubs, such as the Arab Culture Club. The chair of the Finance Board requested that the Student Union keep in mind the limited availability of money for clubs and slow down on chartering clubs. The Senate agreed and discussed ideas on how to save money between clubs, such as having clubs hold joint events.Seth Grande '12 asked the Senate to draft a letter to Dining Services to encourage the use of only cage-free eggs throughout campus. The Student Union also discussed the broken ice machines. Student Judiciary Associate Justice Judah Marans '11 said that he met with Aramark to talk about solutions for the broken ice machines.The Senate is also working on assisting Senator-at-Large Abdul-Aziz Sohail '13 in organizing the Pakistani Relief Fund dinner that will be held Sept. 28 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Sherman Function Hall.-Sara Ahmed
(04/27/10 4:00am)
By the time I arrived at the Levin Ballroom, the seats were completely packed with people excitedly chattering about "Brandeis' biggest annual campuswide cultural event," as Culture X's coordinators describe it. The crowd included not only fellow students coming to support their friends or check out the cultural variety of the show, but also adults with little children holding their hands. As the four coordinators, Taisha Sturdivant '11, Talisa Torres '10, Ann-Nin Wong '11 and Kevin Yim '10, appeared in front of the audience, everyone in the room hollered and hooted. After establishing the cheer for the night ("We say 'Culture,' you scream 'X!'"), the performers behind the curtain and up in the balcony, the audience and the staff members all united to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Culture X.As the coordinators successfully heated up the atmosphere, they went on to raise the question: what exactly does Culture X mean? Kevin Yim explained, "Culture X is the embodiment of the idea that everyone has something special to the table . every group has a special way to show their cultural backgrounds. On another level, it could represent a philosophy . [for] any given problem that needs solving, everyone's different perspective gives you, personally, a special way to view your life ... 'X' represents a variable, any person or any thing . that can contribute to making your life more special and more meaningful." Wong further elaborated: "This year our theme is 'Limitless Dreams'. We want to emphasize just how far we've come with the success of this event and our promotion of acceptance, cooperation and diversity."With that said, the next three hours consisted of 24 different performance groups who were a total delight overall. The first act began with spellbinding music performed by Aatma, featuring Arun Narayanan '10, Ashni Dave '12, Ethan Geringer-Sameth '12 and Chamith Fonseka 'll. The group completely enraptured the audience with an eccentric combination of classical Indian elements, consisting of the vocals and an Indian drum called tabla, with Western instruments consisting of bass guitar and saxophone. The atmosphere became more enthralling as Danielle Myers '12 performed Poi, a Maori traditional dance, with glow-in-the-dark, color-changing balls and as the Korean Student Association performed two popular dances from Korea. However, for the next act the audience became solemn as Tribute to Haiti sang sweet melodies in memory of those who suffered from the earthquake in Haiti this year.The following acts mainly consisted of a variety of cultural dances, such as a Russian dance that showcased traditional Russian folk dancing fused with lofty gypsy dancing. Argentine Tango introduced a romanticized, flirty couple dance; African Dance, presenting an energetic traditional dance from Mali choreographed by master drummer Jon Camara; and AHORA!, inviting the audience to take a break and indulge in breezy Caribbean rhythms and a display of bachata and meringue. However, Culture X did not confine itself to the conventional definition of culture, which most people often associate with nationality. Although traditional cultural acts such as the classy performance of Scottish smallpipes by Otis Munroe '12 increased people's appreciation for a culture in the ethnic sense, many groups demonstrated a broader perspective of what culture means to them. For example, the Brandeis Black Student Organization flaunted its own distinctive culture by exerting explosive energy through hip-hop dance. On the other hand, Maze Runner provided a baffling yet comedic performance with references to the Lord of the Rings, displaying their imaginary hobbit culture. Lastly, Michael Castellanos '10 performed a dance inspired by Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" video, reminding the audience that pop culture is indeed another type of culture to be respected.Other groups defied categorization under specific cultural groups, such as So Unique, whose creative and original step dance dazzled the audience, and Kaos Kids, whose impressive hip-hop choreography and fearless execution challenged the audience view of hip-hop as just another type of a dance fused from various origins-it too established itself as a proud culture. In fact, Southeast Asia Club got the crowd wild by incorporating modern hip-hop to its traditional Filipino tinikling stick dance. Chak de Deis produced a similar reaction by combining both South Asian and South Asian fusion music. Thus this year's Culture X, a bold fusion of traditional elements and more modern elements such as hip-hop, generated particular excitement from the audience, as exemplified by Mixed Heritage Club's performance of a "hip hop fusion dance-piece exploring the way American identity intersects with other cultural identities." The program went smoothly until the last act, which had a 15-minute delay due to technical difficulties. Once the group decided to play without the microphones, the audience was soon captivated by Mochila's performance of its Arabic-Jazz fusion music, in spontaneous collaboration with the Brandeis Step Team and Dave dancing Kathak. As I left the ballroom, I found myself agreeing with what the announcer Daniel Acheampong '11 told me about his view on the symbolic representation of the letter "X": an intersection at which different cultures meet and react.Editor's note: Justice staff writers Sujin Shin and Wei-Huan Chen performed in Culture X.
(04/13/10 4:00am)
The pre-frosh sitting next to me couldn't stop his mouth from dropping open in awe as a parade of lingerie-clad girls scampered down the runway. "So," his first-year host asked him with a sly grin, "think you wanna to come to Brandeis next year?" SKIN, the highly anticipated fashion show that the Brandeis Asian American Student Association puts on once a year was in full swing, and the answer was yes, the pre-frosh was definitely choosing Brandeis. The SKIN fashion show is a part of the month-long celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and its goal is to demonstrate the talents of Asian American designers while celebrating diversity by using student models from different races and ethnicities. All of the proceeds of the night were donated to The Hunger Project, a non-profit organization striving to end world hunger by implementing programs that encourage people to lead more self-reliant lives. Though these are all important and serious goals, the SKIN fashion show was anything but serious. Gorgeous Brandeis students sashayed down the catwalk to the pulsing beats of electronic hip-hop, some with more skill than others, but all with an excellent sense of fun. Cat calls such as "Take it off!" and "Ow oww!" could be heard from the enthusiastic crowd, which only further encouraged the already confident models. The clothing displayed ranged from casual wear, to formalwear and lingerie, with additional accessories such as sneakers designed by the talented Ari Tretin '12. Though the exaggerated hair and makeup that the models wore was extremely high-fashion, most of the clothing was both stylish and wearable. Students modeled colorful cropped jackets, bright bubble dresses, impossibly high heels and beautiful scarves and ties by designer Rachel Park. One of the most surprising aspects of the event was how blatantly sexual it was. Male models walked shirtless with lipstick marks on their necks and knowing grins on their faces that practically screamed, "I know I'm sexy!" Meanwhile, the female models strutted down in lingerie that was so risqué it made me, an avid Cosmopolitan reader who doesn't color easily, blush! Still, it was very entertaining watching the models pout, kiss and wink their way down the aisle, pulling scarves out of their bras and at one point even pulling underwear out of a pair of cargo shorts. I wondered if my Jewish Orthodox background (where in high school I would have been sent home if I wore a skirt above my knees) might have affected how surprised I was; but guessing by the looks of shock and delight in the crowd, I wasn't alone.Though the event itself wasn't a complete success, (the crowd was sparse, at points the models looked like they didn't know what they should be doing and there were long interludes where the crowd was left staring at a blank runway) it was still a very fun show to watch, and by the looks of it, a very fun show to be a part of. During the longer intermissions, the crowd was entertained by two amazing dance performances: one artistic number performed to Jason Mraz's "Details in the Fabric" by Nika Vizcarra '10 and one entertaining hip-hop performance by Brandeis dance troupe Kaos Kids. But the real entertainment stemmed from watching your friends and that hot guy you always stare at in math class be transformed into models. For a school that is notorious for having unattractive students (ever hear the term "Brandeis Goggles"?) SKIN proved that Brandeis is hotter than people think. Coordinator Stephanie Lau '11 perfectly sums it up, stating, "There are confident, attractive people at Brandeis who know how to work a catwalk!
(11/11/03 5:00am)
On Saturday, the Korean Students Association (KSA) presented its fifth-anniversary Korean Night which not only educated the Brandeis community on the rich Korean-American culture and history, but also served as the Centennial Celebration of Korean immigration - a very proud and significant milestone in Korean-American history. Students, friends and family that poured into Sherman Function Hall that evening were warmly welcomed by KSA's very own traditionally dressed couple which appeared to serve as a glimpse into what the night was to bring. In a matter of minutes, all the empty chairs in the room were quickly be replaced by a full-house that tickled with excitement and anticipation. As the lights dimmed, the spotlight shined down on the floor as the night began. Ahram Shin '06 and Katherine Kim '05, dressed in traditional all-white costumes, with large drums called "sul jangoo" strapped across their chests, stepped onto the audience's view from opposing sides. Words were not necessary as they greeted the audience with the battling of their steady yet strong pulsating beats.Next, Janet S. Kim '04 awed the audience, and probably deeply touched many second and third generation Korean-Americans with her skills of reciting poetry. Although she had some technical difficulties with the microphone and had to resort to not using one at all, her first poem laid down a vivid picture of Korean culture and history. Her second poem, "Punctuation," touched upon the stereotypes and perspectives of what it means to be Korean-American. Especially moving was not merely Kim's theatric ability to recite, but also the passion and intensity she exuded, capturing her audience in a moment of deep emotion. A wise addition to the program was the informative tidbits accompanied my pictures presented on a screen for the audience. Whether it was about a favorite Korean snack such as "Chocopie" or about a highlight in Korean-American history, each clip seemed to serve as a pleasant complement to the show. In the next act, Class of 2007 members Chris Joo, Jessica Kim, Jin Kim, Cynthia Kao and Chris Parroco-Rojas cranked up some bumping Korean pop-music to show off their hip dance moves. Serving as a pleasant contrast to the traditional battle of the drums, they performed flips, solo pieces, and in sync dancing coordinated by Jin Kim. Whether it was Jiang's sexy yet charming solo - punctuated by a wink that left the audience chuckling - or Joo's astonishing flips and spins that drew much "ooh and ahh" from the audience, the performance was completed by a surge of roaring applause and hollers from the crowd. "One Voice," a five-person male singing group, captivated the audience with their heart wrenchingly beautiful voices that were nicely accentuated by a guitar background. Their soft, angelic voices resonated throughout the room with some old school R&B, putting everyone in a trance of awe, particularly the women who appeared to be wooed by the beautifully melodic voices. It was a bit controversial when one of the singers introduced the Christian song "You are the King." As he took a few moments to speak of the strong Christian influence their music contained, it appeared to have a double effect - some seemed to be deeply moved by his words, while others may have took in the words as an unexpected and unwelcome interruption to the performance. "Some people may have criticized the strong undertones of Christianity throughout the show, but I think its representative of the Korea-American culture, so you can't minus that out and I think that its very important that it did come out like that, though I didn't have control over that at all." KSA President Jane Kim '05 said.With the support of the Hewlett Pluralism Alliance Grant, "Revision," KSA's first original short film - directed by Arnon Schorr '05 and written by Michael Park '05 - addressed the very real issue of Korean-American identity and the obstacles that Korean-American students at Brandeis University overcome throughout their daily lives. Starring Ben Lee '06, the film, although not high-tech or elaborate, was humorous and entertaining. Most importantly, the film fulfilled its purpose. It took the audience, regardless of race, age, or gender, though only for a few moments, into the life of a Korean-American student. Next, KSA presented the traditional Korean fan dance "boo chae choom" choreographed by Katherine Kim '05. The female dancers strolled onto the floor dressed in traditional Korean costumes, characterized by gorgeous vibrant colors and each holding two identical fans accentuated by bright, hot pink feathers. As they dancers glided across the floor, swaying their fans about in unison, the performance looked absolutely serene and heavenly. It was truly a striking example of one of Korea's beautiful cultural art forms.Suddenly the serene music silenced, and the modern rendition of the fan dance was initiated by a loud bang of American pop star Beyonce Knowles' voice singing "Baby Boy." From the back, six females - identically dressed in tight white capri pants and olive green netted tanks and holding the same pink-feathered fans - stepped up to steal the scene. They hyped up the audience with their trendy hip-hop moves and upbeat pop culture music, but it didn't exactly "steal the show." The idea of presenting a contrast between the traditional and modern music and dance form was clever. However, in comparison to the quiet yet strikingly elegant beauty of the previous traditional fan dance performance, the modern dance was a bit lacking. Upon the conclusion of the satisfying - but first-years performed the modern version of the Korean pansori epic "Chunyang" through a short skit. Unfortunately, the skit seemed to be unable to present any sort of Korean culture - modern or traditional. Furthermore, the narration was difficult to hear and comprehend, hence making it difficult for the audience to closely follow the storyline. The performance did have its brief moments of humor in which loud howls of laughter could be heard. Yet overall the performance was a bit confusing and unsatisfying, especially in contrast to the previous exceptional acts. Just when the show appeared to be heading slightly downhill, the KSA drum troupe of six students stole the show with their amazing skills at "sa mool nol ree" which are four different drum-like instruments. Dressed alike in colorful Korean costumes, the performers sat down Indian-style on the floor and showed a taste of Korean style drum beating. The audience seemed clearly absorbed by the show, cheering and applauding throughout the entire performance. Of course, a mentionable highlight of the piece was when Jacob Kim '06 got up and slipped in a few of his hilariously funny, but undeniably entertaining dance moves. As the drumbeats slowly decreased in volume to silence, the act ended in continuous rounds of applause. Probably one of the most poignant acts of the night was the KSA E-board's performance of "I am from." Standing side by side, each board member took part in reciting a sentence starting with "I am from." Each sentence was different and portrayed unique characteristics of every individual's identity, background and experiences, yet the act had a unifying effect. In addition, Katherine Kim's intense performance of spoken word was touching, passionate, and amazing. The night came to an end with a performance by Danny Hwang, as he displayed his skills of singing, playing the keyboard and exciting the audience. He began by bringing out a girl from the audience and wooing her with a popular Korean love song. Then, accompanied by his keyboard he sang "A Lifetime is not too Long to Live as Friends," and ended the night on an upbeat note, in which the audience began to clap, dance and just have a good time. After the show, Jane Kim proudly commented on the evening. "The show was off the hook. We incorporated so many things: political, modern, traditional, entertainment, the works; and I think it pulled off really well," Kim said. "We had a couple of technicalities, but overall I think people got a very good message and learned a lot about the Korean-American culture.
(10/21/03 4:00am)
Despite a pair of disappointing losses to Trinity College and Bentley College, the Brandeis University women's tennis team took to the court Tuesday and triumphed over Wellesley school Babson College by a 5-4 margin. Not only were the Judges victorious that day, they tarnished the Beavers' flawless 10-0 fall record by handing Babson their first loss of the season. Although the ultimate result of the match was positive, the Judges got off to an inauspicious start. The doubles bracket ended with a dominant performance by the visiting Beavers, who took each of the three matches for a 1-0 lead. Head Coach Rocky Jarvis' first doubles tandem of Jane Chae '05 and Abby Lerner suffered a tough loss to Babson's Erin Seo and Francesca Russo 8-6, while Brandeis' Jennifer Krueger '07 and Christine Clancy '06 were defeated by Babson's Samantha Wong and Co-Captain Shannon McCarthy (8-3). Shani Reich '06 and Judges' third singles player Ora Wexler '04 succumbed to Babson's Daniela Hoffer and Co-Captain Andrea Fang (8-2).Just as the Beavers began to get comfy on the Brandeis courts, the Judges came back swinging with five singles victories.At sixth singles, Katie Albert '04 took the first step to a Brandeis victory when she crushed her Babson opponent Cassie Kao, 6-1, 6-0. Following Albert's lead, Chae played with brilliance and captured a 6-3, 6-0 win over Babson's McCarthy at first singles.The Judges' only lapse came when Babson's Fang did some damage against Wexler, winning 6-1, 6-0. Lerner stopped the bleeding when the Brandeis Co-Captain defeated Babson's Hoffer at second singles 6-3, 6-3. Finally, as the match fell into the hands of Brandeis' Reich and Krueger, the Judges' fate was all but sealed. At fourth singles, Reich played her part by toppling the Beavers' Russo in two tense sets 7-6, (7-5), 6-3. Krueger struggled a bit at the start of her match, dropping the first set 2-6, but she promptly settled into her competitive mode and conquered Babson's Wong, 6-2 and 7-5 in the remaining two sets. After the win over Babson, the women had to prep for their Newitt Women's Intercollegiate Tennis Tourney at Amherst College. Brandeis' top three players, Chae, Lerner and Wexler, qualified for the highly-competitive tournament. In the fist singles bracket, Chae came out on top in both her matches in the first and second round. In the first round, Chae crushed Wellesley's Hana Freymiller 6-1, 6-1 and continued her stellar play by taking out Salve Regina's Michelle Kennedy 6-0, 6-2 in the second round. In her first round match, Lerner earned a solid 6-0, 6-1 victory over Jamie Weiss of Wheaton College (Mass.) in the second round. Wexler had an easy time with her quick 6-0, 6-0 victory over Alicia Wells of Salva Regina College. On Saturday, Chae reached the quarterfinal round, handily defeating Tufts' Jennifer Lejb, 6-3, 6-1. Unfortunately for Brandeis, Chae then fell to Amherst College number one Rachel Holt. Although Chae won the first set 6-3, she faltered and allowed Holt to capture 12 of the match's last 20 games.Lerner was defeated by Tristan Hedrick of Amherst 6-3, 6-4, while Ameherst's Kristena Raverta defeated Wexler. In the quarterfinals of the doubles bracket, Brandeis' elite doubles pair of Chae and Lerner demolished Middlebury College's tandem of Spring and Ross, 8-6. Chae reflected on the way the Judges pulled together to put forth a strong effort in Amherst. "This weekend was truly memorable," she said, "because it showed the importance of teamwork and unity as an integral part of success." "With the absence of Jen and Shani," Chae continued, "we all knew that each one of us had to pick up our games, and everyone in the lineup this weekend did just that and more. Words cannot express how proud I am of my teammates.
