Mount Hood

Review: “Electric Light”

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

It’s been three years since singer-songwriter James Bay released his debut album, and I’ve been anticipating his second since I finished listening to the first. “Electric Light” is good, but it’s nothing special. In his second album, Bay seems like he’s trying to reinvent his sound, but does so in such a miniscule way that the changes just seem like slightly overproduced missteps. While the album almost succeeds in showing a different side to the artist’s music, an overall lack of continuity is its downfall.

When it comes to music, I love a good connecting storyline — and Bay’s sophomore release seemed like it was going to deliver. “Electric Light,” in a way similar to “Camp” by Childish Gambino, uses interludes of dialogue to introduce the listener to the story that the album is trying to tell.

The first track, aptly named “Intro,” consists of nearly a minute of dialogue between Bay and a woman who’s playing the role of his significant other. The conversation comes back halfway through the album with “Interlude,” another minute-long track. While this framework acts as the set-up for a musical story, the album itself fails to follow through. I was expecting the last track to sum up the record in a similar conversational way, but it ended on a bittersweet musical note that housed Kodaline-levels of sadness. Though the attempted storyline seemed like it was aiming for somewhere great, it failed to get there.

The first single released and fourth tune on the album, “Wild Love,” is destined to be one of the songs of the summer. “Wild Love” relies heavily on autotune, nearly to the point of sounding like Bleachers. However, the majority of the song remains low-energy and squanders the pop potential it appears to be aiming for. It isn’t until the track is almost over that the sound drops into a danceable beat.

Bay’s debut album, “Chaos and the Calm,” was released in 2015 and was a solid record — his powerful vocals and intensely romantic lyrics resulted in three Grammy nominations. While “Electric Light” still houses the same strong sound that was displayed in “Chaos,” the at-times-overproduced quality of the songs took away from how much I enjoyed the album as a whole.

While I dislike Bay’s overall sound reinvention, I do have to commend him on the powerhouse that is “Stand Up.” The song begins with layered vocals, but quickly turns into a softer, choral interlude, eventually building up to a climax of boisterous percussion and violin, ultimately winding down to a calm finish that borders on lackluster.

“Just for Tonight” is the song that’s most reminiscent of the artist’s previous releases; the tune feels like it’s reaching into Bay’s singer-songwriter roots, but ultimately winds up relying too heavily on choral voices.

Though I’ll probably stick to listening to his first album, it seems like “Electric Light” is Bay’s way of coming into his own sound. The album plays more with autotune, voice layering and different genres. However, the failed continuity of the record makes it seem like Bay was throwing pasta at a wall and hoping it would stick — if the organization was better, I think the reinvention would have been more successful.

 

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo courtesy of: republicrecords.com

Dedication illuminated through dance

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

One by one, the audience shuffled to their seats and waited in anticipation for the art they’d soon witness. After some time, the lights slowly dimmed to full darkness. With a hush that consumed the room and the sweeping of a curtain, it was time for the show to begin.

The 2018 Spring Dance Concert took place from May 10-12 in Rice Auditorium. Showcasing the work and dedication that went into 10 different performances, audience members showed up and supported the art that their friends, family and peers had worked to perfect.

The show displayed the work of students, alumni, and the Rainbow Dance Theatre, as all worked together to put on the two and a half hour production.

From the eyes of a viewer, what was seen was nothing short of phenomenal. Opening with a performance titled “Last Light,” choreographed by senior Andrew De La Paz, audiences saw animalistic forces charging after the dying light presented by soloist senior Alaina Meyer. Ultimately, the piece showed that no matter how hard the force attempted to steal the light from her, she would not surrender.

This piece set the scene for the rest of the concert; from then on, audiences were able to see more dark material, with visuals that would send shivers down one’s spine and had perfectly chosen music to match.

These dance performances didn’t shy from tackling controversial topics, such as the stereotypes surrounding different races brought to light in “One,” choreographed by senior Tunya Dhevaphalin.

“Each piece told a story,” explained dancer sophomore Noah Nieves Driver. “Whether it be one of determination, grief, or just for pure entertainment … (each was) full of everyone’s heart and soul.”

Art was exhibited within each performance; the set designs, the lighting that flawlessly reflected the mood of the piece, the film used in choreographer Kristie Lauren’s “Chalk, Chalkboards, and Classroom Covens,” and even the painting produced on the spot by Professor Gregory Poulin in “Men Dancing: the Painter,” choreographed by dance professor Darryl Thomas in collaboration with the dancers — all left the audience in awe.

Behind the curtain, what made the production of this art possible can be seen.

“A lot of preparation went into the Spring Dance Concert,” said dancer sophomore Maria Krueger. “We put five months worth of rehearsal time in, with practices twice a week for two hours each practice.”

Krueger was a part of two performances: “Last Light” and “False Hologram.” She added that, on top of the work she and the rest of the crew put into the pieces, there were also “two previews during that time, where the dance facility overlooked the dances and helped students perfect their pieces.”

With numerous dancers involved, choreographers, costume designers, lighting designers and more, the hours on top of hours and immense passion put into the production was evident.

Following the final piece, “The Garden of Earthly Delights,” choreographed by Valerie Bergman and professor Darryl Thomas, both a part of the Rainbow Dance Theatre, the show came to a close. As the faces of each performer made their way to center stage to take a final bow, much of the audience gave a standing ovation to show their respect and admiration towards everyone involved.

Driver noted that as he was taking his bow, he felt “sadness that the run is over … and happiness to finally have free time again.”

“It felt amazing to perform these pieces, to show off five months of hard work,” added Krueger.

As the lights brightened the room and the audience made their way down the rows and out of the auditorium, those involved in the show were greeted with the smiling faces of all of their supporters, waiting to congratulate them on the work they had done.

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Photos by: Paul F. Davis

Music from the heartstrings

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

Emmaly Basaraba was three-years-old when she discovered that she wanted to learn how to play the violin; “I remember going to the living room and on TV there was a man playing violin and I was like ‘I want to do that.’” Five years later, her parents offered to get her lessons. On May 3, the Bachelor of Music major walked on to the Smith Hall stage to perform her junior music recital.

The recital, titled “Ain’t Misbehavin’” after one of the songs that Basaraba performed, featured jazz music from the ‘20s and ‘30s.

Music students Noah Adams and Justin Kayler accompanied Basaraba on the drums and bass, respectively. Her brother, Wyatt Basaraba, played both the guitar and tenor banjo. Between songs, Basaraba pointed out that certain selections — namely, “Georgia on My Mind” and “Ain’t Misbehavin’” — were chosen because of her association between the songs and her late music teacher, Gene Hall.

She chose the title of her show because of how it represented the era of music she was focusing on in the set, as well as her memory of Hall playing it; “I felt it captured the essence of the time period that I was going for — jazz music from the ‘20s and ‘30s …  I have a lot of fond memories of Gene playing it with his granddaughter, because she would sing it while he would play it. I thought it just captured the essence of the era.”

A Polk County local, Basaraba was raised in Dallas, where she and her brother were homeschooled.

Music is more than just a degree or a pastime for the violinist. Rather, it’s part of her identity.

“Music is kind of the central part of who I am as a person … I love doing a lot of different things for fun but music is my escape,” she said. “Whether it’s listening to or playing music, it’s what I do to feel whole and to express myself.”

For Basaraba, this love of music comes from Hall. The instructor taught both her and her brother music from the time she was eight until he passed away when she was sixteen.

“It’s hard to find a starting point. He was my teacher, but he was a lot more than that. He was kind of a grandpa figure to me,” she said. “Not only was I learning how to play music from him … but he would be interested in what was going on in our lives … he was the person who really impacted me and kind of instilled music into my soul … it’s Gene’s fault that music is what I live and breathe.”

“When I’m performing especially, that’s where I feel the most open with my music. I’ve been performing for a long time … I don’t really get stage fright,” Basaraba’s love of performing stems, in part, from Hall as well — he would invite her and her brother to play gigs with him.

“I really feed off of being in front of a crowd and showing them what I’ve got,” Basaraba noted.

Hall is one of the the biggest musical inspirations in Basabara’s life. In addition to him, she also finds inspiration from her current music teacher: “Christopher Woitach — he’s really inspired me too,” she said. “Then there’s like greats like Stephane Grappelli and Joe Venuti.”

When she isn’t playing music, Basaraba works on campus at the Wolfstore, watches “The Office” and looks after her two guinea pigs — Wilbur and Orville. But music remains her primary passion.

“Music is my hobby and the thing I study and the thing I love to do,” Basaraba said. “It’s hard to think of other things I love as much as music — both listening and playing.”

The recital ended with “Five Foot Two” by Ray Henderson. As the lights came up, Basaraba’s brother got up and gave his sister a hug.

It’s clear that Basaraba’s own experience as a music student has made a lasting impact.

“My dream would be to have a private studio to teach out of. I love teaching private lessons, I have a few students right now,” she commented. “To be honest, I don’t have a set plan of what I want to do, but I’m very open to whatever comes my way. I’m excited for what the future has.”

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Review: “Can’t Wake Up”

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

Alejandro Rose-Garcia, also known as Shakey Graves, announced his fifth album with a warning: that fans should prepare to sell their suspenders. While Graves set out to release “Can’t Wake Up” as a departure from his previous albums, the record houses the same down-home feel that can be found in his earlier work, with a touch more gloom and a little less fingerpicking.

I was introduced to Graves’s music through an episode of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts. The concert emphasized the sort of music that the artist is famous for — a combination of folk and blues, with a touch of rock n’ roll rolled in — the same kind of music that he’s trying to take a departure from in “Can’t Wake Up.”

In “Can’t Wake Up,” Graves has set up a world of mystery, reminiscence and surreal situations. His lyrics are self-analyzing, dark and dreamy, while the music itself is somewhat psychedelic and layered — these things work together to create an audio representation of the world depicted on the cover of the record.

Though the album’s core still houses the warm vocals and strands of guitar-heavy backing that punctuates his previous four albums, Graves has shifted his sound to being more pop- and rock-heavy. Rather than embracing a low-budget, found-on-the-street sound, “Can’t Wake Up” is noticeably different when it comes to production. Each track has a larger and more robust presence.

“Counting Sheep” is possibly the catchiest song on the record. It was one of the first singles released and provides a dose of shock regarding what the album will be like. The track marries the sound that Graves is pushing away from with the one he’s embracing. Rather than focusing on a solo voice, the song employs the use of Graves’s own different pitch backing vocals to fully immerse listeners in the hazy world that’s being created. I challenge you not to sing it at the top of your lungs.

The album then shifts into the ultimate summer dance anthem; “Kids These Days” is an indie-sounding bop that spends time reminiscing about the feeling of indestructible youth.

Though many of the tracks are powerhouse anthems, “Climb on the Cross,” “Neighbor” and “Mansion Door” show a slower side of the album; while the starting tracks are bellowing, the slower songs work to combat some of the more high-energy pieces and bring both the album and the listener back into the the dreamscape.

Though Graves billed “Can’t Wake Up” as a great departure from his earlier music, the album still feels like Shakey Graves — it still feels like the warm country-folk songs that he’s been playing since his first album. Simply put, “Can’t Wake Up” is a great album. Though die-hard fans of Graves’s older work may be discouraged, this album is worth the listen. It embraces a lot of what’s currently being done in popular music, but the record retains a sense of originality.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: shakeygraves.bandcamp.com

Campus pianists take the stage

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

The sound of music filled Smith Hall as music students and professors alike played through piano performances. On May 2, “An Elegant Evening of Piano Music” was held as part of the 2017-2018 Smith Concert Series.

The two-hour event consisted of pianists playing the compositions of Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Debussy, among others. Professors Diane Baxter and Jackie Morelli opened the evening by performing “Celebration” by Rollin. The duo played two other songs throughout the night; “Fantasy Op. 5 ‘Larmes’” by Rachmaninoff was also played in the first half of the night, while “Jubilation” by Vandall opened the show after intermission.

Junior music major Levi Polasek played two songs in the latter half of the evening. The first performed was a short, lively piece by Kapustin, titled “Prelude Op. 53 No. 17” and the second was “Nocturne Op. 27 No. 2” by Chopin.

“The great part about performing is audience reaction, which honors both the performer and the composer,” said Polasek. “My favorites are the beautiful and timeless piano compositions from Liszt, Beethoven, Prokofiev and Chopin.”

Senior Bachelor of Music major Jessica McCutchen enjoys performances like these because of the moment after she reaches the end of a song; “There’s this moment of silence afterwards before people clap, and it’s when you exhale all the air you’ve been building up the entire time you’ve been playing — it’s the most relaxing moment.”

Also included in the setlist were performances by Leo McLean, a sophomore from Sprague High School in Salem, Oregon and Li Jing, a visiting scholar from Guangxi Arts University in China. McLean performed Chopin’s “G minor Ballade Op. 23” while Jing played Liszt’s “Harmonies du Soir.”

The evening of piano music ended with the only composition of the night, “Antumbra,” which was composed and played by McCutchen.

“(Antumbra) came from a place of transition in my life … I went through this huge writing block and I couldn’t write any music for two months, anything substantial,” said McCutchen. “So I went back to my old approach of writing music, which is just sitting down at the piano and playing until I figure out what I like … it’s not an effective use of time, but it really changed how I write music now. It got me back on track.”

“Antumbra” will be making an appearance at McCutchen’s senior recital on June 1.

Other student performers for the night included seniors Xia Yun and Xudong Yang, first year masters students Julia Harrington and Yuzhou Huang and second year masters student Lingyu Zhu.

The next performances hosted by the music program include the joint junior recital of Cole Johnston, Jacob Marsh and Keagan Wall on May 9, and the junior recital of Adam Hyland on May 17. Both events are at 7:30 p.m.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu.

Photo by: Zoë Strickland

Review: “KOD”

Simson Garcia | Sports Editor

J. Cole’s “KOD” arrived on April 20 and, while he’s progressed and improved as an artist, his new project regressed towards the end.

While varying styles of instrumentals are constructed, ranging from newly stylized modern trap beats to old-school hip-hop influences, Cole’s narrative is what keeps “KOD” afloat. “KOD,” or “Kill Our Addiction,” is based around Cole learning to cope with some of the problems his current generation is also dealing with. For instance, in the album’s trailer, Cole revealed part of how the album developed, “If I turn on the TV right now, it’s not going to be long before an advertisement pops up that says ‘are you feeling down? Have you been having lonely thoughts?’”

Cole tries to grasp the listener consciously. He touches on multiple addictions his generation has been afflicted by and how they might cope with each: technology, drugs, sex and alcohol. But the messages are deeper and, at times, have a double meaning. Cole engages the listener to closely analyze the problems they may also have faced.

For example, “ATM” is a track about the obsession of money and the American dream, and how the dream consumes people. In the refrain he repeats, “Count it up, count it up, count it up, count it,” then responds sarcastically with “Can’t take it when you die, but you can’t live without it.”

“Photograph,” too, deals with obsession as it’s about a boy’s strong interest toward a girl’s social media account — though he’s never met her in reality.

While I get the many interplaying themes, and completely appreciate the diversity KOD strings together, because hip-hop truly needs an army of poets to talk about different issues — they’re simply outnumbered by the invaders of trap music — at KOD’s core is the current generation’s endless addiction to things. Technology is one “Photograph” spoken of as well as drug addiction that’s layered throughout several tracks.

But “KOD” struggles to hold together until the very end. Cole is so invested in topics related to addiction and unwillingness to heal, it’s not something you can re-listen to, and nod your head until the end. Upon finishing, I found it to be a sad case of an endless cycle of our society’s problem with addiction, especially with drugs and alcohol. It’s only right since Cole displays through the songs what he’s undergoing and how hard it is to overcome. I understand that aspect. But it’s not together because there’s an unfulfilling resolution to “KOD,” which could be due to Cole supposedly crafting the album in short time.

Just as important, the instrumentals became too melancholic for my liking. Even though I dig jazz samples and classic hip-hop rhythms, the beats encoded with the messages didn’t keep me vibing. “KOD” is listenable, attention grabbing through the first seven tracks, but towards the end kept me questioning and hopeless.

Only two tracks I can say are completely catching me by the ear and will get more than a few replays.

The piano sounds from “The Cutoff” are reminiscent of Jay-Z’s “Dead Presidents,” an all-time favorite of mine. In the song, he talks about friends he’s cutoff and the stages they went through until their relationship eventually split, something I’ve come to face with recently.

Second, “ATM” has this message and tempo I was hoping the latter half of “KOD” would include more of. As I mentioned earlier, the lyrics are about the sad affair we have with money, but Cole’s beat and flow carries the song. Even though he states things like “without it I’m miserable,” he comes in with a force vocally. I love how he’ll say something like “I’m stacking this paper, it’s sort of habitual,” but while doing, there’s a sense that he’s basically insisting to be conscious about the idea of money, as he states with “proceed with caution, I heard if you chase it only results in, a hole in your heart.”      

I’ve only listened to “KOD” two times over. While a step up from his previous release, “4 Your Eyez Only,” “KOD” was a complete miss when compared to his penultimate “2014 Forest Hills Drive” album, but, like Cole says in “The Cutoff,” time will only tell who is on his side, or “KOD”’s side.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Photo by: dreamville.com

Take a break from midterms

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

As it gets to be the middle of term, it’s important to hit the books and study for midterms. However it’s also important to take some time and explore all of Western has to offer. Here are some events on and off campus that can provide you with a reprieve from studying.

The Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival has been extended by one week — rather than closing on April 30 as planned, the festival’s last day is now slated for May 6. For those who want to get out of the Monmouth-Independence area, the festival can provide a break from studying. In addition to roaming the tulips, festival-goers can pick up food and purchase their own flowers. For people who choose to go specifically on the weekends, they can also take advantage of hot air balloon rides and a craft marketplace. Admission for the festival is $5 per person or $20 per full car.

There are a myriad of different on-campus music events happening this week. All of the events are free for Western students and offer a wide variety of tunes to listen to. On Wednesday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m., the music department is holding a showcase of current piano students and their work. The following day on May 3, junior Emmaly Basabara will be performing her junior violin recital. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. Rounding out the week of music events is a Friday night performance by the Salem String Quartet. The show is on May 4 at 7:30 p.m. as well. For those who are interested in seeing the string quartet, prices vary: $8 general admission, $5 for students and senior citizens, or free with a Western student ID.

From May 10 to May 12 Western’s dance department will be hosting the 10th annual Spring Dance Concert. The concert will feature numbers choreographed by students, faculty and Rainbow Dance Theatre. Tickets are $8 for students with a Western ID, $10 for senior citizens and $14 for general admission. Those who are interested in attending the dance concert can purchase tickets at the box office in Rice Auditorium.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: Elissa Sorenson

Review: “Mercury 13”

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

Are women fit for space travel? NASA in 1961 thought the answer was a resounding no. One of Netflix’s newest documentaries, “Mercury 13,” explores the fight that resulted from this opinion. “Mercury 13” is informative and vital for documenting the path to gender equality, specifically in regards to women in the STEM field. However, its slow start and tendency to repeat points made it difficult for me to fully engross myself in the film.

“Mercury 13” sheds a light on the stories of 13 of the 25 women who took part in secret testing that would determine if they were fit to be sent into space. The testing, administered by William Lovelace — the creator of the male astronaut test for NASA — was conducted primarily because of Lovelace’s curiosity, rather than because of NASA’s interest.

The documentary is focused on the 13 women who passed the testing and were technically eligible for spaceflight. Though some of the women performed better than others, it was found that some even had better scores than their male counterparts. However, the unsanctioned tests were a wash because of Lovelace’s inability to convince NASA that women were fit for space.

In addition to tracking the test-related plight of women trying to achieve space travel, “Mercury 13” also outlines the governmental backlash that the testing resulted in.

The documentary starts off dreadfully slow. Though it hits every mark in regards to exposition, it takes 20 minutes to really get into the main parts of what actually led to the spaceflight testing.

“Mercury 13” isn’t trying to uncover the great mystery of why women weren’t allowed to be sent up to space — it was purely because of the sexism perpetuated by the government, male astronauts and societal beliefs.

While the documentary makes a good point of including source content from interviews with the Mercury 13 from the time of the trial — including a reporter asking one of them about how she was going to find the time to be an astronaut as well as a mother — at times it felt like the same points were being made in monotony. Because of this, this documentary felt like something I would watch in a classroom rather than on my own time.

That being said, the film was overall enjoyable. The more recent interviews conducted with some of the women show a level of tenacity that everyone should aspire to. The women are vivacious and determined to better the landscape of gender equality in STEM fields. Their discourse regarding the events they were involved in livens up the documentary tenfold.

Undoubtedly, my favorite part of “Mercury 13” was its ability to maintain a sense of unity between all of the female pilots involved. In addition to having interview clips from most of the surviving women included, the documentary also includes interviews with women who were affected by the efforts of the Mercury 13, like Eileen Collins, the first female pilot of a space shuttle. This not only emphasized the scope of women affected, but it also grounded the efforts in a more tangible way. It’s clear that, while the Mercury 13 women were unable to achieve spaceflight, they’re still invested in future women who want to be sent to space.

As someone who’s interested in both space and gender issues, I liked this documentary. “Mercury 13” took two things I love learning about and discussed the crossroads between them. However, I wouldn’t recommend it to people who are hesitant to watch documentaries, or who have little to no interest in the subject matter. It’s slow to start, and admittedly took some trying to get through.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: nasa.gov

Exhibit explores how numbers relate to nature

Kevin Reed | Staff Writer

“Art is really for oneself and fine art doesn’t really have one finite message that one’s trying to get across,” said Jennifer Bracy, a professor of visual communications design at Western. “It’s often much more about questions and maybe there’s some kind of an answer or a message within, but it’s less important.” Bracy has been teaching at Western for eight years and recently released a new fine art exhibit called “Forces of Nature,” on display in Hamersly Library on the second floor.

In the past Bracy has mainly worked as a freelance graphic designer.

“I work often with small startups or non-profit organizations that need help with a campaign … or something of that nature,” said Bracy. However, she explained that this display is a new exploration for her: “There’s a specific message and specific audience that has to be communicated in graphic design … It’s much more open to interpretation.”

Though she has done art displays and shows before, this “Forces of Nature” explores new mediums and techniques — utilizing ink and printmaking to create contrasting colors, shapes and forms to make each piece beautiful and have its own personality.

“I named it ‘Forces of Nature’ because a lot of the themes that I have explored in my art, and some of my personal design projects, really came out in this body of work … the infinite wisdom of nature. What we can learn from it as humans, how we have to respect it … the tensions between the us and the environment and the things we do to it.”

Her main focus of many of the pieces in the display was the beauty that is in nature. Bracy drew inspiration from natural phenomena like the honeycomb and the geodesic dome to showcase the random perfection nature can achieve at times.

“The bee hive is so efficient and it represents this strong, stable and efficient community of bees and humans can really borrow from that,” she noted.

In “Number Series,” a specific grouping of pieces, Bracy breaks down the nature of numbers one through ten and what meaning and significance each number has around the world.

“What I love finding out is that in a lot of these human constructs with language that, inherent in them, there’s a lot of nature with a lot of those origins of numbers,” said Bracy.

Each and every day people see numbers or use numbers but nobody ever thinks about the technical side of it all or asks questions about where they come from or what they mean to other people all the way across the globe.

“I had to do a lot of research,” said Bracy. What she found was a whole new meaning for the symbols we use across the world.

Another series Bracy released in the gallery, “Color Moods”  is purely experimentation art: “It’s a series of purely abstract, meaning they were really just experimental. I was just getting a handle on this new medium. It represents the first experiments I did with monotype printing … It’s called monotype because you can only do it once,” explained Bracy. “You can never recreate it … I think it kinda has a vitality that no matter how hard I try I cannot get back too. Because it was just experimenting and now anything I try is trying to hard.”

It’s a fantastic moment for any artist when an experiment comes out perfect. No matter how much effort you put in you can never recreate that first success. However, the short-lived origins of the art is what make it so spectacular and unique. Bracy found the perfect way to display the importance of experimentation in art and how sometimes it’s important to try something on a whim.

“The Forces of Nature” is, as the name implies, centered on the features of nature that we as humans could respect and learn from. There are so many little phenomena brought to light within the art and, like Bracy says, “It’s often much more about questions” and nobody really will interpret the art in the same way.  

Contact the author at kreed17@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Colorful in “Candyland”

Caitlyn Nakatsukasa | Freelancer

One of the most popular events is back on campus, and its hype at the school is monumental.

Western’s 22nd Drag Show took place on April 11 and 12. The show is hosted by the Triangle Alliance and the show, script and choreography is completely run by students. The inaugural event is a unique one that has a mix of drag elements, musical performances and unique styles. Often known for its groundbreaking, upbeat vibe and entertainment, it’s an event that everyone wants to attend every year.

This year’s theme was Candyland and the storyline is closely associated with the gameplay of the board game. Similar to the board game, the Drag Show starts off with two girls wanting to play a game of Candyland and later finding themselves in the board game. They learn that King Kandy, the most respected character that keeps the world colorful, is missing and the townspeople are worried that villain Lord Licorice will take over and ruin all of Candyland. The characters encounter other characters such as Mamma Ginger Tree, Jib and Princess Lolly who all join them in their search for King Kandy.

“Candyland” focused on pride and discovering self-identity. Candyland’s main message for the audience is to lift each other up in love and encourage others to celebrate who they are and be proud of it. Characters in the show struggled with this and showed that the digression of self love and acceptance was not easy.

Lord Licorice was embarrassed about his sexuality which caused him to be angry and become the villain he is. He never meant to hurt anyone but felt ashamed because he was different from other people which caused him to act in the way that he did. This shows the struggle that unfortunately many people today go through with acceptance and self-identification.

“Self-discovery is a process, and I really wanted to explore that,” said Suse Doepken, the scriptwriter for the show. “I tried really hard to give a variation of characters and expressions, like genderfluid, questioning, super feminine, super masculine and gay.”

Doepken wanted everyone to feel included whether the person is a part of or an ally of the community: “I truly hope the audience was able to find themselves relating or seeing aspects of themselves in the characters I brought to life.”

Doepken believes that discovering oneself and identity can be a scary and wanted the script of the show to reflect that journey so others out there can relate and not feel alone.

“(The show) was fun and exciting. Being part of a community that encourages each other to be themselves is so heartwarming. It’s always nice to be around people that can relate and support you.” said Chase Tabladillo, who played the Duke of Swirl.

This was Tabladillo’s second year in the show, and she believes the show gives people the opportunity to step out of their comfort zone and do things they’ve never done before, such as dancing and performing in front of many people; “We all had our ups and downs but at the end of the day we all pulled through as a group and made this amazing show happen.”  

“I decided to join drag show after realizing my sexuality and accepting it,” explained Mandy Storm, who performed as Dame Inatrix, and played Jolly. “I have many friends that do it and they encouraged me to at least try, so I did. And I loved every minute of it. I loved that it could be my true self and not be judged.”

Storm loved the sense of community the show brought and the friendships that were built during the production. This is her first year being part of drag show. “The most memorable part of the show was the support and encouragement that was given to me by everyone in the cast. I was able to build relationships that will last forever.”

“Candyland” was a hit and it was all because of the cast and crew. At the end of the show they stated that society should work together to lift each other up in celebration for who they are. Everyone did an outstanding job executing that message and help make this an event where it’s safe to express yourself in a fun manner.

Contact the author at cnakatsukasa15@wou.edu

Photos by: Paul F. Davis

 

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