Variations on a Dream

"Shall we their fond pageant see? Lord, what fools these mortals be!"

The Hiram Theatre Department had one more production for the year on March 27, 28, and 29: "Variations on A Midsummer Night's Dream."

The play is one of Shakespeare's most famous comedies and even our modern audiences loved it. The play focuses on several subplots that relate: Theseus, the Duke of Athens, is getting married to the Amazon Hippolyta. Meanwhile, the King and Queen of the woodland fairies, Oberon and Titania, are quarreling over a changeling child. Oberon sends his henchman Puck to bewitch Titania into falling in love with a country bumpkin named Bottom (after transforming him into a man with an ass's head). Four young lovers (Lysander and Hermia, Demetrius and Helena) also get bewitched into loving the wrong people, causing all sorts of wonderful drama and hilarious scenes.

"What hempen home-spuns have we swaggering here?"

In the background of it all, Bottom and his group of "rude mechanicals" are putting on an overacted performance of Pyramus and Thisbe. Everything about the show was beautiful: the set, the lighting, the costuming, the puppets. Thankfully, Sammy Adams captured plenty of amazing photographs of one of the performances. You can see them all here.

"My mistress with a monster is in love."

Puck -- Sarah Polly
Bottom -- Daren Niemi
Oberon/Theseus -- Bassel Hage
Titania/Hippolyta -- Aimee Thompson
Lysander -- Jessie Ogden
Demetrius -- Derek Green
Hermia -- Kelly Hanahan
Helena -- Karen Cover
Egeus/Flute -- Rachel Kahn
Stage Assistants -- Leah Rectanus, Claudia Alvarado, Lindsey Kuhn
Sirius (Moonshine's Dog) -- Satchel

FSem Presentations!

For the past few weeks I've been working on a presentation for my First Year Seminar, "Capturing Creativity." Each FSem is designed to focus on critical discussion and writing (specifically, writing research papers). My FSem, Capturing Creativity, focuses on the creative process. We've read about different creative geniuses through history and how their processes differ and relate.

Part of the class is that we must choose a person and research that person's creative process. We must write a research paper around this person and prepare a presentation for the class. I chose Robert Lang, one of the most famous origami artists alive today. For the project, I was actually able to interview Dr. Lang via email, which was very exciting.

For the presentation I recreated several of Lang's origami models, including his most famous piece, the Black Forest Cuckoo Clock. I folded the Clock from one sheet of paper 3 feet wide by 30 feet long. There are no cuts made to the paper and no glue is used to keep it together. I've worked on the clock off and on for a month and a half in the lounge of Whitcomb Hall.

I took some pictures during the whole process, and here they are:

Leadership Positions -- Looking for a Job?

Every year there is an application for leadership positions at Hiram. These positions include Resident Assistant (RA), Teaching Assistant (TA), Orientation Leader, International Orientation Leader, and Community Council.

RA's are in charge of making sure that everything in the dorms is going well -- making sure quiet hours are quiet, dry floors are alcohol-free, and making sure that roommates don't kill each other. RA's also get to coordinate fun floor programs, keep students informed of the goings-on of campus so they can be involved, and basically take charge in any emergency situation, such as fire alarms or the blackout.

Teaching Assistants help freshman colloquium professors in many different ways -- in fact, there really isn't a clear definition of a TA. TA's generally help first-year students adjust to Hiram, grade rough drafts of papers, run errands, lead discussions, give grammar lessons, and any combination thereof.

Orientation Leaders are in charge of, well, leading First Year Orientation, where next year's students will tour around campus, receive information about the New Student Institute, and register for classes. The Orientation Leaders are there to make sure that your orientation runs smoothly and is an enjoyable experience. Also, they are usually students who are very involved on campus, so they should be able to answer any questions you have for them, or at least be able to point you to someone who can. The International Orientation Leaders do the same, but for the international students' orientation.

Community Council Members are involved in enforcing college policies.

If you are interested in participating in any of these positions during your sophomore year, you have to go through a relatively rigorous application process. Around February there will be a few informational meetings on applying, and you can pick up an application. You simply have to fill out the form, write a resume and a cover letter, and get two recommendations filled out. After you've turned them in, you will participate in interviews and group activities. Then, sometime around spring break you will learn if you got any positions!

Next year I will be both a Teaching Assistant and Resident Assistant. I will be a TA for David Stoughton's colloquium called "Let There Be Light." David is new to the Theatre Department this year, and is the department's Technical Director. That means that he is in charge of a lot of the fun stuff involved with the shows, such as lighting design and set construction. His Colloquium will focus on an interdisciplinary perspective on light -- its uses, its effects, where it comes from (in both scientific and mythological contexts). It should be an enjoyable colloquium, and Dave is a fun professor to have, so consider signing up for "Let There Be Light" when you're at your orientation!

Also, I -- along with James Ross and Kim Miller -- will be an RA in Henry Hall. I hope to see you next fall!

Early Spring Break

Hiram had a rather unfortunate encounter with mother nature on Tuesday. Tuesday night, we had a great big ice storm. Throughout the whole week, the snow and ice kept meting and refreezing, and the trees were covered in a thick layer of ice. On Tuesday, everything outside was one big sheet of ice, and the Hiram staff had to continuously salt the sidewalks so that they weren't so hazardous. Tuesday night I was in a friend's room, studying for a Biology exam scheduled for the next day. Around 10 o'clock, the power began flickering. It would go off for a second and come back on, just to flicker again a few minutes later. Students were told not to leave the residence halls because the ice storm was too dangerous -- the wind kept blowing off frozen tree limbs. Finally around 11, we saw a transformer explode in the distance, and the entire campus was out of power.

By morning, the power still had not returned and classes were canceled for the day. I was excited because I had extra time to prepare for biology. The entire campus was closed, but food was still being served at Miller, mostly cold foods for breakfast, and cold sandwiches for lunch, although I did hear that they used an outdoor grill to make some hot dinner meals.

There were fallen branches everywhere, and in one place a tree had snapped over completely. All cell phone calls were kept short and sweet to prolong the battery. Internet was not an option, and laptop batteries eventually went out. So the entire day was one of spending time with friends, which was really great. There's a lot to be said for being without the distractions of everyday life.

After excavating the car from a 1/4-inch ice coccoon, a few friends and I went out to lunch and spent the afternoon walking off our desserts in a mall. We returned late that afternoon and promptly learned that Spring Break was starting a few days early, and everyone had to be off campus by 8 PM because of safety concerns. Out-of-state and international students were encouraged to go home with local friends or, if that wasn't an option, Hiram provided free room at a nearby hotel. I helped a few of my friends pack up, said a buncho f early goodbyes, and I too left by 8. And a happy extra three days on your spring break, everyone!