Posts Tagged ‘web’
Tuesday, February 28th, 2012
The internationally renowned poet and activist, Andrea Gibson, will be performing at Smith College tonight. Gibson is the author of numerous poetical works, including five CDs of spoken word poetry and six books of printed poems. I got the opportunity to ask her a few questions about her writing and the creative process.
Mount Holyoke News: How long have you been writing?
Andrea Gibson: I have been writing since I was very young. I studied creative writing in college, but didn’t discover spoken word until a couple of years after that when I moved to Colorado. Denver has an amazing poetry scene and I was immediately inspired to get involved.
MHN: What’s your primary motivation behind writing and performing?
AG: I write because I would feel like a hollow shell of myself if I didn’t. It is the time in my life when everything makes the most sense, the time when I feel most connected to the pulse of why we’re here. I write about the topics I write about because they are the ones ringing loudest in my chest. And I perform because I’m terrified to perform, and because silence is an unbearably heavy thing to carry.
MHN: How has your queer identity influenced your work?
AG: If I were not queer I’m not sure I’d even be writing. The year I came out was the year I started questioning every “truth” I’d ever been taught.
MHN: Your poems come across as deeply personal—to what extent do you draw inspiration from your personal life?
AG: I’d say I write almost every poem I write from the inside out. To not write from an intimate place has always felt bad to me. My favorite artists are artists who are consistently willing to be vulnerable.
MHN: In poems such as Andrew and Jewelry Store, you talk about your experience of gender. How has this affected your personal life and work?
AG: In every way. Gender is everywhere. Gender is the one poem I am never not speaking.
MHN: Which artists’ works do you admire most or feel inspired to emulate?
AG: Too many to even begin to name.
MHN: It’s well known that you have stage freight. How do you deal with this and how do you feel it affects your performance?
AG: I deal with it by not trying to hide it…. by knowing that if I walk on stage terrified I can say into the mic, “Hey everyone, I’m absolutely terrified.” That nervous energy almost always lands me in a more honest place, propels me into a more transparent performance.
MHN: What’s the craziest fan experience you’ve ever had?
AG: I screamed “I hate myself for loving you!” at Joan Jett. I drooled food on my shirt while talking to Ani Difranco. And I’m pretty sure I asked Amy Goodman to marry me.
Gibson will be performing at 8:30 p.m. in the Carroll Room in Smith’s Campus Center, the show is open to 5-College students and tickets are not necessary.
Tags: Amy Goodman, Andrea Gibson, Ani DifrancoA, Mohini MacDougall, Smith College, spoken word poetry, web, web exclusives
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Friday, February 10th, 2012
Tonight the electronic music god Rusko, Christopher Mercer, will be performing at the Mullins Center on UMass’ campus as part of his February College Tour. This British DJ describes his music as, “dubstep,” a genre well known for its heavy bass and techno feel. 
All the way from Leeds, West Yorkshire England this musician was born into the Mercer family in 1985. From his early years Rusko was exposed to piano, guitar, saxophone and more. Eventually he went on to earn a degree in music performance from Leeds College of Music.Since then his career has taken off.
Rusko has worked with the likes of Cypress Hill, and even remixes of Adele and Basement Jaxx. According to him the most fun he has during his projects is, “finding that perfect groove!” Although he explains that despite his succes, his bucket list still includes doing a collaboration with Squarepusher; a drum and base electronic artist who Rusko describes as, “absolute genius!”
His latest work is “Songs,” a 14 track album that will be released March 27.
“I took a different approach with “Songs.” When I made my first album, ”O.M.G.!” I made a lot of tracks on the road. For this, I kept ideas swelling inside of me from tour and sat down for weeks to flush ‘em all out. That’s where “Songs” was born!” explained Rusko whose “Songs” tour will begin April 21 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Tonight’s show is produced by Mass EDMC and NV Concepts. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. with opener Savoy going on an hour later. Click here for ticket prices.
Tags: dub step, dubstep, House, Major Lazer, mullins center, Rusko, Savoy, Techno, The Mullins Center, umass, UMass Amherst, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, web
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Sunday, January 29th, 2012
We all came back from winter break with our New Year’s resolution in the forefront of our minds, hoping to make this the best semester ever (or at least better than the last one). For many of us, our resolutions went something like, “I want to get in shape” or “I want to shed a few pounds before summer.” We all know that at Mount Holyoke time is precious. I have done my research and discovered the best ways to maximize your time at the gym – the cardio machines that will push your heart rate way up, and burn the most calories in the shortest amount of time.
For many, the elliptical is a gym go-to. It’s a great way to work your entire body, plus it is the only machine you can safely backpedal on to employ other hidden leg muscles. I guarantee your thighs will be burning in minutes! The elliptical, however, is one of the easier, low-impact machines in the gym. Therefore, crank the resistance way up and haul ass! Don’t get stuck in the routine of moving slower than your normal walking pace. If you stay focused and give it your all, you will definitely see and feel the results.
The stationary bike is what I what I consider to be the lazy machine. It’s the machine you go to when you want to be able to sit back and slowly move your legs while you watch the Kardashians. Unless your at a drop in class with a teacher yelling at you to move faster, it’s very hard to stay focused on a stationary bike. My solution is to bypass the bikes with the TVs, and instead use the bikes in the Mezzanine. Come armed with an upbeat, fist pumping playlist to keep you energized and motivated. A great way to kick your spin workout into high gear is to pick your butt up off the seat and ride. Your legs will feel pain like nothing you ever experienced (but in a good way, obviously!). I recommend taking a spin class first so you can learn how to adjust and ride the bike properly.
Treadmills are great! They are one my favorite machines in the gym. I almost prefer running on a treadmill to running on a track, because it regulates your speed so you can’t unconsciously slow down (and if you do you’ll find yourself embarrassingly on the floor). With a treadmill, it’s all you. There are no pedals or elliptical legs that are helping you move. For beginners or the out of shape, any treadmill workout will be challenging until you can build up endurance. As for those more fit, try running or jogging at an incline; your butt will thank you when you are strutting the beach in that cute bikini you’ve had your eyes on all winter.
The last two machines are the forgotten heroes of the gym. I’m talking about the ergometer and the stair climber. Both these machines can be very intimidating because of their difficulty; however, if you suppress the cowardly lion in you, they can be seriously beneficial. Within seconds on the stair climber, you can feel the burn in your legs, especially if you keep your hands off the railing and pump your arms. If you’re looking to tone those legs, definitely opt for this one. Keep turning up the resistance to increase the difficulty as you get more comfortable. As for the erg, this machine works everything! However, if you are not familiar with the proper way to row on an erg, then this machine is not for you. Rowing incorrectly can seriously injure your back, so watch this quick tutorial before jumping aboard.
With all of these great choices, it’s hard to know which machine you should steer towards. I personally recommend the treadmill, as it works your entire body, especially if you stand up nice and tall. For those with injuries, the elliptical is a great choice for it’s low-impact benefits. Either way, mix it up and keep it interesting. Just remember, you’ll never know your limits if you don’t try and push them. Good luck and see you around the gym!
Tags: Morgan Rosenberg, new years, new years resolution, web, web exclusive, working out
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Monday, December 12th, 2011
 starpulse.com The two time Tony Award-winning composer Duncan Sheik, is making his way to Northampton’s Iron Horse Music Hall this Monday night on tour for his new album “Covers 80′s”. You may recognize Sheik’s name from his chart-topping hit “Barely Breathing” or from his hit musical “Spring Awakening”. I got the chance to talk with him about the new album, the tour, and post “Spring Awakening” life.
Mount Holyoke News: What inspired you to do an 80’s cover album?
Duncan Sheik: Those were the bands and artists that I listened to when I was a teenager and when I first started writing songs. They were kind of my big inspiration. It was a little like a labor of love, you know, like here are these songs some of which are pop songs and some of which are maybe not that well known, but they were the things that mattered to me. I just wanted to re-imagine them in a way where they weren’t in that 80’s modality and give them more of a timeless sound.
MHN: What were you up to in the 80’s?
DS: I was going to boarding school. I went to this place called Eaglebrook, and after Eaglebrook I went to Andover, and after that I went to Brown, so basically I was in a bunch of dorms.
MHN: Do you have a favorite song on the new album?
DS: It kind of changes with the weather. I like Stripped, which is the first song on the album. It starts very, very stark and then by the end of the track it gets quite dramatic and to do that without drums and just using acoustic instruments, you know it’s not easy to pull that off and it comes together in a very satisfying way. There are aspects of the Tears for Fears song [Shout] that I really like, that mostly has to do with Rachel Yamagata singing on it and there’s a weird ukulele part on that song that I think is really effective. And then The Cure song called Kyoto Song that is very obscure. I don’t know, today those are the things that I like.
MHN: Out of all your songs from any album, do you have one that is your favorite to play live?
DS: Uh, no, I don’t actually. I mean, I could probably tell you certain songs I really despise, but I probably shouldn’t do that. Yeah, no, anyway I don’t really play favorites you know, they’re just songs.
MHN: When you perform live, do you find that the audience requests certain songs?
DS: Yeah, yeah they do. They like to hear songs that they heard before so, you know, they want to hear Half-Life because it was in a teen movie, or they want to hear On A High because it was on the radio. Sometimes they want to hear For You or Home because that was the song they played at their wedding. There’s all kinds of situations where people have songs that have a particular nostalgia for them. And I’m happy to play those songs as long as I can remember how to play them! I have about ten albums worth of material if you include the scores and the theater stuff, and so it’s like too much stuff to keep in your head. At any given moment there’s only songs that I can recall when I’m on stage.
MHN: Spring Awakening was and still is a huge success (I’m a big fan of it myself). Do you have any plans to go back to Broadway?
DS: Yeah. Right now there are four theater pieces that are in various stages of development. There are two that are with Steve Sater. We’re doing an adaptation of the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale called “The Nightingale” and we’re doing that at La Jolla Rep this summer and if that production goes well then hopefully that show will come to Broadway. We’re also doing an adaptation of “Alice in Wonderland”.
Separate from Steven, I’m actually the music and lyrics for the stage version of “American Psycho”. We had the first workshop of that piece last month in New York, and it went really well. It’s very exciting, it’s very outrageous, I don’t know how well you know that book or that material but it’s very intense but also incredibly funny at the same time and there’s a really, really interesting musical sensibility. It’ll be my first electronic musical.
MHN: You have a lot of projects going on at once, that must be pretty stressful and time consuming.
DS: You know, it’s ok because theater projects, they’re funny. Like sometimes you’ll work really intensely on them for two or three weeks or workshopping, and then nothing will happen for six months. So you need to have a lot of things on your plate just to make sure that you are keeping busy and that eventually at some point you might be able to pay some bills. But that doesn’t always happen.
MHN: Would you say your life has changed since Spring Awakening?
DS: Not dramatically. I think that Spring Awakening was a really wonderful event in my life and it did help me. There was a moment in 2004 or 2005 when I was really feeling very underappreciated as an artist, as a song writer, and as a composer, and when Spring Awakening became a success that was a really nice acknowledgment that maybe people did like some of my songs after all. So that was really nice. But ultimately- look, I think I’ve been doing the same thing since I was 22 years old which is I wake up in the morning, I have a cup of coffee, I chant (I’m a Buddhist so I chant), and then I try and write a good song, you know, I sit down at the guitar or piano or my computer and I try and write a good song. And that hasn’t changed at all, and that’s probably what my life will be like from now until when I die.
MHN: What started you on song writing?
DS: Well, I started playing guitar when I was a little kid; I was around five years old when I got my first acoustic guitar. Like many five-year-old kids I wasn’t a big music fan, and I wasn’t a particularly good music student. I liked playing guitar and I liked gear, I liked synthesizers and drum machines. So when I became a teenager that’s what I spent all my money on. Any money that I ever had that I made bussing tables, I would spend it on musical equipment. So, I think it’s just something that I’ve always wanted to do. Frankly I had no formal education as a composer, and I was a terrible music student. But I knew I loved writing songs and recording songs, so I just kind of stuck with it, if you spend enough time doing something you do get better at it, at your craft let’s say, and you abilities increase. I feel like it’s taken me 20 years but now I feel like I know what I’m doing when it comes to sitting down and writing a song.
MHN: Did you know that Barely Breathing is listed as one of VH1′s “100 greatest songs of the 90’s?
DS: Is it? Well, there’s no accounting for taste.
MHN: How do you feel now that you know this?
DS: I mean, it’s a pop song. It’s an ok song. It’s one of those things where it’s a song I wrote in probably 20 minutes, and people seem to like it and that’s nice. I play it, I played it last night and people seemed to enjoy it. it’s one of those things where for a long time I really hated playing that song because it was the only thing that people knew of my work. And I guess that the only good thing about Spring Awakening is that at least now people know that there is a lot more to my body of work than just Barely Breathing.
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To buy tickets for tonight’s show click here.
Tags: Barely Breathing, Catherine Geeslin, Cover 80s, Ducan Sheik in Northampton, Duncan Sheik, IHEG, Iron Horse Music Hall, MA, Northampton, Sheik, Spring Awakening, web, web exclusive
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Friday, November 11th, 2011
The folk-pop band, Girlyman, will be performing this Friday at the Iron Horse Music Hall. Deemed “really good, really unexpected, and really different” by The Village Voice, Girlyman is sure to entertain everyone. The Mount Holyoke News had the opportunity to talk to Ty Greenstein, one of the four members of the band.
 Courtesy of liquorinthefront.tumblr.com The Mount Holyoke News: How did you guys choose the title “ Supernova” for your new album?
Ty Greenstein: Nate wrote a song called “ Supernova” last year, and some people know, but not everyone knows this, that Doris was diagnosed with Leukemia last year, last November, and she had that song in her head the whole time she was in the hospital. I think it really spoke to her during that time. We would go visit her in the hospital and she could barely even breathe at that point, but we would still sit around and sing that song. It’s called “ Supernova” and it’s about a dying star. And more recently we’ve discovered that when a supernova happens, not only does the star die, but it creates new stars, so I think spoke to us because of what Doris went through and what we all went through when she got sick. It was really a question, we didn’t know if we would be able to continue as a band. We didn’t know if Doris was going to make it. Everything was just kind of stripped down to its barest element, and we did make it, and we’re still doing it. We’re still performing and Doris is doing really well. It really felt like sort of a rebirth for all of us. The song was written way before any of that happened, but it felt very appropriate to have it be a central song on the album, but also to have to album be called “Supernova.”
MHN: How do you guys choose the cities for your tours?
TG: We have a booking agent and a manager and they work together to develop regional tours for us. Basically we’ll just go to an area of the country, like we’ll go to the west coast, and our agent will book us a whole bunch of shows that sort of go in a logical order, most of the time. She has to figure out things like driving distances and stuff like that. We go places that we’ve been before and then we try to branch out. I don’t know, we pretty much go everywhere. There are some places that are pretty hard to get to; we haven’t played in Montana before or North Dakota, but we’ve played in most of the states at this point. We went to the U.K. for the first time last year and we’re going again next year. We try to keep going back to the places where we know we have a nice solid fan base, and then we enjoy branching out to new places, although that’s always harder to do.
MHNews: What’s your favorite place that you’ve been on tour?
TG: This is going to be an annoying answer, but I really love to play everywhere. Sometimes I really love playing a place like San Francisco or New York because we get really big crowds and everybody’s super into it; everyone knows all the songs and they sing along and that’s really fun. But it can also be really great to go to some town where they almost never have music come through, and somehow we get booked in this little part of the mid-west or something and people show up and they’re just so grateful that somebody has made a stop in that town… It’s hard to say. I really love just going to new places and doing new stuff that I get to do because I’m in this band. We got to go on a cruise a couple years ago. Like I said, we went to the U.K, we went to Alaska.
MHNews: Is there any place that you haven’t been that you would really like to go to?
TG: There are so many places. I really want to go to Australia. I’d definitely like to tour more of Europe. Eventually I’d love to go to Japan. I’d like to go all over the world. It’s really cool being able to see so many places.
MHNews: During your concerts, you guys often take requests from audience members. Is there one song in particular that gets requested over and over again?
TG: There are a few that people request a lot. “ Young James Dean” is one of them. “ Postcards from Mexico” gets a lot of requests. “Speechless” gets a ton of requests. Yeah. I would say those three are pretty up there
MHN: Are a lot of your songs autobiographical?
TG: Oh no. There all about one friend we have with a very interesting life ( laughs). Yeah, yeah, they are. A lot of them are. Sometimes I get bored of writing from my own point of view so then I write from somebody else’s. But we write a lot of pretty personal stuff. I have to say that most songs have personal content, and content that’s kind of from other places. It’s not like you can figure out exactly what one of our lives is like by listening to the song, but there’s always going to be something personal. I wrote a song “ Commander” which is about George Bush, years ago. I couldn’t have written that song if I didn’t personally feel strongly about it. It had to come from that place. And I think that’s true for our political songs, or even our songs about other people. They have to come from some place in or life.
MHN: What’s your creative process like? How do you get from ‘hey that would be a great thing to write song about’, to actually performing it?
TG: For me personally, when I write, I usually don’t know what I’m going to write about when I sit down. Or I might have an idea, some idea, of what I’m going to write about and usually that’s just kind of what I’ve been thinking about for the past few days. But in terms of the direction that the song goes in from there, it can pretty much go anywhere. I’m not great at having a subject and then writing about it. But a subject might kind of suggest itself to me. Does that make sense? When I start out writing, I try to be as conversational as possible, just what I would say to a friend if I were sitting down with one at that moment. And then it kind of goes through it’s own… it goes wherever it’s going to go, but it ends up being about what the heart of that conversation would be. And then in terms of the evolution of the song from there, I’ll bring the song to group and we’ll figure out an arrangement for it and try out the arrangement live. Sometimes it works, and sometimes we have to go back to the drawing board.
MHN: What’s your favorite song to play?
TG: That changes a lot. Usually the newer songs are the most fun, although I really love playing “ Young James Dean”… always. Just because it has a ton of energy. Also, I wrote a new song called “Michelangelo” and I’ve really been enjoying playing that.
MHN: What’s the craziest fan encounter you’ve ever had?
TG: Gosh. We get asked that a lot. I feel like our fans just sit around drinking chamomile tea and writing polite notes to us, being completely unobtrusive and appropriate at all times. Seriously. Maybe it’s because we don’t have much of an edge. We’re just exactly who we are. And I feel like our fans are exactly who they are. They don’t really do super crazy s***. People have gotten tattoos of our lyrics and stuff like that. I don’t know if it’s that crazy, but it’s flattering. But in terms of “ Woah… nutso”, not really. There’s been a couple of borderline stalker-y experiences, but we tend to just dispel that energy. Sorry to disappoint you on that one.
MHN: If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
TG: Wow. That’s some question. I have to think about that one. So it’s gotta be something that I can’t currently do that I would like to do… I think I would like to teleport. Seriously. We drive a lot. I’d be into teleporting.
Tags: Girlyman, Ty Greenstein, web, web exclusives
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Sunday, November 6th, 2011
Not even a month had passed since Harold Camping’s second Armageddon prediction, when the fragmented doomsday comet Elenin left our Solar System safely behind. Just last week a freak Oct. nor’easter wrecked havoc leaving many New Englanders without power, and now a moderately sized asteroid is scheduled to make a close to Earth flyby on Nov. 8 and 9.
Yet, NASA scientists assure that the asteroid will be no closer than 201,700 miles to the earth, or a fifth shorter than the moon’s orbit. The asteroid named 2005 YU55 is 1,300 feet wide, roughly the size of an air craft carrier, although it will have no effect on the Earth or the Moon.
As YU55 soars past Earth, scientists will use this opportunity to gather information about the asteroid. Both the Arecibo Planetary Radar Facility in Puerto Rico and the Deep Space Networkin Goldsmith, CA will track and collect data, such as composition of the asteroid, surface features and rotation. YU55 will be at its closest on Nov. 8th at 6:28 p.m. EST. Unfortunately, the it will not be visible to the naked eye. However, for those amateur astronomers, a telescope with a six inch aperture should be able to see YU55.
 http://yu55.net/ YU55 and other celestial objects are studied by the Near Earth Object Observations Program, nicknamed Spaceguard, to determine any potential hazard to Earth. When determining the trajectory of a newly found space object, scientists take into account all possible effects of entities that will be passed. The next time an asteroid the size of YU55 will approach close to Earth, is in 2029. This asteroid, Apophis, was discovered by the Spaceguard in 2004, another discovery not without concern.
Based off the data in 2004, it appeared that there was a three percent chance that Apophis would impact the Earth on April 13, 2029. This heightened threat caused scientists to seek additional data, and, with the new information, it was determined that there is no chance of impact in 2029.
However, there is a slight chance of impact the next time that Apophis approaches earth in 2036. There are still many uncertainties, and scientists will not know for sure until they can gather more information. But if it’s discovered that Apophis is likely to hit the Earth, NASA assures that there will be plenty of time to deflect or destroy the asteroid.
Still worried about extra-terrestrial objects landing on our planet? About a hundred tons of space debris enter Earth’s atmosphere daily. Most of what enters are small, and disintegrate before reaching the Earth’s surface; only a few SUV size objects impact Earth yearly.
Major impact events such as the one that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, are thought to happen once every 50-100 million years; that crater is estimated to be over 120 miles wide. Now consider that 50,000 years ago, an asteroid 200 feet wide created a mile wide crater in Arizona. If YU55 crashed into the Earth, theoretically it would cause a crater about 6.5 miles in diameter. The crater from the object that killed the dinosaurs is about 18.5 times the diameter of the crater YU55 would make if it crashed onto the Earth.
Even if an asteroid or comet of extinction level size nears Earth, we have the technology to intervene with its trajectory if necessary. But as President Beck assured in the motion picture Deep Impact: “Life will go on, we will prevail,” and the existence of the human race is not in jeopardy.
Tags: asteroid, nasa, web, web exclusives
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Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011
 Photo by Genesis Berlanga '12 After an unexpected blizzard hit Mount Holyoke, leaving seven inches of snow and causing significant damage to campus, students gave their impressions of the storm and its aftermath.
Rita Kerbaj ’14
Hometown: Beirut, Lebanon
“What many are calling a “snowpocalypse” will for a long time be remembered as a momentous weekend that left Mount Holyoke’s campus disheveled. Although not many of us have previously experienced a power cut or a limited access to food, the way the community came together to remedy the situation was remarkable. I feel privileged to be a part of such a resourceful community and I am impressed by the speed of the recovery Mount Holyoke is undergoing.”
Laura Howell ’13
Hometown: Livermore, ME
“On Saturday afternoon, I was caught driving back from a visit to the Bookmill as snow started to fall. The roads became slick and slushy, and when I was finally back on campus, I parked my hunter-green Ford Taurus across from North Rockefeller dorm beside Mead, to make a quick escape out of the frigid storm. As storm warnings came and the weather intensified I was unable to move my car until Monday morning. Luckily, by only a few feet a large tree branch missed totaling my car.”
Jarin Chu ’12
Hometown: Hsinchu, Taiwan
“Catching wind of the incoming nor’easter initially gave me the impression that it was just going to be another ordinary storm. After all, all the students live on campus, and we never get snow days anyway! Oh well, not of concern, then. As we received updates from Campus Police throughout the weekend, the impact and scale of the storm began on dawn on me. The result of the entire Mount Holyoke campus looking legitimately like a decked out haunted mansion in time for Halloween was completely unexpected.
 Photo by Deanna Hart '13 I was pretty cautious with even using the bathroom in the middle of the night.. afraid I would get gobbled up by the goblins hiding in the dark. Also, completely impressed with the speed facilities management and the city cleared up the roadblocks of fallen trees and other miscellaneous rubble. So grateful to all the staff that worked despite the dangerous conditions for the College!”
Nellie Simmons ’15
Hometown: Woodbury, CT
“The snow storm was wild! I don’t think I’ve ever seen snow in New England before Thanksgiving, never mind before Halloween. I was also really surprised at the amount of snow predicted: 10-15 inches is a lot. I’m just really glad it was not as bad as the weather services predicted, otherwise we could have been in for a rough week. Mount Holyoke did a really good job getting things running again as soon as possible too!”
Angela Licata ’14
Hometown: Cortlandt Manor, NY
“Being without power was an interesting experience on campus. Overall I thought the college was very prepared with the backup generators, which provided heat and light in most of the dorms. I know this was a frightening experience for many, but Dining Services and Facilities Management did (and are still doing) a great job during a time of emergency. I hope all the trees on campus are able to recover!”
Tags: web, web exclusives
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Monday, October 31st, 2011
Tags: nor'easter, power outage, snow, snow day, storm, web, web exclusives, Wilder
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Sunday, March 27th, 2011
With Mount Holyoke’s current diverse demographic make-up, it is hard to envision a campus solely dominated by white women. The diversity of the 2,200 student population, which boasts a striking 20% of students as international and an impressive 28% of domestic students who identify as African American, Asian American, Latina, Native American or multiracial, has become an essential aspect and strength of the Mount Holyoke community. In 1879, however, when Hortense Parker entered Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, campus racial diversity was scarce. The African American freeborn woman who was born in Cincinnati, Ohio was the first African American woman to graduate from the female seminary.
As the daughter of a noted abolitionist, John Parker, who aided hundreds of slaves in the Underground Railroad, in many ways Hortense Parker was destined for success. Her father had bought his freedom and strongly encouraged all of his six children to embrace their freedom and pursue an education. Though the issues that students face today may be very different than those faced by Parker, there is a value in discussing the struggles of both the present and past.
The annual celebration which was established by two seniors in 2009, Ahyoung An ’09 and Camila Curtis-Contreras ’09, was to create an event which would raise awareness of the history and achievements of Mount Holyoke alumnae of color. In honor of Parker’s legacy and to understand and acknowledge the long history of women who have pioneered their ways in their respective fields, the college has continued to support Hortense Parker day as an annual celebration to celebrate this tradition of active and passionate women who make a difference in civil rights. This year’s theme is “Pathway: My Journey from here to there,” in order to encourage discussion about the struggle that students face in their journey as students, career women, and world citizens.
This year, the Office of Student Programs is sponsoring the Hortense Parker Essay Contest to inspire more participation and awareness among the Mount Holyoke community. Students are invited to submit a short essay which explores issues of racial identity. The winners of the contest will receive $250 each and present their work at the third annual Hortense Parker Day Celebration, which will take place on Wednesday, March 30. The essay contest offers several different prompts, which prompt students to reflect on their racial identity, heritage or a pathway which would make Mount Holyoke a more inclusive community. Submissions must be received by March 21st and adhere to guidelines for the formatting of the article which can be accessed online.
Student programs event coordinator Tamika Smith expressed that she hoped the essay contest would inspire students to participate in dialogue and reflect on the the rich diversity that makes up the Mount Holyoke community. “I really hope as students write about their experiences it sparks good conversation amongst each other and generates excitement to hear and share experiences.” Smith also noted the celebration was a unique opportunity to strengthen the community. “I think it’s important as a community for us to acknowledge the difference pathways that has lead us all to this campus and celebrate the many achievements along the way as it relates to race and identity.”
Tags: web, web exclusives
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Sunday, February 20th, 2011
Today marks one week from the 83rd Annual Academy Awards. In anticipation for the awards show, the writers and editors of A&E sound off on who they think should win the golden man for Best Actor.
Courtesy of Paste Magazine
Erica Moulton ’14
Let’s face it: we all know that Colin Firth will take home the Oscar for Best Actor at this years Annual Academy Awards. And I’m ok with that. In fact, I’m in favor of it. Colin Firth deserves to win; his performance in The King’s Speech was courageously honest and wholly convincing. And anyhow, justice was already served last year at the Oscars when acting legend and shoe-in candidate for “nicest” and “coolest” guy in the universe, Jeff Bridges won the award.
When you consider Jeff Bridge’s body of work, and not only his acting, but his painting, his music, his sculpting and his photography, it’s pretty easy to be intimidated. Now add to that one of the sweetest and most easy-going personalities, certainly in Hollywood, if not the world, he seems just too good to be true. Seriously, he can’t be human. Has anyone ever counted his ribs?
Truly, Jeff Bridges’ acting career is something to be celebrated, as it spans an unbelievable rang of memorable characters over more than 30 years. A testament to his enduring talent, Bridges has been nominated six times for an Academy Award, earning his first nomination at 22 for The Last Picture Show in 1971 and he is most recently nominated this year for True Grit, at the age of 61. He has played everything from a jealous high school football player in a small town to a boozy jazz pianist to “quite possibly the laziest in Los Angeles County”, the legendary Dude. While a part of me will always think of Jeff Bridges as the Dude, due to my obsessive love of The Big Lebowski (I can recite the entire “I’m not Mr. Lebowski, you’re Mr. Lebowski” speech by heart and with the exact intonation and hand gestures), no one can deny that he range spans miles beyond the Dude persona.
Bridges’ life was the recent subject of a PBS American Masters documentary, yet another reason to give thanks for PBS, and his talent was on full display, as the filmmakers delve into his creative process, searching for the motives that drive him to be the great performer he is. The wonderful portrait they paint is one of infinite reverence for his tremendously talented and encouraging parents and a pure desire to be creative.
As you might have guessed, Jeff Bridges is one of my all-time favorite actors; the kind that I’ll watch in everything (Seriously, I actually sat through Stick It. Ok, I just fast-forwarded to his scenes.). But as I continue to explore his body of work, I am never disappointed by a single performance and I am always surprised by is choices. And that is rare in Hollywood. He is truly an enigma of a human being: half stoner, surfer dude, half artistic sensei and one of my personal heroes.
 Courtesy of Pop Discourse Javier Bardem in Beautiful
Isabel Hale ’11
Whether he is playing a Brazilian expatriate living in Bali, a Spanish painter with a crazy ex-wife, or a killer, devoid of emotion, toting a cattlegun, Javier Bardem is one of the most spectacular actors gracing the silver screen. This Oscar season, the delicious and talented Spaniard is nominated for Best Actor for his performance in Biutiful. Bardem’s dichotomous role depicts him as both an affectionate father and husband and a criminal who runs an underground business. Bardem’s character becomes diagnosed with a grave illness and he is expected to live for just a few short weeks. The film focuses on his remaining days, the interpersonal relationships, and the struggle he faces to put his affairs in order. Unfortunately, many people have not seen this exquisite film. When told that Bardem is nominated for Best Actor, many people say, “Really? What for? Eat, Pray, Love?” This is a testament to the slow emergence of foreign films in American movie culture. Bardem’s performance is exceptional, breathtaking, heart wrenching. It is the first time I have watched him on screen and not had a girl-boner. Not to say he is any less beautiful. It’s just that this time, his performance was so riveting that I had hardly any time to get lost in his good looks. I was enveloped in the plot of the film.
Jesse Eisenberg in The Social Network
Bailly Morse ’15
Just about everyone wants to be his friend now… on Facebook that is. With the face of a teenager and the acting experience of a 27-year old, Jesse Eisenberg has recently been causing a stir in the world of Hollywood. And that stir turned into a whirlwind when he was nominated for the Best Actor category in the coveted Academy Awards.
With his quirky cuteness and his low-key personality, Eisenberg has only become popular within the last few years. After doing several independent movie projects, he gained attention in the 2007 comedy Adventureland acting opposite Kristen Stewart. His very humorous role in Zombieland in 2009 earned him several nominations as a breakout actor.
However, what has really made Jesse Eisenberg stand out against other actors was his portrayal of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in the David Finchner film The Social Network. Facebook has become an infamous website worldwide, with over 40% of the United States population having an account. So the mass appeal of a movie about the world’s most popular online social network is understandable. As is Eisenberg’s nomination for his brilliant portrayal of the computer savvy Harvard student, Zuckerberg.
According to Eisenberg, the film is a “really sophisticated and beautiful story about the way success can really effect friendship.” What’s more, Jesse Eisenberg’s performance was not only witty and intelligent, but his portrayal of Zuckerberg creates a relatable, if occasionally arrogant, real character.
Eisenberg recently appeared on Saturday Night Live as a host, and his humor and adaptability came out in his opening monologue, which actually featured the real Mark Zuckerberg. There’s something infectious about Jesse’s smile, his unassuming, almost shy attitude, and his youthful appearance. With already over fifteen various other award nominations for his performance, I wouldn’t be surprised if this versatile actor scored this major honor.
 Courtesy of Filmsforwomen.com
James Franco in 127 Hours
Schuyler Marquez ’11
My Oscar nominee pick is for the illustrious and exquisite Mr. James Franco. A native of Palo Alta, CA and winner of his high school superlative for Best Smile, Franco has been wowing audiences since his early days on Freaks and Geeks. He is a versatile actor, his range of acting spans from comedic masterpieces such Pineapple Express, to his more dramatic roles such as the sensitive actor in Eat, Pray, Love and Allen Ginsburg in the indie film Howl. Franco proved himself further this year in his fantastic performance as the rock climbing survivor Aron Ralston in 127 hours. James Franco who enjoys painting and creating writing holds a Bachelors from UCLA in English and is currently pursuing an MFA at Columbia, deserves an Oscar just for being hot. Susan Sarandon even recently named Franco as her top choice for companion on a remote desert island. Thought it is unlikely that Franco will win over Mr. Firth, I hope this doesn’t discourage the man from starring in more excellent films for us to drool through.
Colin Firth in The King’s Speech
Kathryn Van Copper ’15 -
To some of us, this academy award nominee will always be Mr. Darcy. He is charming, elegant, eloquent, perfect if you will. The role of Mr. Darcy (1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice mini series) brought Colin Firth into the international spotlight. The following year he received a BAFTA TV nomination for the role. Although this was his first major break through, Firth had been acting professionally for years.
Colin Andrew Firth was born on in Grayshott, Hampshire, England, on September 10, 1960. He pursed acting in England attending Drama Centre in Chalk Farm. It was here, that Firth was first “discovered”. He made his West End debut, in Julian Mitchell’s play, Another Country. Firth continued work as an actor in film and TV during the mid nineteen-eighties and early nineties. After appearing to the world as Mr. Darcy, in BBC mini series of Austin’s novel, Pride and Prejudice. Success continued with films such as: The English Patient, “Shakespeare in Love, Bridget Jones’s Diary, Girl with a Pearl Earring, and more. Yet it was not until last year, in Tom Ford’s Single Man, that Mr. Firth received a best actor nominations for Academy and Golden Globe awards.
About two years ago, Colin Firth signed on to do The King’s Speech directed by Tom Hooper. Yet during the film’s conception neither Firth or costar/executive producer Geoffrey Rush could imagine sensation it would become. In a recent LA times article, both Firth and Rush admit to not knowing if people would want to view the film. “It just didn’t feel like a thing that people would want to go see”, said Rush. Contrary to this predicament the film has received 12 Oscar nods, as well as a best actor win for Firth at the 2011 Golden Globes. It is my hope that Firth will continue to win, receiving his first Academy Award next weekend for best actor.
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