Dancing with Dada Masilo

So, as most of you know, Denison has this epically wonderful program called the Vail Series that brings in artists every semester to perform and teach. Most of the time, these artists are musicians. This semester, however, we were fortunate enough to have Dada Masilo, a dancer from South Africa. Dada's specialty is taking classic stories (Swan Lake, Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, and Carmen) and dancing them in completely new ways. Swan Lake is a blend of classical ballet with African dance; Romeo and Juliet is ballet with contemporary; Hamlet is contemporary dance, postmodern dance, and acting; Carmen is flamenco and contemporary dance. Many of these combinations do not "work." That is, they do not blend cohesively. But that is what has made Masilo, at age 27, one of the youngest innovators in dance ever.

Friday night was the performance in Swasey chapel. Dada was dancing with Lulu Mlangeni- fellow South African dancer and winner of So You Think You Can Dance, South Africa. Dada opened the show with a piece entitled "The World, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things." It started with a monologue chastising people who objectify others, who make cat-calls and comments at passersby (apparently this is quite common in Johannesburg). She ended with the monologue with, "Don't call me bitch, slut, whore. I am not your baby. I am not public property." This message stuck with me the entire show, especially considering how sexually-charged many of the pieces were.

"The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things"

"Swan Lake"

The highlight of the show, for me, was Carmen. It was completely and totally awesome. I wrote a paper for Movement Analysis that described Dada's solo in extreme detail, using academic smart-sounding dance terms. So, yeah, that was awesome. Dada and Lulu also performed excerpts from Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet. It was the greatest.

After the show, there was a huge, fancy reception in the Welsh Hills Room (about the fanciest venue on campus, for those who don't know). There was tons of finger food, as well as free booze(!!!!!) for everyone of age. So, I got drunk on the university's dime. I know you're jealous. I also got to meet Dada and Lulu in person. I never would have guessed watching them, but they are both quite petite. Lulu is about 5'2" and Dada is under 5'. They dance like giants, though. So, after the reception (and quasi-drunken conversations with a few professors), I headed home.

Bright and early the next morning, Dada gave a master class in the dance building. There were 50 or so people there, so it was quite crowded. There was not space to practice the steps before we split into groups to do the combinations. As such, the movements were all a little rough for me (and for pretty much everyone else, too). That, and we were throwing our bodies violently at the floor at a ridiculous pace for two hours. Basically, I am completely covered in bruises still, 3 days later. I have finally gotten over the soreness, but that took until yesterday. Totally worth it. I want to practice all her moves until I can nail them, because they are some sweet moves.

She had an audition to cast students in a reproduction of her full-length Swan Lake, which I am looking forward to seeing. I couldn't audition because my schedule is insane. Damn you, MCAT!!! But I do get to take another class from Dada on Thursday. Looking forward to the awesomeness, but not the pain. So. Much. Pain.


TL;DR: Dada Masilo is the shit and you should all be jealous that I got to watch her perform/meet her/take class from her.

Video of Dada's version of Swan Lake.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fChZR04ZYa4

I should probably update this stupid fucking thing...

Hey, peeps!!

I've been doing MCAT study stuff for about 4 hours now, so it's time to rest my weary cranium (see what I did there?) This MCAT shit is insane. I cannot believe how much stuff I have learned (and subsequently forgotten) in undergrad. Seriously. I remember learning about quantum numbers in my first few months as a freshman in Gen Chem with Dr. Krouse (We don't know a damn thing about astatine!!!), and here I am tonight, a junior, trying to remember what the fuck that even means. Sigh. Not that I mind, really. It's all stuff that I enjoyed learning the first time around (well, most of it), and dredging it back up is slightly less difficult than starting from scratch. But enough about That Fucking Test, let's talk about my abandonment issues, the real subject of this blog.

Solidly two weeks into my semester, it has finally really hit me that most of my close friends are gone. Shit. I was just getting used to having friends, when suddenly, they are ripped from me. God, if you exist, why must you be so cruel?!?! But seriously, this is balls. I am quasi-compensating for this newfound lack of socialization by actually being in Gaming Guild. I'm playing a Game of Thrones- based RPG this semester. We've had one session, and it seems pretty legit so far. I'm also helping out with the decorations for Den Con, which will be in April. So there's that.

Apart from my latest step into Nerd-dom, I don't have much socialization going on. I eat meals by myself most of the time, because without Inbar here to tell us all what to do, no one can decide on lunch and dinner times. And then there are the study binges that make me feel a little crazy. Por ejemplo, I've been in my dorm room alone for four hours studying. I've begun to talk to myself out loud and pace ceaselessly.

It's a good thing I don't have any alcohol laying around. Will came over last weekend. We finished all the Guinness and watched Star Trek. It was awesome.

TL;DR I need my peeps back. Stat!!

(See what I did there? You see, it's funny because I'm going insane while studying for the MCAT, which is the test of doom that determines whether or not I get to be a physician. "Stat!!" is a thing that TV physicians say when they need something done quickly. That's why that's funny. [You see, jokes are always funnier when you explain them. The first time around, only some people get the joke. Limited humor. After you explain the joke, everybody gets it. Lots more humor. And more humor is more better. {You see, it's important to thoroughly analyze why things are funny to appreciate humor of any kind. Slapstick is the lowest form of humor. Examples of slapstick include, but are not limited to, slipping on banana peels, hitting your finger with a hammer, falling while.....} ] ).

"Leaving on a jet plane.."

Put Dylan on the plane to Ireland. He'll be gone for five months. On the bright side, he gave me some seriously shiny bling to help me not forget about him while he's over there. Shiny shiny shiny. Pics later.

Anyway.... time to start drinking. Or, rather, to continue drinking. Considering that I've already begun, and all.

New year's eve tomorrow with the bestie. And may God save the state of West Virginia.

Lemon Out.

(Almost) everyone I love is moving out

Oh no!! The dreaded day has come. My roommate Hannah is packing all of her belongings and moving out. She'll be headed home to California for a bit before spending the spring semester in Bath, England. Due to a complicated set of circumstances, my other roommate (Annelise) and I will not be getting a new roommate. Consequently, we are trying to decide what to do with all the extra space. I vote that we make her desk into a bar, so that I can more easily drink away all my sorrows. Just kidding. But really, though.

I have already bid farewell to the lovely Anna, who we be spending next semester at sea. No, really. At sea. She's studying on a boat that will be traversing the Pacific Ocean. So. Epic.

Annie and Skyler will be in different parts of Costa Rica, studying biology. Hanging out in field stations. Encountering awesome wildlife. Being Steve Irwin. Singlehandedly rescuing endangered species. You get the idea.

Inbar will be in Rome, doing as the Romans do. Ya know, eating pasta, watching gladiator fights. Ok. Maybe not. But she will be learning another language (What is this, Inbar, your tenth?) and studying classics in one of the most classics-y places around.

And last, but certainly not least, Dylan. Dylan, the boyfriend. He'll be in Ireland studying at Trinity University in Dublin (smarty pants). He's a triple major in religion, philosophy, and sociology/anthropology. So he's gonna take a bunch of cool humanities and social sciences classes. And spend a lot of time in pubs with my dear friend Guinness. Lucky bastard.

So that's what all my friends are doing. Faraway places, epic adventures, and the like. Me? I've got this blog. And the MCAT. And hyperbolic amounts of booze. Cheers.

In the midst of finals. Thermodynamics was yesterday, and my self-esteem hit an all time low. The tequila shots with some classmates afterwards made me feel a little better, though.

First Post!!!

Woot!

So all my friends were talking about their awesome blogs for their semesters abroad. I felt left out. I can't go abroad because 1) I'm pre-med and 2) my scholarship won't cover it. So I'll be here at Denison whilst all my friends are off having awesome adventures. I can't do that, but I CAN have a blog. And blog I shall, dammit.

I'll be keeping you updated about the happenings at Denison: Bullsheet flamewars, Wingless Angels activity, Barbie spottings, Naked Week, and of course any deer that decide to go on a rampage.

I'll also update you about my silly life.