{"id":68,"date":"2015-10-04T17:57:20","date_gmt":"2015-10-04T21:57:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/?p=68"},"modified":"2015-10-04T17:58:21","modified_gmt":"2015-10-04T21:58:21","slug":"methods-exercise-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/methods-exercises\/methods-exercise-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Methods Exercise 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"12079621_10153019362192085_7578281129311330138_n\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Methods Exercise 3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Performance Studies: Dramatizing Texts and Reading the Performed Body<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n–Performative Writing–<\/p>\n

\n\u201cCampaign Launch\u201d \u2013 October 3, 2015 (6:00pm \u2013 6:45pm)<\/p>\n

\nAs I step out from the music building, the cold air hits me immediately and I look down at my bare legs, suddenly regretting my decision to wear a dress tonight. \u201cWe were thinking of dressing nicely,\u201d Claire had said yesterday, right after my choir and I had decided on wearing jeans and Williams gear. I am going to be on the big stage tonight, along with Claire and four other students, leading the audience in \u201cThe Mountains.\u201d We are only supposed to be up there for 5 minutes so I didn\u2019t really see the point of getting all dressed up, but \u201cSure,\u201d I had answered Claire. It was, after all, going to be a performance.<\/p>\n

\nWalking up the stairs towards Paresky Lawn, I look around and see only 200 or so people milling about. The event covers all of Paresky lawn as well as the new library quad. Over the past couple of weeks, workers had toiled tirelessly to grow grass on the new field, but a few days ago they began covering the beautiful new growth with thin slabs of wood and then with sheets of fake plastic grass. It is greener, cleaner and sturdier than the real grass for sure, but it doesn\u2019t help the over-all feel of Williams \u201ctrying too hard\u201d to put on this show. And it is a show. At the very end of the fake lawn, right before you hit the new marble ground in front of Stetson Sawyer, there is a massive black stage set up. This is the one I\u2019ll be standing on later. It\u2019s the kind of thing you see at music festivals, with lights, microphones, a near-by sound tent, enormous speakers on either side, three huge screens (currently displaying the name \u201cWilliams\u201d in our classic font) and a full crew comprised of both professional technicians and students. By the looks of it, you\u2019d think some big production was about to take place\u2026<\/p>\n

\nIndeed, the super-secret surprise performer is all anyone has been talking about for a week, and having the stage right in front of us is definitely cranking up the anticipation.
\n\u201cI saw a limo pull up earlier, maybe they did get Kanye\u2026\u201d someone laughs.
\n\u201cI heard it\u2019s supposed to be the Dave Mathews Band,\u201d his friend offers.
\n\u201cNo, isn\u2019t it that Chinese musician guy, the one that was an alumn?\u201d
\n\u201cI thought they asked him and he said no? Or he got sick or something\u2026\u201d
\n\u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026guess we\u2019ll find out\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\nIt\u2019s fifteen minutes into the event and as more people show up, the energy is exciting but not exactly celebratory. People are happy enough to be here getting free food, hanging out with friends, etc., but there\u2019s this kind of awkwardness in the air. No one really gets why they\u2019re here, why it\u2019s such a big deal, or even how big of a deal it is. A campaign launch for newer buildings (this is what people are assuming the money is for because we don\u2019t know that either) is great and all, yay for the college, but the way they\u2019re hyping it all up, keeping all these secrets\u2026the stage\u2026the fake grass. People are confused. I know I am. I\u2019m actually performing on that stage and I still have no idea what\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n

\nI look away from the tent and survey the rest of the area. There are at least 10 white tents set up; most are on Paresky Lawn, with only three on the new quad. One huge one has rows and rows of tables and chairs. The rest are small, some offering food and snacks, others offering beverages, both hot and cold, and some acting as \u201cstages,\u201d where some of the student performers are showcasing their talents. The food tents have white signs with blocky purple writing advertising their selections: \u201cChicken Tikka Masala,\u201d \u201cBBQ Beef & Pad Thai,\u201d \u201cChili, Fajitas,\u201d \u201cApple Treats,\u201d and my favorite one so far, \u201cPopcorn, Cotton Candy, & Sausages.\u201d A little bit of everything, it seems.<\/p>\n

\nAt the sight of food and the sound of music, my choir is starting to disperse so I shout out some reminders about meeting at Chapin steps, or \u201cStage 1,\u201d in an hour. This is where they have arranged for Gospel Choir to perform. Some of us go off in twos or threes but the majority of us stay in the \u201cChicken Tikki Masala\u201d line. We\u2019re in good spirits, having just completed an almost perfect run through of the songs we\u2019ll be singing tonight. Most of us are still humming or singing together, harmonies flowing in and out, when a lady with a giant camera suddenly comes up to us. \u201cCan I get a picture of you guys?\u201d she asks. The choir is excited. We round up our members and huddle together, smiling brightly. This is our first pic of the semester with all our new members. Being with our little family, it feels good. The smiles feel real, natural.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cIt\u2019ll probably show up on the screens in a few minutes\u201d she informs us. We all \u201cooh\u201d and \u201cahh\u201d at this and every pair of eyes scans the area for the screens. I glance at my choir and realize how diverse we are: a mix Black, White, Latina, Asian people singing gospel music. A little bit of everything. I can\u2019t help but think how we\u2019re exactly what Williams wants up on that screen. Suddenly, the picture feels staged, like those pictures on the brochures colleges send out to convince prospective students that there\u2019s diversity on campus.<\/p>\n

\nAs I reach the front of the line, I\u2019m given a small brown carton with a spoon of rice, a ladle of chicken masala sauce, a veggie fritter and a fork. The lady asks to see my wristband, the one that confirms I\u2019m a student at Williams and should be getting free food and drink. Really, I wonder, what else would a black girl be doing in this place? Soon, she\u2019s not going to have time for this, I realize, as I walk away. The line behind me is already fifty people deep. My friends and I wander to the acapella tent, or \u201cStage 4,\u201d where a sizable crowd is listening to the Ephlats performing a rendition of Madonna\u2019s \u201cLike a Prayer.\u201d Everyone is jamming and cheering them on. For a moment it just feels like an outdoor Ephlats concert, which is totally plausible on this acapella-obsessed campus. This, right here, is authentically Williams but the event stretches yards beyond this little pocket of people.<\/p>\n

\nI\u2019ve somehow blocked out all the different musical performances up until now. Back on Chapin steps, Comboza is entertaining a crowd with their improvisational comedy. Bursts of laughter suggest they\u2019re doing a good job. Right next to them, projected onto a huge screen, is the emerging artwork of a student sketch artist. On Paresky steps, a student band is providing perfect background music for all the diners, and off towards Main Street I hear the sweet sound of a violin. It\u2019s strange. Separately, all these sounds would be normal because Williams is all these things and does have all this talent. And on any given night, you might find one of these groups performing or simply practicing their craft. But all of it together? Students jumping \u201con and off stage,\u201d facilitators hurrying them to their places, the meticulous detail that was put into showing every single type of talent the students have to offer\u2026it feels like too much, like we\u2019re showing off. And for who? Each other? The donors? Just because?<\/p>\n

\nAt 6:40pm I decide that I need to go home and change clothes. It\u2019s too cold to dress nicely. No one is going to care if I wear jeans or not. Performance or not. As I walk through the crowd, the confusion and awkwardness seems to be falling away for everyone. Heading towards a quiet main street, I hear laughter and light chatter and only a few irritated comments about the long lines and the cold. It\u2019s dark now and the tents are lit up with tiny lights. It looks like Christmas. Breaking away from the crowd, and looking back I realize there are well over 2,000 people present now. From a distance, seeing everyone huddled together talking and laughing among all the lights and the music and the food\u2026the event looks so cozy and intimate. So inviting. People driving by must think we\u2019re having a warm community event, our own little Williams festival. Little do they know that it\u2019s all a part of the show.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Methods Exercise 3 Performance Studies: Dramatizing Texts and Reading the Performed Body –Performative Writing– \u201cCampaign Launch\u201d \u2013 October 3, 2015 (6:00pm \u2013 6:45pm) As I step out from the music building, the cold air hits me immediately and I look … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1151,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[54614],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-methods-exercises"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1151"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68\/revisions\/70"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/srd4\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}