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Introducing Goucher’s Radio Theater: Listens to the Environment

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The Repertoire Theater Production course (THE269) has established a new theatrical production, called the Radio Theater. Radio theater is a podcast-like production that involves listening to voice actors perform. So, instead of watching the performers act, the audience listens to character interaction.

The Radio Theater is produced by Michael Curry, professor of Integrative Arts Studies and Theatre, with the assistance of Allison Campbell, Associate Professor of Theatre.

Environmental sustainability is this year’s Radio Theater theme. Each episode will focus on a play that’s originally published by a playwright book called, The Future is Not Fixed: Short Plays Envisioning a Global Green New Deal, by Chantal Bilodeau. Students who participate in the Radio Theater read some of the plays from the book and are cast by a character in one play. The theater department hosted auditions on February 6th, where students made wonderful performances. 

Michael Curry, one of the producers and professor of THE269, proposed the series should be about environmental sustainability. The idea came out during a brainstorming meeting with the Theater Department on the podcast’s topic.

“Once we had decided to produce a series of radio plays, we were not sure about what the plays should be about,” Curry explains how the radio theater idea came to be. 

“I had just finished teaching a course on art and the environment during the January break, and I just asked, ‘What about plays about the environment?’ Allison [Campbell], who is an avid play reader and a deft Googler, came back with, ‘What about this anthology of short international plays called The Future Is Not Fixed?’ We both bought a digital copy of the anthology, read it in two days, and knew we had found our source of material.”

Goucher’s radio theater podcast shows a great opportunity to combine theater and environmental science by using theatrical performances as a creative critique on how humans tackle environmental issues and to predict what the future of climate change will look like.

Goucher’s Radio Theater can be accessible to everyone, not just the Goucher community. Each podcast episode will be posted on SoundCloud so that everyone can hear the performances by the cast. It will also be available through Apple podcasts on the Goucher podcast website. The SoundCloud and Apple podcasts will be available with a link on the Goucher Theater webpage. Students and faculty can send links to their friends and family to spread the news about Radio Theater and listen to everyone’s great work on each episode. 

From May 2nd to May 3rd, there will be a live performance of each episode, so that audiences can see and hear the cast playing their respective roles. 

As a part of the Radio Theater production, I have a goal of making a creative influence with my interests in creative arts. I have an interest in being a playwright, a person who creates stories, characters, and conflicts in a theatrical environment. I told Michael about my interest and experience with playwriting, and he challenged me to create my own playwright that connects to environmental sustainability.

After a week of brainstorming, I created my very own playwright, Human Invasion. My play is about a couple of aliens who live on Mars. They talk about rumors of humans coming to colonize their planet, which humans call it, “Planet B”! My play will be in Episode 4. 

Curry shows his astonishment over the amount of hard work and creativity that has been put on my play. Curry expresses, “I’m very glad to be working with you, Kristen, on your play. It’s great to work on original material, and I’m really delighted with the humor and irony of Human Invasion.”

I’m thankful for the production crew for giving me a chance to use my creative writing skills in the theater! I’m very excited to see my creation come to life and have everyone listen to what I’ve cooked up!

Goucher’s Radio Theater has a lot of heart with great effort to have many creative plays recognized. The people who have worked on their voice ranges for their characters are making excellent progress with their rehearsals. Faculty members, such as Campbell and Becky Free are helping out with the production with their theater experiences. 

Campbell makes the Radio Theater a fond memory of Goucher as she prepares to retire at the end of this year. Free helps out with the production by being the cast’s vocal coach, letting them go through a vocal warm-up, and encouraging them to improve their vocal ranges. Everyone in the Radio Theater is doing their best to make sure that their voices are heard. It’s a great experience working in the voice acting field. 

As the theater production and the crew make progress with their plays, we hope that everyone in the Goucher community will be excited to hear the iconic voices of students, while developing care and awareness for the environment. 

Photo Gallery: Black Student Stance

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The Black Student Stance happened on Friday, February 23 at 2:30 p.m..

For more context on this photo series, please read here.

Visual Storytelling: Campus Response to Escalations in the Israel-Palestine Conflict (Part 4)

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This is Part 4. To read Part 3 of this developing photo essay series, click here.

To read What We Know: How Different Groups are Responding to Escalations in the Israel-Palestine Conflict (Part 2), click here.

To see photos without captions, go to the bottom of the page.

Below are photos without captions

Exhibition Review: “Conversations”

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By Jamie Nguyen ’25

“Dialogue” and “conversation” has been, is, and very much will be, defining words that we would see in our world today; more so in the world that we are currently inhabiting, with increasing polarization and a myriad of conflicts, both physical, political, and philosophical (and especially with the current conflicts in the Middle East, Congo, and Ukraine, to name a few). 

Traditionally, the art world has been one of the strongest platforms for the initiation, maintenance, and inclusion of conversations and dialogues. This tradition continues within Conversations, the latest exhibition currently on display in Goucher’s very own Silber Art Gallery which opened on February 8th of this year. This exhibition also marks the curatorial debut of Janna Dyk, the new Director and Curator of the Goucher Art Galleries, who joined Goucher in the Fall of 2023. The exhibition is supported in part by grants from the Maryland State Arts Council and the Baltimore County Arts Council.

[Image 1: A still from Mirna Bamieh’s Potato Talk: “(Up)rooted, Ramallah Edition”, 2016]

A strength of this exhibition is the diversity of artists featured: featuring works by artists such as Mirna Bamieh, Gabriela Vainsencher, Sunita Prasad, Katz Tapper, and Kyeoung eun Kang, Conversations made an effort to approach and (re)interpret the concept of dialogue, especially in the context of contemporary art. This attempt is highlighted through the artists’ multiple methods of engagement in the notion of dialogue, from a face-to-face method (Mirna Bamieh), through prompted speeches (Bang Geul Han), voicemails (Ellie Lobovits) and tele-prompted testimonies (Sunita Prasad). 

Using a largely united medium  – almost all artworks featured are single-channel videos, with Han Bang-geul’s “Conversation” and Kyeoung eun Kang’s “Family Poem I” being rare exceptions – the diversity of expressions and topics is definitively highlighted: from the experience of being (up)rooted and figuring out one’s sense of belonging with the backdrop of al-Manarah/Ramallah (West Bank, Occupied Palestinian Territories), to witnessing the rise of fascism and the climate catastrophe, to highlighting the labor (and laborers) that are usually hidden in the imagination the general public in the U.S. Within this diversity of topics, the underlying humanity of all subjects, shown through even the most mundane of tasks – saying “mi amor” to the artist, peeling potatoes, leaving voice notes and voicemails – is effectively highlighted. 

Viewers will expect to find themselves being, either voluntarily or implicitly required, to engage with the exhibits with more than one sense – hearing the words, reading the captions, contextualizing the responses, ideas, and testimonies presented through the exhibits themselves – as well as doing so in an immersive manner. In that sense, Conversations has succeeded in asking the audience to remain engaged in the dialogue that is being presented – a necessity for any conversation and dialogue to be impactful and effective.

However, the common phrase “lost in translation” would also be an apt descriptor of the exhibition, in the sense that the ability for the exhibits to be able to be understood by all gallery visitors remains a notable issue: less than half of the videos on display feature closed captions, which will pose a challenge for gallery visitors who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing. The accompanying guide to the exhibits also lacked a location guide. 

This will undoubtedly cause some issues for both the general viewing experience (especially since the video exhibits run between two and sixty-two minutes each time). Additionally, the current exhibition space has minimal to no seating. To better understand the impact of these accommodations, the writer thinks back to Mirna Bamieh’s artist statement for her work, “Potato Talk: (Up)rooting, Ramallah Edition” (2016):

“During the 2 hours of each Potato Talk, I am always on the outside circle, explaining to people about Potato Talks: What is happening? Who are we? What are we doing? What are we aiming for? Why stories? Why Potatoes? ‘Would you like to wait for a chair to empty and listen to a Potato story?’”

[Image 2: Photo of the exhibition space on February 17th, 2024]

In context, Ramallah is the capital of the West Bank and a multilingual city – even within the video documenting the talk (which is the exhibit that is featured in this exhibition), one can hear narratives in both Palestinian Arabic, Hebrew, and English over the mere span of ten minutes – owning to the different ethnicities that lived and existed within Ramallah itself.  Viewers not understanding Palestinian Arabic or Hebrew (or both) would require the need for understanding through the caption presented in the video. Conversely, the Potato Talks itself, as stated by Bamieh, is a public performance project that is staged in different cities and countries, and is staged in a way to attract passersby. The explanation, therefore, will be necessary on the principle that dialogue and conversations – a fundamental part of the piece itself – can only be made possible if the audience can understand the contexts behind the piece, as well as being able to participate in a manner that is comprehensible to both the performer and the audience. The writer strongly believes that this exhibition should also apply this principle in structuring the exhibition space and the exhibition itself, especially with the multiple intersections of identities that exist within the greater Goucher community and beyond.

The exhibition will remain on display at the Silber Art Gallery (Forum Level, Ungar Athenaeum) until April 5th, 2024. Current gallery hours (as displayed in front of the gallery and on Goucher’s website) are Thursday 12-7pm and Friday-Sunday 12-5pm. The gallery is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays and will only open by appointment on Wednesdays. Additionally, the Gallery will also close during the duration of Goucher’s Spring Break (March 16th – 25th, 2024).

The Silber Art Gallery can be reached by email at art.galleries@goucher.edu for clarifications or inquiries.

Note from the author: complete labels have been added onto the exhibition space as of the date of the Opening Reception (February 22, 2024). 

Visual Storytelling: Campus Response to Escalations in the Israel-Palestine Conflict (Part 3)

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This is Part 3. To read Part 2 of this developing photo essay series, click here.

To read What We Know: How Different Groups are Responding to Escalations in the Israel-Palestine Conflict, click here.

The following is a photo essay by The Quindecim’s Head of Design and Photographer, Mich Rouse ’24.

To see photos without captions, go to the bottom of the page.

*Note from the author: Student demonstrators expressed they could face disciplinary action from the following sit-in action, so blurring faces was necessary.

Below are photos without captions:

Going Solo

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How passionate students of the arts respond to class cancellations, part II

Sam Kosseff (they/he) is a junior triple majoring in Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Integrative Arts Studies (IAS), and Dance. Rather than taking Composition III—a dance course that was due to be taught this semester—they are pursuing an independent study in dance film. They enjoyed the process of creating a dance for camera in their Composition II class last fall and were thus invigorated to sharpen their camera work and editing skills through this project. However, with two independent studies already running in a department of three faculty members, Sam is being advised by IAS professor Michael Curry.

His independent study consists primarily of two dance films. The first is a solo that explores, “the dichotomy of performing for yourself vs performing for someone else,” as a reflection on themes he grappled with in Rosie Herrera’s residency last spring but “with a trans twist.” The second is a group work set on eight dancers that juxtaposes two faces of loneliness: a resignation to being romantically single and the eventual, peaceful acceptance of it. “It’s sad,” he sums up the tone of the work. “I don’t think I make many choreographic pieces—especially group pieces—that aren’t.” Although his focus is in dance film, Sam didn’t want to miss out on the familiar experience of making something for the stage. Consequently, he is adapting his group piece to be both a film and live work.

With their group piece, Sam marvels at the relationship dynamics between pairings in their cast. Young love feels different from honeymoon bliss, which varies drastically from old love. Each of these distinct phases are represented by their own respective couples throughout the piece, in addition to a widow archetype who depicts a more mature outlook on solitude. They have been so excited to see the cultivation of tenderness between their cast members over the mere month they’ve gotten together. All of these energies create a contrast that emphasizes the protagonist’s persistent state of being alone.

Apart from Sam’s piece, this term there are two faculty works, a residency with guest artist Gabrielle Lamb, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Nalani Brown’s independent study. With so many rehearsal schedules, finding a slot in the week when his entire cast is available has proven difficult. Being emotionally and creatively invested in this process, he doesn’t bat an eye at working over his lunch periods or holding numerous small group rehearsals with one to four dancers scattered throughout his week. Nevertheless, he can’t shake an underlying feeling of worry that his dancers will feel exploited simply by the commitment he asks of them, especially when they aren’t promised a culminating performance of this piece. As someone heavily invested in the dance community at Goucher, he wants people to be taken care of.

Another challenge they’ve met this semester is the noticeable dip in guidance compared to what they’ve received in previous composition classes. While they’ve gotten a fresh perspective in their feedback from Michael Curry, they believe dance professors can leave criticism to be desired: “I’ve only heard good things; Goucher doesn’t rip you apart like it could sometimes.”

Sam’s dance film will be presented in the dance department concert Friday, November 17 and Saturday, November 18. Additionally, he will have his live work considered to be sent to the American College Dance Association conference series early next year.

By Tess Seibert ‘25

Pieces of Human Life

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Content Warning: This fictional poem falls within the horror genre. It contains themes of gore, body horror and cannibalism. Please note that it is a fictional poem.

I contemplate on how long I am willing to keep this up.

It has been about 5 months, but it has evolved into 5 years. 

Ever since I adapted to this shameful, unholy diet.

I don’t recall the last time that I’ve used normal food,

Or go explore a normal grocery store like WalMart or Weis.

The past life has faded into the foggy mind.

I favor nibbling on baby carrots to numb the regrets.

But that is the only kind of normal food that doesn’t linger a foul taste.

My taste buds scowl at me and demand for more remains

My old lifestyle is nothing but a delicate, rotting corpse.

The brain and the muscles are my personal favorite.

With their tenderness and light fatness.

The juice that spurs from the meat lifted by the fork

Already gives me pure serotonin.

Just the scent of a sauteed liver  flirts with my nostrils.

 Deliver me into sensation.

How can I have these cravings and not throw up from the sins?

The blood on my hands and mouth cry,

“What the fuck have you done?”

Too afraid to let God embrace me with arms

For even They know too much.

I neglect the angel on my shoulder

Just to get that addicted, satisfying starvation again. 

Though, I have never committed homicide

The pressure would weigh on my shoulders.

Hunting for dealers willing to butcher is more suitable.

No blood will splatter on my twitchy hands.

Don’t analyze my confessions

With your eyes squinted and nose cringed!

I have not killed a single morsel

So why must you tsk in shame, hissing,

“Go to a madhouse!”

But you must puzzle yourself,

How far would you go to quench your forbidden desire?

The frozen hand buried deep in the freezer

Taunts me to have an early supper,

 Beckoning me to begin the feast.

My leg vibrates at the thought of continuing this pestering ritual

That soothes my spirit and woes.

Do you not comprehend the struggle it is to stop your mind yelling at you 

to end the horrific, addictive habit.

If you perceive me as a mad man, then you are no better 

if you have ever lifted a lit, tar-filled cigarette.

Rocky Horror’s Queer Legacy

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Illustration by Sam Rose

Dance Ensemble Performance Recap

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Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble held their fall concert on Friday, November 17 and Saturday, November 18 to close out a successful semester of contemplative choreographic processes. 

The curated evening opened with a tap solo created and performed by individualized interdisciplinary major Tess Seibert ‘25 entitled rapt//wrapped in sonder. The piece began with an unexpected entrance from the lobby that captured the audience’s attention instantly, establishing a dramatic tone that was subsequently interrupted by Seibert’s comedic sense of timing. 

Next was One Ocean, the preliminary draft of a larger work set by guest artist Gabrielle Lamb on six students this past September. The movement quality was calm yet held tension—a delicious dichotomy with which to execute organic shapes that mimicked ocean waves. Complemented by the voice of naturalist and free-diver Craig Foster, iridescent costumes by Hannah Brill, and soft light washes, the work exuded a meditative ethereality.

Third, faculty member Linda Garofalo was represented by her original work What Lies Dormant. Set on a 13-person cast, this piece was a conflation of the natural cycles of life, death, and rebirth with the four seasons. These themes were accentuated with costumes hand painted by Carter Hinton-Ayodele ‘25 and the use of fake snow in the last segment of the work. Garofalo effortlessly manipulated simple movement vocabulary with her intriguing use of stage space, at one point crafting a geometric formation contained to the right of center, making stage left heavy with emptiness. 

After a brief pause in the program came Hands Passing by dance major Nalani Brown ‘26. Driven by the motif of intricate hand gestures, the work set on five dancers was an agonizing inquiry into how isolation affects our communal capacity to heal from it. Viewers were stirred by Brown’s impressive command of visceral empathy and the performers’ emotional commitment.

“Lady” Peaceful, “Lady” Happy was screened penultimately as the only dance film of the night. Triple major Sam Koseff ‘25 with cinematographic assistance from Amelia Lazzini ‘25 created a luxuriously theatric solo to Natasha Richardson’s rendition of Maybe This Time. The piece was recorded in Kraushaar Auditorium with the camera almost exclusively capturing Koseff’s back against the backdrop of row after row of empty seats. Not only did this create an eerie effect as audience members were confronted with the desolate venue they actively occupied, it clearly encapsulated Koseff’s vision of questioning what it means to perform for oneself versus others.

The show was concluded by ingrained…!, a dynamic scrapbook of everything faculty member Mustapha Braimah loves in performance art: movement, spoken word, live drumming, and singing. Backlighting kissed the dancers as they moved from multiple centers of their bodies, creating a strong silhouette of the group performing as one. Ending with the recitation of Mutabaruka’s Dis Poem, this finale challenged the apathy that is too commonly observed in the face of systemic oppression and socio-political injustice.

By Tess Seibert ’25

Updates of Rocky Horror Picture Show: What Will Happen After 1 Year of Banlist Removal

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Content warning: Mentions of sexual assault and violations of Title IX

It has been a Halloween tradition for the Open Circle Theatre Club to present the hit musical, Rocky Horror Picture Show. Many students get excited every October to get dolled up and engage with the charming cast as they sing and dance Rocky’s memorable songs. The tradition is not only a fun event that’s filled with music, but it’s also known as a safe space for students, especially LGBTQ+ students to express their sexual and gender identities. The original Rocky musical is known to show strong representation to people that are far from the heteronormative, so Goucher students believe that this student-led event gives them a chance to be proud of their bodies and identities.

However, there has been an issue that has made a major impact on the cast and crew of Rocky Horror. It’s been officially a year since administrative offices have abolished the banlist. The banlist was established to request a ban by cast and crew members to prohibit anyone with sexual harassment allegations to come to the Roocky shows. People can no longer request a ban for people who have records of sexual assault and violated Title IX on campus. The reason given to the directors for the banlist’s removal was a concern that  some students have misused it by requesting to ban people from seeing the show for having petty arguments. However, according to Lele Hatcher ‘24, one of the student directors of the show, explains that from what she knows, there wasn’t any sighting of anyone misusing the banlist for that reason. According to the director of last year’s showing, this removal  followed the production of the year prior when someone who was on the banlist went to OSE to complain that they were not allowed into the show, and that this list was “unfair”.When the banlist was confirmed for the first time, it led everyone in shock and worry because of the last minute change by the offices. Lele states with confidence that this year will be different and prepared.

Lele confirms, “This year everyone was very understanding, and knew we were trying everything in our power to create a safe space for our cast.”
The directors of Rocky Horror had to attend meetings with the school to discuss how to ensure that the cast and crew members are safe from any audience members who will make them feel uncomfortable. The meetings came to a conclusion that if any Rocky member has a Title IX case, then they would need to report the school about the specific person who has previous, open, or investigated accusations. The members of Rocky also made tactics of making each other feel comfortable and safe while performing. 

Wiley ’27 answers that the directors have made it clear that safety is number one priority for everyone who is attending the show. One method of keeping the cast secure is making signals on stage if someone is uncomfortable or if someone is breaking any rules.

Wiley states another method. He says, “We also have a bouncer checking to make sure everyone who attends is a Goucher student, or has special permission.” Wiley is playing the role of Columbia. He and the rest of the cast agree that it’s a fair system. 

There is currently no new policy for the audience that makes sure that people will stay safe before, during, and after the show. The directors hope that the audience will hold each other accountable and respect the whole Rocky crew. The bouncers will keep the audience in check as they witness all Goucher students being respectful, since Rocky Horror is known to be a safe space for all queer identities. It should be notified for all attendees that dressing up in sexy attire is not consent, and there will be consequences from the school for people who make people uncomfortable. There are some limitations of who can attend, for the protection of all cast and audience members, while allowing them to feel sexy, comfortable, and hyped for Halloween. 

Despite the challenges from the removal of the banlist, the Rocky crew feel confident that the shows will be a success and will continue to satisfy Goucher’s Halloween tradition. From being excited to engage and interact with the audience, to dressing up and feeling confident with their bodies. The directors believe that the process of making the show is going great and the results will be a success.  

“Everyone has put in so much work and time,” Lele exclaims, “I hope that audiences will have just as much fun as we do. These changes have not kept our spirits down, and we will continue to come up with new ways to keep our audience and cast safe.”

The cast and crew members have made a welcoming community for each other. They made sure that they all felt like they were a part of the crew. The time and work it takes for them to prepare for the show made people develop a sense of security and confidence. 

Wiley expresses his love of the process of Rocky. “We’ve been working on the show for about a month and a half and have come so far. Personally, I’ve never done any dancing for a show before, but the choreography directors were super patient with me and made it very fun!”

The entire theatrical environment made itself a safe space by allowing the people to encourage each other. Everyone believes that the experience of Rocky is the highlight of October, showing that challenges will not make them break down.

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