The show may be titled The Drowsy Chaperone, but NDP’s winter musical is sure to leave audiences anything but tired.

   This year’s musical is somewhat unconventional, being “a musical within a comedy,” as the tagline puts it. The audience will travel back in time as the show’s narrator, the Man in the Chair, is transported into his favorite Jazz Age musical, The Drowsy Chaperone. This musical portrays the wedding of show girl Janet Van de Graaf to tycoon Robert Martin, and the attempts of her boss to foil it. The Man in the Chair remains a vocal presence throughout the show, frequently commenting on the action of the show or offering bits of Broadway trivia.

   “This musical is really funny. No one would really not enjoy it,” said senior Will Wolf, who plays Underling in both casts.

   The show itself has a cheesy sense of humor, but the Man in the Chair offsets it through his dry remarks. The musical was originally a spoof performed at the real Bob Martin’s bachelor party by his friends, and the role of Man in the Chair was added when they took it to Broadway.

   “The show is about him. It is about the power of musicals to lift you up. You get caught up in the show just like he does,” said Mrs. Bonnie Wilson, director.

   Although the humor is definitely camp, it is highly enjoyable. The show takes advantage of the fact that the Man in the Chair is listening to The Drowsy Chaperone on a record, undergoing skips and power outages. The songs match the dialogue for entertainment value, never missing a beat with their own comedic and melodic merits. The dance numbers were choreographed by senior Emily Versen, who also choreographed last year’s production of Guys and Dolls and is the Drowsy Chaperone for the Porter cast.

   According to Versen, the dances this year are more advanced “because there are so many different styles.” For example, a few of the male cast members have learned tap for their roles, and Wolf has really enjoyed it.

   The only disappointment in The Drowsy Chaperone is its length. At approximately one hour and 45 minutes, it is short for a musical, and with the same nostalgia as the Man in the Chair, audience members will regret leaving the glitz and glamour of 1920s Broadway behind them.

   As Mrs. Wilson said, “It makes you feel happy, and that’s what it’s all about.”

   The Notre Dame Players’ production of The Drowsy Chaperone will have six performances: Feb. 3, 4, 10, and 11 at 7 PM and Feb. 5 and 11 at 2 PM. The Porter cast will perform Feb. 3, 5, and 11 (evening) and the Gershwin cast will perform Feb. 4, 10, and 11 (matinee). Tickets are $5 for students with ID and $10 for adults. The full casts can be found below.

Ensemble:  Freshman Hayley Acord, sophomore Nina Desautel, sophomore Jennifer Dickey, freshman Christina Hamra, sophomore Cassidy Krych, sophomore Julia Trace, sophomore Vidya Walia, sophomore Adam Ahuett, junior Zach Hutton, and freshman Eliot Parker

   We are doing the MVP of movies in 2011, and that honor undisputedly goes to Drive. I will tell you how in a moment, but let’s talk about the kinds of things we saw in theaters the past year.

   This year in movies was about money, maybe more than any other year we have experienced. Sequels (Breaking Dawn and The Hangover Part II, to name some lows) unrestrained 3D, and forgettable star-plugged blockbusters (Natalie Portman in Thor? Really?) assaulted audiences with their heavy emphasis on attracting us gullible folks into thinking crazy special effects and big names are going to turn into a good movie.

   Drive took every single thing that seems to be trending in the film industry today and tossed it. Ryan Gosling starred, but his presence was minimal, as you will hear later. There was no 3D, the special effects were minimal, and the formulaic approach that many audiences were expecting was tossed in favor of an incredibly gripping, slow-build-to-the-top style of story. It was the most important movie of 2011, because it showed us what can be done when people dare to be inventive.

   Drive follows The Driver, a man who works during the night as a getaway man for anyone who is willing to follow his rules. He gives them five minutes, no more or less, and makes his clients swear to not involve him in their business. Things go awry of course, when a particularly important job goes wrong, and the Driver is thrust in a circle of awful bloodshed. If it sounds like a Fast and the Furious rip-off, it is anything but.

   As I have said, Ryan Gosling is about the only big name you are going to find with this movie. However, his role is surprisingly small, even if he is technically the lead actor. He speaks maybe 40 lines the entire movie. Taking on a role that would not garner as much attention as some front line action flicks or rom-coms is risky, but this role has ultimately come to define how I see Ryan Gosling. The phrase that can perhaps best describe him here is “quietly brilliant”. It sure makes The Notebook look like a joke. Speaking of which . . .

   Violence in movies takes many forms. Some movies see it as flowing and stylish, like 300. Others see it as humorous, like Pulp Fiction, and others see it as raw and primal, like Fight Club.

   Drive does violence unlike anything I have ever seen. There is not a whole lot of it, but when it arrives, it arrives. It is easily some of the most  gruesome and graphic displays of carnage I have ever seen, but it has a strange finesse to it. The outbursts are so shocking and so sudden when they come from such a silent figure as the Driver; I can promise you that this movie is officially one of the most unforgettable pieces of cinema I have ever seen.

   So already, Drive has a unique protagonist made from a big-time star and some of the most gracefully handled violence ever put into theaters, but the main thing that sets it apart from the formula most car movies plug into is precisely in its handling of all of its driving sequences.

   Car movies today love to use giant jumps and crazy explosions and someone usually leans out of a door and fires a gun while somehow using his go-go gadget arms to keep his hand on the wheel. Drive actually does none of this. Chase scenes are present, but they manage to create more tension than any high-budget flick would through the simple use of red-light standoffs and alleyway hiding and turn-off-the-lights-and-stay-quiet sneakiness. It is fantastic. The opening scene of the movie is quite realistically one of the best  chase scenes ever, and most of the cars keep four on the floor the entire time.

   I did not know what to expect when I ducked into the theater for Drive, but that was a good thing, because it was anything but what you would expect. It proved that a monster budget and a high-profile ad campaign were not necessary to make a great movie, and it proved that subtlety and finesse could reign supreme over raging fireballs and bulging muscles. This is the most important movie of the past year, because it reminded audiences that the best way to make a great movie is to go against the formulas thrust upon writers and pave an original path into the positive side of critics.

]]> http://www.ndpnews.org/ae/2012/02/02/why-drive-is-the-most-important-movie-of-2011/feed/ 0 http://www.ndpnews.org/features/2012/02/02/bass-twins-take-to-the-skies/ http://www.ndpnews.org/features/2012/02/02/bass-twins-take-to-the-skies/#comments Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:01:46 +0000 Maddie Stevens http://www.ndpnews.org/?p=4192 Seniors Ben and Bridget Bass have a unique hobby: the twins are pursuing their love of flying by getting their pilots’ licenses.

Ben got his license in August, and Bridget is working toward hers. A lot of hard work is involved in getting a pilot’s license. According to Bridget, a future pilot must first pass a written test with questions on navigation, knowledge of the weather, when to fly and when not to fly, airport regulations, and emergency procedures among other flying-related topics.

“In flying, information like that is called ground, since you learn all of it on the ground instead of in the air,” Bridget said.

The next part of the test is called a “check ride.” This involves a long flight where someone certified by the Federal Aviation Administration tests the prospective pilot on maneuvers, detours, engine failures and other things one could encounter while flying. The test can take up to four hours or more.

The process is involved and spendy. According to Ben, it depends on one’s schedule, and the less time it takes the less money it costs. For him, it was around $4,000.

Ben has logged more than 150 flight hours. His first flight was interesting, but more informative than action-packed, he said.

“Thats how you start out. It’s like drinking from a fire hose. Information is thrown at you constantly, and you can only absorb a little at time,” he said.

The Bass twins hail from a family of airplane pilots. Their grandparents, parents, and uncles all have their pilots’ licenses. Bridget does not remember one exact moment when she knew she wanted to fly planes.

“I just remember wanting to learn how to fly like the rest of my family. I wanted to be ‘in’ on all the airplane-related jokes,” she said.

Bridget’s favorite thing about flying learning about planes and how they work.

“It’s also great because no matter where you are, if you meet a stranger and find out they’re a pilot as well, then you both instantly have something to talk about. It’s pretty cool,” she said.

Ben’s favorite thing about flying is the sight seeing. His favorite places to fly are the Superstition Mountains and Sedona.

“They’re breathtakingly beautiful places,” he said.

Neither of the Bass twins want to be pilots as an occupation.

“There’s not enough money. I want to make money and fly for fun,” Ben said.

1. Don’t skimp. Other schools go crazy for Hoopcoming; some even do courts. While NDP does not need to be quite so extravagant in its first year, at the very least a well-implemented theme should be in place. Flesh the festivities out: a spirit week would be fun, and some simple night acitivities would serve well in making the week feel like something that we know how to do. We should act like we have been here before.

2. Put the spotlight on basketball. Homecoming is all about football, and Hoopcoming should similarly be all about Notre Dame Hoops. With the Dog Pound as spirited as it is this year, you can absolutely count on a great turnout for the game, so extend that trust to the rest of the week and give both the guys’ and girls’ teams a full week of attention. Seriously, the way things are looking this year, the Dog Pound would go all out for a week of NDP Table Tennis, so put the trust in the students to pack the stands and participate in events that might go on throughout the week.

3. Build tradition. The “Fire in the Sky” is something that has become a staple for Homecoming, and if Notre Dame wants Hoopcoming to grow into something similar, than traditions like the bonfire and car smash need to be implemented. Again, it needs to be approcahed with the attitude that this is something we have been doing all along. In other words, it should feel like a tradition even if it is not really a tradition yet. It needs potential. It should be fresh and exicitng because it is new, but that should not be the only reason it is fresh and exciting.

4. Put the “pep” in pep rally. Sounds lame, but this point could probably be a whole article in itself. Simply put, think back to what works and what does not work in tems of the pep rallies. Games are fine, but we should try something new and more involved (we have all seen the hula-hoop game, alright?). The basketball teams should each have their bits to do, of course, because  everyone is bound to have a friend on one of the teams that they would enjoy watching make a fool of themselves. Just remember that poeple will be interested in new things, and since this week is already practically one giant experiment, why not step out of the box for a while?

   The key to Hoopcoming is to not worry too much about student attendance. People will be psyched that this is happening at all, and I think that there will already be a terrific sense of appreciation toward the faculty that they have answered the call for some recognition of basketball at Notre Dame. If Stugo and everyone on the up-and-up over there can provide the event, the students will show up. Remember that this year is different, so we should not hesitate to be different.

The Tuesday night traditional activity, Powderpuff Football, drew in a host of students looking to support their friends and their grade in addition to those who fought for the title on Oct. 18. Out of that night came a hard-earned victory for the sophomore and senior classes, with the seniors celebrating a four-year sweep.

 Student involvement was impressive, according to Activities Director Mrs. Brenda Beers, and despite the Homecoming “Circus” theme overlap with other Valley schools, many really got into the week’s entertainment.

 However, students weren’t the only ones who took advantage of the week’s activities; even teachers and administrators got involved, dressing up in accordance to each day’s theme.     

 Sophomore history teacher Mr. Lamb, well known for his avid participation during school spirit weeks, chose “Carni Day,” which had a dress code of polka dots and stripes, to sport an authentic dishdasha he received while living in Kuwait.  He cited his head-covering’s (kufiyeh) small red polka dots as his obvious reasoning for choosing the outfits.

 “This was probably the best Homecoming we’ve had so far,” Student Government Executive Vice President Alexandra Melikian said. “Student Government worked really hard to make it great.”

 Overall, the week was a success, and according to sophomore Keegan O’Hare, “It showed the school’s theme perfectly. Homecoming was definitely where amazing happens.”

Either way, there are way too many misconceptions as to what exactly happened with our shiny new division. So, consider this the debut of NDP Mythbusters: Why did NDP move from AIA Division 4A-II to Divison II?

Myth #1: NDP moved up a division

Close, but no. Here is what happened: Division 4A-I and Division 4A-II merged into a wonderful cornucopia of brand-spanking-new opponents for the Saints. We did not move up; we were simply realigned. During this realignment, schools could have chosen which sports played at which level, and NDP chose to have all of its sports play at Division II. This was opposed to Division IV (also known as Bush League, zing! Nah, we kid D-IV . . . but not really).

Myth #2: Our current opponents were all chosen by NDP

Some of them were, sure. Not every school is going out to play in New Mexico after all. However, some of these schools, such as Chaparral, are now in our division thanks to AIA’s realignment. Chap in particular was 4A-I prior to the merger, and thus absorbed NDP and the other 4A-II schools into the new division. The division itself was chosen by the school, but not necessarily all of the respective opponents. So, it was a little less direct than has been portrayed.

Myth #3: Some jerk back at the AIA realigned the division

Makes sense, right? Why else would we be thrust into a division with Hamilton, Horizon, and the aforementioned Chaparral. As much as you would probably love to picture some guy cackling as he plugged us into an inferno of football powerhouses, this is not the case.

The reality is that a computer chose the new divisions. The criteria used was based around travel time—schools were grouped together so that the distance between each venue would not take more than 20 minutes. This was done in order to maximize the time in the classroom. So you see? It was the machines . . . those darned machines. Did anyone else just think of Terminator? Or am I the only nerd here?

Myth#4: Sports at NDP are going to be “trash” now

Well, where did Mr. Sunshine go? NDP is doing just fine for itself, thank you very much. Our football team already has one playoff victory, a rarity indeed for a team that is in its first year playing higher-ranked opponents. Swim and Dive is seeing both boys and girls placing Top 5 at state, with the girls placing 4th out of 24 schools and the boys 5th. Both Golf teams have seen success, and the Girls’ Volleyball team was the No. 1 seed going into this year’s playoff tournament.

 Athletic Director Monica Barrett said she believes that the past traditions of quality play and quality coaching will continue to benefit the Saints looking forward.

“I think we’re going to do rather well. The sports that have depth will continue to find success,” she said.

So what was that about “trash?” Yeah, that is what I thought, multiple postseason appearances already for the Saints. How about you haul yourself off the couch and come join the Dog Pound?

Conclusion: BUSTED.