Group Project: Diversity University

Racism is a topic that we are progressively being more aware about as a society. There a number of ways people try to campaign against racism, but Diversity University did so in the most unique way. There were two boys dressed in blue morphsuits and one girl dressed in a yellow morphsuit. During their skit, the one blue boy was trying to convince the other blue boy not to hang out with the yellow girl because she was a different skin color. But the skit came to a conclusion of realizing that skin color doesn't represent the person's personality. 

I like the way this group used morphsuits that were blue and yellow to represent skin color. These colors are extreme and would never really be someone's skin color, but it got the point across of skin colors being just that, colors. The abstract way that this group represented skin color was really clever. 

Group Project: "Smack That"

It was a little awkward at first watching a group of girls smack the butts of random guys walking by on Liacourse walk. Even though the chosen guys were a little freaked out and caught off guard, the point that this group is something most girls can relate with. 

Women are extremely objectified in today's media through various music videos, commercials, TV shows, and movies. The way media displays women give many young girls the wrong idea of women-hood and their sexuality. Many rap videos talk about women being just a piece of ass and that their just "bitches" to fuck. 

Women have a double standard in society's eyes when comes to their role. Celebrities and other women role models that young girls look up to are overly sexualized with the way they dress an act. This creates pressure for young girls to feel the need to replicate and sometimes leads to naïvely viewing over-sexuality as as a part of being a confident women. But it has done the exact opposite by making young girls less confident because it's hard to compete with the "perfect" bodies of these celebrities.

It's important, not just for women, to appreciate their uniqueness and make them more human by seeing oneself as strengths of their personality, rather than just a body.  

Group Project: Our Lives

Our Lives was a play done to bring awareness to the stereotypical view of Kuwait versus the reality of their lives. Stereotypes are usually correlated with ignorance yet stereotypical judgements are so deeply rooted in society. 

I could relate to this group's point with stereotypes among cultures. My parents were born and raised in Sri Lanka, a tiny island off the coast of India. Growing up, many people would confuse me as Indian. That in itself is a stereotype. Most people associate someone with brown skin as being from India, and when I would correct them, most people didn't even know that Sri Lanka existed. Although America is considered a diverse country, it's astounding that many people don't bother to learn and respect other cultures. This may be an overstatement, but through the turbulent years of middle and high school, it wouldn't be out of the ordinary that classmates would make snarky comments about "rice and curry" and my parents Indian accents or even the "weirdness" of certain cultural practices. They're seemingly harmless comments, but it bothered me on the inside and played a huge part in my self- conscious with being Sri Lankan and different. Sometimes I would wish that I was a white Christian like the rest of my friends, so I wouldn't have to deal with pressures of cultural-clashes. 

Stereotypes will always be prevalent because it's deep historical roots, but if we all educate ourselves by experiencing other cultures, we can be more mindful of the differences and learn to respect the truth. Our Lives did an outstanding job with making this point. 

Philly Fringe Festival: Fresh Laughs

Fresh Laughs is a Philly improv group that performed main stage at the Adrienne. I haven't seen many improv skits in my lifetime and it personally, I would be too awkward to be involved in one. Fresh Laughs' performance made improv seem like it was easy as pie. 

In the beginning of the show they asked the audience to shout out words to create a basis of what the plot of each skit would be. With whatever word they chose, it would be integrated until it blossomed into a skit. The skits were funny and the improvisation was so seamless, it gave the illusion it was scripted, even though it most definitely not. 

My view on improvisation was totally changed after this performance. When it comes down to it, improvisation is something we do day to day. Although there are psychics and fortune tellers, none of us can really predict the future. We do the things we need to do in every consecutive moment to get by, and some of those decisions may be based off of future endeavors, but our words and actions can't guarantee a future result.

Improvisation is such a scary concept because as a society, we generally fear uncertainty and going with the flow without a plan, but if we overcome that fear, life would be less stressful. One of my favorite quotes exemplifies this concept: "If you're depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you live in the moment, you will be at peace". 

One question I would have for Fresh Laughs is "what did you guys do in terms of practice to hone in on your improv skills?" 

Pig Iron's PAY UP

Pig Iron's PAY UP was an organized and somewhat interactive. There were a total of 8 shows and the viewer was given the opportunity to choose 6 that caught their eye. Before the performances began, we were given a map with the various shows along emotions that vaguely described the different performances along with the rooms they were held in. 

The settings were consistent with white walls, floors, and the performers were dressed in all white. This might've been the artists' way of creating a bland atmosphere so the audience would be more prone to paying attention to the details of the performance. Each performance had a different theme and various stories, but they all talked about one overlying topic, money. 

Money is such a significant thing in our society. Becoming a young adult myself, I'm reminded more and more everyday on the importance of money and the label it has on one's success. Living in Philadelphia, you are exposed to the diversity of classes and their common struggle revolving the issue of money. With our economy failing, jobs being cut, and even college graduates failing to find stable jobs within their careers, it's something we can all agree to be un-nerving. Although many people feel that issues revolving money is a personal struggle, we can feel better about it knowing that none of us are alone in the battle. 

Some the performances did a good job presenting the negative ways of handling money and how it's a problem we all come across at one point or another. Financial struggles are presented in the performance in a way to show the audience that it's something we can all relate to. What we can improve on is being more financially aware and be smarter with our bills. 

One question I would have for the artist is "why did you make everything white" and "does it have some symbolic relevance"?

World Cafe Live: Hershey's Kisses

Hershey's Kisses highlighted what seemed to be a memorable staple to every American child. Being outside and playing with other children among the, whether it was a humid summer day or a snowy brisk day after school, were many of our most pleasant and care-free memories. With that being said, making s'mores around a fire was probably the favorite pastime, and the artistic statement brought back the nostalgia. 

Being in the city now versus growing up in the suburbs, makes me appreciate the rare occasions I can experience a bonfire. Excluding this bonfire, the few other times I've been able to enjoy a fire with fellow friends were at a gathering called Drum Circle in Fairmount Park once every so often. At Drum Circle, a group of 30 or so people gather around a fire within the woods of Fairmount to dance around the fire and socialize with others while various people play drums and have some time away from the routine of living in the city. 

The Hershey's Kisses had a similar vibe to Drum Circle, only more of a relaxed atmosphere. The vibe of being around a fire has played an important role in the social development of humans. Even as so called "cavemen", gathering around a fire was an important staple of their sense of community. After a long stressful day of attempting to gather food and preventing death, they would gather around the fire as they would cook and eat meals together while enjoying the warmth and comfort of a fire. Through these types of gatherings social skills such as language and songs were created which led to a stronger sense of community.

Communities, friends, and social groups still play a vital role in society. The inability to socialize is a major hinderance to one's success. The people we connect with and create memories with is the most beautiful and rewarding thing about being alive. 

My one question is "could this become a daily occurrence"? Because wouldn't that be wonderful?!  

Brother Sister Plays

The Brother Sister play was an astounding play that really exemplified the psychological turmoil Oya, the main character, struggles with and eventually comes to an understanding that allows her to be able to somehow overcome her battles. I feel like many of the best plays are the plays that allows the audience to connect and empathize with the characters in a clean and seamless way. This play most definitely does that. 

Some of the worries and stresses that Oya experiences are dealing with her mother being extremely ill, colleges trying to recruit her for track, and the struggles of accepting her sexuality. These are issues that most young adults today have dealt with or will have to deal with at some point. An ill loved one is always hard on anyone at any age. The stresses of moving onto college is always a maddening time for any teenager. Especially with Oya's mother being sick, it must be difficult for her to leave her mother behind. I can relate with this because recently my mom is going through a chaotic divorce, and although she isn't physically sick, it's still taxing on the soul, and it is hard for me to be away at college instead of being there for her for support. 

Oya's struggle with her sexuality shows how confusing that realm is for young adults and it always has been. I took a Human Sexuality class this year, and that class really opened my eyes about how society looks at sexuality education is looked as taboo which in turn causes such turbulence for many teenagers. This play highlighted the relevance among young adults dealing their sexuality. Being a teenager and going through the pandemonium of becoming a young adult is already stressful enough, but coming to an understanding with one's sexuality is probably the least talked about. That should be something we should rethink as a society. 

Finally, this play did an awesome job at presenting emphasis on characters doing by saying "____ entered" or "_____ laughed" etc. right before the character would do so. I think they did this to bring importance to the actions. Since this play revolved around a young adult's psychological stresses, focusing on a person's behavior through their actions is a popular method used by a majority of behavioral therapists and psychologists to understand the mental patterns of their clients. So the characters announcing their actions before doing so drew the audience closer to the characters. This was an intriguing thing they did in my opinion. 

One question I would have for the writer is "what was your inspiration to writing this play and the style of writing this play?" I'm curious to know how the story was inspired and whether or not it was personal. Usually the best stories are personal. I'm also curious to know if the style of having the characters narrate their actions before doing so had to do with my theory. 

Kun-Yang Lin Dancers

I had never heard of the Kun-Yang Lin Dancers before I went to this showing of theirs. Being an ex-dancer myself, I was interested to see what I would take out of their performance.The type of dance that I mastered for about 10 years was classical indian dancing, or Bharathnatyam. The differences I saw in the two different art forms was that Bharathnatyam was a more rigid and distinct type of dancing while the performance that the Kun-Yang Lin Dancers put on was most definitely something that included more flow that I was used to. In Bharathnatyam, we usually focused on the movements themselves, making sure they were poignant and precise, while the Kun-Yang Lin dancers focus point for their dancing was the emotions included with the dance. That is what really drew me into their performance. I also liked how they expressed the effort they were putting into the moves by a subtle grunt or moan. It really made the audience relate and sympathize with the dancer's movements. All in all, I'm really glad I got to experience such a unique showing. 

I would have to say my favorite part within the show itself was any of the dances that they did as a group. The interactions between the dancers in their movements really showed the audience how comfortable the dancers were, not only with dancing, but with each other. You could tell that these dancers have been dancing with each other for an extended period of time and they've formed a special creative bond. 

After Kony: Staging Hope

This movie was absolutely beautiful; in fact, a couple times, I had to hold back tears. I tend to get really absorbed into the movies I watch, and I tend to sympathize with the main characters. With that being said, the stories of the 14 Ugandan teenagers made me have so much respect and love for them. The story of the girl who was raped really moved me. They captured her and abducted her where she was raped and sexually abused. I aspire to be a therapist of some sort when I get older, therefore psychology and matters surrounding the mind have always interested me. It really took that girl a lot of courage to be able to participate in the theatrical program that was offered to her with so much enthusiasm was touching. I only say this because rape victims are often left with psychological trauma that usually needs some sort of therapy. Living in the camp grounds that she was, she was always surrounded with the stresses of struggling for food, water, and many other basic needs, while quietly suffering inside of her psychological traumas. That theatrical production was a sort of therapy for her. Seeing the happiness and laughter in her eyes during their theater practices only proved that this opportunity was more than just that, but it changed her life. She was given the assurance that life is cold without hope, and that message was well-played throughout the movie.