Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.
Swatties, it’s crunch time, which means that you’ve probably been at the same desk for hours, poring over notes or staring at that blinking cursor and waiting for the right words to come. You’re probably stressed and cold, and winter break seems so far from now. I cannot offer a remedy for the piles of work waiting to be done, but I can say that you probably need a breather. Well, you’re in luck, chickadees! I’ve got breathers aplenty:
Campus is a-hustlin’ and a-bustlin’ tonight. From 4:30-6:00PM in LPAC the Departments of Dance and Music will perform the Fall Student Dance Concert. It will feature a variety of styles, ranging from Taiko drumming and tap to salsa and ballet. There are interesting performances in store, so be sure to check it out and support student dancers! If you miss tonight, the performance will take place a second time tomorrow night from 8:00-10:00PM. In the Kitao Gallery from 5:00-7:00 tonight, the Body in Contemporary Art class taught by Professor Janine Mileaf will show their final projects. If you miss tonight’s reception, the Gallery will have open hours tomorrow and Sunday from 4:00-6:00PM.
Spike, Swat’s humor magazine, is hosting the Stand-up Comedy Jam tonight from 7:00-8:30PM in Science Center 101. Brendan Work ’10, Peter Liebenson ’11, and Natalie Bamdad ’11 are just three comedians in the line-up. The performance is definitely worth attendance—we could all use a laugh, couldn’t we?
Melancholy Play, by award-winning American playwright Sarah Ruhl, will be performed by the Senior Company tonight through Sunday night at 8:00PM in the Frear Ensemble Theater in LPAC. Variety describes the play as “a meditation on the elusive nature of one’s vague discontent and how it plays on those who consider themselves to be normal and happy.”
Cold got you feeling kind of blah? Gamelan Semara Santi’s performance in Lang Concert Hall from 3:00-4:00PM on Sunday is sure to spice you up. Gamelan Semara Santi is the Philly area’s only Indonesian percussion orchestra devoted entirely to performance of traditional compositions from Bali, Indonesia. The performance will incorporate both music and dance typical to Bali. Also sure to jazz up your day is the Swarthmore College Jazz Ensemble’s performance Sunday night from 7:30-9:30PM. The concert will feature such songs as “920 Special” by The Basie Band, “Groovin’ Hard” by the Buddy Rich Band, and “Tank!” by The Seatbelts. The independent jazz combos on campus will also be performing at this event, so be sure to attend!
And if you need to get out of this pressure cooker, there are some adorable seasonal things happening in the Ville today! It’s a First Friday, so there are a bunch of events happening all day with hot food and drinks (of the cider and chocolate variety) and music. There will be caroling, carriage rides, storytelling (sorry I can’t continue alliterating), and general merrymaking. Philadelphia also has some fun events that are sure to amuse you. Tonight at 7:00PM the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the Vienna Boys Choir—founded in 1498!—are sure to kick up your holiday spirit with their cherubic voices (examples courtesy of YouTube here and here). Tickets can be anywhere between $32-$70. More info here. If paying to hear wintry music at the Kimmel Center isn’t your thing, you can head over at 4:30 to hear the Philadelphia Handbell Ensemble perform a wide range of musical styles and moods. More info about that can be found here.
Puppet Uprising’s 10th Annual Year-End Cabaret & Cheap Art Bazaar is happening tonight and tomorrow night. The performance will take place at 7:30 and is to be preceded by the Cheap Art Bazaar. Puppet Uprising is a group in Philly that produces and promotes cutting-edge theatre and puppetry by bringing local and touring artists to perform at various venues. The shows are geared mostly towards adults.
Want to get in the holiday spirit? The German Society of Pennsylvania is hosting the Christmas Village up until Christmas Eve. It takes place from 11:00AM-8:00PM everyday. Vendors in more than sixty wooden booths set up on the west side of Philadelphia’s City Hall to create a self-described “medieval village” that sells European food, sweets, drinks, and handmade crafts.
All right, that’s it for Weekend Round-ups for this semester, ducklings. See you in January!
