Daily 49er April 12, 2011
After election, ASI struggles with law By Monique Meza
Staff Writer
Associated Students Inc. is searching for alternative ways to be compliant with a California law affecting the status of its non-voting board members, after a restructuring measure failed in March's student elections. Assembly Bill 1233, adopted in October 2009, modifies California's corporation code, mandating that all board members must have voting power. ASI has two non-students on its board who do not have voting rights. Measure 2, which failed last month, would have amended Chapter 1 of the ASI bylaws to comply with the current California nonprofit law. It needed a two-thirds majority to pass, but gained only about 63 percent of the vote. The bill clarifies the term "governing board member" to be a person who has been elected, designated or appointed to act as a member of the board. This person would also be able to vote on actions taken up by the board, as stated on the California State University Auxiliary Organizations Association website. The passage of Measure 2 would have allowed the student government senate to make the necessary changes to the ASI bylaws to comply with law, according to ASI Executive Director Richard Haller. "I have no explanation for why students voted against the measure unless they simply didn't understand it," Haller said. Students may have voted against Measure 2 because it would have provided two non-students with the right to vote on student issues. "If the measure passed, the senate would have been provided the authority to make the specific changes and only the specific changes to bring the bylaws into compliance with the new law," Haller said. Haller also said three specific points would have been amended. First, ASI would have made the university president's designee and the faculty representative voting members of the senate and the board of directors. Second, ASI would have specified an officer of ASI to serve as secretary. The new law requires a nonprofit corporation to have a designated person fill this role. Currently, ASI Vice President Lucy Nguyen serves as the secretary on ASI's Statement of Information that is filed with the California secretary of state, according to Haller. The secretary is the person who is in charge of official correspondence, the minutes of the board meetings and records of ownership.
The measure would have also amended bylaws to list the ASI treasure as the chief financial officer of the corporation. Jameson Nyeholt is the current ASI treasurer. Haller said, as a result of the failed measure, ASI will now consult with its attorney to see if there is another way to bring the ASI bylaws into agreement with AB 1233.
Group gets $3.75 million to tackle obesity By Katrina Guevara
Assistant News Editor
The National Council of La Raza plans to help tackle childhood obesity within the Latino community with its five-year, $3.75 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, overweight and obesity prevalence in children and adolescents has tripled in the past 30 years, especially in many low-income and minority communities. Health science professor and Cal State Long Beach NCLR director Britt Rios- Ellis, nutrition professor and American Dietetic Association internship director Gail Frank and child development professor Avery Goldstein will develop a course to promote nutrition and health interventions, targeting at-risk Southern California Latino communities. "We are very excited about this project as it will facilitate the opportunity to continue our culturally congruent community-based participatory research efforts, fund first-generation-educated Latino students in master's programs in public health and nutrition, and integrate a new certificate program into our university curriculum," said Rios-Ellis, who is also principal investigator for the project. "Within the five-year grant timeframe, we will be able to develop and integrate a graduate certificate in Latino nutrition, chronic disease and childhood obesity to our university's larger curricular fabric," she continued. First-generation graduate students will be able to participate in childhood obesity prevention research each year through the seven research fellowships and full-tuition scholarships. The project will additionally confront the health care professionals shortage by increasing the number of Latino graduate students with master's degrees in nutrition and public health. According to Frank, the project's co-principal investigator, the project could also help students work alongside other highly skilled professionals. "Our health science and nutrition graduates will join a legion of new leaders to improve the well-being of our Latino population," Frank said. "It is such a privilege to be recognized for our approach and to obtain strong federal funding from USDA to continue our programs. We are becoming a national model demonstrating how universities can empower their campus while improving the lives of individuals in the community." The 12 CSULB focus groups and some community-based researchers will give their insight regarding strategies and activities to address childhood obesity. The school partnerships will include organizations like the YMCA of Greater Long Beach, the City of Paramount Community Services and Recreation Department, Padres en Acción, Children and Families Health Connections and St. Mary's Medical Center. "This grant is also providing us an opportunity to collaborate with a wealth of organizations while we open a satellite center in the heart of the Long Beach Latino community," Rios-Ellis said. "These collective efforts further CSULB's mission of community service and enable us to positively impact the lives of a greater number of Latino families while developing tested interventions to decrease the staggering rates of childhood overweight and obesity and serve as national culturally congruent models for prevention," she added. According to Frank, the USDA establishes new, national goals and invites researchers, professors, community-based organizations and the collaboration of these groups to propose projects every three to five years. "Childhood and adult obesity has been a major national concern," Frank said. "USDA funds the most creative, well-conceived and potentially effective projects that are submitted for review."
Equal Pay Day to raise awareness of inequality By Blaine Jarnagin
Staff Writer
Cal State Long Beach will host an honorary panel today at the Walter Pyramid for "Equal Pay Day," a day devoted to raising awareness about unequal pay between men and women. Speakers at the event will include CSULB department of economics professor Alejandra Cox Edwards, California Leadership Development director Calynne McDonnell and Business Alignment Strategies Inc. president Pat Lynch. Long Beach councilmember Gerrie Schipske will moderate. The National Committee on Pay Equity started Equal Pay Day in 1996 to highlight the gap between men's and women's wages to the public. According to Census statistics, women must work longer than men for the same amount of pay, and an even wider salary gap exists between men and women of color. Census statistics also indicate that, for every dollar men earn, women earn about 77 cents. The event will be hosted by the campus organization Student Life & Development and will take place from 3:30 to 5 p.m. at the Pointe Conference Center in the Walter Pyramid. Attendees are encouraged to wear red in order to symbolize how far "in the red" women and minorities are with their pay.
New program may replace canceled University 100 By Tyler Tashima
Staff Writer
A restructured and expanded version of the recently canceled University 100 program, an unpopular one-unit course meant to aid freshman orientation, may find its way into the Cal State Long Beach course schedule some time in the future. The new program, which may become a requirement for incoming freshmen, will be tailored to fit major and departmental needs, unlike the recently canceled one-unit course. University 100 was dumped off course schedules before the 2009-10 school year due to budget cuts. The required course was meant to help freshmen transition into college, become familiar with advising and get to know the history of their campus. However, its removal seems to have left a gap in the university's orientation process. Lynn Mahoney, associate vice president for undergraduate studies and academic advising, aims to fill this gap. "Dr. Lynn Mahoney, along with others, is working on a new ‘first-year experience' that will be much more than a short course university orientation," said Donald Para, provost and senior vice president of CSULB, in an email, alluding to the University 100 program. Mahoney, who echoed concerns with the program and its former unpopularity, is working to find better results. Different courses for specific departments seems to be the solution. "The notion that one course could help every single freshman ... we started realizing wasn't really true," Mahoney said. "What we are moving toward is starting to figure out what the particular student groups are, particular majors are, and giving them what they need." But specific courses may not be the only solution. Different departments may require more than one orientation course. This new first-year initiative will not be implemented all at once, though. "We are kind of carving things up and, one at a time, as budget allows, creating programs for specific students," Mahoney said.
Citing legal concerns, student senator proposes renaming ASI By Blaine Jarnagin Staff Writer
Senator Mark Rizk proposed a resolution to change the name of Associated Students Inc. to the official legal title of "Associated Students" in the April 6 meeting. Rizk said the resolution was made in order to make ASI paperwork more consistent, as the "Inc." suffix is not always used in documentation. He also intended it as a precaution against confusion if ASI should be involved in legal trouble. Not all senators found Rizk's solution agreeable. "I feel it would be extremely confusing to all of us and our constituencies," Senator Stephen Thomas said. Rizk said he attempted numerous times to get in touch with ASI Executive Director Richard Haller to discuss the matter, but was not able to reach him before the meeting. At the meeting, Haller addressed his concerns regarding the document. "Changing the name would require a change to ASI's Articles of Incorporation, which would need to be placed on the general election ballot and win by a two-thirds majority," Haller said. The name change would also require ASI to change its signs, logo and anything else bearing reference to the old title. Haller recommended an alternative solution, which would essentially provide a disclaimer saying, "we also do business under this [name]" in addition to the standard corporate name. "At first pass, I also like the [alternate] suggestion rather than changing our name outright," Senator Jacob Rice said. He joked that he was worried about the pronunciation, when somebody mentions ASI and the answer is, "Oh, we're AS now." Fortunately, the resolution did not suggest using the organization's bulky official name, Associated Students, California State University, Long Beach. Due to its lack of immediate concern, Rizk's resolution was unanimously postponed for later discussion to be resumed Wednesday. The ASI Senate meets every Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. in the University Student Union, Room 234. Students are encouraged to share their opinions during a public comments period. For more information on ASI, visit csulb.edu/asi.
Literature conference to highlight ‘comic spirit in the modern age’ By Laura Ruiz
Staff Writer
The Cal State Long Beach department of World Literature and Classics will host its 46th annual Comparative Literature Conference this week in the Karl Anatol Center to address political, social and economic problems. The idea is to help interweave serious issues with a little bit of humor. The event, titled "The Comic Spirit in the Modern Age," will include comedian Judy Carter, author of "The Comedy Bible" at 2 p.m. on Wednesday and retired CSULB lecturer Ray Lacoste on Thursday at 2 p.m. The event was designed after one of the department's more popular courses, according to Nhora Serrano, assistant professor and conference organizer. "Not only did we think it was an interesting theme, but our students have a personal attachment to it," Serrano said in a statement. The evolution of comic forms has a long historical background. "Whether it is delivered in the form of stand-up, on the screen, or in the genre of theatre, prose or poetry, the conventions by which modern day comedic practice is established are the result of refinement, re- negotiation and re-configuration of traditions harking back to the Classical, Renaissance and even early 20th century sensibilities," Serrano said in a statement. Other topics under discussion will be how humor plays a role in modern-day culture, and how it is represented in literature, art and film. Some students may cringe when they hear the words "literature conference." But student Omar Zahzah, who is involved in the Associated Students of Comparative Literature, said in a statement that it will be interesting because the discussion will go outside the realm of just David Sedaris or Aristophanes. It will include stand-up and improv. Zahzah also said this event will give students an outside look on academics and that it is not just about "reading scrolls and parchments." For details, visit csulb.edu/colleges/cla/departments/complit-classics/ conference/.
Our View: Revoking Pres. Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize is unnecessary By Staff
The Nobel Foundation openly acknowledges that the awarding of some particular prizes has attracted a sizable amount of controversy. It also has made no secret of some awards that spark international concern for the committee's legitimacy. Most recently, there have been talks of plans to revoke Pres. Obama's Nobel Peace Prize awarded to him in 2009. And if the plan proceeds, Obama will be the first ever recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize to have it revoked. This is not good for our country or the organization, and we feel stripping the president of the award's prestige and its benefits is incredibly unreasonable and pointless. In 2009, Turkey's English Daily The Hurriyet expressed their utmost disappointment with the Nobel Committee's choice to award newly appointed Pres. Barack Obama as the Peace Prize recipient, yet the committee still followed through. And now, two years later, critics see little progress as far as what Obama was being awarded for and what he has actually done to meet these goals. During the Norwegian Nobel Committee's presentation speech, the chairman praised Obama for helping regain multilateral diplomacy and promising to close Guantanamo Bay. With 2011 already upon us, those in favor of rescinding the award have no trouble pointing out that Obama has not carried out any of these plans. Just as the case was in 2009, it seems much of what Obama has provided us with is empty promises. Many believe the only respectable thing the president can do now is to return the Nobel Peace Prize along with all of the benefits and honor associated with it. Why allow a man who oversees devastating military action to keep his trophy for peace? The holder of the award should be focused solely on restoring it. However, one must keep in mind that this year the award was given to the United States President and Commander in Chief, meaning half of his job is deciding military action. So it is perhaps the committee's fault for selecting an individual who is already juggling so many different responsibilities. It is said that peace does not necessarily mean the absence of conflict, but rather the ability to cope with it. What more is our president doing — and our country for that matter — if not sending aide to another nation fighting for reform and eventual peace? The road to political stability is not always smooth, and right now, our country is being recruited to bring about a revolution. That is something our president need not be criticized for. Keep in mind that United States intervention in Libya is part of NATO efforts, not solely Pres. Obama's. The committee believes time is needed for perspective. Maybe that is all the situation needs. Americans are angered with our president's refusal to action, and — naturally — to think he was recognized for actively bringing about peace when we are now involved in the Libyan crossfire is a bit unsettling. But, at the same time, if we revoke the award now, it would serve as a symbol of blatant disregard to the organization's authority, thus it would be an inappropriate way to deal with the committee's disagreeable oversight. A little more time may give Obama the necessary means to hold true to his promises. After all, what is the award if not an incentive to bring about peace no matter how long it takes?
All college students should look into internships for more experience By Rebecca Eisenberg
I have found myself at a pivotal point in my life, as my second to final year of college continues to dash forward. Now, it is my obligation to figure out just what on earth I have to do to prepare myself for life after college. Although it seems like a distant, surreal and lurid nightmare, it is unfortunately just around the bend, which makes it vital to outline the steps toward my future. So far, I have a few words of wisdom for those of you in your later years of college, and I would not take this lightly if I were you: get an internship. Whether it is unpaid or not — although a paid internship would be a miraculous development but most likely not a reality — gaining the knowledge and experience in a field that interests you will assist you enormously. Even if you decide that your heart, soul and dedication do not belong in the field you chose to intern in, you just saved yourself a lot of frustration and wasted time of banging your head against the wall whilst muttering, "Why did I think I would enjoy this?" So once you figure out exactly what path will get you going and allow for you to explore your major in more depth, venture to that department and inquire about the internships they offer. Being able to explore the world and find out what suits you and your personality and life style is what college is about, which is why I believe an internship is a great way to discover an occupation without getting locked into something. Summer internships are a great way to insert yourself into a brief three- month investigation of the bounty of information located just at your fingertips, which is what I am attempting to get my hands dirty with at the moment. In our economy — broken and troubled as it is — we are all ultimately in competition with one another for survival, to get a good job after college. An article I chose to focus on this week entitled, "Unpaid internship gain popularity among the jobless," discusses unpaid internships in the economy today. Internships are not only attractive for college students, but also for individuals who aren't students and are also out of work. "Working for no pay isn't the preferred route of unemployment, but it offers valuable experience and the inside track to jobs once they do open up," wrote Alana Semuels of the Los Angeles Times. "But critics say employers are exploiting the slow economy by not hiring paid workers." Not only must we battle other students and more-so the entire unemployed population, but we must also find a legitimate internship in the field of our liking that will not take advantage of us, forcing us to partake in tasks such as fetching muffins and paper shredding. I would say we have our work cut out for us. But, in the end it's worth it. An internship allows for students to immerse themselves in a business-like or professional setting to facilitate learning in a specific occupation. Not to mention it also looks terrific on resumes, illustrating that the student has experience and stands out from the rest of the population. This is what eventually achieves a positive end result, what attracts an employer to an employee, a unique individual with experience. Rebecca Eisenberg is a junior philosophy major and a contributing writer for the Daily 49er.
The Foo Fighters set a good example for other mainstream artists By Chasen Doerr
One of these days, people will stop listening to music by artists like Ke $ha and Chris Brown. It's a matter of time before fans are no longer fascinated by auto-tune and begin to realize lip-syncing at concerts isn't impressive. Then and only then is when everyone will decide to quit supporting toddler-like tantrums by artists who beat their girlfriends and destroy dressing rooms. The most successful bands and artists are those who give fans what they want and do it not for the profit, but for the pure enjoyment of turning their fans on. At times, they may stray away to indulge in the rock-star lifestyle, but as long as they return to making music for their loyal fan- base, they can have a career spanning a lifetime. I don't mean to burn bridges with those who idolize artists like Brown and Ke$ha. Some of their music can be catchy — until KISS FM annoyingly overplays them — however, these artists don't make their music in the best interest of their fans. It's true the music industry is a business, and artists tend to "sell-out" to make it big. With pressure from producers to make music that maximizes profits, artists have to sacrifice a certain degree of intimacy with their music and fans. Once this intimacy is lost, it's a slippery slope until the artist becomes irrelevant. The Foo Fighters are a band with a successful career. After 17 years in the industry, the band has six albums, with the seventh — "Wasting Light" — coming out this today, April 12. Like any other rock band, The Foo Fighters have had their hardships. The band has replaced their drummer along with multiple guitarists for creative differences and has combated certain member's drug addictions. The Foo Fighters we're even met with animosity when they started due to lead singer and guitarist, Dave Grohl, who previously played drums for Nirvana during Kurt Cobain's death. But after all this, the band still manages to make music for their fans. I say this because of the campaign the Foo Fighters have recently used with social media to promote their new album. Twitter has made it possible for musician's to become intimate with their fans on a whole new level. Capitalizing on this, the Foo Fighters have been able to create much buzz around their newest album. Having been four years since the last album, the Foo Fighters needed to reconstruct their image and bring their loyal fans back. Through Twitter, the band shared music videos, pictures, audio clips and made scavenger hunts for fans to decipher to attend small free shows. One of these shows will be at Fingerprints in downtown Long Beach this Saturday, April 16. On top of all this, the Foo Fighters made a 3-D documentary of their career. The documentary, "Foo Fighter: Back and Forth," was in theaters across the U.S. for one night only, and was followed by a live broadcast of a concert featuring their new music. The documentary was also played commercial free on cable music stations the following week. What makes the Foo Fighters different from artists like Brown and Ke$ha is even after playing in arenas of over 80,000 people, they return to their roots and play shows of 200. They give the fans what they craze and, in doing so, keep the same intimacy they had with their fans back when they first started playing out of a garage. Being much earlier in their careers compared to the Foo Fighters, both Brown and Ke$ha have the chance to connect with their fans; however, the way they currently carry themselves leads me to believe they will soon fade away, and probably forgotten in future generations. Chasen Doerr is a junior journalism major and columnist for the Daily 49er.
Planned Parenthood does more than ensure affordable abortions to women By Rudy Mendoza
Republicans and conservatives alike tend to portray Planned Parenthood as primarily focused on performing abortions, but this simply is not the case. What many people fail to realize is that abortions only account for 3 percent of Planned Parenthood's total health care services. There's been much debate regarding the recent budget cut proposals that would essentially wipe out the 90-year-old organization, making access to birth control, STI tests and cancer screenings nearly impossible for many Americans. In light of the recent movement against Planned Parenthood, women are planning to send House speaker John Boehner women's and men's undergarments to fight for both the female and male right to be in control of their reproductive health. Planned Parenthood currently gets its funding from Title X, Medicaid and donations. Title X is a provision signed in by Republican Pres. Richard Nixon that provides grants for family planning and other related health services, such as cancer screenings. What the majority of Republicans want is to allow states to redirect that money away from organizations that provide abortions in addition to cutting $317 million from Planned Parenthood for the 2011 fiscal year. It's easy for many people who are against abortion to be in favor of a proposition such as this one. What many of these people fail to realize is that federal laws bar Planned Parenthood and other organizations from using tax dollars for abortion. In 1976, after the landmark Supreme Court Case that legalized abortion, the Hyde Amendment was passed that bars the use of any tax dollars for abortions. There are some exceptions, but only for rare cases, such as rape, incest or to save the life or health of the mother. According to Planned Parenthood, the organization has said more than 90 percent of it's total healthcare services are preventative. Its doctors and nurses conduct over 1 million screenings for cervical cancer, 830,000 breast exams and some 4 million tests and treatments for sexually transmitted infections annually. "The truth is that the rider regarding Planned Parenthood would bar Planned Parenthood from being paid by Medicaid and other federal programs for providing women with birth control, cancer screenings, HIV testing, and testing and treatment for other sexually transmitted diseases," Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards said. Personally, I think it's outrageous that our government wants to make it harder for women to obtain the health services that they need. What I fail to understand is the logic behind the Republicans and conservatives who are backing this. For the most part, they don't favor social welfare and they evidently don't favor organizations that provide a variety of services, just as Planned Parenthood does. I fail to see how a desire for the removal of preventative resources and healthcare for women along with disapproval for social welfare makes any sense. Rudy Mendoza is a sophomore communications major and contributing writer for the Daily 49er.
If South Park has taught us anything, it’s that ‘lifestyle choices’ are up to us By Sonia Guillen
Recent talk about establishing what some call a "fat tax" have emerged after Arizona's recently proposed legislature to impose a $50 annual fee on obese and tobacco-smoking Medicaid patients who fail to follow through with their physician's advice to a healthier lifestyle. The measure will not only promote a healthier lifestyle, but it will also help to bring in more money to the state's Medicaid program. Another approach proposed involves putting a higher tax on unhealthy foods to help pay for health complications that develop as a result of unhealthy lifestyles. However, both of these are an overreaching approach to encourage lifelong healthy habits. First of all, for many people an increase in taxes won't do much to change their lifestyles. Once an individual becomes dependent on cigarettes or unhealthy foods, his or her mentality won't be strong enough to see the few extra cents or dollars in taxes on foods and tobacco as a highly regarded reason to not buy such products. As for obesity, many Americans are obese because of their genes, making it harder for them to lose weight. And in the rest of the obese population's defense, many people live their lives being obese without facing any health complications, or losing weight is difficult due to other medical problems. Recently, in a Chicago elementary school, certain fatty foods packed in lunches from home have been prohibited. The students are being encouraged — and nearly forced — to eat only the food provided by the school cafeteria. The intention with all of these proposals is a good one, for the most part. And yes, our government is here to ensure the population's overall well- being. However, paying such keen attention to each individual's Body Mass Index (BMI) or smoking habits is intruding on our personally chosen lifestyles. It's like the South Park episode featuring Cartman's eye- opening visit to the Museum of Tolerance taught its viewers, obesity — and tobacco use for that matter — is merely a lifestyle choice and should not be controlled through any local, state or federal government. Until a child lives outside of his or her guardian's watch and care, the food they put into their body should be up to their parents or guardian. It is a parent's responsibility to inform themselves of healthy eating habits in order to better care for their offspring. This should be common sense. Who would want to stock their kids up with Lays potato chips and extra buttery movie theater popcorn? As delicious as it all sounds, it'll only bring a number of complications to our lives in the end, physically and mentally. Let the lesson be learned: There is no need for any government to intervene in how people choose or have to live their lives. At least California authorities realize this issue involves too many personal complications to make way for government imposed obesity and tobacco-use prevention. If this were to be implemented, we would only be ignoring all the preventable health complications that arise in the non-smoking and healthy BMI population. Sonia Guillen is a junior journalism major and opinions editor for the Daily 49er.
Luminario Ballet flies high in LB By Sonia Guillen
Staff Writer
The third season of Los Angeles' Luminario Ballet stunned the audience at Cal State Long Beach's Martha B. Knoebel Dance Theatre last weekend. The numbers ranged from contemporary ballet to more lyrical and modern pieces, including choreographer Judith Helle's Cirque du Soleil-inspired aerial ballet, "LedZAerial," which has been performed for Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant and guitarist Jimmy Page. Some of the most enthralling pieces were Brett Womack's "Striped Socks," Jamal Story's "If the Walls Could Scream" and the closing number, "LedZAerial." "Striped Socks" involved only one dancer and aerialist, Brett Womack, but that was enough to keep the audience awestruck. Womack climbed vigorously up a knotless rope with nothing but his hands and feet. Wrapping either his hand or legs with the rope, Womack dangled higher than 30 feet off the stage, eventually untangling himself by free-falling down, stopping gracefully mid-rope. With tricks such as these, it was impossible for the audience to save the applause until the end of the piece. The number was interrupted three or four times with abrupt cheers from the audience. The song that Womack danced to was was UK electronic-composer James Blake's "The Wilhelm Scream," a slow R&B and electronic, yet indie-type song. Regardless of the mixed genres, it was a perfect song for the number, adding a somewhat sensual undertone to the dance and therefore mesmerizing the audience. Story's "If the Walls Could Scream" displayed the trials of varying relationships, depicted by three woman-man couples. The women were all dressed in some sort of lingerie and danced on pointe. One wore a standard black sports bra and boy shorts, another wore a white, lace nightdress and the last dancer wore a silk nightdress. Their male counterparts matched them, wearing black briefs, white briefs and white underwear. Each couple had some unique characteristics that defined their relationship. Two dancers, or example, were consumed by one another and the chemistry they shared. The second couple faced infidelity issues, as the woman in the "relationship" was continuously tempted and seduced by the male dancer in the last couple, which ultimately failed to resolve their issues regarding adultery. The number ended with each couple, besides the last one, embracing one another. The music was an abstract medley of an eclectic group of artists, including Photek and Nina Simone. The songs helped to accentuate all aspects of the relationships, from fury and frustration to extreme sexual tension and passion. The theme of the choreography captured the audience, silencing them with the relatable strife portrayed in each relationship. However, the number that hit the audience the hardest was an excerpt from "LedZAerial," which played an altered version of Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir." The piece was performed by five dancers, two on the left and right sides of the stage and the star aerialist dangling by a white drape in the center. Each dancer was in control of a portion of the white curtain that draped in front of them. The curtains rippled, as the aerialist in the center left the audience dumbfounded with stunts that made it impossible for the audience to admire both her strength and flexibility. Luminario Ballet's overall performance can be summed up with these three dances. Each number was abstract, mind-bending and exquisite in its own way, and the dancers' strength and musicality was inspiring. At the end of the show, the audience members commented to each other about what they had just seen, as they typically do after a show. But after this specific performance, each person in the audience was saying just about the same thing: "That was amazing." And it undoubtedly was.
‘Cendrillon’ opera not just another Cinderella story By Becky Kinder
Contributing Writer Opera can be unapproachable to even the most avid theater buff, but through the use of a commonly known fairy tale story such as "Cinderella," even the youngest novice can find fun and appreciation in a night at the opera. Last weekend in the University Theatre, the Bob Cole Conservatory brought the classic story to the stage with "Cendrillon," by Jules Massenet and libretto by Henri Cain. First performed in 1899, Massenet and Cain used some well-known aspects of Perrault's 1698 tale, but also conceived some fresh interpretations for the story. This production echoed that sentiment with its own conceptive twists of the opera under the direction of Stephanie Vlahos. Though Vlahos is a director-in-residence for the conservatory and has the experience of a professional singer, her capability as a director for "Cendrillon" is delightful in theory, but not in execution. The curtain opened on several occasions to excruciatingly uneventful staging where the performers stood or sat and did nothing but that. Placing an actor on a stage is not the same as blocking a story to bring it to life. Vlahos' conceptual themes and their simplicity and post-modern funk worked for the set and some of the costumes, makeup and hair, but fell flat in most of the actual direction of the performers. A child was read the story of "Cinderella," and it was as though her imagination was what viewers saw performed on the stage, but Vlahos' staging of the child through almost every scene became merely a distraction and annoyance, for there was nothing for her to do but stare at the action. She eventually grew so bored that she just rubbed her face and looked at the ceiling. The child would have been better as an undertone and periodic spice to the story, rather than such a focus as Vlahos set her up to be. The lyrics, though in French, were provided in English by supertitles above the stage, and only ended up magnifying that more action should be happening. An example of this was when the servants are suddenly nervous that their master is in the room, though it was obvious he was there. The cast was comprised of high and low points as well, though it is unclear if they lacked experience or direction. Zoe Scaljon (Cendrillon) and Mindi Ehrlich (Madame de la Haltiere) gave standout performances. These women not only possessed amazing voices, but their acting was what really secured them as spotlight performers. Scaljon's voice was creamy and seemingly effortless, while Ehrlich's acting soared above the rest. The stepsisters, played by Beth Wightwick and Jessie Shulman, were a joy with their physicality at times as well, and the other leads and chorus also caressed the ears. The set design by Frederica Nascimento was perfectly simple in Cendrillon's home, but missed the mark in other aspects, such as the weird Fairy Godmother coach and clouds that looked like black trash bags covering foam.
The costumes, makeup and hair designs by Nancy Wei were also interesting and fun in some ways, but lacked cohesiveness with the lyrics and feel of the music. This was very apparent during the scenes with the birds, which took the place of any other fairy-like characters and were more buzzard- faced ugly things than whimsical. Though this production had a dark tone in its costuming and paint, and its production quality lacked at times, it was, as the translated lyrics say, "embroidered in color."
Men’s golf in 6th after Day 1 of Braveheart Classic LBSU junior Kevin Roy sits in a tie for 15th. By Daily 49er Sports Staff
After two rounds of play at the Braveheart Classic, hosted by UC Riverside in Beaumont, Calif., the Long Beach State men's golf team is currently in sixth-place after 36 holes. LBSU carded rounds of 296 and 297 for a 17-over par 593 at the par-72, 7,003 yard Oak Valley Golf Club. UC Santa Barbara and Saint Mary's leads the 15-team field at 6-over 582 as the Gauchos and Gaels holds a one-stroke lead over third-place Loyola Marymount (+7) and six shots over Sacramento State (+12) in fourth. Gonzaga rounds out the top 5 at 14-over, a three-stroke advantage over the 49ers. Tournament host UC Riverside is tied for 12th with San Francisco at 33- over. Junior Kevin Roy led the way for LBSU as he carded rounds of 73 and 74 to end with a 3-over 147 to tie for 15th place. Sophomore Benjamin Lein tied for 24th after carding rounds of 73 and 75 for a total of 4-over 148, followed by Philip Chian tied for 33rd at 6-over after rounds of 76 and 74. Meanwhile, teammate Raymond Ho took the biggest dive on the leaderboard as he shot a 2-over 74 in the first round before carding 7-over 79 in the second to tie for 41st with a 9-over 153 total. Kevin Lim rounded out The Beach's scores with a 10-over 154 to tie for 45th. Jake Sarnoff of Loyola Marymount sits on top of the leaderboard with an 8- under 136, and a three-shot lead over Anders Engell of Saint Mary's. Final round action begins with an 8 a.m. shotgun start on Tuesday. LBSU will be paired with Gonzaga, Portland and Cal Poly.