Jack sponsored by SAC
Sarah Wieten
Campus News Editor
Newswire photo by Shane Hughes
Jack’s Mannequin performs Monday night in Cintas Center.
On Monday, April 20th, Xavier played host to a trio of performers in the second concert this year sponsored by the Student Activities Council (SAC).
Following a performance by Ben Folds in February, Cintas Center was once again center stage for acts Low vs. Diamond, Matt Nathanson and Jack’s Mannequin.
The three played a solid concert for a moderate crowd of students that filled the floor of Cintas and spilled into the lower bleachers.
The opening act, an L.A. band called Low vs. Diamond, started the show off
on a good note with a high energy, guitar-driven performance.
Although they could have been the world’s best lyrists, either because
of the intensity of their playing or a technical issue with microphones, much
of what was sung was utterly indecipherable.
They were followed by what was perhaps the best showmanship of the evening, Matt Nathanson and company.
Nathanson kept the crowd on its toes with jokes about his uncontrollable chest hair, a short cover of the 80’s hit “Jessie’s Girl” and a round of good-natured heckling with an unruly audience member.
He did not disappoint musically either, playing several moving songs from his new album “Some Mad Hope,” including the familiar radio hit “Come on Get Higher.”
Last to hit the stage was Jack’s Mannequin, the California band headed by Andrew McMahon, formerly of Something Corporate.
The band, as might be expected, performed a high number of songs from their newest album, “The Glass Passenger,” including “Swim” and “Drop Out/The So Unknown,” but also played older crowd favorites like “The Mixed Tape,” “La La Lie” and “Bruised.”
The band dismissed the idea of an encore and instead stayed out for a crowd-pleasing extra couple songs.
Players close up (‘Work)shop’
Des Dale
Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor
Newswire photo by Danielle Meiners
Juniors Andrew Short and Jennifer Roehm in “The Return.”
The final show of the Xavier Players’ 2009 season, “Workshop,” was a presentation of plays written, directed and acted by students. It was a community event representing not only the abilities of the Xavier Players, but also the personality and humor of all involved. Keeping in mind all of “Workshop’s” functions, many of its shortcomings became easier to forgive.
“The Return,” written by juniors Reid Faylor and Andrew Short and directed by junior Kate Malone, best exemplified the common characteristics of the entire show. The zombie extravaganza offered many of the night’s biggest laugh-out-loud moments. However, the skit’s biggest strength was also its weakness; having such a tenacious focus on delivering the big laughs caused its plot to suffer. Still, I felt it deserved to open or close the show.
“Fishbone,” written by sophomore Bridgid Gallagher and directed by sophomore Lisa Margevicius, presented many of my favorite segments of the night. “Fishbone” was a collection of skits that reinterpreted several literary classics. The skits exposed the bawdiness of many of literature’s most highly regarded works. The director and producer characters, played by juniors Lauren Brinkman and Santiago Segura, underscored the absurdity with humorous banter. The reinterpretations of “Wuthering Heights” and “Jane Eyre” were my favorites. Who doesn’t loving seeing junior Stuart McNeil dressed in drag?
“Death on a Couch,” written by McNeil and directed by senior Hannah Balash was consistently amusing, though not as sidesplitting as other skits. Many of the play’s concepts struck me as highly original, but their execution was not quite up to snuff. Like “Fishbone,” I enjoyed the skit’s cohesiveness. On the other hand, I think it could have benefitted from a bigger production.
“Door to Door,” written by senior Daniel Campbell, sophomore Alex Craven and junior Stuart McNeil and directed by freshman Zoe Teets commenced as a seemingly run-of-the-mill comedic skit about a man’s encounter with a Jehovah’s Witness, but concluded with a hysterical revelation. The turn of the play was the best executed of “Workshop.”
The closer, “The Hugger,” also written by Campbell, Craven and McNeil, but directed by senior Zack Berger, had a lot in common with “The Return.” “The Hugger” was a dynamic skit, but a focus on laughs sometimes came at the expense of all else. I didn’t like how the flashbacks in the skit were done and I couldn’t get over how dissimilar senior Connor Lynch looked in comparison to sophomore, Joey Vitale (who played Hugger). I did enjoy “The Hugger,” if not as whole, then for its individual performances.
“War Games,” written by sophomore Alex Craven and directed by senior Mike Sause, was my least favorite segment of “Workshop.” It embodied what people expect out of college humor: cheesy, trite and predictable comedy centered on the “bro” lifestyle.
Overall, I came away impressed with “Workshop 2009,” though I’d like to see a greater variety of skits next year with more of a focus on provoking thought than amusing the masses.
