As regular readers of this blog may know, Roustabout! is one of the most reliable forms of entertainment in all of
Sometimes, I wasn’t fond of the bands that were playing. Sometimes, plans to go to the event would fall through at the last minute. There are tons of excuses, but none of them are very good, as I learned this past weekend.
After two mostly forgettable bands finished their respective sets, Oppenheimer, a two-piece from
Oppenheimer is a synth-pop pair with music somewhere between the Postal Service and Mates of State on the cheeriness meter and a vocalist who sort of sounds like Kevin Shields. Their recorded material is pretty awesome, but their live show is something to be experienced.
As someone who spends a lot of time complaining about how there’s nothing fun to do in State College and about how Penn State has a terrible music scene, the show was a breath of fresh air.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. This coming weekend is the free Asylum-organized show in the Pollock Rec Room, headlined by Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer. The following weekend will have a Roustabout! featuring Loney, Dear, a band I saw over spring break who rocked my figurative socks. And before you know it, it’ll be Movin’ On time. The
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Happier times in Happy Valley
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
It's no New York City
The unfortunate thing about a college town's arts scene is that when the students leave for break, so does the scene. But I couldn't let nine days of vacation go by without getting my fix of live entertainment, so I went a-road trippin'.
With the accompaniment of a fellow Collegianaire, I left my native Philadelphia for New York City. It's not that Philadelphia's scene is bad; it's anything but. This was the result of a sick twist of fate that had one of my favorite bands, of Montreal, playing Philadelphia the night before I came home for spring break. Fortunately, I lucked into a ticket to their sold-out Saturday night show at Irving Plaza in the Big Apple.
Aside from the show, New York obviously had a lot to offer. When there's that much diversity and that many people in a city, there's usually going to be a lot of options for entertainment. We glimpsed amateur painters and new styles before stumbling upon a couple acrobatic entertainers in Washington Square Park named Tic and Tac. The guys cracked jokes with the audience members and performed some awesome stunts to the sounds of an accompanying drummer.
But the highlight of my break came later that night when of Montreal took the stage. The band showcased songs from each of its last three albums, keeping the concert feeling like a dance party. And the band never shied away from stage antics, having one member dress as Darth Vader and employing the aid of a figurative dancer who shoved squashed bananas down his unitard. Bizarre? Yes. But also shockingly delightful.
Apologies to State College, but it's no New York City. But then again, maybe fruit-loving dancers aren't your cup of tea, either.
With the accompaniment of a fellow Collegianaire, I left my native Philadelphia for New York City. It's not that Philadelphia's scene is bad; it's anything but. This was the result of a sick twist of fate that had one of my favorite bands, of Montreal, playing Philadelphia the night before I came home for spring break. Fortunately, I lucked into a ticket to their sold-out Saturday night show at Irving Plaza in the Big Apple.
Aside from the show, New York obviously had a lot to offer. When there's that much diversity and that many people in a city, there's usually going to be a lot of options for entertainment. We glimpsed amateur painters and new styles before stumbling upon a couple acrobatic entertainers in Washington Square Park named Tic and Tac. The guys cracked jokes with the audience members and performed some awesome stunts to the sounds of an accompanying drummer.
But the highlight of my break came later that night when of Montreal took the stage. The band showcased songs from each of its last three albums, keeping the concert feeling like a dance party. And the band never shied away from stage antics, having one member dress as Darth Vader and employing the aid of a figurative dancer who shoved squashed bananas down his unitard. Bizarre? Yes. But also shockingly delightful.
Apologies to State College, but it's no New York City. But then again, maybe fruit-loving dancers aren't your cup of tea, either.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Get a Clue
It's gotten to the middle of the semester now, and that means the money that I carefully budgeted to get me through the whole semester is completely gone. Of course, Penn State offers the luxury of a number of free arts events on campus. The most consistently enjoyable of those events, I've found, are the No Refund Theatre productions at the Forum every weekend.
Last week, NRT took on an adaptation of the film version of Clue, which I've seen roughly 300 times on Comedy Central in the past 10 years, give or take a couple hundred. Needless to say, the novelty of the occasion piqued my interest.
The production of Clue was especially impressive because the direction and timing had to be perfect. In the film, the director had the luxury of using camera angles to conceal certain characters who were off committing their murders. But in the stage performance, everyone had to be in the right place at the right time. I don't know how NRT pulled it off, but using every inch of the Forum's free space, they did it.
NRT never fails to impress me, no matter how well the performances go. A theatre troupe made up entirely of students shouldn't be as good at what they do as NRT is. To balance a full-time class schedule with the commitment to putting on a great show is commendable. And though the shows aren't always perfect, I can't fault them for a mistake here or there. Besides, what's the point in complaining about a free show put on by people who work for nothing?
NRT has eight more shows playing this semester, so if your cash supply is running low like mine was last weekend, it's definitely worth the walk to the Forum. The shows are downright terrific.
Last week, NRT took on an adaptation of the film version of Clue, which I've seen roughly 300 times on Comedy Central in the past 10 years, give or take a couple hundred. Needless to say, the novelty of the occasion piqued my interest.
The production of Clue was especially impressive because the direction and timing had to be perfect. In the film, the director had the luxury of using camera angles to conceal certain characters who were off committing their murders. But in the stage performance, everyone had to be in the right place at the right time. I don't know how NRT pulled it off, but using every inch of the Forum's free space, they did it.
NRT never fails to impress me, no matter how well the performances go. A theatre troupe made up entirely of students shouldn't be as good at what they do as NRT is. To balance a full-time class schedule with the commitment to putting on a great show is commendable. And though the shows aren't always perfect, I can't fault them for a mistake here or there. Besides, what's the point in complaining about a free show put on by people who work for nothing?
NRT has eight more shows playing this semester, so if your cash supply is running low like mine was last weekend, it's definitely worth the walk to the Forum. The shows are downright terrific.
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