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From The BEACON

Beacon Receives National Recognition

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By: Nancy Copic, Assistant Director of Student Media & Adviser to The Beacon

From THE BEACON BLOG

When I saw the email subject line “Gold Circle Winners Announced,” my reflex was to steel myself for disappointment. My expectations could not have been lower.

Gold Circle Awards are national awards from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association based at the graduated school of the Columbia School of Journalism in N.Y. There are so many better-funded, impressively-staffed college journalism programs and student media programs out there, I believed The Beacon could maybe score an honorable mention. At best.

Not that I don’t swell with pride over the work of the students journalists at The Beacon. I obviously had enough faith to enter The Beacon’s work. It’s just that, well, our little Beacon, we’re not really in the major leagues. Are we? The email revealed the surprising (to me, at least) answer: Yes, at least in 6  awards categories. Six awards and three certificates of merit (honorable mention). Did I mention these are national awards?

[Read more…] about Beacon Receives National Recognition

An Evening with a Poet

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By: Hannah Murray, Guest Commentator

From THE BEACON

Have you ever wondered who is behind those words on the page? Literature is meant to be an intimate conversation between the author and reader, but what if you actually got to ask those questions up close and personal? Questions like: Why did you use such interesting line breaks on page 45? What was your inspiration behind this book? How did you get into writing poetry? For many, these thoughts are simply a tool to dive into the literature but for some lucky ones, Monday was an opportunity to ask these burning questions. Wayne Miller, the author of several esteemed works including The City, Our City, The Book of Props, and Only the Senses Sleep,was on campus this past weekend and on Monday gave an inspired reading of his past works as well as a sneak peek into his current project.

In preparation for Miller’s arrival, Dr. Asarnow’s Contemporary American Poetry class read The City, Our City and spent a week discussing the intricate, often abstract topics Miller presents. The first stop on his journey at UP was for a question and answer session in our class. As a sophomore, this was my first experience having a direct conversation with such a successful, distinguished author. Later that afternoon, the English Department hosted a small dinner which included 8 students from Contemporary American Poetry, Dr. Asarnow, and Wayne Miller at St. John’s greatest pub: McMenamin’s. Over Cajun tater tots, Miller told us about his views on Poetic translation and how they can be the greatest tool to examining language. He told us everything from the journal that’s always present in his back pocket to his literate fluency in Albanian all the way to his aversion to tomatoes.

One of the greatest insights Wayne shared with us was that when writing, it is important to listen to what the words are trying to show you. By listening, you may end up with something much greater than what you set out to do. Lastly, and what I think to be most important, he spoke of one of his favorite poets, W.H. Auden, and told us about his favorite ideal: “A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language.” I hope that Wayne inspired many during his reading, but if nothing else, it was an evening full of laughs.

Hannah Murray is a sophomore biology major. She can be reached at murray15@up.edu.

 

Waiting for Lefty

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Theater students stage political uprising

By Nathanial Quinn, Guest Commentator quinn15@up.edu

From THE BEACON

Clifford Odets’ landmark play Waiting for Lefty can be described as an event to be experienced by all. While this show was written about a union strike that took place in the 1930s, it is just as significant for society today. Its goal then and now is to remind us to stand up for what we believe in, much like occupiers and protesters are doing now. It is about a group coming together for a unifying cause, overcoming obstacles and deciding to take the initiative.

Jared Lee, the second-year directing grad in charge of the piece, wants the audience to be reminded that “we are the 99 percent.” He hopes the audience will be moved to participate during the action of the play, though it’s not a requirement. In order to facilitate this, Lee intends to rearrange the theater space “to create a sense that we are all in a camp together—in one unifying space, where the audience and the actors are equals.”

When the play opens on Nov. 28, cast members will be protesting outside the Mago Hunt Theater, and encouraging incoming audience members to rally as well. Upon entering the space, should you feel like having your voice heard, you can take up a sign—or bring your own—and treat our show as a place to voice that opinion, be it for or against the movement.

Audiences will feel like they are entering an Occupy camp as they enter the theater. Cast members for this show are going above and beyond taking on the roles of Odets’ sharply delineated characters; they will portray actual occupiers as well. You can expect to see these people, hear their opinions and witness their strife and anguish as you move further into the performing space. Once in the theater, designer Eric Lyness has created an environment defined by chain link fences, a wall of doors, and tarps overhead, to deepen the audience’s feeling of being in an Occupy camp. By stretching the set out into the audience, Lyness intends to help create Lee’s idea of unity between actor and audience. Actors will also be present in this environment, but not until the show begins will the audience actually know who is a performer and who is a spectator.

Student costume designer Hope Robinson is also working to make the show feel as real as possible. All cast members have a basic occupier costume, and as they adopt other characters throughout the show, they add and remove costume pieces to signal a change in character. These costume pieces will be seen hanging around the set in various locations, as though they were donated articles of clothing for the protesters.

As you walk around campus this month, you will see some of your colleagues sporting buttons that say “Where’s Lefty?” and “Occupy.” We encourage you to ask about them. While these emblems are there to gain your attention, they also represent individual stories for each character of the show. Stop and ask, and we’ll happily give you some insight into the production—as well as buttons of your own, if you’d like.

Nathaniel Quinn is a first-year graduate directing student who, in addition to appearing in Waiting for Lefty as a union boss, is also the show’s dramaturge. He can be reached quinn15@up.edu.  The play runs from November 28 through 30.

Molly’s Legacy

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The first recipient of the Molly Hightower Memorial Scholarship joins the UP community

By Kate Stringer ,  Staff Writer stringer14@up.edu

From The BEACON

Two and a half years ago, 3,000 miles away from Portland, an earthquake struck Haiti and buried two UP alumnae under a fallen building.

While 2009 graduate Rachel Prusynski escaped, her friend and fellow ’09 graduate Molly Hightower did not.

Not too far away from Hightower and Prusynski, current UP freshman Jean-Francois Seide felt the room shaking while watching TV in his apartment with three friends.

“We ran out and the house collapsed and I lost everything,” Seide said. “I was sleeping in the street for three days, three nights.”
[Read more…] about Molly’s Legacy

“On the Verge” Review

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By Kate Stringer ,  Staff Writer stringer14@up.edu

From THE BEACON

When traversing into the wilderness it is important to take three things: a machete, a Victorian pith hat, and an umbrella for poking hippopotami.

At least that’s the advice given by the characters in UP’s production of “On the Verge”, a play by Eric Overmyer about three female explorers from the Victorian era setting out to discover a new world, Terra Incognita.

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While they don’t encounter a hippopotamus, the women undergo bizarre occurrences. Foreign objects mysteriously appear in their luggage. Strange words begin pouring from their tongues. Women walk around in trousers.

Terra Incognita forces the women to confront their fears and anticipations of the unknown. While Alex (sophomore Emily Clare Biggs) demands they embrace their new world, Fanny (junior Danielle Renella) is as accepting of the future as she is of “cyclones, pit vipers, and bad grammar.” [Read more…] about “On the Verge” Review

Students Color Up the City

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UP students participate in The Color Run at PIR

By Amanda Blas ,  Staff Writer blas13@up.edu

From THE BEACON

I’ll be honest and admit that I hate running. I dread doing it for exercise and there is no way you will ever get me to do it just for fun. So imagine my surprise when I came across a 5K that made me actually want to run. That’s right: the Portland Color Run got this anti-runner to move her feet for five kilometers, and with a smile and some laughs, too.

The Color Run is definitely not a 5K set on making the best run time. Instead, it is all about having a good time and supporting a good cause. In this case, the run supported Child Aid, an organization that works with indigenous people in some of Latin America’s poorest communities to create opportunity and alleviate poverty. Running, painting and giving to charity: do you need any more reason to go for a run? Not really, if you ask me.

Just like everyone else who showed up for the Color Run, I started as a blank slate. In other words, I was wearing a white shirt that was just waiting to be painted on. But while I decided to be the “runner next door” and just wear a white shirt and running pants, some people decided to be a little more creative, with wedding dresses and tutus being popular outfits of choice. Most 5K runners would never be caught dead with such attire. But for the Color Run, color is encouraged, and these outfits were definitely welcome.

After waiting for a few waves to go by—yes, there were that many runners—we finally got to cross the starting line. [Read more…] about Students Color Up the City

Who Have We Become?

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By Kate Stringer ,  Staff Writer stringer14@up.edu

From THE BEACON

Their hair was bigger, their student loans were smaller and Facebook didn’t distract them from their homework. Welcome to life at UP twenty years ago.

University of Portland isn’t what it used to be, and that’s not just because we have a gutted library. Students have been evolving over the years, and these changes have not gone unnoticed by faculty and staff. Paul Myers, Director of Health Services, has been studying how students have changed in the last 19 years and said everything from the way students interact to how they use technology has shifted.

Despite the changing face of the UP college student, Myers said that “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” [Read more…] about Who Have We Become?

Students show off ocean creature research

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By Hannah Kintner ,  Staff Writer kintner13@up.edu

From THE BEACON

So you spent your summer at the beach? So did seniors Tim Luethke and Matt Ortman, but they got to bring the beach back to school with them.

Over the summer, Luethke and Ortman worked with biology professor Tara Maginnis as Crab Lab interns. Crab Lab is a research programMaginnis started where students can study animal limb regeneration and animal behaviors.

The lab was set up last year and mainly focused on crab research. The program was expanded this year when Luethke and Ortman took it upon themselves to create miniature ecosystems in each of the holding tanks so they can take their research to a new level. [Read more…] about Students show off ocean creature research

Students rock out to the sound of their own beat

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By Amanda Blas ,  Staff Writer blas13@up.edu

From THE BEACON

Meet the bands that are rocking The Bluff

Focus Motel  

Take two UP students, a couple of Portland State graduates and a love for the band Radiohead and you have the band Focus Motel.“Aside from music, we also love going out and getting pancakes late at night,” junior George Brockett, keyboard and vocals, said.Made up of Brockett, UP grad student Gordon Ashby and PSU graduates Jeremy Ward and Matt Tabor, Focus Motel was formed last August. The band evolved from Brocket, Ashby and Ward’s original band, Fallen Parrot, which played a different style of music.“We decided to start a new kind of project,” Brockett said.Brockett describes Focus Motel as a balance between guitar andsynth, which refers to algorithm-generated electronic tones played through a keyboard.“It’s a dance rock kind of thing,” Brockett said. “But we definitely try to make it as musical as possible.”Focus Motel’s unique sound can be attributed to its wide range of musical influences. They pull keyboard influences from electropop band Lali Puna, vocal influences from the alternative rock band The Pixies and some guitar influences from singer and songwriter St. Vincent.

“It’s a nice hodgepodge of influences, but I think we’re all on the same page when it comes to influences,” Brockett said. “It comes together nicely.” [Read more…] about Students rock out to the sound of their own beat

VoteUP takes on campaign finance reform

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On Constitution Day, UP’s political science department discussed the role money plays in politics

By Hannah Kintner ,  Staff Writer Kintner13@up.edu

Political Science professor William Curtis speaks about Campaign Finance Reform at Vote UP’s constition day event. The lecture discussed a controversial supreme court case about campaign spending.

Voter registration,informative political discussion and a cake adorned with the American flag marked the 225th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution at the University of Portland on Monday.

The political science department hosted the second Vote UP event titled “The Constitution and the Election” in St. Mary’s lounge. Political science professors William Curtis and Gary Malechacollaborated to inform students about the issues and history of campaign finance reform, the political effort to change the role of money in politics.

Curtis spoke about the details of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, a 2010 landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, as well as the technicalities of campaign finance reform, the key issue of the case.

[Read more…] about VoteUP takes on campaign finance reform