PAGE 18 // WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2009
STYLE
the pendulum
BRIGHT
LIGHTS
BOOMING
VOICES
Junior Will Armour
leads the group in
“Tempted by the
Fruit of Another,”
originally by
Squeeze.
n
DANIEL KOCH ' Photographer
Twisted Measure shines at fall concert and beyond
Meaghan Carey
Reporter
Dressed in all black, the co-ed a cappella group,
Twisted Measure, sang and danced barefoot for its
annual Fall Concert Dec. 4-5 in Yeager Recital Hall
in front of a packed house of students, family and
friends.
The set list was comprised of 12 songs, with an
additional encore performance dedicated to alumni
in attendance. Performances featured songs by
notable artists Amy Winehouse and Taylor Swift, as
well as lesser-known artists soulDecision and Robert
Randolph.
Both male and female singers from the group
provided individual numbers. Juniors Will
Armour and Alex Schreiner gave impressive solo
performances of “Tempted” by Squeeze and “Break
Even" by The Script, respectively. Sophomore Liz
Passannante and senior Stephanie Lane also sang
impressive renditions of Katy Perry’s “Use Your Love”
and Leona Lewis’ “Run.”
“I like the fact that (Twisted Measure) is co-ed,”
junior Stephanie Oden said.
Junior Leah Hoyland said she admires the group's
variety.
“It provides for a big array of sounds,” she said.
Oden also praised Twisted Measure for its
performance of “popular songs,” specifically “Use
Somebody” by Kings of Leon.
Olden said the performance showcased not only
impressive vocal talent, but also personality and
emotion. Those who were nor singing a solo provided
energy in the background by dancing. The
encore, “Faded” by soulDecision, was a choreographed
piece. At one point, some male performers had dance
solos that provided comic relief and resulted in
laughs rippling throughout the audience.
What makes Twisted Measure unique — besides
the fact they are a co-ed group — is their connection
and close bond with both current and past Twisted
Measure members.
At the beginning of the concert, a Twisted Measure
alumnus introduced the group.
“The alumni ensure us that we’re moving in
the right direction,” senior and president Alexa
Terry said. “We try to stay true to our roots. We
pride ourselves on spending time with each other.
The close knit bond — it makes it that much more
rewarding.”
Passannate said she also appreciates the sense of
community the group provides.
“Twisted Measure has been a huge support system
for me and has also served as an outlet for me during
my time at Elon,” Passannate said. “This amazing
group has provided me with great friends and brings
me so much joy every day.”
Besides its fall performance, the group performs
several times throughout the year in preparation for
bigger shows, as well as to get more exposure.
“We do little gigs," Lane said. “Elonthon, Make-
A-Wish concert and Midnight Meals are all events we
do. Most of the time we’re showcasing new stuff. The
fall concert is basically a debut of new songs we have
not performed, as well as songs we have performed
before."
Twisted Measure has previously been to the Sojam
workshop in Durham, N.C., as well to Washington,
D.C., for fall break to showcase its talent. The group
works together with Twisted Measure alumni to help
organize the annual Fall Break trips.
“(Fall break) is a great experience to promote
our group,” Terry said. “Sometimes we (even) street
sing.”
Whether on the stage or on the street, the
members of the group agree it’s necessary to rise
to the occasion and put on the best show possible,
which means performing with a high level of energy,
emotion and personality, as well as enlivening
crowds.
“What I tell the group before we go out is never
lose the passion for not only music, but for friends
and artists that share the love and enjoy what (music)
is,” Terry said.
DANIEL KOCH | Photographef
Senior Kelly Wardle sang “Wild at Heart” by Glorianna during her last
concert with Twisted Measure. Wardle will graduate in December.
DANIEL KOCH | Photographer
Twisted Measure is Elon’s coed a cappella group. It performed its
annual Fall Concert on Oct. 4-5 in Yeager Recital Hall.
PERFORMANCE REVIEW
^Assassins'acts as ^shooting test'for senior seminar group
Lauren Ramsdell
Reviewer
What else would one expect from the man
behind one of the bloodiest musicals of all time,
“Sweeney Todd," than another rollicking good time
full of bloodlust and murder? Stephen Sondheim
did it again with “Assassins,” a controversial
musical picked up by the senior music theater
majors for one of their seminar pieces.
“Assassins" features all of the major presidential
assassins in U. S. history, beginning with John
Wilkes Booth up until John Hinkley, attempted
assassin of President Ronald Reagan.
Director and senior acting major Sarah Pace had
to make the assassins believable characters, which
meant drive behind their motives. She did extensive
of research into the characters and claims it was
some of the hardest work she completed during the
production.
She said “Assassins" is possibly Sondheim’s most
controversial musical. But, “these people need their
stories told, too,” Pace said.
“Assassins” is set in a kind of alternate-reality
carnival, where assassins and attempted assassins
throughout the decades are free to mix and mingle
and talk to each other about what makes them
tick, or rather, what makes them want to shoot a
president. Catering to the crowd at this twisted fair
is the Proprietor, played with creepy deadpan by
senior Paul H. Miller, who offers guns for sale to
one and all.
The carnival feel extended outside of the Black
Box Theatre, where cotton candy and other carnival
goodies were for sale.
“It’s a piece of Americana,” Pace said. “But a
broken America.”
In contrast to the dirty and disjointed scenery,
members of the ensemble wore muted tones of
... t^UREN RAMSDELL lPhotogapllef
The ensemble sings during their performance about how they
were all able to save President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
white, representing the true America.
The set, lighting and sound were all spot-on
when it came to setting the “creepy carnival”
atmosphere. Though the music was pre-recorded,
it was never overbearing as some canned music
can be. All of the lyrics were heard loud and clear,
meshing well with the accompanying background
music.
All cast members played their parts well, but the
standout was Charles Guiteau, assassin of President
James Garfield, played by senior Teddy Scott.
Guiteau's character could be manic one moment
and deeply depressed the next, and Scott carried his
weight without a single slip-up. Scott’s performance
of the dramatic lead up to the eventual hanging of
Guiteau made the audience audibly gasp.
John Wilkes Booth, played by senior Christopher
Wood, was the antagonist in the carnival. Sneaking
up behind the people who would become assassins.
he would implore them to make something of their
lives, to go down in history — to shoot a president.
The voice of reason was the Balladeer, who sang
the stories of the assassins as they were introduced.
Played by senior Eric Mann, he offered the glimmer
of light many of the assassins missed in their own
lives. But, as it is well known, history cannot be
changed, and even despite the Balladeer’s pleading.
Booth won over all of the assassins — even a
reluctant Lee Harvey Oswald.
“Assassins" could well have been a
melodramatic piece, but in typical Sondheim style,
bits of dark humor snuck through the solemn
nature of the subject. One such scene involves
Booth and attempted assassin of President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Guiseppe Zangara.
Zangara, played by senior Roy San Filipo, had a
lifelong stomach ailment that made him a cranky,
bitter man.
“Your stomach hurts?” Booth questioned. “Have
you tried shooting the president?”
“No,” Zangara replied. “Will that help?"
"Well, it can’t hurt.”
Sophomore acting major Amy McNabb said she
enjoyed the experience of seeing “Assassins," and
thought the senior class did a great job selecting
the piece.
‘It really rattles you up,” she said.
On each night of the performance, admittance
to the show was difficult to obtain, with lines
beginning around an hour and a half before doors
even opened. Every night, a substantial amount
of students were turned away from the door, a
testament to how well the senior seminar class did
with the piece they chose.
Despite the touchy subject matter involved.
Assassins" and the senior musical theater
seminar pulled off with aplomb what most
companies would be too afraid to touch.