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Aramark, Justice for Students and Weird Bennington News
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the Bennington Free PressT H E B E N N I N G T O N C O L L E G E S T U D E N T N E W S P A P E R
Volume 19 Issue 1 | Friday, March 15, 2013
INSI
DE
NEWS ARTSVOICESFEATURES
EVA CHATTERJEE SUTTON
BENNINGTON CARD
JUDICIAL REVIEW
UNPAID INTERNSHIPS
NCAA BENNINGTON
SEQUESTER
Bennington College in Food Flux: The Switch to Aramark
On July 1st, the multinational corporation Aramark will take over the management of dining services at Bennington College. The shift to $UPDUN� VLJQL¿HV� D�major change. For the better part of the last 25 years, the college has managed these services itself, most recently under the guidance of Bennington alum Bill Scully. The ongoing project to renovate the main Commons building was what ¿UVW� SURPSWHG� WKH�college to consider this change. When administrators like David Rees planned to rethink the physical structure of the dining hall, they decided to ‘put everything on the table,’ including the management of dining services. Four options were then considered: one a continued form of sel f -management , and three others that involved considering
outside providers like Aramark. The process of choosing and evaluating each of these options was extensive. David Rees, Bill Scully, Laura Krause,
and other members of Bennington College administration met with representatives from each company being considered and visited other colleges and universities to
BY KENNETH OLGUIN �*- see how their dining services functioned. Finally, they received three proposals, one from each company being considered. As David Rees described it, “we got the
¿UVW� WZR� SURSRVDOV�from the vendors we didn’t select and they were very generic and...¿QH�� %XW� ZH� ZHUHQ¶W�interested. They didn’t meet our criteria on a lot of levels. So the last proposal came in from Aramark, and it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen.” Even Bill Scully admitted that Aramark’s proposal was “really strong. Strong enough WKDW� LW� GH¿QLWHO\� ULYDOHG�what we’re doing now and especially looking forward.” In the coming year, it will be interesting to see what will become of Bennington College’s new relationship with Aramark and how it will unfold. One point David Rees made clear in response to concerns is reassuring: “Everything we have built into it, both contractually but also the process is this: talking.”
On Tuesday, March 12th, the Benning-ton Sustainable Food Project (BSFP) host-ed a forum in conjunction with members of the administration to discuss the specif-ics of the College’s recently announced deal with the multinational Aramark Cor-poration to oversee Dining Services at the College. In attendance were David Rees, Senior Vice President of Administration and Planning, Laura Krause, Vice Presi-GHQW�DQG�&KLHI�)LQDQFLDO�2I¿FHU��DQG�:LO-liam (Bill) Scully ’94, Director of Dining Services. The forum began with a preamble by Rees about the general process that led the College to selecting Aramark. Rees, Krause, and Scully visited various col-leges to observe their dining services, Aramark-provided and otherwise. They settled on three companies for consider-ation: Bon Apetit, Sodexo, and Aramark. Krause stated she had previous experience with Aramark through a previous job at the University of California, San Diego, describing it as a “good experience.” Rees also mentioned Aramark’s proposal was “stunning” and a “clear standout.” Questions ranged across broad topics, but were largely centered on a few issues.
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BSFP Hosts Meeting to Discuss Transition to Aramark and Upcoming Renovations
An immediate concern raised by students involved the retention of current Dining 6HUYLFHV�HPSOR\HHV��LW�ZDV�FRQ¿UPHG�WKDW�all union Dining Services employees will continue to be overseen and paid by the College, and their wages will remain un-changed as per union contracts. Aramark will be bringing in a small administrative team, but keeping Bennington’s union staff was non-negotiable, said Rees. Concerns about dietary needs were also addressed, and it was mentioned that a ma-jor motivator for the Aramark venture in-volved taking advantage of their purchas-ing power in order to make Bennington a “player” in the organic and local food market. Improving the quality and taste of food is of great importance to the College, as well as continuing to address the spe-FL¿F�GLHWDU\�QHHGV�RI�VWXGHQWV�DV�QHFHVVDU\��Also in the works is improvement of meat quality. Scully mentioned the possible ad-dition of chicken, from Misty Knoll farms, a free-range farm in New Haven, Vermont which naturally-raises their chickens. The overall Commons renovation was GLVFXVVHG�EULHÀ\��5HHV�SURSRVHG�D�FHQWUDO�question about the building: “What if the identity of this building was about food? What would that look like?”
It was also theorized that the current functions of the Student Center as it exists now could move to the Commons build-ing, and the vacated space would become the new location of the Meyer Recreation Barn, with possible additions including a basketball court. Important dates in the upcoming months include a meeting in April with new Ara-mark manager Mike Thompson. Bill Scul-ly will be leaving his manager position ef-fective June 30th, with Thompson’s start date being July 1st. The conversation between students and the administrators also yielded a wealth of information about the expected changes that will take place after the corporation takes over dining hall management this coming fall. Following that conversation the Bennington Free Press looked into Ara-mark’s past as recorded in Collegiate and national media sources. In 2008, Yale University terminated its contract with Aramark for reasons that are not completely clear. In an August 2007 report from the Yale Daily News, a union representative was quoted as stating that incentive bonuses for reducing operat-ing costs under the private contractor left a negative impact on food quality at the
school. Another article about the Univer-sity of Florida’s contract with Aramark de-scribes a clause giving the corporation an on-campus monopoly over food and drink. In one instance, this clause prevented the RSHQLQJ�RI�D�VWXGHQW�UXQ�QRQ�SUR¿W�FDIp�� Other concerns about Aramark expressed in the media have to do with its record as a food supplier to prisons. In 2011, a Ken-tucky state representative ordered an inves-tigation of Aramark for alleged violations of its service contract with the state’s Cor-rections Department. Representative Brent Yonts (D-Greenville) accused Aramark of serving old food to inmates and overbilling the state. In Tarrant County, Texas, 2004, an Aramark contract was terminated by a county court citing unpalatable meals. Additionally, Aramark runs a relatively small Political Action Committee (PAC) which last year donated $27,379 to various state candidates and campaign committees, according to opensecrets.org.���7KHVH�LQLWLDO�¿QGLQJV�UDLVH�SRWHQWLDO�FRQ-cerns stemming from the company’s per-formance at other academic institutions, its involvement in the prison industry and FDPSDLJQ� ¿QDQFH�� 2XU� $SULO� ��WK� LVVXH�will contain a fully developed exploration of these topics and their bearing on the transition next fall.
HINTERLANDS
HACKERSPACE
2 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1 N E W S
Over Field Work Term, it was announced that Eva Chatterjee-Sutton would be resigning from her position as Dean of Students at Bennington College. In the interim, Isabelle Roche, Dean of the College, will be acting as Dean of Students. She isn’t replacing Eva—she is ³RYHUVHHLQJ�WKH�IXQFWLRQV�RI�WKH�2I¿FH�>RI�Student Life].”� � � � 7KH� 2I¿FH� RI� 6WXGHQW� /LIH�� ZKLFK�organizes housing, keeps track of ID cards, oversees clubs and althetics, and, of course, provides free coffee from 9-5, is normally managed by a Dean of Students. However, WKH� 2I¿FH� RI� 6WXGHQW� /LIH� ZDV� DOZD\V� D�SDUW� RI� WKH� &ROOHJH� 'HDQ¶V� 2I¿FH�� ³(YD�was in the position of Dean of Students, so she reported to me and we worked closely together on all sorts of things.” Now that there is no Dean of Students, Roche is taking a more “hands on” role. “What’s important to say about this moment,” said 5RFKH��³LV�WKDW�WKH�2I¿FH�RI�6WXGHQW�/LIH�LV�continuing to function as it has.” Currently, the college is not looking for someone to replace Chaterjee-Sutton in the position. Each time a job opening happens, whether it be in the faculty or in the administration, the college takes it as an opportunity to re-evaluate an re-assess the position itself. For instance, when Ken Himmelman, former Dean of Admissions, left the school last September, his position was taken over by Janet Marsden, Director of Communications. In having her run Admissions when Himmelman left, it was found that the positions are similar
enough that it makes sense to have the same person organizing them. “It’s just a really good pulse taking moment,” said Roche. “At Bennington at any point in time when we have a vacancy, whether it be an administrative vacancy, any kind of VWDII� YDFDQF\�� RU� >«@� IDFXOW\� YDFDQFLHV��ZH�GRQ¶W�>«@�DXWRPDWLFDOO\�VD\���µ:H�KDG�this, let’s look for that.’” According to Roche, Bennington makes a point of taking
advantage of moments to re-examine and re-evaluate whether positions that may have made sense when they were created are still necessary today. “We don’t at this point know whether we’ll be looking for another Dean of Students,” said Roche, “or whether we’ll restructure things, and we’re really taking this time to reassess.” Regardless of what the outcome of this assessment is, students will be involved.
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Many of you may have been walking through the hallways of Dickinson wondering “when did that purple couch get here?” and “where did the computer lab go?” Summer of 2012 marked the start of a series of re-construction projects—Dickinson, Commons, Rec Barn and Student Center being the areas of attention—that will ultimately bring the campus and its residents closer together. I spoke with Ben Szalewicz and David Rees, members of Bennington’s Safety Committee, about some of the progression XQGHUZD\�� 7KHUH� DUH� PDQ\� VLJQL¿FDQW�GHYHORSPHQWV�LQ�PRWLRQ��WKH�¿UVW�RI�ZKLFK�is Dickinson. � � � � ³7KH� SULPDU\� JRDO� RI� >UHQRYDWLQJ@�Dickinson is really to improve the lab classroom spaces; ventilation being the biggest component of that,” said Szalewicz. Currently geology and physics share a lab, so the plan is to create a separate one for
geology. An improved C-lab (for David Edelman’s octopus research) is also in the making. Next, the wet lab should be completed over the summer for use at the start of fall term. “The building is now forty plus years old, so we wanted to really create more of a vibrant, public feeling LQ� WKH� VSDFH�´� H[SUHVVHG� 5HHV�� 7KH� ¿UVW�remodel was done to the exterior deck on the east side of the building, which had some structural issues. The bathrooms were renovated last summer, in addition to the new elevator which will serve to accommodate those with disabilities. The lighting installment will help to create a more lively atmosphere, and should be going up in a couple of weeks. Additionally, pin-up space is being expanded so students can display their work for their peers, faculty and visitors. You may have also noticed that the computer lab has been
relocated to Commons; public computing originally started in Dickinson because the building had major power supply. Now, with the process of renovation, it has become much more practical to keep public computing in a central, “common” space. This brings us to the next area to be renovated. Hint: you pass through it at least three times a day between meals and checking your mailboxes. You guessed it: it’s Commons. The new idea for Commons is simple. There will be a cafe, more dining options, and the Student Center and Bookstore will be moved to the building as well. There is a pending thought to move the Meyer Rec Barn behind the Student Center, so that most athletics can reside in one general area (in close proximity to the VRFFHU� ¿HOG�� EDVNHWEDOO� FRXUWV� DQG� WHQQLV�courts). As of right now, this is just an idea.
Remodeling these buildings will make our campus practical, and our relationship with it more intimate. This is our home, and as artists, students, professors, and VWDII�� ZH� VKRXOG� IHHO� FRPSOHWHO\� VDWLV¿HG�in it. Stay tuned for updates on this exciting and innovative plan! Check out the extended edition of this article online at benningtonfreepress.org
Operation Restoration: Dickinson Science Building and Commons
Before term began, house chairs had a conversation with Liz Coleman about what they thought of student life at Bennington, in a broad sense of the phrase: what should community life at the college look like, and “how can we have administrative structures that support that?” Chatterjee-Sutton’s departure may have seemed sudden for some students—and perhaps even unnerving considering the imminent departure of long time college president Liz Coleman, the recent resignation of Dean of Admissions Ken Himmelman, and the news that came soon after about Bill Scully’s leaving as head of dining services with the school’s switch to Aramark as our food provider. Roche says, however, that this is a normal part of a place like Bennington: “I think that every institution goes through periods where there is more change and periods where there is less change.” Furthermore, having so many administrative positions replaced or re-imagined should not have an affect so sudden as for the students to feel jolted or disoriented: Bennington’s hiring process makes sure to hire people who understand the school, and for whom it quickly becomes “part of their DNA.” “I think one of the really truly remarkable things about working here is that there’s a kind of VKDUHG�PLVVLRQ��YDOXH�>«@�VKDUHG�VHQVH�RI�what this place is about, and that guides all of our decision making. We’re looking for people for whom that will resonate, and for whom that happens very quickly.”
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Eva Chatterjee-Sutton Isabel Roche
3 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15thth 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1 N E W S
A new Dean’s position is being appended to Bennington College’s payroll. The new Dean of Field Work Term will be arriving in mid April and will work to grow Bennington’s relationships with leading RUJDQL]DWLRQV� LQ� WKH� IRU�SURÀW� DQG� QRW�IRU�SURÀW�VHFWRUV��H[SDQGLQJ�RSSRUWXQLWLHV�IRU� VWXGHQWV� DQG�JURZLQJ� WKH� FORXW� RI� WKH�&ROOHJH·V�XQLTXH�ZRUN�VWXG\�SURJUDP�� � � �$FFRUGLQJ� WR� 'LUHFWRU� RI� )LHOG�:RUN�Term and Career Development Tammy )UDVHU�� WKH� QHZ� 'HDQ�� ZKR� KDV� DOUHDG\�EHHQ�VHOHFWHG��ZLOO�RYHUVHH�WKH�)LHOG�:RUN�
���/DVW�WHUP�IRU�WKH�ÀUVW�WLPH��VWXGHQWV�EHJDQ�SD\LQJ�GD\�WR�GD\�FKDUJHV��VXFK�DV�ORVW�,'�IHHV��URRP�FKDUJHV��DQG�VKXWWOH�FRVWV��ZLWK�WKHLU�GHFOLQLQJ�EDODQFH�RQ�WKHLU�%HQQLQJWRQ�FDUG�� 2QH� RI� WKHVH� FKDUJHV�� WKH� SDUNLQJ�IHHV�WKDW�VWXGHQWV�ZLWK�FDUV�RQ�FDPSXV�SD\�HYHU\�WHUP��FRVWV�����GROODUV��6WXGHQWV�PD\�UHPHPEHU�SD\LQJ�WKH�EXVLQHVV�RIÀFH�WKHLU�fee at the beginning of the Fall semester. ����´�%HJLQQLQJ�QH[W�\HDU��LW�ZLOO�EH�D�RQH�WLPH� IHH� RI� ����� IRU� WKH� ZKROH� \HDU� WR�UHGXFH� ODERU� IRU� HYHU\RQH�� ,Q� WKH� FDVH�ZKHUH�D�VWXGHQW�OHDYHV�FROOHJH�RU�GRHV�QRW�
� � � �2QH� RI� WKH�PDQ\� DQQRXQFHPHQWV� WKDW�VWXGHQWV�UHFHLYHG�LQ�WKHLU�HPDLOV�RYHU�)LHOG�Work Term was that the Bennington Card FDQ�QRZ�EH�XVHG�DW�3RZHUV��3DQJDHD��DQG�&96�LQ�WKH�WRZQV�RI�1RUWK�%HQQLQJWRQ�DQG�Bennington. � � � � � 7KH� FXUUHQW� %HQQLQJWRQ� &DUG� ZDV�implemented at the beginning of the Fall �����WHUP��ZKHQ�LW�UHSODFHG�WKH�PXFK�PRUH�EDVLF�PHDO�FDUG�WKDW�ZDV�XVHG�DW�WKH�WLPH��1RZ��LW·V�XVHG�IRU�HYHU\WKLQJ�IURP�ODXQGU\�WR�SD\LQJ�IRU�URRP�YLRODWLRQ�IHHV��7KH�FDUG�EHFDPH�PRUH�SUHVHQW�RQ�FDPSXV�ODVW�\HDU�ZKHQ� LW�EHFDPH� WKH�RQO\�QRQ�FDVK�RSWLRQ�WR� SD\� IRU� GD\�WR�GD\� FKDUJHV�� 7KHVH�FDUGV� UHSUHVHQW� WKH� FROOHJH·V� UHODWLRQVKLS�ZLWK�&DUG6PLWK�� ´D� FDPSXV� FDUG� VROXWLRQ�FRPSDQ\�µ�����(YHQ�WKRXJK�KDYLQJ�VR�PDQ\�DVSHFWV�RI�VWXGHQWV·�OLYHV�WLHG�WR�FKHFNLQJ�LQ�ZLWK�DQ�LVVXHG� ,'� FDUG�PD\� VHHP�RSSRVLWLRQDO� WR�WKH�VPDOO�� UXUDO�FRPPXQLW\�RI� WKH�VFKRRO��WKH� FROOHJH�PDNHV� VXUH� WR� ´PDNH� LW� VHHP�QRQ� FRUSRUDWH�µ� VDLG� /DXUD� .UDXVH�� 9LFH�3UHVLGHQW� DQG� &)2� RI� WKH� FROOHJH�� 2XW�RI� DOO� WKH� FDPSXV� FDUG� VHUYLFH� SURYLGHUV��WKLV� RQH� ZDV� ´D� PXFK� PRUH� VFUDSS\��%HQQLQJWRQ� NLQG� RI� SURGXFW�µ� DFFRUGLQJ�WR�'DYLG�5HHV�� WKH� 6HQLRU�9LFH� 3UHVLGHQW�IRU�$GPLQLVWUDWLRQ�DQG�3ODQQLQJ�+RZHYHU��QRZ�WKDW�WKH�FDUGV�FDQ�EH�XVHG�LQ�WRZQ��WKH�TXHVWLRQ�DULVHV�RI�KRZ�PXFK�H[SDQVLRQ�LV�
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����,Q�-DQXDU\�RI�WKLV�\HDU��RYHU����DUUHVWV�were made in the town of Bennington in WKH�ELJJHVW�GUXJ�EXVW�LQ�9HUPRQW�KLVWRU\�7KH� GUXJ� EXVW�� FDOOHG� ´2SHUDWLRQ�&RXQW\�6WULNH�µ�VWDUWHG�DW���$0�RQ�WKH�PRUQLQJ�RI�-DQXDU\���WK��ZKHQ�WKH�%HQQLQJWRQ�3ROLFH�'HSDUWPHQW� HQWHUHG� D� UHVLGHQFH� RQ�0DLQ�6WUHHW�ZKHUH�WKH\�IRXQG����EDJV�RI�KHURLQ�DQG������JUDPV�RI�FRFDLQH������7KH�DUUHVWV�DQG�DUUDLJQPHQWV�FRQWLQXHG�into the evening. The Bennington Banner SRVWHG�SKRWRV�WKURXJKRXW�WKH�GD\��VWULNLQJ�LPDJHV� RI� WDVN� IRUFH� PHPEHUV� GUHVVHG�LQ� MHW� EODFN� DJDLQVW� WKH� EDFNJURXQG� RI� D�VQRZ\�9HUPRQW�GD\��:DUUDQWV�ZHUH�LVVXHG�
“The process is taking about as long as it was expected,” said Isabel Roche, Dean of the College, in regards to Bennington’s presidential search. “The hope is that there will be a president announced by the end of the term.” President Liz Coleman, who has led Bennington since 1987, announced in this past September that she will be retiring at the end of the Spring semester. Shortly thereafter, the college hired the consulting ¿UP� 3KLOOLSV� 2SSHQKHLP� WR� DVVLVW� ZLWK�the search for a new president. “Phillips
“More more, win win:” the future of the Bennington Card
Over 50 Arrests Made in January Bennington Drug Bust
Parking on Campus this Term:
Do I have to pay?
New “Dean of Field Work Term” to
Arrive Later this Spring
Presidential Search Continues, Committee to Meet Candidates
IRU����DUUHVWV��DQG����SHRSOH�ZHUH�DUUHVWHG�on the day of the strike.� � � � 7KH� FKDUJHV� UDQJHG� IURP� WKH� VDOH�RI� FRFDLQH� DQG� KHURLQ� WR� SRVVHVVLRQ� RI�PDULMXDQD��DQG�LQFOXGHG�D�QXPEHU�RI�FRXQWV�RI� VHOOLQJ� RU� SRVVHVVLRQ� RI� SUHVFULSWLRQ�SDLQ�NLOOHUV��7KHUH�ZHUH�DOVR� WKUHH�FRXQWV�RI�VHOOLQJ�GUXJV�RQ�VFKRRO�JURXQGV������$OWKRXJK�WKH�WDVN�IRUFH��LQFOXGLQJ�RYHU����� GLIIHUHQW� RIÀFHUV� IURP� IRXU� GLIIHUHQW�ODZ� HQIRUFHPHQW� DJHQFLHV�� ZDV� KHDYLO\�DUPHG�� WKHUH� ZHUH� QR� VKRWV� ÀUHG� DQG� QR�LQMXULHV�RFFXUUHG��5HJDUGOHVV��DFFRUGLQJ�WR�WKH�%HQQLQJWRQ�%DQQHU��FURZGV�JDWKHUHG�DW�WKH�VLWHV�RI�SDUWLFXODUO\�WHQVH�VWDQGRIIV��
7HUP� RIÀFH� DQG�ZRUN�ZLWK� WKH� &ROOHJH·V�VHQLRU� VWDII� RQ� KLJK�LPSDFW� SROLF\� LVVXHV�VXFK� DV� EHWWHU� LQFRUSRUDWLQJ� )LHOG� :RUN�7HUP�LQWR�WKH�JHQHUDO�FXUULFXOXP��6KH�ZLOO�likely spend a fair bit of time on the road developing new relationships with new Field Work Term employers similar to the UHODWLRQVKLS�WKH�&ROOHJH�KDV�QXUWXUHG�ZLWK�WKH�'XWFK�PXOWLQDWLRQDO�'60�����7KH�)UHH�3UHVV�ZLOO�EH�SURYLGLQJ�PRUH�information at benningtonfreepress.org as we have it.
BY KRISTA THORP �*.
BY KRISTA THORP �*.
BY PETE FEY��*,
BY MIKE GOLDIN �*-
� � � ´7KH�FRPPXQLW\�ZLOO�EH�D�EHWWHU�SODFH�DV� D� UHVXOW� RI� WKLV�µ� VDLG� &RO�� 7KRPDV�/·(VSHUDQFH� RI� WKH� 9HUPRQW� 6WDWH� 3ROLFH�'HSDUWPHQW��́ DV�ORQJ�DV�ZH�FRQWLQXH�WR�VWD\�YLJLODQW�DQG�IRFXV�RXU�DWWHQWLRQ�RQ�TXDOLW\�RI�OLIH�FULPHV�DQG�WKH�DFWLYLWLHV�WKDW�FRPH�ZLWK� GUXJ� GLVWULEXWLRQ�� FRQVXPSWLRQ�� DQG�DEXVH�µ�/·(VSHUDQFH�ZDV�OLNHO\�UHIHUULQJ�WR�JDQJ�DFWLYLW\��ZKLFK�ZDV�DOVR�LQYHVWLJDWHG�LQ� DVVRFLDWLRQ� ZLWK� WKH� GUXJ� VWULNH�� 7KH�Banner reported that at least twelve of the VXVSHFWV� DSSHDUHG� WR� EH� DVVRFLDWHG� ZLWK�VHULRXV� JDQJ� DFWLYLW\�� +H� DOVR� PD\� KDYH�EHHQ� UHIHUULQJ� WR� WKH� SURVWLWXWLRQ� ULQJ�
DOOHJHGO\� EHLQJ� UXQ� E\� 7KRPDV� /\RQV��RZQHU� RI� %HQQLQJWRQ� 6XEDUX�� $� ZDUUDQW�IRU� /\RQV·� DUUHVW� ZDV� LVVXHG� ODWHU� LQ� WKH�month.����7KH�%HQQLQJWRQ�)UHH�3UHVV�ZLOO�SURYLGH�PRUH�FRYHUDJH�RQ�FULPH�LQ�WKH�FRPPXQLW\�ODWHU�WKLV�WHUP��ORRN�RXW�IRU�D�IHDWXUH�LQ�RXU�$SULO�LVVXH��
2SSHQKHLP� >«@� KDV� RUJDQL]HG� WKH� HQWLUH�process,” said Robert Ransick and Susan Sgorbati in an email interview this week.This past Fall semester students were invited to several meetings with the search committee to discuss their vissions for Bennington’s future. That involvement will continue this term. “All members of the Bennington community will have opportunities to engage with the candidates when they visit campus,” Ransick and 6JRUEDWL� VDLG��$OWKRXJK� WKH� VSHFL¿FV� DUH�not yet worked out, the next opportunity
students will have to provide their input will hopefully be in April, Roche said, ZKHQ�¿QDOLVWV�ZLOO�EH�RQ�FDPSXV�WR�YLVLW� In fact, this coming weekend represents a landmark in the search—the committee ZLOO� EH� PHHWLQJ� ZLWK� WKH� ¿UVW� URXQG� RI�candidates in New York City. � � � � $ORQJ� ZLWK� 3KLOOLSV� 2SSHQKHLP�� WKH�search committee - consisting of trustees (including recently graduated trustees) and faculty- are in charge of the search process. When asked if there is any chance that the college will have an interim president,
Roche said “I don’t think anyone can predict if that will happen.” She mentioned that if there is a need for an interim president, the trustees will oversee that appointment. According to Ransick and Sgorbati, “The process has been very productive and we are hopeful to have strong candidates visiting the campus this spring.”
EULQJ�WKHLU�YHKLFOH�EDFN�LQ�WKH�6SULQJ�WHUP��WKH\�ZLOO�EH�FUHGLWHG�VL[W\�GROODUV�EDFN�WR�WKHLU� DFFRXQW�µ� VDLG�.HQ�&ROODPRUH� LQ� DQ�HPDLO�LQWHUYLHZ��+RZHYHU��DW�WKH�EHJLQQLQJ�RI� ODVW� WHUP�� VWXGHQWV� ZHUH� RQO\� FKDUJHG�VL[W\�GROODUV��VR�SHRSOH�ZKR�EURXJKW�WKHLU�FDUV� EDFN� WR� FDPSXV� VKRXOG� JR� WR� WKH�EXVLQHVV�RIÀFH�VRRQ�WR�SD\�IRU�WKLV�WHUP���
BY KRISTA THORP��*.
4 THE BENNINGTON FREE PRESS / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1 A D V E R T I S E M E N T
At the Oldcastle Theatre
331 Main Street in downtown Bennington
Around theWorld in 80 Days
Playwright: Mark Brown, adapted from the novel by Jules Verne
Performance Dates: March 22 through April 7, 2013
Performance Days: Thu, Fri, Sat at 8, Thu, Sat, Sun at 2
First Saturday matinee (March 23) is BOGO.
Fast, funny and furious, the Jules Verne classic comes alive on stage
in this comedy/adventure with 5 actors metamorphosing into 39 char-
acters. Critics have called it: "ingeniously adapted...High-spirited" and
�Á�DW�RXW�KLODULRXV��
Benn faculty and staff: $3.00 off single ticket price. ($34. instead of
$37. Use the code BENNFS5 and call the theatre for reservations at
802-447-0564
Student ticket prices are $10.00. $1.00 off if you use the code Steam-
punk. $2.00 off if you dress STEAMPUNK.
At the Oldcastle Theatre
331 Main Street in downtown Bennington
Around theWorld in 80
5 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013> Vol. 19 No. 1
F E A T U R E S
During an investigation regarding the sale and use of heroin on campus at the end of last term, three students who had offered testimony regarding the matter became the subjects of investigations themselves for their proximity to and alleged involvement with the issue. Sent before the Administrative Review Committee, banned from student housing for the remainder of the year and placed on disciplinary probation for the remainder of their time at Bennington, the mishandling of their investigation and prosecution sparked anger among much of the student body. The student responsible for bringing the drug to campus originally- and the subject of the College’s original investigation- withdrew from the school and left Bennington during the two day period between receipt of his hearing date and the hearing itself.
In weeks following that student’s departure, students who had come forward to alert the administration to the problem and who were peripherally involved in the incident were questioned; in some cases, testimonies they had supplied in service of the investigation and under the impression that they would not themselves be prosecuted later had those testimonies used against them. Throughout the review process, it was unclear to these students what was going to happen next. The BFP spoke with one of those students about the chain of events leading up to and following the search of his room. He described the manner in which he became aware that he himself was under suspicion:
“I got an e-mail from Ken telling me that he needed to speak to me about a very important matter. We talked and he TXHVWLRQHG�PH�IRU�DERXW�DQ�KRXU��,�ÀJXUHG�WKDW� HYHU\WKLQJ� ZDV� ÀQLVKHG� DIWHU� WKDW��because I was under the impression that it was about [the student responsible for VHOOLQJ� KHURLQ@�� DQG� ,� ÀJXUHG� WKDW� ,� KDG�made it clear that I wasn’t involved with [him]. The next day, Ken asked me to meet ZLWK�KLP�DJDLQ�� LQ�KLV�RIÀFH��VR�,�ZDONHG�GRZQ� WR� KLV� RIÀFH�� �+H� FDOOHG�PH�RQFH� ,�got there, or I think I might have called KLP�EHFDXVH�KH�ZDV�ÀYH�PLQXWHV�ODWH���+H�said that he was in my room. I went back there and Ken and Sarah Walcott were in my room, with the door open… I had to contact Eva and have her come in on a Sunday and talk to me about what was going on…. I think it was just a couple of days later because I was nervous, but I was nervous about cigarette butts in my room and being charged for them. I wasn’t really concerned about my future at this school. Which was awfully naïve, in retrospect.”
During this meeting with Eva, the student was informed that he would be going before the Administrative Review Committee for allegations related to his original testimony, and that the least severe of all possible outcomes would be housing suspension. No evidence of heroin or related drugs was found in his room, but his advisor, who was also acting as his faculty representative, was later told that he had committed a felony by the Administrative Review Committee. Students who became subjects of investigation were told they could bring character witnesses to testify on their behalf to the Administrative Review Committee. In at least one case,
witnesses were assembled, but never called into the hearing. Another student was charged because others used the drug in his room against his wishes- an event which he described in a report to campus safety of his own volition after the fact. His case was eventually dismissed, but only after his teachers and peers had been made aware of his fragile implication in the case. The reaction by campus safety, student life, DQG� WKH� 'HDQ·V� 2IÀFH� WR� D� VHQVLWLYH� DQG�complicated case opened a conversation about a disciplinary process which some VWXGHQWV� DOOHJHG� WR�EH�GHHSO\�ÁDZHG�� DQG�sparked a chain of e-mails over winter break discussing what action the student body should take to reform it.
The Policies
7KH� &ROOHJH� IRUPDOO\� GHOLQHDWHV� ÀYH�separate entities which process disciplinary matters of all sorts. Incidents of sexual harassment and academic misconduct are each processed through special mechanisms separate from the three entities
Judicial Review Process Raises Concerns
which compose the College’s primary disciplinary system. Trivial infractions with outcomes clearly delineated in the student handbook are handled directly by WKH�2IÀFH�RI�6WXGHQW�/LIH��XVXDOO\�TXLFNO\�and discreetly. For serious incidents and allegations where expulsion or suspension are possible outcomes, the Dean of Students refers cases to the Administrative Review Committee- a group comprised of three senior members of the administration appointed by the president. Incidents in the margin between the serious and the trivial are referred at the Dean of Student’s discretion to the Judicial Review Committee- a body formally composed of 16 people: 7 students, 6 members of the faculty and staff, the dean of students, and WKH� DVVLVWDQW� GLUHFWRUV� RI� 6WXGHQW� /LIH�� ,Q�practice, however, the Judicial Committee has been an essentially illusory presence on campus; nobody interviewed for this story, from actual student members of the Judicial Committee to the Dean of the College, could recall any instance in at least the past four years when the Judicial
Committee had been assembled to rule on an infraction.
The non-presence of the Judicial Committee in the College’s disciplinary process to date has become the subject of scrutiny since last term’s debacle, and some students have asserted the group’s disuse is only a component in a more systemic failure on the parts of both students and the administration to come together in forging a more transparent and consistent disciplinary process.
Moving Forward?
2Q�:HGQHVGD\�� WKH� 'HDQ·V� 2IÀFH� FORVHG�the application process for new members of the College’s Judicial Committee. The Free Press met with Dean of the College Isabel Roche and Head of Campus Safety Ken Collamore to discuss the Judicial Review Committee and the context in which it was being re-staffed. Roche noted that the decision was only practical to some extent- much of the body’s membership had actually graduated. While Roche acknowledged that the Judicial Committee “hasn’t been called with great frequency” in recent years, there are no concrete plans to alter the policies which dictate what matters will actually go to that Committee. She further offered that the Judicial Committee is “really meant to look at student conduct issues that go to the quality of community life at Bennington,” and that the policies in place have “a certain kind of elasticity” embedded in them which enable appropriate latitude and discretion in the process.
Of course, what the Dean referred to as elasticity, many students consider ambiguity- a distinction which, while it hasn’t escaped consideration, remains to be addressed. “On the one hand the reason that you have policy is to make things transparent and clear,” Roche offered, “If you do X, then Y, then Z, and so on and so forth[...] There’s a school of thought that says that’s very useful. On the other hand that takes away judgement—the moment of having responsible people look at circumstances and take things into account and [recognize] that every X and every Y are not the same X and the same Y. So I think that’s a really interesting kind of tension- how do you accomplish both?” This is a point where Roche would like to seek the opinions of students to imagine “potential, possible” changes to the actual policies in the future.
Student Empowerment
/DVW� WHUP·V� HYHQWV� KDYH� VHW� WKH� VWDJH� IRU�meaningful change in the way the College processes disciplinary matters. Having seen and experienced the manner in which the present system responds to high-tension LQFLGHQWV�� V\VWHPLF� ÁDZV� ZKLFK� ZHUH�previously concealed have been opened to very public scrutiny- and scrutiny which the administration seems willing to share in. The Free Press will be examining best-practices in collegiate disciplinary systems in future publications, as well as working WR�FRPSLOH�D�FRPSUHKHQVLYH�DQG�GHÀQLWLYH�timeline of the events which inspired this important conversation. Finally, the Free Press will continue coverage on the movement to re-imagine Bennington’s disciplinary system as a sensual and ethical, no less than an intellectual, process.
;R�>FF:�=>E�O:EE>��*,�:G=�FBD>�@HE=BG��*-
PBMA�K>IHKMBG@�;R�<>E>G>�;:KK>K:��*.�:G=�K:<A>E�C:<DLHG��*-
6 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1 F E A T U R E S
Kafka has a parable about an imperial messenger sent by a dying emperor to deliver a message to a peasant in a rural village somewhere in China. The king carefully whispers the message in his ear. The messenger begins his departure. He bears the royal insignia on his chest, he runs, his arms are swinging. But the doors are out of reach. Even if he made it RXW� RI� WKH� SDODFH�� KH� ZRXOG� ÀQG� KLPVHOI�in the center of the immense capital city, with throngs of people stretching out to WKH� KRUL]RQ�� 1RERG\� FRXOG� ÀJKW� KLV� ZD\�through here even with a message from a dead man. He vainly wears out his strength. But you sit at your window when evening falls and dream it to yourself. Welcome to Lucky Dragon (460 Main St, Bennington, VT). The curly-haired waiter/host here is punctual and happy to please, but his eagerness betrays the kind of desperation you see in videos of POWs, secret codes implicit in every glance. I assume he is working here under the coercion of Chinese captors, who I assume are the various back-room men with whom he occasionally steps back to raise his voice, angry Mandarin and English almost indistinguishable. One time he warned my friend Christos not to get the lobster roll. “There’s not actually any lobster in it,” he said. Try: General Tso’s Chicken combination platter ($7.45), it comes with pork fried rice and a spring roll and to be honest I don’t see the point of ordering much else. This is the Chinese food I dreamed about while I was in NYC for FWT. If you need a change of pace or are unable to metabolize chicken, try the Sautéed Broccoli w/ Garlic Sauce ($7.20). Or convince a friend to get it and steal some of the broccoli for your combination platter. This is Chinese Food Sauce perfected. Other notes: Lucky Dragon is great food for hangovers,
EUHDNXSV�� ÀUVW� GDWHV�� FHOHEUDWLRQV� RI�successful parole hearings, etc. And it’s BYOB. If you go to Lucky Dragon please check up on that one waitress, I haven’t seen her in a while and I was always convinced that someday we were going to get together. I asked for extra broccoli on a dish once and from then on when I asked, I always got great mountains of broccoli, soaked through with luscious General Tso’s Sauce. Some troubadour has undoubtedly scooped her up and is currently sitting at KRPH�� GLQLQJ� RQ� ÀQH� &KLQHVH� FXLVLQH� E\�candlelight… And then there was China Wok (Home Depot parking lot, Bennington, VT). No one greets you when you arrive here: this LV� QRW� D� JDPH��$�ÁXWH�SOD\V�RYHU� WKH�3$��You sit. Someone arrives to ask about GULQNV��<RX�JHW�XS��JHW�D�SODWH��DQG�ÀOO� LW��No one asks you what your business is or questions whether or not you want the buffet. Make sure that when you enter you do not hesitate. They can sense your fear and they will show no pity. They will watch and make sure you didn’t bring Tupperware. There is, inexplicably, pizza. Don’t put Sweet and Sour sauce on it; trust your instincts. On the whole, the food is not terrible, but avoid the green beans and broccoli at all costs. They are simulations. The sushi tastes like painful misfortune. Do not get the pizza. You can leave your plate at your table and rise to get a new one, a man who speaks no English will whisk it away without you noticing him. Hopefully he is paid to do this. You can UHSHDW�WKLV�SURFHVV�LQGHÀQLWHO\��<RX�FDQ�HDW�forever. Tea is served in small Styrofoam cups. Life is different on this side of town. I can only assume the other people here are drifters, men and women on the run from something, sitting at the window booths overlooking Home Depot, waiting for a message that will change everything.����0\�GLQLQJ�FRPSDQLRQ�DQG�,�ÀQLVK�HDWLQJ�and no one around us has left or even seems
to have such plans. They may stay for a time. Multicolored lamps circle the room, their contribution to the décor minimal, SHUKDSV�GZDUIHG�E\�WKH�VWURQJ�ÁXRUHVFHQW�overhead light. To the far side of the restaurant is an area with what appear to be bookcases, lit by a mysterious purple light. This area’s purpose is unclear. They have pizza. Also, for dessert, small hot dog-like EXQV�ÀOOHG�ZLWK�ZKLSSHG�FUHDP��7KH\�WDVWH�
like they sound. My stomach does not feel full but I feel it is time to leave; one plays with fate eating here. There is hope for God, plenty – only not for us. Try: The buffet (I guess). Epilogue: I returned to China Wok shortly after leaving because I forgot to sign my receipt. Fortunately my waiter had taken care of it: he simply drew in a circle and a bumpy line trailing it. A pathetic balloon signature.
Disclaimer: Dr. Von Doin’ It is NOT an
accredited doctor of any kind.
Dear Doctor,WHY DOES IT ITCH????? Uh-oh. I would like to begin answering this question by reminding you of the above disclaimer – as much as I like to play doctor in my secret sex dungeon, I am not accredited by a single American medical institution. Dr. Randy is most likely the appropriate person to see here, but I will GR� P\� EHVW�� ,� JXHVV� P\� ÀUVW� TXHVWLRQ� LV�am I talking to a Ticklish Tina or a Prickly Pete? That is, are we talking about penises or vaginas? Or, more universally, perhaps a butthole? Regardless, always remember my #1 rule: don’t knowingly bring VD into the Bennington bubble! People often forget when they leave this campus that there is a UHDO�ÀHOG�ZRUN�ZRUOG�RXW�WKHUH��IXOO�RI�UHDO��ÀHOG�ZRUNO\� WUDQVPLWWHG� GLVHDVHV�� ,� GRQ·W�know what kind of sex parties you attended in San Francisco this winter but let’s keep WKH� UHVXOWV� LQ� \RXU� RZQ�ÁHVK\�PHPEUDQH�and spare the rest of us. Anyway, back to your question of ‘why’. Pretty much every single sexual transmitted disease includes itching as a symptom at one point or another. Also, something to consider: are
you sure that what you’re experiencing is an ‘itch’, per se? What one person might experience as an itch, someone else will experience as a tickle, or pain, or even pleasure. Something that we forget day to day is that the phenomenon of sensation is incredibly subjective. Is there a rash or raised skin? Or worse, is there a scab? Pus? Blood? What color is it? Does it itch constantly or only in the mornings or something weird like that? How does it feel when you pee? I feel like that last one is an important one. Discharge? Tell me about it. I hope for all of our sakes that you just have a yeast infection or eczema. And this advice goes for everybody on this campus who is experiencing an itchy unmentionable of any kind: close down shop, go to health services, get tested for anything and everything. I am seriously NOT trying to get the herp right now. Thanx.
Dr. von Doin’it: Why do all the girls go for guys that are just gonna end up hurting them, then cry on my shoulder when they do? Can’t they see the nice guy standing in front of them? Love, Nice Guy Finishing Last
Dear Nice Guy, Ooh boy. There are lots
of things going on in that question, most of them bordering on the pitiful. That is not to say that your situation is altogether hopeless, but I do hope that for your sake “all the girls” aren’t involved, because what I am going to advise is that you start fresh with a new one. My diagnosis of your situation is that miscommunication and a general shyness in your disposition has landed you in the dreaded FRIENDZONE. And don’t misunderstand me, these girls did not shelf you in that category, it’s mostly just your own fault. According to Wikipedia, the friend zone is “a platonic relationship wherein one person wishes to enter into a romantic or sexual relationship, while the other does not. It is generally considered to be an undesirable situation by the lovelorn person. Once the friend zone LV� HVWDEOLVKHG�� LW� LV� VDLG� WR� EH� GLIÀFXOW� WR�move beyond that point in a relationship.” For whatever reason, ‘all the girls’ don’t see you as a romantic possibility. Maybe you haven’t shown them that you can be charming. Maybe they are looking for a ‘bad boy’ type that their mothers would never approve of. Maybe they think you’re gay – not that there’s anything wrong with that. My advice is that you need to take one last shot at escaping the dire circumstance that is the friend zone
before accepting it as punishment for your timidity and moving on to someone new. You have all these girls with which you are romantically challenged: it seems like you are looking for more than just a quick f#@k so I would suggest picking just one of them. Make a move! Show her you can be romantic, witty, charming and forward. Someone has to show the other that they’re interested – it’s not always the boy’s job but if you’re just gonna sit around complaining that no one likes you when you’ve never even tried then you’re just being stupid. Kiss her right on the PRXWK��*RRJOH�´KRZ�WR�ÁLUW"µ��7KH�ZRUVW�thing that will happen is you’ll be rejected and you will move on with some practice under your belt for the future. I promise you a little sex rejection (or, sexjection) is in no way the most embarrassing thing that you will experience at this school. Shy and nice are endearing qualities but if you want D� SDVVLRQDWH� DQG� ÀHU\� UHODWLRQVKLS� \RX·OO�KDYH� WR� OHDUQ�KRZ�WR�PDNH� WKH�ÀUVW�PRYH�sooner or later.
Dr. Von Doin’ It Tells You Why Love Hurts ;R�=K'�OHG�=HBG��BM
Food with Jan: Lucky Dragon vs.
China Wok
;R�C:G&>KBD�:LIENG=��14
IAHMH�<K>=BM3�;KBMM:GR�DE>BGL<AGBMS��*,
7 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013> Vol. 19 No. 1F E A T U R E S
Although by now your Field Work Term
might feel like a distant memory, you may
recall a moment when, standing over a
copy machine or emptying a trash can or
cataloguing proper nouns in a database for
the twentieth day in a row, you thought,
“Is this an internship, or is this slave
labor?” While you may have been thinking
this in the self-pityingly hyperbolic sense,
according to the United States Department
of Labor, you may not have been too far
off. The laws concerning what constitutes
an “internship” are vague and open to
interpretation. But the list of six criteria,
of which all must be met in order to make
what you’re doing a legal internship
according to the Fair Labor Standards Act,
should raise some questions for all of us:
The FLSA goes on to elaborate upon
the importance of the intern not actually
contributing to the operations of the employer:
Under these circumstances the intern does not perform the
routine work of the business on a regular and recurring basis,
and the business is not dependent upon the work of the intern. On
the other hand, if the interns are engaged in the operations of
the employer or are performing productive work (for example,
ÀOLQJ��SHUIRUPLQJ�RWKHU�FOHULFDO�ZRUN��RU�DVVLVWLQJ�FXVWRPHUV���WKHQ� WKH� IDFW� WKDW� WKH\�PD\� EH� UHFHLYLQJ� VRPH� EHQHÀWV� LQ� WKH�form of a new skill or improved work habits will not exclude
them from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime requirements
EHFDXVH�WKH�HPSOR\HU�EHQHÀWV�IURP�WKH�LQWHUQV·�ZRUN�
1. The internship, even
though it includes
actual operation of
the facilities of the
employer, is similar
to training which
would be given
in an educational
environment;
2. The internship
experience is for the
EHQHÀW�RI�WKH�LQWHUQ�
3. The intern does not
displace regular
employees, but works
under close supervision
of existing staff;
4. The employer that
provides the training
derives no immediate
advantage from the
activities of the intern;
and on occasion its
operations may actually
be impeded;
5. The intern is not
necessarily entitled to a
job at the conclusion of
the internship; and
6. The employer and the
intern understand that
the intern is not entitled
to wages for the time
spent in the internship.
Unpaid Internships: Valuable Work Experience or Illegal Labor?
I think that we have all, as Bennington
students, experienced internships
where we felt as if we were performing
productive tasks, and, in fact, felt as if
that were the point of the internship to
begin with. I myself have certainly done
work that would otherwise have been done
by a paid employee. In the publishing
industry especially, and I imagine in
media in general and practically any other
professional industry in which you need a
UHVXPp�ZRYHQ�RXW�RI�$ULDQQD�+XIÀQJWRQ·V�hair and threads from a Harvard sweatshirt
MXVW� WR� JHW� SDVW� WKH� JURXQG� ÁRRU� OREE\��interns have become so reliable a resource
that they have become essential to
RSHUDWLRQV���,QWHUQV�DUH�VRPHWLPHV�WKH�ÀUVW�SHRSOH�\RX�HQFRXQWHU�LQ�DQ�RIÀFH��DQG�WKH�ÀUVW� OLQH� RI� GHIHQVH� EHWZHHQ� WKH� RXWVLGH�world and the company. For example,
if you send an unsolicited manuscript
to a major New York City publishing
FRPSDQ\�� ,� FDQ� DVVXUH� \RX� WKDW� WKH� ÀUVW�and—unless you’ve submitted a work of
paradigm-shattering genius, which it won’t
be—the last person to read it will be an
intern. I’ve been that intern twice already
and I probably will be again, because, just
like rules 1-4 and 6, rule 5 is somewhere
between a lie and a barely but mutually
maintained illusion.
If internships were really a form
of educational training, in which the
employer was inconvenienced by the
arrangement and the intern was to in no
way imagine that their time with that
employer could put them in line for a job
LI� QRW� DW� WKDW� VSHFLÀF� ZRUNSODFH�� WKHQ� DW�one similar to it in the future, what could
that possibly look like? What would the
employer’s motivation in doing it be, if
it actually impeded the function of their
business to teach some shitty kid how to do
a press release? What would the intern’s
motivation be, if they had no responsibility
and no reasonable hope for a reference to
add to their resumé (if you aren’t actually
doing productive work, after all, what is
your supervisor going to be able to tell
your prospective employer about your
performance? “He sure seemed to learn a
lot”?)? The whole thing is contradictory,
exploitative, necessary, and uncomfortable,
DQG�LW�XOWLPDWHO\�ZRUNV�DV�D�VRUW�RI�ÀOWUDWLRQ�process for highly competitive industries,
through which, out of thousands of bright-
eyed little solipsists, only a handful of
desirable individuals are selected to be
given compensation proportional to the
work that they perform.
The legislation that surrounds the unpaid
internship describes a work arrangement
that, at least in the overwhelming majority of
cases, does not exist. With interns making
up a growing percentage of professional
workplaces, and with class action lawsuits
like that of Lucy Bickerton v. Charlie Rose
Inc. making headlines, it would seem
like the time for a reassessment of the
regulations governing unpaid internships
is quickly approaching. I have had two
great internships (The Paris Review is like
some kind of escapist lit major fantasy
and Columbia University Press is the only
place that seemed to truly take the concept
of “educational training” seriously, and
they reimburse you for travel, and they
give you tons of books!), one all-right
one, and one that was absolutely terrifying
(mostly because I was 18 and working for
a diplomatic think-tank and still afraid of
talking to people on the phone). I gained
a lot from all of them, in terms of personal
and professional growth. But, at least
according to the United States Department
of Labor, not a single one of them was
totally legal.
The one thing I’m certain of is this: these
rules are outdated. Someone at the USDL
should really get their intern to draft up
some new ones.
;R�>FF:�=>E�O:EE>��*,
8 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1V O I C E S
This issue I ’ m
taking a break from anything substantive,
>>SkinnyThe new Pope is from Ar-gentinaHe’s sexier than the shitty old Austrian one, but just as likely to have been in-volved in secret atrocities.
Grady O’Neill is !redBrady Williams is also !red
Seinfeld is the new GirlsGame of Thrones is the new Seinfeld
Spring Break!!!! Woo!!!!Our self esteem is low enough already.
When will the Dairy Bar open?When will it goddamn open???
What kind of service pro-vider does Andrew Wu have?Sprint
Presidential Search Pro-cess Will Now Be Follow-ing the “Papal Method”Look out for white smoke coming out of the Lens
St. Kilpat’s is on SaturdayIt’s a cleansing purge
Happy Ides of March!Toga party!
Mike GoldinShifting Paradigms in 2013
Soup of the DayNew England Clam Chow-der
Hot Dish of the DayNoah Coburn
Screens are still bullshitStill can’t puke out the win-dow
BFP supports Anne Ha-thawayYou’re all just jealous
New website layout!benningtonfreepress.org it’s daisy fresh check it
4 AM Layout!It’s just like old times again!
Panini press brokenAnd they let some of you drive cars?
BY KATIE FOSTER �*. When Brittany came back from New Zealand, she was adamant about her thoughts on Girls: “I don’t want to watch it. It sounds stupid. Isn’t it like Skins?” I told her to trust me, and after ten minutes of watching Hannah frown and furrow KHU� H\HEURZV� RYHU� QHZIRXQG� ÀQDQFLDO�independence, Brittany had changed her mind. “Okay. This is better than I thought it was going to be.” “You’ll like it,” I said, “in this one they do opium.” Girls is an enigma, wrapped in a slightly abusive love/hate relationship that would actually be really simple if the two involved parties just admitted what they were feeling and stopped being so VHOÀVK�� $QG� E\� WKH� WZR� LQYROYHG�parties, I mean Lena Dunham and myself. For her part, Lena Dunham is undoubtedly writing her fantasy – a world in which liberal arts school graduates can afford rent on a barista’s salary, dashing blond men with beautiful brownstone homes willingly take in strangers as sexual playthings—and everyone is gorgeous in their own quirky way. While Dunham’s characters do have their issues (shotgun wedding turned bitter marriage, a little too much coke, adulterous tendencies abound), these struggles are the kind of First World problems that allow the show to keep a quick, impermanent pace. These struggles DUH� VKDOORZ�� $QG� WKH\� DUH� LVVXHV�Dunham’s audience recognizes from personal experience, whether they would like to admit it or not. It is here that fantasy becomes uncomfortable reality: Dunham lulls her viewers into a false sense of security by way of funky rompers and hip cocktail parties before socking them in the gut with the realization that this is a show about our lives. I started watching Girls during 7KDQNVJLYLQJ� EUHDN��$IWHU� D� ZHHNHQG� RI�binge-watching, I returned to Bennington with a strange feeling of recognition. Marni’s open-palmed gestures of exasperation? I frequently saw that same PRWLRQ�LQ�D�ÁXVWHUHG�FODVVPDWH��6KRVKDQQD�as a whole is a reincarnation of one of my best friends, and that face Hannah makes when she’s worried? Yeah, I know someone who makes that exact big-eyed pout. You probably do, too. Friends started telling me things like, “You’re sort of like Hannah, but minus the
All I Really Want is Girls... The HBO Show shitty parts.” Like, multiple friends. More WKDQ�RQFH��$QG�,�VRUW�RI�DJUHHG�ZLWK�WKHP��“Well, I like to think my boobs are a bit bigger than hers, and I’m not that socially inept, but thanks.” It was starting to feel like I was a part of something. With the start of the second season, Girls became a ritual in my life. Being in New York for Field Work Term only heightened my sense of recognition. Every Sunday my roommates and I would gather around a laptop, with the occasional interruption
from our slow Wi-Fi, to watch the week’s worth of antics unfold. We all caught references to the physical space of the city: Jessa’s ex-husband on the phone giving GLUHFWLRQV� WR� 'HNDOE� $YHQXH�� 6KRVKDQQD�and Ray waiting on the benches at the Bedford stop in Williamsburg, and that club Hannah and Elijah go to when they’re tweaking out? I walked by it once on a Wednesday afternoon and the bass was already rattling the sidewalk – a great place to score a neon mesh shirt by my best estimates.
Being back at Bennington has not diminished my feeling of recognition – if anything, it has increased. Once again surrounded by the veritable cast of characters that make up life beneath the Bennington Bubble, I began to see that even here things fall into place. Silent treatment from angry/bitter/jealous former friends/lovers? Sure. Shady “exchanges” with the downstairs neighbor? Check. Disturbing installation art and the creeping sensation of imminent insanity followed
by really weird sex? You bet. I have accepted that my projection onto the world of Girls is the reason I love the VKRZ�� $QG� ,·YH� DOVR� DFFHSWHG� WKDW� /HQD�Dunham’s comments on our generation ²� RQ� RXU� VHOÀVKQHVV�� RXU� LJQRUDQFH�� RXU�stubbornness – are all perfectly true. Though I may never live in Dunham’s exact fantasy, the parallels are undeniable. Girls holds up a mirror to us, and only to XV��$QG�EHFDXVH�ZH�DUH�VR�WHUULEO\�YDLQ��ZH�agree to wonder back after ourselves.
9 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1V O I C E S
THE BFP STAFF
EDITORS IN CHIEFK:<A>E�C:<DLHG��*-
MANAGING EDITOR
FBD>�@HE=BG��*-
NEWS EDITORDKBLM:�MAHKI��*.
VOICES EDITOR<>E>G>�;:KK>K:��*.
FEATURES EDITOR>FF:�=>E�O:EE>��*,
ARTS EDITOR?HK>LM�INKG>EE��*,
PRODUCTION MANAGERETHAN CLARK-MOSCHELLA
�*-
COPY EDITORDBEEB:G�P:ELA��*-
My Government Cut a Trillion in Spending and
On March 1, 2013, over a trillion dollars of spending cuts went into effect. These cuts are known as the sequester, they will cut our budget for the next ten years, and they exist because Democrats and Republicans can’t agree on anything. As a result, get ready to see an even cut to (pretty much) every single “program, project, and activity” currently funded by the federal government. Republicans and Democrats in Congress couldn’t agree on any compromise to avoid WKHVH�EHKHPRWK�FXWV��6R��ZH�ÀQG�RXUVHOYHV�DW�DQ�LPSDVVH��DOWKRXJK�,�ÀJXUH�ZH·YH�DOO�gotten used to that as the status quo since 3UHVLGHQW�2EDPD�WRRN�RIÀFH�LQ�������7ZR�weeks ago, that impasse came to a head as we played chicken with a trillion dollar train. And we blinked. We got hit. Congress FRXOGQ·W�ÀJXUH�RXW�KRZ�WR�PRYH�XV�RXW�RI�the way, and now we’re scattered all over the tracks, gruesome, broken. OK, I guess it’s not quite that bad. The &RQJUHVVLRQDO�%XGJHW�2IÀFH�SUHGLFWV�WKDW�the sequester will knock around 0.8% off of our GDP growth for the year. That doesn’t ÁDWWHQ�XV�RQ�WKH�WUDLQ�WUDFNV��EXW�LW�FHUWDLQO\�twists our ankle. Is less growth what our
economy needs right now? No matter whom you blame, our federal government has demonstrated that when it comes to compromise in order to avoid economic calamity, we shouldn’t hope for much. It disturbs me that our public servants couldn’t put aside their political differences and agree on a way to avoid these unnecessary cuts. Let’s look at the proposals to avoid the sequester cuts from both sides of the aisle. Democrats in both the House and Senate have proposed mixes of spending cuts and revenue increases, both from higher taxes on our highest earners and from closing tax loopholes. Republicans have proposed replacing the defense cuts with increased domestic spending cuts, and oppose tax increases. Of course, these positions are irreconcilable. So here we are. I wish that congressional Republicans would agree to increased revenue along with spending cuts for numerous reasons. First off, because of political fairness, and in order to achieve a “balanced” approach to budget reduction, I think that Republicans should agree to revenue increases that come closer to matching the cuts agreed to by Democrats and Pres. Obama. Over the last few years, we have
cut almost three times as much as we have collected through tax increases and loophole closures. Also, as a jab to Reaganauts, I’d like to point out that government spending rose OHVV�GXULQJ�3UHV��2EDPD·V�ÀUVW�WHUP�WKDQ�LW�had during either Pres. Reagan’s or Pres. *��:��%XVK·V�ÀUVW�WHUP��,�GRQ·W�UHPHPEHU�hearing Republican demands for austerity when Pres. G.W.B. was putting tax cuts and two huge wars on our credit card. Before I complain about hypocrisy, let me bring up my second point—a moral one. Are we really going to not raise taxes on people who are earning millions of dollars a year in order to cut spending on programs that help Americans who are suffering? Can we justify continuing policies that help those who can help themselves, and shun those who are in need (often through no fault of their own)? When 25% of children in the richest country in the world live in hunger or poverty, something is wrong with business as usual. But let’s talk about hypocrisy, and Pres. Obama’s so-called “spending problem,” DV� WROG�E\�:DVKLQJWRQ·V�VR�FDOOHG�´GHÀFLW�hawks.” If Washington really has a spending problem, perhaps we should blame Pres. G.W.B. more than we blame Pres. Obama. Perhaps we should blame
the unpaid-for tax cuts, or the unpaid-for war in Afghanistan, or the unpaid-for war in Iraq. Anyone calling for massive cuts to programs helping poor and middle-income Americans ought to take a look at their voting record to make sure they haven’t supported any wasteful spending during the last administration. Any present-day ´GHÀFLW�KDZNVµ�ZKR�YRWHG�IRU�DQ\�RI�WKRVH�wasteful Bush-era initiatives ought to be exposed as the hypocrites that they are. I believe that we could have and should have avoided the sequester, and we should have done so by combining spending cuts with revenue increases, either through raising taxes on high-income earners or through closing tax loopholes (like the ones that reward companies for outsourcing jobs). Are there examples RI� ZDVWH� DQG� LQHIÀFLHQF\� LQ� RXU� IHGHUDO�budget? Absolutely, and they should be addressed. But we should also address the ZDVWH��LQHIÀFLHQF\�DQG�LQMXVWLFH�RI�RXU�WD[�code, and make things a little fairer in the United States of America.
All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt
;R�I>M>�?>R��*,
PHOTO CREDIT: CLEVELAND.COM
After eight decades of futility, our EHORYHG�%HQQLQJWRQLDQV�KDYH�ÀQDOO\�PDGH�it to the NCAA Tournament. True, we’re a sixteen seed, but I like our chances. Is the Big Ten really that good? No, it is not, and neither is Indiana. In our ÀUVW�URXQG�JDPH�,�SUHGLFW�$QGUHZ�:X�ZLOO�contain Victor Oladipo in the paint and our beloved Benningtonians will win by at least sixty. After we roll through the Hoosiers we will face the winner of Duke versus Georgetown. Both of these teams - contrary to popular opinion - are also quite terrible. If we line-up against Georgetown, Coach Liz Coleman will probably have Liam Dailey defend star forward Otto Porter, Jr. Without question, Dailey will be able to hold Porter, Jr. to under ten points and our beloved Benningtonians will win by thirty.If we play Duke, our beloved Benningtonians will probably win by one-hundred. Unfortunately, no matter who we play, the third round game will be tricky for our beloved Benningtonians because it is scheduled to be played the same day DV� WKH� VHDVRQ�ÀQDOH�RI�GIRLS. Even with a depleted roster, however, I fully expect our beloved Benningtonians - led by seasoned veteran Dominic Eisenschmidt - to annihilate our opponent (most likely .DQVDV��E\�IRUW\�ÀYH� And so we will now be in the Elite Eight. There we could face a number of teams - Wisconsin, Michigan State, Syracuse - but my gut tells me that our beloved Benningtonians will play Ohio State. This game will be labeled by ESPN as the “Battle for the Soul of Tenara Calem” and ZLOO� EHFRPH� WKH� ÀUVW� FROOHJH� EDVNHWEDOO�game ever covered by The Paris Review. Still, our beloved Benningtonians will win by ten and advance to the Final Four.
Our fellow Final Four teams will in all likelihood be LeBron James, the ���������� &KLFDJR� %XOOV�� DQG� 0DUOERUR�College. Since Marlboro is on our side of the bracket, our beloved Benningtonians will play those motherfucking dumb hippy EDVWDUGV�ÀUVW��7KH�JDPH�ZLOO�QRW�EH�JRRG� In the Championship Game I think we
will then play the upstart LeBron James. Unaccustomed to the big stage, James will ÁRXQGHU� LQ� WKH� ÀUVW� KDOI� DQG� KDYH� D� KDUG�time guarding our beloved Benningtonians’ hot perimeter shooting. In the second half though, he will have an epiphany of sorts and come to the realization that he is actually a monster in a basketball player
suit. The conclusion, I guess, is don’t be all that surprised if our beloved Benningtonians lose to LeBron James in the NCAA Tournament.
March Madness: Benningtonians at the Championship
BY ERIC MOSHER �*,
10 The BenningTon Free Press / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1A R T S
BY FOREST PURNELL �*,
For many Bennington students,
the term “hackerspace” might bring to
mind a wire-festooned basement where
cyberattacks are concocted in front of
glowing screens. “It’s interesting that
so many people here don’t know what
a hackerspace is or haven’t heard of that
movement,” says Ben Broderick Phillips
’13, who helped initiate Bennington’s
ÀUVW� KDFNHUVSDFH� DV� WKH� FXOPLQDWLRQ� RI�his senior work in education. Taking
advantage of this year’s remodeling efforts
in Dickinson science building, Broderick
Phillips, with support of computer science
faculty Andrew Cenceni, forwarded a
plan to set aside a portion of the former
computer center to become a student-run
hackerspace.
Hackerspaces, in reality, resemble
food co-ops more than war rooms. They
come out of a post-1960s enthusiasm
for alternative social and economic
arrangements, an attitude that led to
everything from widespread organic
farming to geodesic domes. “Proto-
hackerspaces” might include HAM
radio groups or the infamous Homebrew
Computer Club, which touched all areas
of early Silicon Valley culture in the mid-
1970s. Today, these kinds of DIY spaces
are more organized, more widespread,
more diverse and more connected. They
remain devoted to opening access and
sharing resources related to technology.
Hackerspaces.org—a wiki-based directory
of over 1,106 hackerspaces opened around
WKH� ZRUOG� VLQFH� ����³GHÀQHV� WKHP� DV�“community-operated physical places,
where people can meet and work on their
projects.”
Broderick Phillips says, “more people
should know about this kind of model
because in a lot of ways it is similar to
our practices here at Bennington. VAPA is
open 24/7. Everyone has shared resources;
it’s a common space. Everyone is working
on interdisciplinary projects that feed
off of each other—and the same kind of
thing happens in a hackerspace: less of
an art focus, more of a technology focus
but, I think it [will be] a really great way
to... reinvigorate our computer science
community here, rather than taking a more
strictly academic path.”
Bennington College’s hackerspace,
dubbed the CATlab (Computers and
Technology Lab), will include a workspace
ÀOOLQJ�XS�D�TXDUWHU�RI�WKH�IRUPHU�'LFNLQVRQ�Computer Center, located in Room 235. The
rest of the area will be used as a computer
science classroom during weekdays,
with 24 new Lenovo PCs installed with
Windows and Ubuntu GNU/Linux.
Broderick Phillips hopes that, outside of
classes, the entire room will be free to
use as a 24/7 open-access hackerspace.
Similar to existing technology resources
in VAPA, the CATlab will also maintain a
supply of low-tech and high-tech materials
to hack around with. Additionally, an
associated group of “CATlovers” will
KRVW� IUHTXHQW�PDNLQJ� HYHQWV��2WKHU� LGHDV�under consideration include a “digital
free pile”—a server which would allow
students to curate and share work. The
CATlab has also been in communication
with the Bennington Sustainable Food
Project’s burgeoning food cooperative
about coffee supplies.
The CATlab is not only Bennington
&ROOHJH·V� ÀUVW� KDFNHUVSDFH�� EXW� DOVR�� LI�LW� FDQ� UHDOL]H� LWV� KRSHV�� RQH� RI� WKH� ÀUVW�student-maintained spaces on campus
after the student farm and sacred space. So
far one event—a cardboard construction
workshop—has been held in the CATlab
and many more are scheduled, including
an animated GIF-making workshop this
Saturday, March 16th. The space also has
its own wiki—separate from the normal
Bennington College wiki—which lists
supplies, weekly events, and also accepts
suggestions for projects and workshops.
How did such a student-run space
begin? How was it possible to pursue this
development as senior work? Broderick
Phillips explains it was a convergence of
his own interests in building an informal
educational space, and computer science
faculty Andrew Cenceni’s idea to set aside
part of the newly-remodeled Room 235 in
Dickinson for something more than just a
classroom.
´,�ZDV�ZRUNLQJ�ZLWK�$QGUHZ�RYHU�ÀHOG�work term doing software development,
but I study education here and I knew that I
wanted my senior work to involve creating
some kind of informal learning space,
which is basically a space that is outside
of formal, institutional, traditional learning
Student-Run Hackerspace Opens in Dickinson– 24/7 Space to Encourage Impromptu Arts-Tech Community on Campus
structures like classes... spaces where
people can learn the same sort of thing but
just in a different way.”
“So back in the fall I was thinking
where can I create a space, how can I get
the support for it, how can I get people
interested in it. And then over the winter
I realized that Andrew’s trying to get this
hackerspace started up, I’m really interested
in creating a space... We had been spending
a lot of time together talking about what
plans he had and what plans I had and so,
basically while I was actively thinking well
ZKHUH�,�DP�,�JRLQJ�WR�ÀQG�WKH�VXSSRUW����,�realized well, he has this need and I have
this need to have a space to create and start.
So I said, well, let’s collaborate... Now this
is basically what I’m focusing my senior
work on.”
For now, CATlab is different from
most hackerspaces in the sense that its
main intended audience is the campus
community, rather than the entire public.
Broderick Phillips indicates there may be
possibilities of reaching out more in the
future to make CATlab a tech resource
and hub for different interested parties in
town. At this point, however, the hope is
Bennington students will participate to
help build and make the hackerspace a
proven place—somewhere people want to
hang out, think and develop work in a new
kind of environment that is part studio, part
laboratory, part common room.
The front page of CATlab’s wiki says it
“aims to be a community space for all sorts
of technology related projects, musings,
and brouhahas. Call us a hackerspace if
you will. We welcome interdisciplinary
company, obsessive tinkering, and naive
curiosity.” For a space in its beginning
stages, these words encapsulate the kind
of experiment that CATlab is—fun,
ambitious, and never-ending.
Preview: Around the World in 80 Days
The paint was still drying on the set for
Around the World in 80 Days when the
Bennington Free Press sat in on an early
preview of the production being put on by
2OGFDVWOH�7KHDWHU�&RPSDQ\� LQ�GRZQWRZQ�Bennington- but with only a week to go
before opening the show, the set isn’t their
only work in progress. The Company is
still settling in to its new, permanent home
at 331 Main Street; though the 134 seat
theater was completed last year after several
months of renovation, work remains to be
done in the rest of the structure- namely
in the theater’s lobby, from which the
sounds of hammers and power tools still
reverberate through the building.
High Energy Theater
� � � � 2OGFDVWOH� KDV� KDG� DQ� H[WUDRUGLQDULO\�busy year, but the pacing of their upcoming
production may outdo it- the show opens
at 100 miles per hour and decelerates to
perhaps 80 in its most tender moments.
2OGFDVWOH·V�SURGXFLQJ�DUWLVWLF�GLUHFWRU��DQG�founding member) Eric Peterson told us
the high-energy performance is itself a nod
to the time in which the source material
was written. “In a sense this show is
largely about movement and speed. It was
a fascinating time- because of the Suez
Canal and the Transcontinental Railroad
in the United States, for instance, you
could go around the world in something
approaching 80 days.” Jules Verne, a
IRXQGLQJ� IDWKHU� RI� VFLHQFH� ÀFWLRQ� DQG�
author of the novel on which the production
is based, was naturally fascinated by that
aspect of his moment in history.
The cast is comprised of Gil Brady, Sarah
Corey, Peter Langstaff, Richard Howe and
Patrick Shea, who bring over 30 separate
characters to life at a bracing clip between
WKH�ÀYH�RI�WKHP��2OGFDVWOH�KDV�SURGXFHG�D�number of shows with similarly minuscule
casts over the years, and Peterson sees it
as a challenge with appealing theatricality.
´,W·V� VRPHWKLQJ� WKHDWHU� FDQ� GR� WKDW� ÀOP�DQG�WHOHYLVLRQ�FDQ·W��,I�ÀOP�RU�79�GR�WKDW�then it’s just all about makeup- here it’s all
about acting. They change a hat and they
have to be a different person.”
� � � � *LO� %UDG\� LV� UHWXUQLQJ� WR� 2OGFDVWOH·V�stage as Phileas Fogg after a successful
appearance in the Company’s last
production- Northern Boulevard- but his
won’t be the only familiar face in the cast.
0DQ\�RI�2OGFDVWOH·V�UHJXODU�DFWRUV�SHUIRUP�more than one role while off-stage as well;
aside from playing 10 different characters
(literally) in 80 Days, Richard Howe is an
DVVRFLDWH� DUWLVWLF� GLUHFWRU� ZLWK� 2OGFDVWOH�and co-designed the set; he’s been with the
Company since 1975. “That’s really the
only way you can run a regional theater
now- with people wearing lots of hats,”
Peterson said, “There’s just never enough
money to pay as many people as you need.
It’s exhausting, but it’s also more exciting
to have as many people
;R�FBD>�@HE=BG��*-
(continued on page 12)
guest appearances (featuring Brooke
Allen, Sherry Kramer, Sam Mayer, Jiray
Avedisian, and Scott Milliman), and the
chance to see our fellow professors and
students do things like talk to trees, sing
DERXW�D�IDUP��RU�SOD\�WKH�SDQ�Á�XWH�Besides these clever jabs, Hinterlandz
has also managed to point out the inherent
apathy that Bennington has often been
DFFXVHG� RI�� � ;VXKPLUUH� DQG� -RKQ� DUH� WKH�RQO\�RQHV�WKDW�DWWHQG�WKH�À�OP�GHSDUWPHQW·V�VFUHHQLQJV��DQG�RQO\�EHFDXVH�LW·V�UHTXLUHG�RI�WKHP�DV�WKH�UHSV��)HUQ�FDQ·W�VWXG\�ZKDW�VKH�ZDQWV�EHFDXVH� WKHUH·V�QR�JUHHQKRXVH��and Darryl is continuously put off by the
FRQWUDULDQ�DWWLWXGH�RI�KLV�FODVVPDWHV���´'LG�you see the way Professor McClintock just
UROOHG�RYHU�DQG�WRRN�LW�WRGD\"µ�KH�VD\V���,W�is these sentiments that lead the foursome
WR� FRQIURQW� WKHLU� VFKRRO���DQG� WKHPVHOYHV���This, paired with other bizarre one-liners,
JLYHV�WKH�VKRZ�D�GHÀ�QLWH����5RFN�IHHO�Though the show is certainly weird, the
FUHDWRUV�ZRXOG�EH�TXLFN�WR�VD\�WKDW�%URRN�H�Allen, Campus Safety Mike, Marguerite
Feitlowitz, and yes, even Annabel all
OLNH� LW�� � ,I� WKDW·V� QRW� D� JRRG� HQRXJK�UHFRPPHQGDWLRQ�� QRWKLQJ� LV�� � ,Q� WKH� HQG��though Hinterlandz certainly makes some
pointed jabs at liberal arts education and
KLSVWHU� FXOWXUH�� WKHUH·V� DQRWKHU� PHVVDJH�WRR�� � ,W� DFWXDOO\� UHDGV� DV�PRUH� RI� DQ� RGH�to Bennington, where people would
have the patience and sense of humor to
OHJLWLPDWHO\� SXOO� RII� VRPHWKLQJ� OLNH� WKLV���The writers have all fondly parodied the
stereotype they as Bennington students
have had to endure, and in the end, all the
characters, and the writers, seem to settle
back and dutifully accept the absurdity of
WKHLU�XQLTXH�VFKRRO�
11 THE BENNINGTON FREE PRESS / March 15th, 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1A R T S
� � � � � � �$�VROR� LQ�0DUWKD�+LOO��D�GDQFH�À�OP�GXHW³WKHQ��D�IXOO\�SURGXFHG�TXDUWHW��RYHU�WKH� SDVW� WZR� DQG� KDOI� \HDUV� ,·YH�ZDWFKHG�the work of friend and fellow dancer,
(PPD�9LOODYHFFKLD��GHYHORS��������´2QH�RI�WKH�WKLQJV�,·P�UHDOO\�LQWHUHVWHG�LQ� LV«À�JXULQJ� RXW� KRZ� WR� FUHDWH� ZRUOGV�RQVWDJH� WKDW� DUH� YHU\� GHÀ�QHG�µ� (PPD�VDLG� DERXW� KHU� ZRUN�� ´���ERWK� IRU� WKH�audience and for the dancers So that we
as an audience can identify with or at least
understand what kind of world it is and
ZKDW�KDSSHQV�LQ�LW�DQG�ZK\�µ����������� As she made clear, this idea of worlds
Building Worlds For Film
ties in to her fascination with translation as
ZHOO��)RU�(PPD��́ WKH�FRQFHSW�RI�WUDQVODWLRQ�helps me think about collaboration with
lighting designers and costume designers
DQG�VHW�GHVLJQHUV�DQG�FKRUHRJUDSKHUV�µ�,Q�KHU� FKRUHRJUDSK\� ZRUN�� ´(DFK� GHVLJQHU�has their own medium through which they
ZLOO�KHOS�FUHDWH�WKLV�ZRUOG��:H�KDYH�WR�DOO�WDON� WRJHWKHU�� À�JXUH� RXW�ZKDW� WKH� FRUH� RI�the piece is, and then each one of us has to
WUDQVODWH�WKDW�LQWR�RXU�PHGLXP�µ�������7KLV�SDVW�ZHHN��,�KDG�WKH�FKDQFH�WR�WDON�WR�(PPD�DERXW�KHU�FXUUHQW�ZRUN��D�GDQFH�À�OP�SURMHFW�WR�EH�IHDWXUHG�LQ�D�À�OP�IHVWLYDO�
in Barcelona, Spain and how it ties in to
KHU�DHVWKHWLF�DV�D�FKRUHRJUDSKHU� The opportunity began with her
À�HOGZRUN� WHUP� VRSKRPRUH� \HDU�� ZKHUH�VKH�ZRUNHG�IRU�D�GDQFH�À�OP�IHVWLYDO�LQ�6DQ�)UDQFLVFR��7KH�ZRUN�VKH�GLG�WKHUH�VSDUNHG�her interest further in dancing outside the
VWXGLR� DQG� WKH� VWDJH�� ´DFWLYDWLQJ� VRFLDO�RU� SXEOLF� VSDFHV� E\� GDQFLQJ� LQ� WKHP���EULQJLQJ�SHRSOHV�DWWHQWLRQ�WR�WKHP�µ Her experience in San Francisco then
began a casual conversation about dance
DQG�À�OPPDNLQJ�ZLWK�D�IDPLO\�IULHQG��ZKR�DOVR�KDSSHQHG�WR�EH�WKH�GLUHFWRU�RI�WKH�À�OP�IHVWLYDO� &XUW� )LFFLRQV�� 7KH� GLUHFWRU� KDG�KHDUG� DERXW� (PPD·V� EXUJHRQLQJ� LQWHUHVW�LQ� GDQFH� À�OP� DQG� WRVVHG� DURXQG� WKH� LGHD�of making dance the theme of her festival
IRU� WKDW� \HDU�� 7R� HYHQ� (PPD·V� VXUSULVH��WKLV� WXUQHG� LQWR� D� IXOO�Á�HGJHG� GDQFH�SURMHFW�� 6LQFH� &XUW� )LFFLRQV� FROODERUDWHV�ZLWK� DQRWKHU� À�OP� IHVWLYDO� �3UHPL� 6ROp�Tura) that supports creating documentaries
on neurodegenerative diseases like
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DERXW�$O]KHLPHU·V��EXW�GHÀ�QLWHO\�UHODWHG�WR�this illness because it will be shown along
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EH�À�OPHG�LQ�D�¶WKHDWULFDO�VSDFH�·�7R�PDNH�WKH�À�OPV��(PPD�FKRVH�WR�FROODERUDWH�ZLWK�six Bennington students studying dance
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Baharloo, Chloe Engel, Sean-Patrick
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FRPSRVLWLRQ�H[HUFLVH�µ� � 6KH·V� H[FLWHG� WR� VKRZ� WKH� %HQQLQJWRQ�FRPPXQLW\�DQG�KRSHV��́ WR�FUHDWH�DZDUHQHVV�about this illness…[and] to create a
connection between my two homes which
DUH�%HQQLQJWRQ�DQG�%DUFHORQD�µ�
Hinterlandz opens up with beautiful
VKRWV� RI� %HQQLQJWRQ·V� FRXQWU\VLGH� RQ� D�sunny day, only to abruptly cut to gray
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girls in scarves and long skirts come over
to give him his orientation packet, made
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six months at all, you may have noticed
the Hinterlandz page promoting the series
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YLGHRV� ZDV�$QGUHZ� 3OLPSWRQ·V� UHQGLWLRQ�RI� ´6FKRRO� 6SLULWµ� E\� .DQ\H�:HVW�� � 7KH�VKRZ·V�JHQHVLV�JRHV�EDFN�WR�.LOOLDQ�:DOVK�and Ben Davidson, who wanted to produce
a more substantial video project while they
Welcome to Brigadoon (Hinterlandz)
ZHUH�VWLOO�DW�%HQQLQJWRQ���(YHQWXDOO\��WKH\�landed on a show about a college, and the
SURMHFW�TXLFNO\�WXUQHG�LQWR�D�WXWRULDO���,W�ZDV�:DOVK�ZKR�WKRXJKW�WR�DGG�$OH[�+RYHW�RQWR�the project, and Hovet who then pulled in
%HQ� 5HGPRQG�� � 7KH� IRXU� EHJDQ� ZULWLQJ�LQ� WKH� VSULQJ�RI� ������ DQG� WKH� VHULHV�ZDV�À�QLVKHG�RYHU�)LHOG�:RUN�7HUP�IRU�+RYHW·V�LQGHSHQGHQW�VWXG\�
Hinterlandz is made up of four twenty-
minute long episodes and follows Darryl
(Trevor Stannus), a young man who, like
most of us at liberal arts colleges, is just
WU\LQJ� WR� )LJXUH� ,W� 2XW�� � ,Q� KLV� TXHVW� WR�H[SORUH� %ULJDGRRQ�� KH� PHHWV� ;VXKPLUUH�(pronounced Summer, played by Julia
0RXQVH\��� D� MXQLRU� À�OP� VWXGHQW�� )HUQ�� D�IHOORZ� IUHVKPDQ� �&ODUD� 5RWWHU�/DLWPDQ���DQG�;VXKPLUUH·V�À�OP�FR�UHS��-RKQ�$XVWHQ��5RU\�&XOOHQ���DQ�REQR[LRXVO\�LPSDVVLRQHG�PDOH� IHPLQLVW�� � 7KH� IRXU� IRUP� D� IDPLOLDU�blend of TV archetypes, not dissimilar to
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might translate to anyone unfamiliar with
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$,0� SURFHVV� �$FDGHPLF� ,QYHVWLJDWLRQ�RI� 0\VWHU\��� � $IWHU� D� PHHWLQJ� ZLWK� KLV�torturous advisor, Darryl is assigned the
$,0�RI���WK�FHQWXU\�DQWL�IHPLQLVW�WKHDWHU��even though he adamantly repeats that
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Episode 1John Austen
Video Diary
;R�D>GG>MA�HE@NBG��*-
Scan the below QR codes to view
Hinterlandz episodes.
;R�M>G:K:�<:E>F��*.
12 THE BENNINGTON FREE PRESS / March 15th 2013 > Vol. 19 No. 1A R T S
Arts Calendar
BY LILY BROWN AND GREG NOËL �*.
OMG BE OVER: ‘No Strings Attached’
Some of you may remember our
review of the movie Goats (2011) in which
we noted that the best performances were
JLYHQ�E\�WKH�DFWXDO�JRDWV�LQ�WKH�À�OP��:HOO��RQ�D�VLPLODU�QRWH��No Strings Attached (Ivan
5HLWPDQ�� ������ VWDUULQJ� 1DWDOLH� 3RUWPDQ�and Ashton Kutcher had a breakout star:
)UHFNOHV�� WKH� 3RPHUDQLDQ�� )RU� KLV� IHZ�VKRUW�PRPHQWV�RQ�WKH�VFUHHQ��KH�FDSWLYDWHG�our sights and our hearts—something that
1DW�DQG�$VK�ZHUH�XQDEOH�WR�GR�IRU�HYHQ�D�PRPHQW��,QVWHDG�RI�OLVWHQLQJ�WR�WKH�FKXQN\�and tiresome dialogue between Ashton and
KLV�/LO·�:D\QH�REVHVVHG� IDWKHU��*UHJ� DQG�I found ourselves watching Freckles who
ZDV� \DZQLQJ� LQ� WKH� FRUQHU� OLNH� D� FKDPS��)OXII\�DQG�FRPIRUWLQJ��)UHFNOHV�WLFNOHG�RXU�VRXOV�LQ�DOO�WKH�ULJKW�SODFHV��:H�KDYH�D�WDE�RSHQ�RQ�3HW)LQGHU��
+HUH·V�WKH�GHDO��7KLV�PRYLH�LV�MXVW�WKH�worst and it proves once again that Ashton
Kutcher’s career should have ended with
7KDW� ��·V� 6KRZ�� 6DGO\�� LW� GLGQ·W�� $QG�now we have this: a mediocre product
GHVSLWH� WKH� EXGJHW� DQG� WKH� QDPHV�� 7KH�biggest offender in that department is the
creepy bearded doctor (who really has no
UHOHYDQFH�LQ�WKH�VWRU\�RYHUDOO���,W�RQO\�JHWV�ZRUVH�ZKHQ�\RX�À�QG�RXW�WKDW�KH�QRQH�RWKHU�
WKDQ� :HVOH\� IURP� The Princess Bride. $QG� MXVW� OLNH� WKDW�\RXU� FKLOGKRRG�GUHDPV�DUH� VKDWWHUHG� DQG� VKLW� XSRQ��7KH� EHDUG� LV�VHULRXVO\«� /LNH�� ZH� FDQ·W� HYHQ� KDQGOH�KRZ�KRUULEOH��
:H�DUHQ·W� VXUH�ZKHWKHU� LW·V�ZRUWK� LW�WR�GLVFXVV�WKH�SORW�RU�QRW��EHFDXVH�EHVLGHV�WKH� ZKROH� KDYLQJ� FDVXDO� VH[� WKLQJ�� WKHUH�LVQ·W�PXFK�JRLQJ�RQ��6RPHWKLQJ�WKDW�UHDOO\�FRQIXVHG�XV�LV�WKH�WLPHOLQH�RI�WKH�VR�FDOOHG�ORQJ�WHUP�IULHQGVKLS��0HHWLQJ�IRU�WKH�À�UVW�WLPH� DW� VXPPHU� FDPS� �DW� DJH� ����� LW�ZDV�our understanding that this would lead to
RQH� RI� WKRVH� IULHQGVKLSV�� +RZHYHU�� WKDW�was the last time they would see each other
IRU����\HDUV��7KHQ�WKH\�EXPS�EXWWV�DW�D�IUDW�SDUW\�� DQG�VRPHKRZ�PDQDJH� WR� UHFRJQL]H�HDFK�RWKHU�HYHQ�DIWHU�D�GHFDGH��7KHQ�WKH\�SDUW� DJDLQ� IRU� �� \HDUV�� 7KHUH� LV� D� ZHLUG�FRQIURQWDWLRQ� DW� D� IDUPHU·V� PDUNHW�� DQG�then another year goes by before anything
HYHQ�KDSSHQV��7KHQ��À�QDOO\��WKH\�VH[��)DOO�LQ� ORYH�� &U\LQJ�� FU\LQJ�� %RRP�� 7KDW·V� D�ZUDS�)LQDOO\� ZH� ZRXOG� OLNH� WR� SXEOLFDOO\�VKDPH� WKH� 7HHQ� &KRLFH� $ZDUGV� IRU�DZDUGLQJ�$VKWRQ� .XWFKHU� %HVW�$FWRU� IRU�his role in No Strings Attached. Shame on
\RX��7HHQ�&KRLFH�$ZDUGV��6KDPH�RQ�\RX��:H� UHOXFWDQWO\� JLYH� No Strings Attached RQH�SHUIHFW�3RPHUDQLDQ�RXW�RI����
On Campus:
:RUNVKRS0DUFK�����30How to Make Animated GIF’s&$7ODE��'LFNLQVRQ�����
3HUIRUPDQFH0DUFK�����30Concept and Direction: Gwen Welliver0DUWKD�+LOO��9$3$
:RUNVKRS0DUFK�����������30Dance MiniFest0DUWKD�+LOO��9$3$
3HUIRUPDQFH0DUFK�������30Sage City ConcertPerforming Silent Auction, Symphony No 1 by Mahler, and Tzigane for Solo Violin and Orchestra, by Ravel*UHHQZDOO��9$3$
Screening
0DUFK�����30Flaherty on the Road Video program: The Environment Which Surrounds Us7LVKPDQ�/HFWXUH�+DOO
Reading
0DUFK�����30Poetry Series: Lucie Brock-Broido7LVKPDQ�/HFWXUH�+DOO
Lecture
0DUFK�����30Steve GrimmerCeramic artist Steve Grimmer discusses his work. 7LVKPDQ�/HFWXUH�+DOO
3HUIRUPDQFH$SULO����30Susquehanna String Band Concert'HDQH�&DUULDJH�%DUQ
Reading
$SULO����30Poetry Series: Monica Youn7LVKPDQ�/HFWXUH�+DOO
3HUIRUPDQFH$SULO������30Vinegar TomS tage performance about witch trials in seventeenth century England reveals a feminist critique of structural oppression.0DUJRW�7HQQ\��9$3$
In the Area:
3HUIRUPDQFH0DUFK�����30Balkan Beat BoxBalkan Beat Box brings its Mediterranean-LQÁ�HFWHG��JOREDOL]HG�HOHFWURQLF�VRXQG�WR�1RUWK�Adams.0$66�0R&$
3HUIRUPDQFH0DUFK�����30,QÁ�DWDEOH�)UDQNHQVWHLQA visually and sonically driven performance based on Mary Shelley’s early life and her novel Frankenstein.(03$&
Exhibition
2SHQV�0DUFK���One Minute Film Festival 2003 – 20122QH�PLQXWH�PRYLHV�E\�GR]HQV�RI�DUWLVWV�À�OPHG�in the last decade.0$66�0R&$
Exhibition
2SHQV�0DUFK���Mark Dion: The Octagon RoomDion’s installation inside a Brutalist style EXQNHU�SUHVHQWV�DQ�DEDQGRQHG�RIÀ�FH�containing evidence of the past eight years.0$66�0R&$
Lecture
$SULO�������30&ODUN�/HFWXUH�E\�&ODLUH�%LVKRS��´5H�skilling, Repurposing, and Research in Contemporary Art”Controversial theorist and CUNY art history professor Claire Bishop discusses approaches to knowledge and information in contemporary art. 7KH�&ODUN
3HUIRUPDQFH$SULO�������$0²�30Colin Gee: In the First Place...Lecoq trained actor & principal clown for Cirque du Soleil Colin Gee reframes Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (The Strife of Love in a Dream), an Italian pastoral romance published in 1499, in this extended video/performance series.(03$&
people involved in the production who are
DOVR�LQYROYHG�LQ�WKH�DGPLQLVWUDWLYH�VLGH�µ80 Days is the second production
in Oldcastle’s inaugural theatrical season
IRU� WKHLU�QHZ� ORFDWLRQ��EXW� WKH�H[SHULHQFH�will feel brand new even for returning
audience members thanks to Oldcastle’s
Á�H[LEOH� VSDFH�� WKH� WKHDWHU·V� VHDWLQJ� LV�built in modular blocks designed to be
UHDUUDQJHG��7KH�VWDJH�IRU�80 Days is in an
entirely different location than it was in
1RUWKHUQ� %RXOHYDUG�� DQG� WKH� SURGXFWLRQ�team is still experimenting with different
VHDWLQJ�DUUDQJHPHQWV��´:H�FKDQJHG�ZKHUH�����VHDWV�JR�LQ�OHVV�WKDQ�WKUHH�KRXUV��,I�\RX�think about how long it takes to change
/HVWHU�0DUWLQ��WKDW·V�D�WUXO\�Á�H[LEOH�VSDFH��DQG�ZH�GLG�LW�ZLWK�IRXU�SHRSOH�µ´:H·UH�UHDOO\�KDSS\�\RX·UH�KHUH�µ� � � � $UWV� RUJDQL]DWLRQV� RI� DOO� VL]HV� VKDUH�a common worry regarding the glacial
demographic shift which has been
observed across disciplines over a stretch
RI�GHFDGHV��3HWHUVRQ�LV�EOXQW�RQ�WKH�PDWWHU��´:H·UH�UHDOO\�KDSS\�\RX·UH�KHUH��DQG�ZH·UH�UHDOO\�KDSS\�WKH�%HQQLQJWRQ�&ROOHJH�SDSHU�LV�FRYHULQJ�XV��)LUVW�RI�DOO��ZH�UHDOO\�ZDQW�FROOHJH� DJHG� SHRSOH� WR� JR� WR� WKH� WKHDWHU��7KH� DXGLHQFH� WKDW� JRHV� WR� WKHDWHU�� WKDW�JRHV�WR�V\PSKRQLF�PXVLF��FODVVLFDO�PXVLF��GDQFH�� LV���� 2OG�� ,W·V� QRW� ROGHU�� DQ\PRUH��,W·V� ROG�µ� 2OGFDVWOH·V� PDUNHWLQJ� GLUHFWRU�(OL]DEHWK� 6WRWW� LQIRUPHG� WKH� )UHH� 3UHVV�that Oldcastle is planning to experiment
ZLWK�́ WZHHW�VHDWVµ�LQ�WKH�EDFN�RI�WKH�WKHDWHU�where youths (and hip adults) can use social
media on their phones during performances
�VLOHQWO\��RI�FRXUVH���$QG�WKH\�DUHQ·W�DORQH��regional theaters across the nation and
RUJDQL]DWLRQV� DV� SUHVWLJLRXV� DV� WKH� 6DQ�Francisco Symphony are opening similar
programs in hopes in drawing more youths
WR�SHUIRUPDQFHV�� 5HVLGHQWV� RI� %HQQLQJWRQ� KDYH�pinned similarly high hopes on the
theater’s success as a means of drawing
PRUH� SHRSOH� GRZQWRZQ�� DQG� 2OGFDVWOH·V�management has not been shy in the past
about their hopes to act as an important part
RI�%HQQLQJWRQ·V� GRZQWRZQ� UHYLWDOL]DWLRQ��7KH� %HWWHU� %HQQLQJWRQ� &RUSRUDWLRQ� KHOG�a cultural summit in February focused on
VXVWDLQLQJ� %HQQLQJWRQ·V� DUWV� FRPPXQLW\�and using the arts to reinforce other local
HFRQRPLF� LQLWLDWLYHV�� DQG� %HQQLQJWRQ�6HOHFWPDQ� *UHJ� 9DQ� +RXWHQ� KDV� EHJXQ�working in earnest on expanding
%HQQLQJWRQ·V� FORXW� LQ� WKH� UHJLRQ� DV� DQ�DUWV� FHQWHU�� 6WDWH� 5HSUHVHQWDWLYH� %ULDQ�&DPSLRQ� LV� EXOOLVK� RQ� WKH� WKHDWHU·V�prospects and provided a statement to the
)UHH� 3UHVV� VD\LQJ� ´2OGFDVWOH� LV� D� JUHDW�example of the thriving arts community in
%HQQLQJWRQ��7KH\�GR�D�WUHPHQGRXV�MRE�RI�SURYLGLQJ�D�UDQJH�RI�WKHDWHU�RSSRUWXQLWLHV��and their new location is a great asset to
RXU�GRZQWRZQ�FRPPXQLW\�µTuning In��$V�2OGFDVWOH�WUDYHUVHV�LWV���VW�FRQVHFXWLYH�WKHDWULFDO�VHDVRQ��DQG�LWV�À�UVW�LQ�D�SHUPDQHQW�IDFLOLW\�� WKH� &RPSDQ\·V� ORQJHYLW\� LQ� DQ�LQGXVWU\� QRWRULRXVO\� GLIÀ�FXOW� WR� VWD\�DÁ�RDW�LQ�VSHDNV�WR�WKHLU�PRVW�IXQGDPHQWDO�VWUHQJWK�� DQ� DELOLW\� WR� SURGXFH�ZRQGHUIXO�WKHDWHU� FRQVLVWHQWO\�� FUHDWLYHO\� DQG�SDVVLRQDWHO\�� 3HWHUVRQ� LV� FRQÀ�GHQW� DERXW�80 Days�� DQG� RQH� LPDJLQHV� KH� VKRXOG� EH�as the longest continuously serving artistic
GLUHFWRU� LQ� WKH�8QLWHG�6WDWHV�� ´,� WKLQN� LW·V�the kind of play that people will have a
JUHDW� WLPH� ZDWFKLQJ�� EXW� ZKHQ� WKH\� JR�out of the theater they’ll also talk about
LW��7KH\·OO� KDYH� VRPHWKLQJ� WR�GLVFXVV� DQG�WKH\·OO� À�QG� WKHPVHOYHV� WKLQNLQJ� DERXW� LW�QRW�MXVW����PLQXWHV�ODWHU��EXW�WKH�QH[W�GD\��DQG�D�FRXSOH�RI�GD\V�DIWHU�WKDW��WRR�µ
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Around the World in 80 Days