The Dart "All the news that is fitting and to the point."

Volume XI, Issue II Winter 2011/2012

Fourth Hockey

by Peter Mullin & Michael Mackintire

Fourth Hockey this year had a great

season and had a lot of fun. We had a lot of good

guidance from our coaches, Mr. Thomas and Mr.

McArthur. They always told us that when in the

neutral zone, we should get it deep. During one

game all we could hear was Coach Thomas

screaming, “Get it deep, Dean, deep Dean!”

These and many other coaching strategies created

the base for our team.

Our team’s record this year was 13-6-1.

This team was so successful due to our lively

energy and enthusiasm on the ice. One pre-game

ritual was having a team prayer led by Peter

Mullin. After leading all these prayers, he created

the nickname Reverend Mullin. Peter also was the

instigator of our celebrations after our goals. Our

team celebrations included the Tebow, the team

huddle, the salute, the kayak, the Superman, the

board jumping, the Bernie, and best of all, the

shooting arrow. These celebrations were the

cornerstone of our team and energized us every

day.

Since we are at the end of our season, we

would like to give out some awards to different

players. Top Scorer and Most Penalty Minutes go

to Jack McCool. Most Time Spent Unconscious

goes to Brendan Lutch. The Best Defenseman

Award goes to Ryan Parker. Best Practice Player

goes to John Kapples. Best Cele Award goes to

Peter Mullin for Tebowing. Most Time Spent in

the Crease- Ned Murphy. Best Nickname- Dean

Piersiak. The Speech of the Year goes to Mr.

Thomas for the Belmont Hill Speech.

Fourth Basketball

by David Korzeniowski and Alejandro Soto

The Eighth Grade Basketball Team, led by

Coach Rest and Coach Souza, had a winning

record this year. The team included Matt

Karpowicz, Mike Calabro, Jack Ragnoni, Ryan

Colgan, Nnamdi Okwerekwu, Jack Glynn,

Alejandro Soto, Mike Curran, John McManmon,

David Korzeniowski, Ryan Macedo, Cole

Aldrich, Sean Harrington, Chris Potvin, and CJ

Turnbull. After two tough losses at the beginning

of the season to the two talented teams of Rivers

and Fay, the team improved to 2-2 with wins

against Catholic Memorial and BC High. The BC

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High game was the most exciting game of the year

without a doubt. The team was losing by eighteen

points with nine minutes to go. Then, with a

fantastic display of free-throw shooting (70%) the

team came back and won it in overtime. Then, at a

record of 3 and 3, the team performed at the annual

Roxbury Latin tournament. At the tournament we

lost to CM and Belmont Hill but proceeded to beat

Thayer in the last game. Coming back from the

tournament, we lost to BC High, and things were

looking bleak for the team. Yet, we then began a

six-game winning streak, beating CM, Derby,

Nobles, Milton (ninth grade team), Belmont Hill,

and Thayer. Now, with games against RL, Dexter,

and BB&N remaining to be played, we hope to

finish the season with a nine-game win streak and a

record of 13-6.

Editors’ note: the team did indeed finish with nine

straight wins, earning a 13-6 record.

Fifth Hockey

by Jake Milbury and CJ Martin

The Seventh Grade Hockey Team finished a

great season on a disappointing note. The 5-4 loss to

Belmont Hill was devastating. Despite this last

loss, the overall season was a great success. RJ

Murphy and Tim DiFiore led the team with a

countless number of goals and assists. The team

finished with a winning record of 9-4. Although

they lost to Belmont Hill twice, they also managed

to give them an 8-1 crushing. One game stands out

particularly this season when the Arrows took on

the Middlesex Bears. After a seesaw contest, it went

into overtime, which started with RJ Murphy and

Parker Joyce heading up the ice. Skating into the

offensive zone with great speed, RJ slid the puck

over to Parker who one-timed it into the back of the

net for the win. This is just one of the fantastic

games Fifth Hockey played all season, which was

full of leaders including Tim DiFiore, RJ Murphy,

and the one and only Brian Craven.

Seventh Grade Basketball

by James Orscheln and Cam Cain

The Seventh Grade Basketball Team, led by

Coach Albertson and Coach Byrne, was a good

team in 2011-2012. The team started 5-1, with

promising wins over Rivers, Fay, Nobles, Derby

Academy, and a thrilling come from behind win

over Catholic Memorial.

The team was led by point guards Jack

Frisoli and Kyle McCarthy, forwards Will Allen

and Mike Connolly, guards Michael Ragnoni and

Patrick Reed, and centers James Orscheln and Cam

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Cain. Michael Ragnoni had to miss a number of

games at the end of the season because of illness. It

was a tough loss for the team.

After their 5-1 start, the team then went on a

five-game losing streak that included losses to BC

High twice, Catholic Memorial, Belmont Hill, and

Roxbury Latin. However, the team ended on a good

note with a win at home versus Thayer followed by

a thrilling overtime victory at BB&N.

It was fun playing on the team, which hit a

few rough patches but overcame them to finish with

a winning record of 7-6 under Mr. Albertson and

Ms. Byrne.

Middle School Wrestling

by Jimmy Ryan and Casey Kelly

The wrestling team started off strong this

year, but gradually lost numbers. Two recruits

abandoned the crew; two stayed. One veteran broke

his ankle; one veteran remained. The resulting team

consisted of John “Rhino” Petro, Casey “Nacho”

Kelly, and Jimmy “Peterson” Ryan. Despite the

low numbers, the team still had a fun and successful

season.

In order to compensate for the small team,

we brought a couple of freshmen on our many

journeys to foreign lands, such as Fessenden and

Roxbury Latin. A few common travelers were

Peter Olson, Angus O’Rourke, Tyson Reed, James

Sylvia, Scott Westvold, and John Ryan, until he was

injured at Moses Brown.

Each wrestler gathered up a few wins this

year, but unfortunately we were not able to show off

our skills at home, for our only home match was

canceled when Roxbury borrowed the mats for the

ISL tournament. Still, we had much success on the

road. Nacho even had a winning record, a great

accomplishment for any wrestler. Some matches

seemed hopeless for us, others for the opposing

team. Our most glorious match occurred deep in

the belly of Roxbury Latin- the Dungeon, their

practice room. You descend multiple stairs to

arrive at the ominous door that leads into a small,

dank, cell-like room currently used for wrestling

practice, but formerly used, most likely, for a

detention cell. It was especially cramped, for four

teams plus fans were stuffed into a room created for

half a middle school team. Almost all of our

wrestlers won that day, including the ninth graders

tagging along for the trip.

Our hard work and dedication all built up to

the Middle School ISL tournament at Fessenden.

Our small team packed quite a punch, with Angus

and Tyson both taking third in their weight classes.

Unfortunately, Sylvia came down with an illness, so

his matches were forfeited, but Scott, the true

underdog of the team, took second to finish off his

Fessy Tournament career. If you see him or any

others mentioned, congratulate them.

All in all, the season was great, though the

numbers were small. We would like you to

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consider wrestling next year. The minibus

memories are truly great, plus Mr. McCarthy is the

coach, and you all know how awesome he is.

Squash

by Cam Finnegan

Squash started off a great season this year

with the biggest team we have ever had. We split up

into returning players, which were around ten in

number, and a beginners group, which consisted of

around eleven. One of our major team matches was

our most recent one at Brooks School in Andover.

We won eight individual matches and only lost

three. This was one of our biggest wins, and the

team we brought had players from both our

returning player and our beginner groups. Our top

player, John Cheever, a senior, played their number

one player in the final match. After a long,

strenuous contest he was triumphant in the last

game. The returning players practice on Monday

nights from 7:15 to 9:00 at Nobles in Dedham.

Though these practices are late, the fun of the sport

makes up for the inconvenient time. This year, Mr.

Beilin joined Mr. Moore in coaching the squash

team. Sometimes we get a special appearance from

Mr. McArthur, who enjoys playing the sport in his

free time. Throughout this year, we have had some

tough losses but also some big wins. We all enjoy

squash, and while sometimes suffering a loss we

could have won, we also want to get back at it the

next match.

Swimming

by Greg DeMatteo

After the graduation of many key members

last June, the 2011-2012 swim team is in a

rebuilding year. However, this year’s captains,

Matt Vandini ’13 and Cam Kelley’14, have been

doing a great job along with Coach Jenkins and

Coach Callini leading the much smaller team to

victory. Although the team lost many swimmers, we

have also gained some new athletes including MJ

Muldowney ’12, who provides inspiration and

enthusiasm, Matt Rocco ’15, Ryan Lee ‘15, and

Matt Fachetti ‘13. After the first swim team meeting

it appeared that this year’s team would be quite

large, but some people never came to anything else

after that. The backstroke events have been

dominated by Jack Adams ‘15, who is well in

pursuit of his brother’s record in the 100-yard race.

The team’s only seventh grader, Michael Capone,

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has done an outstanding job replacing Sean

Sullivan, the team’s past breaststroke specialist.

Even though this year’s team hasn’t gone

undefeated as in previous years, they have won

almost all of their meets, and the meets they lost

could have gone either way. Some of the schools

they have defeated are Dexter, Bancroft, and

Pingree. The one team that seems to get the better

of them every time is Portsmouth Abbey. They

have lost two meets against them this year, but both

were very close coming down to the last race.

This Saturday the team will travel over to

Wellesley College to compete in an E.I.L.

Tournament. Here they will again face Portsmouth

Abbey along with many other schools and hopefully

get revenge and bring home a trophy.

Rube Goldberg

by Owen Finnegan and Kevin Moore

The Rube Goldberg project this year is one

of the most exciting in recent history. We have

been given the responsibility of opening the new

Science Center in May. Although this is a daunting

task, the team is determined to do it and to do it

well. There are eleven members in the Club. The

team consists of seventh graders Kevin Moore,

Patrick Mulrenan, Vito Palombella, Stewart Smith,

and Sam Gordon. The five eighth graders on the

team are Owen Finnegan, Matt Barron, James

Driscoll, Paul McAuliffe, and Chris Potvin. Shawn

Lynch is the strong freshman on the team.

Rube Goldberg machines, for those who

don’t know, are machines that complete a simple

task in the most complicated way possible. The

machine that the club is designing this year will

open the new Science Building by cutting a ribbon.

There are about thirteen steps in the machine. Each

step is unique and requires countless amounts of

effort from every member of the team. Early in the

brainstorming process, members came up with great

ideas. Later in the process, members built

prototypes of the steps. We are currently at the end

of the prototype phase and hope to begin on the real

model soon.

The building phase seems very

straightforward, but it requires great creativity and

skill. It works your building skill and your mind to

the maximum. The leaders, Mrs. Colton and Mr.

Wilbur, have done a great job directing the Club.

The final machine will astonish you and take your

breath away. We encourage everyone who is

interested to stop by and experience our Rube

Goldberg machine.

Winter Play

by Joe O’Malley

On the nights of February 17 and 18, two

student-directed plays were performed in Ward

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Hall. One of the two works of art was Mixed Nuts, a

Marx Brothers’ play written by Corey Sprague and

directed by Sean Frazzette ‘12. He did a superb job

with casting the characters and building the set. The

play is about a woman who claims that two Italian

immigrants, played by David Korzeniowski and Ian

Kelly, broke into her estate and stole her most

precious possessions. The duo of Italian immigrants

was accompanied by their incomparable lawyer

portrayed brilliantly by Pat McLaughlin. The half

hour or so that the play went on was filled with

laughs as the characters acted out the events that

were going on in the court room. The “large,

haughty” (and I quote from the script) woman

whose house had been broken into was played by

Tom Caravolas. He wore a dress with a suit that

added an extra foot to his waistline, which made

him look hilarious. What is really going on is that

this woman, Mrs. Buckwalter, along with her

lawyer played by Austin Franchi with a ridiculous

southern accent, was actually plotting to receive the

insurance money from the stolen articles. However,

justice finds them in the end, and they are both

arrested for their wrongdoings. Writer’s Block, a

play written and directed by Mark Lane ‘12, is

brilliant. The play starts out with Julian Matra, who

plays a playwright with writer’s block,

brainstorming ideas. He cannot decide what the play

should be about. Marlon Matthews strolls in and

sits across from Matra, and the two brainstorm the

wackiest ideas for the rest of the play. They try to

incorporate blockbuster movies into their play.

They try movies like Inception, Star Wars, Good

Fellas, Titanic, Disney Pixar’s UP, and Slum Dog

Millionaire. They go through the ideas, saying, “I

can see it now,” while actors including Mike Petro

and Kevin Patterson come out and act scenes. I

mention these two because they were in the Star

Wars scene, which was hilarious. Mark Lane even

performed in the play that he wrote and directed -as

many great actor/directors do; e.g., Leonard Nimoy

and Angelina Jolie. He played the short pudgy

explorer boy from Disney Pixar’s UP. Mark Lane

clearly put a lot of thought and effort into this play,

and it showed in the expressions on the viewers’

faces. This was one of the best events of the winter,

and whoever did not see it truly missed something

great. Here follows one testimonial to how funny

the plays were: I sat down briefly the night of the

play with Ryan Albertson, and he told me he “loved

the scene from UP, especially Jack Goldman’s

[character]),” who was the elderly man who dreams

of flying to a remote cliff. Father Arens exclaimed

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about the night, “My jaws are hurting because I was

laughing so much!” If you did not come out to see

this play, I encourage you to do so in the future.

Good luck to Mark Lane and the cast of Writer’s

Block who will be traveling to the Boston Globe

Drama Festival.

Black History Month Assembly

by Timothy Murphy

This year’s Black History Month Assembly was as

beautiful and touching as any assembly had been

since I came to St. Sebastian’s. It began with the

Dana Hall Choir helping us express through song

our gratitude to the brave African – Americans who

risked their lives to make this country free from

racism. They sang a variety of songs between the

readings given by our own students about the

actions of a number of courageous Americans to

end segregation in our country in the 1950s and 60s.

During the assembly Marlon Mathews gave a

beautiful solo that was greeted with a standing

ovation by his fellow students. However, there was

one thing at this year’s assembly that was quite

different. This year’s program was slightly

haunting. It was very strange and sometimes

disturbing to see grown men and women on video

cursing and threatening to hurt one little first grade

girl who was just going to a different school for the

first time. This made a huge impact on me, and I’m

sure the rest of the school. I hope next year’s Black

History Month Assembly will be as memorable as

this one.

Mother-Son Communion Supper

by Owen Finnegan

This winter, the students at St. Sebastian’s

were given the opportunity to attend a Mass with

their mothers. This annual event is a favorite of

many and is always looked forward to. The night

began with the mothers coming to the school and

joining their sons in the church. The pews were

filled with people, as many were eager to attend the

event. After we had all sat down, Father John Arens

began the Mass. The wonderful Mass was supported

by the talents of the students in Schola and by Mr.

Chambers. After the hour long Mass had concluded,

the attendees filed out of the church and entered

Ward Hall for dinner. The dinner, which was great,

was supplied by Joe and the kitchen staff. Students

and parents alike piled chicken, meat, potatoes, and

salad onto their plate and sat down with friends.

Overall, the Mass, dinner, and bonding time

between mother and son made this a great night for

everyone.

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San Miguel Trip

by Jimmy McCabe and Mike Connolly

San Miguel is a small private school in

Providence, Rhode Island. It welcomes boys from

less fortunate families in grades five through eight.

All of their boys who graduate eighth grade go to

high schools, and they go to some of the most

prestigious high schools in Rhode Island.

On February 2, a dozen seventh graders

traveled down to San Miguel to deliver books that

we brought to the school to give to the students

there. The trip down lasted an hour, but we had fun

on the minibus talking and catching up with people.

We arrived to see them starting a student-run

morning meeting. The student leader asked

questions about many things. For example, he asked

questions about their “Word of the Day.” He asked

his schoolmates how to spell it and if they could

give an example of it in a sentence. After the

student assembly we went up to their library to give

them the books that we seventh graders of St.

Sebastian’s had donated. These included books on

astronomy, birding, the Civil War, and geography.

We talked with the San Miguel seventh graders and

shared doughnuts and juice with them as we got to

know them. Though we only talked with them for

thirty minutes, we felt as though we had known

them for a long time. As we learned more about

them and their backgrounds, we realized that we are

very fortunate to have the families and opportunities

that we have, like attending St. Sebastian’s. We

should all be thankful for the families we have, the

food on our tables, the clothes on our backs, and our

education at St. Sebastian’s. Because of these

blessings that we have been given, we should all be

looking for ways to give back. A great place to start

is at San Miguel.

BC Hockey Game

by Jack McCool and Sean Harrington

On Friday, January 27, members of both the

seventh and eighth grades went to a Boston College

hockey game played against the University of New

Hampshire. Although BC ended up winning the

game, it was interesting until the end. Taking into

consideration that the turnout for the Arrows was

not as large as in similar occasions in the past, we

still had a great time. It started off with a good bus

ride for the eighth grade with a couple of us being

reprimanded by Mr. Rest for excessive celebration.

Once we arrived, we all entered together and found

our seats in the upper balcony. When we reached

our seats, we came to the realization that someone

in the area had recently become ill. This was a

mere bump in the road, and it only inspired us to

cheer louder and harder. The game continued to go

well with the lead consistently changing hands until

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the last minute when Boston College broke the final

tie on a goal scored by Johnny Gaudreau. From that

point BC never looked back. This goal caused a

huge celebration, ending in a massive mosh pit.

Thankfully, no one was injured in the mosh pit, and

we all made it to the bus safely. The game was full

of excitement, and overall we had a great time. I

am sure the seventh graders will be looking forward

to this trip next year.

Super Bowl XLVI

by Thomas Hovsepian

With Tom Brady’s Patriots and Eli

Manning’s Giants each playing for a fourth title in

the franchise history of their teams, Super Bowl

XLVI was bound to be a good game. It was held at

Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, home to

the Colts. After winning the coin toss, the Patriots

elected to defer their choice to the second half, so

they kicked the ball off to start the game as they

have been doing all season. On their first offensive

play, Tom Brady was rushed hard and threw an

incomplete pass out of the end zone. An intentional

grounding penalty was called, and it resulted in a

safety. With 3:24 left in the first quarter, the Giants

scored again on a touchdown pass to Victor Cruz,

known as the salsa man because of his well-known

touchdown celebrations. The Giants were doing

their best thing to try to beat the Patriots; they were

keeping Brady off the field. After kicking a field

goal, the Patriots added seven more points with

eight seconds left in the half on a pass to Danny

Woodhead. Going into the half, the Patriots led the

Giants 10-9. After a very good halftime show by

Madonna, the Patriots received the ball to start the

second half. They proceeded to score another

touchdown to open the half. It was a twelve-yard

pitch and catch between Aaron Hernandez and Tom

Brady. On another possession the Patriots had to

punt after a key drop by Wes Welker. In the last

two minutes of the game, Eli started a long drive

with a 38-yard pass to Mario Manningham. The

Giants went on to score with 57 seconds left. On

the last play of the game, the Patriots’ Rob

Gronkowski, who was playing with a sprained

ankle, almost caught Brady’s “Hail Mary” pass.

The Giants were deserving of the victory and won

the Super Bowl after a hard fought game.

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Celtics 2012: The End of an Era

by John McManmon

The Celtics are having their worst year in

the Big Three era, going 15-17 approaching the

midpoint of the season. They are third in the

Atlantic Division, behind the Knicks and the upstart

76ers. Many factors have contributed to the

disappointing season.

One major factor is old age. The Celtics are

the fourth oldest team in the NBA with an average

age of 28.99, behind the Mavericks, Hawks, and

Lakers. Many older players, like Garnett, Pierce,

Allen, and O’Neal have had to play fewer minutes

compared to last season. This has not been an

entirely bad thing, however. Younger players have

stepped up, including Avery Bradley, E’Twaun

Moore, and Greg Stiemsma, all of whom have put

up impressive numbers. Stiemsma has emerged as

a strong shot blocker, a much-needed role for the

Celtics because of the injuries to Jermaine O’Neal

and the age of Kevin Garnett. Both Bradley and

Moore will definitely become leaders of the team in

the future.

Age has also taken its toll on the hustle of

players. The Celtics were known for defensive

domination of other teams, but some statistics have

diminished. The Celtics are last in the league in

rebounds per game. They are also twenty-sixth in

scoring. However, they are third in points allowed

per game, which is the only statistic that has not

seemed to drop.

Another major factor has been injuries.

Garnett and Allen have missed games here and

there, but Rondo and O’Neal have been battling

injuries, with Rondo missing ten games and O’Neal

missing seven. This has also allowed Bradley and

Stiemsma to step up at the point guard and center

positions.

Although the Celtics have fallen from power

in the NBA, there is still hope. Younger players

will step up when the Big Three are either traded or

retire.

Hopefully the team can build around Rajon

Rondo and encourage him to take a strong

leadership role. If the Celtics get some good draft

picks and trades, they can begin rebuilding and

ascend back to the top of the NBA.

2012 NHL All Star Game

by Jake Milbury

The NHL All Star game is always just for

show and is never a good game to watch. This year

it lived up to its expectations. There were no hits

made, no fights, and no penalties, and it was a very

boring high scoring game. This game had no

defense at all. It seemed as if the defense were just

letting their opponents score. I think it’s not a game

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if there is no defense. It’s not the best game to

watch, but it does showcase some of the best

players in the world doing all sorts of moves and

tricks. The game itself has all sorts of cool parts like

the all star draft which picks two captains to make

teams from the fan selected all stars. This year the

game took place in Ottawa which was excited to be

the host. The captains this year were the Boston

Bruins’ Zdeno Chara and hometown representative

Daniel Alfredson from the Ottawa Senators. The

final score of the game was 13 -9 in favor of Team

Chara. The finale of the game is picking an MVP.

Marian Gaborik was the winner this year, and he

was awarded a car. He had three goals and an assist

to make his performance special. Although some of

the game is not very fun to watch, it’s cool to see

some of the best players in the world compete.

NHL Skills Competition

by Peter Mullin

The 2012 NHL Skills Competition was a

competition between the best of the best players in

the NHL. The competition took place during the

All-Star Break, which is the middle of the season.

The two captains that were chosen to lead the teams

were Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins and Daniel

Alfredsson of the Ottawa Senators. The players

were split up into two teams chosen by the captains.

The six events that took place in the

competition were Fastest Skater, Breakaway

Challenge, Accuracy Shooting, Challenge Relay,

Hardest Shot, and Elimination Shootout. Teams

were awarded points for winning each section of an

event. At the end of night, the team with the most

points would be crowned winner.

The Fastest Skater Challenge is an event

where players race around the rink and the two with

the fastest times in the heats race in the finals. The

winner was Carl Hagelin from Team Alfredsson.

The Breakaway Challenge is an event where players

try to do the fanciest move while still scoring. The

winner was Patrick Kane from Team Chara. The

Accuracy Shooting challenge is an event where

players try to hit targets placed in a net. The winner

was Jamie Benn from Team Chara.

The Challenge Relay is an event where

players do different objectives to get to the finish.

The winner was Team Alfredsson at 2 minutes and

8 seconds. The Hardest Shot challenge is an event

where players take a slap shot from the top of the

circle. Zdeno Chara won the event with a world

record of 108.8 MPH. The Elimination Shootout is

just a regular shootout where last man standing

wins. Steven Stamkos won the event.

The winner of the 2012 NHL Skills

Competition was Team Alfredsson 21-12.

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NHL Predictions

by Jake Loughborough and Matt Aisenberg

Eastern Conference: New York Rangers

Western Conference: St. Louis Blues

MVP: Claude Giroux (Philadelphia Flyers)

Rookie of the Year: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

(Edmonton Oilers)

Biggest Disappointment: Pittsburgh Penguins

Biggest Surprise: Florida Panthers

Best Style: Kris Letang

The Presidential Race

By Jack McCool and John Kapples

On November 6, 2012, a President will be

elected for the United States of America. The

Presidential races are already well underway, and at

this point in the race it is anyone’s guess who will

win.

First, we will tell you about the Democratic

race. Although the incumbent President does not

receive an automatic nomination for his party,

Obama does not have any real opposition. Only four

times has a President been ousted in the primaries,

and of those four times, only once had he been

elected President. The other three were Vice

Presidents who had stepped into the office after an

assassination. We don’t believe there will be a fifth

name added to that list after this race.

Most of the focus this year, however, is on

the Republican race. There are four candidates this

year, but there are really two frontrunners- Mitt

Romney and Rick Santorum. So far, it appears that

Romney, the former Governor of Massachusetts,

has the upper hand, but anything can happen. There

is no better example of this than the Presidential

election of 1948 that pitted Harry Truman against

Thomas Dewey. Dewey was the clear- cut favorite,

and the Chicago Tribune newspaper released a story

congratulating Dewey on his victory. There is

perhaps no picture more famous than Truman

holding up that newspaper with the headline

“Dewey defeats Truman,” just after Truman was

announced victorious in the election.

Although people may tell you who will win,

no one really knows for sure. We just have to wait

and see what happens.

69°S, The Shackleton Project

A Play Review

by Jack Glynn

In 1914, the polar explorer, Sir Ernest

Shackleton, allegedly put a recruitment

advertisement in the newspaper for the Imperial

Trans-Antarctic Expedition, looking for men

interested in a “hazardous journey, for small wages,

in bitter cold, with safe return doubtful” but with

the possibility of “honor and recognition in case of

success.” In the play 69°S The Shackleton Project

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produced by The Phantom Limb Company and the

Kronos Quartet at the Paramount Theater, the tale

of this ill-fated expedition to Antarctica is told in

the form of a wordless multimedia experience,

involving marionette puppetry, dance, live music,

and film. All of these elements are used to create an

atmosphere of frozen isolation, camaraderie,

courage, and survival.

This story of polar exploration unfolds, from

shipwreck to rescue nine months later, through the

movements of seven marionettes. The inclusion of

music and video clips in nine “tableaux vivants,” or

wordless moving pictures, is a combination of

puppet show and movie. These special puppets are

dressed as the expedition members, including Sir

Ernest Shackleton, and are only about four feet tall.

Through their minimalist movements and use of

stage lighting, they communicate a wide range of

human emotions, such as fear, exhaustion, hope,

despair, and joy. The marionettes are controlled by

dancer/acrobats on stilts, dressed completely in

white with tall hoods to conceal their faces. It is

amazing how the whole story plays out in front of

you without any human actors or spoken words,

while managing to convey the acute sense of

isolation, despair, and the will to survive that the

stranded expedition members must have

experienced.

The set of The Shackleton Project is very simple.

Three white, tent-like sheets and two red ropes

hanging from the ceiling are used to raise and lower

three “ice mountains” that represent the Antarctic

landscape. These white tents are also used as small

“screens” for film clips depicting battle scenes from

World War I. A large screen at the back of the

stage is also used to show video of snow storm

conditions. A strobe light conjures up a three

dimensional swirl of snow on stage. The set of the

play is almost a character itself, and the subtle blend

of music and video clips, coupled with the rising

and falling of the white ice mountains, adds to the

experience immensely.

An integral part of The Shackleton Project is its

sound. Most of the sound effects and music are

performed live by drummers, who stand near the

stage, and guitarists, who stand on balconies

overlooking the stage. The drummers use a variety

of materials to convey the sounds of wind and ice

storms, such as running a violin bow across the

edge of a vinyl record, hammering on sheet metal,

and sliding their mallets over the cymbals lightly.

These sounds enhanced through a microphone

sound “storm-like” and even make the audience feel

colder. The guitarists came in during moments of

great tension, creating eerie tones that added to the

atmosphere. I have never heard music in a play

quite like the music in The Shackleton Project, and

it was definitely one of the most captivating and

memorable aspects of the performance.

The story of the Endurance expedition led by Sir

Ernest Shackleton nearly a century ago was truly a

tale of courage, survival, and tenacity. The

Shackleton Project has captured that epic story in a

completely unique way, combining everything from

marionettes to film in order to create a fascinating

theatre experience. It is not only about the story of

Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew, but also of the

entire evolution of the Antarctic and how it has

changed since the dawn of man. This was truly a

memorable and worthwhile performance.

14

Book Reviews

Animal Farm

Book Review

by Casey Kelly

Animal Farm by George Orwell is a

fantastic novel that takes place in the twentieth

century on an English farm. Orwell does a great job

of using animals as a

metaphor for

Communist Russia as

it portrays the initial

years of the Russian

Revolution. At first the

pigs on the farm

resemble intelligent

Communist leaders,

but soon they turn into

corrupt beasts living in

ways they swore they

never would take up. Orwell uses a simple story to

describe a very complex situation that occurred in

the real world. The book shows that words can be

used to convey ideas and events better than we may

think. It also has multiple scenes filled with

excitement, exceeding the expectations of every

reader. Some of these include the moments when

the animals rise against the human farmers to take

control of the countryside farm. Another occurs

when one of the pigs is driven off the farm by the

other animals. The book is very good, and I

recommend it to all readers.

Marley & Me

Book Review

by Steve Karol

Marley & Me by John Grogan is a story

about a married couple from Florida who learn

valuable lessons from their labrador retriever,

Marley. John and Jen Grogan are both newspaper

journalists who live in a small house. They decide

to get a dog to see if they are capable of handling

the responsibility of a family. Little do they realize

that the dog will cause physical and emotional

havoc while teaching them important lessons on life

and love and how to be good parents. Marley is a

very happy, energetic, and excitable dog who loves

attention. As Marley grows, he becomes more of a

problem for the Grogans, but that is never his intent.

Throughout the story, he is caught doing

mischievous things like eating anything that can fit

in his mouth or tearing apart the garage during a

thunderstorm. John and Jen are having a tough time

controlling Marley, but they still love him. They

also would like to have a child. When Jen gives

birth to Patrick Grogan, a healthy and cherubic baby

boy, Marley is no longer the center of attention, but

he doesn’t mind. As the story goes on, Marley gets

older, and the Grogan

family continues to

expand. Jen has two

more children, Connor

and Colleen Grogan. At

this point the Grogan

family is complete and

they decide to move from

Florida to Pennsylvania.

As the Grogan children

15

grow, Marley enters his senior years and starts

showing many signs of his age like hearing loss and

blurry vision. The family continues to love and care

for him. Unfortunately, Marley suffers a

catastrophic illness, which ultimately is the cause of

his death at age 13. Marley and Me is one of the

best books I have ever read, and I recommend it to

all. It has taught me many important lessons about

love, life, and loss and the special love and bond of

a family pet.

Unbroken

Book Review

by Greg DeMatteo

A gripping story about sports, war, and

suffering, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand is the

story of Olympic runner and World War II

bombardier, Louis Zamperini. As a child in

Torrance, California, Louis was very troublesome.

He would break into houses, steal anything he

wanted, and beat up local children; but when he

turned fourteen, Louis began focusing all of his

energy on running. For the next few years Louis

greatly excelled in running and earned himself a

spot in the 5,000 meter race on the 1936 Olympic

team. After enlisting in the Army Air Force in

1941, Louis flew many missions in the Pacific in

the plane, Superman. Then, one day, Louis and his

fellow crew mates were sent on a rescue mission in

an old plane called The Green Hornet, which was

prone to engine problems. During this mission, the

plane failed and crashed into the ocean, killing

everyone except Louis and two other men. After

they survived for thirty-three days on the raft, living

off of sharks, birds, and rain water, one man died,

leaving Louis and pilot Russell Allen "Phil" Phillips

to float for fifteen more days before being captured

by the Japanese Navy. Louis and Phil had been

afloat for forty-seven days. They were split up and

held in many different P.O.W. camps until the end

of the war. One prison guard, named Mutsuhiro

Watanabe, and nicknamed “the Bird,” was known

for his cruelty and for the extreme beatings he

would give prisoners. Unfortunately when Louis

arrived in his camp, Watanabe had a strange

obsession with harming him and beat him more

savagely than anyone else. After Louis was

liberated, Watanabe would continue to torture Louis

in his dreams for many years until Louis finally

found comfort in the preaching of Billy Graham.

Louis returned to Japan after the war, and

while he was there, he found and forgave many of

his old guards except Watanabe, who had been on

the run ever since the end of the war because he had

been charged with war crimes. However, the

charges against the Bird were later dropped, and he

finally came out of hiding. Nevertheless, he still

refused to let Louis come see him. Louis now lives

in Hollywood, California.

Unbroken is one

of the best books I have

read in a long time, and

the incredibly exciting

and compelling story of

Louis’s struggles would

be a great book for all St.

Sebastian’s students to

read.

2

Word Search

by David Korzeniowski

S Y R V O Y F L C H V R P P B L

G C Q H T A N L G F O W Y K Y L

N B H P O F I A R M J M R L X A

N V U O F C T B H Q A X O N I B

M Z E L L H K T G J M Y T G M E

K O H O C A X E Y G S A S R P G

B S O I D H J K Y K H L I E S D

N C M T F O T S P Q A P H B S O

Y I T B C Z K A F W C R K D Z D

P M Z P F O S B M S K E C L I O

E A O V A J U B Y J Q T A O A U

N R R Z G E K R R T M N L G R U

N E S B E S T S T M J I B E R I

C C I E H S Q K L E P W V B O Y

O C B U L C A M A R D A F U W P

M X A B Z R V S Q U A S H R S W

Arrows

Basketball

Black History

Ceramics

Dodgeball

Drama Club

Hockey

Jam Shack

Math Club

Moot Court

MPA

Rube Goldberg

Schola

Squash

St Sebs

Winter Play

3

Lunch Crossword

by Matt Karpowicz

Across: Down:

1. 7th

Graders favorite dessert 2. My favorite drink

3. Milk that never works 3. Comes with oyster crackers

4. The day we have pasta 6. Jack Glynn once ate 14

5. Best served with No Bun 7. Breakfast that takes forever

9. Garlic ______ 8. Friday’s lunch

8

3

1 2

7

6 9

4

5

4

On Spellcheck’s Vacation

by Jimmy Ryan

From the Dart Staff:

Thanks to all the seventh and eighth grade students who worked so hard on their articles. We welcome

new writers, cartoonists, and photographers for future issues of the Dart.

Editors: Owen Finnegan, Casey Kelly, Michael Mackintire, Alejandro Soto

Faculty moderators: Mr. Cornish and Mr. Deschenes