Maine Event
The Elephant's
Child
The Colby Dancers took the chill out of winter during Jan Plan with a heartwarming per forma n c e of R u d yard K i p l i n g ' s "The Elephant's Child ." Under the artistic direc tion of Adjurict Associate Professor of Per forming Arts C.M. Wentzel, eight dancers from Colby's Performing Arts Department toured 26 elementary schools in Central Maine in only 15 days. The thrust of the project was to encourage a closer relation ship between the Colby community and surrounding areas by sharing the fantasy that Kipling created in one of his Just So Stories. The production d eveloped out of Wentzel's fall semester course, "Dance Rep ertory," in which she experimented with the dancers and choreographed the show. This early preparat ion made intense touring possible soon after Christmas vacation. Add itional efforts came from Bruce Villineau '93, the business and tour man ager, who arranged all bookings at the area schools, and Aaron Kielhack '93, the cos tume and prop coordinator, who attended to special handling of the costumes. The keen and clever eye of Adjunct Associate Profes sor of Performing Arts Richard Sewell trans formed everyday objects like a pillow into a hippo's head and blue styrofoam egg car tons into a believable crocodile. Careful sewing, gluing, and stapling by performing arts students Sue Gouws ' 9 1 and Tara McDonough '92 completed the magic that COLBY 4
Wentzel and the dancers had begun. The tour gave the dancers the rare opportunity to perform for an audience of children between the ages of 5 and 1 2. Anx ious at first, Wentzel and the cast and crew wondered how the children would receive "The Elephant's Child ." Would it be clear? Would it be engaging? The crowds of chil dren erased all doubt, however, as perform ance after performance they sat mesmerized by the sight of animals talking and dancing. The children surrendered themselves to the story of the elephant who, "full of insatiable curiosity," goes to the river to find out what the crocodile has for dinner. The crocodile catches the elephant's child's short snout between h is teeth, "his nose began to stretch"-and thereby hangs a, well, a nose. Jessica Maclachlan '92's elephant's child, Jennifer Barnicle '93's hippo, Sara Regan '93's baboon, Renee Blanchard '91 's kola kola bird, Jill Soper '93' s giraffe, Hillery Hugg '93's ostrich, Marah Silverberg '92's python, and Lucy Yeager '93's unforgettable croco dile blended into a delightful portrayal of make-believe. The successful tour of "The Elephant's Child" lifted the Colby Dancers as well as the Performing Arts Department to special heights. Artistic director Wentzel believes that dancers are not merely silent beings they have speaking voices as well as the voice of bodily movement. Last January the Colby Dancers mastered both.
Karen Cuiffo '90
Colby was host to its annual "Maine Even�' last November as high-school students from Kittery to Madawska, Maine, their parent s, and their guidance counselors were invited to the College to find out more abou t the admissions process. Those attending met with Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Parker Beverage, toured the campus, visited classes , discussed financial aid prospects, and enjoyed a luncheon in the Student Center. Assistant Dean of Admissions Jennifer Rubin '87 said, "We want to attract as many qualified applicants from Maine as we can." Some Maine stud en ts assume that Colby is beyond their means academically or economically. In fact, Maine students qu alify for financial aid at twice the rate of ou t-ofstate students, and the amount of aid they receive is about two thirds of the total cost of a year at the College. "The Colby story we tell during Maine Event can be a real ey e opener for students and their families," Rubin said. Sixty-six students from the Pine Tree state, many of whom participated in last year' s Maine Event, are now members of the Class of 1 993. Said Rubin, "In recent years we have found the !"fame Event to be a very handy way to fam1hanze as many collegebound seniors as possible with the unique . opportun ities Colby has to offer them. "
Scholarship Fund
More than
$16,500
has been
contributed to a scholarship fund established by family and friends in memory of Ray B. Greene, Jr. '47. The scholarship will support exce llence in education, and additional contributions to the fund are welcome.
Contributions may be sent to: Ray B. Greene Jr. '47 Fund % Annual Giving Colby College Waterville, ME 04901
Pre 1 das Coll Art het
t
to
i. sr
.
ds1 ,ICh 1
in 10
tud
_
11StX'
pror �v( Co Ill
1
llli
nme1 ea
ion· gr. •I ei lib\' 1
,
lu
mol .r
hi· 1