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'FEST' continued from cover around the stage when Chromeo was performing was small, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Chromeo played to an excited crowd for about an hour before the DJ took over. When he introduced the headliner, Wiz Khalifa, everybody went wild. The crowd was thrilled when Wiz Khalifa came out for his set. Immediately, the entire quad filled with students and alums energized for his show. Overall, it was pretty fun too. Through chants of “black and yellow!” Wiz Khalifa teased the crowd asking what kind of weed they were smoking. Possibly the most fun song of the set, when he performed “In tha cut,” the whole audience sang along and lit up. Senior Ellie Serrano said that Fest 2011 wasn’t bad this year and that she thought “the set was well constructed and the ambiance was good.” Serrano said that “90% of the time she was having a really good time” and that was very relived that security was “pretty smooth.” Lesniak, a senior as well, also thought that the concert went pretty well. “I think that both Chromeo and Mr. Wiz Khalifa did a good job engaging the audience in anticipation. They were good at lifting the mood but not as good as Eminem,” Lesniak said. Alum Josh Bowman said that Fest 2011 was “not as good as last year.” “Ludacris is an entertainer and Wiz is still learning how to handle a crowd. Luda knows how to turn an audience on whereas with Wiz people mostly only knew one song,” Bowman said. Much to the happiness of students, Wiz Khalifa finished his set with “Black and Yellow” which the whole crowd went nuts for, singing the chorus at the very least. Though this was my first real experience with DePaul Fest, Chromeo and Wiz Khalifa, I had a really good time. For the last few weeks of my senior year, this was definitely one way to go out.
News. May 31, 2011. The DePaulia 3
FEST 2011
David Macklovitch of Chromeo sings at FEST on Friday, May 27.
Photos by Becky Holloman
Above: Chromeo performs on stage in the Lincoln Park Quad, Friday, May 27. Left: Wiz Khalifa was the headline act at FEST 2011. Below: Students stand in front of stage at FEST 2011.
'Queens' continued from cover assistants in his halls and Act OUT DePaul, “an LGBTQA service group which focuses on education through conversation.” Once the queens took the stage in heels that even the most experienced sorority girl would have trouble walking in, the crowd took notice. There was cheering, clapping and the throwing of dollar bills onstage (which one of the queens started by tossing dollar bills out of her bra). Even when there was a mishap, whether it was a trip or wardrobe malfunction, hundreds of students continued cheering throughout the entire show. Unfortunately last year’s crowd favorite, Casey Oritz, best remembered for jumping off stage and landing in the splits, did not come back for this year’s show. However, Dida Ray, who performs weekly at Hydrate Chicago, took Casey’s placed and rocked the crowd in 6 inch stilettos and bodysuit corsets. Her second time on stage Dida let loose to ‘Big Ego’ by Beyonce, her favorite artist to
perform to. Ray said she got completely ready for the show in about 30 minutes. There was also a new group of performers this year, drag kings. “They’re like an exotic animal.” Brianna Powers said while hosting, poking fun at the stereotypical reaction drag queens receive. “It’s like going to the zoo.” Chad Brochill and the Righteous Dudes group included senior and member of Act OUT, Katie Weiss, and three other females dressed as men, complete with beards. They performed a routine to “Bye Bye Bye” by the Backstreet Boys. “Both me and Nicki [Reinhardt] are going to be leaving this year, so we thought that performing ‘Bye Bye Bye’ was a good way to say goodbye to everyone,” Weiss said. When it came to the picking who performed, Powers said “keep it to the professional dancers. Amateur drag can be fun, but it also can be offensive to the ladies who
do this for a living.” “All of the ladies, except Ray, were already friends of mine,” said Powers. “They are all excited for this event because unlike at bars or clubs, for many folks here this is there first time. There is another level of energy and education that comes along with that.” Both Weiss and Powers say that getting through the administration was not as difficult as one might think. “This year was even easier,” Weiss said. “The paper work was already set up and the administration had already approved it.” There were only a few things that the administration and Powers wanted to steer away from. “We wanted to be considerate,” said Powers. “Most of all, we paid attention to the music we chose.” According to Weiss, they were also told not to distribute condoms; which they did end up having to cut out of a performance.