Niner Times: April 25, 2017

INSIDE THIS EDITION: UNIVERSITY TESTS NEW ‘RAVE’ EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM OVER RISING SAFETY CONCERNS

ASST. OPINION EDITOR MIA TAKES A CLOSER LOOK INSIDE THE KENDALL JENNER PEPSI CONTROVERSY

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WITH FINALS COMING UP RAPIDLY, TAKE A LOOK AT BRIANNA’S GUIDE TO SURIVING EXAM WEEK, THE WORST WEEK OF THE YEAR PG. 15 VOL. 29, ISSUE 25 27

Cover photo by Chris Crews

Hunter Heilman editor@ninertimes.com

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UNC Charlotte celebrates the Earth at annual Earth Festival Earth Festival allows student advocates for the environment an opportunity to educate peers on concerns, how to make difference ALEXANDRIA SANDS NEWS EDITOR

Earth Club President Tess Overton talks to student at Earth Festival. Photo by Daniel Head

Gotcha Bike program will offer students a new transportation method. Photo by Daniel Head

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Despite the rainy weather on Wednesday, the Earth Festival was in full swing under the dry breezeway of Colvard. Over 30 organizations came out to educate students walking to and from class on ways they can make an environmentally friendly difference on campus and in the world.

A lot of the organizations and departments at the festival used games and giveaways to engage students. The Earth Club had a wheel that would land on different topics when spun, like water, recycling and climate change.

Members of the club would ask the participants questions to see how much they already knew on the topic and then talked to them about what they didn’t know.

“I’ve always been passionate about the environment and activism in regards to the environment,” Earth Club President Tess Overton said.

“I found Earth Club as a really good way to get involved with my peers who share the same interests as me.”

Another organization at the festival was The Charlotte Green Initiative (CGI), an initiative that receives a dollar per student each semester to fund projects. Most recently, the initiative worked on a graduation gown repurposing project and a project that involved installing water bottle filling stations to different buildings on campus.

CGI committee members gave out reusable water bottles that students could fill at these stations, rather than buying plastic bottles.

“Our usage of plastics and different unsustainable resources can really be improved,” CGI

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committee member Robert Jenkins said.

The CGI committee members used Earth Festival as a way to spread awareness of their iniative and ways to get involved. By going to the CGI website, students can propose project ideas and win funding to carry out their project if selected.

“I think it’s important to have an awareness of the impact we’re having on the Earth,” Jenkins said.

“The long term consequences of some of our actions and some of our lifestyle choices right now could be detrimental down the road.”

Some of the other booths included a “Take it or Leave it” tent, which was giving away free school supplies that were originally going to be thrown out, and The Keeping Watch Alliance, which is a Charlotte-based alliance that helps protect the environment.

Also at the event were the Gotcha bikes, the eco-friendly transportation alternative to cars and buses that will be coming to campus soon.

The Gotcha Bike program will allow students to rent bikes and return them to different stations on campus. A blood drive was also happening in the career center as part of the Earth Day festivities.

The Earth Festival was part of a series of events held during Earth Month. Other events included Tree Campus USA Day and the annual campus cleanup.

The Sustainability Office has also been hosting workshops throughout the month as a way for students to provide input and recommendations for the rewrite of the university sustainability plan.

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University improves communication in light of rising safety concerns University officials work toward stronger communication in emergency situations, acquire ‘Rave’ as new alert system

ALEXANDRIA SANDS NEWS EDITOR

For the past year, the University has been engaged in a crisis communication planning process. The process began after Chancellor Philip L. Dubois made it known to the Office of Emergency Management that crisis communication was a top priority of his that needed to be addressed.

Dubois said in an email sent to all students that the goal of the process was to learn more about how to “issue timely and effective alerts, ensure campus safety and distribute relevant information during an emergency.”

“I’ve always felt as though we have the capabilities and the capacity to do this successfully, to do a good job at crisis communications,” Director of Emergency Management Chris Gonyar said.

With the help of a consulting firm,

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the University has been studying the roles and responsibilities of the different university departments in regards to emergency situations as well as campus safety education.

A recent survey completed by students and their family members addressed the topic of preferred methods of communication.

“I think it just confirmed something that we were already aware of. People like to receive information in a variety of different ways,” Gonyar said. “We have to make sure that our system is wide enough and broad enough that we’re touching on as many people as we can.”

In response to the survey, the University has acquired a new emergency system, Rave, which will tie together all the notifications that students receive, including text

message, email, the LiveSafe app and the ability to takeover the oncampus digital screens.

According to Gonyar, Rave is faster than the previous system and will allow the Office of Emergency Management to better study analytics, showing how many students are receiving the messages and how long it is taking each message to go through.

The University conducted their first test of the new system Wednesday morning, which consisted of sending a test alert to all students, faculty and staff.

The test was successful with 85 percent of the 48,000 contact points in the system reached in under one minute and 39 seconds. There was an overall 99 percent success rate of messages.

Roughly 29,000 cell phone

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numbers received the test alert. The University is asking students who did not receive a text to update their information.

Rave also has the ability to connect to the campus sirens so that in the case of an emergency, they can go off with a click of a button, but this will involve updating the siren’s hardware, a part of the Office of Emergency Management’s long term plan.

The survey also found that students preferred to have a directive in the subject line of an alert when action needs to be taken. An example of this would be “seek shelter” in the subject line of a tornado warning or “run, hide, fight” in the subject line of an active shooter alert.

SURVEY, cont.

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SURVEY, cont.

The survey results also showed that people wanted to receive “all clear” notifications when an imminent threat had ended as well as continuous updates in emergency situations.

The University is currently making decisions on what kind of alerts will receive what types of notification.

“Through the project, we have examined what we send alerts for and how but it’s still a work in

process,” Gonyar said.

The work on the plan will continue until early summer and will include the reviewing Rave but also more detailed planning on other situations, such as if the University had to have an evacuation.

Students can expect to receive more information about the process in August, according to Dubois’ email.

Senate Update: Campus dining discussed at meeting ISA KNAPP STAFF WRITER

The UNC Charlotte Student Government Association (SGA) held their weekly student senate legislative meeting of the year April 20.

Guest Speaker Director of Auxiliary Services Ana Alvarez addressed the Senate, mostly regarding dining services since Jody Thompson, liaison to Chartwell’s, could not attend the meeting. Alvarez started off by explaining all aspects of auxiliary services which includes dining, the 49er card, the bookstore, mail and packages, copy and print and vending/ATM. Senators asked Alvarez about getting more food options on campus and she explained how changing brands can take an average of 3 - 5 years. She said that moving Bojangle’s from Cone to the Student Union alone cost around $400,000.

Senators also stated that they would like more consistency in their dining experiences on campus especially in regards to eating in dining halls.

While senators stated that they enjoy eating in the dining halls, they often find that some days are good while others are not. Alvarez stressed that while they want a great dining experience for the over 3,000 students that eat at dining halls, they are working on a balance of having a restaurant feel and being able to serve all of the students quickly and efficiently.

Alvarez discussed that Starbucks

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will be undergoing a “refresher” over the summer and she hopes to have a larger location for Starbucks in the next several years. The “grab and go” program, which referes to the products like sandwiches and yogurts that are in locations like Outtakes and Peets, will be getting an upgrade and different products will be offered.

The Chartwell’s contract is up next year and will be under review.

Alvarez said that there are only three companies in the country that service major universities, one of which is Chartwell’s.

The Executive Cabinet Confirmation Act I The Executive Cabinet Confirmation Act I was passed by a unanimous vote by the Senate. This act appointed executive secretaries to the office of the student body president. The senate approved of Mildred Martinez as the secretary for academic affairs, Raleifoot Chisom II as the secretary for information technology, Kelsey Summey as the secretary of student affairs, Amber Creft as the secretary for diversity affairs and Mackenzie Belton as the secretary for internal affairs.

The new junior class president Cheyenne Gest was also sworn in along with Payton Stull, who is a senator for the William States Lee College of Engineering.

POLICE BLOTTER APRIL 16 - 21 ACCIDENT APRIL 21

• Cameron Boulevard, driver of vehicle one struck a vehicle on University City Boulevard. Driver of vehicle one then came onto campus, struck and knocked down a light pole and hit a tree. Driver of vehicle one was arrested

by CMPD. No injuries were reported.

• Lot 19, officer took a report of a hit and run.

HARASSING PHONE CALLS APRIL 17

• Scott Hall, officer issued a no contact order, a campus appearance ticket and a trespass order from a residence hall in reference to an individual stating they were receiving harassing phone calls.

LARCENY APRIL 16

• Miltimore Hall, subject stated that his bicycle was stolen from the bike rack at Miltimore Hall. Subject later called back and stated that he located his bicycle.

INFORMATION ONLY APRIL 21

• Via telephone, victim stated that they received multiple disturbing text messages from an unknown person.

WEAPONS VIOLATION APRIL 19

• Hunt Hall, officer issued a campus appearance ticket in reference to a pair of nunchucks found in a residence hall.

For more information on Mecklenburg County arrests, visit arrestinquiryweb.co.mecklenburg.nc.us

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Photos by Chris Crews

SPRING GAME SHOWCASES GROWTH

After weeks of practice, football puts on a show for Niner Nation KATHLEEN COOK SPORTS EDITOR

This past Saturday marked the fifth annual Spring Game for the Charlotte 49ers football program. It offered players a platform to show their improvements from the offseason. The game featured four quarters of the offense, in white, going against the defense, in green, using a modified scoring system.

While traditional points were awarded for touchdowns, PAT’s and field goals, points were also given to the White team for an explosive pass, an explosive run and for a first down.

The Green team could earn points for forcing a turnover, creating a stop in the Red Zone, a threeand-out, a sack and a tackle for loss.

Head Coach Brad Lambert could be found right near the action on the field, watching the cumulation of players’ hard work pay off.

“This spring, really pleased with the way our guys have progressed. Tonight was a lot of fun.

Overall, really pleased with the guys and how hard they played,” Lambert said.

The offense showed its depth during the game, rotating through three quarterbacks: Hasaan Klugh, Brooks Barden and Joe Thompson. Klugh and Barden showed off their arms, throwing for 93 and 61 yards respectively. In his debut Thompson made use of the running game and

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led the offense in rushing yards, averaging seven yards on his three carries while passing for 35 yards.

Trent Bostick came back onto the field after redshirting last season to complete five catches for 65 yards, leading the receiving corps. After Bostick, came Workpeh Kofa, registering four catches. He was followed by Nate Mullen with three and Uriah LeMay with two completions.

The return to the lights was a welcomed experience for Bostick.

“I missed it. Being back on the field, I just appreciate it a lot more. Being out there with those guys and lining up beside them and I see the intensity in their eyes just makes me push forward and go forward,” Bostick said.

Akease Rankin kicked things off for the White team, scoring the first touchdown of the contest with a three-yard run during the first quarter. In the second quarter Robert Washington ended a six-yard run in the end zone. For the final TD of the game, Barden found tight end Ben Jacques for a seven-yard touchdown pass.

The White team posted 274 total offense yards, 189 coming from the air and 85 on the ground.

They capitalized on five of their seven Red Zone opportunities.

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On the defensive side of the ball Anthony Butler led the team with seven tackles, six of which were unassisted. Alex Highsmith was a close second, tallying six total tackles. The Green team registered 11 tackles for loss that totaled 40 yards.

Two positions that stood out to Lambert during the offseason were the offensive and defensive lines. As the fall draws closer, Lambert hopes to add some more depth to the slots.

“Those two positions are positions that we need tocontinue to build and get better,” Lambert said.

Overall Lambert feels that the 49ers’ football team is becoming prepared for their fall schedule.

Lambert and his coaching staff have been pushing players this spring in an effort to build them up and create a stronger, more unified team.

“I like the way we’ve been working. We pushed on that. Our guys have responded from January all the way through. I’ve pushed them hard his spring and they’ve responded to that,” Lambert said.

The 49ers will open their season on the road as they travel to Eastern Michigan Sept. 1. Charlotte will open the home portion of their schedule a few weeks later on Sept. 16 when they host North Carolina A&T.

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LET’S GO STREAKING

In the midst of a tough conference schedule, the Charlotte 49ers baseball team is hitting their stride

TREVOR WILT SPORTS EDITOR

Although Will Ferrell said it best in the movie “Old School,” the Charlotte 49ers baseball team is taking that famous comedic line to heart, as they are currently on a seven-game win streak, including a victory against No.17-ranked Wake Forest, helping climb their way into third place in the Conference USA standings.

This is Charlotte’s second sevengame win streak this season, but this streak has a good chance to be more lengthy and could be coming at a better time than the first streak that happened between Feb. 24 and March 4. During that first win streak, the Niners breezed by the Rider Broncs for a four-game sweep, scoring 12 or more runs in three of those games. They followed that game with a win over then No.6-ranked N.C. State, 6-5. Loren Hibbs’ crew capped off their streak by taking the first two games of the series against Xavier, helping jump start them to a 9-2 record to begin the season.

After their first streak ended, the Niners started to lose their touch on the field, with a lot of questions starting to be raised after a 5-6 loss to North Carolina A&T on March 7. After that loss, Charlotte went 8-11 over their next 19 games, but received a redemption game against the Aggies just over a month after losing by one-run to the team out of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

After Charlotte jumped out to an early lead, the Niners got popped in the mouth in the latter innings by A&T, ultimately losing 6-12 to the

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Zach Jarrett swings the bat during a game against Middle Tennessee. Photo by Chris Crews

Aggies.

Charlotte hasn’t lost since.

Just when fans started to think that the Niners couldn’t stay in the top 5 in the C-USA standings, the players and coaches had other things in mind. Charlotte traveled to Western Kentucky to take on the Hilltoppers as the first game needed 12 innings to find a winner after Charlotte squandered another great outing from Colton Laws. With three errors that day and the bullpen giving up the lead in the ninth, it seemed as if the struggles were going to continue through conference play, but Charlotte scored two runs in the 12th to secure the win. The next day, Charlotte exploded at the dish, scoring 16 runs and then won 3-1 in 11 innings to cap off their first C-USA sweep.

Battling for fourth place in the conference standings, the Niners traveled to Winston Salem, North Carolina for a mid-week game with Wake Forest, using solid outings

from Matt Brooks and Colby Bruce to secure the 6-1 win over one of the best offenses in the nation. Jackson Mims had three doubles that game and T.J. Nichting enjoyed a three-hit game as well.

After that convincing win over the Demon Deacons, Charlotte returned home to Robert and Mariam Hayes Stadium to take on Middle Tennessee, as the Niners pitching staff dazzled and the bats were hot all weekend long. Laws picked up his fifth win of the season, earning a C-USA low 1.36 ERA (Earned Run Average).

During this seven game stretch, the Charlotte pitching staff has held their opponents to 3.14 runs per game while scoring 8.57 runs per game on offense. Charlotte has had multiple bodies step up to create these eye popping numbers, including freshman right-handed pitcher Bruce. The freshman from nearby South Mecklenburg High School has pitched 10 innings out of

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the bullpen during the streak, only allowing one run.

Coming off of one of the best starts Charlotte has seen in recent history, Zach Flanagan exited Saturday night after throwing a pitch in the second inning, showing obvious pain throughout his right arm. Flanagan received Tommy John surgery just about two years ago and if the injury is what the players and coaches think it is, Hibbs will have to find another strong arm to replace Flanagan, which will probably be either freshman Matt Brooks or Bruce.

Charlotte is being led by Nichting with his C-USA’s leading .401 batting average, as the likes of Logan Sherer, Brett Netzer, Jackson Mims and Zach Jarrett are all hitting their strides as well to create an efficient lineup from top to bottom.

Right now, the Niners (24-16, 12-6 C-USA) are in a tie for second in the conference, but Old Dominion and Florida Atlantic, who are tied with Charlotte, hold the tiebreaker over the Niners. Southern Miss is first in conference play by one game, sitting at 13-5.

Charlotte does not have Southern Miss on the remaining schedule, but they do have Rice (10th in C-USA), UAB (11th), UTSA (6th) and Marshall (7th) left to play.

So with Charlotte firing on all cylinders and riding momentum going into the second half of conference play, look for the 49ers to continue their winning streak and start turning some heads going down the stretch.

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ON PEPSIS AND PROTESTS MIA SHELTON

ASSISTANT OPINION EDITOR

There has been a huge uproar over a commercial that Pepsi released featuring reality personality and supermodel Kendall Jenner. The commercial focused on topics of diversity, unity and more importantly, the Black Lives Matter movement. In the commercial people of all races, genders, ethnicities, and walks of life stopped what they were doing and joined a large group of people in protest. The commercial showed Jenner, who was in the midst of a photo shoot, stop, take off her make-up, wig and clothes and join the protesters. She then goes and grabs a Pepsi and walks up to an officer in line and hands it to him. Upon his acceptance of the Pepsi, the crowd cheers. Although there is no dialogue or conversation in the commercial, we do hear the Skip Marley song “Lions” playing throughout the commercial.

Many people have had a negative reaction to the commercial, accusing Pepsi of trivializing the Black Lives Matters movement. They also feel that the commercial makes light of the experiences of protesting.

Martin Luther King’s daughter Bernice King, tweeted about the commercial saying, “if only daddy would have known about the power of #Pepsi.”

People are also throwing blame at Kendall, saying she is not the right person to represent the movement, and accusing her of making light

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Pepsi spent weeks doing PR as damage control after their controversial commercial was released earlier this month. Photo via Tribune News Service.

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of both the movement and the experiences of protesting.

Pepsi has since released an apology stating, “Pepsi was trying to project a global message of unity, peace and understanding,” the company wrote Wednesday in a statement. “Clearly, we missed the mark and apologize. We are pulling the content and halting any further rollout. We also apologize for putting Jenner in this position.”

As a black person, I found nothing wrong with this commercial. I believe people are being very closed-minded and hypocritical and that they don’t understand what Pepsi was trying to do with the commercial nor why things like this commercial can beneficial.

First off, we need to acknowledge the fact that Pepsi and Kendall Jenner intentionally put themselves on the line to show their support for a movement that is designed to rectify an issue that is claiming the lives of many African-American people in the United States. This is a big deal because not many, if any, big and established non-black organizations and personalities have come to the aid and support of the Black Lives Matter movement and quite frankly this reaction and backlash shows why. We ask and beg people to support the movement, and then when they do, if it’s not in the way that we would want, we judge, berate and bully them.

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It is expected for black people to come out in support of their own community and quite frankly that’s why there have been limited changes. No one cares! Everyone is going to support their own, but people start caring when more people of different races and walks of life come out to support and take a stand, it gets noticed and that was Pepsi’s main point in the commercial. The Pepsi can that Kendall handed to the officer was supposed to be a symbol of peace like in the case of the ‘flower child,’ where a female protester stuck a flower on a gun barrel during a protest. If everyone unified and came out to take a stand, peacefully, we can’t be ignored and things would have to change. If it wasn’t for the help of President Johnson, Martin Luther King Jr. wouldn’t have gotten

the rights for blacks that we have now. In order to succeed we need help from someone else. We can’t do it alone anymore.

This notion that Pepsi took protesting lightly is a little skewed.

Yes, protesting and marching are not as fun as they portrayed, but some of the thinks they described do happen.

For example, in the Women’s March, there were women smiling, laughing, taking pictures and having a good time while they were marching.

They knew they were making a difference, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have fun along the way.

Also, let’s take a minute to note the difference between a protest and a riot.

A riot is “a noisy, violent public disorder caused by a group or crowd of persons, as by a crowd protesting against another group, a government

policy, etc., in the streets.”

A protest is “an expression or declaration of objection, disapproval or dissent, often in opposition to something a person is powerless to prevent or avoid.”

There have been more riots than protests in a lot of the demonstrations for the Black Lives Matter movement. This by no means warrants the brutal and inhumane actions for the police during these demonstrations, but it does explain the lack of support. If during our demonstrations we are trashing local businesses, harming our own people, and behaving like belligerent people, why would anyone help us? If we are hurting our own why would others think we want to help our own?

The protest in the commercial was both organized and impromptu

as well. Those who were already march had a planned they stuck to it. They had their signs and chanted their lines, but they never once grew hostile or showed animosity. Instead, the more people that joined the more fun it became. Different people coming together, girls with blue hair and hijabs, boys with braids and Mohawks dancing, chanting, marching, making a difference together. That is what we need more of. We need more people to stand up and come together. As Skip Marley says, “We are the lions, we are the chosen, we gonna shine out the dark, we are the movement, this generation. You better know who we are.” We are one, so let’s stop being so cynical and closed-minded and become one.

A student-led Black Lives Matter protest on campus from September 2016, the week after the shooting of Keith Scott. Photo by Pooja Pasupula

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Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions

‘TOMMY’S HONOUR’ IS ABOUT AS SPECIAL AS AIR This Scottish golf biopic is about as interesting as watching paint dry HUNTER HEILMAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Growing up, many male members of my family played golf, with most of them still continuing to do so regularly. While I was never good enough to properly pick up the sport, I did pick up quite a few golf video games that I still play to this day, primarily the “Hot Shots Golf” and “Tiger Woods PGA Tour” games for PlayStation 2. While it’s certainly not the most exciting sport in the world, there’s something about golf that’s inherently interesting and magnetic about it. Going into “Tommy’s Honour,” I brought that interest into the film hoping that it would carry me through to the end with the little knowledge I had of the film when I bought a ticket. As films about golf are few and far between, I figured I would check it out.

Thomas “Tommy” Morris, Jr. (Jack Lowden) is the son of Thomas Morris, Sr. (Peter Mullan), a caddy and groundskeeper for a prestigious Scottish golf course in the late 1860s. Tommy finds the job to be demeaning to his father and doesn’t wish to carry on the profession, but to make his own way as a professional golfer. As he

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showcases his skills to the locals, he soon becomes such an accomplished champion that he finds his way around the entire United Kingdom as one of the best golfers of his time.

Does “Tommy’s Honour” sound boring? Because it is. In fact, “Tommy’s Honour” might be the dullest movie I’ve ever had the privilege to see in a theater, though it’s far from the worst.

In fact, “Tommy’s Honour” isn’t a completely atrocious film on its own merits, just an incredibly uninspired one. I would go so far to say that the film hit the jackpot in snagging Roadside Attractions as a distributor, because I can’t imagine the film going anywhere but on BBC America on a quiet Thursday night. The film has no discernable element that even slightly sets it apart from the pack of biopics that hit the market in search of awards recognition each year.

The performances in the film are fine, if very inconsistent. Both Lowden and Mullan have high and low periods of the film in which they go from the dramatically engaging to the level of ham APR. 25 - MAY. 1, 2017

one might expect from a television movie, which heads into the film’s second biggest issue. There is an inherent cheapness that pervades the film from start to finish in a way that director Jason Connery never seems to be able to work around.

The film seems to be shot on cheaper cameras with an uninspired eye that makes the film watchable, but borderline impossible to make it to the end without wanting to leave at least twice.

Quality wise, it’s not horrible, but its cheapness and general hamminess surrounding the screenplay and cast make the film’s complete lack of anything of interest all the more unforgiving.

The worst part is that the film doesn’t even handle its golf segments in any sort of interesting way like it could have been. Golf might not be the most exciting sport in the world, but if “Hot Shots Golf” can make it fast-paced, quirky and exciting in a silly video game, there’s no excuse why “Tommy’s Honour” couldn’t at least been engaging.

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TRICKS OF THE TRADE Exploring the Trickster archetype through theater and acrobatics

ELISSA MILLER STAFF WRITER

The “trickster” archetype is prevalent in most cultures around the world. There is Loki from Norse mythology and Hermes from the Greeks. The stories of Robin Hood and Jack and the Beanstalk contain popular European tricksters. UNC Charlotte’s Department of Theater chose to explore this concept with their newest production, “Trickster,” which focused on Southern fables from a variety of backgrounds. The show ran from April 20-25 in the quad in front of CHHS. The director himself, Assistant Professor Carlos Cruz, said that he approved of the use of cell phones and encouraged audience engagement with the performers.

This was emphasized by the beginning of the performance, in which the character of Kid (Tykiique Cuthkelvin) ran through the audience chased by various students playing police officers. The premise of the show centered around the fact that Kid needed to learn the ways of tricksters to successfully escape the police. What followed were four short tales of southern tricksters, narrated by a Ringmaster (Amberlin McCormick) and her troupe of circus people.

The first of these tales told of Brer’ Bear (Dennis Dylan Lighthall) and Skunk. It told the story of how the Skunk eventually stole Bear’s house from his large family. The costumes for this were excellent, with full body bear suits for the bear family and a tail and hat for Skunk. This story also featured a musical number in which the Skunk convinces the Bear family they need brooms, one I believe was largely inspired by “Everybody Needs A Thneed” from “The Lorax.”

The second story was that of Brer’ Rabbit (Tykiique Cuthkelvin) and the Tar Baby (Arden Boyle) of Disney’s Splash Mountain fame.

Cast member Arden Boyle was brilliant as the Tar Baby. I didn’t even think it was physically possible

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to be that flexible. Her tap dance duet with Meghan Sharpe was equally enjoyable. Another Brer’ Rabbit story followed, the fable of Brer’ Rabbit and Old Man Terrapin (Matt Miller). Miller as Terrapin especially stood out from the cast.

He played the role as an almost comedic character and often moved in slow motion both to emphasize his role as a turtle and for humor. I also enjoyed the references to popular culture, as the cast sang “The Eye of the Tiger” and “Chariots of Fire” during the race scene.

The show’s final fable was entitled “When the Dead Play Tricks” and told the story of how Opossum (Quinn Watt-Riback) managed to escape from Coyote (Samuel Petre).

It also included a short tale about Coyote as he attempted to catch turkeys for dinner. The choreography for the chase scene was lovably campy and I especially loved the cast’s rendition of “My Heart Will Go On” as a Turkey attempted to fly before being eaten by Coyote. In the end, the show returned to reality.

Kid, remembering all the new skills he was taught by the circus people, successfully convinces the police to release him. The cast takes a bow.

The best part of “Trickster” was the cast. I have never seen a show in which it was so obvious the cast was having fun and this energy from them was infectious. Not only that, they were extraordinarily talented.

The circus-inspired theme allowed them to showcase these talents, whether it was through aerial silks (Samuel Petre), aerial hoops (Arden Boyle) or group dance numbers.

The enthusiastic and talented cast, excellent costume design and laid back atmosphere all combined to create a unique and entertaining theater experience. The show will also travel, with the cast performing on April 29 at Aldersgate for the International Sandwich Festival.

ACROSS 1 Keebler cracker 6 Hotel employee 10 Consequently 14 Reference containing insets 15 Big name in luxury hotels 16 What some hogs hog, with “the” 17 Sheet for plotting in math class 19 Rich rocks 20 Added to the collection plate 21 Scrutinizes 23 Menlo Park inventor 25 Fort Worth sch.

26 Prohibition __ 29 Advent mo.

30 Silent approvals 33 Author Capote 35 Gridiron pass-defense scheme 37 Brand for Fido 40 Misspell or misspeak

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41 Nibble (on) 42 TV series starter 47 Points a finger at 48 Decant 49 Soft slip-on 52 Traditional Asian sauce base 53 Seventh Greek letter 55 One-named Tejano singer 57 Eggs __: brunch dish 61 General Bradley 62 Object of adoration 64 Market research target 66 Door openers 67 Provide a fake alibi for, say 68 Come together 69 Minimal effort 70 Storied loch 71 Mystic’s deck DOWN 1 Took a sharp turn 2 Online financial site 3 Like Croats and Serbs

4 Carton sealers 5 Volcanic debris 6 Reaction to a bad pun 7 Miami Sound Machine sound machines 8 Klutzy 9 Dish Network competitor 10 Jogger’s pace 11 Member of the Apocalypse quartet 12 Abu Dhabi’s fed.

13 Militant ‘60s campus org.

18 Attach, as a name tag 22 Restore to health 24 Tokyo-born Yoko 27 Hindu melody 28 From the beginning 31 Like the diving-board end of the pool 32 Rx, for short 34 Hard-to-resist impulse 35 Go like heck 36 Estimate words 37 BOLO equivalents 38 Disney’s “__ & Stitch” 39 Don Juans 43 Many a manga fan 44 “Coming Out of the Dark” singer Gloria 45 Expels by force 46 Dr. with Grammys 49 Life story 50 Running by itself, and where the first words of 17-, 35-, 42- and 64-Across can be placed 51 “Magic” transport 54 Photoshop maker 56 Doone of fiction 58 Otherwise 59 Puts frosting on 60 Scissors snips 62 Cold War prez 63 Org. busting dealers 65 __ reaction: instinctive feeling

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APR. 25 - MAY. 1, 2017

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RESTAURANT REVIEW: BLACKFINN AMERIPUB The perfect choice for a night out in uptown

ANGIE BAQUEDANO ASST. LIFESTYLE EDITOR

In the heart of uptown at the infamous Epicentre resides your new favorite American Pub, Blackfinn. Happy faces greet you at the door of the two-story restaurant and lead you upstairs or to the bar, your choice. Two easy to walk up stairs lead you to the sunny second floor where another bar awaits if you decide the dimly lit bottom floor isn’t your style. The bottom floor is frequented by businessmen and executives, always ready to strike up a conversation over a drink or two. The second floor offers long tall tables with stools for large parties and booths for smaller groups. Big windows allow light to fill the room and the second bar is bright and open for business.

My visit to Blackfinn was the very first time I ever stepped foot in the pub. I arrived with an empty stomach, ready to eat my heart out and I did. I started off with the most delicious cocktail I’ve had in a very long time. It was like a citrusy dessert before dinner; if you love lemonade the Lemon Berry Cooler is for you. It consisted of New Amsterdam berry vodka, freshly squeezed lemonade, Sprite and mint leaves shaken to perfection. It was hard not to guzzle it down within seconds; do not fret if you’re not much of a citrus fan because Blackfinn has the cocktail to meet anyones tastes. The other drink I indulged in during dinner was the Blind Mule, which was a mixture of moonshine, ginger beer, a lime wedge and simple syrup. Both were fantastic drinks and offered different flavors to ponder. The Blind Mule went down easy and the taste of ginger was never overpowering or underwhelming.

After my first drink at the bar downstairs I was led upstairs by a happy blonde waitress. First I went through a round of Pub Snacks, starting off with the crunchiest order of Bacon Crackerjacks, which is sweet caramel popcorn tossed with salted peanuts and crispy bacon. This was the best thing on the menu; I repeat the best. Everything I tried was wonderful and savory and I have to say that if I could marry the Bacon Crackerjacks I would.

It was sweet, it was salty, it was the perfect snack

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in between drinks, I don’t think there is a soul that would dislike this menu item.

The other pub snack I got to try was the fried deviled eggs served with coleslaw. If you like deviled eggs, this is the perfect adventurous snack to pick. Generally most people are used to having deviled eggs only at home because it is a common homemade snack, but I promise you will not regret getting it at Blackfinn. They might as well add “homemade” to its name on the menu because I think it just might be better.

Next we moved to small plates. If you’re hungry but not too hungry, this portion of the menu is directed at you. Also if you like fried anything, you’ll be happy to hear that I tried the fried oysters and the fried green tomatoes and I may or may not have hogged the plates. The fried oyster was dipped in buttermilk-brine and was served with cajun tartar and cocktail sauce. If you aren’t super adventurous when it comes to food but you like seafood, this small plate that is crunchy on the outside, the right amount of soft ratio on the inside and drenched in cocktail sauce, that has a faint hint of sweetness, will change your life.

If you’re wanting something a bit more unique then go for the fried green tomatoes served with pimento cheese. You have to dip it in the pimento cheese to get the full experience as it’s packed with flavor and creamy as can be. You won’t be able to put it down.

After that I moved on to a pear, bleu cheese and arugula salad, and a plate of chicken fried chicken, cheerwine ribs, and chipotle steak frites.

OH MY GOD. Can I say anything bad about my experience? I wished my stomach was larger, in a moment of weakness. Everything and I mean everything was fried, baked, tossed, grilled to perfection. If you want something light and unique the Pear Bleu Arugula salad will convince you with every bite that you are lounging on your sun soaked veranda, enjoying the sharpness of the bleu cheese perfectly balanced with the sweetness of the pear. The chicken fried chicken will either A. remind you why the South is the APR. 25 - MAY. 1, 2017

best place to live in or B. convince you to move to the South. It was served with ham hock collard greens, black pepper gravy and garlic roasted potatoes that might even beat grandma’s secret recipe.

The Cheerwine ribs are very sweet but not to the point where it’s too much. The baby back ribs are tender, dry rubbed and glazed with cheerwine BBQ sauce. What a better way to celebrate being in the carolinas than with North Carolina produced Cheerwine, made into a BBQ glaze.

Finally my personal favorite of the entrees was the Chipotle Steak Frites, which reminded me of “Lomo Saltado,” a peruvian dish, so if you’re feeling like you want something a little on the Latin side get the Chipotle Steak Frites. It was skirt steak in garlic butter on top of a bed of the crunchiest natural cut fries. Blackfinn certainly has something for anyone’s taste, whether you want something light or something that will make you drool days later when you think about it.

Truly everything was phenomenal, I can’t say there was anything that made me think twice about visiting Blackfinn. I’m dying to go back, as the staff was so attentive and the waiters, bar staff and even cooks asked how my meal was and if I was enjoying it. They made sure that my glass was never empty and I had enough napkins and my used plates were removed to give me more space. Anyone in the staff could have probably recited every ingredient to me if I had asked and it was enjoyable to be surrounded by people who truly care about the quality of their service.

Blackfinn currently has four locations with three of those locations in North Carolina and a fourth one coming soon to the historic downtown of Wilmington, N.C. Go experience the Finn for yourself and get an extra to go box of bacon crackerjacks for the road. Happy dining!

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FINALS PREPARATION A survival guide for the worst week ever BRIANNA SUMPTER STAFF WRITER

The time has finally arrived and it is time to prepare for finals.

Preparing for finals is obviously not something we want to do, but it is definitely something we have to do. This time of the semester can be very stressful for students due to the fact that a lot of us procrastinate when it comes to studying, and final exams can make or break your grade. The key thing to remember when it comes to preparing for finals is the realization that there is not one set way to study. A lot of people get caught up in looking at study tutorials online and trying to follow the same study habits as their friends, but the truth of the matter is there is no set way to study. The best thing to do is to find what works for you and do it. For some people, making flash cards helps. For others, repetition and writing things down works, and music works for some people also. Find what works for YOU, and continue to do things that way.

Also, for most people, cramming everything in days before your exam does not work. Not only does it put a lot of pressure on your brain, but it also takes away from the other things you need to be successful when it comes to finals such as sleep and food. So many students spend hours in the library, pulling all nighters and staying awake for days before exams, and personally I think that can be very dangerous. Your body needs sleep, and without it you are not as alert and are not able to function properly. All of us know the importance of getting good grades on your final exams. For a lot of people, these tests are the deal breakers between letter grades and passing classes. It is understandable that we want to succeed during this time, but I assure you your body needs the proper amount of sleep and nutrition and without it you can become very sick. You can also oversleep and miss an important event in your life, so please keep in mind during this time that sleep is ESSENTIAL. With that being said, I recommend that you start to prepare for your finals at least three weeks to a month before the final. I am aware that that might not be practical for some due to jobs and other activities, but the sooner you make time to study, the better the outcome will be. Something that I have also found helpful in the past is to study with a group of people. Studying with a group of people gives you the advantage of having multiple perspectives of one situation, and it also allows you to get feedback from your peers regarding the classes that you are in. For me, I have learned that studying with people helps because I have much less of a chance to fall asleep. Like I said earlier, not everything works for everyone, but I would keep the studying in groups option in mind. Only you can determine what works for you, so find your ideal studying habits, focus on what is important, get some sleep, stay hydrated and STAY CALM. If you put your mind to it you can accomplish anything, may your final exams be forever in your favor!

NINERTIMES.COM

APR. 25 - MAY. 1, 2017

RECIPE: RASPBERRY PASSIONFRUIT SPARKLING LEMONADE ANGIE BAQUEDANO ASST. LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Summer is around the corner and apartment pools are finally open and ready for business.

Rather than sipping on a plain old lemonade, make yourself a quick, easy and refreshing spritzer. Make it for parties, for a day on the town shopping or even to just treat yourself to something different.

Ingredients: ¾ Cup Perrier Sparkling Mineral Water ¼ Cup Simple Syrup ¼ Cup Lemon Juice ½ Cup Fresh Raspberries ½ Passion Fruit 1. Begin with the lemon, cut it in half and squeeze as much juice out of it as you can. Most small sized lemons will give you about ¼ of a cup, that’s all you need (Of course sometimes that doesn’t happen so just get an extra lemon just in case). Put the lemon juice off to the side.

2. Gather about half a cup of raspberries, wash them and muddle. You don’t need anything but a spoon in order to do that so don’t worry about getting all fancy. Just squish those babies up until it’s closer to liquid than solid, pour the raspberries into the bottom of the cup. The raspberries will give the drink a tarty taste and a beautiful ruby color.

3. Cut the passionfruit in half and scoop out the passionfruit out of one half into your muddling cup. passionfruit will make your concoction chunkier, more delicious but also sweeter, not too sweet though so don’t fret.

Muddle it up and then move it into your cup on top of the raspberries.

5. Measure a ¼ of a cup of simple syrup and then pour on top of the raspberries and passionfruit. All simple syrup is is just water and sugar boiled down to a syrup. You can make it from scratch but give it about an hour to cool down, it’s going to make your drink nice and sweet.

6. Next add your ¼ of a cup of lemon juice to make lemonade-y and mix with your muddling spoon.

7. Finally pour ¾ of a cup of perrier into your cup, mix and add as much ice as you desire.

Sit back and enjoy a refreshing spritzer that is as beautiful as it is tasty.

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ANGIE BAQUEDANO ASST. LIFESTYLE EDITOR

“The Science Expo is important because it’s important to introduce science to children at a younger age. I believe science can change and cure. Everything in some way uses science, the phones that we are using right now and even my glasses are an innovation of science.

Cell phones help you with communication, you can record, take pictures, you can use it for multiple things. My glasses help me see better. It’s not enough to just do science in a laboratory because I will die eventually and all the work that I do is nothing if there is no one there to carry it forward.”

- Diana Joy

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