3 | FEATURES
TBL | Jan 21-Jan 27, 2015
Winter Wonder Drag Makes It Reign for a Third Year
Photo by Hitashi Bansal | The Bottom Line Thea Cabrera Montejo Before the third-annual Winter Wonder Drag even began, the palpable anticipation among the crowd raised a sense of unbelievable eagerness. The two-hour jam-packed event, though incredibly exciting from start to finish, was more than about fierce drag kings and queens—it was about solidifying the supportive and inclusive community Avery Daniels established three years ago. Daniels is the founder of Winter Wonder Drag. A University of California, Santa Barbara alumnus and psychology major, Daniels coordinated the event with the help of Jenna Scyde, another alumnus with an English major and a specialization in medieval literature. On Thursday, Jan. 15, Winter Wonder Drag 2015 opened its doors at
8:30 PM in The Hub to more than 300 students who were eager to spectate nine incredibly talented queens and one impeccable king strut. Daniels and Scyde hosted the event unscripted. They shared their vast energy on stage with performers, including Parker Quin, Tyler Diamond, Frita, Athena, Genesi, Isis, and many more. Initially, Winter Wonder Drag began as a Queer Student Union fundraiser and morphed into what it is today: a safe space to celebrate pride, community, and queerness. All the arduous effort of reaching out to performers, creating the lineup, organizing the music, and establishing a fully functioning show was apparent. As Jenna Scyde said, “I have a great love for UCSB’s queer community and would do anything for them. I’m sassy and uncensored onstage, but at the root
of it, it is all love.” Coordinators of the event were able to make this year even more special with their first professional drag queen, the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 3, Raja. With lavishly long legs, Raja strutted the stage to Hi Fashion’s “Amazing” with intense elegance. Afterwards, she hosted a questions and answer portion of the show, where she addressed the thriving drag culture, her inequivalent style, and her relationship with her career. This event was an inspiration to all, but Raja’s presence amplified it for first-year student Michael Moore. He revealed that his own pivotal journey was in parallel to Raja’s triumph. He said, “Watching [Raja] definitely made me feel more comfortable coming out.” Glitter, confetti, and powerful renditions of pop idols such as Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus,
and Regina George dominated the stage that night. Performers knew how to tease and please the audience, and the crowd reciprocated with roaring applauses and never-ending support. The king and queens radiated on stage, and their ferocity was constantly validated by the loving and highly encouraging community. “I love that our school does this so much,” said fourth-year Heather Landazvri, an avid drag-show-attendee. “It’s so supportive, so progressive.” In the midst of thriving individuality and energy manifested from Winter Wonder Drag, one can only embrace the community that is progressively normalizing different gender identities. The atmosphere was undeniably empowering, and each performer possessed their own ineffable attitude. Shayan Hosseinzadeh, an alumnus
and biochemistry major, as well as the winner of the Diva Games, has attended every Winter Wonder Drag. He said, “It’s really inspired me to embrace the drag culture and come out and express myself and feel confident about myself.” Various forms of ingenuity and creativity were displayed on the stage that night, and it was not uncommon for performers to be showered in dollar bills from audience members. Winter Wonder Drag, a pinnacle of entertainment, ferocity, and fabulousness, was no doubt entertaining—but on a deeper level, it was awe-inspiring and liberating. Exuding unwavering confidence, this event, for the third year in a row, helped solidify an inclusive stance at this campus. “Drag is imperative; drag is present; drag it here,” said Raja. “It is part of the dialogue, so let’s celebrate it!”
UCSB Pep Band Puts the ‘Thunder’ in ‘Thunderdome’ Lilian Kim Just like every other Wednesday, the University of California, Santa Barbara pep band held their weekly rehearsal, conducted by fourth-year history major Charles Cummins, at a room in the Thunderdome. A band of 20 students performed a seemingly endless set of varied music, ranging from pop music to “oldies but goodies” throughout the night. It was easy to catch a glimpse of the energy that empowers our athletes and honors the spirt of our school. According to co-president Emma Manley, a fourth-year film and media studies major, the band dedicates a lot of time and effort in maintaining not only the peppy attitude of the band, but also the reputation of UCSB athletics. At every home soccer and basketball game, it is hard to miss the spirit upheld by the UCSB’s pep band cheering on our school. UCSB’s pep band started in 1998 as a studentrun organization with a jumble of 10 to 12 people. Today, the club has grown double in size and plays a diverse group of instruments, ranging
from xylophones that fit on the lap to a matte black tuba that proudly displays the word “Gauchos” on its horn. Through every song, these artists sway their body to the beat of the songs; some tap their feet, others bob their heads and sway their body to the melody. During this dress rehearsal, after a 15-minute break, the band opened up with a fanfare called “The Middle,” by Jimmy Eat World. Full of fun and excitement, their performance is electric. Afterwards they transitioned into a song completely opposite of the first; it is intense and fierce, and the roar of competition and pressure is prevalent as the drumbeat pounds on and on. The next two songs are more familiar: Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance” and Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone.” As the rehearsal came to a close, the band suddenly raced up to the center of the room, got on their knees, and broke out into a serenade. With smiles and waving hands, they played Righteous Brother’s “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” with passion and exhilaration. This is one of the pep band’s longest traditions, as they
frequently serenade longtime fans of both the band and the UCSB athletic team, friends, and even parents who are seen dancing to the music with their children. Third-year environmental science major Sarah Lloyd summarized pep band, saying that “[we] come in, set our stands and chairs, get out our instruments, play some lovely tunes, have a good laugh, socialize, meet new people, and lots of laughter.” The 15-minute break was not the only time all the band members shared numerous jokes and laughs. The rehearsal was filled with bursts of energy throughout the songs and enthusiasm that emanated through the night. The beauty of pep band, according to fourth-year aquatic biology major and clarinet player Rebecca Howard, is the opportunity to be able to play music with people without having the intentions of making a career out of it. Pep band is a space where people can make different experiences. Manley said that she made some of her best friends in pep band while “screaming our heads off cheering for the teams.” What the club appreciates the
Photo by Frances Castellon | The Bottom Line UCSB Pep Band practices in the Thunderdome Founders Room most about the games is the amount of support that they garner from fans and audiences. Manley recounts how some audiences have witnessed the growth and improvement of the band throughout the years, and in fact, many people go out to either thank the band or compliment them on their performances. After all, the pep band is composed of students who have internships, jobs, and academics to focus on outside of the band.
Howard describes pep band as “one of the best study breaks.” Cummins said, “[Pep band] is a good way to unwind from a stressful scholastic endeavor career.” Amidst the numerous nights of performing at cold soccer games at Harder Stadium or stuffy basketball games at the Thunderdome, third-year environmental science major Sarah Lloyd has one simple request: she says, “Come and say hi and clap for us.”
Dr. Michio Kaku To Give Talk at Granada Theatre Kyle Roe STAFF WRITER As most high school teachers are painfully aware, it’s pretty hard to get people interested in subjects involving higher thought. The general public has an uncanny tendency to pay more attention to what is entertaining and trendy in the moment than serious conflicts around the world or which politician is representing them in office— and don’t even try to mention science. All those tedious hours spent in uncomfortable desks listening to some teacher drone on and on about equations and cells enter one ear and are thrown out the other by the eternally cynical question: “When am
I ever going to use this?” Because in the end, what is fun will always triumph over what is important if what is important is deemed boring. In reality, the processes responsible for shaping our Earth and the life inhabiting it are endlessly fascinating and beautiful to a fault. All science needs is the right publicist, and that’s where Dr. Michio Kaku comes in. Kaku is a world renowned physicist and co-founder of string field theory, a branch of string theory, which aims to describe all fundamental forces in the universe. He is a well-known popularizer of science who has written many books and appeared on a variety of television programs in the name of promoting scientific knowledge and
discoveries to a broad, mainstream audience. Like Carl Sagan and Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Kaku uses our addiction to technology as a medium to promote a subject once limited to libraries and classrooms. Thanks to University of California, Santa Barbara’s Arts & Lectures, Kaku is making a stop at the Granada Theatre in downtown Santa Barbara on Jan. 28 to promote his new book, The Future of the Mind: The Scientific Quest to Understand, Enhance, and Empower the Mind. The book delves into theoretical ideas about how technology could alter and enhance our minds in the future. Telepathy and telekinesis, ideas usually reserved for science fiction and superhero comics, are
discussed as an actual scientific possibility. He writes about computers with the ability to download our consciousness, interpreting our human experience as a series of neural signals. Even more exciting, potentially invasive, and futuristic possibilities are mentioned in the book, aiming to enthrall the laymen and challenge the ambitious scientist to fulfill his innovative prophecies. Kaku will likely also discuss topics from his other recent books, which focused heavily on physics, space travel, and robotics. All of these ideas are revolutionary and incredibly cool, so if you want to have your mind blown and learn a little about science in the process, Dr. Michio Kaku’s lecture is exactly what you’re looking for.