Mar
11
Each year students roll out to audition for the Union Programming Board’s annual Sooner Idol competition. Ten of those students are chosen to compete. One wins. Last year, that winner was Vocal Performance major Keegan Josephson, a freshman at the time. Channeling the one and only Adam Levine for his first round song, Keegan worked the mic stand, danced, and sang his way to the top 4. His second round song took everyone back to his or her childhood. Choosing “Go the Distance” from the popular Disney movie Hercules, Keegan showcased his range and tackled notes that would make any vocal instructor proud. And he may have earned himself an admirer or twenty in the process.
Keegan has since been seen singing around campus in several different venues. From Sooner Scandals to the BYX A Capella group to performing his own song at the Mr. OU pageant last year, he has become a familiar face and friend to many of us. However, there’s one genre of music that Keegan excels at that we don’t get to hear year round. This weekend, just short of a year after winning Sooner Idol 2012, Keegan made his OU Theatre debut as Bardolfo in the comedic opera Falstaff.
I will be honest. The opera was long. Like, a solid two and a half hours long, but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it and found myself laughing the whole way through. The plot revolves around Sir. John Falstaff, an old, overweight knight who has eaten himself into poverty (with the help of his two followers/thieves Pistola and Bardolfo). In an effort to alleviate his monetary burdens, Falstaff writes two identical letters to two wealthy married women. Of course, the women discover his treachery and the rest of the play concerns their plans to take the overweight knight down a few notches (In measures of pride that is. Falstaff’s belt notches stay exactly where they are).
Bardolfo, played by Keegan, serves as a source of comic relief throughout the show, and the part wonderfully showcased his strong tenor voice and great acting ability. How he managed to keep singing after falling off a bed, getting thrown across a floor, being smacked with brooms, and jumping/climbing onto most of the props, I might never know. All I know is that I was rolling with laughter any time Keegan was onstage, especially during the last scene when he is disguised as the maiden Nannetta and appeared to feel a little too comfortable wearing a replica of her dress. I can’t put my finger on why I thought that, but it might have been the twirling. That’s right. He twirled. And his hair for the performance looked scarily like that of Edward Cullen in the first twilight movie, which he actually pointed out himself after the show. Fortunately for him, I let it slide and not taint my opinion of his overall performance, which was truly fantastic. The kid’s what we call a triple threat- a master of singing, dancing, and acting.
And it all started with him winning UPB’s Sooner Idol a year ago.
At least, that’s what we’re telling people.
Auditions for Sooner Idol 2013 are March 27th and 28th. We’ll have more info on our website, facebook page, and twitter soon!
-Dehra McGuire
UPB Secretary and Sooner Idol Chair
Feb
26
Free food, foam party, Sasquatch petitions, and potatotini bars. Any OU student can readily associate these things with the Union Programming Board, but not many students know that our purpose goes much deeper than entertainment and giveaways.
For every event and aesthetically pleasing poster we plan, UPB has a specific audience and outcome in mind that we are trying to reach. Most obviously, our executive committee aspires for there to be “always something” for the general student body and campus guests to do with their time at our Union. This is the side of UPB that most students encounter on a daily basis.
However, the presence of a second, and possibly more important, audience influences our planning as well: our general members. A general member is defined as any student who has attended a UPB meeting or assisted with an event, even if only on one occasion. These members, although many of them may only pass through, are the heart of UPB. Only by their time and dedication are we able to serve the student body, and as a result, their development is one of our top priorities.
We’re not in the business of using our members as manpower at our events; rather, we aim to empower these students to take ownership of these events and the positive impact they make on campus. Sometimes it only takes giving someone the permission to be a leader for them to step forward and fulfill the role.
We operate by the Three E’s: Engage students, encourage leaders, and enrich lives. We engage students by giving them quality ways to spend their down time. We encourage leaders by providing an environment where students can grow at their own pace. Finally, we enrich lives by letting these two groups interact together to create the magic of Union programming that results in great things like free food and foam parties. Interested? http://www.ou.edu/content/upb/Join.html
Feb
22
The Bond movies have been around for a while. Here is our Film Series Chair, Seth Hafer’s list of the top five Bond movies of all time. Don’t forget to see the newest installment, Skyfall for free at Meacham tonight or tomorrow.
1. Goldfinger – This is undeniably the best Bond. Critics and Bond fans everywhere agree that Goldfinger is what really got the ball rolling for the beloved series by establishing a successful formula – gadgets (like a scuba suit with a seagull on it), gorgeous girls, a diabolical villain, and impeccable style.
2. From Russia With Love – From Russia With Love is the second Bond film ever made. After the success of Dr. No, Bond’s budget doubled. He went from using a strand of hair as a burglary identifier to using a functional jetpack. From Russia With Love earns its place on this list through the sheer awesomeness of its toys.
3. Casino Royale – Daniel Craig as James Bond really turned the series around. It was a new, dark, and gritty James Bond in a time when everything had to be new, dark, and gritty. It worked, though! …which is why you should totally come see the latest installment in the series, Skyfall, tonight at 8 or 11!
4. Goldeneye – I don’t mean much offense to Pierce Brosnan for mostly excluding his Bond outings from this list. His first turn as Bond gave us Goldeneye, and while the film was pretty good, its N64 video game reincarnation catapulted it into cult status. What I’m saying is this spot actually belongs to my nostalgia for the game, and has almost absolutely nothing to do with the movie.
5. Skyfall – Remember when Daniel Craig’s James Bond really turned the series around in Casino Royale? He (and, you know, everyone that worked on the movie) did it again with Skyfall! This installment fully realizes the return to the beginning of the Bond series that Casino Royale tried to be. Then it was a fresh Bond in a plot loosely based on the first book of Ian Fleming’s series. Skyfall, on the other hand, takes us back to the Bond days we all love and remember, mostly by trying to recapture the spirit of Goldfinger through using the props of Goldfinger. Come check it out for free either tonight or tomorrow in Meacham!
Feb
21
UPB Film series chair priovides a counter argument to Jacob.
1. The CGI Baby
You know the one. It’s on everyone’s mind as they talk about Breaking Dawn pt. 2. As much as I wish I could put a positive spin on this one, I’m at a loss for words. That baby is truly, truly outrageous. AND… it must be seen to be believed! There we go. I knew the positive draw was in there somewhere. Maybe I shouldn’t have started with such a hard one…
2.Everyone Dies
So, without giving too much away, Twilight is about to go Hamlet on your butt. Watching as everyone dies is my favorite part of Hamlet, and it’s my favorite part of Twilight too. Getting to see all of the characters you know get their heads ripped off in a way-less-heart-crushing-than-anything-from-J.K-Rowling way is well worth a watch. MIND BLOWN.
3. Indie Soundtrack
I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve actually always been a fan of the Twilight soundtracks, or at the very least the majority of the bands on them. As an avid listener to indie music, it’s (sometimes) nice to finally see my favorite bands getting the attention they deserve. I won’t go into how maybe I’m not listening to them as much as I once was, but I will say that the Twilight execs in charge of the soundtracks know what they’re doing. Passion Pit, Feist, and St. Vincent? Yes, please.
4. Kristen Stewart
K-Stew and Co. are back! It’s easy to get distracted by her most recent tabloid exploits, but at least when you go see a Twilight movie, you know Kristen and Rob are meant to be together forever. Come see the happy couple while they were happy together! You know, for two hours.
5.The End
This is it, guys. It’s not quite the end of an era send-off that Harry Potter had, but I bet there’ll be crying anyway. The good kind, too. It’s the last of the Twilight movies, and if you’ve seen the previous four, then I’m pretty sure you owe it to yourself to come see the very last one. Heck, even if you’ve only seen the first fourth one, that was just half of a story. Come catch at Twilight Breaking Dawn pt. 2 for FREE this Friday night (2/15) at 6, 9, and/or midnight in Meacham auditorium!
P.S.
How’s this for a shameless plug? Don’t forget about Blood, Love and Chocolate (the chocolate factory) the same night from 7-9 in the Will Rogers food court. You should have expected it. This is our blog, after all.
Jan
16
For decades the idea of Sasquatch, or Bigfoot, is something that has greatly fascinated scientists, explorers, and people who think the Moon landing was fake. This fascination is understandable, as Sasquatch is perhaps the greatest mystery our society faces.
For those not aware of Sasquatch, he is commonly referred to as the hide-and-seek world champion. Since The University of Oklahoma is a school of champions he has become the mascot for OU’s Union Programming Board.
UPB is greatly concerned with recent attempts to mess with Sasquatch. We are afraid the Jack Link’s commercials are promoting actions that are going to put Sasquatch in jeopardy. UPB thinks Sasquatch is too important and action needs to be taken to ensure its protection. We want to see the government take action to save the last wonder of North America.
Luckily for us we are not alone in our support of Sasquatch. Someone has started a petition to the Obama Administration in an attempt to solve this problem. The petition asks the government to “officially recognize the Sasquatch as an indigenous species and have them lawfully protected by laws banning any hunting.” We at UPB think this is a great and noble idea and hope the entire student body at OU can get behind it to help save Sasquatch.
There is a long way for this petition to go to reach the required number of signatures, but we think we can make it. Go to the site, create an account and sign the petition. Sasquatch is a champion and a national treasure and he needs your support.
The site for the petition is https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/officially-recognize-sasquatch-indigenous-species-and-have-them-lawfully-protected-laws-banning-any/FlSBT2vj. Please take the time to help us. We all know what happened when King Kong was captured, we cannot afford to have that happen to Sasquatch.
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