Tag: campus events
Founder’s Day 2007: Party Like it’s 1853
On October 5th 1853, Horace Mann delivered his inaugural address to three thousand spectators converging on an Antioch campus then still in the making. Horace’s wife, Mary Mann, described the throng as “a motley multitude that would have made a splendid show if their costumes were as brilliant as they were various.” In appreciation, Horace delivered a two hour address, which the prominent Unitarian clergyman T. Starr King described as containing enough inspiration to make a college flourish in the Sahara.
154 years later, we’ve still got the costumes, the motley multitude, and the college that’s flourishing in Saharan conditions. And on October 5th 2007, we partied like it was 1853 all over again.
Founders Day 2007 kicked off with a speech in the Inn by Jim Malarkey, Professor of Humanities at Antioch University, entitled “The Dazzling Vision and Relentless Passion of the Founders.” Shortly after, the silk screening group got to work on its mission to cloth the entire campus in Antiochian uniform. Old clothes turned art through the DIY application of slogans and symbols. So much for wearing your heart on your sleeve; on Founders Day, community members wore their values on their bandanas, pants, skirts, and underwear.
Cooking Up Cabaret Horace
The Creation, Collaboration, and Performance class has mixed together a few recipes for an event in the theater on Founders Day, Friday October, 5th. We want community participation and that is why we are being as transparent as possible. Transparency is a value worth including in planning for community events and worth salvaging from the Antioch dumpster and bake it into food we, as a community can all enjoy.
One recipe in the kitchen is the creation of parody that dramatizes the partition between the ethics of the current Antioch administration, the Board of Trustees included, and the founding values of Antioch College. Social justice, shared governance, and experiential education are just some of the ingredients our founders have added through the years. What do we have to add? If we are going to bake a cake lets make with multiple layers from the ground up. One layer our class has heated up is acting out Horace’s Army by making Horace masks from a picture we are looking to find. Your favorite Horace quotes could be folded into the batter, read aloud, or performed in silence. To mix it up a bit we thought about adding in short improvs from an array of topics like what would Horace do.
Don’t know what Horace was about? Its cool. Neither do we. We are compiling a research team, which needs sugar and spice. So if you know or find spicy / sweet tidbits about our founders come cook with us. Stirring with a similar spoon to Trivia with Beth Goodney at Community Meeting we thought a “founders trivia special” would be the icing on the cake.
Another layer to the cake we had in mind is pouring in music of all sounds from y’alls talents and creative tendencies. There are a couple of musicians in the class that would love to join in with the cookin’. Food seems to taste better when hearing tunes while cooking up something great.
All the tasks and responsibilities that are beginning to pile up in mind, Cabaret Horace is a cook-in process that respects varied energy and levels of commitment. We are seeking a change in perception of Antioch culture. If you are interested in cookin’ it up contact Tim Peyton or Shea Witzberger. Or just show up at 7:30 on Friday at the Antioch Theater to sign up for a slot to perform. Refreshments will be served!