By Grayson Ruhl
Executive Staff
On Thursday, April 7, the Writing House hosted Performance Night, an opportunity for Sewanee students to showcase their talents. Performance Night included a diverse collection of performances, from heartfelt poetry and spoken word to rock music and vicious rap battles. Students shuffled into the Writing House in hopes of feasting on some Zaxby’s and guacamole while enjoying their peers’ performances. Little did they know that evening would change their lives forever.
The chicken and guacamole, as well the as delicious baked goods cooked by Writing House members, were eviscerated by ravenous students in the blink of an eye. This robust feast filled performers with the courage necessary to sing with passion, to strum proudly their stringed instruments, and to face a boisterous audience of nearly seventy fellow students, as well as Professor Elizabeth Grammer.
The lovely Marion Givhan (C’18), longed for by many, was first to perform, presenting poignant poetry that wrenched many a heart. Others demonstrated their love for poetry and spoken word, including unicorn enthusiast Miller Dew (C’19) and the vivacious Cindy Cruz (C’18).
These performances took courage to present, but they were not nearly as strenuous as the presentation by Saunders Drukker (C’17) and Emily Riedlinger (C’18). The two presented cringeworthy text conversations between one another from high school. This wretched, nay, treacherous abomination of a performance is forever seared into my memory. I will speak no longer of it, as it conjures infinitely troubling thoughts.
Musical performances spanned from intricate instrumentals to brutal rap battles rife with profanity. The Mother Pluckers, The Subterraneans, and Jack Harris & Friends bestowed upon all in attendance a demonstration of their musical excellence. The entire Writing House erupted in unrestrained screams of desire when Thomas Chapman (C’19) played his golden saxophone.
To cap off the performances, there was a savage freestyle rap battle by Travis White (C’18) and John “Tiger” Manges (C’18), which left the audience bewildered. A few from the observing crowd demanded the microphone, spitting their own ferocious rhymes, which sometimes aimed to critique White’s and Manges’s lyrical content. Following this final performance was a raffle draw, in which Noah Day (C’18) won a new scooter. Ride swiftly, sweet Noah.