During the holidays the Gaiters had a few games as well as a tournament hosted by the Citadins de Montreal. Unfortunately for the Gaiters they were unable to get any wins over the break and return to the floor with a 0-4 record.

Two games into the New Year and their record has still not improved. The Gaiters are now in a dire situation. They are at the bottom of the rankings with a 0-6 record. If they want a shot at the playoffs this year a lot of work has to be done, not to mention what will have to be a near perfect second-half of the season.

Before Christmas the men had a tough few games against McGill, UQAM, Laval and Concordia which all resulted in a loss. Their toughest competitor this year has been Laval being one of two teams to achieve victory with a spread of more than twenty points. Otherwise their games have ended with scores that are very often no higher than a fifteen point deficit.

The ladies have fared a little better than the men but not by much. Their record is 2-4 putting them in the fourth spot above UQAM. The past two games ended up in losses against UQAM and McGill. They did, however, manage to get one win during the Windsor Holiday classic tournament against Ryerson.

This Friday will be a double header starting at 6pm for the girls and 8pm for the guys. They will be facing the Citadins of UQAM. Both the guys and the girls have suffered a recent loss to the Citadins and are looking for retribution. Come show your support for your Gaiters Basketball teams this Friday night.

Black Comedy, by Peter Shaffer, was originally produced in 1965 and was commissioned by Kenneth Tynan for the National Theatre of Great Britain. Today this farce may seem dated, but this piece of theatre can still be performed successfully, as demonstrated by the Bishop’s Drama department. Jokes revolving around groping body parts would have been risqué at the time, but by today’s standards, the humour now borders the cliché. However, the laughs were abundant for Sunday night’s crowd, even burying some of the lines at times. The production class led by Director Greg Tuck has done a fantastic job of giving life to a clever British farce.

The play is performed with the lights reversed; the audience can see what the actors cannot. A fuse blows out in the play and thus begins an evening of confusion and deceit. The main character, Brindley, played by David Fuerst Ackles, is constantly fighting to keep his guests in the dark about certain details as he tries to woo his fiancé’s father, and host a private show for a famous millionaire using stolen furniture from his eccentric neighbour across the hall, all the while keeping his mistress, who’s come in unannounced, out of the way. Despite the occasional clichés, the actors provided many pleasurable moments which heightened the comedy.

When you mix together mistaken identity, narrow shaves, booze, and oddball characters, you get an evening of laughs.

Remaking a movie is always a dangerous task. Directors and producers have to make sure that they do not offend the fans of the original, and yet ensure the new version has enough success to be worth the effort. The 2011 remake of Footloose, directed by Craig Brewer, manages to keep the original content and tweak it enough to ensure that today’s generation can relate to the events portrayed.

            Footloose does not have a heavy plot that demands a lot of attention to grasp, but what it does offer is a realization of the daydreams most teens have regarding authority and parents, upsetting the system, making a change and getting away with it. Who hasn’t dreamt of putting on a public display of rebellion and being the one who gathers a movement of supporters to make a change? What would you fight for?

The old versus the new is the main theme of the movie. The everlasting battle of stability versus change rages on in Footloose. The old being portrayed by the adults, the town council and preacher (Dennis Quaid), and the new is portrayed by a young city slicker named Ren Mccormack (Kenny Wormald), who comes to the small town and falls for the preacher’s daughter Ariel (Jullianne Hough). He unites his peers to fight back and stirs things up for the small town of Bomont.

In today’s society, it would be unheard of for dancing and music to be made illegal. We’ve come a long way from books and music being considered “dangerous.” To make the plot more believable, the focus is shifted to the environments within which we find music and dancing. The gatherings that include drinking, smoking, and promiscuity are the culprits for the death of five teens killed in a car crash after one of these dances, which leads to the town council banning such events. Bringing the movie up to date with today’s standards was crucial to its success.

Raising the stakes was the biggest change in this case. Many scenes are almost the exact same with only slight differences. It was nice to see the old movie being incorporated into the new one and used in difference ways. Many of the original films memorable moments were incorporated into the new one.

            Footloose won’t win any Oscars this time around either, but if you enjoyed the 1984 original, then give this one a chance. Both movies were made with their audiences in mind. Cheesy, teenage drama is a perfect way to describe Footloose. Sometimes a little cheese does some good.

It appears to be more and more difficult these days to produce an action movie that really grabs the viewer’s attention. How different can explosions, gunfights, and hand-to-hand combat scenes really be? The last action movie that comes to mind that brought something new to the table was the Matrix trilogy. Even then, it wasn’t a new kind of action that we had never seen before. It was simply the whole premise of the movie that engaged us in this fictional world where we had to re-evaluate what we took for granted.

So why should we go see an action movie? This is the question that is asked of screenwriters, producers, and directors. In the case of Killer Elite, directed by Gary McKendry, the attraction was twofold: the cast, and the fact that the movie was based on a novel entitled Feather Me, written by Sir Ranulph Fiennes in 1991.

The basic plot surrounds a mercenary named Danny (Jason Statham), who goes into retirement. When his friend Hunter becomes captive for failing to complete a job, Danny must once again use his skills, and come out of retirement to save his friend. The job is to assassinate three ex-SAS (special air service) who are responsible for the deaths of three of the Sheik Amr’s sons during the Oman war. Danny must track down the ex-commandos and make their deaths look accidental. To make matters more difficult, a former SAS agent has picked up on their activities and tries to prevent Danny and his team from succeeding.

The story is not a bad one altogether, given that it is based on actual events. However, do not expect any dazzling performances that will make you come back for more. The dramatic premise of the movie doesn’t raise the stakes high enough to make it a very thrilling experience. The final result is that of any roller coaster: you get on and you get off.

He now has fourteen albums since 1995 and has worked with many different label companies over the years, such as HalfLife, Urbnet and Sony BMG Canada. He has reached mainstream success with his single “Anybody Listening” which hit the charts at #52. His thirteenth album “Self Explanatory” was his first album to hit the Canadian album charts at #25. From that album, Classified’s song “Oh, Canada” reached #14 of Canada’s hot 100 songs. From all of his albums and hits he has had a couple of Juno nominations and in 2007 received the east coast music award for best rap/hip-hop single for the song “Find Out”.

Classified has worked with other artists such as DL Incognito, Eternia, Moka Only, Choclair, Chad Hatcher, Maestro Fresh-Wes, Jay-Bizzy, DJ IV, Jordan Croucher, and Royce da 5’9″.

Our very own campus bar will be his first stop on his new tour which will take him across Canada. Classified is definitely able to get my head bobbing along to his melody lines and my foot stomping with his drum beats. So come out and see the show on March 24^th.

The February 19^th show given by C!rca was jaw-dropping, to say the least. Most definitely a must-see performance if you ever get the chance. Despite the certain preconceptions about a ‘circus’ show, this is not your typical big top circus; there are no tigers jumping through flaming hoops, or red nosed clowns playing jokes on each other for the crowd’s amusement. No, at this performance we were exposed to some of the best acrobats, tumblers and dancers the world has to offer.

The choreographies are of such precision that you can’t help but watch in amazement as a performer is used like a human jump rope, her face coming within millimetres from the ground, or applaud as the performers stack themselves upon their shoulders three bodies high. This is just a small sample of what was performed for the audience.

What makes C!rca’s performances so interesting, other than the high stakes of their stunts, is the different mix of elements found within the routines. Not just flips, twists and turns, but the delicate and precise movements which at other times just pour out raw power and emotional expression reaching out to the crowd and sharing those feelings with us. One of the many aspects C!rca is acclaimed for is its ability to blend contemporary dance with advanced acrobatics, also mixing in a little humour at times to lighten things up. The show has the ability to make you sit on the edge of your seat waiting to see what will happen next.

The music which accompanied the show added to its effect on our own feelings as the rhythm and beat were completely synchronized with the movements of the performers carrying the audience along with it. Not a small task, to be synchronized not only to each other but to a soundtrack that does not wait for anyone.

It is a brilliant exemplification of trust to see these performers know there will be someone there to catch them when they fall. The show was a beautiful metaphor for life, with a trapeze routine that reminded us of life’s fragile balance, or a hanging rope routine that showed us how we can find ourselves in opposite situations: restricted at one moment and yet completely free the next.

C!rca is a Brisbane based circus troupe that was formed in 2006 which tours all over the world with multiple troupes. It offers training workshops to anyone interested, unfortunately they are based in Australia, so save up your money and pack your bags if you ever feel like running away to join the circus.

“If music be the food of love, play on,
Give me excess of it; that surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.”

-         Duke Orsino, Twelfth Night, Act 1, Scene 1

Spring has arrived in Lennoxville, and so has another musical here at Bishop’s University. This year, director George Rideout brings his adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night to the stage – a story of love, mistaken identities and now… hit songs from the 1950s and 60s.

Rideout is Drama professor here at Bishop’s and knows nearly all of Shakespeare’s works inside and out. According to him, Twelfth Night has a loving feeling that should be paired with classic rock hits of the 1950’s and early 60’s. The production features tunes such as Twelfth of Never, Great Balls of Fire, Fools Rush In, Teen Angel, Don’t Be Cruel and many more.

Being a playwright, Rideout has excised parts of the original Shakespearean text and replaced it with song; a task that takes a considerable thought. Rideout has done this before with previous Bishop’s productions and claims that the overall message of the play must remain the same. Another difficult step of adapting a play for the Bishop’s stage is keeping the level of entertainment high enough for the audience to remain drawn into the action of the scene.

The musical side of this play is undertaken by the dynamic duo of Fannie Gaudette and Jamie Crooks. Both of them have worked on the University Singers choir shows and previous spring musicals together. Having years of experience behind them, the two bring valuable talent and knowledge to the table.

This year Cory Bowles will once again join the team, adding his expertise by teaching dance styles such as the Lindy Hop  (a swing staple) and the Twist. In addition to choreographing the show’s dances, Bowles will be seen on stage as the often-inebriated Sir Toby Belch.

Returning to the stage are the familiar faces of Peter Jarvis and Kyle Gleason, who are double cast in the roles of Duke Orsino and Feste. Kelly Van der Burg and Renee Myers will play the role of the lovely Viola on alternating nights. Jill Thorpe, a second year English and Drama student and new to the spring musical experience, comments that her favourite part of the musical is “getting to know more about everyone in the cast.

“It’s a great mix of people and we’re all meshing really well. Everyone has been working hard from the beginning but also playing hard… a nice balance. My favourite dance in this production is Rock Around the Clock. With the musical, the only ‘school work’ I do is fun stuff!”

This star group of individuals will most definitely create an evening filled with entertainment and fun for all music lovers, dancers and Shakespeare enthusiasts. Come join us for the festivities in Turner Studio starting Friday June 11^th until Saturday June 19^th at 8:00 p.m. Get your tickets while they’re hot; being sold now at Centennial Box office.