A 19-year-old boy drops out of college and travels from St. Louis County, Minnesota, to New York City with a guitar and a case of harmonicas. That same night, he has his first gig at Cafe Wha?---a club described as “a subterranean cavern, liquorless, and ill-lit.” Dylan is called the “voice of a generation,” and he goes on to change the future of folk music.
Read moreTaylor Swift’s The Eras Tour came to an end on December 8th, 2024, after almost two years. Her three-and-a-half-hour-long concert prominently featured all eras of her music from her eighteen-year career. Swift has not only left an impact on modern music and performance but also a lasting economic impact on all the cities she’s visited.
Read moreBlack Super Hero Magic Mama, written by Inda Craig-Galván and based on a true story, is coming to Skidmore on November 22. This is the first play by a Black playwright to be presented as a seminar production by the college. During this past month, I sat down with the cast members and asked their thoughts and experiences working on this production and why its story is important to them.
Read moreBig Show was a hit this October! With performances by Natasha Bedingfield and Towa Bird on October 26, Skid Kids were delighted to attend the festivities in the Williamson Sports Center gym. Eager to hear Natasha and Towa, students lined the front of the stage as soon as the doors opened.
Read moreCelebration Weekend 2024 was full of family reunions, joy, and dance! Among the many showcases and events the college offered during the weekend, the Skidmore Dance Department presented its annual show at the Dance Theater to highlight the department's versatility and talent.
Read moreOn September 27, 2024, the great actress Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, colloquially known as Maggie Smith, passed away. She was best known for her roles in Downton Abbey and Harry Potter. As a result of her numerous accolades for works in movies, television, and plays, in 1990, Queen Elizabeth named her a Dame for her services to the performing arts.
Read moreCourse registration for the Spring ‘25 semester will soon be upon us, and there are so many courses to choose from. To help you pick, our staff has compiled their thoughts on which classes they deem essential to the Skidmore experience. Whether this is your second semester as a freshman or your last semester as a senior, consider taking one of these classes; you won’t regret it!
Read moreOn October 18th, less than 2 weeks before Halloween, Skidmore’s Blackbox Theater opened Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom by Jennifer Haley, a psychological thriller about teenagers addicted to a video game that becomes increasingly unnerving and surreal. To learn more about the show and the process behind it, I talked with director Dennis Schebetta.
Read moreThe 2024 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) may have been filled with memorable moments, but few left as lasting an impression as Sabrina Carpenter’s explosive performance and her unforgettable red-carpet fashion.
Read moreTo witness the height of influence metal had in the world, one only needs to look at the Monsters of Rock show in Moscow right before the fall of the Soviet Union. After this pinnacle, there began a slight decline, but within the last 5-8 years, metal seems to be reemerging. What bands and reasons are contributing to this?
Read moreAt the end of March, genre-defying singer-songwriter Lizzie No performed at Caffe Lena, a historic folk venue just off North Broadway. Lizzie performed with a guitarist and a keyboard player, and showcased her skills on the harp for a few songs.
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When Taylor Swift changed her social media profile pictures to black and white and wore long black gloves at the 66th Annual Grammy awards, everyone expected Taylor Swift to announce the release of Reputation, her 2017 album. Swift has been rerecording her albums after manager Scooter Braun claimed rights to them in 2019, so this was the next logical step for her career. When the beloved artist mounted the stage, onlookers in the audience and at home held their breaths in anticipation of the news.
Read moreF. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, is a cautionary tale of glamor and debauchery. Set in the vibrant 1920s in New York City, the tale has become emblematic of early twentieth-century America and the subject of countless reproductions.
Read moreThe Skidmore College Dance Department's annual Senior Coda showcase premieres on Saturday, March 30, and Saturday, April 6. The Senior Coda is a course available to all performance- and choreography-track and research-track majors, offered annually by the department. The class and participation in the showcase are prerequisites to earn honors. The class is taught by Jason Ohlberg, Associate Chair of the Dance Department, but the semester is primarily student-led. Professor Ohlberg’s teaching philosophy is giving the class independence and autonomy in the process of producing their first concert.
Read moreOn March 10, the 96th Academy Awards (Oscars) will take place, honoring the best films of 2023. As usual, the public eye is primarily focused on the prestigious Best Picture award, which has attracted additional attention due to a particularly strong crop of films.
Read moreTikTok, the popular video app, has been a hub for musicians and music lovers alike since it appeared in app stores in 2016. Through the platform , users can lip sync to their favorite songs, create video edits of their favorite films and shows, participate in dance trends, and keep up with new music releases. Music is a fundamental feature of the app. What happens when artists can no longer promote their music with TikTok? What happens when users can no longer engage with popular artists?
Read moreSlouching is a collection of personal essays, anthropological observations, illustrations, and collages of found objects. Squire, who graduated from Skidmore in 2021, was one of forty recipients of the Creative Research Impact Centre Europe Fellowship (CIRCE), which awards young academics and budding scientists funding to complete a creative project. Funding from CIRCE enabled Squire to spend the summer of 2023 writing, walking, and drinking wine — among other things. Their project tackled the grand concept of geography, considering how spaces facilitate our interaction with them, and in turn, how humans leave evidence of their interaction — whether that landscape is urban or rural, literal or digital. Towards the end of November, the author made time to speak with The Skidmore News about Slouching. We chatted about talking to strangers, compulsive collecting, the qualities of a perfect notebook, and entrusting our writing to others.
Read moreOn Friday, November 10th, Tarriona “Tank” Ball sauntered onto the Arthur Zankel Music Center stage like she owned the place. And that night, she did. Tank and the Bangas’ one-of-a-kind sound swelled to fill the space. Tank was backed by a four-piece band and trio of back-up singers, and the ingenuity of each individual was evident. Altogether, though, the group was amplified. Tank and the Bangas’ commanded the attention of their audience. Under their spell, the concert hall came alive, coaxed by robust rhythms and breezy beats. Tank and the Bangas’ on-stage symbiosis and infectious energy made for an impressive show distinguished from the classical- and jazz-oriented music events that the space typically hosts.
Read moreAre you feeling in the mood for some dance floor bangers? How about some pop, country, or even disco? Whether you’re walking to class, working out at the gym, heading to a party, or are all in your feels, Kylie Minogue’s Tension could become the new soundtrack to your everyday life.
Read moreRidley Scott’s Napoleon (2023) shows occasional glimpses of potential but falls under its own weight, failing to tell a compelling story about one of the most compelling men in world history, ultimately winding up nothing more than a cinematic farce.
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