Varsity Show’s annual West End Preview teases, pleases

For 116 years, the Varsity Show has poked fun at Columbia’s quirks. And for about 10 years, the West End Preview has been campus’s first reminder that its jokesters are back for more.

On Thursday night, the West End Preview gave audiences its first extended sneak peek at the 116th Varsity Show. Cuban flavors and music in the back room of Havana Central were replaced with Columbian song and dance for the one-night performance.

“The West End Preview is really just an opportunity for us to show the community what we’ve been working on so far this semester,” Ajit Pillai, SEAS ’11 and one of the two producers for this year’s Varsity Show, said of the annual teaser. “It’s just for people to come together and have a laugh just for a little bit.”

Peter Labuza, CC ’11, one of the co-writers for V116 and former Spectator film editor, spoke of how he and co-writer Patrick McGuire, CC ’11 condensed an entire Varsity Show, which normally lasts about two hours, into a bite-size showcase.

“A lot of favorites [jokes and scenes] are so crucial to the plot that we’re not ready to show them yet, so we have to strike a balance between showing scenes that are entertaining and give a sense about the show but don’t give away the plot,” Labuza said.

Although, according to Pillai, the West End Preview is mainly a showcase of the Varsity Show’s material and work rather than a forum for revision, he added, “We obviously take into account how the audience responded to jokes and characters.” Any necessary changes will likely be incorporated into the production in time for Turkey Day on March 7, a performance of the full show in front of Varsity Show alumni. While the West End Preview is a fun theatrical appetizer, Turkey Day is the production’s real workshop—in past years Turkey Day has prompted everything from minor tweaks to a total script re-write.

While Turkey Day is a private event closed to anyone but past Varsity Show participants, the West End Preview attracted a variety of audience members. The crowd consisted mostly of upperclassmen and theater enthusiasts, along with a few bewildered freshmen, but two notable guests stood out—Dean of Student Affairs Kevin Shollenberger and Dean of Barnard College Dorothy Denburg.

What drew them to the show? Well, that question was quickly answered by the Varsity Show cast, as a fictional version of Shollenberger, played by Alexander Hare, CC ’13, kicked off the performance with a merry welcome.

The first number highlighted a common sentiment on campus: the lack of school spirit. As Shollenberger cheered enthusiastically from the stands, the rest of the Columbia students, from the apathetic hipsters to the flirtatious frat boys, ignored the notably failing efforts of the basketball team.

The main characters of this year’s show showed off their acting and singing chops with tight vocal control and clever comedic timing. Andre, portrayed by Yonatan Gebeyehu, CC ’11, was the man under the Roar-ee costume, disheartened about the lack of school spirit and community at Columbia. Jenny Vallancourt, BC ’11, played Chloe, a non-stereotypical Barnard girl and friend­—or potentially more than friend—of Andre’s.

On the other hand, the supporting characters were more hit-and-miss. As Denise, an overly-enthusiastic Barnard girl, Tessa Slovis, BC ’13, successfully captured both a sense of amusing navieté and light-hearted whimsy. Other characters, such as nerdy spoil-sport Jimmy, played by Patrick Blute, CC ’12, and two hipsters portrayed by Emily Feinstein, CC ’13, and David Offit, GS/JTS ’13, needed more depth to come across as more than shallow stereotypes of Columbia students.

Nevertheless, the standout of the night was Hare’s Shollenberger, who set up almost every scene and stole a few of them himself, including a humorous Broadway-style dance number with Hillary Kritt, BC ’12, as his secretary. He also clashed with formidable character Dean Dorothy Denburg, portrayed by Hannah Kloepfer, CC ’13, over Barnard’s traditional Midnight Breakfast. Shollenberger protested to “take back Midnight Breakfast” by having a Columbia version of the event—albeit not at midnight. Kloepfer’s Denburg incited many laughs from her real-world version as she threatened Chloe and Denise with a long, (Barnard) bear hug.

After a night of extended parody, including references to the dean of student affairs’ almost obsessive commitment to providing free food at campus events and a potential affinity for “Project Runway,” one would be a little apprehensive about what he would have to say about his doppelganger. In true Shollenberger style, he flashed an enthusiastic smile and said, “It was fun. It was good fun.”