Putting 300 college students in a dark room with a karaoke machine and cups of beer for a quarter doesn't present the complexity of a rocket science equation. This was the very equation in action Tuesday night at the Dioniysus Discotech, kicking off the first Quarter Beers of the millennium in an off-key symphony of college utopia. Clothes came off and everything.
After an extensive search of the finest karaoke hosts in Lorain County, a team of special operatives under the direction of the Student Union settled on Dan Williams of DEW entertainment. In an attempt to beat the masses to the punch, 'Sco officials decided to open the doors at 9 p.m. instead of the standard time of 10 p.m. Though the early opening gave more opportunities to the lucky few who had their karaoke ear to the ground, the turnout of would-be stars was eventually too much to handle.
By 10:30 the place was packed, and amidst the timeless melodies of Frank Sinatra and Guns N' Roses, the Pabst flowed like water and intoxicated stars were born. The quiet girl from biology was howling Madonna, the nerdy kid from the computing center was screeching Judas Priest and the pomos were ironically lip synching Milli Vanilli. The madness of stardom put a gleam in every eye.
A particular highlight of the evening was senior Kevin McShane's rendition of Elvis Presley's "Love Me Tender." McShane held the audience in complete rapture with his stirring impersonation of the king. Not to be outdone, college junior David Fishkin's riotous "Superfreak," the legendary song that sparked MC Hammer's rocket trip to parachute-pants wearing fame, was carried off with disarming charisma. Fishkin's saucier-than-thou attitude left every member of the audience in stunned silence.
College seniors Dylan Ruga, Jonathan Lowe and Chris Bedford and junior Clay Matlin provided the most uncanny impersonations of the evening, however, with a rendition of the Backstreet Boys' "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" that would have every middle school girl on the planet earth begging for more. But their devotion to these parts far exceed that of the average Obie, and the enraptuing performance left audiences hungry for more.
Many of the best moments of the evening came near the end, with the gripping and powerful performance of Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again" by college senior Tyler Kord. With a little more make-up, a little more lace, and a lot more teased hair, Kord might have actually been David Coverdale incarnate.
As far as crowd participation, no performer was more on the mark than senior Lauren Viera. Viera's subtle seductiveness fueled her scintillating rendition of "'Till There Was You," actually caused young men in the audience to strip bare-chested and wave their shirts above their heads like flags of youthful lust.
In a contemporary society where the creation of high art is very distant from the masses, an evening such as this gives rise to a number of questions regarding the fundamental nature of artistic expression. For centuries the spirit of youthful passion has developed hand in hand with these artistic movements, and no doubt Tuesday, the 8th will forever be recorded as a high point in the long history of humankind's great achievements and artistic expression.
Keep on rockin' in the free world: Seniors Tyler Kord and Jesse Woghin croon at the 'Sco. (photo by Andrea Kamins)
Copyright © 2000, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 128, Number 13, February 11, 2000
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