Street: Tell us about Onda Latina.
Alex Wiggins: Onda is Penn’s premier Latin dance troupe...We do a range of styles, like salsa, bachata, mambo, cha–cha, and we always try to throw in some hip hop or lyrical things in there just for fun.
Street: What are your techniques for flyering on Locust?
AW: We used to give lap dances on Locust. We would put a chair on the middle of Locust and say, “Free lap dances!” We stopped doing that after my freshman year...I definitely do salsa or bachata moves and try to eye people and give them the eye like, “You know you like this.”
Street: Did you give a lap dance?
AW: I have given one or two.
Street: What’s the PennArts pre–orientation program like?
AW: We expose freshmen to arts in Philly and Penn. We do things on campus and...take them out into the city. We do a mural arts tour downtown, go to Reading Terminal and go to a show. They also have master classes with faculty here in fine arts, in music and in theatre.
Street: Can you tell us more about Black Wharton?
AW: Black Wharton is a group on campus that is dedicated to finding business opportunities for black students...I got my job this summer from someone I met through Black Wharton.
Street: What did you do?
AW: I worked at MTV and I was a production management intern for the series production development team. So I made sure Snooki and JWoww and the Teen Mom people got paid.
Street: If you had to be on or create a reality TV show, what would it be?
AW: Are You the One? which is on MTV right now. There are 10 guys and 10 girls, and they’ve done personality tests beforehand, and everyone has a “perfect match,” someone that they will be highly compatible with. Then they have to figure out who.
Street: And you have an individualized concentration?
AW: It’s called Creative and Cultural Leadership. It’s this hodgepodge of creativity and business and I made it really broad because I either want to work in entertainment or focus on dance.
Street: What’s the Penn Monologues show like?
AW: It encompasses the entire Penn community—we want to showcase the Penn voice because everyone has a different story and it’s really great to hear a diverse group of stories at a show. We just had a Six Word Monologue Competition, and a lot of people wrote these six word monologues that were really powerful and awesome.
Street: If you could have a drink with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you drink?
AW: Shonda Rhimes. I want to ask her about her creativity, and how she creates all of these characters and has so much diversity in all of her shows. I’d drink an apple martini—that’s the only thing I ever drink.
Street: Who was your first current celebrity crush?
AW: Usher. And Justin Timberlake—I was a huge N*SYNC fan back in the day, I had them on my folders and notebooks and things like that. Early 2000s, I loved them.
Street: What’s your favorite place to SABS?
AW: When I’m feeling particularly cute, I’ll stop in Platt (Student Performing Arts House) and MAKUU (The Black Cultural Center) so I can see people I know.
Street: Do you have a favorite Philly restaurant?
AW: Aqua, at 7th and Chestnut. It’s a Thai/Malaysian restaurant, and I went there for my sixteenth birthday and loved it. So now every occasion—my mom’s birthday, my high school graduation—we go there.
Street: Tell us about your first kiss.
AW: My first “kiss” was at camp, it was summer before 7th grade, and it was truth or dare or something like that. We were silly 7th graders. My first real kiss was with my little 7th grade boyfriend, on the subway platform after school—it was great, I thought I was in love.
Street: What’s your favorite Disney Channel Original Movie?
AW: I love DCOM movies. Smart House, Thirteenth Year, Luck of the Irish...I actually went to see High School Musical 3 by myself, and cried. I cried at the end when he drives to Stanford to see her, and it’s their prom and they’re dancing. I cry a lot. I cry all the time.
Street: What was your first AIM screenname?
AW: aphilly124. 124 doesn’t stand for anything, I just didn’t want it to be 1–2–3.
Street: What’s the weirdest thing in your backpack?
AW: My backpack is literally Rite–Aid. I keep a toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, bandaids, ibuprofen, tampons, everything in there. If you ever need anything, I got you.
Street: If the sky’s the limit, what will you be doing on this day in 10 years?
AW: Me and a friend who graduated last year want to open our own film–television–theater production company. I don’t know if by 31 it would happen, but hopefully we’ll be working on it.
Street: What advice would you give freshman you?
AW: Learn how to say no! I feel like I got very over–committed. Which isn’t necessarily bad, but I wish I had more free time.
Street: By the way, what’s your six word monologue?
AW: Don’t mind me. Doing the most.
Interested in Penn Monologues? Check out One Mic, an open mic for any and all to share their stories about race, gender or identity.
