Welcome to this week's Street Sweeper! Street Sweeper will bring you the round–up of what’s going on around campus and in Philly, including concerts at Annenberg, performances at Iron Gate Theater, clay–making workshops, and even a candlelight concert featuring the soundtracks of multiple beloved Studio Ghibli movies. If it's looking like a special someone won’t be making you surprise Valentine's Day plans, look to this week’s round–up for inspiration to make your own special day.
In this edition, Street attended One Acts Festival (with performances and scripts created by multiple Streeple), watched the Pan Asian Dance Troupe performance, traveled off campus to attend one of the many fun workshops at the Ginger Arts Center, and attended many more concerts off and on campus.
Personally, I think taking yourself or a special someone to a candlelight concert is the easiest way to create date night—or solo date night—plans, so good luck for this upcoming weekend!
—Fiona Herzog, Assignments Editor
The Buzz on Locust
Concert by Concert Pianist Fazil Say @ Annenberg Theater
Music is something spatial, something tangible, at least for Fazil Say, world–renowned concert pianist and composer. As he strikes warm melodies and lets complex harmonies breathe, he often wafts the music up with his free hand or accentuates a note with a flick of the wrist. Other idiosyncrasies like tapping his feet to the rhythm or most importantly, leaning over and plucking the piano strings, are all part of his unique elan. His first piece of the night was the 2021 “New Life” Sonata, which as an audience member noted after the concert, “told a story.” Indeed, it feels as if the entire unraveling of the pandemic was encapsulated within the piece. Next came an enchanting set of ballads with soaring romantic melodies, brimming with Turkish cultural history. In fact, Say introduces each piece with references to Turkish art, literature, and architecture. An enchanting children's suite told the story of “The Little Black Fish,” while closing my eyes, I could almost see its journey through cool Mediterranean waters. Another highlight was Say’s most famous piece, “Black Earth.” This piece once again features ingenious uses of plucking the piano strings—one wonders if Say was not born to be a harpist, the way the notes sluice through his hands, as water bounces through grates in the street. While it was the piece that gained him renown, a newer set of variations brings a fresh take on the original theme. Say ended the concert with a bang, featuring fresh jazz arrangements of classics from Gershwin, Mozart, and Paganini.
—Bobby McCann, Features Editor
One Acts @ Class of 49 Auditorium Houston Hall
One Acts is JOY! It’s also an epiphany. It’s a high–handed narrator and a mouse. It’s the spiteful overthrow of the House Ruktucket in the fictional empire Tuptuckit. It’s the murder of an impudent Japanese businessman at Hotel Hershey (NOT the Hershey hotel) or a closeted, Wisconsin–born finance girl and her unsuspecting romance, and a callback to high school theater tomfoolery. The One Acts Festival is an annual collaboration across the seven groups in the Theatre Arts Council, composed of five student–written, directed, and produced plays. One of which was written by Street’s very own Bobby “The Can” McCann, and starred Street EIC Norah Rami as the mischievous sister fairy Tripe, as well as Deputy Assignments Editor Nishanth Bhargava as loyalist Timbub. The play, like all others, was a lively combination of goofiness and layered introspection. My not–so–ideal position from the last row (and sans glasses, way to go me) made for a hazy make–out of dialogue. Alas, later obtaining the script only solidified what I wondered in that dimly lit room at Houston Hall—do I delight in one or one? Do I delight in all or none? IFYKYK!!!! The predecessor to The Can’s whimsical tale of bitterness and smashing idols is a learned take on one favorite childhood book. “If you give a mouse a cookie” turns into a dispute of free will between an overbearing narrator and an amusingly self–aware rodent, perplexed by the predictability of his behavior and unsupported by a lack of free will. I imagine much of the audience, like myself, felt reduced to the life’s scale of our furry friend with mild anxiety. Look at that—you get a show AND an identity crisis. This is what those theater kids live for. I get it now.
There’s a glamorous mystery to the life of a Japanese businessman, or in this case, the death of one. The daughter of a dispassionate security guard, convinced of his innocence, walks us through a humorously insincere interrogation of the murder suspects—even the businessman himself. The deadpan delivery is a riot, but the ever–more aloof confession of her father—“I left him there to die” (no biggie)—is hilarious. Equally hilarious—the back–and–forth melodrama of a goody–two–shoes, New York transplant finance girl and her unforeseen romance with chain–smoking, rich–girl dilettante. When good girl goes bad, the audience goes wild. Apologies to all Spruce Street passersbys for the screams continuing mercilessly into the next act, which gave us the BTS of high school theater culture. Really, as a performance–fearing individual who has somehow found myself surrounded by people of the theater persuasion, it was quite informative. And as the lights came on, I found myself donning an alarmingly heavy mushroom cap hat, courtesy of Tripe, my head heavy, and my heart fuller.
—Sophia Mirabal, Music Editor
Pan Asian Dance Troupe: Stars Aligned @ Iron Gate Theater
In front of a sold–out Iron Gate Theater crowd, Pan Asian Dance Troupe (PADT) did not disappoint.
For three and half hours, the dancers wowed the crowd with 21 live dance performances and three pre–recorded videos. The show itself was split into three segments: Solstice, Supernova, and Stardust, playing into the overarching theme of Stars Aligned. Throughout the night, the performers showed their range, with traditional dances being mixed in with more modern and hip–hop–infused arrangements.
Story–telling was a strength of this year’s program. “Tear”, performed to BTS’s Singularity shined. It starts with a man and a woman, clearly infatuated with each other until another man steps into the scene and steals the woman. While the first tango was one full of passion, the woman’s dance with the second man is far more tender. It’s a story of jealousy and anger as the two men duke it out over the woman. When the first man wins the battle, it’s all for naught as the woman leaves him to go support the other man. The entire dance was executed to perfection, conveying the complexity of desire, betrayal, and loss, drawing the audience into the characters’ turmoil without a single word being spoken.
The highlight of the night was PADT’s traditional all–male performance highlighting the “Coco Bros.” This year, though, they added in a twist. With the Super Bowl slated to kick off the Sunday after their show, the light–hearted, whimsical piece was given a football twist. For what was already quite the rowdy crowd, no performance got a bigger reaction than when Eddie Xu (E '28) landed a backflip aerial to “win” the Super Bowl for the “Coco Bros.” By the end of the night, very few eyes were dry as the eight PADT seniors closed out their last shows to Jeremy Zuckerman’s “Avatar’s Love,” sitting down with their backs to the audience, looking up toward the big screen as a clip rolled full of photos and memories dating back to when they were all freshmen.
From the first beat to the final bows, PADT delivered a performance that was nothing short of stellar. And as the seniors took their final look at the memories on the big screen, it was clear that the stars had aligned in more ways than one.
—Vivian Yao, Senior Staff Writer
Popping The Bubble
Polymer Clay Bead Workshop @ Ginger Arts Center
Roll your sleeves up and take your shoes off because Ginger Arts Center hosted its first Polymer Clay Bead–Making workshop this past Friday!
Designed to be a third space for Philly youth, Ginger Arts Center hosts several free activities year–round, including mural sketching, panels on Black and Asian solidarity, and a canvas painting workshop throughout February. The center itself is cozy, colorful, and communal. Walking in, I was met with tables covered in polymer clay and the freedom to make whatever I wanted for two hours. I made buttons, blueberries, and a mango, but there were so many pieces inspired by fruits, characters, animals, and plants. The awesome volunteers came around periodically, baking and redistributing our work as we sculpted.
If you want to learn more about the center’s upcoming events or how to volunteer and support them in hosting these arts events, check out their website: https://gingerartscenter.org/
—Insia Haque, Street Design Editor & Senior Staff Writer
Candlelight Best of Joe Hisaishi @ Bok
Bathed in the soft glow of hundreds of flickering candles, a string quartet transported the audience into the whimsical worlds of Studio Ghibli. Set against the grandeur of an ornate, repurposed school auditorium, the evening unfolded with each musical conjuring the gentle waves of Ponyo, the lush forests of Princess Mononoke, and the heartwarming nostalgia of My Neighbor Totoro. The rich harmonies and delicate arrangements of Joe Hisaishi’s beloved scores wrapped around the audience like a warm embrace, offering a moment of serenity and reflection.
Yet, the night wasn’t just about nostalgia—it was also about community. In a delightful twist, the quartet launched into a surprise rendition of “Fly Eagles Fly” during the encore, igniting a chorus of cheers and voices as the audience united in song. It was a seamless blend of past and present, proving that music—whether from childhood films or a city’s beloved anthem—has the power to bring us together in the most luminous of ways.
—Fiona Herzog, Assignments Editor
