While EnspiRED is a fashion organization, they described the showcase last night as their annual multimedia event. The purpose was to highlight the work of all artists around campus, making last night “more than just fashion.”
There were two paintings and a photo print making up the display part of the event, while the majority of the night consisted of live performances. There were no labels on the visual art but I got a photo of the canvases near the door.
Chase Garrett, a poet, was the first live performer. It was a political narrative preaching optimism even though the state of America is less than favorable at the moment. It seemed to resonate with the audience, who was very responsive throughout the evening.
Next was a singer/guitarist, Jake Lemond. While he reminded me a little of The Lumineers’ main singer, he was unique with his stage presence and skill with the guitar. He played three songs, most of them alternating between a Travis pick-style verse and a strummed chorus. There was a lot of strum pattern and vocal variation which made each song different. He even used harmonics at the end of his last song!
Dennis London, another poet, came next. His first piece was a rap in the middle of a song played over the speakers. His second was, in my opinion, a love poem. He called himself a “photographer by day” and talked about his newly-published book. The book is about how happiness is earned. The motivational speech he gave at the end of his performance seemed to be a snippet of that message.
After that, the dance group Ambiance performed. They were an all-female group. Their performance was an interesting mix of modern dance, showcasing fluidity of movement and form. They also incorporated some ballet movements into the piece (which I only recognized because of a history of dance class I’m taking this semester) as interludes between dance exchanges. I was sitting near the back, however, so it was difficult to see what they were doing sometimes as there was a lot of groundwork.
Unfortunately, my phone died during intermission and I was unable to take notes for the second part of the night. It was, overall, a very cool experience.
