dangersauce | Stories from the Hill

Yesterday was William Shakespeare’s birthday (and incidentally, his death day), so the English department celebrated in the most entertaining way possible: by hosting its annual Shakespeare in the Square.

Shakespeare in the Square is a fun event (complete with a large birthday cake) held for all students to attend in Red Square, the center of campus. Students read Shakespeare’s sonnets and act out scenes from Shakespeare’s plays. Anyone is welcome to read or perform.

I was impressed by the student performances, which I enjoyed quite a lot. McDaniel English majors are very talented when it comes to reading sonnets and acting out scenes, and some of them are also able to make it funny. (One of my friends read a monologue of Antigonus from The Winter’s Tale and was chased by a “bear”–another friend–at the end, as indicated by the stage directions in the play. Very funny.)

I read Shakespeare’s Sonnet 60, which ended up going pretty well and was awesome for me because I had a chance to do a reading in front of a somewhat large audience, something that is always useful practice for public speaking.

After everyone who wanted to perform something Shakespearean was finished, Dangersauce, McDaniel’s improv troupe, performed a long form improv, a series of uninterrupted related improvised scenes, after interviewing our medieval literature and Shakespeare professor about what she teaches and her academic life. The scenes were very funny and the performers did a fantastic job basing their scenes on things the professor said.

Overall, Shakespeare in the Square was a blast! It was fun for English majors and non-English majors alike, the weather was beautiful, the performers were talented, and the birthday cake was delicious. Happy 449th birthday, Bill!

The Homecoming experience at McDaniel is pretty systematic: get up and watch parade (or sleep in…), go to football stadium, wander from tent to tent catching up with people and eating, cheer for football team when something exciting happens, etc.

While I did all these things and had a blast, I’d have to say that one of my favorite parts of Homecoming weekend was not as well-attended or well-known as the football game. While a lot of people were getting in their post-game nap, Dangersauce, our student improv group, hosted a show in the theater.

Dangersauce is comprised of about 10 students who put on improvisational comedy shows on campus. On their Facebook page, they guarantee that all jokes are “unrehearsed, unscripted, and completely hilarious.”

The Homecoming show was the second that I’ve attended this semester, and both have totally been worth the dollar that I’ve spent to get in. For about an hour, the members play games that involve a few members or the entire group.

My favorite games involve audience participation, such as the one last night where a troupe member was sent out of the theater while the audience was asked to decide where and how a grisly murder occurred as well as who perpetrated the crime (We chose a public bathroom, exorcism, and the Pope, respectively). After we decided, the member was called back into the theater and guessed as the rest of the cast acted out the crime.

Since it was Homecoming, a lot of former members of Dangersauce came to see the show. For the final game, they were all called up on stage to participate, and it was cool to see what a long-standing tradition Dangersauce has been on our campus.

Interested in joining or just learning more? Check out their Facebook.