Munger Hall Debacle
Protest Performance Element
The premise of my protest performance element revolves around the prevalent issues that cropped up upon the announcement of the implementation of the Munger Hall dormitory planned for UC Santa Barbara. The protest would take place on UCSB’s campus during a typical orientation event for incoming students, really targeting the fresh faces entering the student body as they’re getting their first real introduction to the campus scene. The head organizer of this protest would be dressed similar to that of the tour leaders (although not actually affiliated with the program) who are responsible for guiding new students all across campus. The head protester would be accompanied by a group of around fifteen to twenty individuals all in on the protest as well, consisting of adults posing as parents and younger individuals as students. The “parents” would be dressed in varied but regular clothing while the students would be adorned with the exact same, stand-out attires. The “students” would all possess UCSB soccer jerseys and shorts, resembling that of stereotypical jailbird clothing to appear as prisoners, reflecting the prison-esc nature Munger Hall exudes. Continuing this motif, the pretend students would all be shackled together as they journeyed all over UCSB’s campus, and have make-up resembling scuffed dirt splotches from their “hard labor”. The head protester, megaphone in hand, would loudly profess all about Munger Hall and what lies in store for the incoming students, speaking in a very passive-aggressive manner. Greater extent of the information can be found within the many brochures being passed out as well to serve as supplementary material for the attentive audience. The pretend parents would act ecstatic about the seemingly wonderful opportunity Munger Hall appears to bring, intentionally ignoring the feelings of their pretend soon-to-be students fully aware of the problematic implications brought on by its implementation. The “students” would simply mutter “Ole Ole Ole” in response, parodying that of the cheering during UCSB’s soccer games. This performance is designed to be an eye-catching but informative demonstration, the location and attire being instrumental in actively engaging the target audience while also standing as a great learning experience for the viewers.