Monthly Archives: March 2017

“Endgame” to Debut on the Siena College Campus!

Hi everyone!

The Creative Arts Department is putting on their very first performance of “Endgame” TONIGHT and I couldn’t be more excited! Endgame was written by playwright Samuel Beckett and tells the story of protagonist Hamm, who is living with his servant Clov, his father Nagg and his mother Nell in a world that is recovering from some type of apocalyptic disaster. The play is directed by David Girard and features not only a cast of incredibly talented Siena students, but a set that has been designed and worked on for months by Siena’s technical director Obidiah Savage and professional Broadway set designer Colin McIlvaine.  The light sequences have been constructed together by professional Greg Solomon, who has also worked with Broadway performances.

I was able to stop by the Beaudoin Theater yesterday to get a behind the scenes look at the set and the design behind it and I truly found the process absolutely fascinating.  I was involved with musicals all throughout high school, but in the performance sense.  I knew very little about the intricate details that must be incorporated into building a set and “teching a show” and hearing Greg, Colin, David and Mr. Savage speak about the time and effort that went into preparing for this performance was very impressive.  Greg, Colin and David have all worked on various performances of “Endgame” before and know the show from every angle.  They were able to point out on the physical set why objects have been placed in certain positions and their ideas just kept bouncing off of each other, like they had been friends their whole lives! They also LOVED Mr. Savage, who I have had the pleasure of meeting a few times! Mr. Savage is incredibly talented when it comes to the technical aspects of Siena’s performances and his expertise is one of the main aspects that makes the Creative Arts Department’s performances and concerts so successful. The set truly wasn’t like anything I have seen before, as a lot of sets in plays and musicals are very intricate and have a lot of moving parts.  This set is very simple and very structurally sound and only displays one room with a couple of other objects, including a tattered armchair.  However, Mr. Savage, Colin, David, and Greg emphasized in the presentation yesterday that the set is going to be vital to the understanding of the entire performance and I cannot wait to attend tonight!

Are you going to see “Endgame”? Have you ever seen the play, or performed in it before? Let me know in the comments below!

Julia (Student Intern)

Networking Opportunities? Yes, please!

 

Hi everyone!

I hope you’re staying warm on this strangely freezing March morning, I hope spring gets here soon! To all my fellow seniors out there who are currently applying for jobs and grad school, the process is incredibly STRESSFUL. The applications, the interviews, the desperation to make yourself stand out among others can be very overwhelming, but I have learned through my own job searching and affiliation with the CEPD office that networking is the KEY to helping this process be successful! This past Tuesday, I was able to attend Siena’s 14th Annual Career, Internship and Grad School Fair and I was SO glad that I did! Over 120 businesses set up tables in the MAC on Tuesday afternoon and a huge amount of students from all majors attended, handing out resumes and business cards and having conversations with employers about possible opportunities. This was the biggest networking event I have been to thus far and I have to admit, it was a bit nerve-wracking at first! Talking about yourself can definitely feel a little strange at first, but events such as these are a huge opportunity to talk about the skills and assets you can bring to a school or a team.  I talked to about five or six different employers (even the Boston University Grad School) and they were all incredibly nice and interested in what I had to say. I was even able to speak with the team from Habitat for Humanity International about future volunteer opportunities, who told me my course of study (English and Marketing) would be perfect for their team!

Although I’m from out of state and was not able to find any immediate job openings in the Boston area that were offered at the career fair, I am so glad that I was able to attend.  I met some fantastic people, particularly from Linium Recruiting, who have offered to see what they can do with my resume.  In addition, I received some advice about how to enter the Marketing and Public Relations field, which has helped me tremendously in continuing my job search.  Networking is about creating relationships with experienced professionals and about learning as much as possible about creating a strong future career; over the past four years as a Siena student, I have truly learned  how to network. Having a Liberal Arts education has not only provided us with hard earned degrees, but has also provided skills that we will take into the professional world and beyond.  If you come across large networking events such as this one, or even smaller meetings, go to them! They may be nerve-wracking and you may think, “Well, how is this going to help me?,” but I promise, it’ll be worth your while. Networking events are like informal interviews and they will give you the chance to practice presenting yourself to employers, something that one can never do often enough.  You’ll learn so much about the career field you’re pursuing. Even if you don’t find a job with that particular company, odds are they are going to know someone who will be able to help you!

Check out my article at http://www.hercampus.com/school/siena to see a list of tips on how to network the right way! Did you go to the career fair on Tuesday? Let me know in the comments!

Julia Lowney (Student Intern)

5 Essential Things to Do to Prepare For the Career Fair

career_fair_Hi guys!

So, the 14th Annual Career, Internship and Grad School Fair is taking place right here on campus TODAY from 3:00-6:30pm in the MAC and this event is a huge deal.  There are over 120 businesses coming from all over the area and beyond, there is going to be a FREE LinkedIn Photo Booth and I am honestly super excited for the event! The Career Fair is a fantastic opportunity to make connections, network your skills and to discover some of the companies you may be interested in working for, but preparing for this event is equally as important. Here are my top five tips on getting ready for today and other networking events:

  1. Resume: I know this may sound obvious, but your resume should be a clear description of your skills and the experience you have! You should know your resume better than anyone, make sure everything is correctly written and formatted. Make sure your resume has been properly critiqued and that you overprint copies to bring to the event! You don’t want to be speaking with a potential employer without a spare copy of your resume to give them. Career Education and Professional Development is located in Foy 203 and their office hours vary from 8:30am-4:30pm Monday through Friday. Please check in with the CEPD office to inquire about specific times by contacting them at careermail@siena.edu or (518)783-2339
  2. Dressing for Success: Your outfit for the Career Fair will make a huge statement about your interest in entering the professional world, so take the time to choose something! I was able to attend the Dress for Success Fashion Show last week and they provided a TON of ideas on how to look good while making a great first impression:
    1. For girls: Conservative is always the safest route! Knee length dresses or skirts with a nice blouse are always great options, plus you can add a cute statement necklace or a sweater/cardigan to make it pop just a bit! Pumps or flats are ideal, but stay away from anything that may appear too flashy, short or inappropriate.  In terms of makeup, a neutral eye and lip will always make the best impression!
    2. For guys: You don’t have to wear a tux, but make sure you’re dressing to make a positive impact on future employers. Dress pants, a dress shirt and a tie are absolutely essential for this event, as are dress shoes. Suit jackets don’t hurt either! PLEASE don’t wear sneakers or jeans and make sure that if you do have facial hair, it’s clean and trimmed.
  3. Business Cards: Having personalized business cards will provide potential employers with easy access to your contact information AND will make you more memorable during that two minute conversation. Career Education and Professional Development will print out sheets of business cards for FREE and all you have to do is fill out a form, which you can find here. Fill out this form as soon as you can, they take up to three business days to print!
  4. Research: Know who you’re talking to! Learn as much as you can about the businesses that are coming, you don’t want to be caught by surprise when an employers asks what you know about their company and you don’t have any idea what they’re talking about.  Here is the list of ALL of the employers and grad schools that will be attending the Career Fair today, don’t hesitate to take a look at it! See which businesses you’re interested in and look up their website to see what they do, where they’re located, what their mission statement is, etc. If you can have a conversation with someone about their company during the Career Fair, you’re going to stand out among a lot of other candidates!
  5. Elevator Pitch: This is almost like a sales pitch, but instead of telling someone about a product, you’re telling them about yourself. An elevator pitch just has to be two or three sentences long, but make sure that you’re telling employers things about yourself that will incite them to want to continue the conversation. Tell them who you are, what you’re studying here at Siena and what career path you’re planning to take and PRACTICE this! Make sure you can recite your elevator pitch exceptionally and avoid using the words “like” or “um.”

I hope this tips help you prepare for today, as they are the key aspects to making a good impression on the attending businesses! Pre registration for the Career Fair is now closed, but walk-ins ARE welcome, so register TODAY and come to the MAC to join us for this exciting event! Even if the right business for you isn’t here at the Career Fair, odds are there will be someone there who will be able to lead you in the desired direction!

Julia (Student Intern)

“Votes for Women”- A Historical Masterpiece

unnamed-6

Hi guys!

I hope you’re all doing well and that this dreary, rainy weather isn’t getting you down! If you’re in the Albany area this weekend and are looking for something fun to do, I HIGHLY recommend going to see “Votes for Women,” a performance put on by the Siena College Creative Arts Department detailing scenes from the Women’s Suffrage Movement.  I was able to attend this past Friday night and I was SO impressed by the skills of everyone in the performance, including some familiar faculty faces.  I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting myself into when I decided to attend the performance because the flyer indicated that we wouldn’t be sitting in the theater per usual, that we would be walking around the building.  Our tickets contained a sticker on the back, each with a name and we were told that we were to follow the suffragist leader of that group.  My ticket read “Votes for Women” and I had the chance to follow Harriot Stanton Blatch (played by the wonderful June Casey) though various scenes throughout the Women’s Suffrage Movement, including the trial of the one and only Susan B. Anthony.  We literally walked all over Foy, including backstage, to reach these scenes and this is something that I have never done before!

I think the aspect of the performance that I was most impressed with was the historical accuracy that each cast member put into their characters.  The words spoken throughout the show were original text and content from the time period and many of the cast members were required to memorize extensive monologues in language that is not quite as familiar to us these days. In particular, Sandra Boynton who plays Susan B. Anthony, delivered her lines in such a way that I truly felt as if I had been transported back to her time. I was able to clearly see the absurdity in the way women were treated back then and honestly felt incredibly inspired after hearing the words spoken just so well and so passionately.

Check out the flyer above for location and time details for this weekend’s performance and please try to attend if you can! If you did attend the performance here at Siena, what did you think? Let me know in the comments below!

Julia (Student Intern)

Greyfriar Living Literature Series Shines Light on Wonder of Creative Writing

Morning everyone!

I hope you’re all staying warm out there, hopefully the warm weather will return soon! Having just returned from spring break, there are several events through the School of Liberal Arts coming up within the next few weeks and I was so excited to have the opportunity to attend the English Department’s Greyfriar Living Literature Series reading yesterday, which featured novelist Pamela Erens.  Ms.Erens is a highly accomplished author, with several short stories under her belt and three published novels, all of which have become incredibly successful.  The Understory, The Virgins, and Eleven Hours have all won major awards and most recently, Eleven Hours has been placed onto the “Best Books of 2016.” During the reading, Ms. Erens read a large excerpt from Eleven Hours, which take place during one woman’s entire labor process and how she copes with the incredible, yet terrifying prospect of childbirth.  As someone with a passion for writing and literature, it was fascinating to have the chance to hear Ms. Erens read her own work out loud and to see what her thought process was behind the characters and the overall idea of childbirth.

pamela-erens

Source

The audience was able to engage in a Q&A session after the initial reading and I was curious about what her greatest challenge is as a writer and novelist. She said that to be a novelist requires a lot of risk taking and that the business can be very uncertain at times.  If someone is working on a piece of writing for a year and a half, but then is forced to abandon the project because the ideas stop coming, then it seems as though all that time was wasted. Eleven Hours took Ms. Erens three years to write and she began the novel a multitude of times, trying to figure out the best direction to set the characters and plot it.  This, however, is incredibly normal for anyone who has ever tried to write a longer creative writing piece.  Great ideas come with thought and they come with practice and they come with mistakes.  No one ever completed a novel perfectly on the first try and this is something that I have tried to keep in mind throughout my years of writing.  I am constantly watching different authors, whether they are my favorite authors or whether they be guest speakers in some of my classes because they have gone past these obstacles to become incredibly successful.

Ms. Erens is going to be on campus again today to give a craft talk and writing activity in the Boland Room (Father Benjamin Kuhn House) at 4:10pm. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend, you do NOT have to be studying English or Writing and just remember to bring a notebook and something to write with!

Julia Lowney (Student Intern)