On Friday 20 February 2009, at 7pm in the Student Lounge at Loyola Law School, Law Law Stud returned for the latest installment of a tradition: Wit of Mandamus V. The Stud proudly performed at and reported from past Wits of Mandamus: Wit of Mandamus IV (his last as a student), Wit of Mandamus III (which he also produced) and Wit of Mandamus II (his first, in which was the assistant producer). Now, with the aid of a Canon Elura 85 DV camcorder, as well as a Canon PowerShot SD870IS, the Stud brings you reportage from the leading edge of LLS social life.
Scott Burstein was sound man for the night:
Catering courtesy of Antreas Hindoyan (center) and Burger Continental in Pasadena, CA:
The stage is prepared ...
... the instruments await ...
... and Amanda begins to let guests in:
The show began with "Just Another Day in the Student Lounge", a collaborative act to introduce the talent:
Next up, Prof. Allan Ides ('79), with son Joel Ides, Prof. Dougherty, and the House Band, played a song he wrote for "the beautiful blonde back there" (quipped Prof. Dougherty: "and also to Mrs. Ides!"), "Beautiful Night":
Showing that the students were also no slouch, Scott Burstein (who also came through as the night's sound man), with Desiree Fowler and John Fowler (no relation), performed Eric Johnson's "Cliffs of Dover":
Showing off again the Loyola Law School student body's collaborative spirit, Sri Panchalam and Seth Weiner joined forces to bring us "Yashantin/Unending Love":
Charisse Castroverde, a last-minute sign-on to the show, brought along friend Jason Johnson to accompany her in a performance of Ida Maria's "Stella":
Bringing a taste of classical music to the night was Casey Levental, who performed a piece by Sergei Rachmaninoff:
The first completely non-musical act of the night was John Fowler's "Secret Act: Part II". Since it's secret, the Stud will not show the video.
The next act, Andrew Walsh on the piccolo bass, will also not be shown. Andrew played an original song which he performed as a special treat for the live audience only.
The next performance, by Bill Shafton, has been polished for some time: it is the song with which he proposed to his wife. Get the story and the song in the video of "The Way That I Love You":
The Stud, with the support of the wonderful House Band, performed of Coldplay's "Viva la Vida", unplugged:
Next, for his third and final performance in Wit of Mandamus, Mike Hanna once again roused the crowd with his excellent beatbox, which gets even better toward the end:
Music Director Zack Domb then performed two pieces. First, he played an original composition, "Waiting" (go to 2:15 if you want to skip the lengthy introduction):
The second piece is a reprisal of the first time he performed with Bill Shafton at Wit of Mandamus III, in Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours":
That reprisal led to Seth's own update of his poetry reading:
Returning to a musical milieu, Meryl Chambers performed a spoof on a popular John Mayer song; unfortunately, it may be inappropriate for some audiences, and will not be posted. You had to be there!
Next, Prof. Dougherty renewed his encouragement and support for the Loyola community's artistic endeavors with his original composition, "Pushed Me To It":
The song is available at the MySpace site of Prof. Dougherty's alter ego, JD DeRavin.
The next performance was by Keith Kim, who performed two classical songs, "Nacht und Träume" by Franz Schubert, and "Amor ti Vieta" by Umberto Giordano. The camera had been left unattended while the Stud went on a nature break during the transition between pieces, so while the music had been captured, Keith is nowhere to be found in the frame. Thus, there is no viable video of Keith's performance.
Fortunately, the Stud returned in time to capture the performance of Adrian Rodriguez, who with the House Band brought us Carlos Santana's "El Farol":
Closing out the night, Prof. John Nockleby reminded the audience of the hard-working life of a lawyer in "Professional Responsibility Blues":
As last year, this was a wonderful Wit of Mandamus, and amazing props go to the producers, Dan Ediger, John Fowler, and Julien Kern, and Music Director Zack Domb for pulling it together. Thanks also to Mike Hanna as Master of Ceremonies; Terry Miller on percussion; and Scott Burstein on sound. The turnout was about 160 people or more, surpassing last year, and raising the most money for the Public Interest Law Foundation of any Wit of Mandamus ever. Thank you so much to the audience for the energy and enthusiasm you brought!
The Stud hopes to continue attending these shows, and invites all readers in the Los Angeles area next year about this time to look into attending!
