The Evolution of Dances

Story by E.J. Kruser

With all the buzz around Homecoming 2013, there are plenty of age-old traditions to discuss: the ceremonial bonfire, the pep rally, the big football game, but the most noteworthy event would have to be the Homecoming Dance. Now, we’ve all had grandma/grandpa pull us aside and tell us what life was like way back yonder in the good ol’ days of five cent moving picture shows. Once we learn to see past the freakishly long nose hair, we’re able  to uncover some insight into our American society’s progression. I remember Grampa Eldon telling me the story of his last high school dance before he was shipped off to the U.S. Army. From the details I was able to catch between my inevitable yawning fits, dances in the 1940’s were a formal, romanticized type of extravaganza full of jiving, swinging and chivalry. Upon recollecting my last dance, I remember being peer-pressured into joining what I heard was referred to as a “grinding train.” By no means could I, a staff writer for the PHS Voice, in good conscience condone such activity, but I would not condemn it, either. I’ll stay neutral in the debate over appropriate dancing techniques, and, instead of writing an opinionated article on why the act of teenagers “bumping uglies to the beat of the bass” is morally bankrupting America, I’d like to talk about the shifting of popular dance styles throughout the last century in our home: the Land of the Free, where it is up to us, the American people, to decide what is right and what is overly-sexualized.

At the turn of the 20th century, the most risque form of dance was a barefoot jig to the classical stylings of Chopin and Strauss. Shortly after, dances like the Foxtrot, the Shimmy, and the Charleston rose to popularity. In these times, scandal arose when a young lady exposed her shins on the dancefloor. Trends changed quickly, however, and by the time the 1940s rolled in, dresses were being acceptably hiked up to the knees for dances like the Jive, the Swing Trot, and the Harlem Shuffle. Fast-forward to the era of free love and disco, where dances like the Twist, the Robot, the Hustle, Moonwalking, the Worm, and breakdancing became common, and we can see just how rapidly the change in what is acceptable in American culture occurred. The Millenium brought few new options to dance, most notably the one-two-step and “krumping.” I don’t know what the term “krumping” means, but I do know this: the times are changing fast. For those of you who disapprove of the modern era’s choice of personal expression on the dancefloor, don’t  worry! According to trends, the newest provocative dance style is right around the corner! Just think, a century from now this “grinding train,” that I’m sure most of us are familiar with, will seem comparable to the famous 1911 “Bunny Hug” in terms of social acceptance. I, for one, am just glad to live in a country where we, the people, decide what is acceptable and what is not. You can dance if you want to.You can leave your friends behind. Because your friends don’t dance, and if they don’t, then they’re no friends of the American media.

What's With All Those Shoes?

Story by Allie Serres

At Platteville High School we don’t see shoes as an issue. People here have multiple pairs and some have so many pairs of shoes that they don't even know what to do with them. Throughout the world, each year 300 million pairs of shoes get thrown away and put into landfills, yet in many places around the world the average person doesn't have shoes at all. in. In fact, approximately 1.5 billion people don't have shoes to wear.

In order to help this world issue, the cross country team has teamed up with Shoe Box and set out collection boxes around the school so students have the opportunity to recycle their used shoes. Coach Serres says, “I got an email from Shoe Box explaining the idea, and I was intrigued by the great opportunity to teach students to give back and help the less fortunate. Although I am happy with the results so far, I would like to see more shoes coming in. The school is going to have a Shoe Blast day, and I am hoping that we bring in about 300 pairs of shoes. This is something that I hope will go on forever, and hopefully people will realize shoes are recyclable just like anything else.”

Not only is this an opportunity to help others around the world, but this program will also benefit the cross country team. Each collection box can hold about 40 pairs of shoes, and for each box filled and sent in to the Shoe Box company, the cross country team receives $20. So bring in shoes to support the team and to help those in need. It is easy to take things for granted, but before you put those shoes in the garbage, think about the child, mother, father, or grandparent that would love to have those shoes that you consider to be trash.

About the QR Codes...

Story by Max Frommelt

Asmany of you have noticed, there are strange images of Henry Hillman floating around the school. These images are QR codes, a coded image that you can “scan” with a QR app like QRReader. When you open the QR scanner and scan the app, you are taken directly to the pre-programmed location, usually a website. In the case of the QR codes around PHS, these QR codes take you directly to The Voice’s blog. After so many years of just printing the paper, you might wonder why we bothered making a blog this year. “The purpose of this is simple,” describes Editor-in-Chief Sumaia Masoom (‘14). “The whole goal of the newspaper at PHS is to create an open forum for discussion about relevant issues, but as with all newspapers, the ability to directly respond to The Voice is limited. Your interactions with the stories are relatively one-sided, unless you choose to write a letter to the editor. Even then, your response won’t be printed until a month after the original story comes out, since we’re a monthly newspaper.” She continues, “With the blog, not only can you comment directly on the stories, but you can also access them from anywhere you have an internet connection.”

  So far, the response to the QR codes has been positive. Carla Hoppe (‘14) says, “With the QR codes, it is simple to get to the web site and it is easy to talk about the subjects. I have recommended to friends to scan the QR code when they’re bored in study hall. The blog has everything from student profiles to polls you can vote on, like the appropriateness of Miley Cyrus’s performance at the VMAs.” The other simple aspect of the QR codes is you do not have to remember or bookmark the web site for the blog. Just hold your mobile device to the code and scan it. The device does the work for you. The newspaper staff uses this site as a feedback mechanism so the newspaper is more of what you want to hear. If you don’t already have it, download QRReader on your device and check it out!

PHS Student Goes to Korea

In case you hadn’t been informed, this year a Platteville High School student is studying abroad. Anna Whisenant (‘15) is spending a year in Uiwang, South Korea, through the Rotary Youth Exchange. Staffer Adam Roberts had the opportunity to ask Anna a few questions about her experience.

What are some differences you’ve noticed about Korean life?

AW: Life in Korea on a day to day basis isn’t really that different than life in America.  There are some differences.  School is harder, and people generally work harder at what they do.  Sometimes my host parents don’t come home from work before 11 at night, and never before 7.

Has learning a new language been a challenge?

AW: The Korean language is really hard.  The language barrier has sucked.

What has been your favorite part of the experience so far?

AW: I love the culture and how beautiful it is.  I love the landscape as well.

What do you miss about Platteville?

AW: I really miss my friends and American fast food.  

How has your experience with the Rotary program been?

AW: It’s so rewarding. We help in the community and try to give back.  I love my host family so much.

Do you have any advice for others who want to travel to a foreign country?

AW: I think everyone should be able to live outside of the country at some point.  If you think that America is the best place out there, it’s time for a reality check.

Interested in reading more about Anna’s experience?  You can follow her blog for updates:  http://anna-all-over.blogspot.com/

Swim Team Journeys to Chicago

Story by Beth Gardiner

At the end of September, the Platteville-Lancaster Girls’ Swim Team took their annual Chicago trip. The girls had the opportunity to compete with excellent swimmers and also have some fun. They enjoyed team bonding, city touring, and of course, some intense swimming.

The swimmers left very early in the morning on September 27th to depart in a coach bus. During three hour journey, they kept traditions of watching The Big Bang Theory and other movies, such as High School Musical. Once they arrived in Chicago they set out to tour the city.

In Willis Tower (Sears Tower) the girls loved going in the skydeck and also taking pictures to remember their trip. Millennium Park was a favorite for many of the swimmers. They hung out at the bean, spitting fountain, and exotic art monuments. The team, dressed in their bright orange swim team shirts, played an exciting game of statues with one of the team captains, Maddie Kieler (‘14), leading them. The best part was when other tourists joined in on the fun. Several swimmers said this was one of their highlights from the trip. The team dined at Giordano’s, Portillo’s, and Barnelli’s Pasta Bowl to get a full taste of Chicago.

To compete on Saturday, September 28th, the team swam at Fenwick High School in Oak Park, Illinois. Here the Platteville-Lancaster team had the opportunity to see and learn from the best of the best swimmers. Elissa Bahr (‘13) recapped the trip by saying, “We have all put in a ton of hard work this season. The Chicago trip was a great opportunity to have fun and bond with each other by having a good time.”

Senior English Students Battle Sun, View Hamlet

Story by Justin Phillips

    In early October, students in the senior english classes took their annual trip to the American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin to attend the Shakespeare classic, Hamlet. Seniors have been reading Hamlet in class, so understanding the plot and characters came easily.  The trip lasted for the entirety of the school day, influencing many students ability to take this opportunity, but miss all of their classes. Mr. Freitag, the senior English teacher, advertised the class trip to students by inviting actor David Daniel from the play to visit classes a day prior to the performance. Mr. Daniel, who played Polonius, a main character in Hamlet, used a couple different acting techniques to entice student interest by touching on relatable subjects such as ADD and “the hallway of crap that is high school.” He also used students to demonstrate the meaning behind Shakespeare’s extensive wording with humor and playful humiliation.

     The actual trip to this outdoor theatre took place on a particularly sunny and warm day for October. Although there was shade surrounding the stage and actors, the majority of students had waterlogged shirts by intermission. Even after Ben Hasker (‘14) had “cowardly” applied sunscreen preceding the show, he was noticeably sunburned and perspiring.

     The acting was exceptionally well done. The entire cast was exuberant in manner, and the lead, Hamlet, in particular was very animated and possessed the insanity needed to portray an allegedly crazy man. Ophelia, Hamlet’s love interest, was also very convincing with her delirious singing and disheveled looks.

     Overall, the senior expedition was a pleasing experience and enjoyed by even those who did not particularly care for reading Hamlet in hardcopy form. “The costumes were very realistic, and the accents were great. I almost felt like I was actually there, in England!” exclaimed Maddie Kieler (‘14). So just wait, juniors–next year, you too might take the trip of a lifetime without ever having to leave your seat.

PHS Presents: Working

Story by Saafia Masoom

The long-awaited month of October is finally here for the individuals of PHS seeking involvement in this year’s musical Working. Each year students are given the chance to audition for roles in the cast, apply for the stage crew, or put their instrumental skills to the test in the pit orchestra.

Based on the novel by Pulitzer Prize winning author Studs Terkel, Working gives the audience a look at the lives of twenty-six people from an array of different backgrounds in the course of just one day. The everyday hopes and dreams of a school-teacher, a waitress, a steelworker, a migrant worker, and a housewife, among many other workers, are explored through many songs and dance numbers.

Working also features the music of various composers: Craig Camelia, Micki Grant, Mary Rodgers and Susan Birkenhead, Stephen Schwartz (also the director of the Broadway version), and James Taylor.

The audience may have to keep the characters and storylines straight, but that’s nothing compared to the rigorous schedule that the musical’s cast, crew, and pit will face. Over the weeks to come, the cast will have to spend hours learning the dance routines, blocking onstage, what to say, and when to say it. Musical director Mrs. Armstrong dedicates months of work into the perfecting the productions. Sounds pretty intense, right?

Well, the workload isn’t just forced on the cast, because the crew must work hand in hand with them to learn the show by heart and pull the strings backstage to make sure that everything goes smoothly. And then there’s the pit, directed by Mrs. Fairchild.

“The pit orchestra for any musical is the glue that holds the entire production together,” she describes. Working will feature a piano, electric and acoustic bass, drum set with some synthesized keyboard, and guitar part for three different types of guitars.

In fact, the pit is given only two rehearsals together before meeting up with the cast since much of the music must be learned on their own. The members can then “figure out how to jell as a unit and provide support for singers on the stage,” as Fairchild puts it.

In this sense the musical is a lot like any team sport in which participants must work together to make things happen. So, when production week rolls around, we should all just remember to be supportive of the brave individuals who are taking on quite a challenge this year with Working. It’s just the beginning of the long rehearsal process for the musical bunch, but we can rest assured that they’ll be ready to put on a great show when the time comes.

Trending Now: The Dark World of ask.fm

Story by Sumaia Masoom/Carla Hoppe

  “It’s stupid; you’re setting yourself up for bullying.” Brooke Groom (‘14), comments on the latest social media trend to hit teens worldwide, the website ask.fm. The website, based in Latvia, was founded by brothers Mark and Ilja Terebin in June of 2010. The site allows anyone to ask registered users questions anonymously. People can, however, question others with their chosen username if they have also registered with the site. For example, ask.fm makes most of its money through advertising, as it allows businesses to get their name out by “sponsoring” questions.

  While the main purpose of the site is to merely “ask and answer,” as the simple homepage describes, the only feature on each individual’s pages is a text box that allows for 300 characters. This means that users don’t even have to ask questions, and can simply comment as they please so long as the comment fits within the character limit. This has led to a definite increase in anonymous cyberbullying. In several incidents--nine of them confirmed--bullying through ask.fm has even led to suicide.

  Erin Gallagher, a 13 year-old from the U.K., is one of the victims of harassment who eventually hanged herself. The teenager left a note saying that she could no longer handle all the bullying, and specifically named  ask.fm as one of the sources. Her 15 year-old sister, so distraught by her sister’s death, also killed herself two months later. Their mother, Lorraine, was understandably shaken and commented a few weeks later after yet another girl had also committed suicide for the same reasons, "I want ask.fm to shut down because I don't want to turn on the TV again and see that another kid has killed herself because they have been bullied on ask.fm.”

  Here at PHS, the situation has not escalated to quite such levels. However, there have still been multiple incidents of harassment related to ask.fm. This begs the question: why even open yourself up to even the possibility of such bullying? “I wanted to know what it was about,” says Elissa Bahr (‘15), “but I don’t even use it.” Melanie Schaefer (also ‘15) adds, “I wanted to see all the questions being asked.”

  Let’s say you decide to create an account, whether it’s for any of the reasons mentioned above or something else. Is there any way to protect yourself from the “kill yourself” and “drink bleach”-type comments? Ask.fm’s founders, although they refuse to take any responsibility for their part in the bullying, have included a section about safety and privacy settings on their website following the many incidents. You can also report any abuse on the website itself, as well as to school administrators. Finally, there’s also a way to block anonymous questions altogether: just log into your account, go to your privacy settings, and check the box that says “do not allow anonymous questions.” You can block known registered users from asking you questions as well by adding them to your “Blacklist.”

  In the end, ask.fm might be a great site for innocent fun, but it also appears to allow many bullies to hide behind their computers. As with all things related to the internet, it’s important to remember to be careful. As for those of you who may have said some unsavory things in the past, remember to watch what you say: nothing is ever truly deleted.

Jesus Fontan

Spanish Foreign Exchange Student

Story by Anna Musarra

   There’s five minutes left in the first half of the game, and the Platteville-Lancaster boys’ soccer team is on the attack. In the lead is a new face: Jesús Fontán, fifteen year-old foreign exchange student from Madrid, Spain. Fontán, who also plays recreational tennis, isn’t the only one from Madrid on the team; coincidentally, one of his friends from his team back in Spain, Aurelio Fernandez, is also playing for the Hillmen this season. The two live only five minutes away from each other back home in Madrid, which is especially cool considering the population of Madrid is over 3 million people, and they both just happened to end up in rural Platteville, Wisconsin. 
   The two friends and teammates don’t live quite as close to each other in Platteville--Fernandez lives several minutes out of town, and Fontán is staying in town with the Custers. They do still spend a lot of time together, however, since they’re both in many classes together, although only Fontán is registered as a sophomore, and both are avid fans of the Spanish club team, Real Madrid.
   America isn’t the only place that Fontán has travelled to. He’s also been to France, and once visited Norway for about a week. He says the best part of his current extended stay, however, is getting to meet all the new people, especially the others in the foreign exchange program and his new friends on the soccer team.
   Although the soccer season is now over, Fontán’s stay in Platteville is only just beginning. Make sure to say hello to our new friend in the hallway!

Aurelio Fernandez

Spanish Foreign Exchange Student

by Rachel Lueder

Fifteen year-old Aurelio Fernandez, a student from Madrid, recently decided to venture across seas to experience American culture and to better his English language skills.  Fernandez, who is staying with the Kielers, is currently registered as a junior, but is in mostly sophomore classes. Of all the foreign exchange students, Fernandez has been in Platteville for the shortest time. He was originally placed in a school in Chicago, but 75% of the students in the school spoke Spanish, which defeated the entire purpose of Fernandez’s trip. After about a month in Chicago, he was moved here, but has adjusted well to life here at PHS and made a number of new friends, especially the other boys on the school soccer team. Surprisingly, he’s already familiar with one of his teammates: he and Jesús Fontán, another foreign exchange student, live only five minutes away from each other back in Madrid and even play for the same club soccer team at home. Fernandez explained that his school doesn’t actually have a soccer team--all of the sports people play in his school are at the club level, independent of the school.

The structure of sports teams isn’t the only difference between his school in Madrid and PHS. Fernandez was also required to learn English (he speaks a little French as well), and had to learn how to play an instrument. Fernandez played the flute for eight years before picking up guitar last year. Fernandez noted that one of the biggest differences between life in Spain and America is the education system. Primary and secondary education in Spain can more or less be separated into four different stages: pre-school, primary school, secondary school, and finally, college prep. In Spain, Fernandez reported that you start off with pre-school, which isn’t mandatory, but most parents have their children attend it. Next is primary school. Primary school, which lasts six years, is structured in three, two-year cycles. Primary school would approximately be first grade to sixth grade in America. After that, you’re off to secondary school, which is four years long. This stage lasts until the student is sixteen, at which point in time the student is no longer required by law to stay in school. Most tend to stay in school though. The last step in secondary education in Spain is referred to as the Bachillerato level, and is generally a college preparatory stage lasting from age sixteen to eighteen. What’s different about this level is that classes vary depending on the student’s interest.   

As for now, Fernandez says he likes his classes here at PHS more than at his school in Madrid as the subjects are spread out, as opposed to having core sciences (chemistry and physics, for example) combined. However, PHS’s schedule doesn’t allow for as many breaks as he would have at home, and is considerably smaller as a student body: his school has a population of roughly 1,500--and they all have lunch at once. Fernandez is here all year, so make sure to get to know our new friend!