Winter 'Wonderland'

GAMBIER, Ohio (January 31, 2007) This Saturday, February 3, Kenyon students can step out of Ohio's "wintry mix" and into a croquet game with the querulous Queen of Hearts. It's the fourteenth annual Philander's Phling at Kenyon, and, just like the world through Alice's looking glass, the Kenyon Athletic Center (KAC) will host an assortment of fabled and original characters.

The theme of this year's semiformal, campus-wide event will be "Fables and Fairy Tales." According to Phling Committee Chair Allison Lemay, Class of 2007, of Rosemount, Minnesota, students at this year's Phling should expect the same "magical atmosphere" they've previously experienced, despite the change in location since Peirce Hall, Phling's traditional home, is closed for renovation.

The awe that was previously inspired by Peirce's Harry Potteresque architecture will be supplied instead by the athletic center, transfigured through the magic of student creativity. Thanks to student artists Rob Blum, Class of 2007, of Commack, New York, and Andrew Ritter, Class of 2007, of Hudson, Ohio, the walls will be adorned with scenes that incorporate fifteen different tales, including Cinderella, the Three Billygoats Gruff, and Jack and the Beanstalk.

Lemay admits that the greatest challenge in organizing Phling has been deciding how best to utilize the space in the KAC. The spacious indoor track will be transformed into a photography station and dance floor. Student bands Selected Letters and the Expert, along with DJ Phil Thompson, Class of 2007, of San Marcos, Texas, will keep those on the dance floor moving before Jady Kurrent, a cover band from Cleveland, Ohio, and a Phling standard, performs its pop, hip-hop, and dance-style music.

The casino, which has traditionally served as a haven for the gamblers, introverts, and danced-out members of the student body, will be held this year in the Multi-Activity Court (MAC). Separated from the track area by a wall, the casino in the MAC should prove just as popular this year. What is different this year is the lawn feature, where students can play croquet while Tweedledee and Tweedledum, along with other characters, cheer them on.

Lemay hopes students will be just as creative in their choice of costume. "People can dress formally and/or according to the theme," she explained. Mr. and Ms. Kenyon, selected during Phriday Phling's talent, fashion, and trivia competitions, will reign over the event. If students aren't too busy putting together Big Bad Wolf outfits, pontificating upon the heteronormative standards of the Disney princess, or concocting a fascinating fictional world, they are encouraged to attend.

--Lauren C. Ostberg, Class of 2007