Dressed in a suit and his “most polyester” tie, Weinberg and Communication junior Benjamin Singer, new emcee of Dance Marathon 2009, walked around a circle of tables, shaking the hands of the chuckling members of the DM executive committee on Sunday.
His new partner, Scott Olstad, a Weinberg and Medill junior, strutted in what he called his “shutter shades” while introducing himself to the other half of the room. Their time as entertainers for DM had begun.
This was a quick introduction to the team of Benjamin and Scott, whose tentative emcee name is “BS,” following the theme of past DM emcees “TnA” (Todd Johnson and Adam Welton).
The emcee audition process began with two rounds on Monday, Nov. 3. The duo, in addition to their in-person audition, submitted a video they made with the help of a friend, Jeremy Goodman.
The two were chosen by DM executive co-chairs Liz Banks and Phil Reich, in conjunction with dancer relations co-chairs Lizzie Green and Ryan Farrell and productions co-chairs Sam Bobb and Eri Okuma. Singer and Olstad were selected from a field of 20 potential emcees, standing out from the crowd because, according to Banks, “they got us excited about DM” and “they made us laugh.”
Following the warm-up, the productions co-chairs questioned the two emcees in order to help the board get to know them, and to allow Singer and Olstad to showcase their sense of humor.
Questions included their favorite Jane Austen novel; Singer replied with “Pride and Prejudice,” while Olstad said he prefered “anything with Keira Knightley.” Singer said he aimed to “institute a Star Wars block — just play the Star Wars theme for three hours straight.”
Olstad and Singer have known each other since freshman year, when they were roommates in CRC. For both, their pairing as roommates was somewhat unexpected.
“On my housing application, you’re supposed to write something you look for in a roommate,” Olstad said. “I wrote that I like people who listen to good music and play video games. Benjamin has never played a video game, and he listens to bad music.”
Singer went on: “In that space for additional comments, I wrote ‘I’m Jewish and I’m a vegetarian, and in order to facilitate both lifestyles, it’d be best if my roommate was one and ideally both.’” Olstad is neither. Nonetheless, the two continued living together into sophomore year.
Both emcees have previous DM experience. Olstad is in the “60-hour club right now,” while Singer danced freshman year and served on the corporate relations committee.
The two have fond memories of their involvement in DM. Singer waxed nostalgic about the “Friday night when they brought around Challah,” while Olstad mentioned the reveal of the final total and the overwhelming sense of accomplishment during the last few blocks of dancing.
Singer and Olstad are already planning for the responsibilities of the long weekend of DM in March. “We’re thinking about wearing clothes,” Singer said of his on-stage costume. Olstad was less certain: “We’ll see what’s going to happen. Start naked and gain clothes or start with clothes and lose them as we go. We’ll figure them out.” Both said they were desperately hoping for an opportunity to dress as Stars Wars characters. Olstad promised that even if the block theme is “tropical,” he’ll show up in a “Wookiee costume with an umbrella.”
The two were clearly excited to entertain as well as to advocate for the DM 2009 beneficiary, Project Kindle. They both had advice for dancers who might be nervous about the 30-hour weekend. Singer recommended Dr. Scholl’s while Olstad, on a more serious note, advised “not to dread it. A lot of kids come in worried and they psyche themselves out… DM is what you make out of it.”