Swallow This and Be Satisfied

By Antony Lin

Celebrating its 10 year anniversary , “Swallow This” continues to excel in raising awareness of the dangers of alcohol and drugs. With nearly identical skits dating back to the semester of Fall 2005, a touch of modern musical formula was added in starting off the show with a big bang. Working with the Student Health Service and performing at on and off-campus in found spaces, each skit portrays true accounts of the consequences of alcohol and drugs experienced by actual Stony Brook students through a comedic and dramatic tone. 

The duo of Kathleen Flynn-Bisson and Elizabeth Bojsza has put together a winning crew of actors and actresses for the 2005-2006 season. As important as it is to make the campus well aware of the dangers of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, one should also take into account the high level of entertainment value it gives out to the on and off- campus audience. 

No particular stage sets or props have been used in the performance, as it remains for most seasons.  Performances occur anywhere from the proscenium SAC auditorium stage to the crowded and tight space of a Roth Quad lounge.

Aside from the beginning, the majority of the skits applied modern musical themes that clearly captures the attention of the audience. One of the new features sees the cast start off by running into the room singing a song about alcohol and drugs in the tune of Salt-N-Pepa’s “Let’s Talk About Sex.”

One skit that stood out was that in which a contestant goes on a game show called “Know the Stuff That’s In Your Puff.” One of the changes made from the very skit include actresses Shani Brignolle and Pascale Boucherou going into the audience and imitating that of an audience on a typical game show, a definite bright idea installing extra laughter and energy to the spectators.

Moving to the more dramatic side of the skits, it is stereotypical for many to picture women being date raped. Nevertheless the cast selected a unique story from the Student Health Service database. Dave X, Dwight Cole, Ralphael Cheron, and Richard Pimentel had roles of typical college males heading to a party. Laetitia Kanavaght and Danielle Schulte took on the roles of college females at a party. To the audience’s surprise, it was Pimentel who fell victim to Schulte’s attempted rape, due to the over consumption of alcohol. In an emotional scene, the role of Pimentel discovers that he has contracted HIV.

Continuing along with the drama skits, Carlos Lozada and Crystal Igneri led the way in one exploding skit. The consequence of the over consumption of alcohol was portrayed in a different matter as Lozada played the role of an aggressive and jealous male as his girlfriend played by Crystal Igneri. The high point of the skit came when Lozada’s character goes on a screaming rampage, while Igneri’s character was fearful during the rage. Both Lozada and Igneri displayed a convincing act.

Aside from entertaining the audience, inside jokes were included immediately in the first skit. In an earlier skit in the show, the role played by Celmali Jaime, mentioned an AppleBee’s reference in which appetizers are half-off after a certain time. The reference pretty much pointed to one of the typical hangout locations for the cast.

Near the end of the show, a new improv feature was added creating a participatory style. As two audience members suggested a scene to act out, it only took exactly a minute and a half to prepare a scene and skit for both of the suggestions. Aside from focusing on acting, one can clearly see that this cast is a well-bonded one that carries a full knowledge of teamwork and communcation.

The skits for the 2005-2006 season was written by the entire cast of performers themselves on a weekend retreat in Riverhead in September of 2005. Chances are that one might have recalled seeing a short skit of a “Swallow This” performance some time during an orientation session at Stony Brook. Nevertheless, the performances do not end at orientation; performances go on weekly.

Skits from “Swallow This” are changed in a minor way each time a performance comes around. For that, repeated viewing of this year’s performances can possibly turn into a routine hobby.

For the remaining schedule of performances, check out this link:

http://www.sunysb.edu/theatrearts/forstudents/undergraduate/preventionthroughthearts.html