It’s unavoidable: even if we don’t always feel comfortable speaking our minds, there is some diversity of opinion at Brown. Everyone has different tastes and feelings, and it can be tough to voice our true thoughts if we know they go against the grain.

Unpopular opinions usually come to light in terms of the Big Questions, things like politics and religion. But what you might not realize is that some of your fellow students have thoughts about life in Brunonia that would shock you to the core. Or maybe you do realize, because you have feelings about Brown that don’t quite go along with the majority yourself.

Dialogue is important, so I solicited unpopular opinions from other Blog writers and constructed a highly scientific BlaspheMeter to determine exactly how ashamed you should be of your seemingly unacceptable Brown opinions.

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Fun fact: Brown has the largest number of a cappella groups per capita of any university (thanks, handy dandy tour guide packet).  Love it or hate it, there’s no denying that a cappella is huge here, filling our campus’s many arches with sweet music, impressive beat boxing, and sometimes drunken pirates.

There are a few times each year when the majority of a cappella groups on campus take advantage of the opportunity to perform for as many people as possible – during orientation, freshmen flock like flies; prior to auditions, anyone who can sing (and even some who can’t) are curious.  But Family Weekend is when they break out the big guns, and it can be a little overwhelming deciding which groups you want to see.  To help you out, we’ve put together a comprehensive guide to a cappella at Brown – here’s what you can expect from each of the many groups.

Friday, October 14^th

Harmo and the Ursa Minors’ Parents Weekend Concert!: 8:00-9:30pm, Salomon 001

Ursa Minors: One of several all-female a cappella groups.  The Ursas generally achieve a uniform look by wearing all black, and they perform lots of popular, contemporary music.  They also hold the honor of being the only Brown a cappella group whose name is also an astronomy pun.

Harmonic Motion: Made up of both Brown and RISD students.  They’re definitely the most artsy of the groups, from their haircuts to their outfits to their song selections – which are unique but still wildly entertaining.

Shades of Brown Fall Concert: 8:00pm, Hunter 100

Shades of Brown: In true Brown spirit, Shades of Brown is a multicultural a cappella group with a varied repertoire and equally diverse members.  The group sings songs “in the African American tradition,” [via] and incorporates lots of different styles of music.  Three cheers for diversity!  [Read more →]

Family Weekend is always kind of a weird time on campus. If your parents are here, you’re probably trying to simultaneously prove you’re fine on your own, get them to buy you things, impress them with all the cool things you do on campus and hide half a semester’s worth of beer bottles. If they’re not here, you’re probably either feeling sorry for yourself or laughing at all the kids dragging their parents around the Green. Whether you need a way to entertain your parents or yourself without them, take advantage of the fact that practically every student group on campus is putting on a show of some sort this weekend.

Shakespeare on the Green’s “King Lear”
5:00 P.M.
The Quiet Green
Shakespeare on the Green is promising both sword fighting and hot chocolate for this performance, which happen to be two of my favorite things.
Should you take your parents? Are they Shakespeare fans? Are they willing to sit outside on the grass for two hours without complaining? If so, by all means take them. Otherwise, get your culture fix at 3C2C.

Talk the Tock… Walk the Wock
Salomon 101
8:00 P.M.
$5 for you, $8 for your parents
I just spent five minutes trying to decide if I pronounce “talk” and “tock” the same way, which is about four minutes and fifty-five seconds longer than it should be (although I’m willing to bet you just tried it yourself). The Jabberwocks and the Chattertocks both always deliver quality performances, and I still have the ‘Wocks’ version of “F*** You” stuck in my head, so by all means, hurry over!
Should you take your parents? Yes. A cappella concerts are (usually) fun, wholesome and culture-y: three things that your parents want to picture when they think of you at college. The illusion doesn’t hurt anyone, so why spoil it for them?

3C2C
T.F. Green Hall
8:00 P.M.
Free
“Three Chairs Two Cubes” is a festival of short plays and skits written / directed / acted in by students. Some are always better than others, but the balance usually evens out the positive side. This year’s 3C2C features Klondike Bars, gladiators and parent-teacher conferences.
Should you take your parents? If you don’t feel like braving the chilly New England weather for Shakespeare on the Green, 3C2C is a good way to stay inside and still show off the best of Brown’s creativity.

Fall in Providence — Anne Simons / BlogDailyHerald

Family Weekend 2010 is almost upon us. Fall is in the air, the sun will be shining (almost the whole weekend), and kids and parents alike may be wondering how to negotiate the social ritual that is Family Weekend. Well, don’t worry. BlogDaily Herald is here to help. Look for our posts over the next few days to get you ready for the weekend.

We’re only talking about a few of the University’s many events for this weekend, but you can see the University’s (partial) list of the events for yourself.

Follow after the jump for our take.
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September 19th is finally here. That means it’s Talk Like a Pirate Day. You now have full licence to go around saying things like “Shiver me timbers” without people thinking you’re a freak. Check the link for all kinds of pirate lingo, including pirate pick-up lines. So break out that eyepatch and prepare to be boarded!

And if you still haven’t gotten enough pirating in by tonight, stop by one of ARR!!!’s arrrrrrch sings tonight. 10 pm at Perkins, 10:30 at Wayland, 11:15 at Mochamp.

Mao’s Last Dancer

Avon Cinemas, 6:30 and 8:50

Last week, the Avon was playing “Get Low.” To me, “Get Low” sounded like the name of an end-of-summer schmaltzy dance flick, maybe about a hip-hop dancer and a ballerina who fall in love against the odds. Oh, how wrong I was. “Get Low” was about a hermit living alone in the woods. “Mao’s Last Dancer,” on the other hand, seems to actually be about a dancer!

Smoked Salomon

Salomon 101, 8:00 p.m.

What’s that you say? Somehow you managed to miss all of the singing, a cappella delight around campus last night? I know you’re probably feeling really bad about  that right now, but don’t worry: the Derbies and the Chattertocks are getting together to sing those regrets away!

Neon Night II: The Afterglow

Delta Tau, 10:00 p.m.

$3 door, $1 drinks

If you like your $1 drinks glowing, if you like black lights and glowsticks, if you just wanna dance with a beautiful stranger who’ll leave their neon body paint all over your clothes by the end of the night, if this is what you want from your night, get thee to Delta Tau!