In high school, theater is an activity that most students are
easily able to participate in. At UCLA, however, pursuing a love of
performance at the college level can be more difficult if
you’re not in the theater department.
Fortunately, several student groups on campus have attempted to
provide an outlet for students’ artistic ambitions. This past
winter quarter, HOOLIGAN, or the Honorable Order of Licentious
Instigators of the General Artist Network, became the newest of the
theater groups aimed directly at students of all backgrounds and
majors. Despite being around for less than six months, HOOLIGAN
already boasts a membership of around 200, including about 50
active members who participated in its spring musical
production.
HOOLIGAN was created in February, when third-year communication
studies student Tamara Williams and third-year undeclared student
Elizabeth Fuller noticed the limited performing opportunities for
non-theater students. Williams and Fuller are now HOOLIGAN’s
president and vice president, respectively.
“It is really hard to get on stage and be in a production
when you’re not in the theater department at UCLA. There
(are) not that many opportunities at all for non-theater
majors,” Williams said.
Other groups, such as the UCLA musical theater workshop and the
improv troupe Bruins United Improvisational Comedy Kraze, hold
selective audition processes students may find intimidating.
HOOLIGAN, however, aims for diversity in its membership.
“The thing about HOOLIGAN is everyone is included, whether
you dance, you sing, you act, you direct, you just want be on stage
crew, you want to do costumes, you want to do hair, or you want to
write,” Williams said.
The group also encourages students of all skill levels to join
in.
“We have people who are just starting off, and we have
people who have been performing since they were 3,” Williams
said. “No matter what skill level they were at, everyone gets
to participate.”
Monica DeLateur, a third-year psychology student, joined the
group after hearing of it through Facebook. A longtime dancer and
choreographer, DeLateur found HOOLIGAN to be a preferable
alternative to other campus programs.
According to DeLateur, HOOLIGAN offers an entertainment-oriented
style of musical theater dancing, compared to the more abstract
dance featured in UCLA’s World Arts and Cultures dance
program.
“(With the WAC program), it’s modern pieces that
they’re choreographing, and that’s harder. Musical
theater dancing goes with the lyrics, and it’s not quite as
technically hard,” DeLateur said. “It’s more for
entertainment value. So it’s a little bit more fun to do that
rather than just improvising.”
This dance style was prominent in the HOOLIGAN’s first
production, “Hollywood Heaven,” a 1940s musical comedy
covering a crazy cast of characters during a Hollywood acting
party. The group pulled the musical together from start to finish
in only six weeks; it premiered on May 24 in Lenart Auditorium in
the Fowler Museum.
Williams, who directed and produced the show, is proud that
“Hollywood Heaven” was put on entirely by UCLA
students.
“We wrote it, we composed all the music, we orchestrated
all the music, we acted all the parts, directed. Everything was
student-done,” she said.
The group has many plans for next year, including increased
activities as more students discover the club.
In November, HOOLIGAN plans on hosting a pop culture show. The
group will also be working on another spring production, with
auditions to take place during the second week of fall quarter.
With such a broad canvas of people of various skill levels and
interests, HOOLIGAN also provides a chance to connect with people
of similar passions.
“It’s just been so great meeting people, and
we’ve all come together sharing talents. Everyone’s
just aching to perform,” DeLateur said. “I think for
freshmen it would be a great way to meet people, because you really
have to find a group that you want to hang out with since UCLA is
so big. After this year with HOOLIGAN, these are the people I want
to be with for the next two years.”