Welcome to A&E, my personal favorite section of the paper. In A&E, we get to cover the side of student life that is actually fun. We don’t do USAC here ““ unless of course they do “Board Meeting!” the musical. We might choose that for our daily Editor’s Picks, or maybe even put it in our Thursday calendar.
Instead, what we get to cover in this section is the side of life that can get pushed aside during the hustle and bustle of papers and exams. Amid all the intellectual madness, it is often too easy to forget that you enjoy discovering new bands, that you like hearing about interesting films, video games, theaters or restaurants, and that maybe one of the reasons you chose UCLA was so you could explore this cultural mecca that we live in. It can be hard, though, to feel comfortable exploring the world of art, as anyone you ask will have a different opinion of what defines greatness. And too often, things like films, music and art shows are covered in a cloud of mystery and pretense that make them seem intimidating and uninviting. And after all, it is tempting to just put on the same “party” playlist, watch the same blockbusters and go to the same parties every weekend.
But in A&E, we hope that by continuing to cover trends in entertainment, profiling interesting artists, recommending events and passing judgment on anything that crosses our path, UCLA will seem like a more interesting place to be. Because after all, going to school in West Los Angeles means that at every given moment you are a bus ride away from world-renowned museums like the Getty and LACMA. The hippest music clubs are just down the street on Sunset Boulevard, and don’t even get me started on how many films there are to see. All you have to do is know where to look. And we hope you look to A&E ““ before you inevitably flip to the crossword.
Crocker is the 2007-2008 Arts & Entertainment editor. E-mail her at acrocker@media.ucla.edu.