Council Okays 'Giants' Concert

They might be giants, and they will be here.

The Undergraduate Council last night voted 63-0, with one abstention, to allocate $18,000 to bring alternative music band They Might Be Giants to Harvard.

The council also elected Brandon C. Gregoire '95 as its new secretary after elections for the post had been postponed one week because Gregoire was ill.

With a $10,000 contract already in hand, general council approval was the final stage in the effort to deliver a They Might Be Giants concert to the student body.

The band will play on April 28 in Alumni Hall. Tickets, which will cost $12 for Harvard students and $16 for non-Harvard students, will go on sale sometime next month.

The approval comes after failed attempts by the council in December to bring the bands Blind Melon and Digable Planets to Harvard. In both cases, the council allocated funds for the concerts but was later rebuffed by the bands themselves.

"Everyone felt as if the council could never pull a big act again," said Council President Carey W. Gabay '94, "but this will make the council more confident in its abilities. If [the concert] goes well, it will definitely boost confidence in student government."

Although the council had voted almost unanimously to bring in Blind Melon, Gabay said in an interview yesterday that he had expected some opposition to the Giants resolution.

Gabay thought the $18,000 price tag for They Might Be Giants, 20 percent more than the cost for Blind Melon, would sway some voters.

But the resolution passed with almost no debate.

"Everyone I know on the council who's talked to [constituents] has been told tovote for this," said John A. Mann '92-94," whosponsored the resolution.

Assuming all 1,000 tickets are sold, which Manndoesn't think will be a problem, the council wouldinvest no more than $6,000 in the venture,according to Mann's figures.

Mann also told the council that the $18,000estimate was "intentionally high, and actual costmay not reach" the allocations he listed.Specifically, Mann said he hopes to save up to$2,000 on production costs and several hundreddollars on publicity.

Students seem enthusiastic about the concert.Thirty-three percent of those surveyed by thecouncil in November said they would attend a TheyMight Be Giants concert.

"This is fantastic," said Pathik P. Patel '97,who plans to attend the concert. "We weren'thedging our bets because the last two bands fellthrough, but this is fantastic."

"I'm almost glad that Digable planets and BlindMelon fell through, because I like They Might BeGiants better," Patel added.

Election for Secretary

In the election for council secretary, Gregoiredefeated Joseph S. Evangelista '96 to join Gabay,Vice President Joshua D. Liston '95 and TreasurerJamila A. Braswell '95 on the council's springexecutive board.

Gregoire, the former co-chair of the academicscommittee, directed last week's ConcentrationFair.

In a speech to the council before the election,Gregoire said he wanted to reduce waste inpostering, improve the council's image byenhancing poster design for major events andcreate packets of information available to councilmembers in order to "create institutional memory."

Gregoire also said he wanted to implementchanges in The Courier, the council's officialnewsletter. The Courier should come out regularlyevery three weeks, but should be "briefer andterser," Gregoire said.

In other business, the council voted 62-2 toappropriate $4,500 to defray the $14,958 cost forthe annual first-year formal. The formal, to beheld on February 26 in the Boston Park PlazaHotel, Will cost first-years $14 per ticket.

There was some debate about the $10,000 costfor hotel rental and food as well as the $1,820listed for trolley transportation.

But Rudd W. Coffey '97, one of the resolution'sthree co-sponsors, defended all costs as"bare-bone."

Transportation is necessary if the dance is toend at 1 a.m., since the T shuts down at 12:30a.m., said Coffey.

The council will also begin postering for aconcert by Machinery Hall, a Boston rock band thatwill perform on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. in QuincyHouse Dining Hall. The council had appropriated$1,500 for the event at last Sunday's meeting. Theconcert will be free for Harvard students.

Finally, the council voted 54-4 to send a giftand thank-you note to Dean of Students Archie C.Epps III. Epps had paid the entire $400 cost forthe intersession Post-Exam Jam himself, but hadallowed the council co-sponsorship

Assuming all 1,000 tickets are sold, which Manndoesn't think will be a problem, the council wouldinvest no more than $6,000 in the venture,according to Mann's figures.

Mann also told the council that the $18,000estimate was "intentionally high, and actual costmay not reach" the allocations he listed.Specifically, Mann said he hopes to save up to$2,000 on production costs and several hundreddollars on publicity.

Students seem enthusiastic about the concert.Thirty-three percent of those surveyed by thecouncil in November said they would attend a TheyMight Be Giants concert.

"This is fantastic," said Pathik P. Patel '97,who plans to attend the concert. "We weren'thedging our bets because the last two bands fellthrough, but this is fantastic."

"I'm almost glad that Digable planets and BlindMelon fell through, because I like They Might BeGiants better," Patel added.

Election for Secretary

In the election for council secretary, Gregoiredefeated Joseph S. Evangelista '96 to join Gabay,Vice President Joshua D. Liston '95 and TreasurerJamila A. Braswell '95 on the council's springexecutive board.

Gregoire, the former co-chair of the academicscommittee, directed last week's ConcentrationFair.

In a speech to the council before the election,Gregoire said he wanted to reduce waste inpostering, improve the council's image byenhancing poster design for major events andcreate packets of information available to councilmembers in order to "create institutional memory."

Gregoire also said he wanted to implementchanges in The Courier, the council's officialnewsletter. The Courier should come out regularlyevery three weeks, but should be "briefer andterser," Gregoire said.

In other business, the council voted 62-2 toappropriate $4,500 to defray the $14,958 cost forthe annual first-year formal. The formal, to beheld on February 26 in the Boston Park PlazaHotel, Will cost first-years $14 per ticket.

There was some debate about the $10,000 costfor hotel rental and food as well as the $1,820listed for trolley transportation.

But Rudd W. Coffey '97, one of the resolution'sthree co-sponsors, defended all costs as"bare-bone."

Transportation is necessary if the dance is toend at 1 a.m., since the T shuts down at 12:30a.m., said Coffey.

The council will also begin postering for aconcert by Machinery Hall, a Boston rock band thatwill perform on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. in QuincyHouse Dining Hall. The council had appropriated$1,500 for the event at last Sunday's meeting. Theconcert will be free for Harvard students.

Finally, the council voted 54-4 to send a giftand thank-you note to Dean of Students Archie C.Epps III. Epps had paid the entire $400 cost forthe intersession Post-Exam Jam himself, but hadallowed the council co-sponsorship