Santa Clara Review publication party celebrates the spring issue

By Joanne Santomauro

"The longer you go by yourself, the weirder you get. The weirder you get, the longer you go by yourself," said author Jim Shepard as he read an excerpt from his most recently published collection of short stories, "You Think That's Bad."

Shepard and many other talented artists presented at the Santa Clara Review Spring Publication Party on Tuesday. This week's party celebrated the publication of the Review's spring issue.

Led from Benson by a path of brightly colored pinwheels, about 60 — 80 members of the Santa Clara community gathered in Mission Gardens for the event. Hors d'oeuvres were served, courtesy of Bon Appetit, featuring an array of cheeses, stuffed mushrooms and scones — all of which were incredibly yummy. That said, the food wasn't nearly as fantastic as the talent.

Well known on the Santa Clara campus for his musical gifts, jazz pianist senior Scotty Bemis opened with a set of classic tunes. After a few opening remarks from the Review Public Relations Director Hannah Miller, editor Josh Fredkin took the stage. Fredkin expressed his gratitude for the staff's hard work and appreciation for how the publication has grown.

"Today, the Santa Clara Review is a name that beams beyond the bounds of this campus," said Fredkin.

Fredkin's welcoming speech was followed by several student poetry readings. First, senior Camille Richter performed her poems titled "Unmentionables" and "Lunch Break."  Senior Martin Saunders read "The Creative Act" and "Affe mit Schädel." Saunders, inspired by Rheinhold's sculpture, wrote "Affe mit Schädel" as an imaginary conversation between a monkey and a skull.

The last of the student poets was junior Ainsley Kelly, founder of the Poetry and Cake Society at Santa Clara, who began by saying, "I believe the poem has to exist before I write it. It's only after I write poems that I understand what they mean."

Kelly read three poems, each depicting her experiences in the three different places she has lived. "Intercessions" accounted her experiences living in Graham, "Firestorm" was based on her life in San Diego and "Studies Abroad" was inspired by her time spent in Scotland.

After the student poetry readings, the featured speaker, Jim Shepard, took the stage. Shepard is a critically acclaimed short fiction writer known for his works published in various magazines along with his short story collections. He selected a reading from his most recent short story collection, "Boys Town."

Featured in The New Yorker, "Boys Town" is an account of a veteran living at home with his mother after divorce. Shepard's writing style is sarcastic and funny. He uses bold, yet nonchalant condemnations of the world, tucked neatly behind witty remarks about mothers, girlfriends and pretty much everyone in the world.

Shepard read an excerpt for about 30 minutes. After a short intermission, sophomore Jackie Gage and junior Austin Nickel performed "What a Wonderful World" and "My Favorite Things."

They were followed by a soulful performance by senior Peter Miller, also known as "Peat Moss."

Santa Clara's a cappella group, Supertonic, took the stage next, singing a variety of hits including a Michael Jackson medley, "Feeling Good," and the ‘80s hit "Take On Me."

At the party, Fredkin introduced next year's editor, junior Taara Khalilnaji. 

Overall, the event was a success. Miller said, "My favorite thing about the publication party was the pinwheels. We all made them as a staff, and it was really fun to place them."

The Santa Clara Review staff has been working on the spring issue since February. Miller said, "as much as this party is about celebrating the issue, it's mainly about celebrating the hard work that the staff has put into it. It's been great to see some of the alums here to appreciate the staff. We've had an awesome turnout this year."

Contact Joanne Santomauro at jsantomauro@scu.edu or call (408) 551-1918.