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PAGE 5
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2015
TRENDING Snapchat update sends girlfriends into panic
Cheaters around the world revealed with freedom Jan. 27, thanks to Snapchat's latest update, which eliminated the "Best Friends" feature. Users are now able to interact with whoever they want via Snapchat at their discretion, and many users, namely girlfriends, are not happy about it.
Many of you are probably familiar with the "Best Friends" feature. Beneath each of your friends' names was their Snapchat score (a number representing the total number of snaps they had sent and received) and a list of the top three people they had been interacting with.
LILY GRANT
@lilygrant_UDK
With this feature gone, you can't stalk your boyfriend, girlfriend, friends or siblings by checking up on who they've been snapping. Controversy over the update sparked on Twitter.
"So it's clear a male made the last snapchat update," @BiancaeRose94 tweeted.
"The new snapchat update is awful. Everyone knows half the fun is lurking other people's best friends," @Shay_Kulling12 tweeted.
With such an outcry against taking away the "Best Friends" feature, Snapchat announced it will be bringing it back.
"We'll bring back BFs soon. A few higher-profile friends wanted to keep their usernames private — we'll come up with a better way to do that," Snapchat CEO Evan Spiege tweeted Jan. 27.
The update also included several uncontroversial, aesthetic changes and the addition of the "Discover" feature, which is an advertising platform for companies like CNN, Cosmopolitan, ESPN and more. Some may see Snapchat's shift from a strictly social media app as a sellout, while others welcome the evolution.
The future adjustments may not be in Snapchat's best interest though. The recent change relieved much of the pressure to maintain a socially acceptable "Best Friends" list and removed the element of scandal. Snapchat is one of the only social media platforms which lacks a profile the only information presented about you besides your username was your "Best Friends" and snap score. The "Best Friends" feature, for many, was an indication of popularity, which is exactly what makes us addicted to our online identities. Snapchat stalkers could try to look at this as a blessing in disguise. Keeping tabs on your friends can be exhausting and borderline unhealthy, which brings up the question: Was Snapchat trying to do us all a huge favor after all?
Edited by Samantha Darling
Circus school celebrates 1-year anniversary
KELLY CORDINGLEY
@kellycordingly
The bright blue, red and teal silks hanging from the ceiling create a stark contrast against the lime green walls. The purple floor mats complement the whimsical setting, and trapezes and aerial hoops decorate the walls and ceiling. The entire facility screams circus, which is fitting for a school that teaches its students to twirl midair and walk on a trapeze.
Teacher and owner of The Last Carvnial, Sihka Ann Destroy, a St. Louis-native suspends herself in air with the silks, explaining to her students how to twirl elegantly. She takes her time describing where the silks should be on the body during drops, even purposely tangling herself in the silks to show the best way to get out of tricky situation.
Willow Sapp, 10, practices her aerial silks routine for her mother and instructor, Sihka Ann Destroy at The Last Carnival.
"it's kind of funny because my friends that do live in town
KIRSTEN SELSTAD/KANSAN
strow at The Last Carnival
SYLVAN MITCHELL Silks student
Destroy opened The Last Carnival, 315 N. Second St., last February. With her business booming only a year after its opening, some would say she finally found her calling.
"It's a really positive environment here. And everyone ... cheers you on and there's this amazing feeling that you've just accomplished something."
here are like, 'Oh my God, you've been talking about this since you were a teenager, either starting a circus or running away with a circus,' "she said.
Destroy said her daughter, Willow, was an inspiration behind the business. When she first looked into aerial classes for her daughter, Destroy said the classes were too expensive to consider, unlike the class she now offers at her school.
Destroy said one of her
Although she only had seven students and two classes in the beginning, now she offers five kids classes and 15 adult classes. Facing the first anniversary for the school, Destroy said she's beyond thrilled at what she's accomplished and what is to come.
"I've seen this grow so much," Destroy said. "The first class we started with was silks, and it was really slow-going. It was like two classes a week and a total of seven students, one was my daughter."
"Two were doing synchronized silks on either side of the stage, there were four 10-year-olds on one trapeze bar, flipping up doing partner acrobatics in the air," she said. "I think it was not at all what people were expecting. It was like a full-blown circus show. Ever since then, we've had classes just explode."
The Last Carnival saw a boom in its business after a performance at the Granada in December. Destroy said people probably came expecting something resembling a school recital. Then students took the stage.
favorite classes is the kids' class because of the interactions she gets to observe.
"When we did our performance, there was a little boy who did a flip over a railing and his sister tried to do it," Destroy said. "He says, 'You shouldn't do that. I'm a trained acrobat. I know what I'm doing.' I was like, 'Oh that is so adorable.'"
Considering the school has only been open for about a year, Destroy said she was confident more people would be drawn in to The Last Carnival because her classes offer a fun and exciting alternative to the traditional gym. Destroy said the most negative feedback she's received is that people's muscles are more sore than they expected or they didn't realize how much they were working out because they were having fun.
"It's a really positive environment here," said silks student Sylvan Mitchell, a Lawrence High School student from Vinland. "And everyone — unlike in a gym setting at a school or whatnot, where it's kind of competitive — everyone cheers you on and there's this amazing feeling that you've just accomplished something. You're doing all these amazing, cool things, and it's just you and the silk."
Mitchell said she got interested in silks aerial art after watching online videos. She started looking for classes in Kansas City and was surprised to see some being offered in Lawrence. Mitchell said the class is the best workout she's ever had and the atmosphere is open and inviting.
"Sihka is one of the coolest instructors in the world."
Mitchell said. "She's very encouraging. If you don't understand something, she'll always find a way to help you understand. She's extremely positive; she's never negative."
Optimistic for the future, Destroy plans to expand further and hopes to put on more shows. Currently, she's organizing a show at the Granada on May 3 based on mythological creatures. She also said she'd like to find a larger building for more classes to go on at once and have multiple levels for ceiling space.
"We've had a lot of new students come in here, and it is really exciting to see so many people into this," Destroy said. "I knew it was something a lot of people would love and really enjoy."
Edited by Yu Kyung Lee
Hembree electrifies crowd with vibrant '80s pop feel
ALEAH MILLINER
@Aleaheileen
ALEAH MILLINER/KANSAN
Garrett Childers, the lead singer of Hembree, performs Saturday at the Granada. The band, formerly known as Quiet Corral, hails from Kansas City. It just released a new EP titled "New Oasis."
While the rain continued to fall Saturday night, local music fans were staying dry inside the Granada Theater, where Kansas City-based band Hembrey performed.
The band was formerly known as Quiet Corral before its lead singer left the band in 2013. The band gained a few new members and now performs under the name Hembree. Members include: James Allen Barnes, Garrett Childers, Isaac Flynn, Matthew Green and Eric Davis.
In January, Hembree released its debut six-song EP "New Oasis." The EP is available on iTunes and Spotify.
colored stage lights and videos playing on screen behind the band. Some songs were more upbeat, while some carried a slower tempo with a funky feel.
During Saturday night's show, the band performed several songs off its new EP. The songs had an '80s pop feel, accompanied by multiple
"Their music is definitely influenced by the '80s dance style which resulted in a really fun sound that engaged the audience well," said Emily Wiebe, a senior from Colville, Wash. "I did think their performance was a little too choreographed and they could have been more fun on stage."
Toward the end of the show, Hembree covered The Jackson Five, much to the crowd's delight.
It seemed everyone knew all of the words and sang along loudly to the famous "I Want You Back." Many high notes were hit by both the band and the fans as well. The band also covered "Dare" by Gorillaz, another song recognizable to the crowd.
Childers, the lead singer, addressed the crowd as "friends," a true statement as many of the crowd knew the band members personally or from their earlier days as Quiet Corral. A loud cheer came from the crowd as Childers thanked Barnes, the drummer, who produced the
band's new EP.
After a short set of music, Hembree came back out for its encore. A spotlight appeared in the crowd on former band member Zach Mehl, who joined the band on stage for a song. The band high-fived several people as its made its way off the stage and away
from a cheering crowd.
Overall, the show was laid back and the music and lyrics were entertaining.
If you missed out on the show, Hembree will be playing at recordBar in Kansas City, Mo., on Feb. 21.
Edited by Kayla Schartz
QUICK QUESTION
After KU defeated Kansas State on Saturday, the Kansan caught up with resident assistants and friends Cornelius Baker and Alyssa Denneler and asked them about their favorite memories at the University so far.
"Sledding down the hill when we had the snowstorm last year. That for sure was pretty awesome."
ALYSSA DENNELER
Junior from Wichita
Kansan: What has been one of your favorite memories at KU so far?
"Our freshman year, there was a 'snowpocalypse.' There were like three snow days in a row, and that was definitely the best thing ever. I had so much time to study for my tests, and there was sledding, and popcorn, and movies each night."
CORNELIUS BAKER
Junior from Wichita
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