Students Close Out E/a with Soule Tea

Last Saturday, coinciding with Exeter/Andover weekend, Grainger Auditorium flashed with strobe lights and glow sticks for the annual Soule Tea. A staple of Exeter’s yearly dances, Soule Tea premiered a new theme this year featuring neon lights and futuristic decorations in a bid to draw more attendees. The dance was organized by Soule Hall, with support from Student Activities.Director of Student Activities Joanne Lembo characterized preparation for the dance as a group effort. “The Student Activities Department works in conjunction with the members of Soule Hall to put this event on,” she said. “The Student Activities Department secures and pays for the [disc jockey], helps make sure the spaces are reserved, does all the decorations and gets the food.”While Student Activities was responsible for many logistical aspects of planning, Soule Hall was responsible for the dance’s vision. “Usually, the group of students will come together with [Assistant Director of Student Activities Kelly] McGahie and myself. They will give us an idea of what they would like the theme of their dance to be,” Student Center/Transportation Coordinator Daisy Jobarteh said. “We try to coordinate from there what items we’ll need to put it together.” On the night of the dance, members of Soule Hall also assisted Student Activities with setting up Grainger Auditorium.This year, Soule Tea switched from its traditional theme. “The proctors came together and settled on this new theme,” Soule Hall proctor Jeffrey Cheng said. “It has always been a sort of industrial theme, but we wanted a little change. Turnout last year wasn’t great, and, hopefully, the new theme will have a good effect.”Soule Hall asked the event’s disc jockey to switch things up as well. “We’ve been doing events here at Phillips Exeter for fifteen, twenty years now. In years past, this has been a strictly techno and electronic dance music [centered] dance. This year, they sent a request with more pop,” Seismic Sound staffer Mike McLaughlin said. McLaughlin also brought a black light and fog cannister to adhere to the theme of the evening. Student Activities was responsible for laying out behavioral expectations and restrictions. “During Exeter/Andover weekend, a lot of alums come back, especially when we’re home,” Lembo said. “These events are for current students only. We do this for the protection of our students because alums don’t always make the best decision with regard to alcohol and other substances.” Student Activities asked that students identify themselves with their Lion Cards and wear bands around their arms for this year’s Soule Tea. Backpacks were also banned from the dance.While Exeter/Andover weekend imposed additional restrictions, Soule hoped that people would translate the energy from the day into their participation in the dance. “We hope that people are able to take that Exeter/Andover spirit to Soule Tea. We want them to really celebrate not only the rivalry but also the end of the term,” Cheng said. “The main thing is that we want people to have fun here, to enjoy the weekend and the end of the term. We want people to loosen up a little before they go home.”Members of Soule Hall enjoyed planning the event together. “We got to come together as a dorm, help set up. It was fun to work together and get it done,” senior Arman Tang said. “We bring the environment of Soule Hall to this dance. We bring the intensity of Soule Hall. We’re all a very close group of people.”Many students attended the dance due to team affiliations. “I’m really not a party person. Cross Country people came, and they told us to come,” lower Emma Chen said. “My friend didn’t want to come alone, so here [at the dance] I am.”Other students were drawn in simply because of the food offerings. “I honestly just came for the candy. Dances aren’t my thing, but candy’s nice,” prep Sav Bartkovich said. “I thought the candy was really great—they had a wide variety. There was chocolate, regular candy—they even made sure they had candy without nuts.”Due to the changes made by Soule, many students felt more comfortable at this year’s dance than at others. “I appreciated that the volume of the music was a little lower than the other dances,” prep Clara Gulick said. “I’ve had difficulty with that, so I had to step out at other dances. But now, I’ve been able to stay in the room, and I really appreciate that.”While some noticed important improvements, others realized that the dance turnout remained similar to that of past years. “I was at Soule Tea last year, and the music was much better this year,” lower Alexandria Westray said. “Although the music was better, it seems to have the same amount of people.”Upper Hassane Fiteni agreed. “There weren’t a ton of people, it wasn’t the most hyped-up dance or the most publicized dance. It didn’t get a large turnout, but I had fun,” he said. “Even though there are like thirty kids [at Soule Tea], as opposed to Back in Black, which had nearly two hundred, I feel like everyone found a way to have fun and get hyped up.”All in all, the event was well-received by attendees. “This event was a ten out of ten,” senior Sam Farnsworth said. “It started out heavenly, but, as it went on, it declined a little bit. There were more people and less song choice. However, it was a great dance, in my opinion.”Still fueled by Exeter spirit, Exonians used Soule Tea to spend off their remaining energy. “It started off slow, but I think the people who are here are really here to have a fun time. So they helped it get bigger and better over time,” Westray said. “I think the dance is a good chance for people who still have energy to go and finish off the day strongly, [and] this is a great way to celebrate Exeter/Andover.”