Flashback to the forties at Beatnik Cafe

Sonya Penheiter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you looking for a fun opportunity to perform a song, dance, or poem while supporting GOFA? Well, look no further than Beatnik Cafe, on Wednesday, December 18th, during all lunch hours in the auditorium! If you don’t want to perform anything, but want to watch your peers, that’s great too! The entrance fee is only $3. There will also be a variety of treats from Rochester’s own Daube’s Bakery. 

If you have an interest in performing, sign up on the sheet by Mr. Swegarden’s room. You can perform anything you want (as long as it is school appropriate, of course). In the past, bands have performed; people have played instruments, danced, told jokes, sang solos, performed skits, and done pretty much anything imaginable. The sky’s the limit when it comes to what you can do! Beatnik is similar to the talent show in some ways, but it is a more relaxed, low-pressure environment. Instead of performing in front of the entire student body, you have the opportunity to do so in front of a smaller percentage of it. 

If you’re wondering about the name of this event, Beatniks were members of the “Beat Movement” during the 1950s. Beatniks dressed, talked, and acted different from the rest of mainstream culture. They loved jazz music, poetry, and all forms of creative expression. They were essentially the “hipsters” of their time. This event is called Beatnik Cafe because Beatniks would hold similar events all the time, so GOFA event organizers are taking a really cool historical tradition and bringing it to modern times, while raising money for charity, and supporting peers.