On stage in New York City’s Gershwin Theatre, Glinda and Elphaba—the star witches of the “Wizard of Oz”-inspired musical “Wicked”—sing and prance their way through the Emerald City. Fifteen feet above the action, Christy Ney ’99 flips light switches and taps her feet and fingers in time to the music below, speaking quiet commands into a microphone headset. As the blockbuster musical’s assistant stage manager, Ney is charged with orchestrating the look, sound, and feel of “Wicked.”… Continue Reading
Author Archives: Molly Petrilla
How John T. Hughes ’50 helped end the Cuban Missile Crisis
Inside the State Department’s auditorium, John T. Hughes ’50 is ready to address his country. A makeshift pointer, fashioned moments earlier from two fishing poles and tape, awaits him at the back of the stage. It leans against a 12-foot-tall projection screen. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara stands at a nearby podium, speaking between two… Continue Reading
Charles Weiner ’80 keeps Disney’s digital empire up and running
Charles Weiner and his tech team are The Walt Disney Company’s real-life wizards and Wall-Es, making sure that at every step, visitors encounter a Disney theme park that’s not only magical, but also free of decidedly un-magical technical glitches.… Continue Reading
Death goes digital
As our lives become increasingly dominated by our login information, some scholars have started to question what happens to all those digital accounts when we’re no longer around to manage them. TCNJ researchers have devised a way to address the issue.… Continue Reading
The president’s cyber squad
As branch chief of security operations, Brian Wanner ’05 spends his days shielding the Executive Office of the President’s computer network from all sorts of digital dangers.… Continue Reading
It’s only natural
Dubbed “The Naturalist” and compared to “a modern-day Thoreau” with a paintbrush, Timothy Martin ’71 paints inanimate objects—chairs and musical instruments, mostly—into outdoor scenes and allows nature to envelop them. … Continue Reading
Channeling anguish into art
Kasey Tararuj’s disability is a frequent theme in her drawings and paintings, prompting some to call her a modern-day Frida Kahlo. … Continue Reading
The Mistress of Moss
Each year, plant enthusiasts make pilgrimages to Norie (Riddering) Burnet’s garden, Eden Woods, where the superstar plant is one that’s more often poisoned or yanked out than it is revered.… Continue Reading
“It changed my life.”
In celebration of the Peace Corps’ 50th anniversary, alumni reflect on their experiences. … Continue Reading
A helping hand
After learning that there were only three specially trained psychiatrists in all of Rwanda, a country ravaged by genocide, Beth Fier established SEED Supports, an organization that markets fair-trade baskets and coffee and donates all proceeds to the Rwanda Women’s Network (RWN) Village of Hope and Policlinic.… Continue Reading