The recent Interterm production of "La Cage Aux Folles" demonstrated not only the wealth of acting and musical talent within the ranks of the Five College community but also the level of commitment of these students. Specifically, there are a great deal of Amherst students who were more than willing to give up an extra three weeks of vacation to return to the frigid Amherst campus for rehearsal. The campus and community at large appreciated this sacrifice-the show sold out Buckley Hall over its entire three-night run.

Unfortunately, Buckley is not conducive to musical theater, or to any theater for that matter. The acoustics are sub-par, and people sitting in the balcony had to crane their necks to get even an obstructed view of the stage. While Kirby Theater (in which the Amherst production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying debuted two years ago) is excellent for theater, there is only one such space at the College, and the Interterm show cannot utilize that space for various reasons involving scheduling and departmental concerns.

The presence of the show in Buckley is emblematic of the difficulties that Amherst's performing artists face. The extracurricular options for performing artists, while varied, face a variety of obstacles ranging from funding to space.

In addition to the problems with the recital hall itself, the Arms Music Building does not have enough practice rooms, and while the new dorms will add a few practice rooms, there will still be a dearth of such space. Finding and reserving rehearsal space is also a constant problem for student-run performances of all kinds.

Funding is another prominent problem. The musical received funds mainly from the music department and the AAS, with additional funds coming from the President's office, the Five College Arts Fee, and the Pride Alliance. Unfortunately, the performing arts do not accrue the same financial attention as other extracurricular activities on campus, like athletics, though performing constitutes the major extracurricular activity of many students at the College.

Many prospective students consider things like performance space and performance opportunities when applying to colleges, and the College's deficiencies put it at a large disadvantage in recruiting such students. Activities like musical theater are not always covered by departments, but this should not stop Amherst from funding musicals and providing adequate space for them. The Five Colleges provide other performance opportunities (although, there are still very few musicals), but Amherst should be a leader in this department, not dependent on others. We urge the College to consider investigating the state of extracurricular performance art with regard to funding and space.