My best friends and I make fun of each other constantly. When strangers see me with my friends they probably wonder if we even like each other. That is one of the benefits of friendship – being able to poke fun, tease, and even torment someone without them taking it personally. The best part about this is that the better you know someone the better you can do it! When there is mutual love and respect for everyone involved this teasing leads to incredible laughter. That is why I love Stern Follies.
First I should mention that I am one of the co-chairs of Follies, so I am a bit (ok fine… VERY) biased. Second, I should mention what the heck Follies is! Stern Follies is an annual ritual where students put together a variety show of live skits, video submissions, and musical performances that celebrate and lampoon NYU Stern students and faculty. The theme this year, The Torchy Awards, was a faux awards show in which awards were handed out for the Best Reality Show, Best Music Video, and Best Drama. One great element of this years show was the participation of the audience. In true awards show style they all dressed in formal attire.
So who got made fun of this year? First year MBA’s, second year MBA’s, faculty, administrators, other business schools, House of Cards, Breaking Bad, Law & Order, Project Runway, Real Housewives, and me. If you want to see videos you can watch them on YouTube (warning: language can be explicit and there are A LOT of inside jokes). For a quick taste, this video was fantastic and also the only video in which nobody was made fun of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7EtVKBnXJM&list=PLyUMo7BXSp4Htms6jmKp3oyMvIjp6NQxf&index=16
Ultimately Follies this year was a huge success. People love poking fun of each other, but that is not the main reason Follies is such a hit each year. The best part is seeing your classmates perform and demonstrate creative talents outside of the classroom. The magic lies in rooting for your classmates. It’s a breath of fresh air to take them outside of the classroom and watch them excel in another way. Some people’s skills are known, but far more debut amazing hidden talents at Follies. A few of my best friends at Stern proved themselves to be masterful writers, actors, editors and directors.
A lot of people don’t consider themselves “theater people”. If you are one of these people then buying a ticket to an amateur performance run by business school students probably sounds like your version of hell. However, if there is one piece of advice I can give it’s that you should go to Follies. You will be reminded of all the amazing times you have had over the last year (or two) and are guaranteed to leave with a huge smile on your face.