Although last year's Green Key weekend featured the return of the time-honored Green Key Ball following a 40-year hiatus, this year's Green Key will see a scaling back of the event to a more casual dance, according to Green Key Society president Fernando Rodriguez-Villa '11.
The "Green Key Bash," which will be held on Friday evening on the Gold Coast lawn, will serve as "an interlude" between other festivities throughout the weekend, Rodriguez-Villa said.
"It will be an alternative for people who aren't into the traditional schedule, while [also] appealing to people who do enjoy traditional Green Key events, but might have fun in a relaxed music, food and conversation event," Rodriguez-Villa said.
The event will feature a DJ as well as a capella performances and Stinson's barbeque, according to Kimberly Waters '11, Green Key Society special programming and events committee chair.
Last year, the society had reinstated its traditional Green Key Ball that had previously been held each year from 1929 to 1967, according to former Green Key Society president Brendan McVeigh '10.
"In recent years, the society's role in the weekend has deteriorated," McVeigh said. "We decided to bring the Ball back [last year] to strengthen the role of the society over Green Key."
McVeigh said that the ball which was attended by 300 to 400 students was a "huge success" given that it was held for the first time since 1967. Rodriguez-Villa, however, said the ball was not a financially-viable option this year because not enough students are interested in attending such an event.
"[Last year's ball] was fancier than what most people are looking for," Rodriguez-Villa said.
Last year's event featured a performance by popular campus band Filligar, a DJ and catering, according to McVeigh. It was funded by the Special Programs and Events Committee and money from the Society's account, he said.
The Green Key Society is a junior honorary service society that consists of 44 members who help organize Orientation, Homecoming weekend, Commencement and various other performances and services. Green Key Society members also serve as ambassadors of the College, Rodriquez-Villa said.
While many may regard Green Key weekend solely in terms of fraternity parties and other alcohol-related events, several campus organizations will provide additional activities for students throughout the weekend. This year's Green Key schedule of non-Greek events not a dramatic departure from the events offered during regular spring weekends will feature Dartmouth Outing Club trips, performances at the Hopkins Center and other celebratory festivities planned by Programming Board.
The DOC does not have specific special events planned for Green Key weekend, but the organization will offer climbing, hiking, kayaking and biking trips as it does every weekend, according to DOC president Alice Bradley '11.
The weekend following Green Key is the DOC Spring Weekend, during which many more trips will take place, she said.
According to Bradley, DOC trips can serve as an alternative to traditional fraternity festivities over Green Key weekend.
"I haven't actually been on campus much over Green Key I tend to be outside going on adventures," she said. "Going hiking or climbing is definitely a fun alternative."
Programming Board kicked off Green Key celebrations a week early with a performance by Super Mash Bros. on May 8, according to board member Mary Dang '12. Surveys conducted by Programming Board indicated student interest in bringing the group to campus, she said.
Programming Board will also co-sponsor the inflatable play structures that will be set up on Webster Avenue during Friday's Block Party, as it always does, Dang said. The organization is also organizing a live band karaoke event on Friday night.
"It's important to be safe and have food in you [when drinking]," Dang said.
The Hopkins Center will host the 29th annual Black Maria Film and Video Festival on Friday, according to Rebecca Bailey, publicity coordinator for the Hopkins Center. Award-winning films from the festival with titles such as "Banana Bread" and "Fuzzy Insights" will be shown at the Hop throughout the weekend, she added.
The Handel Society of Dartmouth College, America's oldest town-gown choral society, will be joined by a 52-piece orchestra, the Dartmouth Chamber Singers and a guest baritone to perform "Belshazzar's Feast" and "Missa Brevis" in its spring concert on Saturday, Bailey said. Belshazzar's Feast, according to Bailey, is one of the "best-loved" pieces of English choral repertoire.
The concert, which will take place in Spaulding Auditorium on Saturday night, is titled "A Stranger in a Strange Land" and concentrates on works that reveal feelings of "hope amidst exile," Bailey said.
Although the programs taking place at the Hop this weekend do not have a Green Key-specific theme, the event coordinators generally plan their activities to correspond with the College's calendar, according to Bailey. If there is an influx of people from outside campus as is the case for Green Key Hop organizers generally try "to make sure there is something for [visitors] to do," she said.
