Winter Term Interhouse Spotlight

Page Interhouse: EDC Doppelgänger?

Page’s Interhouse Party was held on Saturday, November 19th from 10PM to 2AM in Page courtyard. We interviewed Arya Mevada, the former Page House President, about planning the event and his hopes for the outcome.

Q: What was your theme, and how did you bring it to life?

A: Our theme was Music Festival, and like most music festivals, we focused on getting a lot of lights and colors and such around the event. We got a lot of inspiration from EDC and had a fantastic and creative group of painters who came up with really cool designs for the event. On top of that, we got creative with the lighting to make it feel very dynamic and bright. We also had themed drinks that really complemented the rest of the party.

Q: What were your favorite things to look forward to?

A: My favorite part of interhouse is that everyone from all around campus come to one place and get to dance and vibe together. We had awesome DJ’s that really made great playlists and were able to really have music that appealed to everyone. I loved the dancing and the big crowd because it really has a feeling like no other on campus.

Q: What makes this party unique from other houses?

A: I think that the beauty of Page interhouse is that to us it feels like a reflection of what Pageboys enjoy doing, but we still work hard to put on an interhouse that everyone will enjoy.

Q: What was done differently this year from other years, and is there anything that’s likely to change in the future?

A: This year we modified the dance floor that we usually do, and it had multiple levels and was a lot more complicated than previous years. It was a really cool design and made our party different than in previous years and gave the partygoers a place to chill if they did not want to be part of the intense dancing on the main floor. As for the future, there are definitely discussions on how to make the party itself and the preparation better for everyone. Many people in our house have some awesome ideas on how to make that become a reality to0. I am excited to see what comes out of it!

Q: What are some of the things you did to prepare? How was turnout; was it better or worse than expected, and why?

A: To prepare, we obviously had the task of building the dance floor, setting up lighting, making posters, and making the drinks and food menus. It was really important this year because there were not COVID capacity limits that we had extra drinks, food, water etc. We saw awesome turn out; it’s always a good sign when there are too many people on a dance floor in my mind.

Q: What was it like being the first interhouse of the year? Were there any complications you were worried about being the first?

A: There are always a few complications with being the first one. The first is time: we just have to rush and build the party as fast as we can, which can be really stressful. Secondly, we definitely set the tone for how parties are run, expectations for the party and future interhouses can definitely be set and that comes with the entire process, from how construction is done to the kinds of cool things that are built and made to how problems are solved during the party. I think we did a really good job of that, and the parties that came after us were able to learn from our mistakes and throw even better parties which was awesome to see.

Ravery: The Last Airbender

Avery’s Interhouse Party (“Ravery”) was held on Saturday January 21st from 10 PM to 2AM in Avery’s courtyard and dining hall. We interviewed Parul Singh (former Avery Social Director, current Avery Chancellor) and Clara Wang (former Avery Social Director) about the planning process and the Interhouse itself.

Q: What was your theme and how did you go about bringing it to life?

A: Our theme was “Avatar: The Last Airbender” but for Avery. So it was “Avery: the Last Airbender”. We had Avatar-themed foods corresponding to each nation and we also had Avatar-themed games corresponding to each nation. So we had a Water Nation game that was like a fishing game. We had a shooting game where you shoot the evil Fire Nation characters. So we had a few themed games, themed foods, and themed drinks at our bar.

Q: What were some of your favorite things about the Interhouse?

A: I guess we had a bunch of fun food. We had noodles. We go pretty high effort with our food every year. So we were equally high effort this year. We had noodles, egg rolls, and boba there. I think it’s cute how everyone gets invested in the games because we have plushie prizes. And so we had a raffle ticket system this time where you play the games and get a certain amount of tickets whenever you win and you can go buy plushies. People were very excited about that – it was nice to see.

Q: I know Dabney had a theory the plushies were so overpriced, they were only there to embezzle money from the Interhouse budget to get Avery extra plushies. Is that true?

A: By the end of the Interhouse, all of the plushies were won. We did manage to give away all of the plushies. People went hard for them.

Q: Avery Interhouse in particular did not have an Alternate Interhouse. Do you know why that was?

A: I think it’s because someone told me that we have so much food, we don’t need an Alternate Interhouse. I think the Alternate Interhouse is usually for the non-drunk experience. And I think Avery Interhouse is pretty interactive for people who are not intoxicated because we have games and a lot of food. And Alternate Interhouses usually in Avery dining hall, which is already being taken up by our party.

Q: What makes Avery Interhouse different from other Interhouse parties?

A: It’s kind of a carnival setup every time, just themed to whatever theme it is.

Q: What was done differently this year from other years and is there anything that is likely to change in the future?

A: We had a dance floor this year in the dining hall. I think we had a dance floor in pre-pandemic years also. We just brought it back this year because last year we weren’t allowed to have anything indoors. In future years, I don’t know, I guess our new social directors will come up with a twist.

Q: How were the turnouts? Did you get more or less people than expected?

A: I think it was about as much as we expected. It was good, and it was nice that it was not during another Interhouse like it was last year. So, I think we had a very good turnout. Avery had a good time. Everything was pretty well-attended. The food we ran out of and the games were well-attended the whole time. The dance floor takes a while to warm up, but I think it got pretty well-populated at the end.

Ricketts Interhovse — A Once in a Lifetime Trip to Camp Rowdy!

The notoriously exciting Ricketts Interhouse — Camp Rowdy — was an explosion of unbridled joy on Saturday, February 4th, 2023, from 10PM to 2AM. We interviewed AJ Torres and Anna Mortari, two of the three Ricketts Social Vice-Presidents, about the process of bringing Camp Rowdy to life.

Q: What was your theme, and how did you go about bringing it to life?

A: Camp Rowdy was a beautiful summer camp situated in the heart of a mystic forest. Welcoming campers from all corners of the world, we had a little something for everyone. Outside, campers danced under the stars and floral canopy of the forest, as the DJ blasted music from a classic camp log cabin. A nine-foot-tall mushroom house was opened just for this special time, for campers to explore and appreciate the enchantments of the forest. Campers got dinner in the dining hall, relaxing in the night-time forest on cushy benches around a crackling fake fire pit. It is very important to note the fire pit was fake. It was fake! Finally, campers made beaded bracelets surrounded by thousands of bright flowers in the lounge.

At midnight, strange things began to occur. Tragedy struck: a camp counselor warned of something lurking in the woods, and mid-announcement, was taken by the monster of the woods. The eldritch being took control, turning the enchanted paradise into our worst nightmares.

Q: What was done differently this year from other years, and is there anything that is likely to change in the future?

A: Construction was a new element to handle this year. Ricketts needed all sorts of approvals and trainings to construct the outdoor canopy, drop the indoor ceilings, build the cabin/DJ booth, and create the giant mushroom. Actually doing construction greatly helped us bring the vision to life, and we’ll likely have similar elements in the future!

Q: What was the most difficult part of the Interhouse preparation/decoration process?

A: The better question is what wasn’t difficult. We had to hire roofers to install the outdoor canopy. In addition, the drop ceilings were painstakingly assembled from the top of 15-foot ladders. Our dining hall murals were massive: they were hung in only three pieces. The tissue paper flowers, fake florals, vines, and greenery were individually created and attached to the netting. It took a true army of Skurves to put this Interhouse together!

We definitely worked up until the final moments before Interhouse, especially on the bigger set pieces. We really gave our all to create all the decorations, and, in the end, it all came together beautifully.

OPI: A Story of Fairytales and Shrek

Venerable’s Interhouse Party (“OPI”) will be happening on Saturday, March 4th. As we await the day of the party, we asked two lead Gryphons (leaders of building OPI), Iris Lee and Kyle Piper, some questions to gain some insight on their process of bringing OPI to life. Note that this interview was conducted in the middle of a three day period of continuous rainfall.

Q: What is your theme, and how did you go about bringing it to life?

I: Our theme is “Once Upon a Time”, a storybook and dark fairy tale kind of vibe. We mixed storybook and medieval fairytale energy and brought it into our construction and art. We also wanted it to be a little bit darker and less cutesy so it’s more focused on storybooks than fairy tales, which also allows us to expand the scope of our art.

K: A challenge with fairy tales was that a lot of people were unsure on how we could make the construction exciting at first. I’ve had this idea for the past year where it would be really cool to build a castle. I realized we could go for a run down castle vibe along with the fairy tales that got a lot of people really excited about the construction.

Q: What should we look forward to as we attend your interhouse?

I: We try our best to cater to any person that wants to come to our party for different reasons. We try to make the stage very danceable and the music great and well-mixed. For people who aren’t as into partying, we have Shrek playing in the lounge and we have really pretty decor if people want to just look around at the art.

K: One thing that we try to do really well is making our food part of our theme. It’s easy to order a bunch of boxes of pizza, but that doesn’t exactly fit any fairytale vibe. We have quite a large group specifically working on food to make sure it also fits the rest of the party. I’m really excited for what the food group has put together.

Q: What are some of the things you have been doing to prepare, and what did you enjoy the most about the process?

K: Other people who have been interhouse leads will recognize the amount of work that goes into preparing menus and getting everything approved. None of those meetings are fun, but I view them as a necessary thing to get to the part that I’m excited about, which is the interhouse itself. I also find construction to be a nice break from work.

I: On the art side, I live in the dining hall, more or less, as soon as my work ends. Because I hang out there all the time, a lot of other people also hang out there a lot of the time with me, and I really like the energy of us all hanging out in the dining hall either working or taking breaks by painting.

Q: Have you run into any challenges, and if so, how did you address them? This rain, for instance?

K: The rain sucks. We’ve lost basically three days of construction straight now to the rain. What this means is that I’m trying to do everything I can to get ahead on my work. You get ahead while you can, to prepare for when it rains for half the time you’re building the party and you lose half your remaining time.

I: It’s always hard to get stuff done, but we tend to be ambitious and try to bite off more than we can chew. It’s always a struggle managing our time and getting it all done but it’s nice that we have experienced leaders as gryphons. It also helps that we have 10 of them, so if I can’t be there, another art gryphon can take my place and we can spread out the work a bit more evenly.

Q: Do you have any final thoughts and plugs?

I: Come if you want! OPI isn’t a party where we try to make everyone come. It’s a party where we want people to come if they want to. I think we’ve done as best of a job as we can considering the amount of time we had and the fact that we’re all Caltech students working, so I hope it turns out well.

K: I think we did a really good job this year. I’m gonna be really stressed finishing it up because of course I will be. I hope people can come and have a good time.

Dabney’s Eldritch Interhovse: Deep Sea Horror

Dabney’s Interhouse Party (“DEI”) will be held on Saturday, March 3rd from 8 PM to midnight in Dabney’s courtyard, lounge, and dining hall. We interviewed Emma Markowski and Mira Menezes, Dabney’s current Social VPs about what we should expect to see at the party.

Q: What is your theme and how did you go about bringing it to life?

A: Our theme is “Deep Sea Horror”. It will be a magical experience reaching the bottom of the ocean surrounded by creatures beyond your comprehension.

Q: What sights will there be to see?

A: Right now, we’re constructing the jellyfish, which is this giant net that spans the courtyard and has decorations hanging down from it. It’s going to have literal jellyfish hanging down from it, this year! There’s also gonna be things like shipwrecks, deep sea ruins, and we’re figuring out these other things right now. There will also be two murals to enjoy.

Q: What makes Dabney Interhouse different from other Interhouse parties?

A: Dabney Interhouse is a dry Interhouse. We don’t serve alcohol. Rather than loud music and focusing on dancing, it will be more focused on vibes and the experience. It’s scenery based, and we’ll have a lot of food, so I invite everyone to come even if for a short while to see all these incredible sights that we are preparing.

Q: What’s being done differently this year compared to other years?

A: For our big construction setpiece, we alternate between building our dome and our jellyfish. We did the dome last year, so this year’s a jellyfish year. If you really liked the dome, it willl be coming back next year!

Q: I hear there is going to be a ballpit. Is the ballpit going to be sanitary?

A: Each individual balls has been sanitized with bleach, and then the floor of the ball pit was sanitized this week, so the ball pit is as clean as it will ever be.

Q: Tell me about this fabric maze that’s being constructed.

A: The fabric maze is a maze made of fabric where the room have different themes and people get to volunteer to create them. It will be filled by various constructions that are the reaches of what the Darbs can imagine. You will be able to experience a myriad of wonders within it, and it won’t be limited to being “Deep Sea Horror” themed. It can be anything.

Q: Who made the flier?

A: Jen Hu