ArcSoc Cabaret: Saturate

ArcSoc promised a lot for their annual night of Cabaret at the Union. Previous years’ ventures left expectations high. Thankfully, we weren’t left disappointed.

Arriving around 10, the night was already thriving. An unexpected queue did leave us stranded in the rain longer than we’d have liked, saturating ourselves in a different way. But soon we were inside, welcomed by a colourful array of, well, stuff.

The Union had been transformed: vibrant fabrics, colourful balloons, fluorescent fairy lights, inexplicable hanging things. The chairs in the debating chamber had been replaced with drunken revellers dressed in astonishing and, at times, hideous outfits – thankfully, anything goes at ArcSoc. The Union was saturated.

#saturate #union #arcsoc #hashtag

Music pounded throughout the night. The main chamber had the right balance between the pretentious and the danceable with its DJ sets, whilst the room adjoining the bar had live music that was thoroughly enjoyable to just stand and watch.

Alcohol flowed freely from the main bar and a second, makeshift bar. Drinks were (mostly) reasonably priced – £2 a shot seemed fair – though £3.50 for a G&T was a bit steep and they did run out of tequila far too early on.

One of the main selling points, the life drawing, was perhaps better in theory than practice. A queue of rather rowdy and impatient guests waited outside. Once allowed in, a startling lack of usable drawing implements made it difficult to actually draw the models, who seemed rather annoyed with the absence of focus within the room. I left after about five minutes of trying to draw some lines with a blunt pencil, before giving up and going to get a drink.

Literally the most pretentious ticket imaginable.

The overall mood throughout was one of excitement and amusement. Of course, it was hard to tell at times if this was because of the curation of the night itself or the cornucopia of substances flowing through the bloodstreams of the attendees. Either way, no one took themselves too seriously and seemed primarily focused on having a good time.

Walking home via the Van of Life, though, was slightly more interesting. Having already been fondled by quite a lot of people over the course of the night due to the fluffiness of my outfit, I got rather more strange looks when wandering past McDonald’s.

Overall, though, the night was an unmitigated success. ArcSoc managed it again: I felt well and truly Saturated.

5 stars