Photos: Eliza Andrew
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Category: A&E
Words: Javiera Diaz-Ortiz
The Columbia Mall has gained a new, modern restaurant. Urban Plates had its grand opening this summer, in late August. It is located next to one of the mall’s other modern eateries, Shake Shack.
Urban Plates offers organic, reliable options to please any craving. To add even more appeal, every single plate, sandwich, side, dessert, and even drink, is made from scratch in the Urban Plates kitchen.
Guests can see for themselves how much effort each cook puts into creating all of the products; the kitchen is visible to all guests, separated from the dining area by only a glass panel on top of the food bar.
When guests enter the restaurant, they are immediately taken aback by the interior decor. The restaurant has eye-catching colors and unique pieces, such as indoor gardens on its walls.
Guests can then choose to go into one of two lines. One line is exclusively for plates, while the other is for those craving a sandwich. Plates include selections such as free-range grilled chicken, or oven-baked, wild salmon, accompanied by sides like roasted brussels sprouts, beet and carrot salad, potatoes, among a variety of other options.
There is a separate kids’ menu with simpler, more classic meals such as mac n’ cheese. But, that does not imply the quality of food plates such as the classic macaroni and cheese. This does not, however, suggest a lower quality of food. Even the simplest meal on the menu, the Macaroni and Cheese, looks and tastes like a gourmet dish.
All of the sodas are made at the restaurant, resulting in authentic drinks such as the pineapple cream soda.
After the main meal, guests also have the option of ordering dessert. Once again, the desserts are made from scratch at the restaurant. Selections include items such as the mango tart and the banana-cream pie, as well as a giant chocolate chip cookie.
Guests customize their order by going through the line at the food bar and requesting the main dish, sides, drink, and dessert from employees. To make the process run more smoothly, guests pay for their orders at the end of the bar, meaning there is no need for waiters.
While enjoying their meals, guests are often greeted by kind bussers who take it upon themselves to make sure that everyone’s experience at the restaurant is memorable.
Along with having a wide variety of options for food, guests are also provided with several options for seating. The restaurant has booths, tall tables, short tables, and an attractive, outdoor seating area for days with nicer weather.
Urban Plates will undoubtedly become one of the more popular sites at the mall as it offers alternative, healthy options in a welcoming, attractive environment.
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Words: Natalie Knight-Griffin
Photos: Eliza Andrew
On October 25, 2018, Centennial’s Senior Dance Company teamed up with a few lucky teachers to perform their annual Dancing With the Staff show.
There were four groups of dancer-teacher performances. In between each group was a video slideshow displaying the partners practicing their moves, most often with the teachers struggling to follow along, but nonetheless having a good time. Dancers interviewed their teachers of choice, asking questions along the lines of their previous dance experience and dance style of choice.
Tensions ran high as the judges debated results and audience members cast their vote. After fifteen minutes of intense discussion and audience voting, the dancers gathered on stage for results. The judges’ choice was Ms. Rebecca Vanover and Divya Proper, and Mr. David Riddler and Jen Solan received Honorable Mention. In fourth was Mr. Kevin Mccoy and Alison Betler, followed by Ms. Tori Hammers and Arya Bhargav. In second was Mr. Edward Fowler and Katie Pistner. Mrs. Erin Parisi and Eshna Ghosh received first for the night.
From rap to Irish dance, to throwback song choices such as “Call Me Maybe,” Dancing with the Staff was a success.
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Words: Emily Hollwedel
The room is dark, the only light a dimly lit screen. No one dares to move, or speak, or even breathe. Hearts pound, and breaths hitch. Suddenly with a flash of an image and a shriek of noise, the people on the edges of their seats lurch backwards in a rush of fear. This is exactly how horror movies are supposed to make people feel- thrilled, anxious, and terrified all at once.
For decades, a wide variety of horror movies have been created to frighten people all across the world. Here are three iconic films from the horror screen just in time for Halloween.
Halloween – 1978
During a time when horror movies were considerably haunting, Halloween, directed by John Carpenter, tells the tale of Michael Myers, an escaped killer, and his attempts to attack a high school student named Laurie Strode on the chilling night of October 31. This film keeps the audience holding their breath throughout incredibly tense, dark scenes that follow. Viewers will find themselves wondering if they, too, are being followed, and if the monsters they’ve read about are truly fiction or not.
Scream – 1996
Wes Craven’s Scream was a breath of fresh air to horror in a time of sequels and repetitive nature. It follows a masked killer’s string of murders in a middle-class town usually resembling paradise. Sidney Prescott, a girl attending the local high school, is attacked multiple times by the killer, while coping with the one-year anniversary of her mother’s death, and during a party finds herself trying figure out who is behind the rising body count. The quick wit and charm of this movie comes into play through its self-awareness and sarcasm. Though somewhat cliché, it’s still amusing, and every moment is thrilling.
It– 2017
Andrés Muschietti’s adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel provides a recounting of seven outcast kids in the town of Derry, Maine, as they search for the interdimensional alien creature named Pennywise the Dancing Clown in the horrific summer of 1989. The film deeply contrasts the previously made mini-series by splitting the movies between youth and adulthood, as well as keeping up with the increasing quality of CGI that was not available in the 90s. With every element of a twisted coming of age story, the changes in the kids who are forced to face their fears head-on are shocking, but prominent by the end of the film. The truly frightful jumpscares and psychological pressure, speckled in the popular 80s nostalgia is high throughout each scene, making it both fun and petrifying for viewers.
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Words: Natalie Keane
The year is finally coming to a close, and it’s been hectic, shocking, and beautiful in the world of entertainment. From late-2017 to mid-2018, these are some of the cinematic highlights of the season.
Coco – November 22, 2017
Winning Best Animated Feature Film at the 2018 Oscars, Coco, directed by Lee Unkrich, tells the story of young Miguel, an aspiring musician, who enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great grandfather and lift a curse on music from his family tree. While highlighting beautiful Mexican traditions, this movie tells a story of discovery, family, and courage through stunning Pixar animation.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi – December 15, 2017
Directed by Rian Johnson, the iconic Star Wars saga continues with The Last Jedi. The well-known heroes from The Force Awakens take part in an adventure to fight for the prosperity of the galaxy, while unlocking age-old secrets of the past and shocking revelations from the original Star Wars trilogy.
Lady Bird – February 15, 2018
Directed and written by Greta Gerwig, high-school senior Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson clashes with her similarly strong-willed and opinionated mother, who is working as a nurse to hold her family together as she is now the only source of income for the family. Lady Bird is told that she is ungrateful for what she has, and through her personal journey of self-reflection, this movie touches upon the struggles of leaving adolescence behind and what we truly define as home.
Black Panther – February 16, 2018
This influential black-led major motion picture, directed by Ryan Coogler, dominated in the first quarter of 2018. In total exceeding $1.34 billion at the global box office, in four weeks this movie became the highest grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe movie domestically, second to only The Avengers. This action film, set in the fictional land of Wakanda, still has the power to change the film industry permanently with its diverse cast and powerful storyline.
Love, Simon – March 26, 2018
Based on the 2015 novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, this romantic comedy surrounds the life of high-school senior Simon Spier who wants nothing more than for people to understand him. This movie, directed by Greg Berlanti, marks the first ever major motion picture in history to feature a gay teen protagonist.
A Quiet Place – April 6, 2018
Directed by and featuring John Krasinski, the suspenseful thriller A Quiet Place depicts a family of four as they’re forced to live their lives in complete silence after strange creatures threaten to ruin their lives. This fast-paced and packed movie holds the audience on edge at each moment as you’re taken through this post-apocalyptic world.
Avengers: Infinity War – April 27, 2018
The Avengers series, ten years in the making and an iconic part of Marvel Cinematic Universe, has its most intense and thrilling installment of all with Avengers: Infinity War, directed by siblings Anthony and Joe Russo. To defeat Thanos, the Avengers and their team must sacrifice everything they’ve ever known to protect the well-being of the universe. As of May 27, Infinity War has topped $1.9 billion at the global box office in a span of just over four weeks, making this hit one of the biggest domestic earners in American cinematic history.
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Words: Lawren Mickenberg
Photos: Laila Abu-Ghaida
On Friday, May 4, Centennial celebrated College Sweater Day, where seniors wore a shirt that symbolized which college they will be attending next year, but all students were welcomed to participate.
There were a variety of different colleges chosen by the students from all around the country. There were shirts from colleges like Princeton, Michigan State, UMBC, Maryland, and more.
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