On May 30th of this year, The Chance, a significant source of student entertainment, located in Main Mall, Poughkeepsie, burned down. The Chance offered concerts in a club atmosphere which many Vassar students enjoyed. In the past. The Chance hosted live bands, two or three nights a week. This year, since it burned down, many students have complained about a lack of live music in Poughkeepsie.

According to Peter Francese, Chance owner and manager, the fire "was believed to be arson." The Chance will be rebuilt, but, according to Linda Voshardt, assistant Chance manager, they will not siart rebuilding for six months to a year, because of insurance problems.

Although The Chance will not be open for quite some time, Chance Productions is sponsoring shows at other locations, and hopes to continue doing so until they reopen.

However, the lack of live music doesn't stop there. Vassar's Student Entertainment Committee (SEC) will not be sponsoring a concert this year, primarily due to a $13,000 debt incurred from the Clash concert last spring in Walker fieldhouse. Other activities such as Comedy night and the lecture by writer Hunter Thompson last year also contributed to the deficit. The $13,000 debt was subtracted from this year's $20,000 budget.

Because of the debt, current SEC chairperson Martha Gouse said a concert this year is out of the question, since "they always lose money." She said that the SEC chose to cut the concert rather than one of the formats because "the price isn't comparable."

Many students were unaware of the decision to not have a concert, and the SEC debt. Some thought the Clash concert was a success and were disappointed with the SEC decision.

Sue lmbriani, '87, said, "I think the Clash concert was a success and I'd like to see another concert." Georgianna Lewis, '87, when she found out that there would be no concert this year exclaimed in astonishment: "Are you kidding?... That's terrible! While one student, however, felt that there was no problem: "We have access to New York. If your dying to go see a concert it's always possible."

SEC plagued with debt

Last year, SEC started with a $12,000 deficit. According to '83--ïB4VSA treasurer Richard Rosen, '85, "SEC is an organization that has been in debt for the last two, well really three years." Rosen said that because of the tight VSA budget second semester of last year he "limited them (SEC) to only the events they were specifically budgeted for," namely the concert and Comedy Night. At the end of the year Rosen thought the SEC budget was balanced.

Last year's SEC chairperson, Karen Masiello, '84, did not report the SEC's financial situation. "I kept getting guarantees from Masiello that there were lots of receipts (such as ticket returns) coming in," said Rosen. He added, "If the receipts were what they were supposed to be, the budget would have been balanced." Masiello, who graduated last year, was unavailable for comment. The Clash brought in two thirds less revenue than expected, according to Rosen, but the effects of this were not apparent until this summer. Gouse said she was unaware of the deficit until two weeks before she came back to school, "no one really knew... it was a big surprise," she said. Rosen explained that "no one knows how an organization is doing except those in charge." He said that, while the SEC had a treasurer for part of last year, she couldn't be effective because of Masiello's control over the organization.

Gouse cited problems with other SEC activities last year as contributing to this year's deficit. She said last year's Comedy Night, which was held five days after the concert, was "poorly advertised" and "mismanaged." She also noted that the Thompson lecture, which cost approximately $4000, was attended by only 100 people at $1 a person. "I don't consider it a loss," she said, because lectures are anticipated to lose money. This year's financial situation, not only, eliminates the prospect of a concert but also that of a major SEC sponsored lecture as well.

This year, steps are allegedly being taken by the VSA to prevent a recurrence of last year's overspending. This year's VSA treasurer, Heather Hyde, said, "After the formal I'm going over the books with the SEC."

When asked if she would consider sponsoring a concert with Chance Productions, Gouse replied, "I really don't want to," because the Chance "owes us money from the Clash concert... I really don't want to give him (Francese) any more business until he pays..." the SEC. Chance Productions was involved with The Clash concert and, Gouse claimed, owes the SEC three thousand dollars. Will the SEC ever see that money? Gouse said, "Personally, I doubt it." She said that Masiello and Francese "never signed any papers," and therefore it is "his word against ours."

Initially, when contacted in a telephone interview on November 14 by UNSCREWED, Francese said about the debt, "I don't know. That's strictly a rumour." The same day Gouse received a memo from Pat Alt, Assistant Director of Campus Activities, which read: "Peter Francese of The Chance called. He will send me a check on Dec. 10 for $300 toward payment of $3000 outstanding balance." On November 15, UNSCREWED contacted Francese and confirmed that he owed money to the SEC. Concerning the debt he said, "Yes, I owe Vassar College $3000. As of December 10, I'll be sending the first check." Francese added "I saved the (SEC) thousands," by negotiating the Clash concert, adding, "I'm the one that called and told them I owed them money." Alt said Francese "calls every month" about the debt, and "He has every intention of paying us back."

Alternatives to concert

Instead of having a concert at Vassar, SEC plans to buy ticket blocks at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center for shows, such as the upcoming Eagles concert, and provide bus transportation. It also plans to have a party with "a really good steel band from Oberlin," according to Gouse, and more Cafe nights in the Retreat on Thursday evenings as an alternative to the Mug and Pete's Place. SEC is also planning another formal for February.