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(11/18/15 7:00pm)
Many students walk into The Oak House expecting a relaxing and comfortable place to hang out with friends and decompress. What many customers don’t realize is that if they walk into the coffee shop on the first Friday of the month, they can expect jazz music from Small House.
(10/27/15 9:24pm)
Three organizations came together to present inspirational speaker Dennis Gillan 7:30 p.m. Monday in Whitley Auditorium. The space was filled with students from different circles within Elon University, ranging from fraternity and sorority members to those interested in mental health.
(10/26/15 10:17pm)
Though the money for Acorn Coffee Shop employee Kathryn Thompson’s Disney World vacation was raised on Oct. 5, another update appeared on the GoFundMe page on last Thursday:
(10/15/15 7:52pm)
Elon University students will surely be laughing Oct. 16 and 17, and not just because it is homecoming weekend. The Department of Performing Arts will be performing their annual show, "Instant Laughter" this weekend.
(10/03/15 4:30pm)
In the brief time that it wasn’t raining at Elon University this past week, a varied group of educators, staff members, students and community members gathered together to explore Loy Farm.
(10/02/15 6:08pm)
When junior Jonny Deaton received his $5,000 prize from the Nukebusters Short Film Contest, he was overwhelmed.
(09/21/15 9:04pm)
Vibrant and colorful flags hung from more than 20 tables in upstairs Lakeside Sept. 17, each one representing the different countries that Elon University students have been to and the places Elon students will continue to study abroad.
(09/12/15 3:12pm)
Most Saturday
mornings for Elon University students are a time to relax, hang out with friends and get a mid-morning meal. While brunching is becoming the trendy meal for young adults who fill their plates with eggs Benedict, pancakes and bottomless mimosas, a slightly faster and more economical option
is munching on a doughnut.
(09/08/15 5:37pm)
When senior Danielle Williams joined the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) her freshman year at Elon University, she knew that she wanted to be heavily involved in the organization. By her sophomore year, she accomplished that by becoming the president of NPHC and the youngest member of the executive board.
(09/02/15 12:00pm)
Last weekend, 1,520 freshmen gathered together under the oaks in the North Carolina heat patiently waiting for their acorns. Unbeknownst to them, three freshmen would be singled out by Leo Lambert, president of Elon University.
(05/08/15 4:00pm)
Adam Kehl, director of Elon University’s wind ensemble Phoenix Winds, has long had a dream of collaborating with the dance program. Not many musicians get the opportunity to accompany dancers, and not many dancers get the needed experience of performing with live musicians.
In the fall, Kehl met with Jen Guy Metcalf, assistant professor of dance, and they decided to collaborate on some pieces for the spring wind ensemble concert.
In the performance, titled “A Little Song and Dance,” dancers will accompany Phoenix Winds for two pieces: “Swan Lake” and “Variations of a Shaker Melody.”
Beginning in February, Kehl practiced with only the ensemble to work out exact tempos, transitions and other musical elements before incorporating dance.
“‘Swan Lake’ is very classical, while ‘Variations of a Shaker Melody’ utilizes much more modern dance,” said freshman Minnie Lane, who will dance in the performance.
Lane has found herself more immersed in the art of dancing than usual.
“Having live musicians helps with the movement a lot because we have more liberty with timing,” Lane said. “It’s really been great getting to collaborate with Phoenix Winds because having live musicians makes connecting to the music so much easier and more fun.”
Both dance and music students have been practicing together to smoothly blend both media.
“[This performance] also gives the musicians and the dancers an opportunity to perform some of the best and most iconic music and choreography ever written,” Kehl said. “I think it has been a really exciting, unique artistic experience for both groups.”
By incorporating two aspects of artistic expression, “A Little Song and Dance” attracts a crowd that appreciates both.
“I think one of the greatest side effects of this collaboration is that it will expose our audiences to a new artistic experience,” Kehl said. “It will give people in the audience who are coming to primarily see the dance performance a chance to hear a wind ensemble concert, and it will give our normal wind ensemble audience an opportunity to see live ballet and modern dance.”
In addition to the dance showcase, Phoenix Winds will also perform the expanded collection of Pulitzer Prize winner William Bolcom’s Cabaret Songs for mezzo-soprano and chamber winds, which will feature Hallie Hogan, associate professor of music.
“They are a set of five fun cabaret, jazz, burlesque-inspired songs from one of the most significant American composers alive today,” Kehl said. “It should be a wonderfully entertaining program that has something for everybody.”
To appeal to all preferences, Phoenix Winds performs a wide variety of music ranging from the classic and traditional to the modern.
Kehl believes concert wind ensembles are some of the most cutting-edge ensembles in the world of classical music today.
“Creative and diverse programming is a hallmark of the modern wind ensemble and something we strive to provide our students here at Elon with,” he said.
Phoenix Winds meets to practice one a week for two hours throughout the semester. With the small time commitment, the ensemble hopes students will be able to participate in other musical ensembles or artistic activities and experiences. There is no audition to join Phoenix Winds, but there is a part placement audition at the first rehearsal.
They are currently accepting new members for the fall semester.
“We believe that the more art we can share with the world, the better the world will be, and this was a great opportunity to pursue that goal,” Kehl said.
“A Little Song and Dance” will take place at 7:30 p.m. May 12 in McCrary Theatre.
(04/30/15 4:00pm)
Guns. Pills. Alcohol.
For senior Kaitlin Stober, using controversial subject matter is the best way to evoke emotional responses from her audience.
Stober will be presenting a series of still-life oil paintings. She hopes to display multiple realities and diverse perceptions through her work by focusing on windows.
“I use windows as the canvas for my work because of the visual benefits inherent in the reflective yet transparent glass surface as well as the rich symbolism surrounding windows,” Stober said.
Students striving for the bachelor of arts and bachelor of fine arts worked through the final stretch for their thesis exhibition, an end of the year show of their art-making endeavors.
Ann Kaplan, assistant professor of art, has been preparing for this show with seniors in her seminar capstone course for the past semester.
“I think what’s really captivating about this year’s group is that they’re really deeply exploring divergent and multiplicitious realities,” Kaplan said.
The thesis exhibition runs May 1-19 and will feature multiple works from different students in Kaplan’s class. There will be a variety of media ranging from paintings to digital print to drawings to large-scale film featured to showcase each artist’s thesis.
Senior Sarah Wasko wants to inspire personal contemplation from the audience of the exhibition. For her piece, Wasko masked her face with turquoise glitter and had photos taken.
“Children’s art usually depicts a hyperbolized version of our world,” Wasko said. “I have masked myself in children’s art materials to allude to this masking and hyperbolizing of different parts of ourselves.”
Wasko looks at popular social media platforms as a contemporary mask of sorts.
“We are constantly hiding some aspects of ourselves while playing up others, whether we are aware of it or not,” she said. “Think Facebook, Instagram — everything we do.”
Her thesis impacted her a lot more than she originally anticipated.
“It has made me question a lot about my own identity, how I choose to present myself and what devices I use to do so,” Wasko said. “The work is pretty bizarre, but so are we. And that’s kind of the point.”
Desmond Harrell’s thesis examines Beyonce in a religious context. He wanted to show the direct connection between power and race, especially in such a highly regarded figure.
“My piece includes a collage of images printed on canvas,” Harrell said. “The background, which was inspired by traditional African kente cloth, not only serves as the background but it encompasses Beyonce, creating space and depth within my piece.”
Originally, Harrell worked with smaller scale images, but has since transitioned into ones of a larger scale. He decided to switch to larger images because of the overwhelming feelings his exposition gave him and to strive for a larger impact.
“What I hope to achieve with this piece is to put in perspective calling people like Beyonce ‘Queen Bey’ or LeBron James ‘King James,’” Harrell said.
Kaplan believes the students’ work is interesting, dynamic and colorful.
Although there are minor differences between BAs and BFAs, students in both disciplines worked diligently to complete their projects.
“The BFA is designed to be more of a pre-professional program, while the BA allows greater flexibility for interdisciplinary work,” said Michael Fels, associate professor of art and chair of the department of art and art history.
The exhibition will be in Gallery 406 in the Arts West building. Artists featured in the exhibition will present brief statements explaining their theses at a reception beginning at 5:30 p.m. May 1.
(04/23/15 8:02pm)
Luminaries displaying faces, names and memories will line the paths of Elon University April 24-25 as Elon hosts its third Relay for Life.
The event’s popularity on campus has significantly increased and is aiming to raise $75,000 compared to the $50,041 last year. With more than 13 million people living with cancer in the United States, many students have deep connections to the cause and are eager to participate.
From participants to directors, every person has a different reason and story for participating in the fundraiser for cancer research.
Senior Laura Castro first got involved with Relay for Life in 2013 after seeing many friends lose their parents to cancer. She is currently executive director of Relay for Life at Elon.
“I tried to support them through that struggle and thought it was extremely unfair for someone so young to have to experience that much pain,” Castro said. “We decided that we wanted to make a difference by establishing a Relay for Life at Elon and got to work.”
During the fundraiser, men and women walk 60 miles over the course of three days. After completing the walk, Sykes continued her passion for cancer fundraising.
Colleges Against Cancer (CAC) is a nationwide collaboration of college students, faculty and staff dedicated to eliminating cancer by implementing the programs and mission of the American Cancer Society. Relay for Life is one of CAC’s strategic directions, the others being advocacy, cancer education and survivorship.
“Ten years ago, my world was rocked when I lost my mom to breast cancer,” said senior Eleanor Sykes. “Not long after, I became very involved with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day with my family and friends in order to make a positive impact in such unfortunate circumstances.”
“When Danielle Prongay told me my sophomore year that she was bringing Colleges Against Cancer to campus and it would host Relay for Life, I jumped at the chance to be a part of the fight against cancer again, applied for exec and have been involved ever since,” Sykes said.
Sykes currently holds the survivor relations position. She and other students organize luminaries that are personalized with a name, photo, message or drawing in memory of a friend or loved one who has been affected by cancer.
“A lot of our exec members, committee members and participants have been affected by cancer, which is evident in the amount of luminaries we have dedicated already,” Sykes said.
Each of these luminaries tells a story that connects students to the fight against cancer.
There will be a luminary dedicated to freshman Virginia Townsend’s mother at Relay for Life. As an individual, Townsend has raised the most money for the event.
“My mother was diagnosed with stage-4 colon cancer last October,” Townsend said. “She passed away very quickly on November 2. I want to do everything I can so that no on else has to suffer the pain that my family and I did.”
This will be the first year Townsend is participating in this event, but she wishes she had started participating earlier.
“When it hit home, I knew it was time that I get involved,” she said.
The Luminary Ceremony will take place after sunset. As darkness falls, it represents the immense effect cancer has on participants and the support system surrounding them.
“It is without a doubt my favorite part of Relay for Life because it is so touching and impactful to look around at all the glowing lights and realize you’re not alone in being affected by this disease or in the fight against it,” Sykes said.
The CAC Chapter at Elon has more stories about why others chose to participate in Relay for Life at eloncac.weebly.com/blog.
“Unfortunately, all members of the Elon community can relate to the pain to some degree, but we turned the negative into a positive by uniting the campus to fight back,” Castro said.
(03/18/15 10:17pm)
When Cinderella wanted to go to the ball, she was lucky enough to have a fairy godmother to give her a beautiful dress. But not all girls have mice and godmothers to make their dreams come true. That’s where the Cinderella Project at Elon University comes in.
The Cinderella Project is a national nonprofit organization that promotes confidence and self esteem of financially challenged young women by providing dresses for formal events, reducing the financial burden that associated with attending such events.
Every year, Cinderella Project volunteers collect prom and formal dresses from students for local girls who cannot afford them. Currently, Elon’s chapter works only with Cummings High School in Burlington, but the executive board is looking to add more schools.
To encourage donations, volunteers will be doing a Dorm Storm March 18-19. Members will be going around with flyers and knocking on doors to ask students to bring back dresses from spring break. Dresses can be dropped off in Moseley 230.
Collecting dresses is just one part of the Cinderella Project. It does much more than give the girls a dress they’ll wear once — it also empowers them.
Every spring before Cummings’ prom, the Cinderella Project hosts a conference that focuses on self-esteem in females. This year, the theme is Be-YOU-tiful, and the conference will be April 18 in the Numen Lumen Pavilion.
“During the conference, we have workshops geared toward things like body image, having a safe prom night, how to apply makeup — things of that nature,” said senior and executive board member Desiree Porter. “We also invite a keynote speaker who will be covering topics like self-image.”
When they enter the conference, the girls are paired with a Elon student as their “fairy godmother.”
“[Fairy godmothers] pretty much serve as mentors,” said senior and executive board member Kenna Meyerhoff. “They go with the girls through the workshops all day.”
For some students, the bond between mentor and mentee lasts longer than just the conference.
“I was at the high school the other day, and one of the girls said, ‘Yeah, after the conference I came to Elon to hang out with my mentor,’” Meyerhoff said. “Things like that do happen, and it’s just from one day of time spent with these girls.”
Porter emphasized the importance of reaching out to the community and of the connections students make with the girls.
“I really like how we can serve as a conduit between the two communities, connecting Elon with the outer Burlington community,” Porter said. “I think it’s great to form those relationships that can continue beyond this conference.”
After a day of workshops and activities, the girls scramble for the moment they have waited for — selecting their dresses.
“Once they find the perfect dress, we have makeup artists that will do their makeup and teach them how to do it to match their dress,” Porter said.
Additionally, the project gives out gift bags and jewelry so the girls can perfect their looks.
Last year, the Cinderella Project hosted 50 participants and had 35 volunteers, but they hope to increase these numbers this year.
Senior Danielia Dwyer discovered the Cinderella Project when she met Porter their freshman year. She was excited and moved by the project and has worked with it ever since.
Now a senior preparing to graduate, she fully understands the impact the project has had on herself and the girls of Cummings.
“Cinderella Project is not only about providing prom dresses, but furthering it into women’s empowerment and making sure it’s about mentoring and networking, making sure the girls are making positive relationships,” Dwyer said.
(03/05/15 1:01am)
The BioBus, water bottle refill stations and composting options are just a few of the sustainable efforts Elon University has implemented to make the campus more eco-friendly, but students don’t always take advantage of them.
(03/05/15 12:43am)
Correction 4/5: Due to an editing error, an earlier headline of this story referred to "Humans at Elon." The photography project is "Humans of Elon." The Pendulum regrets the error.
A person, a picture and a quote. These are the elements of “Humans of Elon,” a photo collection of people on Elon University’s campus started and run by freshmen Ben Driscoll and Mercedes Kent.
The founders decided to collaborate on the project before fall classes started. While most freshmen were frantically gathering dorm and school supplies, these two were beginning a project to document the people of their new campus.
The Leadership Fellows first met at a retreat for their cohort, where they instantly connected and decided to make a name for themselves on campus.
“I actually did a ‘Humans’ of my high school, and I thought, ‘Why don’t we have this here?’” Driscoll, who is a member of The Pendulum’s PR team, said. “I proposed the idea to [Mercedes], and she loved the idea, so we started it.”
The two have different academic interests and their talents complement each other. Driscoll, a strategic communications major, interviews the subjects, while Kent, a biology major, photographs them.
“I was thinking of ways to exemplify her photography because I think it’s excellent,” Driscoll said.
The “Humans of Elon” photo collection is the perfect place to do just that.
The project is based on “Humans of New York,” a photography project started by Brandon Stanton in 2010 that has more than 6,000 portraits and 12 million likes on Facebook. Driscoll said that both “Humans” are similar in that the projects aim to capture the diverse set of people each area encompasses: one a city, the other a campus.
“Our intent is to exemplify the Elon campus and community, whether that be staff, students, teachers — anyone that’s on campus, really,” Driscoll said. “My favorite one was this guy — he’s from Haiti. We were expecting to ask him a simple question, and he had this really touching quote.”
His name is Elisson Adrien, a 23-year-old sophomore.
“I’ve always wanted to be a pediatrician and work with kids because I have unfortunately seen a large amount of kids die,” he told “Humans.” “I think that a lot of kids could have been cured, but there are very few pediatricians in Haiti. I want to be able to help people.”
“There are so many interesting stories behind all the faces of Elon,” Kent said. “I feel fortunate to have the opportunity to learn from all the people
we meet.”
The pair typically spends a few hours finding people to document and ends up posting only seven or eight pictures at a time. Currently, they have 33 posts and have accumulated 501 followers on their Instagram page and more than 1,200 likes on Facebook.
“I would really like to reach out and diversify ‘Humans’ even more,” Kent said. “We have done a few faculty and staff members, but I would like to do more.”
For those looking to be in the spotlight, the “Humans of Elon” selection process has no method.
“We go around to all of campus, whether it be going to Acorn and Oak House or going into Irazu, KOBC, seeing people in those hammocks — anything,” Driscoll said. “We go to people who seem approachable.”
While Driscoll and Kent remain focused on steadily gaining the support of the community, they also have a bucket list in mind for this project: targeting the “celebrities” of Elon.
“We would really like to get a more candid photo of President Lambert, maybe at graduation, convocation or another event this year,” Kent said.
The team is also discussing promoting different organizations, as long as they fit into the original goal of the project: sharing stories.
“I’ve talked to my friends who are a part of a few different organizations, but we don’t want to force publicizing these different organizations,” Driscoll said. “We want to work on a way to publicize these organizations while still maintaining integrity of the ‘Humans’ template.”
For now, Driscoll and Kent are focused on maintaining a strong base and expanding their project.
“My favorite moment, besides taking the pictures, was when our Facebook page hit 1,000 likes.” Kent said. “I remember looking at Ben and saying, ‘Look we made it, we’re real!’ It was such a confidence boost to keep going and that the Elon community was interested and would support this photography project.”
Keep up with “Humans at Elon” by liking them on Facebook or following them on Instagram: @HumansofElonUniversity.
(02/06/15 6:32pm)
As Elon University, students return to campus for the spring semester, a relatively unknown on-campus dining option could replace Acorn in students’ hearts. Whether they are returning from abroad courses or just looking to try a new food option, students can find more lunch options than ever at Argo Tea Cafe in the Global Neighborhood.
Argo Tea may sound like a beverage-only cafe, but it has expanded its food options to accommodate Elon’s student body and faculty.
Manager Dan Tart was surprised by the demand from students.
“I have contacts in Chicago, where Argo is from, and they are baffled by how much food we are selling,” Tart said. “Even UNC Asheville, American University and William & Mary — their food sales aren’t nearly what ours are.”
Tart suggests the accommodations Argo makes for students with a meal plan have caused the increased food sales.
“We have everything open to [students],” Tart said. “We give them different combinations for retail swipes, but really, they can combine pretty much anything, and it’s something they can afford.”
Other options on campus are more rigid with their retail swipe combinations. For instance, at Acorn a sandwich can’t be paired with a specialty coffee drink unless students are willing to pay extra.
Freshman Molly Spero frequently finds herself at Argo for lunch after her morning classes.
“[At Argo Tea] you are able to combine any pastry or sandwich type with a large drink,” Spero said. “It’s a really nice deal.”
While there is a substantial number of food and drink combinations, some students would like to see Argo Tea’s hours change. Argo is currently closed on the weekends and is only open 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Friday. Tart agrees.
“We want to work on the hours we’re open,” Tart said. “I don’t see anything changing this semester, but maybe next semester, after we get a year under our belt.”
Though the hours are limited, some students are willing to sacrifice convenience for quality.
“I go to Argo all the time,” freshman Hannah Sicherman said. “I really wish it was open more often though, because I feel like it’s a healthier food option than a lot of places on campus.”
Currently, Argo carries a variety of tea-infused salads, paninis and baked goods that students can munch on between classes. Catering to each student’s preference, beverages can be made with the customer’s choice of 2 percent milk, skim milk, soy milk or almond milk without an additional charge.
The cafe is now promoting a specialty drink for Valentine’s Day — the Valentea. The drink, made with hibiscus flower and passion fruit, is available for a limited time. Continuing with the festivities of the month, students can try the new dark truffle brownie or macaroons.
As a new option on campus, the cafe is still testing the waters while continuing to update tea and food options for the seasons and the students.
“Kids can sit here and do their studies,” Tart said. “People can have meetings out here. We’re not Lakeside, we’re not Colonnades. We’re a little off the beaten path. To get them down here, we have to have that great customer service.”
(01/26/15 4:36pm)
In a dimly lit green room in the back of Elon University’s McCrary Theatre, artist, spoken word performer and filmmaker Kip Fulbeck described a vivid memory from his childhood.
“I remember a girl in fifth grade saying, ‘I know you like me. Why would I like you? You’re brown,’” Fulbeck said.
It is this side of Fulbeck that the audience glimpsed when he performed “Race, Sex and Tattoos” Jan. 15, part of the 2015 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Beloved Community Celebration event series.
Fulbeck explored the contemporary United States’ role in celebrating diversity through the spoken word and other media.
“I think every kid doesn’t feel accepted for some ways, you know,” Fulbeck said. “It could be for economics, it could be for physical stature, whatever it is. But certainly race and ethnicity played a big role for me.”
The 49-year-old grew up in a time when his parents’ interracial marriage was considered illegal in many states. It was only in 1967 that the Supreme Court overturned laws prohibiting such unions.
“My family is full-blooded Chinese from China, so I grew up as the white kid at home,” he said. “I was the kid who didn’t get the language, like the food. … Then I go to school, and I’m like the Asian kid at school, and they’re like, ‘Let’s put the Chinese kid in the trashcan, yeah!’”
From these pieces, Fulbeck channeled his questions and thoughts about identity into the Hapa Project. Photographs of more than 1,200 volunteers laid the foundation.
“[Hapa is] a Hawaiian word for ‘half,’ and I first heard it when I was three or four years old in California,” Fulbeck said. “When I was a kid I thought it just meant Asian-white, because that’s what I knew.”
Beginning in 2001, Fulbeck photographed thousands of volunteers who self-identified as Hapa, someone with mixed ethnic heritage with partial roots in Asian and/or Pacific Islander ancestry.
He photographed every person the same way: bare skin from the shoulders up, natural expression and minimal makeup.
After taking the photos, Fulbeck posed a simple question: “What are you?”
The results were greater than he ever imagined.
“I would do a shoot in San Francisco and get there at 6 o’clock for a 7 o’clock shoot, and there would be 45 people waiting outside,” Fulbeck said. “I think when people have lived in a time where no one is telling your story, no one is acknowledging your existence, and you’re given an opportunity to say something, you’re like, ‘Oh, I’ve got something to say.’”
Fulbeck has since transformed these pictures and written statements into an exhibition that has been showcased in museums across the nation. People passing through have the opportunity to take a picture of themselves and compose a written statement. The idle museumgoers become active participants in creating art and celebrating identity. In one museum, the walls were filled with pictures after a mere four hours.
“I was hoping [the walls] would fill up in four months [with pictures],” Fulbeck said. “That was my goal. I had no idea it would fill up like that. I’ve always been surprised by how many people will gravitate toward my projects,” Fulbeck said.
Fulbeck is no stranger to holding the attention of a room. When he isn’t creating collections, Fulbeck teaches for the University of California at Santa Barbara. He established high standards for those who enroll in his classes.
“I hope that they leave more conscious. I drop them if they don’t,” he said. “They have to be aware of what’s around them. I want them to understand their place and pick their battles, especially the politically active ones.”
Fulbeck extended the same expectations to his children. Upon the completion of his tour, Fulbeck’s immediate future plans are to be a dad to his two children for a while and to take a break from constantly working and traveling for his pieces.
As for the girl in fifth grade who didn’t like him, she seems to have moved on.
“The hardest part for me is looking back, and it wasn’t that she said that,” Fulbeck said. “I mean, we’re friends on Facebook now. The problem was that in my head I was like, ‘Oh yeah, that makes total sense, why would you like me?’ It’s that acceptance and the self-hate — that’s the hard part. That’s the reason I do this work with people, to explore their own identities, their own words.”
(01/26/15 4:02pm)
After eight nominations and a slew of performances, Kevin Spacey, who plays Frank Underwood in political thriller “House of Cards,” won his first Golden Globe for Best Actor in a TV Drama last week.
He joins fellow cast member Robin Wright, who won Best Actress in a TV Drama in 2014 for her role as Claire Underwood, Spacey’s on-screen wife.
The series itself has not won a Golden Globe for Best TV Drama despite critical acclaim and consecutive nominations.
After Spacey’s win, Netflix released the trailer for the third season of “House of Cards.” The trailer features the Underwoods in the aftermath of their vengeful political antics.
Though the new trailer cast the characters in a darker light than before, the first season itself was telling of the Underwood’s deviant ways.
If you haven’t jumped aboard the “House of Cards” bandwagon by committing your time to seasons one and two, hang on.
Season One begins when Underwood, the House of Representatives majority whip, is passed over for Secretary of State, despite being previously promised this position by President Garrett Walker. From this moment on, Frank and Claire are bent on revenge.
Zoe Barnes, a political reporter played by Kate Mara, serves as Frank’s mistress and puppet in the press for the majority of the first season. While she gains sensitive political information to further her career, she simultaneously is manipulated into selectively leaking stories to the press that Frank can use against his opponents.
As part of his master plan, Frank supports alcoholic congressman Peter Russo, played by Corey Stoll, for governor of Pennsylvania. Frank then tricks Russo into publicly humiliating himself, causing him to blow the election. When Russo tries to expose Frank for the diabolical man he is, Frank kills Russo, staging it to look like a suicide.
Frank’s plans begin to fall perfectly in line when the vice president of the United States steps down to fill the spot Russo left open, and the season ends with Frank accepting the nomination for vice president.
The second season reveals the further actions and manipulations of the Underwoods. After Barnes starts to unravel Frank’s dark past, she meets an untimely death at a subway platform. The truth of Frank’s devious past is once again buried.
Relentlessly power hungry, Frank continues his quest for the presidency.
Meanwhile, as Frank’s deceptions start to raise suspicions, his close associates tie up his loose ends.
In the climatic season finale, Frank incriminates Walker, forcing his resignation and clearing the way for him to claim the most powerful position in the free world: President of the United States of America.
Frank, with the help of his wife, clawed his way to the top of the power totem poll. But at what cost? Season Three should answer this question and showcase the deception and sordid affairs of politics.
The third season will be released on Netflix Feb. 27.