For performing arts groups, the beginning of a new academic year is a time of excitement and novelty. Auditions bring in new members, and preparations for an exciting new set of performances are set into motion. This year, however, came with an unexpected obstacle: the University had decided to restrict the amount of time per week for which these groups could reserve rehearsal space. With a new four hour per week restriction, groups have been forced to adapt in order to continue their usual rehearsal schedules. 

In a Sept. 27 interview with The Justice, Boris’ Kitchen Sketch Comedy members Phoebe Liss ’25 and Greg Roitbourd ’26 commented on their reactions and frustration with the new restriction. “I feel like there wasn’t enough transparent information of why [the University] is doing this,” Liss said. According to her, this regulation was surprising and confusing to many groups, and a satisfactory motive for its implementation had not been provided by the University. 

Roitbourd, who is heavily involved in campus life, was able to share his understanding of why the restrictions were implemented. “Certain groups were utilizing certain spaces in the wrong way or overbooking spaces … it became unfair to the events office,” he explained. “There’s some logic behind it, but overall, it’s still not fair to student art groups.” 

According to Liss and Roitbourd, Boris’ Kitchen uses a classroom in Shiffman Humanities Center for their evening rehearsals. “Who is actually using these rooms?” Liss asked, questioning whether Boris’ Kitchen’s usage of their room was actually preventing other activities from occurring there. The group would usually start their rehearsals around 6 p.m, so the building was usually empty at the time of their rehearsals. 

Whatever the motive, the four hour restriction has proved to be a challenge for Boris’ Kitchen. The group puts on one to two shows per semester which typically comprise of 12-18 individual sketches, each requiring attention, practice and creative revision. “We need 20 hours [per week],” Roitbourd stated. Four hours per week, he said, is “quite literally a fifth of our rehearsal time … that’s barely getting through four sketches.” Within four hours per week, he explains, “there’s no room to explore, there’s no room to do anything.” 

Liss and Roitbourd see these rehearsal restrictions as “probably the most restrictive thing [the University] [has] implemented on us,” one of the sentiments which the group expressed in an email to University Event Operations on Sept. 12. As of press time, the group has not received a response. 

Without support from Administration, Boris’ Kitchen and many other groups on campus have found alternative methods of extending their rehearsal hours. Some groups have considered using student living spaces, and some just use empty spaces without reserving them. “We were on the verge of doing that,” commented Roitbourd.

One of the most effective alternatives for performing arts groups has been reserving rooms through Spingold Theater. According to Roitbourd and Liss, understanding and accessing this route has “hinged very much on the theater members of the group,” as they were not given guidance on how to do so from Administration. As performing arts groups share their solutions among each other, several of Brandeis’ improv groups and a cappella groups have also begun reserving rooms through Spingold. 

Natalie Omori-Hoffe ’25, a senior advisor from Company B A Cappella, described some of the issues in reserving space through Spingold Theater in a Sept. 27 comment to The Justice. “Priority is often given to theater groups or individuals, leading to sudden and unexpected cancellations,” she explained. Omori-Hoffe expressed a similar frustration to Liss and Roitbourd toward the restrictions, hoping for a more “accommodating and reliable” system for navigating space reservations. 

Roitbourd also implied in his interview that reserving rooms through Spingold Theater was not a sustainable solution. “The theater department can’t physically hold every single rehearsal group on campus,” he commented. 

Cole Simmons ’26, a member of the Undergraduate Theater Collective who is heavily involved in student theater, was also able to comment on the origins of the restrictions. “Last year was an incredibly crowded semester in student theater,” he described. “There were not enough spaces for University Events and not enough spaces for clubs.” According to him, clubs were not booking spaces appropriate for their needs, leading them to overbook rehearsal spaces, which interfered with University events. 

“I think this was misguided, and reckless in a sense,” Simmons commented on the restrictions. Though he recognizes the legitimacy of Brandeis’s space issue, he still believes that the University could have done more for performing arts groups. He speculates that the restrictions could go back to budgetary issues, citing the recent turnovers in the Department of University Events: “University Events is understaffed, under supported, and going through turnover meaning that everything is being reevaluated.” 

Simmons is currently on the board for FreePlay Theater Cooperative, who have experienced their own problems with the restrictions. While attempting to book Cholmondely’s Cafe for a performance, he received an email from University Events saying he wasn’t able to do so due to the weekly limit. He replied stating that this reservation was for a performance, not a rehearsal, and never received a response. In his own groups, the restrictions have been chaotic. “We don’t know where we are rehearsing until day-of,” he narrated. 

Simmons brought attention to another instance on campus — Hold Thy Peace was forced to rehearse outside. He elaborates: “Julius Caesar had to rehearse outside on the field. Some of the production staff have mobility aids that were impacted negatively.” He adds, “It’s an accessibility thing. It’s a dignity thing. We can’t rehearse outside, but they refuse to give us anything else.” 

Additionally, Simmons also speculated on the impacts of the weekly limitation in the context of the broader performing arts community. “I think this could kill more student theater groups. And if this policy stays in place, it will kill Liquid Latex. It could kill Adagio,” he stated. Fireside Theater Company at Brandeis had fallen apart over the course of his time at Brandeis. 

A representative from the Department of Student Engagement commented in an Oct. 1 email to The Justice about some of this year’s changes. She began by clarifying that the department only assists in managing the Carl J. Shapiro Theater, which was designed to be the home of the Undergraduate Theater Collective. Though no changes have been made for that specific space, DSE has also updated their website with more detailed guidance on how to reserve the theater. As of press time, the University Events Office has not submitted a comment to The Justice. 

Simmons, Omori-Hoffe, Liss and Roitbourd all made it clear that the rehearsal restrictions are a community-wide issue. As was summarized, “The most relaxed a cappella group I know practices for four hours a week. Every other one practices for seven. Theater groups practice twenty hours a week, improv groups practice more than four.” Though not all groups are affected, it is clear that the weekly limits have become a negative presence and uniting issue for select performing arts groups.