The Town Hall Theater will host the first Middlebury Rave on Friday, March 7 from 8 p.m. to midnight, featuring global music, visual projections, dancing and a bar. The event aims to create an immersive, high-energy experience for attendees, blending electronic music with a dynamic visual atmosphere. The ticket costs $8 for students and $12 for community members.
The DJ for the event, Amit Prakash, visiting assistant professor of International and Global Studies at the college, told The Campus he developed his passion for DJing during his undergraduate years.
“My friend had turntables, and we went to raves,” Prakash said. “Then we started realizing that we really love the music and so we started collecting records.”
Prakash began DJing for parties as well as for his show for his college’s radio station. After college, he DJed a little for local clubs and bars in Washington D.C.
“And then I went to graduate school and became a historian and put them away for 20 years,” Prakash said.
It wasn’t until the Covid-19 pandemic that he rediscovered his passion, prompted by his son’s newfound interest in techno music.
“We pulled out the turntables and have been doing it for fun,” Prakash said.
The idea for the event began in the summer of 2024, when Assistant Professor of Dance Laurel Jenkins organized a rave for graduate students at Bread Loaf. Among the attendees was Lisa Mitchell, executive and artistic director of Town Hall Theater, who expressed her interest in bringing a similar rave to the town.
Since then, Jenkins, Mitchell and Prakash have collaborated to bring the event to life. The Town Hall Theater serves as a hub for hosting town halls, concerts, and other events. Recently, it has opened a newly constructed building adjacent to the theater, featuring classrooms and design shops. According to Prakash, Mitchell had the idea to celebrate the new space with a dance party.
Prakash is excited for people to hear music that is not found on mainstream radio.
“The focus should not be on the DJ. I am just a medium for conveying music that I think is cool,” he said.
Raves originated as underground dance parties, spaces where people could come together to experience music outside of commercial constraints. However, over time, the rave scene has evolved, becoming more widely known in the mainstream.
“Now, people understand ‘rave’ to mean electronic music and dancing,” Prakash said. “What I like [about raves] is that people can just move how they want to move with the music.”
The organizers expect the attendees to be a mix of Middlebury students and local community members, hoping that the event can make Middlebury students who do not already know about the Town Hall Theater aware of its presence.
The DJ performance will be accompanied by a videographer, Dan Ribaudo, who will project visuals on the wall, dynamically reacting to the music Prakash plays. “I’ve been doing visuals for parties since the VHS days, so it will be exciting to be in a new space,” Ribaudo said.
In preparation for this event, Prakash has been ensuring that all components of his setup function properly. He has tested the location of the DJ booth, carefully selected what records to bring, and checked the speakers and subwoofers, which are especially important given the bass-heavy music.
Prakash said he is aiming to create a musical arc over the four-hour party.
“I have a plan and then I usually jettison that plan pretty quickly depending on the crowd, depending on how I’m feeling, and the intangible vibe,” he said. “I consider DJing like producing a mood, effectively, but it’s not just me imposing it – it’s also feeding off what’s going on out on the dance floor.”
Jenkins, one of the rave’s organizers, will also be attending with several students from her classes.
“Having been at the Bread Loaf rave and having been in her midst, it was very inspiring not only to watch her dance, but she also gets the crowd going,” Mitchell said, referring to Jenkins.
Right now, about 15% of the Town Hall Theater bookings is for college events, but with the opening of the Anderson Studio, Town Hall Theater is committed to hosting more college events, Mitchell said. “This is a really exciting time for Town Hall Theater.”
