From politics to karaoke: A bittersweet goodbye to Obama’s presidency

It was no ordinary karaoke night. Last Thursday, an intimate audience gathered at Pro Arts Gallery in downtown Oakland to sing along to classics like “Eye of the Tiger,” but with one small catch––the lyrics had been replaced with words from President Obama’s executive orders.

The event, Executive Order Karaoke, was the brainchild of members of an artist collective called Finishing School whose work focuses on the intersections between play, public space and politics. Oakland was one of the final stops of Finishing School’s national tour of the show. Throughout the evening, Ed Giardina, a Finishing School member, played the karaoke host, inviting audience members to take their best stab at singing executive orders to familiar tunes. The goal of the event, Giardina said, was to get people to interact with and better understand executive orders.