Leo Bevilacqua, a true Renaissance man, reminds us that it’s okay to have no chill (even, like, zero percent).

Name, School, Major, Hometown: Leo Bevilacqua, Columbia College, American Studies, New York City

Claim to fame: Salty articles that got me banned from CC alumni dinner, ‘playing’ an alcoholic in two consecutive Barnard theatre department plays and reviving Bwog’s instagram to many on/off Bwog’s chagrin. Basically, I was extra and caused a lot of petty drama but managed to be both entertaining and hilarious throughout it all (at least, according to me and a group of very close friends who are morally ambiguous). So, I’m basically the Kim Kardashian of Columbia (?) Also, I have NO chill. Like zero percent. #bigcapricornenergy

Where are you going? Probably to jail, PERIODTTTT.

What are 3 things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2023?

1. Delusions of Grandeur Can Save Your Sanity. Sometimes on the walk to 1020 to meet friends, I used to listen to promos from hella dramatic episodes from hella dramatic shows like PLL or AHS to act as the soundtrack for my stroll down Amsterdam. It may sound crazy but it actually imbued each encounter/thing at this school with paramount importance. I am the supreme!
2. Apologize. Seriously. I am a salty, heinous bitch sometimes/if not all times. I have to remind myself on the reg to be a rational human being with a modicum of humanity. It is 10000% fine to admit you don fucked up. In my case, it saved me about every friendship I ever had. Apologizing does not make you weak, it makes you stronger. When you’re as transparent, easily bothered and yes, “bitchy,” as me. It is *very* important to demonstrate some self control. Being completely honest, spilling all the tea and using every opportunity to belt out an oddly specific and harsh insult makes you a character on a Ryan Murphy television program and not a good samaritan/peer/lover/friend/etc. Let things go!
3. JOIN, and I cannot *stress* this enough, LATENITE. Just. Do. It.

“Back in my day…:” Yik Yak was more of a self-esteem boost than Tinder, Bernheim claimed to be where Columbia had its first beer (?), “Promiscuous Girl” was the most played song at Mel’s/people went to Mel’s, you could accidentally drink draino in a punch bowl refill at Amigo’s and Bwog got threatened with legal action on the reg.

Favorite Columbia controversy? The Dark Enlightenment. [look it up, shit was cray]

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: I transferred to Columbia from a shitty situation at a state school in the South. I *finally* had the courage to unburden and post my #metoo statement in this Fall, years after the incident, also coming out as gay publicly and coming forward with my PTSD.  Shit was hard. There’s no sugarcoating it. I’ve suffered. I’ve failed. I’ve mostly been a shitty friend, lover and peer. But, hey, I tried. I might not have many awards to show for my time here but I have my failures, which I’ve grown to be proud of. Well, this is definitely more than thirty words but I’ve never really been one to follow rules, especially those set by Bwog :P

What was your favorite class at Columbia? Telling About the South, a seminar taught by Dr. Barbara Field. Probably, more proud of the work I did in this class than my thesis because of how much I learned and how much it sparked my creativity. It really helped me make sense of a region that I HATED and somewhat equated with what happened to me there.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? Despite being lactose intolerant, I would easily give up oral for a nice, juicy burrata (lactose pills be damned!)

Whom would you like to thank? My Sicilian brothers @ Milano’s Market for keeping me sane. “W1, please!” (x500)

One thing to do before graduating: Chill on someone’s roof. It’s serendipity — word choice. Blast some quality tunes (cough cough anything Alex Turner cough cough), crack open a cold one (Strawberrita) and act like you and your friends are in a Vampire Weekend music video/Urban Outfitters ad.

Any regrets? I wish I was a friend to more people in my graduating class. I wish I hadn’t let petty drama influence my taste. I wish I had met ‘my people’ earlier, but alas it rarely happens that way.

In conclusion, to quote, Friedrich Schiller (*eye roll*), “I let the worst be known about me, so that I can say, ‘that was said about me is worse than what I am,’ but history will not be so kind to [others], when it tears down [their] carefully decorated tapestry”