Weill Cornell Medical College Student Shows

Weill Cornell Medical College (WCM), formerly known as Cornell University Medical College started the tradition of annual student shows, which are performed in the institution’s recreational facilities, in the early 1930s.

Student life and social events at WCM were incorporated into the student experience as early as the 1920s. In 1922, to improve student welfare, the number of hours required for structured study was drastically reduced. This allowed students more free time in the afternoon to work independently. In turn, this improved the interactions and relationships between faculty and students.

When Dr. William Ladd became Associate Dean of the medical college in 1931, he believed that prioritizing student issues was a key factor in restoring stability during the Great Depression and widespread loss of economic security. Ladd was involved in student affairs and believed that a student’s success lay not with their grades, but within their desire to experience and enjoy life. Ladd saw this holistic approach for aspiring doctors as being essential for always keeping the patients’ humanity in mind and advocated for more funding for the student health service.

The medical school moved from its location on First Avenue between 27th and 28th Streets to York Avenue and East 68th Street when the New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, now known as NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine, opened in 1932. One advantage of the new building was the inclusion of new spaces that supported student and alumni interests, increasing the opportunity for more social events, including the student holiday shows.

In 1953, the construction of Olin Hall was completed and opened as a student residence and recreational facility located directly across from the medical center on York Avenue. Since then, Olin Hall’s gymnasium became the default venue for these shows. By the late 1970s, the Alumni Association sponsored the taping of the Annual Student Holiday Shows through its dues’ revenue.

The themes that revolved around the student shows parodied the school’s curriculum and departments, medical terminology, as well as the relationships between students and faculty, all of which were performed in good spirit. Due to each class preparing their own separate show, the event was structured over the course of four nights, with the first-year students performing on the first night, the second-year students on the second night, and so on. The student holiday shows were an annual tradition that occurred every fall semester, right before the Christmas break. In 1995, the shows were moved to the spring semester. Performed every mid to late February, the spring shows followed the same structure as the Christmas shows. This tradition of student life proved to be long-lasting, with annual shows continuing to be performed.

Bibliography “1997 Cornell University Medical College Announcement” (Medical Center Archives New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY). https://archive.org/details/cornelluniversit1997corn/page/104/mode/2up?q=shows.

Gotto, Antonio M., and Jennifer E. Moon. Weill Cornell Medicine: A History of Cornell’s Medical School. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2016.