Presidents' Welcome

We are SURREALLY excited to welcome you to Jesus May Ball 2024 – bigger and better than ever before! Transcend the boundaries of ordinary existence and let us transport you to a world where reality itself is a masterpiece, just waiting to be unravelled. Whether you immerse yourself in this eclectic experience or bask in boundless dreams, it’s time to party the night away…

Open your eyes to the delights we have to offer throughout the ball. There’s the return of favourites such as Hidden Rooms cocktails and The Tiffin Truck along with new delicacies that you’re sure to love from Steak and Honour and custom brews from Renegade Brewery! Soar, spin, and swerve on our rides, before boogying to the very best acts around! Be it court by court or hitting favourites first, there’s always something new to explore and enjoy.

It is the passion, commitment and hard work of our incredible Committee that has brought this night to life. Please do take the time to shower our Committee with praise! They have worked tirelessly to make the biggest ball in Cambridge even better. We hope you have a wonderful night stepping Into the Surreal.

JMB love, The 2024 Jesus May Ball Presidents

Into the Surreal

Surrealism means beyond-realism. In pursuit of this paradoxical ideal, the surrealists explored their dreams, forced unconscious action, played with randomness, and undoubtedly shook the world. Art has never been the same since.

When you enter the Ball, into Chapel Court, you will experience our homage to what is potentially the most challenging (but also immersive) medium the surrealists used – film. Louis Buñuel was the most iconic surrealist filmmaker, and is also one of the greatest filmmakers to ever live. His 16 minute masterpiece Un Chien Andalou (An Andalusian Dog – 1929) left cinema-goers fainting in their seats. He and Salvador Dalí collected their most bizarre dreams and compiled them into an assault on film. A cloud cast across the moon turns into a razorblade cutting through an eye, ants emerge from a wound on the hand, men drag grand pianos with dead donkeys on them through a bedroom. In our massive projection, and in our bleeding-hand table settings, we have played with these visceral images. Nevertheless, you will find Chapel Court dressed grandly, adorned with flowers, food, and drink, with Buñuel’s imagery but a piece of punctuation in the grander picture. Aside from providing you with the best food and drink around, this dressing and placement is meant to play on Vĕra Chytilová’s incredible 1966 film – Sedmikrásky (Daisies). In this, two girls wreak havoc on society, purely by being themselves and doing what they want, in every moment. Maybe you will be excused for having a food fight in Chapel Court today. Maybe, and don’t tell Head Porter Simon I said this, I wouldn’t even mind if you set fire to the whole thing. The incredible projection in Chapel Court collates imagery from many great surrealist filmmakers, referencing Buñuel, Chytilová, György Kovásznai Habfürdö (Bubble Bath), and the iconic dream sequence Dalí did for Ingmar Bergman’s Wild Strawberries.

You will then progress into Cloister Court. Here you will find an original art installation by the JMB24 creative team. We have played with one of the most iconic surrealist paintings, René Magritte’s Golconda (1953). In this, formally dressed men are seen to fall (or rise?) through the air. We have aimed to harness both the exact imagery of this piece, and the feeling it invokes in the viewer in our multisensory installation. To do this we play with different types of light, different types of reflection, shadow, height, depth, sound, and texture. See also our nods to abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock, modern sculptors Yayoi Kusama and Dan Flavin.

You will next pass into our beautiful First Court, where we have principally focused on Spanish painter Joan Miró. The court is in glorious blue, akin to Miro’s immersive work Triptych Bleu I, II, III. We have also incorporated Miro’s shapes and colours into our table runners and flowers. Furthermore, you will notice that our iconic Jorse is somewhat compromised. The Jorse, which is an artwork made and donated by Barry Flanagan OBE, has been used as a vessel to explore Max Ernst’s demonic animal imagery. Using textured black balloons, and inspiration from Sam Rami’s Drag Me To Hell, as well as those weird black blobs from The Incredibles, we have turned this iconic college image on its head. Yes, this is our surreal Jorse. Finally, you cannot pass through First Court without stopping to admire the incredible projection over the Porter’s Lodge. There is too much reference to explain in even a book, but it truly is an explosion of surrealism.

In Second Court you will be able to experience one of the most striking and beautiful practices of a surrealist - that of Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo. Frida Kahlo is known for her iconic self-portraits, which also depict her experiences of chronic pain in what could be seen as challenging detail. We have particularly taken inspiration from Kahlo’s self-portraits Heart to Heart… The Two Fridas and The Wounded Deer. The tree in the centre of the court has been lit to resemble a beating heart, with a mess of arteries sprawling from it. Furthermore, the drunken bushes have been decorated with small red lights and antlers, making them appear as distorted capillary beds which radiate from the artist’s heart. The tables are dressed with anatomical heart vases and white flowers which have been dyed by a toxic dye, hurting them but giving them a chance to be something new.

Passing through the beautiful North Court Meadow you will see an artwork that while not surrealist, belongs to its parent movement DADAism – a movement that centres around found objects. Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain (1917) challenged the meaning of art and caused a revolt of disgust in the gallery it was exhibited in. To this day it remains one of the most iconic, but controversial, artworks of all time.

The orchard is our celebration of the most famous surrealist of all time, Salvador Dalí. Aside from the use of Dalí’s colour palette, we have also made his iconic ‘melted clocks’, from his painting The Persistence of Memory. These clocks have been integrated with colourful fibre optic lights, which nod to Dalí’s incredible landscapes. Furthermore, we invoke his Surrealism with Jellyfish with our beautiful inflatable jellyfish.

Finally, Fellow’s Garden is a space dedicated to surrealist photography, particularly Man Ray and Meret Oppenheim. We have aimed to recreate the experience of both being in their photography studios and being in one of their photographs. The whole court is monochrome, but for Man Ray’s Lips. It is lit with white, photographer-style lighting and we have aimed to introduce iconic aspects of these photographers’ practices into the decoration: Man Ray’s eyes and glass, Oppenheim’s X Ray. Fellow’s garden also offers the opportunity to take a photo in the studio of a surrealist artist - how fun.

In putting together the design for this ball, we have enjoyed balancing the subversive with the classic. It has been a pleasure and a joy and highlighting the incredible work of these artists is a privilege. Their ideas were imperfect, and they were terrible people, but their work endures as one of the great artistic revolutions of all time. At JMB24, surrender a little to automatism and let yourself go, surrealism is a way of living, not an aesthetic. Ceci n’est pas un bal.

Harin Wijayathunga

Head of Creative - JMB24

Ball Information

SECURITY & ENTRANCE INFORMATION

Standard and Queue Jump ticket holders should enter the Ball via the white pedestrian door on Jesus Lane. Dining & Champagne Priority ticket holders should enter via the Chimney entrance (Porters’ Lodge).

Photographic Identification must be shown in order to enter the ball. If the name on the ID does not match the name on the ticket, the guest will be refused entry. The ID must be presented to an officer upon ticket scanning and entry to the ball - photographs of IDs will not be accepted.

Wristbands must be visible at all times. Individuals without a wristband will be removed from the Ball.

If you have any concern regarding your safety or security throughout the evening, you should approach any individual wearing a ‘JMB24 Sash’ or any member of our professional security team, Taylor Made Security, who will be able to assist.

The Jesus College Porters will be on hand in the Porter’s Lodge (as marked on our map) and will act as roaming security throughout the ball.

FIRST AID

If you require medical attention (or just a blister plaster) at any point during the night, please inform a member of staff. First Aid can be found in the Prioress’s Room (Cloister Court) all night.

CLOAKROOM & LOST PROPERTY

The cloakroom will be open all night, this can be found in the Sibilla Room (near the Casino). Please collect your belongings before 4:45am. Lost property will be located in the Porters’ Lodge.

SMOKING

There is a designated smoking area located in the Orchard. Smoking is not permitted in any other area.

PHOTOGRAPHY

The Survivor’s Photo will take place outside of Chapel Court at 5:00am. Photos of the event will also be taken throughout the night. For more information on how to get these, please visit the Jesus May Ball Facebook page after the event.

ALLERGEN INFORMATION

Detailed allergen information can be found at each stall or at the Porters’ Lodge.

WATER

Bottled water is available from all bars, as well as the self-service locations. Limited supplies will also be available from the Porter’s Lodge.

TOILETS

Toilets are available by the Main Tent, in Chapel Court and in Second Court. Accessible toilets are available in the Forum building (by the Casino).

SPONSORSHIP

We would like to thank our Food and Drink Sponsors this year:

• The Tiffin Truck

• Pub Club

We would also like to thank our app Sponsors, BlueProof, a Cambridge based software development company (founded by two Jesus Alumni), specialising in 3D-map design.

DISCLAIMER

Neither the Jesus May Ball Committee nor Jesus College Cambridge accept any liability for personal injury, property damage, or loss sustained during the Ball, on the premises of Jesus College Cambridge, or caused by persons connected with either entity. The May Ball Committee reserves the right to alter any details contained in this Programme without prior notice. The May Ball and Jesus College Cambridge are potentially dangerous places, so visitors are reminded to exercise the utmost care.