Seniors of CPS: Ari Bahat

Interview conducted by Emnet T.

October 16, 2025

Emnet: Okay, so let’s start the interview with some rapid-fire questions! So first, what is your favorite Trader Joe’s snack?

Ari: That’s a good question. Taki’s, I like the off-brand ones.

Emnet: Ok! Freshman physics or Asian Worlds?

Ari: Freshman physics, definitely.

Emnet: Oh, nice, why?

Ari: I enjoyed it. I had it with Emil Ma, and that was a great class. I remember that for my egg drop, it worked perfectly, and then I had to roll it out of the contraption into my hand, and then it fell on the floor. But I don’t know, good memories from physics class; that was a fun class.

Emnet: Cool! Gym deck or student commons?

Ari: Oh gosh, neither. 

Emnet: Which one is better? Or what other place?

Ari: Maybe student commons? I don’t spend any time on the gym deck, that’s the thing. I like the learning center. It’s underrated. It’s a great room. The library is great. I’ve been discovering the quiet room recently. But I’m not really a gym deck or student commons person.

Emnet: Okay. Favorite day of the week?

Ari: Wednesday. I love Wednesdays.

Emnet: Cool! Why Wednesday?

Ari: You know, hump day, Latin club, I get to make all the debate people feel happy about themselves during assembly, et cetera.

Emnet: Okay, yeah. Go-to karaoke song?

Ari: Oh, I don’t know, maybe “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks.

Emnet: Okay, this is the last rapid-fire question. One item on your bucket list?

Ari: … Sail across the Atlantic.

Emnet: Whoa! Okay. So here are some longer questions. If you could give advice to your freshman self, what would it be?

Ari: Relax. Don't be stressed about anything. Have fun.

Emnet: Yeah! What is something that not a lot of people on campus know about you?

Ari: I used to live in Wisconsin.

Emnet: Really?

Ari: Yeah, for almost a year.

Emnet: Whoa! How old were you when you lived there?

Ari: 12.

Emnet: Whoa, that is interesting! If you could say “thank you” to one place on campus, what would it be?

Ari: The tech booth. I’ve had a lot of good conversations up there. Conversations that inspired me to move from tech to stage management. It is a place that I really enjoy. It's a quiet place and you can see everything from up there. It’s nice. 

Emnet: Cool! What is one of your favorite CPS memories?

Ari: I remember one time before opening night of a show. It must have been Argo…? No, Midsummer. There was a senior who was taking a neuroscience class. I think it was Lei, class of 2023, who had been taking a neuroscience class. And they had Carolina Reapers to test the effects of capsaicin on the brain, and so we all just ate, well, not all, they all didn’t, but I was the first to eat the Carolina Reaper back there, on opening night, which, by the way, bad idea, don’t eat those things if you have to do something important right afterward.

Emnet: Wait, what’s a Carolina Reaper?

Ari: I think it’s one of the spiciest peppers or something like that. Yeah, not enjoyable. I rubbed my eyes, and so I had to wash them out using the dance sink. My face was under that, and gotta say, good looking back on, one of my favorite memories because it’s funny, but at the moment, wow, wow, wow, what a hoot!

Emnet: Yeah, that definitely sounds like a memory!

Ari: Yes! I actually have a photo! (inserted below) But we can move on to the next question.

Emnet: Okay. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Ari: Hopefully, having graduated from college. That would be good. And after that, maybe on a fishing trip in Alaska with a good book. Doing something interesting.

Emnet: Oh, whoa! That’s very interesting! Do you like fishing?

Ari: No, well, I’ve gone fishing maybe once. But more like an industrial fishing trip, like modern Moby Dick.

Emnet: Cool! These are all the questions we have for you. Thank you so much!

Ari Bahat, in his freshman year, during the opening night of Midsummer, after he ate a Carolina Reaper.