The commission also said future permission requests to throw Mather Lather would be considered on a yearly basis.

“We did not think the decision would be made that quickly,” Wilson says, “but I guess the packet we gave them ahead of time helped speed everything along.”

Naddaff and McLoughlin accompanied the student party organizers to the commission hearing.

“The Masters have been really supportive of us,” Jameson says. “There has been general enthusiasm at all levels.”

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

The Crimson reported last year that the Lather drew 1,300 partygoers, though Jameson calls the figure “a slight exaggeration.”

“Much to the misconception of everyone, we did a lot of planning last year,” says Mather House Committee (HoCo) Treasurer Paul H. Hersh ’04. “It all happened so quickly.”

This year, though, a slew of new efforts have rekindled Matherites’ enthusiasm.

Wilson says Jesse Ventura has been invited to appear at the party. And Mather HoCo Co-Chair Darren S. Morris ’05 says “The Super Foam Dome”—the machine that will produce the lather—is much better than last year’s suds-generator.

“It is a top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art machine,” he says.

And the new foam pit will accommodate more students.

“Last year, it was an experiment,” Morris says of the foam. “There was only foam in the downstairs TV room, which was not enough area.”

The party this year will cost about $5,000-$6,000, Morris says. Ticket sales and a grant from the Undergraduate Council will help Mather break even.

“We will not be making money with Mather Lather,” he says. “We are simply putting this on to show Harvard a good time.”

“The image of Mather has experienced a marked change in recent years,” Morris says. “Before, people just thought of Mather as a house far away...but it is now seen as a House with a lot of spirit and a lot of singles.”

And, according to Morris, the Lather has contributed to the new image.

“We have a lot of fun,” he says.

—Staff writer Nicole B. Urken can be reached at urken@fas.harvard.edu.