The Michigan Daily-Wednesday, November 7, 1979-Page 5
THE CHINESE ACROBATS
Graham group dances
Would you believe.
No, never mind
0 0
By ANNA NISSEN
They make our Ringling Brothers look like the Donny and Marie show,
and the mythical Merlin no better than a pick-pocket.
The Chinese Acrobats and Magicians gave an exhilarating performance
under Hill Auditorium's bigtop on Saturday night. Those in the audience who
- remembered the Acrobats' 1977 Ann Arbor debut anticipated with queasy
4 stomachs and crossed fingers the gravity-defying stunts which have earned
the troupe international recognition. The Chu sisters' famed trio somer-
sault, a chorus of plate-spinners, and a lithe gentleman balancing atop a
tenuous construction of chairs and coke bottles, were all familiar favorites.
1A The juggler's act was one of the best, showing up our Harlem Globetrot-
ters as comparatively pedestrian. This juggler tossed marbles with his
tongue and dishes with his feet, gradually kicking up a pagoda of cups and
' saucers, which he balanced on his head, confidently pausing to scratch his
, leg.
Nonchalant program notes introduced a quintet of madcap acrobats who
vaulted through flaming rings, and three Kung-fu fencers who threatened to
make chop suey of each other: "Note that the three flaming rings are lined
with sharp knives,"' and, lest Junior get ideas, "We do not recommend this
for home use."
Two loving and lovable lions were ea(ch engineered by gymnasts tum-
bling in tandem. These performed all the ramp-climbing, teeter totter tricks
of conventional tamed lions, with added whimsy. The Humane Society would
have loved it.
Every act dazzled. A few were freakish, as carnival side shows usually
are, re-enforcing the fine line between prowess and perversity. One virtuoso
hammered nails into a board with his fist and forehead. Why not? And a
woman with a sturdy esophagus swallowed swords, a lighted neon tube, even
v her microphone. Hmmm...
The company magician was competent but not outstanding, making ex-
pandable paper lanterns materialize from his sleeve! The real magicians,
though, were the 'Ch'i-kung' artists, who raise heavy porcelain urns through
a mystical laying on of hands and the lifetime cultivation of ch'i. Roughly
translated, ch'i is the harmony between mind and matter, a motion and a
spirit that impels all thinking things, all objects of all thought, and rolls
through all things, a presence which our Romantic poets sensed but none of
our Western Houdinis have been able to muster.
The performers in general effulged a quiet dynamism, in the restrained
balletic folk dances as well as in the livelier numbers. The grand finale was
especially thrilling. Here the stage was blurred with a happy, chaos of
precision tumblers, like rice being flung at a wedding.
One leaves the Chinese Acrobats feeling, like Marco Polo, that one has
seen what can't be documented, and probably won't be believed. It is a
feeling of physical ineptitude and, underneath Hill Auditorium's quasi-
classical facade. a tough of nostalgia for our own fizzled Greek ideal.
At least this is how I felt, trudging down the steps on my oversized oc-
cidental feet.
Security Council
(Continued from Page 1) strations in Iran, Rad
"in touch with a number of other delegations on this casts monitored in Ku
question ... and is sparing no effort to contribute to was imposed after "i
a solution of this very grave matter." revolution factions" sp
Total American imports of oil from Iran, direct and for today, the radio sai
indirect, now amount to about 700,000 barrels a day, The Soviet news ag
according to the Energy Department. That represen- Tehran radio speech,
is 3.5 per cent to four per cent of the total U.S. supply. that the embassy seiz
The initial report of an Iranian shutdown sent spot not confirmed by othe
market prices soaring for heating oil and gasoline. radio in Washington an
KHOMEINI ORDERED his council of clerics to "SOME PEOPLE ar
run the government after accepting the resignation of should leave that emb
Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan earlier in the day. as saying. "But we ca
Later, the council asked the ministers to continue United States is weavinr
their duties for the time being, Tehran radio repor- demand that the Unite
ted. criminal shah to us,
Khomeini's office in the holy city of Qom also should extradite crimi
issued a statement Tuesday banning all demon- Shapour Bakhtiar, pri,
. By BENEDETTE PALAZZOLA
Martha Graham is the greatest artist
of American modern dance and one of
the formative influences of our time.
She is the Beethoven of her art form;
seeing a Martha Graham dance concert
is seeing history. It is seeing a legend
in its own time.
The Graham Company's Monday
night performance in the Power Center
consisted of two of the choreographer's
older works and two 1978 creations,
thus providing an opportunity to com-
pare and observe the development of
Graham's style. Although raising the
curtain prematurely on two poised dan-
cers and then having to lower it again in
order to belatedly announce major
program changes is never a good way
to begin a show, the large crowd
assembled seemed to find the evening
of dance satisfactorily impressive.
The first work performed was
"Diversion of Angels," described in the
program as "a lyric ballet about the
loveliness of youth." This dance, one of
Graham's few "light pieces,"
premiered in 1948, with costumes
designed by Graham herself. The dan-
cers, appearing solo and in pairs and
groups, successfully created a lively
atmosphere and evoked the playful
power that is youth..-The ever-present
energy in this piece was expanded at
different levels, depending on the
emotional directions of the various sec-
tions.
CHRISTINE DAKIN, in a solitary
bright red costume, projected a mar-
velous quality of abandon. "Diversion
of Angels" contains many classic
Graham movements and motifs of
movement. The dancing became a little
"pose-y" once or twice, but an over-all
quality performance with good
kinesthetics and lovely music and
costumes made this an enjoyable num-
ber.
JOYABLE NUMBER.
Next on the program was
"Equatorial,"' a new work which
premiered last year to the music of
Edgar Varese and with costumes by
Halston, no less. The duet, danced by
Elisa Monte and Tim Wengerd, had a
fairly elaborate set comprised of two
imposing gilded forms which the dan-
I
cers stood on and behind. The
costuming was an integral part of the
dance as well; an ornate cape was
draped, pulled and sworled around the
stage providing a good deal of the
shapes and movement.
The choreography itself was more
varied and sophisticated than that of
"Diversion ofh Angels." The partners
blended lines and sensuality to create
several beautiful instances. There was
also, however, a continuous heavily
dramatic quality about the piece that
began to wear thin. When a human
voice entered the accompanying music
with- an aria, it was almost a distrac-
tion; the choreography didn't always
live up to the overwrought atmosphere
the set, sound, and costumes made.
However, one point of interest was the
contrast of the two dancers' body types.
Monte's small, slender, and flexible
frame juxtoposed the muscular and ex-
trefiely powerful Wengerd, who was
impressive in a demanding, athletic
role, added well to the choreography.
THE ADVANCES in psychological
theory during Martha Graham's
lifetime have greatly influenced her
choreography. She is famous for her
psychoanalytical interpretations of ar-
chetypal situations, always telling the
story in her dances from the point of
view of a woman rather than a male
hero. "Errand Into the Maze," (1947),
the third work presented, was declared
in the program as "an errand into the
maze of the heart's darkness in order to
face and do battle with the Creature of
Fear." In this work, a woman, danced
by Peggy Lyman, ventures forth to con-
front a Minotaurean creature. She
fights for and achieves triumph and
emancipation; the closing sequences of
this dance are very beautiful.
"Frescoes," the last dance, was the
gem of the evening. It premiered in 1978
with Halston costumes and a graceful
set composed of rock-like forms having
the look of sandstone. In this most ef-
fective number, Christine Dakin and
Charles Brown, as Isis and Osiris dance
fine,' clean movement to the sound of
desert winds, trading with Peggy
Lyman and Tim Wengerd, who danced
the immediacy and passion of human
life as Antony and Cleopatra. Two arias
from the opera "Antony and
Cleopatra" were appropriately used.
THE DANCE is entirely reminiscent
of Greek tragedy, showing Martha
Graham's true colors as a fine poetic
dramatist. The dancers had gold
costumes with ornate headresses; a
chorus entered and exited, attended the
central characters, and draped
Cleopatra with a scarlet robe. They
were very frescoe-like, line
the stage inEgyptian-lookii
drama was played out,
movement of the huma.
emotion's instrument off
and the audience was left wi
visual images and feeling;
like "Frescoes" is Grahe
finest.
While the material preser
Martha Graham Dance Cc
,y
Poetry Reading
by
DIANE WAKOSKI
TONIGHT-Nov. 7
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC-FREE
8:00 p.m.-Pendleton Room,
Michigan Union
divinely
d up across Monday night was a little loaded down
ng poses. A in places with seriousness and
using the melodrama, it remains an experience
n body as not to be imissed. Martha Graham's
expression, dances are always stately, classical,
th exquisite and beautifully executed, and they are
exquisane the grass roots of modern dance:
s. A dance The work of this artist is one of
am at her America's most important aesthetic
ited by the contributions to the world; seeing it
while it is still growing and, being
ompany on created is an exceptional opportunity.
"A BOISTEROUS COMEDY.
Sophisticated fun:"
-Gene Shalit. NBC-TV
"A BARREL OF FUN!"
-Bernard Drew, Gannett Newspapers
Starts Friday at
T HE MOVIES A T
BRIAR WOOD
.is a delightfully sensual comedy
Dap Pomerantz and Kobi Jaeger present Laura Antonelliin a him by Luigi Comencini
meets on ran
io Tehran reported in broad-
wait and Washington. The ban
individuals belonging to anti-
read word of a march planned
d.
ency Tass reported that, in a
Khomeini rejected proposals
ure be ended. The report was
r agencies monitoring Tehran
id London.
e now pressing that students
assy," Tass quoted Khomeini
nnot sit idlehanded when the
ng conspiracies against us. We
d States should extradite the
and the British government
[al Bakhtiar," a reference to
me minister under the fallen
government of the shah.
Administration officials left little doubt that the
resignation of the Bazargan government had com-
plicated their efforts.
Most prominent Congress members were holding
their counsel, but Senate Republican Leader Howard
Baker said he fully supported the U.S. decision not to
turn over the shah.
Meanwhile, the State Department declined to make
public a list of those known to be assigned to the em-
bassy in Tehran. Spokesman David Passage said the
department is uncertain which employees are being
held and does not want to jeopardize any embassy
staff members who may have escaped and gone into
hiding.
The State Department says there are 72 American
officials presently in Iran and an estimated 300 to 500
private U.S. citizens.
TO REPOR T BACK IN JANUARY:
Central Student Judiciary to be investigated
(Continued from Page 1)
been pretty much ignored by the
assembly at this point," Alland said.
"And my main concern is not to leave
the issue hanging in the air. We should
look at what happened in the past and
determine how to avoid the 'same
problems in the future."
The CSJ investigation will be handled
by the assembly's Judiciary and Con-
duct Committee. That committee is
responsible for investigating any mat-
ters concerning the judiciary's Manual
of Procedures or- rules concerning
student conduct.
In other action, MSA elected assem-
bly member Riase Jackpor to the
recently-created position of vice
president for International Student Af-
fairs. The assembly formed a Commit-
tee on International Student Affairs at
Jackpor's request late last month.
"In forming the committee," Jack-
por said after his election, "MSA has
demonstrated they can be responsive to
foreign students. Their needs need to be
heard by this assembly, and I hope the
committee can meet the challenge."
IN ACTION prior to last night's
meeting, a split developed in the
assembly's Steering Committee over
possible Office of Student Services
(OSS) representation on a proposed
Student Legal Services (SLS) board of
directors.
Alland said he is in the process of
negotiating an agreement with SLS at-
torney Paul Teich and OSS Vice
Presidential Assistant Thomas
Easthope on the composition and duties
of the board. Alland's proposals called
for a nine-member body composed of
the MSA vice president, a law,
professor, five students approved by
the assembly, and the OSS represen-
tative.
A.land argued that OSS has a
legitimate interest in SLS operations.
Assembly member Jack Hall respon-
ded that "the only interest the ad-
ministration has is that they don't want
to be sued by this thing."
'My main concern is not
to leave the issue hanging
in the air.'
-Jim Alland, MSA
fpresident speaking
about CSJ
Premier's action inevitable?
LA-- A - A 11 .111 .
(Continued from Page 1)
Khomeini followers) be given in to."
'Steve Fairbanks, a visiting scholar
from Iran, called the seizing of the em-
bassy "unprecedented" and said he
feels that the U.S. shouldn't submit to
Fairbanks agreed, calling
Bazargan's resignation the end of "any
sort of secular government." He added
that the U.S. now has "no (official) con-
tact" with Iran, and the people there
are "totally under Khomeini's power."
The Iranian Students Association
could not be reached for comment.
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COREA BURTON: