The Michigan Daily-Thursday, November 8, 1979-Page 5 Freshly decadent 'Devil' opens By MARK COLEMAN The production of a 17th century English play normally attracts the at-, tention of dramatists, academics and a few culture-hungry playgoers. For many people, the emotional immediacy of -Jacobean tragedy is lost in the rC, eemingly obscure setting and referen- tes, and the arcane language. This 4aturday, November 10, at 10 p.m., at the Power Center, director Michael Kahn and the Acting Company address this problem. Their goal is to update John Webster's The White Devil, rein- trpreting Webster's unsparingly lucid liew of human corruption through the O)laring immediacy of punk rock and tihe glaring decadence of disco. WEBSTER'S original work is a response to the decay f Renaissance (deals and innocence in post- Elizabethan England. The White Devil (s a tale of amotal adultery and deceit, seemingly limitless cupidity and political corruption. Set in serene 17th century Italy, Webster's unsparing depiction of the basest motivations and sinful conduct are a violent contrast to the inspiration of Titian and Raphael. Critics have often responded to The White Devil with such comments as, 'But people did not do these things!" But they certainly did, and they still do. The shocking scope of Webster's perception is embodied fully in the new production. Jaded acts of violence and lustful imagination are not only still with us, but to a certain degree, tolerated in present-day society. Hence the replacement of Webster's courtiers and noblemen with leather-jacketed toughs, drag queens and prostitutes, relocated in decaying urban America. THE SEX and violence dealt with implicitly in the original are now con- fronted directly. Drugs, sexual thrill- seeking, and ritualistic violence are the modern metaphors for sin and evil imagination. The 17th century fascination with the darkest side of human nature now pulsates with the urgency of modern-day hedonism. The White Devil is clearly not inten- ded for relaxed, dispassionate viewing. The shocking images of -lust and cruelty, fueled by the immediacy of the current idiom, make the play both an arresting and unsettling experience. Yet for all their depravity, the characters depicted here are not mere caricatures; they are real people en- tangled in the outer limits of human behavior. Webster's genius lies in the fact that we can identify with these characters, despite (or maybe as a result of) their total decadence. This identification should be amplified. through the currency of the new production; like the startled audiences of 400 years ago, we can see a lot of our- selves embodied in The White Devil. The Acting Company, under Mr. Kahn's guidance, has retained the spirit of the original and updated it; the result should be both artistically challenging and extremely accessible. Tickets are available all week at the PTP box office in the League (open 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 2-5 p.m.) and at all Hudsons. The White Devil promises to be one of the most intriguing and con- -troversial plays of the fall season. Ecstacy on ice Achieving that elusive position known as the "figure eight," Colin Beatty and the Scarecrows contribute what we are-told is their "zany comedy" to the 44th edition of the Ice Follies, which will be in Detroit in only a matter of weeks. Perhaps better left unexplained. A trio of actors perform in a scene from The White Devil. From left to right are Janet DeMay, Randle Mell, and Scott Walters. The White Devil is being produced by The Acting Company. Kennedy takes the big plunge (continuedfrom Pae )t flationary action that has occurred senator will also seek to debate with Washington tomorrow. would be ''clear from the very start" in the past few years when he took the president head-to-head in New Brown enters the campaign a. that the president was the person the step of decontrol of oil," Ken- Hampshire and Florida. more conservative alternative responsible for the battle against in- nedy added. "I think anybody who seeks the Carter and Kennedy on econor flation. In his announcement, Kennedy presidency should debate," Ken- issues, but is also trying to attr ENUMERATING WHAT he called said, "The only thing that paralyzes nedy told reporters as he flew home liberals with his, opposition :stark failures, Kennedy said us today is the myth that we cannot to vdte in Tuesday's elections, on the nuclear power, his appointment "workers are forced to take a second move. If Americans are pessimistic eve of his announcement. "I look blacks, women and Hispanics job to make ends meet because it is because they are also realistic. forward to that opportunity." high state offices, and highly visi :wages are rising only half as fast as They have made a fair judgment on FOLLOWING yesterday's an- ties to such liberal figures as Cae: ;prices. Families go into debt and how government is doing and they nouncement, Kennedy was to launch Chavez and Jane Fonda. suffer real financial hardship to are demanding something better." a four-day, 10-city campaign blitz in Both Kennedy and Brown educate their children. This year eight other states in the northeast, taking calculated political risks .the .poorest 10 per cent of our KENNEDY SAID he will run on midwest and deep south, making the only challenges to population must pay 119 per cent of the basis of his 17-year record as a Carter faces an additional elected president of their own pa their income for the necessities of senator, during which he has taken challenge for the Democratic Party in this century. life. That means they go without." "positions on thousands of issues." nomination from California gover- "The president of the United Kennedy and Carter have so far nor Jerry Brown, who plans to for- States took the single most in- agreed to debate in Iowa and the mally enter the presidential race in A Dems so (Continued from Page 1) code." Carter supporters defend the president against charges that he hap been a weak leader. "I think this has been one of the most difficult times in history for that of- fice," University Regent Thomas Roach (D-Grosse Point) said yester- day. Roach is one of four University Regents on a state committee to re- elect President Carter. Co-chaired by Regent Robert Nederlander (D- Birmingham), the group also includes Regents Sarah Power (D-Ann Arbor) ard Paul Brown (D-Petoskey). Roach said that in foreign affairs, Carter had done "some very cburageous things that people have put off for years," such as normalization of relations with China, the Panama Cahal treaties, and the Camp David ac- cord between Egypt and Israel. ' City Council member Ken Latta (D- Fi'st Ward), who voiced support for California Governor Jerry Brown's candidacy, said the Kennedy mystique ee Kennedy as leader could be damaging in the long run. "By expecting too much, nobody's going to live up to our expectations," Latta said. Blacks probably would not abandon Carter quickly, Latta said, because his record on appointments of minorities to administration posts has been good. At least two spontaneous "draft Ken- nedy" movements emerged in the city last month. The two groups recently merged under the leadership of Perrone, University law students Marc Abrams, Foley, and Jakubowski. Perrone and other "draft Kennedy" leaders had planned to step up organizing activities recently, until the national Kennedy campaign organization told the group to suspend its plans until a regional director is ap- pointed Nov. 12. Former Second District Democratic Party Chairman George Sallade infor- mally is heading campaign efforts in the district temporarily, according to local Kennedy supporters. ANN ARBOR i S 5th Avenue at Liberty St. 761-9700 Formedy Fifth Forum Theater - P Y I THE $1.50 BARGAIN! I - t Honk if you love Brian. 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