Page Two

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Thursday, March 23' 1972

Page Two THE MICHIGAN DAILY Thursday, March 23. 1972


Antigone, only
voices, motions

By GLORIA JANE SMITH
Associate Arts Editor
The Program for the Ann Ar-
bor Civic Theatre production of
Antigone which opened last
night in Trueblood Auditorium
describes the play as being
about "strong, exciting, intense-
ly human characters in a con-
flict, of wills." While this may
accurately describe Jean An-
ouilh's play, it absolutely does
not describe last night's per-
formarice.
While actors spoke both loud-
ly and distinctly, they failed to
convince us that there were real
characters in conflict. It was a
staged vocal drill, enacting only
the motions of the play. If I
hadn't the obligation to review
this play, I would have walked
out after the tenth yawn.
The voice we first hear is that
of the one-man Chorus, Fred
Reilly. In a nonchalant mono-
tone that couldn't even assure
him a career in radio news com-
mentary, we are told some basic
historical . background. King
Oedipus, who blinded himself
and was banished from Thebes
after killing his father and then
marrying his mother, has died.
The throne has been given to his
two sons, Eteocles and Polynices,
who kill each other in a civil
war. Creon, brother of Oedipus'
mother Jocasta, who has taken
over the duties as king, had sid-
ed with Eteocles for political
reasons, and thus decries that
Eteocles be given burial rites,
while Polynices's body be left
unburied to be eaten by vultures.
Death will be the penalty for
anyone who attempts to mourn
or bury him.
Antigone, Oedipus' daughter,
decides that she must bury her
brother. Ann Crumb in this role
presents the only realistic char-
acterization. Here we see an ex-
cellent portrayal of the idealis-

tic, willful, very human girl who
is willing to die in order that her
"duty" to her brother be ful-
filled. While I could appreciate
this one small glimmer of good
acting, it pointed out the inade-
quacies of the remainder of the
cast. The stage was Antigone's
and her confrontations with
other characters were unfortun-
ately only superficial.
Last night's audience was,
however, allowed two or three
laughs by Gomer Pyle in the
guise of the first guard, played
by Sam Viviano, who catches
Antigone in the act of burying
her brother. He is an exaggerat-
ed subservient military man,
perhaps arcomic relief, and our
only opportunity to react to the
play.
For more groovey arts see
Page 7.
There were no saving quali-
ties to the production - no in-
ventive stage sets nor creative
costuming. And the direction by
Burnette Staebler yielded only
some fairly awkward stage
blocking.
This disappointing evening
can't be blamed on a poor script.
Anouilh's adaptation of the An-
tigone story as previously told
by Greek writers Aeschylus and
Sophocles is an intriguing study
of revolt against a bourgeois or-
der. Written in 1942, and per-
formed in 1944 during the Nazi
occupation of France, it aroused
the most heated controversy by
its double aspect of myth and
political satire.
Today, the play still remains
as a potent political examination
of man's struggle to escape from
social, psyhcological, or meta-
physical bondage. And, as such,
the play, if well-produced, could
be both an intensely interesting
and relevant experience to be
offered on this campus.

1972 U NDERGRAD
ART SHOW
3rd Floor
Rackham Galleries
MONDAY thru SATURDAY
8 A.M.-11 P.M.
Until April 1st
This ad compliments of
Quarry Photo Inc.
Use Daily
Classifieds

You Can Bring
BOBDYA
To the U. of M.
Send letters asking him to come to the Committee
to Bring Bob Dylon (non-profit organization), Box
2, Michigan Daily.

*

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Lthe ann arbor film cooperative

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Ken
Russell's

PRESENTS A SECOND RETURN ENGAGEMENT OF
WOMEN IN LOVE

Ecology art display
The Ecology Center of Ann Arbor is presenting on March 24, 25 a display of photographs, photo-
silkscreens, and drawings by John Pierce. Pierce claims to have been influenced by Escher, Mil-
ler, Dali, the Redwoods, Jefferson Airplane, Fuller, Bob Dylan, Ralph Nader, Picasso, Skinner, John
Lennon, seagulls, black light....
Labyrinth, myth,. and,.,troubles

An encyclopedia of filmmaking technique by the director of THE DEVILS.
GLENDA JACKSON (Academy Award: Best Actress)
OLIVER REED, ALAN BATES
TONIGHT! - Thursday - March 23rd - ONLY!
WEST SIDE STORY will NOT BE SHOWN
auditorium a-angell hall--7 & 9:30 P.M.-75c
TICKETS ON SALE OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM AT 5:30 P.M.
COMING TUESDAY-Francoise Truffant's BED AND BOARD
NEXT THURSDAY-Arthur Penn's ALICE'S RESTAURANT

By MARCIA ABRAMSON'
Garcia Lorca's "The Loves of
Don Perlimpin and Belisa in the
Garden" and Fernando Arrabal's'
"The Labyrinth" are comple-
mentary-and significant-twen-
tieth century theatre.
And not just Spanish theatre,
although the plays are in Span-.
ish. Spain is not, of course, the
first country you think of in
terms of modern theatre. Garcia
Lorca is the only recognized
playwright, and not all the facets
Hof his work are well-known.
"Perlimplin," for example, is
not a lyrical drama, but a, tragic-
comic farce that plays upon
myth and the power of imagi-
nation.
Ariabal's play revolves around
a "theme that has come from
Borges and became a focal point
of Spanish-and other-contem-
porary cosmology. The labyrinth
is perhaps the metaphor of our
lives, confused, complex, anchor-
ed upon nothing, ultimately ter-
rifying.
Lorca has written magic into
his play, but the cast has prob-
lems bringing it out. Unfortun-
ately, the actor who was to play
Don Perlimplin was injured only
a' few days ago, leaving Bill
Ka tra to fill in. Katra simply
has hot developed the role, and
that is understandable.
But none of the rest of the

cast disp.layed any great acting
talent; ,their diction was quite
amateur and stiff. The direction
was static, as was the set, sym-
metrical and lifeless.
The play, could be a puppet
show of grotesques-Lorca was
working with those techniques
when he worte it-but the cast
fails to put much life, puppet or
otherwise, into the story of the
old man and young wife.
The magic of the niyth does
not come across. The old man
disguises himself to become his
wife's mystery lover when he
realizes that the girl "lives in a
drama." He has been a dry,
dull, timid man, afraid to love,
but his imagination grows and
creates the magnificent youth.
At the end, the husband kills the
youth - a complete triumph of
the imagination in the battle not
merely of the sexes but of life
and all its torments and disap-
pointments.
Arrabal's farce is more bitter.
A man is trapped in a bizarre
labyrinth, tormented by its mad
dictator and equally mad daugh-
ter, and ultimately condemned
in a ludicrous trial by a judge
who °steals the show by belch-
ing, gobbling, pissing, and car-

rying around a portable court-
room on a string.
Unfortunately, there are prob-
lems here too. The play dragged
out in several places; it does not
have the brilliant, terrifying
truth of "The Tricycle," a more
naturalistic Arrabal play put on
previously. Sometimes what is
happening seems too far re-
moved from us to work on our
emotions or minds, especially
since we have been hearing and
seeing all this for a long time-
after all, Kafka and Beckett
have been around.
Here the acting and staging
are better developed. Luis Ar-
gueta is a Chaplinesque Every-
man, ,and Armando Duran an
The plays are worth seeing-
unfortunately, not that many
people will be able to do so. I
often wonder why the Spanish
department doesn't give one per-
formance of these annual pro-
ductions in English - something
would be lost in translation, of
couise, but more might be gain-
ed in opening the plays to a
larger audience.

Visit our 8 mm. Film Festival-March 22-25, Schorling Auditorium, School of Education, 8
WINNERS ON SATURDAY

p.m.-75c


4
w
w

Romance Language Department
presents
"DON PERLIMPIN"
by FEDERICO GARCIA LORCA
and
"EL LABERINTO"
by FERNANDO ARRABAL
Wednesday, March 22--8:30 P.M.
Thursday, March 23--2:30 P.M. & 8:30 P.M.
LYDIA MENDELSSOHN THEATRE

Friday & Saturday Only-Don't Miss!

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END S TONIGHT
DIAL 5-6290

LAST. 2 DAYS:;
"AN OVERGROUND
SEX-PROTEST FILMI'
New York Post
Grei~

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FRI. "SUPERB"-N.Y. Times
& SAT. 00000000 0000000 000000000000000
MARCH 0 julir Repr""y 0~pn
24-25 o oo o oo ooo o ooo o ooo oo o ooo o ooo oo o

"WOMEN BEWARE WOMEN"
by Thomas Middeto
lift celebrated dramatic classic.

F
T

"INTERVIEW" <>'P
by J.*,lo.CIvayn Itallie
(Author of ~Amyerica Hurrah"~)?<
and
"THE INDIAN WANTS
THE BRONX"
by Israel Horowits
2 major coSmporary plays
8 P.M. SATURDAY

8 P.M. FRIDAY and

DUETIN
HU-FFMAN
nSAMPECKINPA'S

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SHOWS AT
1,3, 5,7,9:05

IFRI

"THE GODFATHER"
NOW A GREAT MOVIE
COMING FRIDAY
DIAL 668-6416
HELD OVER!
TWO HIT
ENCORES

ALSO-2ND HIT!
"STANDS OUT FOR
ITS WIT AND
GOOD HUMOR!"
-Roger Greenspun
N.Y. Tmes'
"HILARIOUS!"
-Bob Salmaggi,
Group W Network
"1UPROARIOUS!"
-Wiliam Wolf,
Cue-Magazine

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NOMINATED
FOR

6

ACADEMY
AWARDS
"Summer of '42"
BEST EDITING
BEST SCREENPLAY
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BEST SCORE

FROM THE GROOVY GUYS
WHO BROUGHT YOU "GREETINGS"
COLOR -"A SIGMA II IM RELEASE


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