Page Two
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Saturday, September 11, 1971
Page Two THL MICHIGAN DAILY Saturday, September 11, 1971
arts
Alley: Bringing
blues
music
home
By BERT STRATTON
Luther Allison is at the Alley tonight and tomorrow.
The Alley is what Canterbury House used to be, and Luther
Allison is the Chicago guitarist who plays electric urban blues and
does it well.
A crowd of typically-nuts blues freaks welcomed Allison to town
last night, where his show got off to a surprising start with the
sudden appearance of another great bluesman, Fred McDowell.
Mississippi Fred walked on stage, passed around a bottle of wine, and
revealed his Electric Fred dimensions by jamming with Luther's
group. The strange possibiilties, old Fred, one of the great bottle-
neck guitarists, playing with one of the youngest and flashiest
black bluesmen around, Allison.
It was that way last night, walking into the Alley, seeing rows
For the student body:
LEVI'S
CORDUROY
Slim Fits ... $6.98
(All Colors)
Bells .......$8.50
DENIM
Bush Jeans . $10.00
Bells ....... $8.00
Pre-Shrunk . $7.50
Super Slims . $7.00
CINEMA II
TONIGHT
A THOUSAND CLOWNS
1965 comedy starring
Jason Robards-Jr. and Barbara Harris
"I saw a horrible sight today:
I saw people going to work."
Aud. A-Angell Hall
6
4
-Daily-Terry McCarthy
R.C. Players present student
written production of Skull'
EDITOR'S NOTE; The following
review was written during the sum-
mer whentheeR.C. playersorigin-
ally presented Barry Garelck's
SKULL.
By CHRISTOPHER WHITMAN
The Residential College is
possesed of some people who
are determined-at all costs, it
seems-to produce plays in their
new auditorium. A serious, di-
verse and sometimes brilliant
crew, they have in the last
year made East Quad the scene
of an uncommon number and
variety of theatrical experiences,
some well-polished and compe-
tent, others disappointing in
their unsureness, but all of them
transmitting the special vitality
which informs and by now iden-
tifies the R.C.'s adventuresome
spirit.
This summer a small number
of these theatrical amateurs
:read that in the French sense)
stayed in town, secured funding
from the College's ever-watch-
ful Representative Assembly,
found various means of visible
support, and instituted "R.C.
Summer Theatre," a basically
student-operated producing unit
which set out to stage four full-
length dramas.
Tonight and tomorrow the
R. C . Players will present
SKULL at 8 p.m. in East Quad
Auditorium. SKULL is an ar-
resting original one-act by
Barry Garelick, and R.C. senior
and major Hopwood Award win-
ner. The 45-minute play is a
narratively conceived mono-
logue in which an old man,
Trembor, tells us, in alternate
attitudes of scornful superiority,
craftiness, paranoia and desper-
ation, how he has managed to
construct his life so as to defy
the ultimate Void of human ex-
istence. "I couldn't wait to be-
come old, so I became old all by
myself," he boasts. "It never
had a chance to catch up with
me." Touting his self-made in-
vulnerability to time and world-
ly care, he talks and acts us
through his vast store of mem-
ories, fantasies, and philosophi-
cal calculations in a free-asso-
ciational manner punctuated by
emotional outcries and violent
physical actions.
Tremblor is the only actor on
stage, but other characters par-
ticipate in his timeless, isolated
existence. The chief entity is
the one we see first: Skull, an
over-sized, grinning white-on-
black death's head, posted above
Tremblor's stage which almost
diverts our attention perman-
ently to those insistently grim
features.
But the playwright is aware
of the dramatic hazard of fix-
ing upon a stage border a visual
symbol of such obvious and per-
meating significance. He makes
skull - that is, of death, vio-
lence, nothing-ness, inscrutable
power. The "always old" Tren-
blor possessively reminds us of
his mentor's constancy; he de-
scribes the image's admirable
features: he pleads for Skull's
solace, rails at Skull's unendur-
able silence. At one point he of-
fers Skull tea by lashing the full
cup savagely against the immo-
bile countenance. Another time
he frantically tosses one after
another of his dozens of shoes
up to Skull, gasping "Come on,
Tremblor violently insists that
he never had a son, but he's
intrigued momentarily with the
notion of dismemberment. He
toys with it, as he has done
with the other ideas, fantasies
and memories that haunt him:
murder, crying voices from the
tedious world, complicity with
Skull's machinations, and, most
important, "keeping one small
step ahead of the whole world."
This is the most confounding
fantasy entertained by this self-
defined seeker after immortality.
He would achieve it by reject-
ing the anxious fools of the
world and becoming the beloved
apostle of "Nothing-Matters"
Skull. But dismemberment is
not the way any more than
baseball skill, possession of lots
of shoes, or nagging rationality.
"Don't talk to me about dis-
memberment," he says. "Not
for me, thank you.-I'll have
tea! Tea is for the old . .. and
Him." With that, he hurls the
tea at Skull.
The play has a good portion
of comic moments, sudden
swerves away from the intro-
spective heaviness into broad
and subtle explosions of Trem-
bor's. and our, seriousness. The
opening lines set up the possi-
bility for further verbal and at-
titudinal paradoxes. Trembor
enters through a distorted door,
closes, knocks on it. listens, and
says: "He's never there. He is
always never there. As rlongas
I am old, he is never there."
Later he says: "Never use 'nev-
er' in a sentence." Still later,
he tells us: "T never had a girl
friend or a wife. I never wanted
them; they never wanted me.
(pause) Everything is so sym-
metrical;"
This extended description of
the play is offered by way of
recommendation to see this pro-
duction by the 'R.C. Summer
Theatre." It is unmistakably a
substantial work by a very pro-
mising writer, Patrick McCord
of the narrative rhythm of
Trembors extended speeches
and is especially convincing in
the abruptly energetic moments
of emotional eruption. But a
one-man show like this is extre-
mely demanding. The unrealis-
tic conjunction of all the
The Michigan Daily, edited and man-
aged by students at the University of
Michigan. News phone: 764-0552. Second
class postage paid at Ann Arbor, Mich-
igan. 420 Maynard Street, Ann Arbor,
Michigan 48104. Published daily Tues-
day through Sunday morning Univer-
sity year. Subscription rates: $10 by
carrier, $10 by mal.
Summer Session published Tuesday
through Saturday morning. Subscrip-
tion rates: $5 by carrier, $5 by mail.
strands which constitute Trem-
bor's role calls for profound
control of body and mind and
demands the utmost of an ac-
complished ability to make clear
transitions from one objective
to the next. McCord's perform-
ance lacks sufficient variety
and definition, both in voice
and movement. Normally, this
fault could be attributed to the
director, but the show has none.
This is unfortunate, because the
script is strong and a perceptive
director could have enhanced it
with some hard work on Mc-
Cord's movement and vocal
timing. He is an untrained act-
or, but he is strong, determined
and able to appreciate the play's
material.
Use fire carefully.
Human Rights-
RadiczI Independent
Party
open meeting
and rows of chairs, no more
tables, and even more chairs,
packed so close, and there you
had it, not the old Canterbury
House randomness but complete-
ly straight lines of chairs, peo-
ple in every one of them.
Allison was on a new stage,
not in the same corner as the
old Canterbury stage, he was
with some new young musicians,
he had a newel guitar than the
one he brought up to Ann Arbor
three years ago (when he played
free in the Union), his first con-
cert before college people. His
music wasn't too new, a bit more
polished, no nervousness, a bit
of stage presence even, and
there was Luther Allison playing
some very old music-B.B. King
tunes, Howlin Wolf, and even
Chuck Berry rock and roll. Fred
McDowell sat in the first row
and approved.
The owners of the Alley must
have approved too, they'll be do-
ing all right the way they packed
us in last night, but who's to
complain about stuffy air and
close seating when we're getting
a chance to see Commander
Cody next week and Fred Mc-
Dowell the week after, and the
great Albert King next month
-all at the Alley.
Peter Andrews, the Alley book-
ing agent and part-owner and
general entrpreneur is about to
bring Ann Arbor some nrasic,
not like the nothing we heard last
fall-no concerts-and not like
the old Peter Nero-Bob Hope we
used to get a few years ago.
There will be blues concerts
three times a month, with local
bands as opening acts.
Last night's Bob Goldenthal'a
Blues Band did a real good
warm-up to Allison, Goldenthal
playing Little Walter-like har-
monica if you want to go that
far, and if not it was still very
good.
The Luther Allison Blues Band
is playing well-cooked blues, the
crowd is eating it up, and Ann
Arbor is again being stuffed with
its proper share of good music.
For the student body:
Genuine
Authentic
W Navy
PEA COATS
$25
S.es 34 to 50
CHECKMATE
State Street at Liberty
1214 S. University
DIAL 8-6416
Twin Features
-Playboy Magazine
Jea Lois riniganot
ewsLetter
in
"The aColu ormcios"
"A dazzling Movie"
-Canby, N.Y 1Tines
State Street at Liberty
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THE ALLEY CINEMA
J PRESENTS
MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY
Sept. 13-FLESH-by Warhol ................... at 7, 9, 11 p.m.
Sept. 14-SHADOWS-dir. John Cassavetes . . .. at 7 and 9:30 p.m.
Sept. 15-BEAUTY AND THE BEAST-
dir. John Cocteau .........................a.at 7 and 9:30 p.m.
Sept. 16-WITCHCRAFT THROUGH THE AGES-
Swedish fantasy documentary .... ............at 7 and 9:30 p.m.
330 MAYNARD
forrrierly Canterbury House
$1.00
The Alley Cinema is sponsored by Ann Arbor Film Cooperative as part of our continued effort to raise
money to support Ann Arbor filmmaking. All profits earned in this theater will be invested in the co-
op's editing and production equipment, our filmmaking schools and various other cooperative pro-
jects. We have built a new projection booth at the Alley, and a new sound system and a new screen
have been installed.
CHECKMATE
7 and 9:00
75c
_ 1
.1.1 .
and ARBOR CITY MUSIC PRODUCTIONS
PRESENT IN CONCERT
wl
II
Ragamoffyn
New Heavenly Blue
Performers of the rock
opera Jesus Christ Su-
perstar and scheduled
at the Newport Jazz
Festival
Leaves of Grass
$1.50
SAT., SEPT.
Tickets $2.00
11
LYDIA MENDELSSOHN THEATRE
Tickets available at Univ. Cellar and at
the box office on Saturday
O v I
Electra Rec. Artist
Tuesday-7
SAB
:30 p.m.
BILL
MARTHA
COOK
BUILDING
OFFERS:
Convenience
Hot Breakfasts
Sun. Nite. Meal
Linen Service
Maid Service
Gracious Life
Spacious Garden
Aesthetic Surroundings
CALL TODAY
769-3290
VANAVER
guitar, banjo;
tambura
opens the Ark
with a dynamite
act that will set
you forward about
ten years.
330 Maynard people's Record 1103 South Univ
(thru Arcade) (near Est U.)
d., pl.c
."' .
*4
DIAL 5-6290
CAT
ST EV EN S
LIVE
L.P. with purchase
of 5 other I.p.is
Salvation has the
v
HUMAN RIGHTS-
RADICAL INDEPENDENT PARTY
ANN ARBOR MEETING
I
DISCUSSIONS ON:
" Child Care
" Voter Registration &
Education
" Abortion
" City Council &
School Board
" Labor
WILL
"superb instrumentalist"
"so funny at times I
wished he were a comic
with a sense of music
rather than a musician
with a sense of humor."
JOHN WILSON
N.Y. Time=
best
selection
music at the lowest prices on record
and
of funky
tape and the best buys on cultural accessor-
ies in
town.
7:30 P.M.-TUESDAY
SAB
i
__ . _..
- COUPON -
We are
nno~n frm
S- COUPON- ;