The Michigan Daily-Saturday, February 4, 1978-Page 'Saved' fine but violent By HAIMA SUNDARAM NCORPORATED IN THE sales pitch on the poster for Edward Bond's Saved, produced by the Uni- versity Showcase Productions, is the note that it was "banned by Lord Chamberlain for its ...violence." Lord Chamberlain had a point, for violence forms a leitmotif for the entire play - violence and resigna- tion. Resignation is shown in the form of the characters Len and Harry who submit to constant humiliation and rejection and hold out just long enough, or, as the playwright puts it, "clutch at straws." Violence is expressed in Saved in the whole Teddy-boy tradition of London and Liverpool during the sixties. This factor of living, and the deliberate, sadistic violence is so unmitigated that the director fore- sees in his "Note" that "quite possib- ly one of your number will leave the theatre." A few did, which was a pity, since Saved is one of the best productions Ann Arbor has seen in the past few months. THE PLAY is well directed by James Martin; whose sets, group- ings, and movements fill and expand the confines of the stage with great facility and effectiveness. Saved flows smoothly, with the exception of one scene, the most jolting in the play, when a baby is tortured and killed as a kind of exciting sport. When the play makes this sudden change of gear, it turns into an almost stylized portrait of violence. THE ACTING was uniformly fine, with many outstanding perform- ances. Kathryn Long, in spite of initial overkill and occasional repeti- tiveness, settled superbly into her role as the tacky, self-centered Pam. Lou Brockway, as Len, achieved a delicately balanced characteriza- tion, part stray-puppy-whom-nobody- wants and part survivor. David Mannis, as Barry, the uncouth kick- ing-boy of the gang who is thus all the Saved Trueblood Audiorium February 1-4, 1978 Len ..... ........................ Lou Brockway Pam........................... Kathryn Long Harry .......................Donald Hart Fred ... ........................ David Grier Pete....................... Thomas Stack Cohn .. .......................... Say Bahr Mike ........................ Robert Meiksins Barry ......................David Mannis Mary .......................Patricia Kihn Liz.... ............. Donna Marie Hyderkhan by Edward Bond Directed by James Martin more incited to violence, performed well. Patricia Kihn, as Mary, provid- ed as Pam's mother, a sub-dimen- sional echo of Pam. Donald Hart was just slightly out- of-focus as Harry; he had all the me- chanics of the characterization, but somehow they never quite jelled. The one case of tlatant miscasting, however, is David Grier as Fred. Partly this was due to his incompe- tence at handling the Liverpudlian- Cockney blend of accents; Grier demonstrated that "blimey" and "ta" do not alone Cockney make. He was quite an enigmatic choice for the large part. But as an overall "experience," Saved is definitely one worth having. Cooney By JOHN MORAN THURSDAY NIGHT, an old friend returne Arbor scene, bringing his unique repertoi tales, and humor. In a benefit performancef Michael Cooney presented his warm and tend traditional folk music,. displaying his musica and puckish wit. Cooney played guitar, banjo other instruments during the night but, in ta the banjo that a friend made for him, he sum type of music that he plays, "It's simple, but ful." Coney played mischievous and sad ball rooted in lumberjack, sailor and cowboy lege explained that it was part of these men's lives to tell stories. It was their entertainment to e and loneliness of their solitary existence and said "everyone participated, you had to dos The performance resembled a classroom-like when he talked about the similarities betwee song about the windswept plains and a sailo the high seas. "That is the beauty of this music; that it through so many different minds and mou doesn't have a single author, but generatio erations of contributions." Cooney, on his way to Iowa City fromI turned to the Ark, which he called, "one places of its kind in the nation to see obscu musicians." It was obvious that he felt right the intimate surroundings. Because of the clo situation, he was able to create a special rape audience, and, by the end of each set, every( gotten that it was Michael Cooney the perform accepted him as Michael Cooney, friend. impish at Ark His humor could have turned trite except that he has d to the Ann the uncanny ability to inject his own personable warmth ire of music, into the situations that he speaks of. Much of his success is for the Ark, due to the fact that he makes his music so accessible. He, ler tribute to says it best when he states that "you don't have to prac- al virtuosity tice four hours a day since you are six years old, you can , and many start anytime." Impromptu lessons on the banjo, the Ap- dlking about palachian Mouth harp, ("with this you can hide in the rimed up the bushes on Halloween and just wail away"), the nose flute very beauti- and the penny whistle were hilarious yet instructive. Cooney said that he acquired his repertoire of songs ads that are and instruments by just being turned on to the music by snds, and he people who loved playing it and so it became a labor of s to sing and love to learn and improve his abilities. "I didn't learn this !ase the pain music by -studying a book, I learned it from other people , as Cooney from the back of albums, though I did read a few books:" something. Mr. Cooney opened the show with a song in which a atmosphere suitor tries to change a young lady's mind. "Hannah; en a cowboy, wont'you please change your manner." The song set the r tale about humorous tone for the rest of the show as the impish Cooney thumped his guitar and tapped the microphone in t has passed the accompaniment to the song. After he introduced the uths, that it title of his new album as Still Cooney After All These >ns and gen- Years, he launched into his next song, a whimsical tune about being "wild about my good cocaine." A test of the Toronto, re- affection of his audience came when he mentioned that lie of the finest had passed through Buffalo and a few people clapped. re, yet fine Cooney then told of a National Jerk Contest that included s at home in the question "Do you applaud when your home town is port with the mentioned?" The crowd roared. pone whdfor-e A song about a high class woman followed, "My Sugar one nhad isso refined, she's one of those high class kind," and then ner, and hadhe sang his first serious ballad, an ode to the "wide woods" that he listed as one of his favorites. In an exarm- ple of the linking of sea, woods and plains legends, he played a song that begged "don't bury me on the lone prairie." He explained that this was derived from an ild sea tale with a slight change in words. Cooney then ex- plained that so many folk songs were of tragedy and tin- requited ,love because "when there is requited love, one does something other than write songs." The handsome Cooney, born in Arizona, has been ap- pearing in Ann Arbor for over 10 years now and talked about the changing folk music scene, comparing it to sand dunes. "There is the same amount of interest, but the areas are always shifting." He says he has never been in- clined toward his own songwriting because most song- writers tend to write that "it's all happening and it's hap= pening to me." He also shuns recording because there' is always the influence of someone else on your style and it tends to blur the artist's vision. Cooney clearly has no qualms about not receiving wide-ranging commercial ac- claim; he receives his satisfaction in what he terms "psychic pay," the rewards of self-satisfaction. His per- formance Thursday night proved that he provides a great deal more than just self-satisfaction. Journey 's Infinity' By DOUG HELLER When the four fine musicians who comprise the rock group Journey got together back in 1975, they seemed destined to find their niche some- where in the rock establishment. They were playing solid, original and even unique music. Their first record, Journey, was primarily clean, tight and instru- mental, sometimes getting into jazz. Look Into The Future deservedly re- ceived some mildly successful air- play along with their album Next. Journey at this point consists of Ross Valory on bass and vocals, Aynsley Dunbar (formerly of the Mothers of Invention) on drums and percussion, and Gregg Rolie and Neil Schon (both former members of Santana) adding vocals and playing keyboards and guitars respectively. Steve Perry has joined the group for this album, co-writing eight of the ten songs and performing the lead vocals. EVERYONE is still recognizable on the band's new LP, Infinity, but they're playing a completely differ- ent style of music. It's the sound that is popular on the radio now, very queenesque. The lead singer always sounds the same, singing nothing but trite love lyrics, and every number has a blazing guitar solo, and quite often (I hate to say it) a disco beat. If this kind of music is for you, then so is this album. You can have my copy. How they suddenly found this particular sound can be answered one way: someone wants money. And I really thought this band was different, because a couple years ago Infinity Journey Columbia JC 34912 they did, a special concert co-spon- sored by the radio station WABX in Detroit's Ford Auditorium and only charged two dollars admission. WHEN JOURNEY has done things musically that most bands never touch, why do they want to sound like everyone else? If they're searching for AM hits, three or four of those songs per album would be sufficient. An entire LP of nearly identical songs gets dull quickly and is probably even less marketable. A song-by-song rundown would be useless, except to say which song used acoustic guitar ("Patiently") and which was disco. Most tunes run about three minutes, only two do not have petty lyrics supposedly about love. Maybe that sort of thing still works for little kids. Everyone comes, on strong with beefed-up, over- limited dubbed vocals reminiscent of Uriah Heep or Queen. Inflections and harmonies are the same. The album cover is perhaps their worst to date, at least to anyone who can appreciate "album cover art." It reflects the lack of imagination and creativity on the record. The first two jackets were graphic and eye-catch- ing. This one has no distinctive features (unless you like red), and looks like you've seen it before. If Journey has found an audience with this album, we music lovers have lost another talented group to the clutches of commercialism. Journey should sack Steve Perry and let Gregg Rolie continue singing lead; he has a far more interesting voice and treatment. And I need not say anything more about the quality of Perry's writing. Perhaps a mass exodus of record- buyers spending money on Journey's old albums would start someone down at Columbia thinking. RAILROAD GROWTH STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. (AP) - While the number of railroads is decreasing at a steady rate, model railroading continues to grow, says the SMC Model Railroad Center. There are more than 200,000 model railroaders actively operating minia- ture railroads. The center estimates that these hobbyists spend $80 million yearly on new equipment. Michael Cooney Approximately 13.6 million passen- gers boarded scheduled airline flights in Atlanta in 1976, reports the Air Transport Association. THE U OF M'sOFFICE OF MAJOR EVENTS PRESENTS: I The Universityof Michigan 1*.+ Professional Theatre Program l I SAVES (A'PA/$Ay EV4 $000) February 1-4a t pm. T7rueblood Theatre University Showcase Procyctions General admission $2.00 Tickets at Trueblood Box Office 6-8 pm WILLIE ILSOII SPECIAL GUEST J~AND ~WTH GUEST DON BOWMAN Sunday February 5 * Ann Arbor 7:30 PM Reser* seats $7-$6 Tickets available at the Michigan Union Box Office in Ann Arbor (763-2071), M-S 11:30-5:30. Sorry, no personal checks. Tickets Also Available at Hill Auditorium Sunday from 11:30 A.M. 4a **~'"',* . . J. .* + S . +01 ronr*n