Saturday, September 25, 1976

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Page Five

I


DIRECTING OFF COURSE:
'Night Music': A

PAID ADVERTISEMENT

delight
t night's pro- were polished; so one

By DAVE STRAUSS
IN 1956, Ingmar Bergman
made a delightful film call-
ed Smiles of a Summer Night.
In 1973, Harold Prince, Step-
hen Sondheim and Hugh Wheel-
er transformed Bergman's film
into an even more dazzling mu-
sical comedy. The show's flair,
elegance and, most of all, its
gentility of style are well-rep-
resented in its title: A Little
Night Music. It is a credit to
the University's Professional
Theatre Program that they were
able to bring us the musical's
Ann Arbor debut this weekend.
Now, Sondheim's lyrics are
so flawlessly crafter, so witty,
so charming, and so touching
that, when supported by his
beautifully flowing music, they
render the show indestructible.
Unfortunately, the direction for
this production somewhat mars
the intent of Sondheim's work.
Rather than being the delicate
work it should be, it comes

off as something of a burles-
que.
THE PLOT is so complicated
it makes Charley's Aunt seem
simple. It concerns Fredrik, a
middle-aged lawyer, married to
a young and still virgin wife,
Anne. Fredrik's son by a for-
mer marriage, Henrik, who is
the same age as Anne, lives
with them. The web tangles
as Desiree Armfeldt, star of

t

Now, back to las

must

a touring company and Frek-
rik's former lover, comes to
town. More entanglements en-
sue, involving Carl Magnus, De-
siree's current lover, and his
masochistic wife Charlotte. The
characters eagerly engage in
a topsy-turvy weekend at Mme.
Armfeldt's, where the story
comes to its satisfying, if some-
what ennervating conclusion.

duction. Grant Walden (Fred- place the blame for so much
rik) did not perform to my misguided acting squarely on
satisfaction. His Monty Python the director.
style delivery worked fine in Now when Petra pats Hen-
the opening scene, where whenik "l H k e
he is contemplating ravishing rik' alittle Henrik after they
his wife. It does not work so make love, it is not necessary
for Henrik to jump. That is
well in the last scene, when he burlesque. Nor is it necessary
finds the real love of his life. to have Petra's spent lover on
Richard Cooper Bayne (Hen- stage for her number, "The
C Miller's Son." Perhaps this type
rik) is too lithe and supple to of staging is appropriate for '
make a convincingly stuffy the- the more provincial towns, in
ology student. Donna Liggitt which a roadshow must play,
Forbes (Anne) deliyers her lines but I doubt it. Subtle movies
too broadly for us to believe have played to mass audiences
that she's a virgin, and Deborah everywhere in America, why
Alvarez (Petra, the maid), does not subtle musicals?
not play her part 'down to
earthy' enough to furnish a suf- The singing was excellent. The
ficient contrast between herself Lieder Singers sang beautifully.
and her mistress. Carol Ziske (Charlotte) was
BUT THESE ARE profession- particularly effective singing
al actors, and they execute "Everyday a Little Death," as
their roles with considerable was Fran Stevens (Madame
technical skill. Armfeldt) in "Liaisons." The
The performances of the en- most touching moment of the
tire cast, without exception, show, however, came when
tears trickled down Julie Wil-
son's (Desiree's) cheek as she
said "Send in the Clowns."

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Cure for ailing autos? bAttlic ight Music toA
Arbor since Fiddler on the Roof.
NEW YORK (UPI) - Your "AND" LEWIS SAID, "it's got "If you go to some strange Don't miss it.
friendly neighborhood auto me- to be good for the motorist, doctor, just knowing he's had
chanic has a problem. Your car too." to pass a test to be allowed After a summer shower there
has gotten so complex, his The motorist collectively to practice, gives you some is often a rainbow in the sky
experience around the garage spends $55 billion a year on confidence in him," Lewis said. made by sunlight shining
may not be enough to fix it. auto maintenance and repairs,
In fact, a lot of motorists are more than the total spent an- "It's the same with mechan- through tiny drops of water in
unhappy with the job mechan- nually on new cars. ics." the air.
ics are doing. Complaints about
automotive repair work arek
second only to mail order fraud
on the list of most frequent con-s is
sumer complaints compiled by o
the White House Office of Con- h
sumer Affairs. v
STAN STEPHENSON heads a b
program to train and certify 0i
mechanics at a time when he b
says "the shade tree mechanic b
may soon be extinct." G
Admitting it is touchy ground, c
Stephenson talks of "mechanic w
incompetence" as possibly the is
number one reason for dissatis- LOUIS MALLE'S 1971- M
faction with automotive repairs. t
He cites a California State Auto i
Repair Bureau report that of M OF TH HEART
44,000 complaints most related
to poor quality control in the g
work or "misunderstandings" ! is recent French film humorously portrays the coming-of-age of a a
about what work was needed. a
Less than one per cent related young boy. He passes through the various imitations of adulthood with w
to fraud. a
The family. car, Stephenson the assistance of his two roue' brothers and a confusingly beguiling o
says, is justto cmpiae
sayone who declares him- young mother, The experience touches lightly but sympathetically on
self a mechanic to fix. A me- -pP
e mchaniconst hax 12,00 t- everything from family life to incest.
chanical monster has 12,000 to o
16,000 parts, at least 3,500 of in
them moving. He compares the 1
:ar with a five-passenger, sin- SUN.: Alam Resnais' HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR r
gle-engine airplane's 1,500 parts,
with as few as 500 which move.
"TWO SPECIALLY trained CINEMA GUILD TONIGHT AT OLD ARCH. AUD.
and certified mechanics are re- C 7:00 & 9:05 Admission $1.25
quired to maintain the plane:
with its relatively primitive _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
braking, steering and control
systems. The auto mechanic ------- __----
has to deal with sophisticated
electronic fuel injection, auto-
matic transmission, hydraulic
brake circuits, and complex
steering and suspension sys-
tems."
Gordon Lewis agrees. An ex-
ception among mechanics, Lew-
is is one of the relatively few1
mechanics with a formal cer-
tificate that he is trained to
do the job. He believes such I ki
training should be standard in
the industry.
"I know of people who bor-
rowed $5,000, bought a service l
station and put out a sign, 'me-
chanic on duty,' " said Lewis,LI D W EULLERS
cohanon e sa hwoLINDA WERTMULLER'S
owner of Gordie's Auto Shop,
West Chester, Pa.
"I KNOW OF people who have SEVEN
paid good money to have shod-'
dy work done on their cars.
Then they come to me and have
to have it done all over again." i
Stephenson's program, called
the Certified Automotive Re- CAUSE: DISTRIBUTION FOUL-UP)
pairmen's Society of Radnor,
Pa., goes by the acronym,
CARS.
Formed in 1968, CARS op-
erated experimentally for sev- INSTEAD COME AND SEE
eral years and only recently
began certification on a mass
scaleDAVID BOWIE in
scale.
chanics have CARS certifia Nicholas Roeg's (director of "Don't Look Now")
tion. But 2,000 mechanics now
are taking CARS' course for
general automotive mechanic M A N
"We are getting between 50 T
and 60 new applications for the
program each week," Stephen- F
Admittedly a status symbol FELL TO EARTH
Stephenson said the certificate
also helps lead to better jobs. A sci fi filn about a stranger (Bowie) in a strange fond
Many of the certified mechanics
have been promoted to "chief trying to return home to his parched, desert planet, on which
wrench" in their shops or, like
Lewis, acquired shops of their his family is dying.
own.

He comes to earth and builds a Hughes type technological-
Special Rates works corporate empire, which is sabotaged by FBI, CIA
This Weekend types. "An absorbing and beautiful film about exile, about

Bill Metzger (in apron) looks out from the original Metzger's Restaurant
which was located on the corner of Washington and Ashley in this 1928
photo. His brother opened the Old German next door and the two restau-
rants have maintained a friendly co-existence ever since.

This friend in the law school room in the back. The dining en in his apartment, but it
always talking about going room - is small and friendly hardly would be necessary
ut to Metzger's with one of enough that friends can con- with such fine offerings avail-
is favorite professors and in- verse across it without raising able one flight below.)
ariably ordering either Sauer- their voice.
raten or Bratwurst. He has the This reviewer had the rare
mported Dortmunder Union Bill Metzger's grandson John, pleasure of sampling the entrees
eer before dinner and usually an LS&A frosh, lives in a three for the first time for this piece,
rings home a pint of their room apartment above the res- and if pushed to choose any one
erman Potato Salad. One taurant and plans to take over above the others would have to
annot correlate good taste the business when his, father recommend the wiener schnit-
vith high scholastics, but that decides to get out. A trumpet zel (breaded veal cutlets).
not the intent of the story. player in the Marching Band
dy friend simply knows how and life-long resident of Ann After satisfying your palate
o enjoy himself and Metzger's Arbor, John Metzger assures and stomach with an entre, no
s the ideal place to do it. this reviewer that the fine tra- matter how full you may be -

.
t

was the subtle flavor of the
German Beef Patties. Usually
too spicy and heavy, they prov-
ed tender and mellow. Mari-
nated beef and the sour cream
gravy served on the Sauerbra-
ten are ground 'together
to make the ideal ground beef
dish.
Metzger's menu features two
new items to add even more
depth to their varied offerings
that include Rib-Eye steak,
smoked pork chops, fried
shrimp and omelettes. The new
items are: Chicken Livers sim-
mered with fresh onions in
butter and wine sauce - a
delight for $3.50, and the "Zige-
uner", a boneless Sirloin steak
blanketed with onions, green
peppers and mushrooms - an
excellent buy for $5.50.
When you want to relax With
an excellent meal, go to Metz-
ger's. It might even rival going
home.

Since 1920 when Bill Metz-
er opened his family restaur-
nt, it has been a low-keyed

dition of his family's restaurant
will continue for at least an-
other generation.

nd congenial establishment The uniform quality of Metz-
where one could relax and get ger's results in part from the
way from the perennial bustle fact that John and restaurant
f Ann Arbor. manager Doug Kalis are the
Continuing that tradition the morning prep cooks for Chef
Walter Metzger, Jimmy Bennett on alternate
resen ownBi hasreoedays. Chef Bennett apprenticed
on o Bil, as rmodledthein Metzger's kitchen and has
interior which now has intimate i eze' ice n a
booths in the front half of the been head chef for 16 years.
estaurant and an open dining (John incidently has no kitch-
-
DOWNTOWN
114 E. Washington

order the Dessert Special. Cur-
rently Metzger's is importing
Black Forest Torte and Bava-
rian Hazle Tortes from Tor-
onto. They are the perfect top-
ping to any meal on the menu
as they are so light and refresh-
ing. Jello should give up their
claim to these masterpieces
as "there's always room for a
tore." (Tortes are made of!
cake and whipped cream in
half-inch layers.)
A surprize to this reviewer


w-

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Sun. until 10
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665-2650

Complete Italian-American Menu
ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET DINNERS

WEDS.
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Adults-$4.95
Children-$2.99

SUNDAY
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Children-$1.49




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ac iteS 5-9 p.m.
Closed Sunday

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5400 PLYMOUTH ROAD

668-9387

Iir .. -rwror"r rrm rn r ur . -

s iwrr . rs s. w

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~EIITSLV.AAN
HOURS: Wed., Thur s., Fri.
Saturday 4-10 p.rr
Sunday 11:30 a.m
Closed Mon.-Tues

203 E.
WASH INGTON
NO 8-8987
IMPORTED AND
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4

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PRETZEL BELL
. I.. . 9w- ([.ik

DINING OUT