ARTS Th Michigan Daily Thursday, October 30, 1986 Page 7 Copperfield to make himself 'Appear' By Seth Flicker By the ripe, old age of 12, avid Copperfield, was admitted into the 'The Society of American Magicians.' 17 years later, Copperfield is the most widely received magician in history. He has made the Statue of Liberty disappear and is attempting to escape from Alcatraz on his next television special. His craft is the art of illusion and he is perhaps the greatest "illusionist" that ever lived. Tonight, at the Michigan Theatre, M. Copperfield will perform two shows: at 5:30 and at 8:30 (featuringta costume contest as well). D1a i y: Isn't it a strange profession being a magician? Copperfield: Well, it all de - pehds. Magicians think that it's strange profession to be a dentist....I'm kidding. It happens to be my way of expressing myself. I always admired song writers who could take a piece of their life, express themselves through it and l4.pefully move an audience with it. do the same with magic. I incorporate music and Choreography, lighting and sets to d6 that. ': How did you decide, at such a young age, that you wanted to become a magician? G: It interested me.. It was something that I was able to get attention for. My family and friends... -took notice. That made me want to try harder., It turned into something that I was able to make a living at. D: But didn't surprise your parents that soimeone could actually make a living by being a magician? C: It is a sort of rare thing.They were very supportive. I've tried to take magic out of the realm of being an oddity, a circus attraction, and (to make it) more legitimate, more respected. We do things, hopefully, in a classy way. Hopefully people will give it respect, and understand it and appreciate it. D: Are you worried about what people say about magic? C: Yeh, I am a bit worried to the degree that I don't want people to think those things. I try very hard to change that. To do that, I had to go 180 degrees the other way from other magicians to make magic seem like an art form. D: After all these years, do you still enjoy it as much as you used to? DC: I love it. That's why I do it. We tour ten months a year. We do TV specials which are very grouling...and I love that, too. D: It seems like such a great job. I think every kid wanted to be a smagician at some time or another. C: Everybody sort of has a love affair with the unknown. Everyone is intriqued by that fantasy. D: Do you like tricking people? C: No, it's not about tricking people. It's about moving them. It's about taking them to another place. Steven Spielberg is not tricking people with E.T. It's about moving them (the audience) beyond what they understand to be normal. D: Do you have any mentors? C: My idols and inspirations were not magicians. They were, when I was young, Fred Astaire and Gene Kelley because they did with dancing what I wanted to do with magic. ..They changed dance forever. People like Lennon and McCartney who (were able) to take an experience and touch people with it. Today, Phil Collins I admire very much. D: So, how would you compare yourself to other entertainers? Do you think it's any different? C: No. What I do on stage for an hour and a half, whether it's a very large scale illusion, ...done in a dramatic way, with harsh lighting, and heavy choreography, and rock music, is interwoven to create the whole piece. D: What does it take to become a magician? C: It takes a lot of knowledge and skill of the magical effects. Besides that, it takes a certain amount of stage presence. In fact, it takes mostly stage presence. D: Let's get to your magic. Now, you say that you never use any mirrors or trick photography, but do you? C: Well, I don't use any trick photography when i do a TV special. We don't turn the cameras off or turn them in a way that would be deceptive. D: You made the Statue of Liberty disappear. Now, come on, do you really expect people to believe you? C: Then why do so many people tune in? Why does Steven Spielberg sell tickets for people to see E.T.... People enjoy it. D: There is just a certain amount things one, can make disappear. Don't you ever run out of ideas? C: Not yet. But you never know, some day you might just dry up. D: Just one more thing: What about this new image? You've changed. C: A lot. Have to keep up with the times...trying to be groovy. David Copperfield creates a new image as he pursues even trickier illusions. Production reveals heart of endurance Tonight the Department of Theatre and Drama's professional theatre program, Project Theatre, will open its Fall season with a 4ighly stylized productions of Sophocles' classic drama OEDIPUS. In anticipation of this eyent the Daily is running a series of three xarticles covering various aspects of the production itself and the surrounding circumstances that have brought it about. Today's O cticle is the last in the series. By Noelle Brower To consider tackling a play with the complexity and dimensions of Sophocles' Oedipus is surely an "intimidating thought. But to actually produce it one must be crazy, right? Oedipus is the kind of play that can distinguish a theatrical career or quickly shorten one. It is the sort of trial-by-fire through which people prove themselves to their peers. For John Russell Brown, the play's director, the decision to do Oedipus seemed like a natural one. "One directs plays because they beckon you, they cause you to think of things," Brown explained. The prospect of doing Oedipus has been in the back of Brown's mind for the last fifteen years. At that time, however, Brown was intensely involved with a production of Hamlet and felt that directing two of the world's greatest dramas back-to-back might obscure one at the expense of the other. "....it [Oedipus] contains similar dynamics [to Hamlet], a riddle, a mystery," he explained. Oedipus is a play whose many meanings reveal themselves more clearly as one matures. Brown made the decision not to direct the play fifteen years ago because he wanted his Oedipus to be distinct from his hamlet. But one must wonder how fifteen years has changed the conception of the play within Brown's mind. "One thing that is different from fifteen years ago is that I understand Jocasta now. So many years later the play's hold on me is no longer just from Oedipus' character, but from Jocasta's point of view too," Brown said. Brown's approach to the drama reaffirms its timelessness. Within the framework of the downfall of a powerful man who is forced to see the consequenses of his acts and to take the responsibility for them, Brown sees a similar problem, or challenge that faces modern man: "How does man live after the Holocaust? After knowing that one is in part responsible for it?" Brown and his collaborators have tapped into the essential, universal meaning of the play. They searched for a theme that would tie the world of Oedipus to that of modern man. To accomplish this, Brown worked closely with set designer G.W. Mercier to create an atmosphere that would be accessible to today's audience. The mirrored background is thrust forward seeming to be held in balance as precariously as is Oedipus' reign. The stage is covered with black sand outlining a silver arrow that is thrust out into the audience, in a sense penetrating them. While the audience sits and watches Oedipus, they cannot help but to see their own reflections in the mirrored background; they are caught up in the drama and symbolically become the people of Thebes who must live with the tragedy, who must endure afterwards. It is often hardest for the survivors of a tragedy to continue; it is often the irony that those who perish seem to escape the aftermath. Oedipus represents modern mankind and its struggle to find a reason and a means to endure in a world that is hostile. Project Theatre will present Oedipus tonight at the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre. Performance dates are October 30-November 2, and November 7-9. For tickets call: 764-0450. s ., a r W anted: ambitious, creative, well- organized students to train to sell advertising for The Michigan Daily Interested?-- Stop by The Student Publications Building at 420 Maynard to apply. Limited number of applications accepted. APPLICATION DEADLINE NOV. 4 The Center for Japanese Studies Presents: JAPAN'S RESPONSE TO THE AGING SOCIETY A Brown-Bag Lecture by PROFESSOR CAMPBELL Director, Center for Japanese Studies Tke pbwt gi6to eet ~ EAST QUAD HALLOWEEN PARTY C"leke Spiuut October 31, 1986 TICKETS ON SALE NOW AT THE EAST QUAD FRONT DESK NEED MONEY? WORK FOR HOUSING! Jobs with Housing Division's Food Service offer $4.20/hr. starting wages FLEXIBLE HOURS NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY Phone or stop by the Food Service Office of any Hall. Alice Lloyd ..... 764-1183 Bursley ........763-1121 East Quad..... .764-0136 Couzens Hall ... 764-2142 Law Quad ......764-1115 1Mffhr iw TrrIi7A2.QQAaR More people have survived cancer than now live in the City of Los Angeles.