ARTS
Wednesday, November 4, 1987
The Michigan Daily
Page 7
Irving's'World'
By Lisa Magnino
John Irving has been compared to
Ernest Hemingway for his
fanaticism for fitness, to Charles
Dickens for his intricate, lengthy
style, and to Tom Robbins for his
sometimes lewd plot situations.
Clearly, Irving is not a man easy to
categorize.
Irving's views about writing are
just as confusing. In a recent
interview with Time Magazine, he
stated, "Good reading is the
country's salvation." However, he
also believes that good literature has
become too obscure and trendy for
mainstream America, and now is
appealing only to those select few in
literary circles. "By creating a taste
for literature that n e e d s
interpretation," he continued i n
another interview, "we, of course,
create jobs for reviewers, for critics,
for the academy. I like books that
can be read without those
middlemen." However, Irving's
books almost necessitate a
middleman to divulge the messages
hidden within the frenetic plots.
Irving's education is a literary
critic's delight. After an on-again,
off-again undergraduate career, he
went to the famed University of
Iowa writing workshop where he
studied along with Kurt Vonnegut,
Jr. and Gail Godwin. He supported
himself by teaching while his first
three novels were published, and also
participated in the Bread L oaf
Writer's Conference.
In 1978 Irving's popularity as a
writer skyrocketed with the
immediate success of The World
According to Garp. Analyzing the
novel's popularity, Irving said, "It
has all the ingredients of an X-rated
soap opera." The "Garp" phenom-
enon was spectacular. It began as a
media-blitz of bumper stickers, T-
shirts, and balloons all referring to
the main character of the novel, T.S.
Garp. A movie, starring Robin
Williams, with Irving and his sons
in cameo roles, continued this hype.
The World According to Garp
was the first sign that Irving could
walk both sides of the literary line.
It won the1978 National Book
Award, and it was a critical success
with reviewers who commented on
the Dickensian-like webs of symbols
and its strongly satiric social
commentary..
It's little wonder that Irving's
next eagerly-anticipated novel, The
Hotel New Hampshire, could hardly
meet expectations. The public was
confused by the even more intricate
style and at times offended by the
violence and sexual taboos of the
novel. It met with mixed critical
reviews, as critics wondered if
Irving's Dickensian style was
suffocating him.
It was a welcome relief to see
wins
Irving's next novel, Cider House
Rules, go in a new direction.
Remnants of his past books remain
- Irving continues his admiration
of the 19th century novel through
the main character who continually
reads from Dickens' D a v i d
Copperfield or Charlotte Bronte's
Jane Eyre. But its contemporary
focus on the controversy of abortion
has led to its labeling as Irving's
polemic novel.
What's up next for John Irving?
He's at work on a new novel, of
which little, including the title, is
unknown. Whether he'll read from it
tonight also is unknown, but with
John Irving who can tell? He's
always full of surprises, but you
know that they have the potential of
being great ones.
John Irving appears at Hill
Auditorium tonight at 8 p.m. as part
of Hillel's Great Writer Series.
Tickets are $12, $8, and $5.
Popular novelist John Irving appears at Hil Auditorium tonight at 8 p.m.
Students celebrate the roots of the
'60s with'Hair'
By Lorenzo Bnj
This week at the Power Center
the University Activities Center and
Musket, a student theatre group, are
presenting flair, the classic
American tribal love-rock musical.
In the 20 years since it was first
unveiled at the New York
Shakespeare Festival, many of the
songs have become pop standards,
and were even on the charts in the
late '60s.
Hair is a celebration of the
hippie lifestyle cast against a
background of social upheaval. The
draft and Vietnam war are the two
looming intractable "evils" in whose
shadows the rebellious youth-spirit
of the decade unfolds.
Director David Freiman says his
group is very cohesive; they're "be-
coming a real tribe" and, though the
production itself will entertain and
exhilirate by virtue of it's
memorable musical score, he is
careful to point out that the show
isn't just a "sugar-coated cruise"
through a complex and difficult age.
Rather, it gets "heavy and serious at
the end."
As opposed to the later movie
version, Freiman's troops are
sticking close to Gerome Ragni and
James Rado's original text, which is
much shorter on narrative structure.
Though appearing like spontaneous
and episodic actions due to lack of a
strict, unilinear plot, Hair has been
rigorously rehearsing for six weeks.
The set is a crucial element to the
success of the play. Bare and
uncluttered, it leaves space for the
energetic dance rhythms which
effectively weave images for even
the most imaginatively frigid of
viewers to appreciate.
HAIR will be at the Power
Center, corner of Fletcher and
Huron, tomorrow night through
Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5.50
and $ 6.50 and are available at the
Michigan Union Ticket Office. In
addition, you can get a sneak
preview of the action at special
promotional performances taking
place on the Diag today and
tomorrow at 11:30 a.m.
New House play
19 10 ./
By V.J. Beauchamp
The New House Band, an English
trad-rock line-up will be appearing
tonight at the Ark.
The group, which hails from
various parts of England, was
scheduled in to appear at the Ark last
winter, but had to cancel due to
inclement weather. No matter. Now,
the four musicians are sure to show
for tonight's performance.
The New House Band are
interested in making traditionally
based music that is exciting and
relevant, even to non-traditional
music fans. They use traditional
instruments, and they use
contempories, too, and the combin-
ation is used very tastefully.
Here's a short run-down of the
fab-four, and maybe, what you
should expect. Ged Foley, the
vocalist, is probably best known for
his work with Scotland's Battlefield
Band. He originates from Durham in
the North East of England, and is
one of the band's guitarists. He also
plays mandoline and the distinctive
Northumbrian pipes.
Chris Parkinson, the keyboardist,
made his name playing with Mike
Harding and Dave Burland. He comes
from the North West of England, and
plays melodeon, accordion, fiddle,
whistles, and harmonica. Brian
Brooks is perhaps best known
s tracu
Stateside as a character with a brief
run (and a strong Southern English
accent!) on a daytime soap opera.
He plays bouzouki, guitar, and
sythesiser, and his musical claim to
fame is the British Shegui band. And
last but not least, John Skelton hails
from Somerset in the West Country
of England. He also played i n
Shegui, and here features bodhran
(Irish skin drum), Applachian
"
onal mix
dulicimer, bombarde, and flutes and
whistles.
The Newhouse Band play from all
over the map, drawing from British
and Celtic folk to much more
contemporary material. And they're
at the Ark tonight for your taking.
Tickets are $6.50 for Ark
members and students, $7.50 for
non-members. Showtime is 8 p.m.
UAC/Musket presents
H AI-R
AT THE POWER CENTER
NOVEMBER 5, 6, 7 AT 8PM
Tickets Avaiable at the Michigan Union Ticket Office
For more Info cal, 1 o and aU TicketMaster Outlets
BE A LEADER!
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SUMMER ORIENTATION
1988
The Office of Orientation is now
accepting applications for full-
time paid summer employment
including room and board.
Application deadline
extended to Friday, Nov. 6,1987;
bring to 3000 Michigan Union.
For further information
please call 764-6290.
Your education will not end with graduation. As a grad-
uate nurse at Rochester Methodist Hospital, you will
- receive a comprehensive twelve-week long orientation
where you will further develop your professional skills.
Beyond orientation, you will have the challenges and the
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December grads apply now for positions available in
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Rochester Methodist Hospital is an 800-bed Mayo
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growth. Choose Rochester Methodist Hospital.
Rochester Methodist Hospital, Personnel Services,
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Rochester, MN 55902, (507) 286-7091 (Collect).
Rochester Methodist Hospital
A MAYO FOUNDATION HOSPITAL
An Equal Opportunity Employer
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more info
cal 763-1107
AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION NON-DISCRIINATORY EMPLOYER
The 7th Annual
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