4

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,The Michigan Doily

ARTS
Thursday, September 15, 1988

Page 8

What if...? Malcolm X,
MLK parley in Meeting


;$Y CHERIE CURRY
;HERE'S going to be a meeting tonight between the
4mnipotent Martin Luther King and the undaunted
,Malcolm X, so accept the invitation to witness this
'gnorable event to be performed at the Performance
Network.
By rights, if King and Malcolm had met just a week
before the revolutionary's death, an intense battle of
wvills may have ensued. The actors are placed in the
4forementioned setting to explore the complex issues
of the past, despite their diametrically opposed ideo-
logies and strategies.
Director Charles Jackson described the play as a very
provocative and intense encounter. "It's a hypothetical
meeting that brings to surface the question, 'What
,would happen if they had met had they lived longer?"'
Jackson goes on to say that King and Malcolm were
always portrayed in a one-sided way: King was always
viewed as a deity, Malcolm X as an extremist and
strong separatist. "The Meeting goes a step further to

capture the sides of both men that were not publically
known."
First produced in 1984, The Meeting has received
critical acclaim in California and New York, and won
eight NAACP Theater Image Awards in 1987,
including Best Play.
The Network is proud to present this award-winning
play with an all-star cast: Director Charles Jackson
plays Malcolm X against Steve Dixon's unforgettable
portrayal of Dr. King. Rick Titsworth, a senior at the
University, completes the cast in the role of Rashad,
Malcolm's friend and bodyguard.
In seeing this production, perhaps we can evaluate
that time objetively now and share a vision of the
future that both Malcolm and Martin had hoped to
experience.
THE MEETING will be performed at Performance
Network Thursday, September 15 - Saturday,
September 16 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, September 17 at
6:30 p.m. The play continues at the same times next
weekend September 22-25. Tickets are $6 for students
and seniors.

displays
irodern
BY LAUREN SHAPIRO :.. .

Charlie King and Martha Leader bring their good word and good will to the Ark tonight for
the AAMISTAD benefit.
AAMISTAD at Ark
King concert culls contributions for cause

T works. Every facet of this
international show on modern scul- .
ptors works to complete perfection.
The Graphic Dimensions met
with so much success over thisl
summer that the show has been w
extended through the fall, giving
everyone a chance to enjoy some of
the University Museum of Art's .
most interesting modern pieces..
As you enter the exhibit, you
may feel overcome by the wealth of
works presented by artists like
Calder, Lipschitz, Oldenberg, Man
Ray, Moore and others.
Do not fear! As I said before,
everything works. You can glide
through the exhibit and all of these
memorable treasured pieces with ganized this collection, compares
ease. graphic drawings and studies of the
The exhibit begins by comparing human face and figure with sculp-
some formal and thematic studies of tures. Viewers can witness two
sculpture during the 20th century. dimensional ideas on paper trans-
Dr. Hillary Faberman, who or- formed into three dimensional

BY MARGIE HEINLEN
INSTEAD of going to Rick's early to beat the lines
tonight, why not use your money for a worthy cause
like Charlie King and Martha Leader's benefit for
AAMISTAD. Charlie King, folk singer/songwriter
will be playing his eighth show in Ann Arbor, this
time around with the multitalented Martha Leader,
with whom he collaborated on his current album,
Steppin' Out. King, who has strummed his stories
for such causes as Arbor Alliance anti-nuke group,
ecology groups, and now AAMISTAD, will bring his
sometimes thought-provoking, sometimes humorous,
songwriting talent to the Ark.
Acoustic, folksy, soft pop - "'Folk music is an
inadequate classification for my music. I like to
think of myself as a storyteller," says King. "If I had
to say I had a message it would be to let people
know they're not isolated. Too many Americans feel
they can only pick from a set of choices-that they
have no control of their own lives. I've colected
stories of ordinary people who are interesting, fiesty
... rebels. These people are a part of a decentralized
community in this country, they're not loners or
oddities. People do have power in this world."
For the first time, King will bring Leader to the
act, broadening the show not only with her fiddle,
piano and guitar but also her experience and know-

ledge of the plight of the Nigaraguans. Whiles
studying Spanish with a family in Nicaragua, Leadert
learned neuve cancion (or "new music" in English -
it's not what you think). Originating in Cuba, neuve
cancion is folksy, upbeat music that addresses social
issues- "it's active music, protest music - it's a-
real force for the people." Central American reggae?
You'll have to judge for yourself.
AAMISTAD (Ann Arbor-Managua Initiative for
Soil Testing and Development in Nicaragua) grew out
of a request for help in constructing a facility to
research, test, and teach soil management to Nicar-
aguans all the way down to the (excuse the pun) grass
roots level. It was one of the few projects chosen to,
be funded by the new Nicaraguan Ministry of,
Education, which granted it $10,000 commitment of
aid. It also received $1 million in equipment from the
Italian government and $20,000 from a Dutch
university, which is also donating valuable human
resources to empower the Nicaraguan professors and
students with the technology to function independent-
ly.
AAMISTAD's long-term goals include raising
$30,000 for scholarships and lab materials. The target
date for completion of the lab is April 28, 1989, the
anniversary of the death of Ben Linder, who was
See King, page &

works.
As you move to the next section
of the exhibit, the human figure
remains at center stage, but the
artists' concerns branch into new
See Graphic, Page 9

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