ARTS The Michigan Daily Wednesday, November 27, 1991 Page 5 Pere Ubu ex.st tres Kool Celbrate good times with avant-garde Cleveland noizemakers who were (almost) too hip for Dave by Greg Baise As if you needed more proof, here's another example of how terminally out-of-it a major label can be: stal- wart new wave vanguardians Pere Ubu were invited to be on Late Night with David Letterman, but since the band's latest album, Worlds in Collision, wasn't selling in quantities comparable to, say, the Scorpions, Mercury Records wasn't about to cover the expenses. Luckily, lots of musicians aren't so Pixies play Le Trompe card Eyeballs, aliens and scientific formulas ... Yup, the Pixies, Boston's sonic guitar pop alterna-teen heroes are up to * their old tricks again. After last year's mediocre Bossanova, Kim Deal, Black Francis & co. were looking like the winners of 1990's I coulda been a contender" award. But along came Trompe ,Le Monde, the little disc that could (and did). The first three songs (the title track, "Planet Of Sound" and "Alec Eiffel") alone are worth the price of admission. exasperated sighs. The president of Mercury has since been fired, but Thomas feels that it's too late for Mercury to salvage its relationship with the members of the band. They will continue to work with Fontana, the Phonogram subsidiary in London that licenses Ubu to the world, and they will start work on a new al- bum as soon as they finish their tour opening for the Pixies. This two-month tour, which ar- rives in Royal Oak on Sunday, i~x~ ?> said. "It limits to some degree what we do, but on the other hand it's nothing we can't deal with." Pere Ubu came from Cleveland, first uniting on classic pieces of American secretly historical rock like "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" and "Final Solution" in the mid-'70s. With these early works, Ubu in- jected American rock with the pos- sibility of creating challenging mu- sic, carrying on the traditions of American musical geniuses like Don Van Vliet, Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks. Guess who failed to accept the challenge, for the most part? And guess who lost some idealism? "We were the small generational gap that was meant to build a brave new world that had been discovered by those pioneers of the late-sixties, and suggested by people like Can, but all that, of course, short cir- cuited," Thomas claimed, before launching into some punk rock revi- sionism that would shock you more than waking up to find your "Sid Lives" T-shirt ripped to shreds. The post-apocalyptic fallout of Pere Ubu's influence is still being felt, though: in covers by Living Colour, in that theremin in the Pixies' "Velouria," in the appear- ance of Eric Drew Feldman (Ubu's most recent acquisition) on the lat- est Pixies' record, in Bob Mould's erstwhile rhythm section (Tony Maimone plays bass for Ubu as well, and Anton Fier was a one-time Ubu drummer). The members of Pere Ubu are as inimitable as they are influential, and the sound of Ubu's world colliding with the world of the 120 Minutes crowd is bound to be a unique, lovely sound. PERE UBU opens for THE PIXIES at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Royal Oak Music Theater. Tickets are $19.50 (p.e.s.c) at all TicketMaster locations. Pish-Tush (Scott Jussila), Nanki-Poo (Jeffrey Lentz) and Pooh-Bah (Robert F-errier) sing "Young man, despair" in Act I of the Michigan Opera Theatre's production of The Mikado, a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta. G&S's The Mikado is well performed but stereotypical The Mikado Fisher Theater November 15, 1991 Deal :,n _; terminally idiotic, and people like Lou Reed, Vernon Reid and Perry Farrell reached into their bank ac- counts and donated to the aid of Pere Ubu by making a September appear- ance, which was a success. "After we made it clear to (Mercury) that we were going to go ahead with them or without them, they actively tried to stop us," said David Thomas, the lead singer for Pere Ubu. "Higher-ups in corpora- tions have this tendency to believe that their dictates have the effect of law, and if you are insane enough to disagree with them, they become in- sensed," theorized Thomas between should be even better than the Letterman appearance for Pere Ubu's acceptance as a dorm-room name, if not a household one. "Most of the people have never heard of us before, but we seem to be winning them over," Thomas said. Besides the size of the venues, the fact that Ubu is the opening band differentiates this tour from Ubu shows of the past. Other than the sporadic one-off gig and a brief tour of Europe opening for Kool and the Gang, Pere Ubu is used to headlin- ing, and the band always uses that time well. "Obviously, we're used to playing twice as long," Thomas "It's not an opera at all - it's a musical, a comedy, a big farce," explains Zale Kessler, the actor/singer who plays Ko-Ko, one of the main characters in Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. The operetta, written in 1885, is a satire of various institutions and cultural mannerisms of different countries, as seen through the eyes of foreigners. The Mikado revolves around the love between Nanki-Poo (Jeffrey Lentz), the son of the Emperor (or Mikado, played by Richard McKee), and lovely Yum- Yum (Mary Callaghan Lynch), a ward of Ko-Ko. Ko- Ko plans on marrying Yum-Yum himself, and he fights for her as Katisha (Jocelyn Wilkes), an elderly lady of the Mikado's court, claims him as her possession. The lovers and contenders come to face the rigid laws of the Mikado; their dreams are shattered as their struggles seem to multiply endlessly. One of the most dazzling performances was Wilkes' Katisha - a demoness with electrical wires attached to her head. Yum-Yum, a gentle, submissive young woman admired for her grace and beauty, was played by well Lynch, who sang passionate solos to her adoring lover Nanki-Poo. Kessler's portrayel of Ko-Ko was brilliant. He interpreted his character as a stumbling, greedy fool. Although his antics were hilarious throughout Act I, they became redundant in Act II. McKee was also fabulous as the Mikado, the ultimate figurehead of authority. He stormed across the stage and caused puffs of smoke to erupt each time his feet touched the stage floor. The performers in The Mikado, bedecked in tradi- tional Japanese costume, greeted the audience with faces caked in snow-white powder and eyes and eyebrows painted heavily in black; they depicted the perfect physical caricatures of Japanese warlords and commoners. Perhaps, however, they weren't portraying Japanese people at all, but rather British actors trying to behave like the Japanese. Aside from what is outwardly apparent in this operetta, what messages are the actors/singers and directors conveying to audiences? Is The Mikado a satire of the British, the Japanese or both? According to Scott Jussila, MOT's Young Artist Apprentice who plays Pish-Tush, "The Mikado is a spoof on us - the actors, the people pretending to be Japanese." When asked if he thought the operetta was contro- versial (The Mikado was banned in England and protested in New York City and San Francisco), Jussila responds, "It definitely is political. It could have been any culture dressed up - Black, Thai, whatever. I want to stress the unity within the diversity; that's what it means to me." Kessler claims (a bit defensively), "It is not at all about Japan. It is all about the British." But to say that The Mikado is only about the British culture is naive. It is directly poking fun at the Japanese and indirectly at the British. Whenever two diverse cultures confront each other, there will always be difficulty; one cannot tap into the mental- ity/mannerisms of another culture unless one is from the other culture. It is often a superficial, stereotypical view that one perceives, because that is all the informa- tion that is given. If people who have never been exposed to the Japanese culture went to see The Mikado, they would probably perceive the Japanese as a submissive, igno- rant, primitive people who can offer nothing but beau- tiful fabrics, barbaric politics and automobiles. One scene shows a row of peasants marching on stage chant- ing, "Yamaha, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan ..." The women are submissive, regarded for their beauty and "educated to be married." Yum-Yum is shown as a trade item exchanged between Nanki-Poo and Ko-Ko; even her name implies that she is an object. Such character names as Pish-Tush, Nanki-Poo and Titi-Pu all could be taken as a mockery of the very dif- ferent sounding Japanese language from the English language, as if it should not be taken seriously along with the rest of their people and culture. Asians could see the opera as a mockery of their own culture viewed through the eyes of Westerners, outsiders to their culture. It would be insulting to see foreigners don their clothing and act like they were Japanese without truly understanding their culture. The Mikado will be performed at the Fisher Theater through December 1. Call 874-SING for per- formance times and ticket info. -Amy Meng You' re bound to enjoy Ties by Vicki Briganti T ake richly drawn characters within a tight script by Michigan playwright Kitty Dubin, who has a keen observance for the essence of relationships. Add director Julie Nessen to interpret the text with a sensitive understanding. Cast seven completely believable, focused, committed, controlled actors. The result: Ties That Bind, an original play which premiered last Friday at the Purple Rose Theatre. Ties That Bind illustrates the changes that occur during different stages in relationships. The play centers on a middle-aged couple - N'ick Harris (Arthur Pearson) and Karen Bloom (Jan Radcliff). * Karen's successful career as a psy- chiatrist is beginning to have a detrimental effect on their mar- riage. Also connected to Karen's life is patient Elaine Wallace (Phyllis Le- wis), an older woman who encoun- ters problems in the lack of com- munication from her husband, Marv (Carl Knisely). And furthermore, * HANNEL. Z MTV 10th Anniversary: Money for Nothing (9 p.m., ABC) should be a real hoot. But will this trip down memory lane, featuring Madonna, Michael Jack- son and R.E.M., among others; truly capture the irreverent spirit that has hypnotized our entire generation, turning our collective consciousness into mush? Proba- bly not. A . ATUBERY 761.9700 $3 Oo DAILY SHOWS BEFORE 6 PM $3 0 (BARGAIN TUES. RETURNS IN JANUARY} STUDENT WITH IA. SM.5 GOODRICH OUAUITY THEATERS the play reveals the conflicts within the life of the Wallaces' daughter, Andie (Annemarie Stoll). According to Dubin, Ties That Bind is about "relationships in the Nineties, and the struggles men and women are going through trying to find the balance between being inde- pendent and dependent ... each set of characters goes through their own variation of the same struggle." The changes occur in the wo- men's lives, as they find their own strengths. Bind is not, however, a woman's play. All of the characters are dynamic. Dubin includes a con- stant, dramatic pull between the wants and needs of the self and the desire to please the partner. Karen, for example, has the op- portunity to continue travelling to promote her book, Close Encoun- ters, yet she says she doesn't want to go. "You don't want to go because you think I don't want you to," Nick says. In this scene, Dubin per- fectly captures the complexities in- volved in decision making in an 11- year relationship. Dubin's realistic dialogue is also evident in the exchanges between Elaine and Andie Wallace. Dubin captures the older woman's practi- cal side, in contrast to the attitude of her indifferent daughter, when Elaine says, "Honey, you're a won- derful actress, but shouldn't you take a computer science course?" Director Nessen and author Du- bin agree that the play could be clas- sified as "comedy-drama." Since the characters are vivid and dynamic, we are privileged to experience many facets of their personalities. Dubin says, "There aren't actually jokes in the play. The comedy arises out of the characters themselves and the situations they are in." Since Ties That Bind is a new, working script, it is a result of close collaboration between director and writer. The play has had several months of workshops and readings, which Dubin describes as an "intense process with tons of rewrites." Nessen adds, "It's excit- ing, because you're creating a whole new piece of theater and, you hope, a play that will have a life beyond where it is now." TIES THAT BIND will be playing at the Purple Rose Theatre Company in Chelsea through December 22. Performances are Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. For tickets and more information, call 475-7902. who what where when Lita Ford has been around for awhile - first with the '70s all- girl group Runaways, and then on her own. But she only began to enjoy success with the album Lita a few years back. Her duet with Ozzy, "Close My Eyes Forever," and her semi-hit "Kiss Me Deadly" won her some long-overdue recognition. Since then, she's been voted into Circus magazine's Hall of Fame, she's been named Best Female Gui- tarist in Guitar and she's won Best Female Performer for five years straight in Metal Edge. Ford's newest album, Dangerous Curves, is an explosion of ferocious vocals and intense guitars. With new LA ex- port Tuff opening, her live show will surely rock. Lita Ford plays this Friday at the Ritz. Tickets are $8 at TicketMaster (p.e.s.c). STUDENTS: "If your hair isn't becoming to you you should be coming to us." - 7 Stylists--No waiting - DASCOLA STYLISTS opposite Jacobson's 668-9329 I. r Display Advertising Early Deadlines Thanksgiving Publication Date: Deadline: Monday, December 2 Monday, November 25 Tuesday, December 3 Tuesday, November 26 Wednesday, December 4 Wednesday, November 27 Weekend, December 6 Wednesday November 27 Early January MITCHELL PHOTOGRAPHY Holiday Special GLAMOUR I I