0 ARTS 5 ';A . ' ':9 < E G 8 f f + , *The Michigan Daily Monday, November 16,1992 0 OyamO revives the life of 'Lady Lester' by Jessie Halladay Toe-tapping jazz combines with captivating drama to make the Department of Theatre and Drama's pro- duction of "The Resurrection of Lady ILester" a wonder- ful play which chronicles the life of jazz great Lester Young. The play, written by IUJniversity professor Oyamn), introduces the audience to Young on the night of his death and details the memories of his life through a series of flashbacks. "Lady Lester" is definitely not a musical. Characters don't just break out into song at the stupidest moments. In fact, they don't break into song at all. Instead, it is a biography of a musician's life. It is most accomplished when it integrates the music ii iuch a way hiat the m Ii - sic does not tell the story but :resses its importance. Director Kate Mendeloif did an excellent job with this production. 'he transitions from scene to scene flowed smoothly with no awkward breaks or abrupt changes. The simple set - a car was creatively con- structed out of musical instrument eases, with a cymbal as a steering wheel - facilitated a lot of well-executed movement. Choreographed by 1 iuda Spriggs, the da nce scenes were surprisingly lively and upbeat. The musicians, who were present on stage at all times, brought consistency to the perlk rmance. They played almost continually throughout the performance behind a scrim,, providinig exactly the right touches kt the atmosphere. ILHowever, the band blended in after awhile. But just when you stopped thinking about them, they came on with a jumping number that reminded you of their vital presence. As Lester Young, Charles Jackson was superb. An assistant professor in the Theatre and lDrama depart- ment, he convincingly stepped in and out of the various The Resurrection of Lady Lester Mencle lssohn Th cater Novemher 12, 1992 stages of Young's life. Jackson was the backbone of the play, as all the other characters played of of his emo- tions. Ilis performance enriched tJyam(.)'s already strong text. .lackson wras iupported by a strong cast of charac- ters. While all [ormances were terrific, there were a couple of standouts. Kenya Payne added comic relief with her vital portrayal of Sarah, one of Young's many mistresses. As Lady lDay, Elise Bryant gave a stunning perlormance of Billie ILoliday's "God Bless the Child." 11er vocal similarity to this legendary jazz singer added a convincing note to the play. )espite the fact that these two women were on-stage for a limited time, they left a lasting impression. The play is about more than just one man's passion fbr music. It is about the struggles of African Ameri- cans. While set in the early 1900s, many of the situa- tions carry over to today. OyamO brought the emotions and politics of the jazz world to the stage in a way that resurrected the life of one of the most well-known sax- ophone players of his time. Billie Holiday (Elise Bryant) takes us back to the golden days of jazz with "God Bless the Child." Lester Young (Charles Jackson) and his sax. i UMI vursohlget started on that graduate 1 The Sound of Music The Russian pianist-turned- conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy will direct the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of England in an international program tonight. Mainstream German repertoire will be represented by Mendelssohn's ever-populur excerpts from "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (including the infamous wedding march). Also to be included is "Tintagel," by Sir Arnold Bax, an English arch- reactionary and Master of the Kin's Musick. Bax's works have a individual, regional sound which is comparable to other 20th- century Romantic composers such as Vaughn Williams or Sibelius. 'he final work on the concert is lDmitri S hostakovich 's devastatin' Symphony No. 1(. The RPO will perfto-m tonight at hill Audito- rium, at 8 p.m. T[ickets are S18 to $45. Call 764-2538. Venice, Venice Stop by the UMMA and take a look at the exhibition of Carlo Naya photographs if you haven't already. These original 19th- century prints take a look at the city of Venice. Naya's views of the Italian city of love will be gone' after November 29. While you're there, you might want to hang around the lobby and play with the: Tiffany exhibit. Call 764-0395. Literary secrets Give a hoot, read a book. What do you think of Donna Tartt? Is she a literary genius or just a commercial ized, overdone, protomininalist, pretentious money-grubbing, unoriginal media creation who's lucky enough to be." friends with a couple of funous authors. You be the judge. Buy he controversial debut novel "The Secret Il istory" at Borders belore it moves to ,lacobson's. 0 4 0 t r -'e Before you can write your final acknowl- edgements, there are three important steps to be completed: research, research, research. After publishing nearly one million dissertatons and master's theses, we know a bit about graduate research. dissertations or master's theses, you'll get a third free. For a free catalog covering your subject and a buy-2-get-1-free coupon, just complete and return the form below. Or call us toll free at 1-800-521-0600, ext. 3736. Rainer 's Generation "The Third Generation" is the latest in the Rainer Werner Fassbinder series at the Michigan 'theater. This stylized gangster movie features t Canna Schygulla in a pre-"Marriage of Maria Braun" role. 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