The Michigan Daily - Monday, November 22, 1993 - 7 No Safety jostle and joke at the Performance Network this evening. You would be well-advised to partake in the merriment. 'No safety nets required wit this group 'Baltimore Waltz' holds true to spirit By KAREN LEE In 1986, playwright Paula Vogel was invited by her brother, Carl, to travel through Europe with him. Because she was pressed for time and money, Vogel turned him down, not realizing that he was HIV positive. Carl died in 1988. Vogel's 1990 play, "The Baltimore Waltz," which is now playing at the Performance Network, is her surreal- istic tribute to Carl. Here, the brother The Baltimore Waltz and sister do take their trip to Europe; Performance Network however, Anna is the one who is sick. She is dying from a rare illness called November 20, 1993 Acquired Toilet Disease, or ATD, which she has caught from a toilet seat at the elementary school where she works. Carl, in the meantime, has been fired from his job as children's librarian at the San Francisco Public Library because he is homosexual. As they tour the continent, Anna, eager to "make up for lost time," seduces almost every man she meets; Carl, in between his jaunts to various museums, is caught up in a "Third Man"-esque intrigue involving a friend named Harry Lime, Carl's stuffed bunny and a shady character that trails brother,,sister and bunny throughout Europe. At the end, however, the audience realies with a jolt that ... well, I really can't give away the surprise. Suffice it to say that (sorry, I don't mean to be trite) things are not what they seem. Until then, Vogel Instead of being a diatribe against the ignorance and inattention given to the disease, though, or even making AIDS the foremost issue, "Waltz" focuses on loss in general, and the Network's production retains that spirit. takes us on a trip that is by turns wild, funny, poignant and frightening, on the one hand lampooning attitudes toward AIDS and homosexuality, and on the other showing the anguish of irrevocable loss. The Performance Network's production, as directed by University profes- sor Philip Kerr and acted by three talented performers, stayed faithful to Vogel's script and gave us the kind of risky, thought-provoking theater that we really need to see more of. Using only a futon, a curtain, two hospital carts and two suitcases, Kerr and company managed to convincingly evoke, among other localities, doctors' offices, European streets and hotel rooms, virtually guiding us through Europe without ever leaving the theater. Nothing was wasted. In fact, efficiency was a key trait of the production, and that extended to the acting. Not one action or emotion was expended unnecessarily. Jonathan Smeenge, who played Carl, nicely portrayed a man attempting to deal with the loss of one of the most (if not the most) important elements in his life, and his love and desperation is all too apparent. University student Joanna Hershon, in the highly complex role of Anna, gave an authoritative and deeply shaded performance that evoked another kihd of desperation - that of trying, as Vogel writes in the play, to fight her illness with the health of her body. One particularly arresting sequence showed the six stages of the terminal patient during the course of an illness: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance and hope. Hershon made each stage very distinct and profoundly affecting; she was marvelous. But it was Malcolm Tulip who stole the show. He played every other role in the play, some eleven or twelve of them. Each character was so different that I found it hard to remember that the same actor was portraying all of them. I cannot think of another actor in the area with Tulip's physical and vocal virtuosity. Not only that, his various accents were excellent. "The Baltimore Waltz" is said to be part of a relatively new generation of what are known as AIDS plays. Instead of being a diatribe against the ignorance and inattention given to the disease, though, or even making AIDS the foremost issue, "Waltz" focuses on loss in general, and the Network's production retains that spirit. It is a credit to both director and cast that they did not turn this into your conventional AIDS play, thus making it one of the most gripping pieces of theater I've seen in a while. By CHRIS WYROD In the final throes of the 20th cen- tury, New York's Downtown has rved as an off-center locus for mu- Ucally exploring the uncertainty of post-modern, pre-God-knows-what urbana. Saving us all from existential angst, the five-member amalgamation No Safety is one of our most adept guides, navigating the panic and won- der of contemporary living. Composed of,weathered compos- ing improvisers, the quintet focuses their divergent musical perspectives *n avant-rock of ages. No Safety's fast paced coalescence of diverse musical sounds comes off like a post- modern shoot-out, with the instiga- tors slinging all genres of music. If RECORDS Continued from page 5 "You'll Be Leaving Me" contains We soon-to-be-immortal lines "Just when I've learned to believe in you, you'll be leaving me." Kate Long's "Who Will Watch the Home Place" is a wonderful slow song with amazing vocal support from her studio com- panions. Her fiddle is never over- played on these 13 songs. Always present, it gently guides each song home instead of forcing its way into &e role of the all powerful, all-domi- ating instrument. Lewis knows her bluegrass well, but she is not afraid to try new approaches to the age-old style and that is ultimately what makes "True Stories" shine. It is traditional without being redundant, and experi- mental without letting go of its roots. - Dirk Schulze Willie and Lobo 'ypsy Boogaloo Mesa/ Blue Moon While most "world music" is a bland synthesis of styles that actually removes the ethnic charm and diver- sity from the music it sets out to tribute, Willie and Lobo's "Gypsy Boogaloo" is a pleasant anomaly, full of ethnic tradition as well as modern stylings thatresult in a timeless, seam- *ss blend of new and old. "Gypsy Boogaloo" is an apt de- scription of Willie and Lobo's sound: an intense mix of flamenco, pop and jazz. Songs such as "Amsterdam," "Pipe Song," "Turkish Dessert" and "Salsa Verde" are based on elaborate, churning Spanish guitar rhythms decorated with flutes, strings, trum- pets and maracas. "Dance With You" adds subtle vocals to this mix and 4rhe Sultan's Dream" has a Moroc- can flavor. All the tracks are winners; they keep the listener's attention with music so passionate and intense it could be classified as a marital aid. Gypsy boogaloo indeed. - Heather Phares V wmmb George Clinton and Karlheinz Stockhausen got locked in a closet together, their musical and ideologi- cal slug-fest might sound strangely akin No Safety. Having prettied themselves dur- ing their studio recordings on "Spill," No Safety uncages their brash beauty on their latest Houston mess around, "Live at the Knitting Factory." ZeenaParkins has graced the pres- ence of new music tricksters Elliott Sharp, Fred Frith and John Zorn. In No Safety, Zeena's trademark elec- tric harp alternately emits ska licks and random noises. On less flamboy- ant keyboard and eggs, Zeena scrambles up quirky melodies. Chris Cochrane, the other co- germinator of the band, injects most of the politics and emotion into the troupe. His vocals alternate between balladry ("Lonely") and jagged melody scoured by the harsh reality of being gay in The City. His vocals assume the surreptitiousness of No Safety's music, unwilling to be pinned down through their teasing opacity. Just when you think you're catch- ing on to No Safety, they pervert the familiar melody,jump into something entirely new, or stop altogether. But, despite their jack-in-the-box compo- sition style, a few of the members always provide a groove, even if its crannies are a bit jagged. Sure the music is danceable, but only at your own risk. Take the gut- wrenching transition from Cochrane's expressive vocals on "Submerge" to the Zeena's brief burst of torrid harp raving ("Angry") - these changes can strip your gears. The diverse backgrounds and di- rections of the quintet give No Safety the semblance of talking out of five mouths at once; yet, somehow they create an intelligible polyphony.-No Safety is not just about self-explor- atory improv - they want to enter- tain you. Their vaudeville jests may inspire you to jump right into their post-modern mosh pit. No Safety jars The Performance Network (408 West Washington) tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10, $8 for students. Dial 663-0696 for info. BIG HEAD TODD EVAN PETRIE/ Daily The leader of Big Head Todd and the Monsters sings during their concert at the Michigan Theater Saturday night. KathrnnP. O'Brien 6 W.S.W., A.C.S.W. 63-2973 Counseling " Individua Fresh NORWEGIAN ATLANTIC SALMON........$6.95/lb. 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