.RT '-.:4 Paul Martinez is on in 'Miss Saigon' By MELISSA ROSE BERNARDO In his first real audition out of the University, Paul Martinez had to swim across a pool while singing his audi- tion piece. "Well it takes place in the water, so ...," he laughed. He did get into that show ("The Frogs," an obscure Stephen Sondheim show), and seven years later he is sitting pretty in the first national tour- ing company of "Miss Saigon," play- ing Detroit's Masonic Temple The- atre through January 7. And fortu- nately, he gets to stay out of water. Martinez graduated from the Mu- sical Theatre Program in 1987, and began his career in Chicago. He was lucky enough to get a job dancing at King's Island right out of school, and then tackled commercials in Chicago. Martinez just jumped right into the pool, if you will. "Michigan really prepared me for musical theater, but as far as rounding myself out in agency work and com- mercial work) I really had to work that out on my own," he said. You might spot him on Domino's Pizza or Gatorade commercials. Having done work for the camera and for the stage, Martinez appreci- ates both genres. "I like it all. I love to sing and dance, but Irealize that danc- ing is something I can only do for so long," he said. "(Film and television) is a different way of acting, much smaller, much more truthful. You can't lie on film, so it gets my curios- ity." But landing the first national com- pany of "Miss Saigon" is quite a feat. Martinez's involvement with the show, however, traces all the way back to the Broadway production. "I was actually up for the original Broadway company. They had re- membered me from a 'Cats' audition, so I kind of weaseled my way into a callback right away because they had me on file," Martinez said. Though he did not get into that production, he had friends who did, and who in turn kept him abreast of openings in the company. "If someone dropped out I was there for the auditions and would make it down to the last cuts, between me and one other person. So I knew it was only a matter of time before I got in. They knew who I was, we had already established a rapport, and then when the auditions for the national tour came up, I was right on the top of the list," Martinez said confidently. Producers were searching all over the nation for Asian-looking actors, and spent a lot of time in Chicago. Since the tour would open in Chi- cago, that eliminated relocation fees. Though Martinez feels like he's been touring "forever" -they started rehearsals in August of '92 and opened that October - he still likes touring. "It's great with this tour, because you stay in cities for two to three months, and you get to know those cities. You actually get to settle in and the audi- ences love the show," he said. He feels "Saigon" is doing well, despite much protesting in Minne- apolis. "The audiences loved it, but the radicals and the critics tended to dog us because we were this 'money- making machine,' so they called us.," he said. "They're really radical." Now settled in Detroit, Martinez gets to spend the holidays with his family in St. Clair. "It's great. I'm one of the lucky few," he said. And he also recently had the op- portunity to return to the University to speak to Musical Theatre students, which prompted more than a little nostalgia. "Everyone had been telling me that Ann Arbor had changed so much, and when I went back there, everything just flashed back. It was all the same to me. Some of the stores had changed-Borders! Ididn't think it could get any bigger. It really brought back a lot of memories," he said. Among his memories Martinez named living on Washtenaw, thepond at the School of Music and doing shows at the Power Center. But what he misses most is the Musical Theatre program itself. "I was so focused into what was going on because I had so much to learn and they had so much to teach. It's so enjoyable. Brent (Wagner, the Department head) and Jerry (DePuit, musical director) made it so enjoyable," he said. Though the program has changed, Martinez's loyalty to it has not. "I really wanted to be proud of where I came from," he said. "I (think) it's really important to spread the word about Michigan and that it really is as good as some of the more established programs, if not better. I was nervous about the program living up to my expectations when I went back, and it more than did. "The students in the program now are so much more advanced than we were then, in the old days. Kids who have already done national tours, who have already done TV," he said amazedly. "When we were there we were hoping to graduate and go to Pittsburg Civic Light Opera, and now there's kids who are doing it over the summer. It's amazing to me that they are already that advanced. I think it speaks a lot for the program." Jf aw Paul Martinez, a '87 grad of the Musical Theatre Program, stars in "Saigon." It's getting close to Martinez's call time, as we notice crew members bustling about, making preparations for that evening's performance. Martinez decided the men's ensemble dressing room would not be the most ideal place for our interview, so we're huddled off into the wings. As he looks forward to another evening, he faces the continual challenge of keep- ing it fresh. "After over 800 performances ... it's not hard to find new things to think about or new things to do, but just finding the motivation to do it again and again and again," he said. "Doing this show itself has not been a major challenge, although at first I was afraid that vocally it would be." Since March Martinez has been playing numerous Vietnamese roles (he had previously played American roles) He can be spotted as a soldier, a "villager," or as a vendor, selling "meat" in the big Bangkok number. From Detroit, the company moves on to Los Angeles, where they will stay for 10 months. Martinez plans to stick with the tour at least through L.A. "I was afraid that my career was- becoming a little stagnate doing one show for so long, but I'm going to take advantage of it," he said. He. plans to take film and television classes, to broaden his resume aca-, demically, and "keep growing as a person." He offers this advice to aspiring performers: "Everything is a learning experience, and just find that. Don't be afraid to tackle new goals and to set new goals and to take stock of your situation." Even if it means swimming through a show. MISS SAON runs through Januar' 7 at the Masonic Temple Theatre in Detroit. Tickets range from $16-$60. For specific days, times and prices call (313) 832- 5900, or TicketMaster at (810) 645- 6666. "Miss Saigon" has landed at the Masonic Temple Theatre in Detroit, where it stays through January 7, 1995. r Director woos audiences with his 'Hard Boiled' action Tuesday Ndi$ Amerian $1.00 off pints ofDundee's Honey Brown and Sierra Nevada Live entertainment 10 p.m.-12a.m. midnight 338 S. State 996-9191 By SCOTT PLAGENHOEF There's nothing that says "Happy Holidays" quite like John Woo. Or at least that's what the Michigan The- ater must believe, because their present to you, the greater Ann Arbor area, is an abbreviated John Woo film festival. Today and tomorrow, beginning at 7:15, the Michigan will exhibit Woo's influential 1986 work, "A Better Tomorrow" and his quintes- sential 1992 film, "Hard Boiled." Although Woo is most well known in this country for the Van Damme slugfest "Hard Target," his only En- glish language film to date, and shar- ing a couplet with Rod Carew in a Beastie Boys song, it is his Cantonese action films which have elevated him to cult figure status. Woo's heroes and villains are of- ten indecipherable. The bad don't wear black hats and the good don't ride in at sunset to save the damsel in distress. They are one in the same. Woo does not concern himself so much with good and bad as he does the dichotomy between loyalty and betrayal. The ultraviolence of the John Woo film has influenced American film- makers. The recent cinematic redis- covery of the criminal and the violent elements of our society was certainly not an invention of Woo's. Yet the John Woo mark can be seen left in bits and pieces in such recent American works as "Reservoir Dogs," "State of Grace," and "Carlito's Way." "Carlito's Way" specifically bor- rows heavily from "A Better Tomor- row" the first of the two Woo films the Michigan is presenting. "Tomor- row" features a former gangster, (por- trayed by Chow Yun-Fat, a frequent player in Woo's work) certainly past his prime, who, after recently return- ing to society from prison, must choose between attempting to stay on the straight and narrow or return to crime for one final moment. The film features an excellent early perfor- mance by Leslie Heung of last year's "Farewell My Concubine" as the gangster's younger brother, a police- man, who serves as the gangster's proverbial voice of conscience. The second of the Woo films is perhaps his best known, "Hard Boiled." This midnight movie and brew 'n' view favorite concerns itself much less with the business of right x See WOO, Page 10 ATTENTION DISPLAY ADVERTISERS: The Michigan Daily has scheduled the following EARLY DEADLINES for Winter Break. Newsletters Newsletters Newsletters Newsletters Big savings on newsletters for all clubs, businesses, and organizations. cop ygan PUBLICATION DATE Thursday, January 5 Friday, January 6 Monday, January 9 DEADLINE Tuesday, December 13 Tuesday, December 13 Tuesday, December 13 It 1te flHithigttn 3 ttilp The Office of Student Affairs is interested in receiving proposals to amend the Statement of Student Rights and Responsibilities. All proposals will be considered by the Student Judicial Board on January 30,1995, at a public hearing. In order for amendment proposals to be considered at this public hearing they must be submitted by Friday, January 20,1995, to the Office of the TuIrf i Aiior -60 1 5Fleminz Bildine. However, as soon as vronosals are re- ..