0 V 0 0 0 - 4.* The Michig A fond, tearful farewell to MelRose P 'Merry Wives' had the best costumes of any University Production. Best (and Worst) Department of Theatre and Drama Production: "Three Sisters" ("Sirens") John Russell Brown's production of Anton Chekov's comedy was warm, wise and well-acted, especially the title roles (Cecilia T. Grinwald, Heather Dilly, Rebecca Winston). "Sirens" suf- fered from a poor script, despite fine performances. Best (and Worst) Musical Theatre or MUSKET musical: "Hair" ("Baby") The incredibly strong cast of "Hair" took us on a trip back to the '60s and we loved every drug-induced minute of it. Though the principals were quite strong, the weak ensemble was just enough to put "Baby" into that awk- ward stage. Honorable Mention goes to "The Most Happy Fella," which wasn't eligible for last year's Best Musical, but it was a tremendous show Just a tip: "42nd Street," which opens tonight, is not eligible either, but sink that much talent and money into a pro- duction and it's bound to be good. Best (and Worst) Set for a University Production: "Sunday in the Park with George" ("Sirens") "Sunday": A brilliant reproduction of painter George Seurat's pointilist tech- nique. And the chromolume was pretty nifty too. "Sirens": What can we say, the shower curtain didn't do it for us. Best Costumes for a University Production: "Merry Wives of WMndsor" The period costumes (designed by Sa- rah Baum)were all created from scratch for this production; the care and detail was well-appreciated. Best Lighting for a University Production: "Sunday in the Park with George" Greta Fisher's award-winning lighting was the perfect complement to a col- orful, complicated set. Also deserving mention: Beth Turomsha's lighting for "Sirens," which made the aforemen- tioned shower curtain look like heaven. Script we'd like to rewrite award: "Sirens" Darrah Cloud's script was the source of the production's problems. Under- developed characters, a choppy plotline and overwrought metaphoric language made the show hard to digest, despite genuinely emotional performances. Best (and Worst) direction of a University Production: lie: John Russell Brown, "Three Sisters"; Philip Ker; "The Glass Menagerie" (Lynn Thomson, "Sirens") In "Sisters," Brown deserves much praise for guiding the actors through very difficult material and making it look easy. In "Menagerie," Kerr ac- complished what seemed like an im- possible feat: Putting an intimate, four- person play into the cavernous Power Center. In "Sirens," Thomson's awk- ward staging and lack of focus didn't give Cloud's script the help it needed. Most Prolific Performers: Paul Molnar Jennifer Pennington Not only were they in four shows apiece (Molnar: "Menagerie, "Sis- ters," "Merry," "Sirens;" Pennington: "Born in the RSA," "Sisters," "Merry," "Sirens"), but they also put forth excellent performances in every one. Most creative changes: this a drug-induced hallucination or an inspired new take on an old classic? "The Glass Menagerie" Philip Kerr took the Tennessee Will- iams' classic, added a 12-member en- semble, inserted a grunge band, and turned the Wingfield house into a dis- torted dream-like prison. Smoke and eerie lighting added to Kerr's insight- ful vision of a family trapped between illusion and reality. Most detrimental changes: "Sunday in the Park with George" Why, we ask - in the name of all that is right with musical theater -- was Stephen Sondheim's score slowed down and the part of Dot raised? Best Residential College production: "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" The R.C.'s production of Tom Stoppard's brilliant play was a yuk a minute, and director Jeffry Herman deserves much of the credit. Best Basement Arts production: "The Tempest" With the help of dramaturg Bert Cardullo, BFA junior Pete Fletcher pre- sented this streamlined, tripped-out version of Shakespeare's romance. Was f a The 'If we had gold statues they would go to you' award: For their amazing performances - Joshua Funk in "Happy Fella" and "Menagerie," Heather Dilly in "Sis- ters" and "Sirens," Lakeisha Harrison in "RSA" and "Sirens" (plus Ann Ar- bor Civic's "Piano Lesson") - WOW. Our Southern Belle: Kate Guyton Guyton's Southern charm shined through in "Happy Fella" and "Menag- erie." And when she sang "Georgia on My Mind" at her senior recital, there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Notable Male Performances in a University Production: Ward Beauchamp and Brandon Epland ("Merry Wives") both proved them- selves gifted comic actors in this rol- licking Shakespeare comedy. Notable Female Performances in a University Production: Alli Steinberg ("Merry") and Cadi Sutter ("Sirens") were impressive in their respective roles as a conniving wife and a battered Brooklyn girl. Notable Performances in Basement Arts and MUSKET productions: Both the Basement (Roxy Font in "Top Girls," Sylvan Jankowski in "Angels in America") and MUSKET (Ben Cherry in "Hair," Mandy Politiziner in "Hair" and "Baby," and Leigh Jonaitis and Matt Witten in "Baby") showcased numerous strong performances this year; let's hope this trend continues in years to come. Best new performer: Ben Cherry In his roles as Claude in "Hair" and the young Fenton in "Merry Wives," 1Cherry exhibited a strong voice, sin- cere acting and compelling stage pres- ence. Theater audiences should look out for Cherry, definitely a performer to be reckoned with, We'll-miss-you Award: Cecilia T. Grinwald, John Halmi, Joshua Funk, Lakeisha R. Harrison, Kate Guyton. We're going to miss these folks and their performances. For all their performances over the years, we thank them and wish them the best. MelRose Place I called a press conference this morning to make an important an- nouncement about the future of this column. And the announcement is - I've decided to go pro. I got a great offer to be syndicated and ... OK, you're not buying that at all, are you? But you see, this is not only the last MelRose Place of the '94-'95 academic year-this is the last one ever. I'm not graduating - ha ha, you won't get rid of me that easily - and I didn't get fired or anything wonder- fully dramatic like that; I merely de- cided to stop writing. Sort of like Michael Jordan retiring from basket- ball. Well, not really. Our salaries aren't at all comparable and I have all my hair. Over the yearI've entertained nu- merous topics including: Bad pic- tures, parking in Ann Arbor, procras- tination, reincarnation, flirting, Valentine's Day, rejection, fashion, the O.J. trial, the personal ads and a few others so memorable even I can't recall them. My intention was never to make any weighty discoveries or provide any deep analyses. I never meant to change anyone's life or cause any so- cial uprisings. (I do hope, however, you will think twice before putting on those white shoes before Sunday.) My aim was to make you laugh. I left the heavier material to my esteemed colleagues on the opinion page. Every other week, page three of Weekend was the place to laugh your fanny off. And on the other weeks, there was my column. And I think I can say that I suc- ceeded on many levels. Despite the three people on the Daily confer who think my column is weak and humor- less, the feedback I've received over e-mail and in person has been won- derful. It.seems that I've made a lot of people laugh - even if they are just my friends and people who work at the Daily - and I think I've even prevented a few fashion disasters. So my job is finished. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank a few people for their con- tributions to my column. And if they're important to my column, they're important enough to be mentioned here. So if you don't want to hear about them, skip the next three paragraphs. Thanks to 3 Hinsdale, in Alice Lloyd Hall - my darling residents, my pride and joy, the flock of sheep which I shepherd (?). They're ac- tually extremely funny people - hi Adrienne, Kimbo, Cho-mama - and their obsession with University athletes will always make me chuckle. (What is the fascination with Dugan Fife's bottom lip? I still don't get it!) Thanks to my dear friends on the Alice Lloyd resident staff, who read my column and say it's funny. Even if you're lying, thanks Vaeth, Kim, Kev and Liz. And I must acknowledge Tasha, the best shopper and Stucchi's employee I know. Also thanks to Gretchen, my brilliant ex-roommate who shows my column to everyone she meets and brags that she lived with me. It was Gretchen who taught me that $150 is a reasonable price for a sweater. Also thank you to my wonderful and impeccably-dressed friend Jason, the one person I know who is even more catty than I. (And whose showtune collection is bigger than mine.)And to my two best friends - two of the funniest people I've ever met -Matt and Matthew: Thank you for giving me your love, your support and your attention whenever I need it. They know how much attention I need, and they still give it to me self- lessly. OK, the tears have dried and the violin music has ste person I'd like to rec Hurley, with whom honor to share columi for those weeks when than I was. I do have a few la servations: The wl Hope" versus "ER' weeks and weeks of perimentation, I've they're both great sh fast-paced, high-pov face look at an eme "Chicago Hope" is matic, in-depth huma hospital scene. "ER" tors, but "Chicag Mandy Patinkin. It's so I say - watch bot when you're debatin red silk blouse and blouse - buy both. That was my tot thought for this colui I guess I also have Clinton guy for bein target. (I can't beli mentioning his narn paragraph of my fina available over e-mai to chat -in case you vive without your big MelRose humor - a available for fashion I leave you with words: Laugh, and th with you. Cry, and ye up with runny mascar MI. SPOT'S Thank you for voting Mr. Spot's #1 wings in Ann Arbor' Michigan Daily Readership Poll r----'------"-- -- -----------r--n-r --rn-- -- - r One Dozen Wings Fries & 16. oz. Soda only 9 ' Expires 4/18/95 7............O .......... ...e.. ............ 747-SPO T 810 S.. State 747-7789 Shaman Drum B OO K S H O P 315 South State Ann Arbor, MI 48104 313/662-7407 Specializing in academic,, scholarly, and literary titles AGENT FOR B R IHAM