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Big day for 'Big Night'
Veteran actors Campbell Scott and Stanley Tucci have teamed up to
direct "Big Night," a small-budget film about two Italian brothers who
move to New Jersey to open a restaurant serving authentic Italian cui-
sine - quite a gimmick in the 1950s. The acclaimed movie begins its
two-week run at the Michigan Theater today. Showtimes are at 7:15
and 9:30 and, as always, student tickets are a mere $5.
Friday
October 18, 1996
10
Clinton to tear the roof off of Hill.
By James Miller
Daily Arts Writer
In the Middle Ages, it was believed that royalty
received its power directly from God. In an interview
with The Michigan Daily on Wednesday, the reigning
king of funk, George Clinton, proved beyond a shad-
ow of a doubt that he gets his power from a place not
of the corporeal world.
I was doomed from the first
question. George Clinton is an
encyclopedia of American PR
music of the past 40 years. A Ge
question about the roots of P-":.
Funk was met with a deluge of ani
information.
"I was in New Jersey in '56 Tonight at Hili at 7:3
doin' doo wop. We made a few
records like 'Lonely Island' that didn't do too well.
But the first big hit we had was 'Testify' in '66."
To capitalize on the burgeoning Motown scene,
Clinton and company moved to Detroit, which was to
become the cradle of Funkadelic.
"I made quite a few Detroit records, with like ...
Edwin Starr and the Supremes. But after a while we
realized that Motown and the Supremes and R&B
(were) sewn up. We had to get as far away from
Motown as possible. So we came up with
Funkadelic."
From here the history of P-Funk becomes difficult
E
O
d1
30 p.
to trace. Basically, P-Funk as we know it consists of
two elements: Funkadelic, which is composed of
Clinton and his group of expatriates from Jersey; and
Parliament, which has a more soul-driven sound from
artists such as Bootsy Collins, Maceo Parker and Fred
Wesley.
What makes P-Funk hard to quantify is that the ele-
ments of these two different bands freely mix togeth-
er, both in concert and on
record. In fact, Clinton credits
VIE W the band's ability to stretch and
rge Clinton give to its longevity.
"We liked the fact that
the P-Funk everyone could have their own
All Stars things and side projects, but
.m. Tickets available. always be around when we
needed them."
It is this unusual blending makes P-Funk's output
some of the most varied and interesting music ever
produced by a single entity. Albums like
"Mothership Connection" and "Cosmic Slop" are
hard core R&B albums. Records made with primari-
ly Funkadelic members tend to be heavier on acid
guitar and bizarre.
"Every once and a while I would make an album
like 'Osmium' or 'America Eats Its Young' just to see
if I had any brain cells left," Clinton said, alluding to
P-Funk's fablgd, near mythical drug use.
It's impossible to ask Clinton the obligatory influ-
ences question. Clinton is an influence himself. P-
Funk is both the chicken and the egg. A two-minute
excerpt of conversation reveals a stunning wealth of
musical knowledge. Clinton has played with, influ-
enced, hung out with and generally funked-up nearly
every musician of importance of the past 30 years. He
seems tacitly aware of his ubiquitous influence, end-
ing a long speech on his musical contacts with,
"Everybody took a ride on the Mothership." , 0
With as much musical raw material to work with,
it's not surprising that P-Funk has undergone massive
change over the years.
"The biggest single change we've- had over the
years was realizing that we could take off the suits and
still make it," Clinton said, still with a note of amaze-
ment.
In the years between P-Funk's heyday and the cur-
rent revival, Clinton credits mostly rap artists with
keeping interest in his music alive.
"It kept us alive. They took little tiny pieces of tho
funk. It just gave us continued exposure. Folks like
Public Enemy, De La Soul, Digital Underground and
Ice Cube. And, they gave us props. Sampling's not
stealing, I love it."
When asked about the future of the band, Clinton is
his usual self - ever the cryptic hipster.
"We're never goin', we're always comin'. And we
gonna be funkin' off the planet. There is funk after
death."
George Clinton gets funked up at Hill Auditorium tonight.
Lighthearted 'Drood' woos audience
By Tyler Patterson
Daily Theater Editor
Beginning the show with abrupt and demanding fashion,
University Productions' "The Mystery of Edwin Drood"
immediately grabs the audience's attention. The entrance of
The Music Hall Royale Orchestra was met with a round of
applause when the cast entered from all ends of the theater,
signaling the performance had begun.
The rambunctious cast and crew, led by
the Chairman (Matt Schicker), poked, R E
prodded, humored and cajoled the Th
audience into submission.
The collaboration of director Gary
Bird and musical director and compos- Mend
er James Wilhelmsen is a triumph.
Capitalizing on the talent and devotion
of the company, Bird offers a fun-filled, energetic, no-worries
musical that is bound to make even the most reserved offer a
hearty laugh or two.
Schicker, as the Chairman, was unreproachable.
Charismatic and witty, Schicker was the pre-eminent master
of ceremonies as he established the story of Dickens' unfin-
ished text. Introducing each character, pointing out "clues,"
Schicker deftly delivered witty one-liners as he led the audi-
ence through the performance.
Using melodrama to play up the mystery of who killed
Edwin Drood for humorous effect, this musical had a bare-
bones production feel, even though the choreography, cos-
e
E
lei
tume, and musical numbers spoke to the contrary.
The Victorian costume design (Sarah Michelle Baum) set
the atmosphere as the time of Dickens, giving the audience
and actors alike a reliable reference. The often dark lighting
(Heesun Ko) added to the melodrama that made the perfor-
mances so enjoyable. Choreography, especially during the
sultry and hypnotic "Jasper's Vision," was smartly arranged
by Linda Goodrich-Weng.
Laurie Ferdman, as the lovely Rosa
I E W Bud, proved a powerful presence with a
Mystery of voice unmatched in smoothness and
:dwin D d beauty. Durdles (Greg Zola), the
drunken gravekeeper, was the clown in
lssohn Theater a play of comedic performers, and Zola
Oct. 17, 1996 certainly was not outshone.
John Jasper, the "obvious" suspect,
played by Job Christenson, was convincingly rendered as
erratic, seething and lethal. Songs like "A Man Could Go
Quite Mad" and "Both Sides of the Coin" (performed with
Schicker) were among the standouts of the show.
The notable performances of the, um, boyish Edwin Drood
(Catherine Marsh), the brother and sister combo of Helena and
Neville Landless (Erika Shannon and Tony Greenlaw), and the
rather clueless Deputy (David Burtka) stood out as well.
With an old-fashioned flair, the audience continually found
itself wooed into clapping and singing with the cast. Throw in
the chance to solve one of the greatest literary mysteries of all
time, and you've got a show to remember.
University Productions' "Edwin Drood" runs through next weekend at Power Center.
DAVID SMITH
MINI.
I; r
; °
The University of Michigan
School of Music
Tuesday, October 22
University Symphony Orchestra
Kenneth Kiesler, conductor
. Enesco: Suite No. 1
. Shostakovich: Concerto No. 1 for Violoncello
Soloist Felix Wang, '95-'96 Concerto Competition winner
. Nielsen: Symphony No. 4 ("The Inextinguishable")
Hill Auditorium, 8 p.m.
Thursday, October 24
UM Jazz Trio
Gernot-Blume, Julie Spenser and Joe Bonadiot
with guest Edward Sarath
Recital Hall, 8 p.m.
Friday, October 25
University Choir & Chamber Choir
Jerry Blackstone and Hugh Floyd, conductors
Works by Schubert, Finzi and Elgar
Hill Auditorium, 8 p.m.
Contemporary Directions Ensemble
H. Robert Reynolds, director
Rackham Auditorium, 8 p.m.
Saturday, October 26
Band-O-Rama
University of Michigan Bands
Hill Auditorium, 7 :30 p.m.
Tickets: $8.00
Special Recital
with Marin Katz, piano, and Scotty Lefurgy, baritone
G RADUATE PSYCHOLOGY If you would like to achieve
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that you take both the General we offer a program of systematic
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Win an autographed Melissa Etheridge poster!
To get you hyped for Melissa's concert this Saturday at the
Palace of Auburn Hills, the Michigan Daily is giving away
an autographed poster of the raspy-voiced rocker. There
l will also be 10 more Melissa posters for runners-up,
Art but they won't have her John Hancock on 'em. To
enter the contest, send an e-mail with your name and
phone number to dailymusic@umich.edu. If technolo-
gy isn't your thing, you can still enter the contest in
person by dropping by the Arts office in the Student
Publications Building, #
420 Maynard St.
between noon and 5
p.m. today. Drop your
name in the "Enter to
A Win" box by the door.
The contest is only open
to University of Michigan stu-
dents. And don't forget to check
out Etheridge at 8 p.m. on
Saturday at The Palace of Auburn
Hills. She'll be performing songsr
from her latest album, "Your Little
Secret." It will no doubt be a rockin'
show to remember!
If Deadlines Seem Too Short, Maybe
Your Process Is Too Long.
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