Check out this '80s classic on the big screen. Looking for some late-
night relaxation? Watch "Elmo's" group of twenty-somethings as
they try to understand their own lives. The event, sponsored by IFC
and Panhel, is part of this year's "Senior Days" activities. Treat your-
self to a film at the end of the year. The free screening will take
place at midnight at the Michigan Theater.

Tuesday
April 15, 1997

5


Morphine energizes, stuns Pontiac

bring a fellow Boston band, Wooden Leg, along with
them as support. "They're a great band," he said of the
quartet, two of whose members would later jam with
Morphine on stage, including the violinist for a
Middle Eastern-sounding rendition of "Lilah," the
first time it was ever attempted
VIEW live that way.
Morphine has been quite fortu-
Morphine nate to have stellar opening acts to
get the crowd invigorated and to
dlutch Cago'smotivate itself to play extremely
Aprl 12, 1997 well. The last time the group was
in the metro Detroit area - last

Swimming,' as well as the band's next release. Asked
if he was able to meet Steven Spielberg, 1/3 of
Dreamworks' hierarchy, Morphine's bassist/lead
singer Mark Sandman said, "No, but I saw his house
from far away ... it looked pretty big."
The trio is certainly bettering itself financially these
days with its new record deal. Only a couple of years
ago, director David Russell was able to procure four
Morphine songs for his curiously titled film,
"Spanking the Monkey," for next to nothing. "He
heard (our) music, liked it and got it for very little
money" said Sandman.
The new deal, however, doesn't mean that Sandman,
Conway and saxophonist Dana Colley are household
names or faces yet. MTV -"the only game in town,"
according to Conway -only seems to show Morphine
videos, like its new single, "Early to Bed," on "120
Minutes."Sandman, on the other hand, was pleased that,
"We've been on two 'Beavis and Butthead' episodes (for
earlier songs "Thursday" and "Honey White" off 1993's
"Cure For Pain" and 1995's "Yes;"respectively)."
Although the concert was fairly brief, Morphine set
list represented all four of its albums rather well. "The
Only One" and "Good," the title track off its debut
album, were unexpected, yet well-executed, openers.
And although the group delivered fine renditions of
much of "Like Swimming;" like the punchy "Early To
Bed" and the sensual, slow rhythms of "French Fries
With Pepper," the majority of the standout songs were
off "Cure For Pain" and "Yes."
"Honey White;" "Sharks," "Radar" and "Super
Sex," off of"Yes'" were all performed with more balls
and enthusiasm than on its relatively up-tempo album
versions. Colley also smoked through "Pain"'s
"Thursday" and "A Head With Wings" - playing
parts with both a tenor and a baritone sax in his mouth
- before passionately wailing away on the last song
before the encore, "Cure For Pain.' Sandman's two-
string slide bass meshed well with the deft drumming
touches of Conway, who for some reason had his
mouth agape and his eyes shut for much of the con-
cert. As Colley soared through a glorious sax solo,
Sandman was joined by the 2,200-person audience in
singing, "That's the day / I'll throw my drugs away!"
The penultimate song, "Buena," simply rocked
before Wooden Leg's mandolin player, Jimmy Ryan,
who adds the instrument on the "Cure For Pain" ver-
sion of"in Spite Of Me,joined the group on stage for
the tender song.
As Morphine exited the stage to a standing ovation,
it was obvious that, as Sandman said in the interview
a couple of hours earlier, "Phase 1 of world domina-
tion by Morphine (started) in Pontiac.'

Man' brings music,
fun to Power Center

By Christopher Tkaczyk
Campus Arts Editor
"Seventy-Six trombones led the big
parade" Sound familiar? If it does, then
you're probably a veteran high-school
theatergoer. That lyric, along with a few
others, has become widely known as
one of the classical musical theater
pieces.
While "Seventy- PR R
Six Trombones"
strikes an image of Th
American flags, Wedn
apple pie and base-
ball, it also recalls
back the memory
of the show from which it comes. "The
Music Man," the classic American
musical by Meredith Wilson, serves as
the backbone for a structure of musicals
that are typically American.
The American Musical Theater has
slowly been dying away with such
large-scale musicals that are produced
on Broadway but created by European
talent. Andrew Lloyd Webber has led
this destructuring of the American
stage, along with Boubil and
Schonberg who have created such hits
as "Les Miserables," "Miss Saigon"
and the new "Martin Guerre.'
"The Music Man;' which will grace
the Power Center stage, provides a
relief that today's young performers are
dedicated to preserving the past of the
American musical instead of jumping
onto the commercial bandwagon that

modern theater has become.
Set in the small fantasy town of River
City, "The Music Man" follows the pur-
suits of salesman/con artist Harold
Hill. While Hill travels the country
selling musical instruments, he sways
his victims by telling them that they've
got "Trouble?' The trouble he refers to
in a witty song is
R E V I EW that of the game of
billiards, which he
e Music Man renounces as the
esday-saturday at 8 p.m. cause of sin in all
sunday at 2 p.m. of the adolescent
Power Center - $5 boys of the town.
To make the boys
turn around into good, respectable
youths, he pledges that he can trans-
form them into a musical marching
band. But, unbeknownst to the naive
citizens of River City, Hill knows noth-
ing about music.
The plot is furthered by the interac-
tion of the Paroo family, of which
Marian is part. Marian, the town librar-
ian, becomes involved in Hill's plot
when he begins to woo her - a story
that is only possible in America.
Many of the show's songs are very
catchy, and audience members may
find themselves whistling a few of the ;
tunes on their way out of the theater
"The Music Man" features, a cast
composed mostly of musical theater
and voice performance majors. In evi-
dence, almost every past production
See MUSIC, Page 8

Citizen' takes comic stance on moral issue

child.
Just as the reality of abortion sinks in,
Ruth is rescued by a conservative,
good-Christian, pro-life couple who
wish to transform her destitute life.
Ruth, though crude, is intelligent
enough to realize that Gail and Norm
Stoney's (Place and Smith) only inten-
tions are to coerce
her into having the R
baby to set an-
example that pro-
abortionists are
indeed baby killers.
Disillusioned by
the seemingly good
folks, Ruth soon finds herself in the
complete opposite environment - rad-
ical pro-choice activists. This time, her
guardians are, stereotypically, lesbians,
who pretend to be radical pro-lifers to
dig up any information from the oppos-
ing side.
Meanwhile, Ruth's case is receiving
national media coverage. The scene
gets ugly when the pro-lifers offer a
bribe: $15,000 reward to Ruth for keep-
ing the baby. Ruth has her ideas plain
and simple; the money will keep her out
of jail and possibly into a new, better
lifestyle. She doesn't care whether she
has the baby or not.
Then a light bulb switches on in
Ruth's head. She decides that nobody
cares about what happens to her; all any-
one cares about is which fanatical party
will triumph and who will be left behind.
The tone of "Citizen Ruth" is what
maintains its quick, steady pace. While

there are some disturbing and even grue-
some images of Dern and the conse-
quences of her glue-sniffing addiction,
the movie is completely, and surprisingly,
comical. "Citizen Ruth" introduces a
grave, serious matter, and then clearly
becomes humorous after the audience's


first few nervous
EVIEW
Citizen Ruth
At Michigan Theater

and even guilt-feeling
giggles.
Characters get
right up close to
Dern's face, an
effective filming
technique, satiriz-
ing their warped
psychological atti-

tudes and turning them into caricatures
of their personalities.
Dern does a fine job in portraying a
very volatile role. In one sense, she is
an emotionally charged if not unstable
person, and in another scene, she'll
have a calm, curious countenance.
When observing the radical protesters,
her expression reads, "And I thought I
had problems"
Burt Reynolds, on the other hand, felt
slightly out of place, portraying the
"pope" of pro-life preachers. His dark
features contrast the stereotypical
waspy look that should have been exag-
gerated.
No doubt to cause a stir among
pro/anti-abortion activists, "Citizen
Ruth" truthfully reveals how this
moral issue has evolved into selfish-
ness and fanaticism, placing the prob-
lems of the present day over that of the
individual.

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