20B - The MichiganDaily Best of Ann Arbor 1997- Thursday, April 17; 1997 0 0 0 The Michigan Daily Best of Ann Arbor Best of Theater 'Burn This,''Assassins,' top this year's best, worst 'U' theater productions Best of Business Indie Schoolkids tops corporate M r record rivals; Borders is book king Best Direction of a Basement Arts Production: Allison Tkac, in Landford Wilson's "Burn This" Allison Tkac should be applauded for two things: She assembled an amazing cast of talent for "Burn This" and she directed them in what was the best per- formance seen in the Basement for quite a while. "Burn This" wasn't just entertaining, it was also moving and emotional - only the best directors can bring out emotion in an audience. Leibling's directorial debut promises much more for her in the future. But an honorable mention should go to Francine Leibling in "Eleemosynary." The What-Were-They- Thinking? Award: Randy Kurstin, Matthew Witten and C. Ryan Metzger These well-intentioned gentlemen attempted to present a musical in Basement Arts - and failed. "Assassins" turned out to be Basement Arts' biggest disappointment of the sea- son because of the lackluster singing performances offered by the assembled cast of BFA acting majors. While trying to recapture the success that last year's "Falsettoland" received, "Assassins" did- n't amount to anything more than a few hours of boredom. Maybe this serves as a warning to future directors: Sondheim is not easy. It takes long hours of dedica- tion and rehearsal to even come close to representing his music well. Most-Enlightening Effects in a University Production: Lighting Designer Rob Murphy for "Ghosts" Rob Murphy's creative genius allowed us to witness Osvald and Helene Alving's spiritual realization with a bright God-like white light, as well as create the effect of a burning orphanage off-stage. Best-Performed Aria in Opera Theater Production: Lisa Nielson Her performance of the famous Mozart aria "Porgi, amor" in "The Marriage of Figaro" (as Countess Almaviva), introduced University audi- ences to the powerful talent that Lisa Nielson possesses. This woman should have a fan club. Best On-Stage Masturbatory Simulation: Craig McEldowney, in Basement Arts' "WASP" Enough said. Unforgettable Performances in University Productions: Daniel Paradowki, "The Marriage of Figaro;" Heather Dilly, "Pamela;" Jenny Burleson and Joshua Parrott, "Ghosts;" Matthew Schicker, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood;" and Hugo Vera, "The Elixir of Love" Unforgettable Performances in the Basement: Laura Heisler and Kelly Gillespie, "Assassins;" Alex Alioto and Matthew Schicker, "Burn This;" Greta Enszer, "Greta's Gourd;" and Mark Gmazel, "Hello Out There" Best Records: Schoolkids Records Where else can you get all that indie stuff that you can't seem to find any- where else? And the friendly staff is glad to help you out, if the selection starts to boggle your mind. Don't worry - Schoolkids has got you cov- ered. Best Used Records: Wazoo Records It's huge! The selection, that is. And the price is right too. Once you make it up those steep stairs, you'll be home free. Best Men's Clothing: Bivouac Wow - a-three-part store - and so much to look at, too. All that fashion and all the great names, like Polo, Nautica and The North Face. Shopping here almost makes you want to either go camping or sign up for a J. Crew modeling job. Hey, you'll need to find some way to get all that money back. Best Women's Clothing: Urban Outfitters Totally trendy. That's what you'll be if you spend about $300 in here. From used jeans, to those spaghetti- strap tanks, to wild dresses, to those neat-o barrettes you used to wear when you were five, Urban's a true outfitter. Best Thrift/Used Clothing: Rag O Rama If you can't afford the Urban Outfitter's steep prices, you should def- initely check this place out. For the same $7 that you would have spent on some barrettes there, you can get a whole outfit here. Sure, it's not brand new. But that's even cooler. Best Bicycle Sales/Repair: Campus Bike and Toy More parts and rentals than you could have ever dreamed about. It's also really reassuring to know that, after that crazy, brutal bike accident you had (either caused by Michigan ice or some freak who doesn't know how to ride right), Campus Bike is quick to fix what's broken. Kinda makes you want to go out and get in a bike accident, just so Campus Bike can make everything all better. Best Books: Borders Books and Music "10,000 Dreams Interpreted," Colin Powell's "My American Journey," "The Joy of Sex," tons of New York Times bestsellers and those $0.99 hardcovers at the counter. It's all at Borders. Just know your bearings at all times. They say that U.S. History section is like a black hole. Best Text Books: Ulrich's You can always count on Ulrich's to have that Psychology book that no one else seems to have in stock - and at a great price too. And, of course, there's that information desk if you get lost on your exploration. Best Haircut: Noggins Got $20 left in your bank account and you need a haircut? No problem. At Noggins, a "wash and cut" for men and women is $12, so you're all set. We think groovy graffiti and designs there are alone enough reason to make an appointment. Best First-Run Theater: Showcase Cinemas Oh, the movie choices, those reclin- ing seats and the employee who some- times - if you're lucky - introduces the movie before it starts. And the con- cession area is big enough to do cart- wheels in. Once you get past the admission counter, it's all uphill from there. Best Test Prep: Princeton Review $1,000 is a small price to pay for your future, wouldn't you say? Whether it's the GREs, the LSATs (or maybe the SATs or ACTs if you feel like taking them again for the hell of it), Princeton Review is sure to help you conquer the- completely-pointless-and-stupid-sup- posed-markers-of-our-intelligence-but- not-really tests that we all know and love. Best Video Store: Blockbuster Video Gotta love chains. Especially huge ones like Blockbuster. All the glitz, gold, "Fargo," "Trainspotting," "A Time To Kill" and "Sleepers" copies you could ever want. It's always nice to know that these films are available, especially since, in the last 12 small, artsy places you checked, every last copy was out. With Blockbuster, you know you'll never have to end up rent- ing something like "Angus" - unless, of course, you want to. See BUSINESS, Page 10B Bill McClelland of the Wazoo checks si SUMMER. JOIN OFFI Willian Gustafson and Hiroko Sasagawa star In the University's production of Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro," which got "Best Unforgettable Performance." *47ri I '41 Unforgettable MUSKET Performances: Nick Sattinger, "Cabaret;" Matthew Witten, "Jesus Christ Superstar" m Best Concert that Never Happened: Cecilia Bartoli Much to the disappointment of many Michigan fans, Ms. Bartoli canceled her third appearance at Hill Auditorium on the day before she was scheduled to perform, blaming that nasty infection called bronchitis. Didn't she just cancel a few months ago with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City? Divas ... divas ... divas ... . OfficeTeam is recruiting for experie als in their Ann Arbor office. Work b assignments at area companies and experience. Receptionist, word processing, data assistant and administrative support immediately. Great Pay t Call today to set up OFFICETEP Administrative Sta ff1 777 E. Eisenhower Pkwy. 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