Jars of Clay plays tonight at the Pease Auditorium at Eastern Michigan. This contemporary Christian rock troupe will play its greatest hits from "Flood" and other albums. Check out the band in the local arena. Tickets are $15 in advance. Call 487-1221 for ticket information. MZpe id jigam &d Brit Newton spells out success in 'Beloved' Bryan Lark ly Arts Writer "B-E-L-O-VE-D." Not very frightening, right? It's just spelling. But when those letters come as a guttural roar out of the mouth of Thandie Newton, as the unsettlingly primitive title character in Jonathan Demme's "Beloved," filmdom may have a new definition of creepy -just don't tell that to Newton. "Beloved's initial deep voice, for me that was like a tomb door being opened after years and years and years and those hinges need oiling, clarified Newton in a recent interview with *oe Michigan Daily. "I wanted it not to be this creepy fucking 'Exorcist,' I wanted it to be that it hadn't been used, that it was painful to speak again and the desperation to get the words out, to be understood." Creepy or not, once "Beloved" is released tomorrow, Newton will be desperate no more. Newton is already garnering praise for her physically and emotionally demanding role as the uninvited guest of Oprah Winfrey's Sethe, who may or may not be the ghost of a 2-year- E . , Newton, a native of Zimbabwe and Great Britain '- who has graced the screen in "Gridlock'd," "Jefferson in Paris" and "Flirting" in recent years. She will likely be an Oscar nominee, if not Hollywood's next big thing. But whatever the role brings her, Newton found that bringing elf to the role was hard ough. After being given Toni Morrison's novel in college because - even creepier than Director Jonathan Demme gu the above - her full name, Thandle Newton to potential Thandiwe, means "Beloved" in Zulu, Newton thought that she could use the character in the novel as a guide upon being cast. "What character in the novel?" asked Newton facetiously. "I thought hey, I've got the role now, I'll just go back to the book. I hadn't read it for six years. I got back to the book and I Ough it would be there. No, nothing. She's elusive, she changes, mercurial in that she's different with every character, with every situation." Newton found the perfect metaphor for her complex charac- ter in something much more simple. "We call it dot-to-dot in England," explained Newton. "When you've got dots ranging all over the place, they're so disparate, how can you bring them together to form a cohesive, three- dimensional character? And I was really having a period of feel- ing extremely daunted by what I had to do. Far be it from me to fill in the gaps for Toni Morrison." So far from her, in fact, that the simple task of consulting with Morrison left Newton a little shy of outspoken. "And I remember the first time I met Toni Morrison I could- n't speak for hours, I could just imagine, 'Ms. Morrison, would it be all right if I filled in the gaps in your book for you?' But she was cool, she let her book go." Even without Morrison involved, Newton believes the book- to-film translation still came out well. "I think it's extraordinary because of the simplicity of the story, the intimacy of the story allows you to appreciate the psy- chological" And there is plenty of the psychological within "Beloved," which confronts the issue of the physical and emotional after- math of slavery. But as Newton was researching her role, she consciously tried to evade the African American histo- ry that"Beloved"evokes. "I decided that the histor- ical element wasn't as important for me because Beloved was never actually enslaved and that's key. Her rage is more contemporary, I felt." Upon her decision, Newton looked at case his- tories in the U.K. of people "who had been denied the civilizing process," includ- ing the tragic case of a 14- year-old called "Jeannie." Courtesy of Touchstone Pictures "She was discovered after des Kimberly Elise (left) and her father killed himself in scar gold in "Beloved." their living room. She'd been tied to a potty since babyhood. Didn't know how to talk, didn't know how to walk, didn't know how to feed her- self." It was Jeannie's horrific experience that layed the ground- work for Newton's characterization of Beloved that she couldn't find in the novel. "When I was reading about this girl, it struck me that this was Beloved, someone who had been denied those basic tools, someone who's been locked away for a long time whether it's in limbo, whether it's in the afterlife, whether it's in a grave, we don't know where." That element of the supernatural proves troublesome for Newton, who is averse to the idea that she's.playing the role of British actress Thandle Newton takes the title role In Jonathan Demme's "Beloved," opening tomorrow. ui iC Coes' sets sail for sold-out show By Anna Kovalszki and Jenni Glenn Daily Arts Writers . It's a sell out! The Musical Theatre Department's season is off to a com- mendable start. Their 15th season-open- ing production sold out a week before its premiere. Cole Porter's 1930s musical " nything Goes" is not the traditional sical theatre number. It is defined more by its placement within the musi- cal comedy genre. Gary Bird, director of the show, said, "musical comedy is less plot oriented and incorporates elements of vaudeville and burlesque." Set on the high seas aboard a cruise bound for Europe, the musical's comedic and plot-twisting aspects might Weekend, etc. returns next week when it looks at the funny folks at Detroit's Second City. Anything Goes Mendelssohn Theater Tonight though Saturday at 8 p.m. remind one of a soap opera. But no soap offers such catchy tunes as "I Get a Kick Out of You" and "It's D'Lovely." Convoluted love stories abound, with Reno Sweeney's saga (Becky Bahling) at the helm. An evange- list and nightclub tries to charm Billy Foa) to no avail, and engaged Lord Evelyn Oakleigh (Ernie Nolan). Meanwhile, Lord Evelyn's fiance6, Hope Harcourt (Courtney Balan), falls for Crocker. Crocker actually sneaks onto the boat, and is mistaken for a famous gangster who missed the cruise. Also on board is Crocker's boss (Todd Buonopane), who is enamored by Hope's mother (Jessica Murphy). These love triangles create a comedic atmosphere, and the many teasingly small complications get resolved by the end of the show. This plot, however, doesn't mirror the traditional Broadway production. Bird chose the 1987 Lincoln Center See ANYTHING, Page 12A singer, Sweeney Crocker (Barrett then sets her sights on the already The Michigan Creative Source Directory Michigan's only all-inclusive creative resource tool The Michigan Creative Source Directory includes contact information to Michigan's advertising agencies, video & film production companies, post production facilities, directors, producers, writers, talent agencies, musicians, editors, multimedia/interactive agencies and freelance artists all categorically listed. The directory is an excellent resource tool for locating contacts in the creative industry. 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