The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Friday, October 22, 2010 - 7 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Friday, October 22, 2010 - 7 Anew season with Basement Arts Max Weinberg led the band for both of Conan O'Brien's late night shows. M ax Weinberg to set the beat att Ark By DAVID RIVA Daily Arts Writer When Max Weinberg was six years old, he made a promise to himself. "My self- imposed man- TWAaX date as a young Weinberg drummer was: ft Band Play as much as possible, prefer- Saturday ably every day." at8 p.m. Fifty-three The Ark years later, $30 Weinberg con- tinues to uphold his promise. He is considered one of rock'n'roll's greatest drummers as the anchor of Bruce Springs- teen's legendary E Street Band and has brought his music into mil- lions of homes during his 17 years with the house band for Conan O'Brien's two late-night TV shows. "A day with drumming, for me, is adaywell spent," he explained in an interview with the Daily. Weinberg's penchant for per- formance and desire to constantly play his instrument motivated him to start a new project as the leader of a big band. Billed as The Max Weinberg Big Band, the 15-piece orchestra is touring the country and will make a stop in Ann Arbor tomorrow night. "We're (performing) what I consider my favorite songs from the top shelf of my record collec- tion," he explained. "It's kind of a musical odyssey of my life, of what influenced me, whether it was the big band sound or rock'n'roll or TV themes." The setlist contains no origi- nal material, but past concerts have included instrumental ren- ditions of tunes by Frank Sinatra, Buddy Rich and even an occasional Springsteen song. No plans have been made to record the Big Band, but it's not out of the question. "My priority and my goal is to play live as much as I can," he said. The nature of these perfor- mances, however, are drastically different from Weinberg's normal routine with the E Street Band. His role as bandleader, the style of music and the smaller venues all contribute to an entirely new experience. "When you're leading your own band, you try to (keep the band) motivated.-,. You try to give everybody their spotlight," he said. "When I play with Bruce, I have to be completely in service of what he's doing and go in whatever direction he's going to go into." Certainly the contrasting styles of rock versus swing music dictate another notable deviation from his past job description to his current "Drumming for a rock band, you're going for more impact," he explained. "The music I'm play- ing (now), which is largely based in swing, technically speaking, is a connec dotted eighth, sixteenth note, trip- teen an let feel." "It's Regardless of style, however; be atta there is an "esoteric pulse" and he sai balance the drummer must con- have a stantly maintain. O'Briei "You know it when it's happen- And ing, and you certainly know it and easygol you feel it when it's not," he said of an und this balance which is the drum- mer's essential duty. Perhaps the concert tour's most glaringchange from E Streetshows is the jump from stadiums packed full screaming fans to small clubs do with the audience taking a more casual approach to listening. i For Weinberg, this discrepancy en is hardly worth noting. "The size of the venue is incon- sequential," he said. "To me, it's about the people and getting them keep h to the point where they're thor- the latt oughly entertained. For example, "Wh we played a place last night in closely Indianapolis - The Jazz Kitchen drumm - which seated about 125 people at me, wb tables. And it was just as exciting as cc as playing in an arena." for tha This contentment with his cir- ming - cumstances also comes through a half in Weinberg's outlook on his past hours positions as a sidekick rather than everytl as a frontman. "I havc Living in the shadow of two cul- to do ii tural giants for an entire career drums would be discouraging to some. But someth Weinberg considers his unshakeable lives." tion to O'Brien and Springs- undeniable privilege. the great honor of my life to ched to those two names," d. "Who wouldn't want to Bruce Springsteen or Conan n in their life?" eso it seems that Weinberg's ing personality mixed with ying passion for music will Venue size esn't matter; t's all about itertainment. im feeling youthful even in er years of his life. en I drum, it keeps me very in touch with that little kid ner that still lives inside of ere everything in the world 'mplicated as the world is - t amount of time I'm drum- - whether it's an hour and with my band or for four with the E Street Band - hing is very simple," he said. a job to do. I have a desire it well, and when I play the I feel like I'm contributing hing very useful to peoples' Abundance of productions allows for the quirky hits By BRAD SANDERS Daily Arts Writer "We're like the push-up bra of student theater," joked Kacie Smith, director of marketing for Basement Arts and senior in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance. From troublesome relation- ships 'with imaginary friends in "Mr. Marmalade" to Santa's reindeer outlining his sexual escapades in "Eight Reindeer Monologues," Basement Arts has a number of entertaining scripts that will come alive on the stage of Studio One in the Walgreen Drama Center this season. Basement Arts is a student-run organization on campus that pro- duces free theater, and is most notable for hosting original pro- ductions like "A Very Potter Musi- cal" and "A Very Potter Sequel," which have gained national rec- ognition and a performance at Universal Studio's Harry Potter theme park, as well as "Me and my Dick," with a soundtrack that made the Billboard charts. The organization provides an outlet for students to pursue their inter- est in theater outside of main- stream University shows. "We're able to do things that other student groups on campus and the department of theater can't do," said Corey Lubowich, co-artistic director for Basement Arts and a Senior in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance. "It's real- ly a place where students from all over campus can come and sort of dive in and get dirty, if you will." The name "Basement Arts" comes from its birthplace in the basement of the Frieze Building, which was the home of the theater department before it got knocked down (North Quad has since risen in its place.) With the move to' Studio One on North Campus, the distance from Central Campus has concerned some students. "Walgreen Drama Center ... isn't as far as people think," Smith said. "People are so afraid of North Campus if they've never been there; it's just like a 10-min- ute bus ride." Funding from the theater department affords Basement Arts the chance to not charge their audience for admittance. "When people hear'free' they're like 'Oh cool, it's free,' "Smith said, though she also acknowledged that freetheater can have a certainlow- quality stigma. "In our opinion, our shows match or even surpass the qual- ity of University productions," she added. "You're not goingto get the same technical elements because our budget is a lot smaller, but there are some really quality per- formances and fun shows." Shows usually involves five directors, six designers and three- to 13-person casts. They can come from any major or school at the University. "Everyone can be involved, everyone can produce shows and anyone can propose to direct a show," Smith said. "One thing we've been working at is to kind of expand our base and let people know that they can audition." The season lineup is created through a proposal system, in which scripts are submitted and reviewed by the 26-person Base- ment Arts board. I "It's up to the directors to choose what shows they want to propose, which is why we have such an eclectic season," Smith explained. "We look for things that push limits and push the boundaries of what we've done before, and things that have never been done by the University pro- ductions." "Ultimately the school still needs people to buy tickets so that kind of influences what they pick," Lubowich added, explaining the difference between these shows and those of Basement Arts. While most student production groups only produce about two shows a year, Basement Arts puts on 10 to 14. "Since we do so many pro- ductions, there's room to do something quirkier," Lubowich explained. "It's not like our eggs are all in one basket, we spread it out over the season; there's some- thing for everyone. It might be a really dark contemporary pl4y that makes you sick to your stonrn- ach one week, and one week it's 'Me and my Dick."' A smaller stage and intimate atmosphere connect the audience to the productions. "It's a really different experi- ence when you're in this tiny the- ater with 100 different people as opposed to the Power Center with 1,500 people," Lubowich said. "There's electricity and magic that happens there, and that's really excitingto me as a designer, director and as a supporter of the theater and the arts." The kickoff for the season will be "Mr. Marmalade," directed by Olivia Lloyd, a sophomore in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, and will envelop theatergoers with its dark and chilling themes. Winter Coats, Fleece, Hats, Gloves, Wool Sweaters, Boots, Scarves, Long Underwear, Fitness Clothing Jeans, Tops, Dresses, Jewelry, Handbags, Body Products ...And 01 Course Quality Outdoor Equipment Except Select Merrell, Northface, Patagonia, Kiehl's SALE ENDS Sunday, October 24th COURTESYOFMAXWEINBERG Weinberg knew he wanted to be a drummer when he was six years old. DO YOU MARCH TO THE BEAT OF A DIFFERENT DRUM? WE LOVE THAT DRUM! * MARCH YOUR WAY INTO DAILY ARTS! E-mail join.arts@umich.edu for information on applying.