SUNDAY, OCTOBER 25, 1953

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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'DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS': Baxter's Dad
O' Neill PlayNowBeing Presented Will Attend
By ROBERT SPECKHARD If O'Neill's play misses its high- meating and nullifying rebellion, Epic Iirama
There is a suspicion among est intentions, the Arts Theatre so that when the brothers do es-
mvny that the reputation of Eu- rdcj.tionroves that "DesireIcape. the release is one of unfor-

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gene O'Neill rests more upon his
own artistic integrity and the
body of his work that upon indi-
vidually perfect plays.
In its own way, loyal to its in-
spiration as an experimental stage.
1 Arts Theater provided a test of
that judgment with its production
of "Desire Under the Elms" which
opened Friday evening for a three-
week run.
* * *
WHILE NOT uniformly even in
performance, the production was
good, and one feels that O'Neill's
play had a fair trial. If the pro-
ductioi proves that "Desire Un-
der the Elms" does not achieve
all that the playwright aspired
to, the occasion was nevertheless
worthwhile and stimulating thea-
ter.
O'Neill set himself a difficult
dramatic problem in "Desire."
Beginning with a situation and
atmosphere in some respects
reminiscent of "Tobacco Road,"
the audience is asked in the end
to view the mutual hatreds, lusts
and greed of the five Cabots as
passions which are, neverthe-
less, violent and great enough to
command our serious attention,
our awe, and our sympathy.
This kind of dramatic movement
puts a premium upon expressive
language, which "Desire Under the
Elms" does not always sufficiently
provide.

IpI U U1 1 pl vA ulti A.411 -
Under the Elms" has some very
memorable scenes and moments,
that it is drama eminently worth
seeing, even if not altogether sat-
isfying.
SIMEON and Peter have been
broken on their father's harsh-
ness and hardness. They object,
they spit, they cuss at the source
of their misery, but they do it, as
it were, sitting and lying down.
Strowan Robertson's direction cap-
tured with a sure touch this
sense of lassitude and defeat per-

gettable spiritual and alcoholic in- By NAN SWINEHART
toxication.
John Bennes and Bernard It is not often that a father
Tone are fine new additions to returns to his alma mater to see
Art Theatre. Bennes as Simeon,
and ed eusl asPetr, adeboth a homecoming game and his
the first scenes the fine theater world-famous daughter appear on
they were. If Arts Theater ever a campus stage.
brings "Tobacco Road" to Ann This is what will happen to
Arbor, Bennes and Heusel are Kenneth Baxter, '15E, father of
musts in the cast. Anne Baxter. co-starring with
Bernard Tone was not always Tyrone Power and Raymond Mas-
fully convincing but after the fine sey in Friday and Saturday's per-
scene in which he conveyed formances of "John Brown's
Ephraim's elation at the thought Body."
of a son, I for one believed in him * * *
as Ephraim Cabot, and he tri- FOLLOWING their arrival in'
umphed in the ecstatic dance of Ann Arbor for the performance,
joy in which Ephraim indulges on Baxter and his wife plan to at-
the birth of a son to Abbie, mis- tend Saturday's Pennsylvania-
takenly thinking that it is his own. Michigan Homecoming game and
$, *Several campus activities.
GERALD RICHARDS as Eben
Cabot, the most difficult role in the While on campus 40 years
play, did not always maintain the ago Baxter held a number of

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Reger Works
To BePlayed.
"Variations and Fugue on an
Original Theme," by Max Reger,
considered to be one of the great-
est and most difficult works in
organ literature, will be played
by University organist, Robert
Noehren at 4:15 p.m. today -in
Hill Auditorium.
The program, the last in a ser-
ies of three organ recitals by
Noehren, will be entirely devoted
to compositions by Reger, a lth
century German composer.
Besides the "Variations" the
program will include "Fantasia
and Fugue in D minor, "Bene-
dictus" and "Toccata in D minor."

illusion of the duality of mascu-
line hardness and feminine soft-
ness which the character of Eben
demands. Ebens, it seems to me,
has more of Ephraim's hardness
and gauntness of nature than
Richards gave the role.
Tresa Hughes created a be-
lievable Abbie, hard and sharp
in staking out 'her rights in the
farm, passionate and maternal
in her love for Eben.
Roy Stafford's set was highly
imaginative and economical. Joyce
MacPherson's costuming was fine
and Karl Magnuson's music an ex-
cellent contribution to the produc-
tion. Strowan Robertson's intelli-
gent direction, already noted, was
apparent throughout.

leading posts. Affiliated with
Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity,
he was also a member of Tau
Beta Pi, engineering scholastic
honorary society; Triangles, en-
gineering junior honorary, and
Michigamua, all campus senior
honorary.
Baxter was known on campus
as a member of the 1915 version
of the Student Legislature, vice-
president of the Union and gen-
-*~ * *

-Daily-Chuck Kelsey
STUDY OF THE FUTURE--Part of an exhibit of University
architecture students' work showing a saucer-shaped house with
rotunda is on exhibit in the Architecture Bldg. Compiled from
student work during the 1951-52 school year, the work is part
of the Travelling Student Exhibition of the American Institute
of Architects.

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ANNE BAXTER
* * *
eral chairman of the Union Opera.
The Baxters are anticipating a
happy family reunion with their
daughter, who has just returned
from Europe. The stage and
screen star had been making pic-
tures in Germany, and spent some
time in England on her return
home to rehearse "John Brown's
Body" with actor Charles Laugh-
ton, director of the drama.
1 * J{
THE DRAMATIZATION of Be-
net's epic poem depicting the mis-
ery of the Civil War resumed tour
performances when it opened
three weeks ago in Los Angeles.
At this time Miss Baxter received
acclaim for her performance op-'
posite Power and Massey.
Included in the performance
is a chorus of- 20 voices, the
Walter Schumann Choral Group.
This is the first use, in modern
theater, of a choral group as
part of the cast.
For the first time in the history
of modern theater the chorus ful-
fills the function originally in-
tended for the ancient Greek chor-
us, following the action of the
story and playing the role of fate.
Tickets for both the Friday and
Saturday performances may still
be obtained at the HillAuditorium
box office.

'The Heiress'
To Begin Run
Wednesday
"This is a play that doesn't have
one uninteresting character."
Commenting on "The Heiress,"I
Gwen Arner, '54, who will play the
title role, yesterday gave her in-
terpretation of the speech depart-
ment's first production this semes-
ter.
AN INDEX to the complexity of
a play can be found in the actors'
discussion of their roles, she said.
In the production of "The Heiress"
a great deal of time has been spent
in analyzing each individual in the
play.
Study began with the reading
of Henry James' novel "Wash-
ington Square" from which the
play was adapted. Attention was
given to the change in develop-
ment of character from novel to
play.
"We sit down after rehearsals,"
Miss Arner said, "and try to fig-
ure out what the characters are
thinking." "Questions keep coming
up, like the possible meanings of
a particular word, the flavor of a
line or the significance of a cer-
tain scene, and so on into coffee,"
she explained.
THE CAST HAS tound "The
Heiress" an exciting play because
e a c h personality is intriguing.
James' detailed analysis of char-
acter has been brought into the
play, and the intricate relation-
ships of the novel have been pre-
served. As Miss Arner says, "even
the maid is important."
A surprising difficulty, she
added, was encountered in
learning the lines. As this is a
period play, dialogue must sound
like speech of the 1850's.
The play opens Wednesday and
will continue on Thursday and
Saturday. The box office opens
tomorrow and a special 50 cent
student rate will be in effect for
the first two nights run.
SCOOP

EXTRA PERFORMANCE
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31 - 8:30 P.M.
Good Seats Still Available

STEPHEN VINCENT BENET'S

'/~CHARL
lilt'

WE MI-

led and Directed b
ES LAUGHTON

Music and Effects by
WALTER SCHUMANN

TICKETS NOW ON SALE -
$2.50, $1.75, $1.00
Box Office Open 10 A.M.-5 P.M.

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Phone 3-1511, Ext. 479

1953-54. Lecture Course-Hill Auditorium

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