ARTS
The Michigan Daily Friday, February 22, 1991
La Serva Padrona serves it up
Page 5
by Elizabeth Lenhard
If nothing else, the University has
learned to make creative use of its
resources. The University Museum
of Art, for instance is utilizing its
*pacious Apse to produce Pergolesi's
comic opera, La Serva Padrona.
While the tiny, one-act opera may
appear to be an exercise in
minimalism (the accompaniment
consists solely of a piano, the set-
ting is constant, and the cast is
composed of just three characters,
one of whom is a mute), it is one of
Pergolesi's greatest works.
La Serva Padrona is typical in
its simplistic plot, but very unique
in its characterizations. The libretto,
translated to an English version that
Chamber Concert coordinator Martha
Mehta says "is sharp as a tack," de-
fies the average boy-gets-girl-of-
lower-station precept of many
Baroque operas. Instead, the plot cen-
ters around the servant Serpina and
her aggressive pursuit of her
"master," via a mute butler's aid.
Baron .Uberto, the object of Ser-
pina's affections, is a reluctant part-
ner, but since she runs the house-
hold, she gets her way in the end.
Another uncharacteristic twist is
the casting of a soprano in the part
of Serpina. The role of aggressive,
sexual women is usually relegated to
altos, while sopranos play mal-
leable, even victimized young
things. Connie Dykstra's portrayal
of Serpina, then,
refreshing turn.
should introduce a
The opera is set in the Baron's
sitting room. The museum's vaulted
ceiling takes one back to the genteel
ballrooms and ornate parlors in
which chamber music was originally
performed, although some odd ma-
nipulations were necessary for acous-
tic integrity, such as hanging rugs
from the balcony. Lighting may be
makeshift as well, but the thrust
platform on which the singers will
perform will be surrounded inti-
mately by audience members. This
informality, combined with the up-
dated humor, should make technical
flaws insignificant.
The matter-of-fact improvisation
of the museum's setting does not,
however, connote a shoddy produc-
tion. Dykstra and the other princi-
ples, baritone Stephen Bryant and
John Lawrence Henkel, have per-
formed this and other operas exten-
sively. According to Mehta, both of
the soloists have an uncanny range
of expression, from lyric to indig-
nant, all the while staying true to
the biting dialogue.
"What one can dream of, one can
put into opera," says Mehta. And
apparently, if one can dream of re-
viving authentic Chamber music,
than the Museum can put the plan
into action. The performance should
give audiences an elegant taste of
18th-century high court while they
enjoy timeless, raucous humor.
LA SERVA PADRONA is being
performed tonight in the University
Musuem of Art at 8 p.m. Tickets are
$10, $5 for students available from
the Musuem Art Gift Shop.
The guys in Drivin' n' Cryin' are self-proclaimed "promotional whores."
Too bad their promotional agency in NYC screws over hard-working
reporters, duping them into believing they can get an interview with
these guys and then fucking them over at every possible opportunity.
Drivrn'
n' Cryin'
remain obscure
R-
it
"NO, no, no," exclaims the stodgy Baron Uberto, "I'm not that kind of guy!"
Fine Arts Review
Mummenschanz mimes, masks,
'muses
by Kristin Palm
Used to be, back in October or
something, nobody knew who
Drivin' n' Cryin' were.
Then they released Fly Me
Courageous.
This album, the band's fourth,
just may be their ticket off of mys-
tery road and into widespread recog-
nition. Walking down the street, you
can hear people talking about their
new song on the radio or about their
new video on MTV. This is a new
phenomenon.
Remember Scarred but Smarter?
Of course not. Neither do the people
at Schoolkids'. What about Whisper
Tames the Lion? Nope? Okay. Then
there was Mystery Road. Beginning
to sound a little familiar? Fly Me
has definitely been this southern
band's attention-grabber. It's harder
than the other albums (or at least
harder for a longer period of time),
but these guys have always known
the virtue of a good, dirty power
chord or two.
Lead singer/guitarist Kevin Kin-
ney and the crew (bassist Tim
Nielsen, guitarist Buren Fowler, and
drummer Jeff Sullivan) proved their
knowledge of the dirtier side of rock
'n' roll last fall when they opened up
for Soul Asylum and came close to
blowing this better-known band off
the Nectarine's awkward little stage.
That was Drivin' n' Cryin's first
trip to Michigan, and tonight marks
their second. Fortunately for local
fans, tonight's shindig takes place at
the Blind Pig, a more intimate and
appropriate setting than the neon-
Nectarine. The Miller Genuine Draft
sign behind the stage always adds to
the ambiance created by perfor-
mances like this. Country-tinged
rock demands good (cheap) beer and
it shouldn't be long before the audi-
ence is transported from the feeling
of being in a beer commercial to the
feeling of being at one damn rockin'
show.
DRIVIN' N' CR YIN' jams tonight at,-,
the Blind Pig with LONESOME
VAL opening. Tickets in advance
are $5 (plus the evil service charge,
at all TicketMaster outlets.
by Julie Komorn
t's a monster!" cried a small boy
in the audience. He was referring to
"the Blob," on stage at the Power
Center two nights ago. The Blob is
one of the many entertaining and ex-
tremely imaginative sketches per-
Wformed by Mummenschanz, a
mime/mask/dance troupe. The great
thing about the show, The Best of
Mummenschanz, is that the crazy
masks and shapes presented can be
monsters or anything else the mind
can think of.
The Swiss mime troupe presented
numerous creatures full' of
riginality and personality. Two
characters dressed in black bodysuits
had toilet paper rolls as the features
on their face. The unraveling of the
paper represented flirting, talking,
listening, and crying, and resulted in
much confusion. By the end of the
skit, streams of white sheets lay in
clumps of emotional refuse across
the stage. Who ever thought toilet
paper could be art?
Mummenschanz seemed to be
fascinated with body parts; their
Suitcase man, a character who had a
suitcase for a head, opened his mind
to release sticky-colored, worm-like
things, which in turn became the hi-
larious mouth and blood of a silent
but dramatic opera singer. In other
sketches, gigantic slinkies played
with balloons, while a green Pacman
with a long, expressive tongue
amusingly danced across the stage.
The numerous interactions be-
'tween two beings always evoked a
smile. One hysterical couple, a plug
and an outlet, ran around the stage
until they finally came to an electri-
fying connection which caused the
stage lights to turn on and off. The
lights were almost a character unto
themselves throughout the show,
nicely emphasizing the intricate tex-
tures and colors of the creative cos-
tumes and props.
Both acts of the show began with
great introductions. Two giant hands
with little legs ran across the stage
and through the audience, waving the
show on to its beginning. Part two
began with a black, square-headed
body which, by using masking tape,
dressed itself in a simulated suit,
complete with buttons, a belt, and a
smile. Unhappy with a non-partici-
pative member of the audience, this
tape creature wrapped him up in its
sticky strands. Some of the group's
surreal mystery was made accessible
with this audience contact.
The true cleverness of Mummen-
schanz is difficult to convey. Much
of the viewer's time is spend won-
dering, "How did they do that?" Ex-
planations conclude that it was either
magic, or that the mimes are made
out of incredibly agile rubber. With
no words spoken, the captivating
characters of Mummenschanz really
said a lot.
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it 12
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--r.,._