SEPTEMBER 22,1997 — THE DECREE — PAGE 3
Wesleyan to present musical ‘Grease’
Grease, one of the most popu
lar musicals of all time will be
performed at the Dunn Center on
the Wesleyan campus this fall.
Grease, a thrilling extrava
ganza of singing and dancing,
made off-Broadway history in
1972. Made into a movie soon
after. Grease remained popular
for the next decade. Recently re
vived on Broadway where it
starred Rosie O’Donnell and
Brooke Shields, this musical is
proving its timeless quality and
the college and local community
will be able to see it live on
Wesleyan’s campus.
Over 80 would-be singers,
dancers, and actors showed up for
auditions last week. Vaughn
Schutz, director of the Theater,
said that he believes this will be
“by far the most exciting musical
we’ve produced in years.” Those
who saw and were enchanted by
The Music Man, directed by
Vaughn Schutz last year will be
excited to know that Schutz also
added "Grease will definitely ri
val Music Man in quality.”
The Dunn Center production
is scheduled for presentation at 8
p.m., Oct. 23, 24, 25, 30 and 31.
On Nov. 1 there will be two per-
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September
16 “Meet Mark Twain” (Special Non-Sub
scription Event)
18 Chamber of Commerce Education Forum,
D. William Bennett
October
4 “1964...” The Tribute to the Beatles
23-25,30-31 “Bye, Bye, Birdie”*
November
I “Bye, Bye, Birdie”*
8 The Boys Choir of Harlem
15 Tar River Orchestra & Chorus Opening Night
21 The Glenn Miller Orchestra
December
6 “A Christmas Carol,” matinee & evening
II Chamber of Commerce Education Forum,
Ambassador Andrew Young
January
20 “The Hunchback Of Notre Dame”
February
7 Tar River Chorus performs Andrew Lloyd
Webber
14 North Carolina Symphony Pops Concert
25-28 “Bus Stop”*
March
31 The Spencers “Theatre of Illusion”
April
15-18 “Aresenic & Old Lace”*
25 Tar River Orchestra & Chorus: Requi
ems, Mozart & Salieri
30 “Hailey’s Comet”
May
30 Tar River Orchestra & Chorus, Pops Con
cert at Bryanna
^Wesleyan Theatre Productions
formances, a matinee at 2 p.m.
and an evening performance at 8
p.m.
The cast includes many
Wesleyan students. Drew Davis
is playing Danny, Sonya
Tharrington takes the part of the
beautiful Sandy, and Jen Morse,
a senior this year, is playing
Rizzo, the hard-headed aggressive
leader of the Pink Ladies. Meegan
Gray is playing the part of Marty,
and freshman student Elizabeth
Freeman is cast in the role of Patty
the cheerleader.
Wesleyan’s new Technical
Director, Chris Johnson, will be
responsible for set design and tech
design, while alumni Charlotte
Woleslagle will be Costumer for
both this and the spring semester
productions. And, joining the
folks from Wesleyan for the first
time, Loretta Druen, a dance
teacher from the Rocky Mount
community, will be orchestrating
the choreography.
Grease is just the first of the
three productions planned for this
academic year. In the spring both
Bus Stop and Arsenic and Old
Lace will be directed by Vaughn
Schutz at the Dunn Center.
So, don’t miss a musical high
light of the fall semester. Mark
your calendars now for an evening
of fun, laughter, and music.
^Quitters^put local audiences
through hoops of imagination
By KEN RIPLEY
“Quilters,” the opening pro
duction of the Playhouse Com
munity Theatre’s new season,
came across as Broadway’s com
promise between the documen
tary style of Ken Bums and the
episodic pageantry of the Lost
Colony.
The Tony-nominated musical
is a tribute to the women who
settled the American West as well
as to the art of quilting which
they perfected. Based on the book,
“The Quilters: Women and Do
mestic Art,” the musical uses the
stories and words of the women
themselves to paint a mental pic
ture of the joys and harshness of
their lives on the American prai
rie.
Mixing dance and music, hu
mor and drama, the characters of
“Quilters” relate their stories to
the squares of the quilts they are
making. The 16 stories are “pieces
of lives” woven into the fabric of
the vivid finished quilt they as
semble.
“Quilters,” well directed by
Jerry Sipp, was an unusual pro
duction, and unusually demand
ing of the audience’s imagination.
It definitely showcased the act
ing talent of its all-women en
semble cast as each of the seven
actresses assumed more than a
dozen roles to portray more than
100 characters during the two-
hour production.
Loosely led by veteran Play
house actress Susan Reese, as a
narrator of sorts, the capable cast
included Mary Frances Bush,
Delinda Lee, Marsha Mills, Sh
annon Nicole Plummer, Wallyce
Todd, and Deborah Matthews
Whitlev Thpv nil th^ir
Review
dramatically, and their voices
blended well into many luscious
harmonies throughout the broad
mix of musical styles, backed by
a wonderful orchestra led by mu
sic director Mark Pace.
David Blakely’s provocative
set was spareness and simplicity
itself — a bare tilted wheel that
revolved through the ages, chang
ing moods through imaginative
lighting and the creative use of
simple props.
One of the best, most evoca
tive images was the women’s use
of quilting hoops carefully ar
ranged to suggest a covered
wagon as they marched atop the
revolving set. The production el
ements also effectively combined
to suggest a huge prairie fire that
fiercely consumes lives as well
as dreams.
As a look at history, “Quilters”
is reasonably effective in evok
ing the lives of pioneer women,
with some of the more dramatic
episodes echoing the brooding,
intimate style of Ken Burns’
“Civil War.”
However, the same spare for
mat of the musical that showed
off the women’s acting talent also
created the dramatic weakness of
the production. The audience was
bombarded with so many charac
ters, in such quick succession, that
the episodes — variously funny
and somber — began to march
across the stage like Paul Green’s
outdoor pageants rather than draw
the audience into a satisfying dra
matic connection.
T’Ka
play that was an conceptual feast
but an emotional hors d’oeuvre.
Whether “Quilters” was a suc
cess or letdown depended more
upon the expectations and imagi
nation of the audience than upon
the genuinely good performances
on stage.
Still, “Quilters” was an ambi
tious and successful opening to
what promises to be an exciting
Playhouse season. The next pro
duction in November is the abso
lutely hilarious “The Teahouse of
August Moon,” followed by the
annual Christmas Chorus, the
popular musical “Annie,” and the
intense drama, “Twelve Angiy
Jurors.” With this lineup, a sea
son ticket is the best entertain
ment value in the area.
We’re in for some great local
theater this year.
(Season tickets are still avail
able at the Playhouse Commu
nity Theatre in Rocky Mount. For
more information and tickets, call
972-1266 weekdays from noon-
4:30p.m.)
Security everyone’s job
(Continued from Previous Page)
rity will remain as it is. Like it or
not, we are adults now (Well,
most of us anyway) and should
be responsible for our own and
other’s safety.
There is no excuse for vio
lence, just as there is no excuse
for letting just anyone into a resi
dence hall or room. Think twice
before you prop doors open. The
visitor escort policy was imple
mented for a reason, and is well
worth the students’ time.
Strive for a safe and violence-
free student community. It can be