november
99
features
page 11
Steppenwolf:
Recognizing the fear
that lurks within
Much Ado to do
veni manickam
“Rather, it had been
one of those days which for a
long while now had fallen to my
lot; the moderately pleasant, the
wholly bearable and tolerable,
lukewarm days of a discon
tented middle-aged man; days
without special pains, without
special cares, without particular
worry, without despair; days
when I
calmly
wonder,
objective
and fear-
less,
whether it
isn’t time to
follow the
example of
Adalbert
Stifter and
have an ac-
c i d e n t
while shav
ing,” wrote
Hermann
Hesse
within the
first thirty
pages of
his revolutionary
Steppenwolf.
What is so singular
about the book Steppenwolfl
The answer is quite simple; it is
an honest blatant book that
stops at little to achieve its point,
and yet, because many cannot
see past the mundane aspects
of this book has generally been
shunned and disregarded for its
literary merit.
Steppenwolfis the tale
of a man delving into himself,
loving this or that author, this
or that painter, this or that com
poser, this or that wine, this or
that woman, and yet it is only
when he leams to love life’s little
idiosyncrasies and, even more
than just love the quirks, he
leams to laugh at them, that he
The of cover of Hermann Hesse's
book
novel
Roommates...pl
on 3rd Bryan. Some of the prob
lems were small, but the involve
ment of parents, who wanted
their child in a different room,
and upset students, who
wanted to stay on the hall, made
moving the students to differ
ent rooms the only alternative.
“Some students just
didn’t get paired with the right
roommate, so many students
withdrew before the school year
began so the new roommate
matches could not be as care-
marv guv
finds life tolerable.
This is not to hint that
the book arrives at a happy
“Cinderella-style” ending,
though. Haller, the tme name of
the man who nicknames himself
“Steppenwolf,” is still thronged
by the problems of his existence,
still “enmeshed in the world of
reality.” However, now he is
armed with the rifles of humor,
with the fact that
perhaps life
should be experi
mented with
rather than tor
tured over as his
ammunition.
How does this
book appertain
to NCSSM? Is
not Haller’s
search for his
identity, for what
makes him spe
cial and what
makes his life
worthwhile, in
dicative of our
quest here? You
and I...WC...
have all come to NCSSM to dis
cover a part of ourselves that
was not evidently called upon
at our previous high schools.
And what have we found?
Among many other things, se
niors have known and juniors
who have been here for several
months now are beginning to
realize that they have found
within themselves a more relaxed
and tolerant point of view. In
essence, we have found that we
knew ourselves all along, but
now we are just beginning to
learn to laugh at ourselves.
And laughter,
and...contemplation, are both
results of Hermann Hesse’s clas
sic Steppenwolf, a book that 1
would certainly rate a 10 out of
a 0-10 scale.
“1 learn in this letter that
Don Pedro of Aragon is coming
this night to...” Durham! The
NCSSM Drama Department
proudly presents William
Shakespeare’s Much Ado About
Nothing. At 7:30 on November
19 and 20, and 2:30 on Novem-1
ber 21, the hard working cast
and crew will bring this roman
tic comedy to life.
Set in Messina, Italy, this
play portrays the attempts of the
villainous Do»a Anna to slan
der the virtue of fair Hero, as well
as the hilariously biting and
witty row between Beatrice and
Benedick. Adding to the vivac
ity of this play is the humor of
the talkative village constable,
Dogberry, and his assistant.
Verges.
The cast and crew of
Shakespeare’s Much Ado About
Nothing are very excited about
bringing this masterpiece to
NCSSM.
“This play has been a lot
of fun,” said Katherine
Morrison, who plays a musician
and a First Watch.
“We have a lot of up-and-
coming talent in the drama pro
gram here at Science and Math,”
said Rosie Stoertz, who plays
Do»a Anna.
“It’s timeless,” said Jenni
fer Farrell, who plays Beatrice.
This play can relate to everyone.
based miscommunications, mis-
understandings, and eaves
dropping, hearing “bits and
pieces and not putting it to
gether right,” said Farrell.
“This is a play that every
one can enjoy if they just get
past their Old English
phobias.. .The play still remains
a series of dirty jokes veiled be
hind the use of big words, some
thing everyone here at NCSSM
can appreciate,” said Jonathan
Wells, who plays Balthasar.
For a great night of laugh
ter, witty remarks, and quirky
romance, only the NCSSM
Drama Department production
of Shakespeare’s Much Ado
About Nothing will do.
Cast
Adesola Akinkuotu
Soldier
Chelsea Armitage
Maid
AmyBooi
Antonia, Leonato's sister
Anne Chesky
Messenger 2
Chris Clearfield
Don Pedro, a prince of Aragon
Elizabeth Currin
Second Watch
AmyDalien
Messenger 1
Elizabeth Daniels
Maid
Megan Duncan
Ursula, gentlewoman attending Hero
MargauxEscutin
Beatrice’s Maid
Jennifer Farrell
Beatrice, niece to Leonato & Antonia
Dina Gerber
Margaret, gentlewoman attending Hero
Mark Harris
Sexton: Antonia’s son
Rebeccah Drake
Hero, Leonato’s daughter
Jonathan Jeuck
Conrade, follower of Doha Anna
KharaJohnson
Soldier
Erik Karlsson
Claudio, a young lord of Florence
Sabrinia King
Second Watch
Chris Lunsford
Verges, a headborough
Douglas McCluskey
Borachio, follower of Doha Anna
Katharine Morrison
Musician; First Watch
HanniMuerdter •
Soldier
Charles Olbert
Leonato, governor of Messina
Keriann Paul
Friar Francis
David Prater
Benedick, a young lord of Padua
Peter Robichaux
Dogberry, a constable
Rosie Stoertz
Doha Anna, Don Pedro's bastard sister
Samantha Tedford
Boy
Jonathan Wells
Balthasar, attendant on Don Pedro
Production Staff
Douglas Bynum
Assistant Director
Anand Thakker
Technical Director
Nicole Miller
Assistant Technical Director; Set Design
Jason IdUbi
Stage Manager/Crew Chief
Ellen Wingo
Costumes Manager
Rita2Lota
Properties Manager
Hunt...pl
fully made,” said SLl on 3"*
Bryan Tonya Smith-Holliman.
Coming to NCSSM as a
junior is hard, but just like
classes and I-viz, roommates are
part of the package.
“We talk about diversity
and getting along so much here,
but how good are we at dealing
with diversity if everyone on hall
hates someone else on hall and
roommates can’t even speak to
each other,” said Junior Ginger
Summerford.
presented o;i an annual basis,
but only when YD sees the
honor to be fitting.
James B. Hunt was the
president of the NCYD in 1968.
Not four years later he was serv
ing as Lt. Governor of the state
and then in 1976, he began his
first term as North Carolina gov
ernor. Over the years, he has
stressed the importance of the
Smart Start program as well as
other programs targeting the im
provement of state schools.
During James B. Hunt’s terms in
office the North Carolina
economy has improved steadily
and Hunt’s guidance was cred
ited for many of the state’s ac
complishments over the last 50
years.
“This is history; this is
our future, and you can change
it. That is because Young Demo
crats has infused the party with
an energy they never thought
they’d have,” said Hunt.
He spoke in response
to all that YD is doing presently,
and also of everything he hopes
to see accomplished in the fu
ture. That leaves current Teen
Democrats with some rather
large shoes to fill.
“It (the conference)
has definitely been a great expe
rience. It has given us more in
spiration to move forward into
the future,” said Amy Yap, Presi
dent of the North Carolina Teen
Democrats.
Though the main fo
cus of the convention and din
ner may not have been centered
around the Teen Democrats,
they certainly felt included.
“1 think this was a great
event that shows not only the
ability of people our age to par
ticipate in politics but the posi
tive repercussions of them
doing so,” said Will Taylor,
President of the NCSSM chap
ter of the Teen Democrats.