THE COMPASS
U. S. Poatage
Noo'Profit Organization
PAID
Elizabetb City, N.C.
Permit No. 5
VOLUME 31
ELIZABETH CITY. N. C
MAY 11. 1970
NUMBER 8
ECSU TO HOLD ANNUAL FINE ARTS FESTIVAL
Dr. deGregorlo, Chair
man of the 1970 Fine
Arts Festival.
Dr. Vincent J. de Gre
gorio, chairman of the
Elizabeth City State Uni
versity Fine Arts Festi
val, announced that this
year’s program is sche
duled for Thursday, Ap
ril 23 through Thurs
day, April 30.
The complete schedule
of this extraordinary e-
vent covers a vast dis
play of art through sculp
ture, painting, photo
graphy, and through per
forming artists, with I-
van Dixon, a star on CBS’s
“Hogans Heroes,” being
the central attraction.
The Lyceum Commit
tee of Elizabeth City State
University presented
"les Danseurs Afri
cans,” Wednesday night,
at 8:00 p.m., in Moore
Hall Auditorium, the au
dience watched the pre
lude to the year’s excit
ing Fine Arts Festival.
The Festival, directed
by Dr. Vincent J. de Gre
gorio, was certainly
something to dance about,
a panorama of the arts
and the artists.
The dancers from the
Republic of Cameroon,
with their bizarre cus-
tomes and energetic
dances, did everything
^ssible to shake the
ECSU Fine Arts Festi
val. The award - winning
show featured an ensem
ble of 45 dancers, drum
mers, acrobats, singers,
and instrumentalists, in
the most unusual stage
spectacle ever to be
shown in northern North
Carolina, and Tidewater
Virginia,
Following the Wednes
day night Lyceum pre
sentation, the Festival of
ficially opened at 7:30
P.M., Thursday, in the
University Center. Guest
Artist was Miss Rita
Marlier. Head of the
Sculpture Division of the
Norfolk Museum Art
School. She had a uni
que background of her na
tionally recognized
sculptural productions
surrounding her, as she
addressed the area’s art
enthusiasts who attended
the Festival’s opening.
Excluding a concert by
the North Carolina Cen
tral University Band, on
Saturday, April 25, at 8:00
p.m.. Miss Marlier was
one of four guest artists
or groups to participate
in the ECSU Fine Arts
Festival.
Friday morning, at
10:00 am, in the Thea
tre of the G. R. Little
Library, Jack Williams
presented an extensive
slide presentation, “The
Art of Seeing in Photo
graphy.” Williams is a
known professional in
photography, having al
ready had some of his
works reprinted in the
U. S. Congressional Re
cord, The New York
Time, U. S. Air Services,
Speed and Spray, and in
other national publica
tions. The former news
paper feature writer op
erates a commercial stu
dio on U. S. Highway 17,
just South of Elizabeth
City. While Miss Mar
lier’s exhibition of sculp
ture occupies the Univer
sity Center until April 30,
61 of Jack Williams’
photographic produc
tions, many of them state
and national award win
ners, will go on exhibit
in the library.
Just as the African dan
cers shook in the Festi
val’s opening, the ECSU
Modern Dance Group,
with its exotic and mo
dern interpretation of
dances, twisted in the
Festival’s central at
traction, in a recital, at
8:00 p.m., Friday, in the
auditorium. Then, at 9:30
p.m., in the University
Center, students and area
citizens had a chance to
meet, listen to, and chat
with Ivan Dixon.
Dixon, a regular actor
Ivan Dixon was recently
on the campus of Eliza
beth City State Univer
sity.
While present here,
Mr. Dixon consented to
to an exclusive interview
for the Compass. In his
interview, he told about
his life and his future
plans.
Ivan Dixon was born in
Harlem, New York.
Dixon received formal
education at the Lincoln
Academy. After grad
uating from the Lincoln
Academy, he decided to
continue his education be
cause he felt that a coll
ege degree is essential
in order to be successful
in such a progressive so
ciety.
Later, he decided to at
tend North Carolina Coll
ege, known today as the
North Carolina Central
University.
While attending N.C.C.,
he became interested in
dramatics.
After graduating from
N. C. C. U. with a de
gree in Political Science,
he married Miss Berlie
Ray, and they moved to
New York where he enter
ed a theatrical school to
study acting.
He received minor
parts in broadway pro
ductions.
Later, he moved to Hol
lywood, California.
Dixon became unem
ployed for a short peri
od of time. While being
unemployed, he headed an
organization known as the
N. A.A., (Negro Action for
Actors.)
The proposal of the
N. A. A. was to pres
sure producers and di
rectors into finding parts
for black actors. This or
ganization indirectly en
able Dixon to receive a
part in the television se
ries, “Hogans Heroes.”
Dixon has no definite
plans for the future al
though he hopes to become
the director of a black
oriented company of act
ors.
He is currently working
on the possibility of pro
ducing and directing a play
based on the book entitled
'‘Spooky Sat by the Door.”
on CBS’s Friday night
show, “Hoggans Hero,”
has an extensive back
ground of stage ap
pearances and in motion
picture. He has appear
ed in such productions
as “A Raisin In The
Sun,” “A Patch of Blue,”
“The Mod Squad,” “I
Spy,’’ “The Cave Dwell
ers,” and other shows.
For his contributions to
the arts through the world
of theatre, ECSU honored
him during an invitation -
only banquet, at 4:30p.m.,
Saturday, and saluted
him, at 6:00 p.m., in the
Theatre, with perform
ances by the University
Players.
Since Dixon’s appear
ances did not mark the
beginning of the Festi
val, it certainly did not
punctuate the ending. The
following week, from Sun
day, April 26, through
Thursday, April 30, the
Festival featured all -
ECSU presentations. This
included a student art ex
hibit, music faculty con
cert, movie, discussion,
and ended with apresenta-
tion of three black plays
by the University Play
ers. Except for the small
admissions price to the
Lyceum Program, and the
by - invitation only ban
quet, events of the entire
F estival were opened to
the public without charge.
Certainly, when the cur
tains closed, and banners
and posters taken down,
and equipment moved, the
area long remembered
the African Dancers, Ri
ta Marlier, Ivan Dixon,
and Jack Williams, for
their performances dur
ing the well-planned Fes
tival at ECSU.
Rainey Sits On
$3,000 Chair
An Exclusive Interview
With Ivan Dixon
Dr. Thorpe
Elected C.I.A.A.
Council President
Dr. Marion D. Thorpe,
President of Elizabeth
City State University,has
been elected President of
the Presidents’ Council
of the Central Intercol
legiate Athletic Associa
tion. The Council, an ad
visory body, conveys the
thinking of the admin
istrators of member col
leges and universities to
the association.
(Continued on page 8)
Guest Star, Ivan Dixon