tober 13, 1987
The Compass
Page 3
ECSU to
present
^it play
By Lynn Chapman
Sie University Players, EC
's drama troupe, will present
f Member of the Wedding No-
nber 11-13 and 15 at 8:00 p.m.
he Little Theater.
•he play, which evolved from
•son McCullers’ novel, deals
h an adolescent girls’ lone-
jss and dreams as she faces
pain of growing up. The Mem-
■ of the Wedding has been per
med as a successful Broadway
y, and also as a film, starring
late Ethel Waters,
jiawn Smith will direct the
>U production. The cast of the
w includes Vickie Webb-
^as as Frankie Addams;
I Rosa Sawyer, as Bernice Sa-
,Brown; and Joel Deonanan
f) portrays John Henry
it.Also appearing in the show
1 James Gibbs, Zelene Bunch,
^athan Baxley, Glenda M. Da-
jTecia Murrell, Beverly John-
j Kimberley Bailey, Jerome
thers, James Hardy H, and
wn Smith.
biis fall the Players will also
‘orm Vanities a comedy about
Texas women. The story
Ws their lives from high
*»1 and college to a reunion
'e years later, in which they
ize the separate paths that
t lives must take. Vanities
•be directed by Zelene Bunch,
teCSU grduate who has re-
ned to receive her En-
'b/Drama teaching certifica-
‘.-Ms. Bunch has also directed
Good Doctor and served as
instant director of a production
^oonchildren.
I,-
illiis spring, the Players will
i^ent The Fantastics, the first
fUcal to be produced at ECSU
tpour years. The Fantastics,
iph is in its 28th year on Broad-
j>is New York’s longest run-
51{ musical. The play features
IjfiJar hits like “Soon It’s
1)^ Rain” and “Try to Re-
iber.”
awn Smith will direct the
[Siction, and will work in con-
(jtipn with Billy Hines, ECSU
jjj director. Willie McElroy,
jjiestral Director, and the De
ment of Music.
16 Fantastics will be per-
Photo by Eugene O’Neal
Joel Deonanan (left) as John Henry West, Rosa B. Sawyer (center) as Bernice Sadie
Brown, and Vicki Webb-Thomas as Frankie Addams in the University Players’
production of the comedy-drama “The Member of the Wedding.” The play opens in
the Little Theatre on Wednesday, November 11.
formed March 2-4 and on Marrh
6, at 8:00 p.m. in the Little The
ater. There will be a 2:00 p.m.
matinee on Sunday the 6th.
A workshop production of stu-
dent-directed one-act plays will
be held April 18 and 19, 1988.
The ECSU University Players
is a division of the Department of
Language, Literature and Com
munication. The group invites
any interested students to get in
volved in the theater.
The troupe holds a workshop on
Mondays and Wednesdays at 6:30
p.m.
“Experience is not necessary
and extra help is always appre
ciated,” Smith said. Smith can be
reached by calling 335-3463.
gifted group who got “bum rap”
By Steve Smith
hu
ifortunately, many people
ciate the band X with skin-
violence, and the Los An-
s punk scene. It is true that
have their beginnings in the
Ji scene of the late 1970’s, but
W band’s sixth album shows,
® have grown beyond their
c origins without losing the
^,^y and spirit of that begin-
has weathered the loss of its
ily acclaimed guitarist Billy
m, his replacement Dave Al-
■^and the romantic breakup of
^rs John Doe and Exene Cer-
Ka. Despite these problems,
'band has endured and re
led an album that could give
n the recognition they de-
'e.
!n See How We Are, regulars
, Cervenka and drummer
. Bonebrake are joined by
;'comer Tony Gilkyson, who
in admirably on guitar with-
ijust copying old Billy Zoom
s. Gilkyson brings a sound all
town, reminiscent of Zoom’s
ikneck, slashing style, but
» a little more of an under-
ed, somewhat folky sound,
lebrake’s drumming and
i’s bass give the band a power-
(driving rhythm section.
the heart of X
and vocals of
ttiis album
together very
^ and could almost be called
*inonious on a few songs. Yet
fr voices still retain some of
trive and anger from the old
s. Doe and Cervenka stiU sing
'an off-beat harmony un
matched by any other male fe
male duo.
Lyrically, the album is much
less angry, but it still is full of
loneliness, anger and frustration.
However, some songs seem to
suggest a kind of hope. In “When
It Rains,” Doe and Cervenka sing
of “a rain that wUl wash away the
sins of the world/a rain that
shows beauty never dies.”
“7’m Lost” is as chilling
and effective a song about
loneliness and alienation
as any ever recorded. ”
“I’m Lost” is as chilling and
effective a song about loneliness
and alienation as any ever re
corded. Beneath a slashing,
punky chord progression, Doe
and Cervenka lament, “All the
lights go out/the evenings go on
and on/the sun goes down and
I’m too lost/to ever, ever be
found.”
“You” is a beautiful song
about a long-distance romance.
Cervenka’s voice almost sounds
sweet in this song, a far cry from
the old monotone. This song will
hit home with anyone who has
ever been involved in a long dis
tance romance. “You” is one of
the songs which shows X’s softer
stance and growth.
“The 4th of July” and the title
cut are two other songs that show
X’s growth. “The 4th of July” is
about a love affair on the rocks
and could almost be called beau
tiful, a rarity for an X song. “See
How We Are” is the most power
ful and beautiful song on the al
bum. The guitar has a distinctly
folky sound and the chilling lyrics
are sung quietly. This song is a
realistic indictment of today’s so
ciety—condemning excess com
mercialism, lack of communica
tion and lack of compassion for
the downtrodden. In plaintive
voices full of woe and anger. Doe
and Cervenka sing “Now that
highway’s comin’ through/so you
all gotta move/this bottom rung
ain’t no fun at all/’cause now
fires, and rock-houses, and
grape-flavored rat poison/are the
new trinity for this so-called com
munity.” This song more than
any other shows the still tough
but softer, more folky approach
of this growing and expanding
original American band.
However, the album is not all
as folky and beautiful as “See
How We Are.” There are still
quite a few songs that forge
ahead at breakneck speed with
that characteristic “harmony” of
Doe and Cervenka. “In The Time
It Takes,” “Anyone Can Fill
Your Shoes,” “Left and Right,”
and “Surprise Surprise” are all
upbeat rockers with anger
aplenty, but the anger is less self-
indulgent and seems turned out
ward. Much of the angst of their
earlier albums is gone. Doe and
Cervenka see the ills of a less
than perfect world, but instead of
having the I don’t give a — atti
tude, they seem to be saying that
recognizing the injustices is the
first step in doing something to
change them.
Doe and Cervenka even man
age to question themselves and
laugh at themselves in“Surprise
Surprise” when they sing “I
drive to work/in a rented
bus/Two hundred miles/or more
each day/Just so that you/can
get a look at us/and figure out/if
we’re worth what you paid.”
C entekiainment)
National tv show
promotes black
colleges, schools
By Kathleen Fait and J.M. Rubin
ATLANTA, GA. (CPS)-
Twenty-one students gathered in
the TV lounge at a dorm at Spel-
man College September 24, wait
ing with some eagerness and
some skepticism for the show A
Different World to begin.
The students had some special
reasons to be excited: the fictio
nal black college at which which
the show takes place is based on
Spelman, and the production
company had filmed location
shots on the campus, which had
competed with several other lo
cal black colleges for the priv
ilege.
including the everpresent, over-
eager young man trying to hustle
Denise and “my roomate hates
me” syndrome.
Not everyone was impressed.
“That Denise,” said one student,
“was an unbelievable charac
ter.” Another viewer thought the
character’s clothes were so “way
out” that they detracted from the
plot
But in general, most seemed to
agree with student Beverly Hill
man’s summation: “That was a
good show. I was surprised, very
much surprised.”
Educators also had reason to
like it.
And Spellman, a 105-year-old biack women’s college,
had other things at stake: unprecedented and individual
national exposure for the school and black colleges in gen
eral.
See How We Are is one of the
more important albums of 1987.
It shows that the punk movement
was not a waste and most of all, it
shows one of America’s best
bands in the process of growing
up. This is an album that should
be heard, but because of X’s rep
utation as an LA punk band, it
might not get the exposure it de
serves. And that’s a shame, be
cause one listen to the album
would show many people what
some of us have known all along-
that X is a very intelligent band
that just might be one of Ameri
ca’s best.
And Spelman, a 105-year-old
black women’s college, had other
things at stake: unprecendented
and invaluable national exposure
for the school and black colleges
in general.
No one at Spelman, at the
show’s production company or at
the United Negro College Fund
could remember another TV pro
gram that has featured a pre
dominantly black college.
A Different World is a spinoff
from the top rated Bill Cosby
Show, tracing the experiences of
Cosby’s character’s daughter,
Denise Huxtable — played by
Lisa Bonet — away from home
for the first time.
“It’s about the college experi
ence, also the maturing process,
the process of growing from
childhood to adulthood. The col
lege is an important environment
for that process,” explained Joel
Brokaw, publicist for the show’s
production company.
The students watching at Spel
man recognized it.
Introductory scenes of Denise
Huxtable moving into her dormi
tory elicited groans of recollec
tion, while the dorm itself was
reminiscent of Spelman’s McVi-
car Hall, which is similarly old,
warm, and has rounded windows.
Another viewer recognized a
framed print in one scene as an
enlargement of the card the col
lege sends each student at
Christmas, a card handpainted
every year by Spelman graduate
Varnette Honeywood.
Others thought the characters
and situations seemed familiar.
Such national exposure can be
invaluable to a school, especially
a relatively small institution that
doesn’t get on TV much.
“Black colleges are known for
their academic excellence,” said
Adrienne Rhodes of the United
Negro College Fund. “The new
school will exposure that to a
broader public.”
Rhodes hopes “it will show that
black colleges are place where
black students can get good role
models, find mentors and take
active roles in student govern
ment and clubs.”
Spelman Development Direc
tor Tanya Moore adds A Differ
ent World can illustrate to nation
that a young black woman’s “life
at college is important. That re
inforces what we say.”
But some of the benefits have
been more immediate.
“The exposure Spelman has
gotten through the show has
helped with recruitment and visi-
bihty,” Moore reported. “We’ve
gotten letters from Iowa and Ne
braska, not all from black people.
The show has made Spelman
stand out in people’s mind.”
Moore added a small founda
tion in Florida had awarded a
grant to Spelman, as a result of
the show, and that the production
company itself had enhanced
Spelman’s grounds by planting
azeleas, dogwood and other flow
ers on the campus.
Nevertheless, the students who
gathered to watch the premiere
episode didn’t see much of the
campus.
And they may not see much
more of it during succeeding epi
sodes.
Photo by Richard McIntyre
CFM recording artist Jimmy Castor performing with the ECSU marching band on October
3. Castor is a native of Plymouth, NC.
V