PAGE 8
N.C. ESSAY
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1974
^^Sweet Diversion Coming
riMMV I TMniTI? ^
By SONNY LINDER
Kssay Slaff HeiM»rl«*r
Bucking the school’s move away from
creative writing classes and a tradition
of choosing established plays and
playwrights, at least one man is in the
process of staging an original work here.
The person; Mark Pirolo, a teacher of
design, painting and drawing in the
Design and Production Department.
The work: a jaunty, progressive rock
musical called Sweet Diversion, loosely
centered aroiuni the adventures of
Lucrezia Borgia in medieval Italy, will
open Feb. 27 for a loui- night run in the
dome theatre.
Pirolo, 25 a graduate of theatre design
at Camegie-Mellon University, Pitts
burgh, may be remembered for his set
design of An Evening Of Three One-Acts
last year and for his Henry IV, Part One
costume design during this fall drama
season.
He is not, however, a newcomer to the
writing end of the theatre. WhUe in
college, he wrote two musicals for
Carnegie’s Scotch ’n Soda student
theatre.
“Most of the big established schools
have some kind of organization that puts
together an original show every year,”
said Mark. “Harvard has Hasty Pud
ding, Princeton has Triangle, Columbia
has Mask and Bauble. It’s all student
organized. It’s a shame the arts school
doesn’t have one... That’s why we’re
doing Sweet Diversion, to generate some
interest.”
Scotch ’-n Soda, now in its thirty-eighth
year, first produced the subsequent
Broadway hit Pippin by Stephen SonU-
heim (A Little Night Musi^', Follies
launchmg both aut» ...,u Uuy to famo).
Another NCSA faculty member,
John Kavelin, has also worked there.
Sweet Diversion was originally done at
Scotch ’n Soda as a one-act entitled Can
We Spare St. Peter?
Describing Sweet Diversion, Mark
said, “It’s based on a Renaissance farce
format, sort of patterned after the
commedia dell ’arte style.
Diversion concerns a group of
traveling players who become involved
with Lucrezia Borgia and her attempts to
IM'ove how foolish men can be. This
l^endary sorceress, whom history has
painted to be evil, sets out to
seduce a young artist and to bend her
lover, Nicolo Machiavelli, to her whims,
aided by her crafty servant and a
charming tavern whore.
“This play was begun as a vehicle for
three close friends of mine whom I
wished to work with again. (They were in
Personal the year before.) It was only
after I began writing the script for
Diversion that I really became con
cerned with it as a piece of writing: I
have consequently rewritten and revised
the work with its literary quality in
mind.”
Merrick Office
One of Pirolo’s shows, Something
Personal, has been done on a nationwide
scale since its birth. While he was still in
college. Something Personal won First
Place as Best Student Musical of 1970 in
competition sponsored by BMI (Broad
cast Music, Inc.), a well-known licensing
agency for musical composers.
Mark comments on the show: “For
awhile. Personal was optioned in the
(David) Merrick office, under perusal.
Unfortunately, they did not pick up the
option.” He adds, “Actually, David
Spangler (another Carnegie student)
wrote the original music for Personal,
and we co-authored the book.”
Later, Mark said he revised the script
for production at a summer theatre in
Connecticut during 1973. Larry Ropp,
who designed costumes for the Con
necticut production, is currently working
at NCSA as costume designer for
Drama’s The Country Wife, as well as
Sweet Diversion.
Cast members for Diversion are:
Sandra LaValle, as Lucrezia; Lee
Ewing, as Machiavelli: Peter Olson, as
Pietro, the artist-hero; and Judy Mont
gomery, who plays the whore with a
heart of gold. Supporting cast members
include Stephen Geiger, Dennis Wilson,
Bev Petty, Kathy Lindsay, Rod Franklin,
Robert Richardson, and Sonny Linder.
About the cast: “I’m pleased with the
cast. I think we’ve found an exceptional
group of students, and I’m excited to be
working with them. It’s nice being in a
place where you don’t have to make
compromise choices.”
The show is complete with a puppet
show, dancing and live music. All but two
of the thirteen songs come from Margot
Rose (lyrics) and Terry Mann (score),
both former N.C. School of the Arts
students. The other two songs come from
another Pirolo original, Madam,
Madam.
Trotto Directs
When questioned about his choice of
Maureen Trotto as director of Diversion,
Pirolo remarked, “If I didn’t feel ab
solutely confident, I wouldn’t have en
trusted it to her. I mean, Maureen and I
have worked together for years, and in
that time we’ve buUt up a com
munication. She understands my ideas in
the show as well as I do myself... And the
whole point in giving a show to a director
is to see what that director can add along
with the actors.”
Open Ended
When asked to comment upon how
he has developed as a writer over the
past few years, Mark replied: “At
first, I was concerned about gags and
gimmicks, more concerned with
stringing jokes together than with any
meaning or depth. But as I continue, I
find the development of the people in the
plot to be much more exciting than what
they’re saying... “In more recent works.
I’ve tried to say things bdiind the lines,
and let the audience find them for
Mark Pirolo
themselves. Diversion is a fairly good
example of this. If you want, you can
perceive nothing deeper than a good
comedy; but the aim is something
deeper, something we all have to say. “If
you’re going to write about the human
condition, you should leave it open-
Jr. League
Auditions
The Junior League of Winston-
Salem is presenting a
professionally staged musical
revue which will be “put on the
boards” by League members and
community volunteers. It will be
a benefit performance for the
League’s Community Trust Fund
which financially supports their
projects, including Horizons
Residential Care Center, a day
care project and a youth op
portunity home.
“The Flatfoot Follies,”
directed by CarghiU Productions
of New York, will be presented at
Reynolds Auditorium on Friday
and Saturday, March 15 and 16.
Dance, vocal, instrumental,
reading and skit auditions will be
held from 7-11 p.m. at KnoUwood
Baptist Church on Feb. 22. Those
who audition should bring any
music, records, accompanist or
reading material that is needed.
If you have any questions,
contact: Mrs. Marianne
Maynard, 724-7152 or Mrs.
Phoebe Satterwhite, 724-2594,
The Selling of the School?
SELLING, From Page 1
said, “and the woodwinds have a
nationally-known, first-rate quartet
working with them.” He went on to say
that now that the string department has
increased in size, the privilege of having
visiting artists will be more evenly
divided among the instruments.
Philip Dunigan, tlute mstructor,
refused to comment on the lack of
visiting artists for his students. “It is a
problem that should be thrashed out by
music students, faculty and ad
ministration, and not discussed in the
school newspaper,” he stated.
Fredrick Bergstone, the French horn
instructor, said, “There is reason for
concern. I don’t think master classes are
necessarily beneficial to anyone but the
advanced students, and I don’t see that
it’s doing the strings any good.”
“Big Names”
“Yes, it would be nice to have master
classes,” said bassoon instructor Mark
Popkin. “Emphasis so far has been on
the strings. It looks nice to have big
names. We have always had many first-
class wind players, but the strings have
been weak.”
Popkin agreed that the visiting artist
program attracts students to NCSA. He
said, however, “The value of master
classes has not been made clear to me. In
terms of priorities, it would make more
sense to spend the money for visiting
artists on scholarship programs, pur
chase of instruments and special
awards.”
“String players have been getting
favored treatment as far as financial aid
goes,” Popkin continued. “That seems
more important to me,” he said.
Popkin said he had no objective
evaluation of the master class program,
but that its value is being questioned by
the music faculty. He also said that the
outside influence of the guest artists is
good and gives musicians “a shot in the
arm.”
In February, Popkin reported,
woodwind students will be going to the
University of North Carolina at
Greensboro for a workshop with the
American Woodwind Quintet.
Starker: “Good Experience”
Double bass instructor Lynn Peters
said that master classes expose students
to other approaches to their music.
Marion Davies, cello instructor, said of
her students’ experience with Starker,
“It’s been good for them. It’s good from
the point of view of performing ex
perience and learning the different ways
of executing the instrument ”
Chancellor Robert Ward commented,
“We have been discriminating for the
other instruments, really. Without
strings we could not have two orchestras
the way we do. The music department
has had much more money to spend than
the other departments here at schools.”
He seemed hopeful that all the other
departments will benefit from the
visiting-artist program soon.
One of the students, Bryan Hartig, a
string bass player, said, “I think the
school should do something for every
department. Master classes give the
students a chance to perform in front of
other people, and this is a school for
performers. Of course, although big
names can teach students a lot, I think a
regular teacher is more important.”
Violist Louise Trent and violinist Kerry
Benson said, “Master classes give you
different ideas about playing. There’s no
one ‘right’ technique. Mixing the
methods of the different artists can help
you come up with your own style.”
However, Dunigan said that he is in the
Iffocess of getting approval for a
program that would enable students to
travel to larger cities to attend concerts
and master classes. He is proposing that
the school pay for concert tickets and
master class lessons. Each student would
pay his own travel, food and lodging
expenses. This would cost less Sian
paying the artist to come here to NCSA
for the few students he thinks would
actually benefit from the experience.
ended.”
How does Mark Pirolo feel about the
absence of a creative writing department
here at NCSA? “I feel in two ways
actually. I’ve seen a lot of schools with
play-writing departments who are tur
ning out pure junk, and I would never
subject actors to that.
“But, on the other hand, student
playwrites should be given a chance to
express their works. The only way to
learn play-writing. I’m convinced, is to
see that work in production,” Pirolo said.
“Do I think we should have a
playwriting department? In time, I think
we should have both a play-writing and a
directing group, because they go hand-in-
hand. It’s a valuable experience for
^udents to work hand-in-hand on a
conceptual project,” Pirolo said.
Other Processes
As we wound up our interview, Mark
summed up his personal experience and
his advice to anyone involved with the
theatre experience:
“It surprises people that a designer,
such as myself, should be writing plays.
Basically, it just stems frbm the fact that
I’ve done just about everything in theatre
at one point or another.”
His advice: “One of the things I’ve
always felt quite strongly is that no one in
theatre should be unaware of the
processes that the other artists go
through. The only way to find that out is
first hand- Go through it yourself.”
Building
Plans
Told
PLANS, from Page 1
tractive physical qualities of the campus
intact as much as possible.”
New Practice Rooms
New music practice rooms will be
included in the two busiest levels, along
with administrative offices and an un
finished space to allow for further ex
pansion. The levels that are with the
pedestrian street will house the main
section of the library with facilities for
140 students and a lounge for smokers.
There will also be an expanded reference
area and a special place for music books
on music and recordings.
The theatre building is currently being
renovated into a laboratory theater
which should be ready for use in Sep
tember. On that level w'ill also be large
stupes for music and dance, as well as
the offices and dressing rooms of the
drama department.
Drama and Visual Arts
Above the drama section on that level
will be large drama studios and a
rdiearsal room. Located on the up
permost level is space for visual arts
studios and offices. The total square
footage of the new construction is 119,000
square feet.
Mr. Sokoloff says that we shodd know
if the funds have been appropriated by
mid-April. He seemed very optimistic
and said he would be “most surprised” if
the measure did not pass. “Everything
we need, with the exception of facilities
for design and production, will be con
tained in the Workplace. We’ll not be the
poor cousins anymore,” Mr. Sokoloff
concluded.
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