Nov. 12, 2004
Www, euilfordian .com
broadswords with camou
flage and M-16 machine
guns.
"When Shakespeare did
it, he did it in modern dress,
meaning that even though it
was about the 11th century,
they all wore Elizabethan
clothes," said Zerbe. By
.J
ELIZABETH MINEHART/SPECIAL TO THE GUILFORDIAN
From the Macbeth dress rehearsal
Native American trio lllali performs at Guilford
Andy Freedman
Staff Writer
After the opening ceremony of
the Native American photogra
phy exhibit on Nov. 5 in Hege Library,
patrons left the gallery feeling shaken
and touched.
Though the photographs were
amazing, they weren't the cause.
The Native American women's a
cappella group Ulali had just finished
a rousing performance in celebration
of the exhibit's opening, performing
with the same captivating energy the
trio has been emitting throughout its
history.
Originally called Lady's Choice,
Ulali consists of Pura Fe, Soni, and
Jennifer, three Native American
women from New York and
Connecticut. Pura Fe and Jennifer are
cousins, and both part of the
Tuscarora tribe, a common identifica
tion of many North Carolinian Native
Americans. Pura Fe, living for years in
the traditionally Native American
Robeson County, NC, now lives in
Chapel Hill. Soni is part of the Mayan,
Apache, and Yaqui Native American
tribes.
On their Web site, they claim to be
"the first Native women's group to cre
ate their own song from their strong
roots and personal contemporary
doing this,
Shakespeare
made the story
relevant to his
audience, and
Zerbe wants noth
ing less for his
own.
The production
team faced
interesting
challenges
in making
the play
contempo
rary while
maintaining
the integrity
of the text.
One inter
esting ele
ment is a
set that takes up every
foot of available space.
"It's the biggest one
I've ever worked on as
a technical person or
an actor here at
Guilford," said master
electrician Chris Imms.
styles." Started 15 years ago, it
seems to have been a consistent goal
of Ulali to create something new and
original by standing out amongst the
thousands of other Native American
music groups.
At their 7 p.m. performance in Dana
Auditorium, they were able to fill the
entire theatre with ear-piercing noise,
yet withhold extremely beautiful and
unusual three-part harmonies. The
instruments in use rotated between
shakers, authentic drums made with
animal skins, guitar, and their own
voices and hands.
"I could hear a very distinct gospel
influence in their music," said first
year Josh Shelton. Before one of their
more powerful numbers, Ulali offered
words of wisdom: "never forget who
you are and where you come from."
It is clear that Ulali do not take
advantage of their popularity and use
their music and actions to say some
thing meaningful and important.
Ulali play several benefit shows a
year, such as fundraisers for cancer
and AIDS research and women's
rights rallies. Activism is a large part
of their existence, and Ulali make no
joke about which side they support.
"We're wearing broken heart neck
laces tonight 'cause George Bush
won," said Jennifer before diving into
the opening chants of the song
FEATURES
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ELIZABETH MINEHART/SPECIAL TO THE GUILFORDIAN
From the Macbeth dress rehearsal
"There are a lot of things
up on stage that are very
Elizabethan that look con
temporary," Zerbe said. "The
set is almost an exact dupli
cate of Shakespeare's
Elizabethan theatre, howev
er the materials are steel;
to creative lighting
and unique set
materials; he guar
antees a thrill.
Zerbe hopes to
abolish the con
ception that
Shakespeare is
"Necklace Of Broken Hearts."
"Get active. We have four more
years of hell ahead of us," Ulali said
to the audience during a break in their
performance. "I was afraid to be a lib
eral, but not anymore."
After more political talk, which
included a joke where Soni changed
"Washington D.C." to "Washington
deceit," the performance ended to a
rousing round of applause.
Afterwards, when I asked if any of
their songs had distinct Anti-Bush
messages, Pura Fe simply replied: "It
will be coming very soon."
However, there is a lot more than
just politics that inspires them as a
band. "We have to pay our bills, but
there's also an
activist side to
support Native
causes, to edu
cate, to build
bridges... we
need to reach out
to people," said
Jennifer.
Through the
bands extensive
travels, they have
tried to spread
their message of
peace and under
standing with
their music and
9 Mr * ' BjgjL
KM
INSLEE HACKETT/GUILFORDIAN
Ulali performs in Dana Auditorium on Nov. 5
the colors are gray."
Every element of the
production has been
expanded for this ambi
tious release, from the
huge cast of 28 actors,
to the largest set in
memory, to technical
demands. "We've taxed
the limits of
the amount of
lights that we
have up,"
Imms said.
"It's been
tough, but the
results are
pretty spec
tacular."
Imms prom
ises a big sur
prise relating
ELIZABETH MINEHART/SPECIAL TO THE GUILFORDIAN
From the Macbeth dress rehearsal
Greensboro. N.C
remote, hard, and boring. "I
hope this production will
show that none of those
things are the case."
caption box with show
dates: Nov. 12-13, 18-20 at
8:00 p.m. in Sternberger
Auditorium. Students get in
free. $5 for general public.
performances. Whenever Ulali speaks
in between songs, it is usually an
effort to inform and raise political
awareness, as well as to address the
struggle of their own native people.
Ulali has traveled throughout the
U.S., Canada, Germany, Italy, Fiji,
Portugal, Japan, and Morocco, per
formed at important historical events
such as Woodstock "94, the '96
Olympics in Atlanta and the opening
of the Smithsonian Institute's new
American Indian Museum in
Washington D.C.
Everywhere they go, they
touch the people for whom they per
form.^
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