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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 27, 1984)
Page 4BAThe Battalion/Monday, August 27, 1984 Celebrities visiting A&M demand star treatment Cheap Trick is one of several visiting groups whose contracts require the sponsoring organization to provide special treat ment while at Texas A&M. By DOLORES HAJOVSKY Reporter Common hospitality is shown to entertainers who come to Texas A&M. Before an MSC Town Hall con cert or broadway show, MSC Opera and Performing Arts Society pro duction or MSC Basement concert is conducted at Texas A&M the enter tainers’ contract must be agreed upon. In a contract is a “rider” that spec ifies exactly what the enteratainers request from where they perform. “Most entertainers just want to be treated like human beings,” Suzanne Becker, adviser for Town Hall, said. “They just want fresh food and clean towels —the more things agreed upon ahead of time the fewer sur prises when the performers arrive. One of the first things I tell them is that University policy prohibits alco hol. This is not too well recieved but it is accepted.” The contracts are the same whether the entertainers are in Re union Arena in Dallas or in Podunk, Texas, which causes problems, Becker said. , “For example, Adam Ant was ap palled he had to ride in a University car and that we didn’t have a limou sine for him,” Becker said. “When Jimmy Buffet came in town he wanted 20 Hawaiian shirts for that evening’s performance. Twenty Ha- waiin shirts are not easy to find.” There are a few items commonly found in most contracts, Becker said. Everybody must have bottled water, and most perfomers want ox ygen close by in case of an emer gency, Becker said. “Cheap Trick’s contract is an ex ample of the extent of details the performers want,” Becker said. “For 25 people at 2 p.m. , not a minute later, they wanted a meal for their crew to consist of a lunch deli tray, hot soup, light rye and wheat breads, plus condiments, milk, coffee and soft drinks. If one item was not pre pared as specified they got furious. “At 6 p.m., not a minute later, a catered hot meal for 25 people was to include a hot meat dish, hot vege tables, light rye and wheat breads, butter, desert, condiments, milk, coffee and soft drinks. “It goes into even more detail for the four-member band. We must provide around $1,000 in food per show and most of it goes to waste.” Jim Hurd, adviser for the broad way division of Town Hall, said the performers he deals with are more professional actors and not as much “celebrities.” They do not ask to be catered to as much, Hurd said. When Town Hall provides a fruit basket or flowers it is because the contract asked for it or the organiza tion wants to provide something nice to make them feel good, Hurd said. “Most actors I deal with don’t want anything to eat before they perform, but afterwards they appre ciate the gesture,” Hurd said. Hurd said Town Hall will provide coffee, doughnuts, and recreational passes to the loading crew, because that is who they work with most of the time. “The technical crew will come in the morning of a performance and set up the stage,” Hurd said. “The actors will come in the evening, per form and leave.” The same is true with OPAS, Hurd said. The university sets up the shell of the stage for a ballet or a concert and the performers just en tertain, Hurd said. “When Dianna Ross came she ar rived an hour before the show, got ready, performed and left —nobody even talked to her,” Hurd said. Darlene Wilson, vice chairman of student development for Basement, said a food plate is provided for their entertainers because it is just common courtesy. “Most of the performers we deal with are local talent,” Wilson said. “When they are only being paid $1,000 a performance they don’t have too much clout.” Wilson says Basementwill sponsor two big shows a year paying $5,000, and for those hotel accommodations and whatever else the performer asks for are provided. Wilson says what is provided de pends on the person. Sometimes the performers just want water by the stage, Wilson said. J*' <§> QUALITY NAME BRAND Oy <> 05 *o®o> llllillll ■i \ m ^ ^ (ACROSS FHOM 1921 S* TCXAS-C.S. quo waro votxswAom ALL YOU* AUOtO 4 V!0*O Ng£t>$~ LAY-A-WAY MASTERCARO/VISA POLK AUDIO MARANTZ RCA FISHER Hours 9-3 Sat. 9-6 Mon.-Fri. HARMON-KARDON SANSUI SONY ,STAX ECG PARTS YOUR FULL SERVICE DEALER with SELECTION AND LOWER PRICES A \ 'O' 'o 9-, s?, O' ^ ^ O' ^ ^ < <f® Town Hall plans for variety during the 1984-85 season By JULIE ENNIS Reporter Expect to see new faces and new kinds of entertainment offered by MSC Town Hall this fall. Julie Plessala of Houston, this year’s Town Hall chairman, is trying to bridge the variety of entertain ment tastes at Texas A&M. “I want to see more variation in the groups that come to A&M,” she says. This year Town Hall is planning to book a variety of preformers from jazz music to country western music to comedian acts. the concerts, she says. “People can stay at home and then “It’s very difficult to please every one,” Plessala says. The toughest part of her job, she says, is planning the calandar for the Texas A&M school year. “The 1983 fall semester was satu rated with concerts,” she says, “so this year we are cutting down the amount of fall concerts from seven to about five.” An effort will be made to schedule the entertainers on football weekend to get maximum attendance from watch their favorite groups on tele vision,” she says. “We want to bring top name preformers to A&M so you don’t have to go to Houston or Dallas to see them in person.” Plessala says Town Hall uses stu dent opinion surveys to help in scheduling preformances. “Most students want to hear the hottest groups on the charts, but many of these groups are not tou ring,” she says, “so we go by the sug gestions on the surveys and contact the agents about the availability of the groups. Then we begin to nego tiate the details.” “It can be difficult convincing big- name entertainers to play in a small town, but we’re lucky because we can catch some of them in between Dal las, Austin, San Antonio or Hous Plessala says Town Hallwillai about 30 freshmen members ini fall. "It is important to haveaidivfn lied committee to bring divers! entertainment to Texas A&M says. Town Hall has taken a its large membership and has vided into two subcommititt broadway and concert. “We didn’t split into two sepaij Town Hall organizations,” shesa» “We just needed to focus more e! live attention to both these areas.' Although no concerts have 1* scheduled, Plessala says Dram Seven Brided for Seven Brotltt ’night Mother, Brighton Bea Memoirs, Gigi, and Some lit Cole have been tentatively sched! for the 1984-85 Town Hall hr« ton. Plessala, who was chosen Town Hall chairman in April, says she wants to continue to uphold the image of Town Hall and continue to bring quality entertainment to Texas A&M. way season. Applications for fall inters will be available the first sveei classes. Town Hall broadway season hi ets and Town Hall concern passes can be bought at the Box Office. OPAS’ 12th season hosting Tc By Comir “Terms se,” “Mo: These Aggie Ci Aggie Ci Center o in Ruddi faculty a Chain main go; coming bership. “A lot to the fr says, “br back.” f don’t cc feel they zation. Next; he says. The f all mem lection o is open dons. Ar igible to committ House, 1 Discovei Anotl movies t in, Card varied, international lineup By Karl Spence Reporter Audiences for this year’s MSC Opera and Performing Arts Society series will find an international lineup that OPAS sponsors feel for tunate to present. “Texas A&M and the Brazos Val ley are very lucky to have a series such as this,” OPAS committee ad viser Arlene Manthey says. “You’d have to look far and wide for much finer.” The lineup of performers, all booked for Rudder Auditorium, consists of: •The Black Light Theatre of Pra gue, a Czechoslovakian mime and music theatrical troupe, on Sept. 18. The troupe has toured the world since 1961. •The London Philharmonic Or chestra, Klaus Tennstedt conduct ing, on Oct. 18. The Philharmonic has been a major world orchestra for a half-century. Its music director, Klaus Tennstedt, has conducted ev ery major American symphony as well as those in Berlin, Vienna, Paris, Rotterdam, and Israel. •The Western Opera Theater, performing Rossini’s “La Ceneren- tola” (Cinderella), on Oct. 29. This touring and educational affiliate of the San Francisco Opera performs the comic opera the Oregon Journal calls “ideal as an introduction to op era for those who have never seen one before.” •St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Pinchas Zukerman playing and con ducting, on Jan. 24. The only full time professional chamber orchestra in the United States, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra has won numer ous awards, as has violinist Zuker man. •Emanuel Ax, pianist, on Feb. 25. A young “old master,” Ax won the first Arthur Rubinstein Interna tional Piano Competition in 1974. •The King’s Singers, on March 19. Six Englishmen from King’s Col lege, Cambridge, sing classical, folk and modern music a cappella. •The Houston Ballet, {perform ing “Mixed Repertoire,” on April 10. The company performed for OPAS last year and returns with a new pro gram of modern and original selec tions to end the season. There is also an extra-season spe cial attraction, the Houston Ballet performing “Swan Lake” on April 11. Manthey says these shows are of the quality that tour Houston* other major cities. OPAS preside Patricia Peters adds that the Loni Philharmonic is not even 1 Houston. Manthey points out thatthela don Philharmonic andtheSt.Pi Chamber Orchestra were booli two years in advance, such is died mand for their performances, i there are tw’o “sleepers” on i schedule: the Black LightTheattt Prague and the King’s Singen. “The Black Light Theatre rat be one of our most dynamic sta all year," Manthey says. “Where* they play, they get great reviews' As for the King’s Singers,shes; "People that know them get verye cited to hear they are on our sene-; Peters savs the appreciation gies show for OPAS performen reciprocated. “Performers come having vissl lots of halls around the world a say that Rudder is oneofthelw she says. Season ticket prices range fra $39 to $70 for students and (ii $56 to $89 for non-stndents. Se not reserved by season ticketholdt are available for individual pert mances. B< Ur W. Oren Swearingen, Jr. D.D.S. Announces the relocation of his practice of General Dentistry and the opening of his new office at 1126 V. i-L. 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