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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 26, 1989)
s w The Battalion ENTERTAINMENT Thursday, January 26,1989 n R imi, loan ii 11 rescue S°ing to e option,’ >g Dr. Lo. 1 the Dep ^ces desp 0,1 abort Wh Sullii, Percent." Multicultural experimental ensemble attracts iversity of student talent for A&M premiere By Cray Pixley nent’’ bv wildlife [ to protea )ney rugs but o stem fra approach 1 only if ( Experimental avant-garde theater ras not been the byword of past Ag- pe Player productions, but an inno- rative ensemble is working to break ound with its eclectic brand of the- eroui ater. k sr, (AP) to a creel the drive [ an 8-yeat sophoraott students emergenc ool Distrie middy dir ■ek, invest} ie front ene nd 11 he rear be- ' rest of the river 1 ilsville, rural Wei / had tries it, authoir out by ret 1 in crititi Memorii under w vinutes, b: t him alive edited from rurt g younget Iso an iselor a INTERTAINMENT WRITER The Elenco Experimental ensem- )le integrates experimental theater nd multicultural themes for the irst time in an A&M student com- rany. The ensemble will debut an origi- tal play, “In Vitro,” in Rudder Fo- um Feb. 2-4. Although this is the premiere sea- ion of the A&M Elenco Experimen- al, the ensemble has strong roots in tvant-garde, multicultural theater prnered from its origins at the Uni- /ersity of Texas-El Paso. Dr. Roberto Porno, associate pro fessor of theater arts and the Elen- :o’s director, founded the ensemble at UTEP in 1981. The UTEP company explored bil- ngual, experimental theater and soured throughout Mexico and the louthwest United States. Many of its reductions focused on Hispanic hemes. Porno imported the idea of the El- :nco when he joined the faculty at A&M last fall. “When I was invited to join the faculty here, I requested that the soncept of the Elenco also transfer so A&M,” Porno says. “I feel that hey (the administration) saw my ability to move the Elenco here as one of my strong attributes to the department. They were delighted to lave the ensemble on campus.” Since the creation of the Elenco at UTEP, Pomo has moved further to ward the experimental side of the msemble. However, elements bf bil- ngual theater still exist in the cur rent production. The Elenco combines stylized novement, music, and varied acting styles in productions with an aes- hetic, educational message. “I will always strive to present pro ductions with educational value,” he says. “I am very influenced by the British director Peter Brook, Jerzy Grotowski, Antonin Artaud as well is the experimental theater of the 1960’s and Mexican American the ater. “I draw from all these when I di rect the Elenco.” At A&M, the Elenco’s emphasis will be on the multicultural manifes tations in society, avant-garde the ater and new scripts. “I think we are developing a dif ferent acting style in the Elenco,” Pomo says. “I’m not sure what to call it but it is happening.” The ensemble is working on dif ferent ways of movement, and ways of relating to one another. The ensemble is a 10-person cast of multicultural descent under the direction of Pomo and Associate Di rector Matthew L. Hunt. “We cast the ensemble with the multicultural aspect in mind,” Pomo says. “But all the actors had to have talent and dedication to their work.” Cast members are Hispanic, black and white, but Pomo says he would also like to have Asian or other cul tures in the Elenco. “The Elenco is open to students, regardless of their major, who are interested in art and have an ability to act,” Pomo says. “Perhaps in the future we will have other cultures in the Elenco.” This season’s ensemble was cast in the early fall of 1988 and has worked together two hours every weekday since the members were accepted. Ensemble members have the op tion to remain in the Elenco from year to year, and they will be in volved in casting new members. Ex perienced members will bring cohe siveness to the ensemble, Pomo says. The coming together of the first cast, the script and music defines the innovative mode spirit in which the Elenco Experimental exists. The ensemble began its work without a script but with the inten tion of producing a student play. Part-way through the first month of rehearsals, the cast decided to com mit to a play writen by Hunt. “We are very fortunate to have had the playwright-in-residence as the associate director,” Pomo says. “He has had a very close hand in the play’s creation outside of being the author.” The playwright conducted exten sive video-taped interviews with each cast member in order to extract cer tain thoughts that he could use or emphasize inhis script. Hunt says the interviews sparked his imagination while writing the script. “It helped me by exposing me to other people’s experiences,” he says. “I was able to take aspects of the en semble’s experiences and work them through the plot or theme I was wri ting.” Pomo says he likes that approach and that it has worked well for the Elenco. “I think one of the fascinating el ements bf the Elenco is that we have a playwright who has written the script with the ensemble members in mind.” Hunt worked on the script throughout the fall while the group worked on improvisations. As the script was being written, the ensemble worked on scenes as they were completed. Rewrites and re-blocking of scenes were part of the ensemble’s fall work schedule. “The ensemble did not recieve the complete script until Jan. 3 and had yet to finish the stylized movement scenes,” Pomo says. “Things really came together during a four-week period.” Aside from an original script, “In Vitro” has choreography and music specially composed for the play. The stylized movement was cho reographed by members of the El enco, and a group called Tangent wrote the music. Pomo explains that in an experi mental group such as Elenco, it is important to integrate the other arts. The essential arts that go hand in hand with theater are music and dance. “A member of the cast, Misha Cantu, had experience with movement and dance that she was willing to incorporate for the play,” he says. Ensemble members were free to help in the choreography. Lanell Pena and Mary Ellen Brennan helped Cantu put polish to the dance sequences. A&M students Russell Lutz, David Gaw and Rip Rowan of Tangent composed the original music while in sessions with the playwright who helped interpret the script. “We were lucky to find students who were excellent musicians who were interested in contributing mu sic and working in the theatrical tra dition,” Pomo says. During performances, the musi cians are on stage with the ensemble playing both live music and keying up programmed segments of music. Tangent’s compositions are key board renditions of what may be termed New Age or futuristic music in the tradition of French artist Jean- Michel Jarre. Hunt wrote “In Vitro” in verse form and says he had hoped the cho reography and music would bring that verse to life. “I feel the choreographer and musicians translated my work very well,” he says. “It all came together beautifully for ‘In Vitro’.” The music and choreography merge to complete a play that is a se The experimental theater group Elenco de buts at Texas A&M with its play “In Vitro” at 8 Photo Courtesy of Elenco Experimental theater company p.m. Feb. 2 in Rudder Forum. Tickets are $2 for students and $3 for the general public. ries of vignettes concerning the hu man existence from the beginning of time to an exit of the human race from the world. The play views life as a sort of experiment conducted within a test tube, hence in vitro —in glass. Hunt says the play is about people and how they make it through peri ods of change and stress. It deals with what dreams keep them moving forward. “Act 1 concerns man’s past and the events that have shaped what is happening in the world today,” he says. “Act 2 is five segments of pre sent life in America. “There are so many pressures to day. Those pressures are women’s is sues, racial pressures and the like,” Hunt says. “Everyone is trying to make it in America today — some people make it, some don’t.” These issues are the dynamics of “In Vitro”, he says. Although the Elenco will not de but at A&M until next month, the ensemble performed a preview of “In Vitro” at McNeese State Univer sity in Lake Charles, La. during the first week of spring classes. The play received encouraging responses that the directors and cast hope will carry over to A&M. “We didn’t know what to expect from our performance at McNeese,” Pomo says. “We got a good response from two very different audiences. The students and the older commu nity audience seemed to really enjoy the play.” “Some people felt the play was pessimistic because it didn’t answer the questions it raised, but I think the playwright has taken an opti mistic approach,” he says. Hunt agrees with Pomo. “At the close of the play, the char acters do have self-doubt which causes them to narrow their vision,” he says. “Instead of being a vision for society, it becomes a vision for self.” In the play, the characters deal with problems poorly, but Hunt re jects the pessimistic view his play seems to project. “I amplify the problems that are happening in America today. But I use this to jolt the audience. The idea is to raise questions not provide answers, Hunt says. “I think by not giving an answer I can move an audience to think about their world.” Although that approach may put some audiences off, the directors and cast say they believe that A&M audiences are ready to be chal lenged. Ensemble member Oliver Tull says the Elenco will stir up people’s emotions. “We do stir up ideas that may up set some people, but I think we will get a favorable reception.” “I think people will realize it is a different approach to theater for A&M and are interested to find out what the Elenco can show them,” he says. “Some people will hate it and some people will love it. But they will appreciate it because it is something new for the campus.” vernight By Keith Spera ONE . REVIEWER I The scene outside Rudder Tower that particular midnight was not pretty. The top of the tower was shrouded by fog. At its base, seve- ral bodies were strewn about on the cold, damp pavement. Some were covered by blankets; others lay exposed to the humid night air. These bodies were not dead — they were waiting for morning, ; when tickets would go on sale for ihe Feb. 10 Reba McEntire con cert to be held in G. Rollie White Goliseum. I myself had never camped out ifor concert tickets. I also had ever purchased a ticket to a country-and-western show. Here as an opportunity to meet and ingle with people who were bout to do both. I would endure what they en dured, I would feel what they felt ; — I would, for a night, become tie of them. My first contact with the camp ers did not exactly start us on the oad to friendship. Just for kicks, I sat down in front of the group of good of boys who held the first . spot in line. “How ya’ doin’?” I said noncha lantly. Howdy,” they answered, not knowing what this long-haired guy in aqua blue high-top tennis shoes was up to. “Ya’ll did find my note, right?” They looked at one another. They looked at me. “What note?” they asked in a very suspicious tone. The note I left saying I was first in line, and that I had to go run some errands, but would be back.” Now, they started to sit up. A very unfriendly atmosphere was developing. “We didn’t see any note.” At this point, I considered sev eral factors. First, these people were not entirely sober. Second, they had been watching the campers get in line early for country concert tickets movie “Shoot to Kill” on the TV they had set up. Third, they had believed for a number of hours that they would obtain front row tickets to see a woman who, in these parts, is almost akin to the Virgin Mary. Here was some dif ferent-looking guy trying to cut in front of them. Common sense told me it was time to end the game. After letting them know I was just kidding about the note, I got down to the business of actually “mingling.” These guys were, come to find out, rather nice. Graduate student Larry Cox was officially the first person in line. Although he had already seen Reba in concert three times, he had been in line since 11 a.m. in order to get tickets to see her again. Besides greatly admiring her music, Cox explained his other reasons for camping out so long: “It’s the first week of school, there’s nothin’ better to do. We didn’t get to camp out for Cotton Bowl tickets, so what the hell.” When the Cox camp broke out the cigars, I moved on. Next in line was another graduate stu dent, Debbie Tolman, With a gray fedora on her head and a copy of “Since Silent Spring” (a book dealing with the effects of pesticides on the environment) in her hands, she seemed a bit out of place (kind of like me). I found out that she had never seen Reba in concert before, and did not own any of her albums. She had just started hearing Reba’s music since moving to Texas. Since we both had very little to say about Reba, we had a nifty discussion about the big black muscular statues decorating the Rudder Fountain area. After ex changing observations such as “they’re kind of ominous” and “the size is something that shocks you” (hers) and “it’s like, they’re spongy, but they resist, like mus cle gone bad” (mine), I bid Tol man adieu. Coincidentally, I found in an other group of campers a mem ber of the Texas A&M weightlift ing team who had very definite thoughts on the statues. Al though he didn’t appreciate the artwork’s title (“Mindless Com- petion”), he said he “loved” the works themselves. Having al ready pressed my luck at the be ginning of the line, I didn’t ar gue. It was at the next stop on the Reba line that I learned what a truly magical night this was for country fans. Not only were Reba McEntire tickets going on sale in nine short hours (it was now about 1 a.m.), but Randy Travis had been on the David Letterman show earlier that night. There were enough supplies with one group of campers to sus tain a family of five for a week, and keep them entertained to boot. A tape of the murder-mys tery “The Naked Face” was play ing on their remote-controlled VCR, which was loud enough to keep everyone else in line abreast of the on-screen action. Besides their awesome video capabilites, these people had a large portable radio (they declined my offer to let them borrow a Judas Priest tape I had with me), hot choco late, playing cards, books, a laun dry basket full of munchies, and a wide assortment of sleeping bags and blankets, including a red and black blanket decorated with Scottish Terriers wearing bows. The mother of one of the girls, who lives in town and is going to the show with her daughter, had been “totin’ stufT’ to them throughout the evening. The people at the end of the line that night were Stacey and Kayla, freshman residents of Mosher Hall, who had only been in line since 10:30 p.m. They hadn’t even planned on coming out then, but a friend who hap pened to be jogging past Rudder earlier that night had warned them that a line had already formed. They were going to spend the night on a pile of beach towels (they couldn’t find any blankets) so they could get seats that would afford a close-up view of Ricky Van Shelton, Reba’s opening act. At this point, they hadn’t be gun to show the effects of spend ing a few hours on cold pave ment, and they were still in a pleasant mood. They were about to eat a couple of Whataburger chicken sandwiches when I joined them. I had several slices of apple in my overcoat pocket, so we had little late-night picnic. We chatted for awhile about past encounters with members of the entertain ment world, and gossiped about the activities of the other folks in line. We noticed there were no ants at this particular picnic. Around 2 a.m., things had got ten pretty quiet. Most everyone had wrapped themselves up in whatever garments they had for a night of less than quality sleep. I was faced with a choice between sleeping on cement in misty, cold weather with only my trenchcoat for a blanket, or walking about 100 yards to a warm dorm room complete with pillows and mat tresses. You decide where I slept. Eight hours later, when I re turned to Rudder, about 250 peo ple were lined up inside the tower at the box office windows, count ing the seconds until the tickets went on sale. People who were talkative the night before had very little to say now, unless it was a comment meant to let the box office personel know that “my watch says its 10 a.m. — start sell ing tickets”. When the only important clock — the one linked to the Box Of fice’s computer — struck 10, the coveted tickets did indeed go on sale. Here it was, the big prize, the payoff, the object of every one’s quest. Was it worth it? For Cox’s group, it certainly was — they snagged a handful of front-row center seats. The lady with the hat seemed a bit disap pointed when she got sixth row tickets in the left-hand floor sec tion. The people with the loud VCR were satisfied with their eighth row seats. Stacey and Kayla, who weren’t quite as bright-eyed and bushy-haired as last night, and who had to borrow blankets from their well-stocked neighbors, ended up in row 19, much to their dismay.