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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 28, 1989)
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FEES ON ANY MEMBERSHIP FORMER MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT 8,000 + lbs. Free Weights Muilt-Cam Machines Men’s & Womens locker rooms/ showers • Sauna • Clean Spacious Workout Area • Complete Instruction Available • Whirlpool Semester Tanning Specials High/Low Impact Interval Traning I.D.E.A. Certified Instructors Aerobic Apparel Weighted Aerobic classes (All levels) For More Information 846-6272 TEXAS A&M WELLBORN ROAD Ox Jay’s Gym * Page 4D The Battalion Monday, August 28,1989 SOUTH COLLEGE M*'** < ~' MSC OPAS announces seasd J 7th year biggest yetfor A &M organization By Chuck Lovejoy Of The Battalion Staff Keeping the tradition of provid ing quality, world-class entertain ment to the Brazos Valley, the MSC Opera and Performing Arts Society has lined up a 1989-90 season of mu sic and theater events that promises to be its biggest yet. This 17th OPAS season also brings change to the organization, as the 1989-90 school year will see the debut of OPAS Jr., a similar pro gram aimed at the “young at art.” The OPAS Sr. season kicks off on Sept. 15 with a performance by the Houston Symphony Orchestra, Texas’ oldest performing arts orga nization. The symphony will be un der the baton of famed conductor Christoph Eschenbach. On Oct. 13, the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra will perform under the direction of Vladimir Spi- vakov, who is considered one of the world’s greatest violinists. Spivakov personally selected the ensemble’s members from Russia’s finest string players. A special event starring the Smothers Brothers will be held on Oct. 15. The popular comedy duo will perform a musical comedy rou tine with help from the Brazos Val ley Symphony Orchestra. The first theater program of the season will be held Oct. 27 with a performance of “Absent Friends” by the Missouri Repertory Theatre. The comedy takes a funny and af fectionate look at friendship, mar riage and life itself. Grammy winner Michael Tilson Thomas will perform on Nov. 1. The classical pianist, who also serves as the Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, will take the stage with a program of classical standards and Gershwin fa vorites. Rudder Auditorium will be trans formed into the mighty Mississippi on Nov. 2 with a performance of the musical “Big River.” The adaptation of Mark Twain’s classic story is the winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical of the Year. To start off the spring semester with fanfare, the Summit Brass, America’s premier large brass en semble, will visit A&M on Jan. 23. The all-star lineup of performers is made up of musicians drawn from the country’s major orchestras. The musical “Me and My Girl” will be presented Jan. 26. The comic piece tells the story of free-spirited cockney Bill Snibson, who inherits the title of earl and finds his life hila riously changed. An evening of contemporary American dance will be held January 30 when the Alvin Ailey Dance The ater takes the stage. Founded by na tive Texan Alvin Ailey, who is also the ensemble’s artistic director, the troupe has set the standard in its class for more than 30 years. On Feb. 8, noted Broadway ac tress Patrice Munsel will recreate her starring role in “Marne,” one of Broadway’s longest-running musi cals. Houston’s Alley Theater will pre sent “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” playwright Edward Albee’s satiric look at contemporary mar riage, on Feb. 13. Albee himself is scheduled to direct the production. Acclaimed violinist Joshua Bell will perform on Feb. 14. Bell made his Carnegie Hall debut four years ago at age 17 and has toured throughout Europe, Canada, Aus tralia and Japan. The 1989-90 OPAS season also will feature the classic tale of star- crossed love, “West Side Story." The electrifying Leonard Bernstein/Ste- f >hen Sondheim musical will be per- ormed March 7. The final scheduled event will be a concert by the world-famous Pres ervation Hall Jazz Band on March 23. The group’s distinctive jazz styl ings will serve as a fitting end to the season. All performances for the OPAS season will be held in Rudder Audi torium and will begin at 8 p.m. on their respective dates. Season tickets for the events may be purchased in the MSC Box Office before Sept. 15. These are offered in series of mu sic or theater (depending on the per formance) or combination (all 14 shows). Prices vary according!' ing. Student rates are offered Although smaller, the OP.l'l season promises to be equallyd ing for its patrons. The OPAS Jr. program ws ated this year after two test eve: the 1988-89 season showed an est for youth and family-oi programming in the Bryan-C:] Station area. Anne Black, executive direni OPAS, said response to the tv] shows was very positive. “They were very successful! said. “That’s encouraging, y the program is designed toeKi age arts education in theBnarl lege Station area. “Of course, we also wanttol sure we have people buying J tickets in 20 years,” Blackreitiil The premier OPAS Jr. evt:| be a concert by guitarist and I writer Tom Chapin. Althouglt known lor his musical workCil has also hosted several telts shows, including the “Makeal| program and the “National! graphic Explorer” series. On Oct. 29, “The Secret Gil will be presented. The TbJ works USA production is an! based on the bestselling ch!;:jf iKiok of the same name. sent o “Sot f He Bi Tl him to .The the id who is of the ‘ First Battali The acclaimed Louisville I dren’s Theatre will perform | Wind in the Willows” Feb. 18 ll costumes, makeup and sets hip! this witty tale of Mr. ToadaKj friends. :v/Yie Pianist Kathleen Roach vil pear April 1. She is known tel multi-media concerts which coni narratives, music and visualafil introduce children both to daj music and to the stories she tells | All OPAS Jr. events will be! on Sunday afternoons in Re| Theater. Each show will be ottf twice, allowing parents tochoostl ther a 3 p.m. or 5 p.m. perfora j Season tickets f or ail four Oil Jr. shows may be purchasedforlj at the MSC Box Office. The4 line for purchase of season tide this Friday. Aggie Players plan comedies for ’89-9 The 1989-90 Texas A&M Aggie ■ th< Players’ season may prove to be their funniest yet, as a majority of the pro ductions scheduled by the organiza tion are comedies. A return visit by the Royal Shake speare Company Alumni and others from the London theater scene also will highlight the season. This will mark the 45th consec utive season for the Aggie Players, the oldest continuiously producing theater company in the Brazos Val ley. The group’s first production was “You Can’t Take It With You” in 1946. Since then, hundreds of pro ductions have been staged at a vari ety of locations throughout the Bra zos Valley. A presentation of the musical comedy “Little Shop of Horrors” will open the 1989-90 season in October. The Players’ version of the story of a alien man-eating plant is based on the film by Roger Gorman. It will be presented Oct. 5-7 and 11-14. The second production of the sea son will be Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit,” a comedy about a man who invites a medium to his home for a seance and gets more than he bar gained for, namely the return of his dead wife Elvira. The play will be presented Nov. 9-11 and 15-18. One of America’s longest-running musical comedies, “The Fantas- ticks,” will be the troupe’s third pro duction. The love story is based on Edmund Rostand’s “Le Romancers,” with book and lyrics by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt, both Texans. The musical will run Feb. 15-17 and 21-24. The fourth production will be the world premiere of a new translation of Antonio Mira de Amescua’s “Gambler’s House.” Intrigue, ro mance and honor form the basis for this classic Spanish play in which an inept card player gambles all that is dear to him in search of the ultimate winning hand. The Players present it March 1-3 and 7-10. America’s most popular contem porary comedy, Robert Harling’s “Steel Magnolias,” will be the final production of the 1989-90 season. The play concerns gossip mill grind ing in a beauty parlor in a small Texas town. The comedy willtej* formed April 19-21 and 25-28. Also as part of their 45th seas the Aggie Players again will spoffi the ACTER/British Theatre 1 company. This company, whii tures veterans of the Royal Sliii speare Company and Natio' T heatre, will be performing a length play (which is yet to nounced) on Feb. 1 and 3. In addition to their mainpn tions, the Players also have nounced the rejuvenation of Fallout Theater, which willbecoi forum for the presentation of thought-provoking plays sudi “Waiting for Godot” and “Storiti 1 be Told.” Season tickets, which provides ings of 20-40 percent and includf five performances of the Ag ers as well as the ACTEF peare Troupe play, are availablt the MSC Box Office ormaybf served by calling the Aggie Playei 845-2621. Season ticket subsoil also will receive discounts on Fal Theater tickets. Art (Continued from page 3) exhibits displayed in the future will be used mainly to develop specific themes of the Runyon Collection. “What we might want to do is stage an exhibition of works by the 10 original American Impression ists,” Arredondo said. “We only have two of the 10 represented, so we would borrow paintings from other institutions and thereby broaden the understanding of what exists in the Runyon Collection. “Right now, we’re bringing in a wide assortment of things, which is my idea of a really nice gallery, but because the Forsyth Center Galleries are primarily devoted to the Runyon Collection, I have a feeling that we will end up narrowing the focus of our operation significantly at that time (when the rest of the collection arrives).” Reynolds said he hopes the gallery will always be able to accomodate temporary shows. lustrate the importance of art at this university. “Engineering is great, science is great, but art is what we live for,” Ar redondo said. “All new stuff is fine and dandy, but it’s not what the es sence of humanness is about. “Texas A&M, in such an odd, pe culiar way, Was a quintessentially modern experience, devoid of tex ture, devoid of all those aesthetic qualities that were so prevalent in the 19th century in the eastern states and Europe. Here we more resem bled late modernist architecture, just little boxes with windows, no tex ture, no color, no smell ... all her metically sealed, all run by machines. It just isn’t enough for the human being to live in such an environment. We needed art.” People may scoff at the notion that an education is not complete without some form of art education, but Arredondo thinks art education exposure to quality art and soil what Forsyth Center/Runyon CoS V"" "" tion is really all about: puttingts quality art in the day-to-day env^ ment of students,” he said. Reynolds said he envisions 1 MSC Visual Arts committee andf 1 sibly LJniversity Plus classes play 1 role in bringing the students ani' together, with students acl»» working as curators for someo( £ temporary exhibits. Besides the philosophical reas; for visiting the Forsyth Centerfe* ries, Arredondo pointed out ; other, more practical reason. “Tm amazed at how many? bring their girlfriends by, anP many girls bring their boyfP by,” Arredondo said. “Theyha 11 great time walking around toge^ It’s just a nice, quiet environ®* 1 and they can talk about someth and be together — it’s very ro®* tic.” “I think we will always try to main tain enough flexibility and space that we can do some major traveling shows,” he said. “From everything that we’re told by' museum people and others that are in the visual arts business, it doesn’t make any difference how fantastic your permanent collection is, that you really need to do some new and different things on a regu lar basis so that you can continue to attract people.” Arredondo borrowed a line from the film “Dead Poets Society” to il ls important. “When you get into the business world, and you start having to deal with people who really are involved in the world, those people have highly refined experience bases,” he said. “They’ve tasted great wines, they’ve gone to symphonies and op eras, they’ve gone to museums.” These people have realized that there is more to art than simply viewing paintings on a wall. “Eventually you began to realize some of it is still alive, some of it has something to say,” Arredondo said. Reynolds also stressed the impor tance of art at A&M. Although the gallery has open for several months, the ( cial” grand opening ceremoni® scheduled for September. Students are invited to attend* Student Open House Reception Thursday, Sept. 7, from 4-8 p® the MSC Forsyth Center Gallerif* The general public is invited® tend a lecture by Dr. Sidney $ stein, Associate Director of tl® Louis Art Museum. The lecture tied “From Satyrs to Yuppies:- 1 Years of Cameo Class,” will beg’ on Saturday, Sept. 9, at 8:30 p® Rudder Theater. “We know that it’s going to be im portant for Aggies to have had some A reception in the MSC For? Center Galleries will follow the* ture. ff