Murder play blends satire, comedy
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Hair 9 comes to Kansas City
Hair is finding its way into the Great Plains, and in case
you're wondering, I'm not refering to the slender threadlike
outgrowth of the epidermis of an animal.
Rather I mean the folk-rock-love musical written by
Gcrome Ragni and James Rado about a tribe of kids who
smoke pot, burn their draft cards and enjoy all types of sexual
activity.
Hair, being performed by its Chicago Company, opened
its area engagement at the Capri Theater in Kansas City, Mo.,
on Febr. 2 and will run through Febr. 21 .
It seems to me that with the most talked about musical
of the century just a hop-skip-and-a-jump from Lincoln, there
should be no excuse for the so-called entertainment starved
public to miss this production.
The tickets at the Capri range from $4.90 to $9.90-not
really that expensive when you consider that (1) this is a
professional company and (2) this show is a real workout for
the cast members. Until you have seen Hair you don't realize
the amount of creativity, imagination and pure sweat which
the actors put out.
Also the cost of tickets is low considering the fact that
this will probably be the only production of Hair in the Great
Plains. Otherwise if you want to see the show you may end up
paying, as I did, $15.00 a ticket in New York City.
Some people might be offended by Hair, specifically its
use of certain four-letter words, its dance movements, its
put-down of the establishment and its nude scene. However,
all of these things are an important part of the show and the
play would suffer if they were cut.
For those of you who might be offended by these
things, I recommend that you stay home and watch Lawrence
Welk on television; but if you have an ounce of a love for life
try to make it down to Kansas City and see Claude, Berger,
Woolf and other friends in Hair.
For those of you staying in Lincoln this weekend, there
are numerous things to do. The Lincoln Community Playhouse
will be performing Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf on Feb. 5,
6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20 and 21. This drama was a winner of
the New York Drama Critic's Circle Award. Curtain is at 8:30
on Friday and Saturdays and at 7:30 p. m. on Sundays.
On Tuesday, Feb. 9, the Lincoln Broadway League is
bringing in Forty Carats. This comedy is about a 40-year-old
divorcee in love with a boy young enough to be her son.
Curtain is at 8:15 p.m. and ticket prices range from $2. to $6.
Musically don't forget that the Chancellors will be
performing in the Nebraska Union Saturday from 9 p.m. to
midnight. Admission is $1.50.
Also remember that the University School of Music
production, The Rake's Progress, is being presented at 8 p.m.
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at the Kimball Recital Hall. In
addition, The White House Murder Case by Jules Feiffer will
be presented Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. in
Howell Theater.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1971
Anyone who's seen the
cartoons of Jules Feiffer in
Playboy magazine should be
able to guess that one of his
plays, The White House Murder
Case, is something more than a
whodunit.
This play, the first at
Howell Theater handled
entirely by students is
described by director Stephen
Gaines as a "caustic, biting
satire," and a "black comedy
about a future president, his
advisers, and United States
foreign and domestic policy."
The setting is " several
elections hence," but the play
also applies to today's political
issues, Gaines said.
The morals of the President
and his surrounding staff
revolve around the slogan,
"What's good for the party is
good for the country." The
politicians come across as
something less than sincere,
brilliant statesmen, Gaines said,
and "are constantly discovering
the obvious."
In the play, war in Brazil,
one of four Vietnam-like
fiascos entered into by the U.
S. in the past six years, has
resulted in the loss of 25,000
lives. The secretary of defense
views .these as acceptable
losses.
Every issue facing the
politicans, including the
murder of the Fi.st Lady,
becomes important to them
only because of the effect on
the image of the President and
his party.
"Every word spoken by the
administration is a
contradiction of what is done,"
Gaines said. To help get this
idea across a split set is used,
showing the political
pronouncements from the
White House on one side, and
then the contradictory reality
of the war in Brazil on the
other side.
In 1965, Gaines earned a
degree at NU in physical
education, an unusual
credential for a director of a
play at Howell Theatre.
But soon afte, he became
involved in community theater
in Hastings, and he said the
"theater got into my blood."
He came back to NU and
received a master of arts degree
in theater.
In the last 2lA years, Gaines
has participated in every major
production at Howell, in
addition to summer work in
the Nebraska Repertory
Company.
Tickets for The White
House Murder Case are on sale
in room 126 of the Temple
Building for $1.50. The play
will run Thursday through
Saturday, at 8 p.m.
The set designer is Jerry
Litwin, the lighting designer is
Joanna Hill, and the stage
manager is Dan Stratman.
The cast includes Dave
Starkweather, Bill Ostby, Tony
Brehm, Diane Lee, John
Crumrine, Christopher
Stasheff, Gregg Graf ft, Gary
Carper, William Szymanski and
Tom Bredenberg.
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Expert on Asian cities speaks
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"The Pre-Industrial City in
Southwest Asia" will be the
topic of a public lecture by Dr.
Paul English of the University
of Texas at 8 p.m. Thursday at
the University of Nebraska.
The lecture will be held in
Room 206 of Burnett Hall on
the Lincoln City Campus.
An associate professor of
geography, Dr. English has
done extensive field work on
the pre-industrial city in Iran
and Afghanistan. His book,
"City and Village in Iran"
received the Herfurth Award in
Social Science.
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14 TH AND 0
THE DAILY NEBRASKAN
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