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'Miss Jean' continues
at Community Playhouse
Daily Nebraskan
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Dave Fox and Paul Marguard, graduate physics students, view a planetarium laser show.
Technology descends on UNL
in form of laser extravaganza
By Charles Lieurance
Staff Reporter
In a world where most new tech
nologies confront us in the form of
weapons, it's refreshing to renew a
more gratifying relationship with
science once and awhile.
The Laser Rock Show at Mueller
Planetarium in Morrill Hall doesn't
close the window of vulnerability,
patrol our skies, monitor Soviet
satellites or cost a trillion dollars,
so lay your head back and relax.
Laser Review
Using two Helium-Neon lasers for
reddish patterns and one Argon
laser for blues and greens, the Laser
Rock show creates a hallucinogenic
series of laser patterns in motion to
the music of Heart, Jeff Beck, Kan
sas, Pink Floyd, Rush, Deep Purple,
Triumph, Eric Clapton, Cheap Trick
and Eddie and the Tide.
According to planetarium coor
dinator Jack Dunn, "variety is the
key to a successful laser show."
Indeed, Dunn does not rely on a
numbing barrage of continuous
sound and light, but instead var
iates the pace and uses light sour
ces other than lasers to make sure
no one gets bored.
Heart's "All Eyes" opens the pro
gram, and the blue dot suspended
in the darkness begins to quiver,
finally inflating into multi-dimensional
spinning circles.
Although the show retains cer
tain shapes from show to show and
uses the same music, Dunn said you
have to stay alert on the job. Dunn
changes the motions of the graphics
and their placement on the ceiling
from time to time and new graphic
patterns are added as they are
created.
After Heart, the music tones down
to a beautiful acoustic guitar solo
by Triumph, and as Dunn pointed
out, moving the laser shapes in
more subtle configurations is more
difficult than manipulating the
larger, more ornate shapes used for
songs like Deep Purple's "Smoke on
the Water."
Although the music will not nec
cessarily be everyone's idea of rock
'n' roll nirvana, the music counts
less than the precision and clarity
of the sound system. This show is
about the beauty of technology, not
the beauty of Rush.
The music comes from aTeac reel
to reel with eight channels of infor
mation. Two channels give life to
the sound, four tracks synchronize
the music and the lasers, one is an
audio track for the operator to
listen in on and one track synchron
izes the music and slide program.
Dan DulaneyDaily Nebraskan
On Kansas' "Dust in the Wind,"
white light shone through a stencil
of scratchings and arbitrary pat
terns is used rather than lasers. By
slowly running light behind these
stencils, a beautiful series of slow
smears and blurrs evoke the mood
of an Oriental ink wash.
When the lasers finally kick in
again on "Smoke on the Water" they
have a renewed brilliance and vigor.
The contrast definitely fights off
boredom.
Walt Simmons, a student volun
teer who built the computer graphic
system that augments the lasers, is
responsible for such unique touches
as the floating guitar that gyrates
and spins during Jeff Beck's "Get Us
All in the End." It sounds as if Beck
himself is playing.
Although the system cannot yet
create actual animation, Simons'
computer is a suitable and clever
replacement.
Dunn remarked that the whole
show works best when the audience
is "uninhibited and responsive."
Clapping, singing, hooting and any
signaling of life are encouraged.
"Last week," Dunn said, "we
finally got an audience to sing along
with Crosby, Stills, and Nash after
the football game."
That's exactly what Dunn expects
of his audiences.
Please see LASER on 12
"The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie"
continues at 8 p.m. today and Saturday
night at the Lincoln Community Play
house, 2500 S. 56th St. Sunday's mati
nee performance at 2:30 p.m. will be
interpreted for the hearing impaired.
"The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" is a
study of a private school teacher's fol
lies and fantasies. The play's action is
framed within the memory of a clois
tered nun, one of Miss Jean's former
students. Bette Croissant, winner of
the Playhouse 1984-85 Best Actress
award, plays the nun.
Leta Powell Drake, program director
at KOLNKGIN-TV and producer of
"The Morning Show," stars as the
romantic and misguided "Miss Jean."
Drake, a former UNL acting student,
last appeared at the Playhouse 16 years
'Badlands' star Sheen
appears for screening
Martin Sheen will be in Lincoln
today and Saturday in conjunction with
a special screening of "Badlands," one
of the most important roles of his var
ied career.
Sheen will speak today at 10:40 a.m.
about his spiritual and religious phil
osophies and their relation to his
career at the College View Seventh Day
Adventist Church, 48th and Prescott
streets.
The talk is free and open to the
public.
On Saturday, Sheen will appear on
the Sheldon Film Theater stage after
the 7:30 screening of "Badlands." The
$5 tickets are sold out.
Additional screenings of "Badlands"
at the regular Sheldon admission price
of $3.75 are 3 p.m. Saturday and 3, 5, 7
and 9 p.m. Sunday. Sheen will not be at
any of these screenings.
Sheen's appearances are being co
sponsored by Union College and Shel
don Art Gallery.
A Sheldon release said Sheen is
especially fond of his role as Kit in
"Badlands." The movie is loosely based
on the real-life exploits of former Lin
coln residents Charles Starkweather
and Caril Fugate.
"It's the best thing I've ever done,"
Sheen said. "I saw it again last year in
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ago.
The playhouse production is directed
by Michael D. Mitchell. Marva Lucca
Thyberg is assistant director and stage
manager.
Tickets for "The Prime of Miss Jean
Brodie" are $6.50 for adults and $4.75
for people 18 and under Thursdays and
Sundays. Friday and Saturday tickets
are $8.50 for adults and $6.75 for 18 and
under.
Reservations may be obtained by
calling the Playhouse box office at 489
9608, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through
Friday and noon to 4 p.m..Saturdays.
Additional performances are sche
duled Thursday through Saturday, Oct
17 to 20 and Oct. 24 to 26, at 8 p.m. A
second Sunday matinee is set for 2:30
p.m. Oct. 27.
France, and when I looked at it I real
ized I wouldn't touch a frame. It's the
only thing I've done in my life that I'm
entirely proud of."
Sheen has also played the tortured
soldier shot for cowardice in "The Exe
cution of Private Slovik," Robert
Kennedy in "The Missiles of October"
and John Dean in "Blind Ambition."
In "Apocalypse Now," he played the
soldier assigned to assassinate Marlon
Brando. He suffered a heart attack dur
ing the intense filming.
He donated his salary for his role of a
reporter in "Ghandi," saying "How can
you make money off Ghandi?" ,
"Badlands," set around 1958, is the
story of Kit (Sheen) and 15-year-old
Holly (Sissy Spacek), who go on the run
after Kit shoots Holly's father. Kit
shoots several people who might
threaten their freedom. Eventually,
Holly gives herself up and Kit, now a
notorious outlaw lets himself be
captured.
Vincent Canby said in a New York
Times review that " 'Badlands' is hugely
effective, a smash. It is a most impor
tant and exciting film, always fero
ciously American. It is Terence Mal
ick's blunt and beautiful first feature.
Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek are
splendid."
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Courtesy of Sheldon Art Gaiiery
