UNL graduate’s award-winning plays
putting Nebraska on play-writing map
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Youth 18 Y
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Tickets: $10, $8 ^—1^1/
A Jclinek Memorial Concert wilh lupport from the National Endowment
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By Jim Hanna
Staff Reporter
In the world of theater, Ne
braska has not been exactly a
breeding ground for successful,
prolific playwrights. Although the
state has produced its share of
talented actors - Henry Fonda,
Marlon Brando, Sandy Dennis —
big-name playwrights have been a
rather rare commodity.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
graduate David Boles, however, is
ready to put the state on the play
writing map.
“What’s a ki$i from Nebraska
doing in New York?” is a question
Boles originally found himself
asking when he moved to New
York to get a Masters of Fine Arts
degree in play writing from Colum
bia University.
What Boles is doing is finding
big success rapidly.
Boles was extremely successful
as a writer of local productions in
the mid-1980s. His play ‘‘A Stone’s
Throw” was produced by the UNL
Theatre Arts and Dance depart
ment during the 1985-86 senool
year, me piay was selected to
appear at the American College
Theater Festival, a national compe
tition for college theater produc
tions.
Boles’ plays “Murder in Earnest”
and “Cracked Stain Glass,” a play
for which he won the Purchase
Play Writing Award, were staged at
the Nebraska Directors Theater.
His last Nebraska effort, "Weeping
Water Cafe,” which he also di
rected, was produced at the Lin
coln Community Playhouse. His
show was chosen to represent the
playhouse in the 1987 American
Community Theater competition.
With all of his Nebraska suc
cesses, Boles moved to Washing
ton, DC., where he worked on
productions at the Ford’s Theater
and the Arena Theater.
Boles took his first big step
toward play-writing fame when he
accepted a Presidential scholarship
to attend Columbia, where he
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His success in the Columbia
program almost was immediate. A
short 60-second scene he wrote
was incorporated into a dance
production by the David Gordon
Fick/Up Co., a New York-based
dance troupe.
Boles drew upon his Nebraska
roots to create the scene. Through
it, he explained that when people
in his hometown hear a police or
ambulance siren, they come out of
their homes to see if they can
discover the source of the siren, an
idea that is foreign to most New
Yorkers, Boles said.
This simple message was trans
lated into a dance piece entitled
"Fade Away” that had its premiere
at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
His current play-writing project
is perhaps his most ambitious.
Boles always had wanted to write a
musical based on Leo Tolstoy’s
novel "Resurrection. ” At Columbia,
he wrote the book and the lyrics
for such a musical.
Howard Stein, a major name in
musical theater, was impressed by
Boles work and agreed to write
the music for the show, his first
musical scoring in 11 years.
The production, when staged,
will be the premiere production of
Columbia’s new musical theater
program.
With “Resurrection,” Boles is
taking a significant step toward
commercial play-writing success.
Commercial success, however, is
not Boles’ primary concern right
now.
“(1) just want to do good work,”
he said. “You do good work and
money comes.”
This “Nebraska kid” seems to
have the good work aspect of the
formula down. Now, like it or not,
the money can’t be far behind.
NOODLES COMEDY CLUB
Featuring nationally known comedians. Shows every
Thursday 8:30 pm. Friday & Saturday 7:30 p, & 9:45 pm.
Receive SI off admission with Student I.D. Thursday
only. Must be 21.
COMEDY CLUB
228 North 12th Street 475-0900'
(Above the Spaghetti Works)
Come skydive with the
Lincoln Sport
Parachute Club
Training this Friday evening...
For more information call
f 477-7779
Jumps start Saturday
Freshman, Sophomores, Juniors, Seniors, Grads,Alumns.
Invest In Your Future!
CAREER INFORMATION
DAY '89
September 21st
Thursday, sf.ftember 21st_9;30anH;QQiim
9:00 a.m. Student Registration Begins
9:30 a.m.- 3:30p.m. Meet with Company Reps.*
9:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Lobby Activities
3:30p.m. -4:30 p.m. Fashion Show
*Come As You Are!!
**A11 Activities take place in the UNL City Union
UNL Marketing Club
y0* f
From South Africa, ** I
"Strike” shows black women's daily struggles
for freedom through hope and spirit found in
driving African rhythms of chants and dance. £
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 8 pm
-v
UNL Students,
Tickets: $13. $9 Youth 18
and under
^ 1/2 price! y
With the import of the National Endowment for the Aits, the Nebraska
Arts Council and in conjunction with the Linootn/Lancaster Commission
on the Sutus of Women
For Tickets Call 472-4747 (Monday - Friday, 11-5 pm)
