Production brings war to light
By Jeff Randall
Senior Reporter
Although for most college students
the Vietnam War is only a vague
memory, if even that, its impact on
American society continues today.
“The Speed of
Darkness,” the lat
est production by
Theatrix, the UNL
theatre and dance
department’s stu
dent-run perfor
mance and produc
tion association,
examines this sub
ject on a personal
level. The play,
written by Steve Tesich and directed
by adjunct faculty member Mark
Klemetsrud, opens tonight at the
Johnny Carson Theater.
“The Speed of Darkness” tells the
story of Joe (played by graduate stu
dent Patrick Tuttle), a Vietnam vet
eran who has built up a successful life
back home as a construction contrac
tor.
Things seem to be going well for
Joe until he runs into Lou (played by
graduate student Steven Shields), a
war buddy now living on the street.
Through a series of revelations, Lou
forces Joe to re-examine his success
and his hidden emotions.
The play also features perfor
mances by Heather Currie, Holly
Vierk and Reggie Barnes.
Tuttle says his character, Joe, is “a
man who is haunted by his past.”
“Whatever that past was, he has to
find some way to get through it.”
Tuttle said the play contains a
number of surprises.
“There are some humorous points,
but the mood is almost like a mystery,
where you don’t know everything that
is going on, and that gives the play an
edge.”
Klemetsrud, who petitioned
Theatrix to allow production of the
play, said he was drawn to the piece
primarily because of its characters.
“I read it about four years ago, and
had been looking for a way to get it on
stage. It really struck a chord with
me, and I’m glad I was able to get it
done.”
Audience members at the Carson
Theater will not be disappointed,
Klemetsrud said.
“It will be a fine evening of enter
tainment. The cast has worked very
hard and it shows, and the play has
several wonderful moments and a
nice humor to it.”
Tickets for “The Speed of Dark
ness” are available at the door only
and cost $3. The show runs through
Sunday, with show times at 8 p.m.
tonight through Saturday and 2 p.m.
on Sunday.
El Charro sizzles the senses
By Albert Schmid
Food Critic
The comer of 13th and F streets
seems a little off the beaten path to be
home to one of Lincoln’s great res
taurants. But it’s
home to El Charro
and some great
Mexican food.
El Charro is
housed on the site
of the former
Crain’s Cozy Cafe,
and before that was
the “F” Street
Diner. Both eater
ies specialized in
“home-style” cooking.
El Charro is authentic Mexican
food from scratch at its best. The
building does not look like much, but
the food and the service are fantastic.
The menu is extensive and caters
U^^^i|^rentaj^tites^Sizzling
marinated beef; chicken, pork or
shrimp with bell peppers, onions, to
matoes, guacamole and sour cream.
The chosen meat comes to the table
on a “sizzling” platter.
I enjoyed the No. 13 combination
plate for S5.95. My dinner included a
taco, enchilada, chile relleno and my
choice of soup or salad. I chose a spicy
meatball soup, which was quite good.
The amount of food I received was
hard to finish but I managed, because
all of it was so good I did not want it
relegated to the leftovers in my refrig
erator.
The menu is well-rounded, includ
ing “Cinco Hombres Specialties,”
which sell for between $6.95 and
$9.45. The specialties include Arroz
Con Polio for $6.95; Camitas for
$8.25; and the Brocheta Combina
tion for $9.25. All dinners are served
with Spanish rice, refried beans, soup
or salad and tortillas.
The menu also offers steak din
•necs^seafood dishes, lScombinaiion
dinners, nine burritos and four enchi
lada dinners. Prices range from $3.95
to $12.95.
El Charro also provides a
children’s menu, with a choice of a
taco, cheese enchilada, a small bean
and-cheese burrito or a hamburger.
Each meal is $2.95.
Appetizers run between $2.95 and
$5.95 and desserts from $1 to $2.95.
Because the menus are the same as
those used when the restaurant oper
ated in Albion, alcoholic drinks are
listed. But because a church is located
across the street from the restaurant,
Lincoln’s liquor laws forbid its sale
on the premises.
El Charro has been open only two
weeks and does not yet accept credit
cards, although it has plans to. The
restaurant is wonderful and highly
recommended.
The eatery is open seven days a
week, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday
through Thursday, and until 11 p.m.
on Friday. Italso serves breakfast on
Saturdays and Sundays.
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Chase away the winter blahs
with some cozy new releases
By Gerry Beltz
Pilm Critic
And now Just in time for the wintertime
blues, we present the last two weeks of video
releases! Lots of outer space and computer
based stuff from last week, and one roman
tic comedy for this week. The pick-of-the
week is a sexy thriller from some years ago.
• “Apollo 13” (PG-13) — One of the
summer ’ s biggest hits comes home to video,
but will probably lose some of its impact on
the transfer to the small screen.
“Apollo 13” follows
New Video the true story of the har
Release rowing Apollo 13 mission
and the three astronauts
(Bill Paxton, Tom Hanks,
Kevin Bacon) who sur
vived the ordeal. It is very
compelling and well-di
rected, courtesy of Ron
Howard (“Backdraft” and
“NJaht Shifts
Great performances abound throughout
the film, and the special effects are all top
notch.
• “Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers”
(PG) — The Rangers are on the attack, and
they are coming to your home!
These high-flying, sky diving protectors
of the innocent now have a real budget for
their special effects and a really ugly villain
with loads of one-liners.
The kids will love this. Adults probably
won’t.
• “Congo” (R) — Another Michael
Crichton novel (“Jurassic Park,” “Disclo
sure”) made into a movie, “Congo” was
again a big summer hit.
Featuring an all-star cast including Tim
Curry, Dylan Walsh and Ernie Hudson,
“Congo” asks the question, “What limits
should there be on humanity dealing with
nature?”
Like all Crichton novels, computers play
a large part in “Congo,” and the computer
work provides some of the high points of the
film. “Congo” is worth finding.
•“Johnny Mnemonic” (PG-13)—Ouch.
This William Gibson story adapted for the
movie just doesn’t cut the mustard.
Keanu Reeves stars as Johnny, a man
with a computer-enhanced memory who
works as an information courier in the dark,
dismal future. His brain has an overload of
information that could change the world
(naturally), and everybody wants what’s
inside his head (naturally).
Keanu’s acting is so wooden it is surpris
ing toothpicks don’t fall out of his nose. The
movie is generally worthless, save some
cool virtual reality moments.
• “Forget Paris” (PG) — Billy Crystal,
who starred in the romantic hit “When
Harry Met Sally,” stars in another romantic
gem “Forget Paris” with Debra Winger.
Crystal and Winger star as a couple who
meet in Paris and have a fairy tale romance
that ends in marriage, but they then must
learn to deal with reality, as well.
Both Winger and Crystal turn in great
work, and Crystal’s job as a basketball ref
eree is quite funny.
PICK-OF-THE-WEEK — Although
William Hurt and Kathleen Turner received
great praise for their work in “The Acciden
tal Tourist,” their performances were equally
as powerful in the suspenseful “Body Heat.”
In the middle of a Florida heat wave,
lawyer Ned Racine (Hurt) is picked up by
the sultry — and married — Matty Walker
(Turner), and as a passionate affair ensues,
the two plot to kill her husband.
But does it all end there? Nope. That’s
where the twists and turns start to come in.
All performances are great (Turner re
ceived a Golden Globe nomination), and the
music is compelling.
Check it out.
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