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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 1997)
Play finds smT ‘ - By Liza Holtmeier Senior Reporter Have you ever felt like every one around you is completely insane? Like you are stuck some where in between reality and fan tasy? "" Jasper has. As the lead charac 1 ter in the play “Somewhere in Between,” he confronts the mental friction of others on a daily basis. “Somewhere in Between,” a romantic comedy written by Craig Pospisil and directed by Beth Muehling, revolves around Jasper, an everyday guy unhappy with his life. The show opens tonight at the Futz, 124 S. Ninth St. Through a series of encounters with “extraordinary” people, Jasper finds the strength to contin ue on and find happiness. Along the way, he meets the woman ot his dreams. “Jasper is like Charlie Brown,” cast member Laura Nettland said. “All these bad things happen to him but he finally gets the red haired girl in the end.” Muehling said “Somewhere In Between” was a conscious move away from the dramas she normal ly directs at the Futz. “It was time for me to do a heavy-duty comedy,” Muehling said. “My past productions have been serious looks at life through the eyes of women and children. This is light, soft, sweet and - romantic.**'- ' " • . Muehling described the play as . .1 .. J “Seinfeld”-esque: Ordinary char acters confront ordinary problems. “It doesn’t talk about anything in particular, but it has something to say,” she said. Cast member Kelly Sheridan said the normalcy of the charac ters made them easily identifiable to the audience. “These people aren’t the brightest or the" luckiest or the best-looking people,” Sheridan said. “They’re average. (The audi ence) should find hope in the hap piness of these ordinary people.” While the cast members worked to portray the reality of their characters’ conflicts, last week’s storm offered them some real-life hassles. Rehearsals - first moved to Muennng s nouse because of a lack of space else where - were delayed and moved again because of the power outage. Luckily, the play follows typi cal black box theater style with minimal set, costumes and props, Muehling said. The only extensive technical element is the use of sound effects. “We pulled a lot of stuff that we were originally going to put in,” said Dana Wheatley, who plays Jasper. “It’s been a bit of a challenge learning the timing, but it really amplifies the acting.” Because of the play’s light tone, Muehling said the only thing she wanted the audience to take away from the production was a smile. , “(The audi ences) are not V going to feel^- V " like they have' % v answers to vj :<j world peace or ^ world hunger or the deficit,” Muehlihg / Jj said. “I don't want them to have that. If that c /yr } what they’re coming Jr for, they’re coming ( to the wrong place.” Nettlana, who plays Ji Jasper’s love interest, {X said she hoped the audi- p ence would be inspired by « Jasper. J “Jasper has kind of ( moved away from this unhappy point in his life and is moving towards a nappier time,” Nettland said. “I hope it encourages people to really find what they’ want out of life.” “Somewhere In Between” runs tonight, Thursday and Saturday and Nov. 13-16. Curtain is at 8 p.m., except for on Nov. 16, when it’s at /:3U p.m. Tickets are $5.33 foj tonight’s per formance :^ and $ 10.65 for all others. Call ?:? (402) 435-6307 f^r.... reservations. * J _ r House of Large Sizes “Glass Cockpit” What Are Records? Grade: R+ Rock is gathering moss. Both national and local acts are receiving less and less attention from once avid listeners as album sales have continued to slump for the past few years. Reasons for the disinterest in modem rock are both obvious and dis puted. Many cite the rapid rape of grunge rock and the advent of industri al-age techno as the primary reasons for die slow vaporization of rock ‘n’ roll. Others claim rock music raped itself, and the offspring is, of course, incestuous - spawning duplicate mutant pop bands and a harem of angry guitar sisters. In the midst of the decay and con fusion, rock music has been divided and replicated in a number of vague faces such as alternative, grunge, pop, ska and techno. Leery of mainstream success by personal favorites or dis gusted by die genre-oscillation of pre viously respected musicians, music fans are increasingly walking away from the scene altogether. But hope is always close to home. While rock continues to wither, some groups are breathing new life into old ideas. Among them is the farmhand hard rock sound of a leg endary Cedar Falls, Iowa, band, which has just released a new album of ethanol-inspired andpunk-derived gui tar-god rock Long-standing Iowa rock founda tion and road-band spectacular House of Large Sizes continues to reach sky ward by returning to its base: the guitar, embraced like an old friend on its new album, “Glass Cockpit.” Not that the guitar was ever left behind in the 11 years the band has been touring and recording. In fact, its reputation is based on a pleasingly abrasive mix of The Who, Aerosmith and barnyard punk rock; and this newest effort bears many features of its progenitors, plus a veritable Brach’s bag of previously unheard hard pop candy. “Glass Cockpit"’ is a shiny work of sticky guitar hooks, rock howls and jaded rural pride accompanied by an exploration of classic rock tradition and noticeably pointed lyrics. Bassist Barb Schilf’s tough vocals and heavy instrumental presence is also a wel come emphasis of the three-piece band, which has experimented with her role as vocalist in the past ielepathically as tight as three peo ple can be and not share the same skin, HOLS gained notoriety over the years for blindingly entertaining live shows fueled by a love for classic guitar and noncommittal youth-oriented mes sages. The band’s first album in three years and the third since 1986, “Glass Cockpit” flies through 15 homegrown rock cuts with jubilant three-chord bril liance, heavy bass and lyrics reminis cent of teen-idol acts like Sonic Youth. In an age where popular music is '* becoming increasingly less so, rock V roll is struggling against the trappings of music store labeling, top 40 schlock rock and worn-out imagery. Available at Homer’s locations, “Glass Cockpit’’ is a refreshing and occasionally brilliant collection of classic rock inspiration, punk rock atti tude and contemporary ingenuity. -Bret Schulte WtcwooSfcoy* u*tfcsFofe a Some, of make ooft. S£t£cno*S Tfts as we might oufc Romaic £ Wioe fttotffcOP S&ASo^fUMONte P*U» OfcJ'WE BASIS OP MOtvAt. CM«C€$ OREO Plotter VUCOHStiOOS l PftOM^BCOUOUBAAfnbMAt'ro lATIMAta AM? SttffiC? V*otf,W*Ui£ tO'de**$f^0(Ktte£ft»lW«AG£P % TVe. otsPtftATtuy meeds. OWS Sat out otstauc-nve cwjtonoooc.AM?msma* cjjo of » 4 IflfcRS U)WO M**t* UP WITH OOfc MAfefJ&TlWSAMG ?K)f3L M PUUAOS of S£tP-U>ATH>*)6AM? M1STW369 A6Al*)A*JPA«A^AM>A«W % ii^ogn4«LS&ss^ r-~~-sT^ f aooftEMi«JOM6oP\ | -f UA4T"TO Y MtfMOH.SMCtfAS \ ft HcfirfaL (MtcaMg, I # Amjpitocvctto / | Atwc. t^jT i Mv^mujtetfawV^' i ttMi MimtMNA | 1 3 u»S£3**«. >r ■ 9 . . fc . i i :Tl i , •••I .
