The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, October 22, 1979, Page Page 8, Image 8
'Philly
By Mark Platte
P
The Workshop Theatre opened m
.with a bang as The Philadelphia 1
Story dress rehearsal was tl
presented to the Columbia media r
Thursday. e
Dana Faust stars as Tracy Lord, ii
a bride-to-be in the bizarre, il
sometimes hilarious escapades of s
her wedding day. Tracy Lord is
part of a prominent, high-class d
family concerned with luxury and b
social importance. The problems C
- -* It - +
siari wnen ine rnuaaeipma iamny 11
discovers their father had an affair c
with a New York dancer.
In order to keep this controversy ii
out of the newspapers, the Lord I
family makes a deal with the F
newspaper's publisher to have r
reporter Mike Connor and s
photographer Liz Imbrie cover the
"industrial, historical and
fashionable" aspects of a well-to- a
do Philadelphia family. \
Thine*; rnmnliratf* as Dpxtpr V
* o~ I??? ?
Haven, Tracy's playboy ex- s
husband returns on the day before c
her supposed marriage to George c
Kitteredge, a low-class coal miner, a
The family tries to confuse the
newspaper people by switching the fc
identities of Uncle Willie and Seth j
Lord, the family's father. r
DtT rrnr\nt*ofinrr an imrvfAPCiAn o
ujf ait uupi tooiuii wi a
craziness, the family is forced to a
reveal their dilemma and for a e
moment, bedlam is stilled, c
However, a budding drunken r
romance between Connor and i
Tracy Lord on the night before the
wedding brings dissension between 1
Tracy and George, and the future s
marriage hangs in the balance. ?
'Time Aftei
By David Baker
Gamccocfc FHm Critic
With Time After Time, it's apparei
Meyer plans to specialize in taking
history. In The 7 Percent Solution
Ross directed, from Meyer's sci
Holmes and Sigmund Freud were br
In Time After Time (which Me}
directed), the duo he unites is H.G.
the Hipper.
The story begins in 1893, when \
McDowell) unveils his famous tim<
handful of his closest friends, among
Leslie Stevenson (David Warner), wh
Ripper.
When the police arrive at Wells' h
clues to the Ripper's whereabouts, 5
the time machine and travels to &
1979. After dropping him off, the ma
1893 England where Wells promptly h
off after the madman.
Wells' arrival in San Francisc
acvcidi uppui luiuucd tu tuiiniiciu uii
and he capitalizes on most all of tl
where the nattily-dressed Wells visiU
and discovers plastic countertops an
particularly funny.
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McDowell in 'Time Afte
Story* <
The acting is enjoyable but the
lot is spread too thin over the play
jhich lasts almost three hours.
'here are three acts but much of
he material is filler and doesn't
eaily add to the unpredictable
nding. The difficulty lies centrally
i the drawn-out manner in which i
t is presentd, the plot is simple and
hould be revealed as such.
The 1939 setting makes the
tesign especially unique and
leautiful. Costume Coordinator
Cheryl Folley did an excellent job
i keeping the time span in ac
ui uaiitc iu uic tuoiuiuc i;i uci la.
One of the highlights of the play
3 the well-played part of Dinah gj
x>rd, Tracy's sister by Sarah j?
^olley. She is a definite plus as a II
nischevious, adorable child who |2
eems to set the match to endless ||
xplosions of trouble. E
The other main highlight is the p
icting of Don Steele as Uncle p
Villie. Steele has been in many I
Vorkshon nrodurtions and alwavs ft
;eems to add class to his
iharacters. In this case, he
lelighted the crowd with swift
inecdotes and loveable honesty.
Dana Faust as Tracy Lord is fine
>ut she seems to overact, probably
ust a quirt caused by the openingl
tt^m
iigiii uicaa i eiiecii a?u. nei iiiuvca e|
ire slightly deliberate and her |j
ippea ranee is perhaps a bit
jxhaustive. However, one can
verlook these minor flaws and E
ealize that a truly great actress is th
n the making. Ji
Other notable performances are w
landled by Betty Hudges as the
iarcastic Liz Imbrie, Mike Collins
is Dexter Haven and Henry m
jl uiic ci yu*
Wlien Wells goes t<
it that Nicholas sterling for Americ
; liberties with Stevenson has been I
(which Herbert the teller, Amy (Ma
ript), Shei ">ck cute little men weari
ought togeti. r. Amy asks Wells o
/er wrote ai,d women behaving in s
Wells and Jack they're strolling arc
wens sees a news
Veils (Malcolm confirms his fear thi
e-machine to a kill off San Francisc<
them physician A note from the ri
10 is secretly the on his list of intend*
grief and costing Am
ome looking for Meyer has wiselj
Jtevenson steals thriller aspects to a
in Francisco in story to take on an s
chine returns to so, he makes Wei
lops in and takes characters that we'i
going to happen to tl
o gives Meyer Meyer been content
llf/\ IM IIVTAn oVtAilir
1I1C 111 II1C IIJ/US OIIU**.
tiem. The scene While Meyer's sci
5 a MacDonald's film's effectiveness
d french fries is success is the actini
is chillingly evil as
McDowell is sheer ]
f M to end his bloody spr
' AHHH| The real surprise
burgen. After only
Jack Nicholson's w
has perfected her lc
^e point where sh
^ggHHgH? female superstar. II
best of today's actr
style she exhibits ir
appreciated.
Alas, Time After
II Meyer handles eve
I outstandingly. Paul
I in several scenes,
I others. And the spe<
| Jim Blount, are a th
I time machine look:
I and the various tri
I ferior attempt to
I Stanley Kubrick's 2i
| That Time After
I' enjoyable in the fa
I shortcomings is a (
I talents of Meyer an
| taken what could I
< juxtaposition of era:
Tv , delightful moviegoii
Make time for Tir
i high <
Bk ^zs^feiL ^L
Mike Collins, Sarah
verett as Sandy Lord. Of course,
te whole play was well-cast and
m Blanton s directing made the
hole affair worthwhile.
The basic moral of the story is,
rhe more things change, the
tore they stay the same." There's
xl thriller
) a bank to exchange his English
:an dollars, he finds: 1) that
there ahead of him; and 2) that
ry Steenburgen), nas a tning tor
ng funny clothes.
ut and, although he isn't used to
>uch a fashion, he accepts. While
>und town, taking in the sights,
paper, the headline on which
it Stevenson has indeed begun to
*'? fpmalp nnnulntinn
pper later confirms that Amy is
sd victims, causing Wells much"
y much sleep.
' chosen to downplay the plot's
llow the romantic aspects of the
lir of equal importance. By doing
Is and Amy into such lovable
re more afraid wondering what's
lem than we would have been had
to create a run-of-the-mill scare
ript is a major contributor to the
, the main reason for the movie's
g of the three principals. Warner
the time-traveling murderer and
[>erfection as the man who wants
ee.
i of the film, however, is Steenone
previous film role (that of
ife in Goin' South), Steenburgen
ose delivery and sparkling wit to
e could easily become the next
er comic timing is on par with the
ess-comedienne's and the quirky
i every scene must be seen to be
Time is horrendously lacking in
;as. In his first try at directing,
rything adequately, but nothing
i Lohmann's photography is nice
but is murky in just as many
nal effects, by Larry Fuentes and
irowback to 1950s tackiness ? the
s like a dilapidated Volkswagen
ps through time look like an inrecreate
several scenes from
DOi: A Space Odyssey.
Time can be so devastatingly
ce of such distracting technical
tribute to the writing and acting
d his extraordinary cast. They've
lave been a rather uninteresting;
s and turned it into one of the most
ng experiences of the year.
ne After Time.
:lass co
Folley, James Holmes Jr. in
not too much insight into this work.
The play is produced to let the o
anHipnpp pninv nnt fn r?ri tir>i -70 v
MV*V??^?avV VHJWJ y ??VV VV Vft J
Everybody should love "The n
Philadelphia Story" for en- c
tertainment, not for any deep e
meaning.
Workshop Th
season on i
By Mark F
The Workshop Theatre reopened
renovations and numerous dedicatio
Although all the renovations haven'i
reflects all the professionalism and
showcase.
The auditorium was dedicated to J<
of the Columbia Museum of Art. A
Workshop Theatre, said, "Our new tl
but when we started out as a small bi
Jennings added that Craft "gave" \
two-story office building into the first
A plaque above the entrance to th
and there is a special seat for him
missed a performance by the Worksh
Another plaque was dedicated tc
Akhavi. She was the wife of USC's G
Elaine Akhavi worked with the Th<
cancer. She continued working on th
away.
Marsha Johns, Board member of t
was someone who loved to work wil
main reasons why the Theatre was
and his son were unable to attend the
The dressing rooms were dedica
makeup staff worker who was knowi
to smooth even the most ruffled 1
Herring, Workshop Theatre Board M
the late wife of Workshop worker
"peppermint room."
Hazel Kaplan was deeply loved b
Workshop Theatre and the dedicat
several people present.
Gene McKay, former board m
president was also on hand to join ii
Mayor Pro Temp of Columbia and Lc
Trustees of the Columbia Museum of
to aid in the opening of the Theatre.
Baker said, while watching the W<
form but that the plays in Columbia
considered in helping Columbia to be
The new auditorium, needing 14 r
with 7500 square feet of space. There
office, concessions and ticket sales.
Thursday was Media Night as the \
presentation, The Philadelphia Stoi
starring nana Panct T^n
0 * 14 MUV. A I Si' pi UUUCUU
attraction is Little Women and futui
opening Jan. 18, Arsenic and Old La
Youth starting March 21, and Wild Oa
The Workshop Theatre is open anc
encouraged that authentic, quality pi;
' 1 1 "
medy
: , ,.x:>; / ."...
V :jl|| -
'Philadelphia Story'
Plan to see this first production
f the new Workshop Theatre and
ou'll leave with an enjoyable
lemory of a charming, wellrafted
performance which shows
xtraordinary effort.
oatrp hornncl
LA. vrv^Aiiv;
new stage
Matte
Thursday with $220,000 worth of
ns to a true art form in Columbia,
t been completed, the new theater
respectability of an off-Broadway
ohn Richard Craft, former director
nn Jennings, former president of
leatre has been built by thousands,
ind of 13, Dr. Craft believed in us.,r
Vorkshop their space by turning a
Workshop Theatre.
e auditorium is dedicated to Craft
in the front row. Craft has never
op Theatre.
) the memory of the late Elaine
UNT professor Shahrough Akhavi.
frA AvrAri nffJ
/au v v? v-?i auui iCdl Hlll^ Silt; IlctU
e play "Gypsy" before she passed
he Workshop Theatre said Akhavi
th the Theatre and was one of the
so successful. Shahrough Akhavi
unveiling.
ted to Hazel Kaplan. She was a
i for "the offering of a peppermint
feathers," according to Bette G.
ember. The room was dedicated to
Lou Kaplan to be known as the
y all of those associated with the
inn hrnncfht toorc
.... uu(,>iv i.vu> o ivs in*, cjrco ui
ember and Steering Committee
1 the festivities. William C. Ouzts,
;e Baker, President of the Board of
Art and Science were also present
>rld Series, that baseball is an art
i are an ^rt form which should be
a balanced entertainment city,
nonths to construct, has 199 seats
is lobby space as well as a business
Vorkshop Theatre began their first
ry, directed by Jim Blanton and
>n runs from Oct. 19-27. The next
*e shows include Family Business
ce starting Feb. 22, Sweet Bird of
ts, which will begin May 2. j
1 all Columbia residents should be
ay production is underway. \
* y .* ,r *