The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, September 17, 1982, Page 10, Image 10
-entertainment
'Cyrano'm
By John Vaughan
Usually an audience will excuse opening
night mistakes and will give a stage
production plagued by jitters the benefit of
the doubt.
Workshop Theatre's season-opening
performance of "Cyrano de Bergerac,"
however, was so riddled with error Wednesday
that doubts gnawed at this reviewer
long after the closing curtain.
Edmond Rostand's famous drama is
certainly the most ambitious project undertaken
by any Columbia amateur theater
in recent memory, and one ought to admire
the Workshop people for even trying it. In
the same breath, one cannot compliment
director Jim Quick for attaining his goal of a
"stage epic in the tradition of 4Ben Hur.' "
"PVR ANA" ha* ? Korirlful f\( it/wl nor
m. a?i ( ^ v/ * tMtJ M IM?l?VUUA VI gWU pVl ~~
formances, some exciting sword fights and
dazzling costumes. But Wednesday's
production was racked with erratic pacing,
excessive clumsiness and the ultimate
gaffe-Cyrano's disfigured nose, the focus of
his personal agony, fell off after the first
act!
For those unfamiliar with the verse
drama, it features Cyrano (Peter Holland),
A1 t r* a>U/v
an uu^uciu auu luinaiuit uciu wiiu is su
embarrassed by his ridiculously large nose
that he can only express his love for the
beautiful Roxane through the handsome,
young Christian. Christian himself is
tongue-tied in Roxane's presence without
Cyrano's poetry.
To have the prominent proboscis (and
mustache) disappear from his face set the
audience murmuring when Holland appeared
with only his natural features in the
second act.
Yet tne only reason to dwell on this error
is to punctuate praise for Holland. Many
actors would have been ruined after a first
act such as Holland experienced: his entrance
was awkward, his sword fell from his
side no less than a half-dozen times in the
first scene, and of course, the poorlyconstructed,
Silly Putty-like nose became
unglued backstage after the first act.
WHEN HE appeared for the second act,
however, Holland made no attempt to
*'cover" the loss. He held his head up and
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EmAj
HI
Brian James, Stiu Bator, Nick Turner and Da
Lords comb
By Marc Fink de
9
The vitality and enthusiasm of the fai
Lords of the New Church, combined fr<
with the strength of their material and ah
their individual musical skills, he
produced the best rock, concert in un
Columbia this year. cu
The Lords appeared in Strider's
about jpidnight Saturday, clad in 1
black leather, rousing the 200-plus hij
crowd with an frtmr of stirring rock. mi
n l- * ?- o*:-- r>_A ? ?
nocR-nui puiiK., oiiv uaior, ieau cn<
singer, informed the fans at the wil
beginning of the gig. Yo
"Old people will blow us to hell," lea
Bator said. da;
The quartet, all experienced rock jj
musicians, performed throbbing the
versions of the 10 songs from their Clc
t ;
isses by 11
did not try to shade with his hands or hat the
untimely amputation-and the best part
was, he didn't need to shield.
The actor delivered an impressive, multifaceted
performance as the hero, displaying
the wonderful depth of the beloved tragic
hero.
Holland has one of the most expressive
faces seen on any Columbia stage for some
time. His passionate yet sad eyes and
quirky, endearing smile were noticed from
the outset; soon after the initial shock of the
missing nose, the audience was not allowed
to give it another thought. Holland's rather
small real-life nose grew tremendously, as
did the depth of his entire performance.
Simply, the actor was fascinating to watch.
Other problems were not overcome. Many
actors, especially Holland, were bothered
by their swords clattering to the stage,
usuallv before a disDlav of swashbuckling
grace. The large cast was necessary for
crowd scenes, but the supporting group was
often boring and predictable as it filled up
the stage.
THE SHOW is also remarkable for
Michael Taylor's uninspired lighting, A
nighttime skirmish is the sole exception to
Taylor's general style, or more accurately,
lack thereof. The famous scene where
Cyrano cues Christian under Roxane's
balcony at night is unexplainably bright,
and the audience must wonder why Roxane
cannot see de Bergerac from the window.
The costuming is colorful and satisfying to
me last cnaracter,inougn, ana visual effect
is rare in a small theater such as Workshop.
Along the same lines, the fight scenes
were generally good, with the level of excitement
overpowering the level of clumsiness.
Especially effective were the scenes
where Cyrano dispatches a rival while
reciting a sonnet, and where he singlehandedly
defeats 100 men.
Among the players, Holland is joined by
George Naylor and Bill Mould, who gave
fine performances as De Guiche and
Ragueneau.
NAYLOR IS slick and consistent in his
portrayal of the repugnant De Guiche, and
the actor makes the difficult personality
alteration (when De Guiche's basic pride is
- , V - - *- _ . . Bfek
i wt" Jam ,&
i/6 Tregunna are The Lords of the New Church
m Bmau ***. iinfc A Ml* ^
iiits sirenyir
but released on the I.U.S. label. is the <
rhe album, named for the band, is other i
r superior to the latest releases The
>m The Clash and Chelsea, groups Saturc
>o emerging from the mad, frantic thesizt
yday of punk in 1977. The LP is of seeme
usual quality for a debut recording. raw, c
tting most existent bands to shreds. The
them 4
['he Lords of the New Church play old su
'h-energy, politically oriented style i
isic. The lyrics are tongue-in- "truth
eek, streaming into short phrases "Qu
th music influenced by the New obscui
rk Dolls, '60s garage bands and the by B*
iding punk bands of the split-skull concei
rn nf 'HI * ?
yaw M. ? puiIllS
>tiv Bator, former lead singer for radio
i notorious Dead Boys, who were perfor
jveland's answer to the Sex Pistols,
lore than a
iflj
J! I
Costumed cast members entertain theatergoei
before the opening of 'Cyrano.'
unveiled) smooth. His is a studied performance
with superb bearing.
Mould, the master of USC's South
Carolina College, turns in what may be his
best performance to date as Cyrano's
lovable ally, Ragueneau the confectioner.
His delivery of the verse is polished and
knowledgeable.
It is a stylish delivery, in fact, that sets
Mould, Naylor and Holland apart from
Melissa Ray Severance and Larry Webster
as the two lovers.
Severance's Roxane is rather onedimensional,
and one wonders what the
sensitive Cyrano sees in this physically
attractive, but rather stiff character.
Webster, too, is physically attractive as
the handsome Christian, but he reads his
lines dryly, always to the wings, and
without any feel for poetic subtlety.
Chemistry between the two lovers is nonexistent.
H Pamela
f Classical m
IBBBBbBBBBBBBBb "Chamber Mu
/aH USC Music D<
To celebrate
(jf iJBHM performed by
BK^ik pieces either
Jm. IWH culture.
Il iHHBl jp J : j|ji The fact tha
Rifl Hfc ^ JL It was hardly s<
p? foundation for
H"LEYEND/
splendid sole
Christopher B
"Bachianas
the other han
those Clint E
performers ; b
best of what th
Lobos, howe
Brazilian fas!
Brazilian mus
seem^haUiei
Ironically,th
Frenchman,
McGarrity irr
|| | | arias from Bi
1^ ill lovely but ill-f;
f i\ ill ACCOMPAP
won her listei
jnly American in the Lords. The "L'amour et
nembers are British. little number,
foursome played so well easily,
lay that the horns and syn- "I/amour e
*rs, overdubbed on the LP, des remparts
d superfluous to the band's strong voice 1
>haroincf cnnnH rattloH tninr<A'
0"'0 ,MVVIVU
Lords roared through the an- singer who mi
'New Church" with a nod to the tape commer
rf tune "Pipeline," Dick Dale- orchestral acc
guitar playing and lyrics like the intensity o
can't be found on television." Like the firs
estion of Temperature," an was filled wil
*e mid-'60s song originally done performance
illoon Farm was one of the Conant,accon
'o on/1 f ho olKiinn
? v o uuu aiMuiu o?1AI |?i I vyi/namt d ov
. Bator said the song still gets Ernste Gesar
play in the Midwest. James Conant had t*
ms one of h's best guitar solos viral ailment i
Sm "Lords," pay* 11
m^BBamm, jm
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wsb
rs on me worksnop iheatre patio
BILLY DUBOSE turns in a vibrant
supporting performance as Cyrano's friend
Le Bret. Dubose never fails to shine with
sheer stage presence, although in this play
he is occasionally too vibrant.
Lovers of the theater probably should see
this production for its costuming, the good
i ' r ii- *
irciiuuuiiiices anu ior me simple reason
that "Cyrano" is such an outstanding stage
work.
But with its length- three and a half hours-and
its gnawing ragged edges, I'm afraid
this can't be recommended as a Workshop
highlight. Director Quick might have
succeeded fully with another week or so of
rehearsal, and I can only hope that the basic
broadness of this show falls together after
the first few performances.
"Cyrano" will run through Sept. 26.
Tickets are $5.50 for adults and $4.50 for
senior citizens, military personnel and
students. For more information, call the
Workshop box office, 799-6551.
s concert accents
ical Latin music
IN
usic with a Latin flavor accented Tuesday's
sic Concert II," the fourth presentation in the
;partment's September Concerts series.
National Hispanic Week, the concert, entirely
members of the USC faculty, contained several
k<> u:?nnn:? ? ? ? 1
uj iiiojjaiut tuinj/uscib ui concerning L3iin
t a guitar was featured in two of the selections
jrprising, as that instrument seems to be a
Latin music.
L," by Isaac Albeniz, illustrated this idea; a
> was performed by classical guitarist
arg.
Brasileiras No. 5" by Heitor Villa Lobos, on
d, sounded like background music for one of
astwood spaghetti westerns. No fault of the
oth Berg and soprano Laury Christie made the
ey had.
ver, fell short of his goal to simulate Bach in a
lion. There is nothing wrong with Bach or
ic for guitar and voice, but from this work it
rer the twain should meet.
IP Hisnanif-tvnp cwWUnn ?no<? u.. -
vj |yvz uviVVViVII TT UO W 1 ll^CU Cl
Georges Bizet. Mezzo-soprano Evelyn
ipressed the audience with renditions of two
izet's "Carmen," the famous opera about a
ited young woman.
JIEI) BY Charles Fugo on piano, McGarrity
lers over with the first of the arias, entitled
un oiseau rebelle." The aria is a seductive
and McGarrity got the entire meaning across
t un oiseau rebelle" was followed hv "Pw
de Seville," a seguidilla. Again McGarrity's
landled the aria with little difficulty, and she
ws on a few notes; McGarrity is the kind of
ght shatter helpless wine goblets on Memorex
cials. Arias from "Carmen" deserve a full
:ompaniment instead of just a piano, but with
f McGarrity's mezzo-soprano, few noticed,
t chamber music concert, Tuesday's program
th duets and trios for vocalists. One special
that merits nnti*?*? u>qc ? n:-' *
?uo ktj uaiuuuc ivicriara
ipanied by pianist Raymond Dudley.
Sections were by Johannes Brahms: "Vier
ige," ("Four Serious Songs"). Regrettably,
le opportunity to perform only three, due to a
vhich impaired his voice.
Sm "Series," page 12