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The Red and Black
Monday, November 10, 1981
Entertainment
‘The Madwoman of Central Park West’ enjoyable
• instant Cash
• We pay up to S1.S0 tor
records in tine condition
• Thousands ot used
records, cassettes and books
Buying and trading all
store items
College Clayton and 510 Baxter
In Athene
Jtistory Village Inn
AND CONFERENCE CENTER
By MARIA HURT
Kcd and Black Huff Writer
"The Madwoman of Central Park West” starring Phyllis
Newman was nothing but pure entertainment Although it
was billed as an autobiographical musical about Newman, it
was instead a showcase of her talents as a singer, comedian
and impersonator It also shows why she should stick to
entertainment and leave playwriting and songwriting to
others.
The subject of the show was Newman's struggles as a wife,
mother and entertainer Problems such as these have been
dealt with in literature so much that in many ways the show's
theme was cliche.
The presentation of her problems in the comedy format
was a very wise choice by Newman and her co-author Arthur
Laurents Newman's one-liners and sudden impersonations
of stars startled and delighted
New man began her career at age 3 as an imitator of singer
Belle Baker Her experience as an impersonator is evident in
her portrayal of the posture and mannerisms as well as the
voices of singer-actresses from Barbra Streisand to
Katherine Hepburn One of the better musical numbers in the
show was the “Talk Show Medley" which illustrated
Newman's ability to do a range of singers and to quickly
switch from one to the other
The music for the score came from a variety of successful
composers and lyricists. "Don't Laugh," one of the most
exceptional songs of the show, was written by Mary Rodgers,
Martin Charnin ("Annie") and Stephen Sondheim
("Sweeney Todd”). Other songs came from such Broadway
teams as Kander and Ebb ("Woman of the Year") and Bock
and Harnick ("Fiddler on the Roof”). "Up, Up, Up" by
Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green was
the most disappointing considering the normal caliber of
Bernstein (“West Side Story").
Considering the impressive list of composers and lyricists
which contributed songs to the show, it is a wonder that
Newman chose to include two of her own songs (with John
Clifton) in the score The first song “My Mother was a
Fortune Teller” lacked "Broadway show " quality. It simply
was not a good song especially when used to open and close a
show which has high quality music in it.
The best number in the show was the “No One's Toy
Medley" (arranged by Glen Roven). The medley combined a
variety of songs from the past few decades in all styles of
music which illustrated women as objects which belonged in
the home or in bed.
Newman has an outstanding voice, good comedy timing
and good stage presence. She maintained the high energy
level that is required of the one-woman in a one-woman show
Only once did Newman let the audience down. Her
portrayal of herself as a singer in Greenwich Village which
sought to amuse through absurdity did not even deserve a
laugh Perhaps the real incident was not very funny cither
Overall, Newman’s talents and the songs of other
composers made the show a success. It can be said that a
good time was had by all. After all, a good laugh never hurt
anybody.
‘A Flag for Sunrise ’ a study of intrigue
see is real enough ... That's
what Satan is ... Satan is the
way things are ... We say
they're deluded but reality’s
their problem.”
A particularly vivid scene
between the priest and the
child killer presents a
perfect study of madness,
w ith its terror and delusions
It's a scary scene, but in the
end we wonder whether
madness is a special vision
— a direct line on the way
things truly are.
Stone sets this novel in
Tecan, a country ripe for
revolution. Appalling
poverty in the towns and
countryside is set against
wealth and comfort enjoyed
in the President's Palace.
The soft excess of tourists in
their resorts is contrasted
with the misery of peasants
living in shacks or on the
streets.
One does not read this
book without getting a
guilty, fat feeling Stone has
the characters pose the
questions: " ... if most of the
world lives in this kind of
poverty so that we can have
our goodies and extra
protein ration — what does
that make us?”
What, indeed? The reader
is left to supply the answers,
for Stone gives us no easy
outs. He never actually
convicts us, but he never
absolves us, either The
responsibility of judging
good and bad, right and
wrong, lies with the reader
Stone raises some im
portant issues and spins a
fascinating story at the same
time The action is fast, the
pace paralleling the rising
revolt in Tecan His prase is
lean, his descriptions thrifty,
but his images are in
credibly rich. Characters
are complex and well-
developed He uses some as
symbols, but they never
become caricatures. Even
as symbols the characters
possess intriguing shadow s
"A Flag for Sunrise" is a
challenge and a provocation
At the same time, it is a
suspenseful story. It
stimulates intellect and
keeps one turning the pages
Stone has produced a win
ning combination.
RUSSO
“LAST WEEK”
HYPNOTIST
MIKE HARVEY
"Compadre, we are all
vulgarizations of history. We
have to live it out by the day
— life, unlike sound
philosophy, is vulgar.”
— From "A Flag for
Sunrise,” by Robert Stone
(439 pages. Alfred A Knopf,
Inc., 3)3.95).
hopeless
Stone's view of things is
disconcerting. Because of
this, he has written an im
portant novel which raises
some thorny questions about
the interests and role of the
U S. in the revolutions of
Third World countries.
The book's scenario of
undercover CIA activities
forces consideration of the
frontier approach to foreign
affairs A macho America,
riding into some Latin
American Dodge City and
making Main Street safe for
capitalism, is an image that
needs re-thinking.
On another, more personal
level, the novel forces a
confrontation with a
terrifying truth: something
very evil exists out there,
and it may well be
inescapable.
Unrelenting evil is a force
in the book pure, palpable
and very frightening. Stone's
finely drawn characters are
symbolic of this force —
Pablo, a mercenary, wired-
out on speed and absolutely
without morals; Lieutenant
Campos, local represen
tative of the fascist Guardia
Nacional and a dangerous
psychotic; Weitling, an
insane Mennonite farmer, a
hearer of voices and killer of
children.
One character in the book,
an aged priest who is an
alcoholic and a mystic, has a
theory about the insane
They have been chosen to
see the truth, he believes,
and the sight is so evil and
overwhelming that it has
driven them over the edge:
“Some chemical in the
blood, a shortage of sugar in
the brain cells and they get
the process whole. What they
hamburger, he wants to go to
The Grill and that makes me
feel like I’m going in the
right direction."
Russo is happy at the
success of his businesses,
but he said he is getting tired
of the long hours he and his
wife must work, leaving
little time for their personal
lives.
“I'm not interested in
money so much for what it
can buy, but I’m interested
in being able to buy time,"
Russo said. "I hope in the
long run that I’ll be able to go
to an island somewhere and
spend a few months, go
fishing, kick the sand up
between my feet and spend
some time with my kids."
Russo has an interesting
description of his life so far
“I’ve been a grillman. I've
been a manager, I've been a
puffpet, a pauper, a poet and
a king." Russo said. "I've
been up and down and all
around "
Russo says his restaurant
will always be a survivor.
Perhaps that is also true of
Russo himself
Read This Saturday’s
Between the Hedges
Shows at 9:30 and 11:00
295 E. Dougherty St. Athens, Ga. 30601
546-8210
Monday, nov.16
fi : 8:00 pm
UCA coliseum
r
From Page I
One of the drawbacks ot
franchising is the necessity
of relocating his family, as
well as investing much time
in the project.
Russo did expand his
business last year by
opening The Grill, located a
short distance down Broad
Street from Russo's Gyro. It,
too, was a childhood dream
come true Russo patterned
the restaurant after an old
hamburger place on
,’ Broadway in Brooklyn, N Y.
"I was fascinated with the
ml one I used to go to as a kid,"
\ Russo siad.
Kids, including his own,
seem to like The Grill, he
said.
"My kid, when I was
teaching him the alphabet,
when I would come to the
letter "M” he would say it
was McDonalds," Russo
said "Whenever I would
take him out to eat he would
cry if I didn't take him to
McDonald's Now if you go
up to my kid Rudy, who is
four years old, and ask him if
he wants to eat a
Tickets Still Available
Tickets Available Nov 4. Reserved Seating UCA students ST a $8. Available at Memorial Hail Business Office
General Admission. Ss t SiO Available at Memorial Hall Business Office. Sanford t Son lAtnensi. Turtles Records (Athens. Gainesville Atlanta - N E Plata Shopping Center. Memorial Drivel
By DEBORAH SHARP
Knl and Hack Wall Writer
"A Flag for Sunrise,”
Robert Stone's latest novel,
is a tale of insurgence. in
sanity and intrigue in an
unstable Central American
country. It is not an easy
book to read. As he did in
"Dog Soldiers," Stone gives
us a glimpse of the un
derbelly of humanity, and an
ugly sight it is.
The book provokes and
disturbs. Stone shows us a
grasping, greedy America,
an unwelcome meddler in
foreign affairs He depicts
pervasive political
corruption and a moral
bankruptcy so complete that
the human condition seems
Back by popular demand
Tuesday thru Saturday
MIKE HARVEY, one Of
the most entertaining
acts ever to play Athens
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