Newspaper Page Text
Page 11
THE PANTHER
November 5, 1979
, ■
AS 5 ,
Timbuktu: A Success!
BY ROZELL CLARK
Panther Entertainment Editor
Opening night of “Tim
buktu!” was everything it has
been billed to be, and even
more.
Spicy Eartha Kitt and her
supporting cast of talented
performers presented the
audience at the Civic Center
with a broadway show filled
literally with color and moving
excitement.
Miss Kitt made her grand en
trance atop the shoulders of
strongman and former Mr.
Universe, Tony Carroll.
Carroll slowly lowered Miss
Kit (Sahleem - La - Lume) to the
stage floor. Using every bit of
her catlike voice, Eartha Kitt
spoke her first words:
“IIIIFmmmm heeere!” (I’m
here!).
Her mere presence on the
stage drew cheers and ap
plause from the audience, who
had lined up hours before the
show, hoping to avoid the
enormous huddle of theatre -
goers expected to attend.
Although Miss Kitt was the
obvious highlight of the show,
the supporting cast were
equally exciting.
Gregg Baker played the
outstanding role of Hadji, an
honest con-man. Baker, who
appears to be a veteran of the
stage, actually made his
broadway debute in the
broadway production of “Tim
buktu!”
Equally as powerful in vocal
talents were Bruce Hubbard
(The Mansi of Mali), and
Marsunah (daughterofHadji).
These two lovers sang a duet
“Strangers in Paradise” that
left the audience spellbound
with applause.
Geoffrey Holder, known to
many as the Un-Cola man in
the 7-up commercial, deserves
a share of the credit for the
success of ‘Timbuktu!” Holder
is director, choreographer and
costume designer for the show.
The bald-headed, baritone
voiced Holder, vyas a recent
multi - award winner for “The
W iz,” which he directed and
also designed costumes for. He
has won two Clio Awards for
his commercials, the Un-cola
and BWIA, the Guggenheim
Fellowship for his work as a
painter, and the Hummingbird
Fellowship for his con
tributions to Carribbean Art.
However, Holder seems to
have outdone himself in put
ting together the “Timbuktu”
musical filled with the
traditions of Africa.
The real city of Timbuktu
was Moslem, black and
remote. According to reports,
travellers died in attempts to
cross the Sahara in search of
the fabled ctiy, and so its
reputation grew even faster
than its wealth.
'Freedom Road'
BY BRENDA GATES
Panther Reporter
Can Muhammad Ali act?
Unfortunately, he will
probably have a “quick as a
butterfly” acting career,
because he can’t act.
Ali’s Television acting
debut, in NBC’s “Freedom
Road” may remind viewers of
his last few years in the ring.
In many of his last fights he
hung ack and hid behind his
gloves as the crowd watied for
one of his world famous pun
ches.
We waited for the same
explosion in “Freedom Road,”
a two-part adaptation of
Howard Fasts’ novel. Ali plays
a former slave in the South
who works his way up to a
U.S. senator. In this series the
punch never comes either.
He was not terrible, he just
wasn’t strong enough. Still
Ali’s presence adds a certain
“mythic quality” to the movie.
Gideon Jackson (Ali) is a
former Union Army soldier
who returns home to find his
former plantation abandoned:
The slave family still lives
there, but doesn’t realize that
they are free.
Gideon is elected to the
states constitutional conven
tion where black and white
delegates are trying to piece
together a shattered society.
He becomes a prominent
citizen and returns home to
organize his black friends into
buying some farmland. A
white sharecropper (Kris Kris-
tofferson) joins him and con
vinces some whites to con
tribute to the efforts.
The KKK tries to stop them
(but to no avail) from buying
the land. It ends with a
celebration and a burning
cross on the plantation lawn,
threatening more terror.
The story itself is good, even
with Ali’s non-acting abilities.
Mother's Finest Rocks Clark
BY ROZELL CLARK
Panther Entertainment Editor
Mothers .Finest left their
mark on Clark College on
Homecoming night.
Approximately three
thousand fans left the
Henderson Physical
Education Building with
ringing ears and smiling faces
of satisfaction for a “job well
done.”
The rock group, after six
years of striving to reach the
top, showed the homecoming
crowd why they are one of the
hottest musical groups in the
country.
Literally pitting one side of
the audience against the other,
lead singers Joyce Kennedy
and Glen Murdock pulled
every bit of strength and
energy they could get from the
Atlanta University Center
gathering. “Give it up, Give it
up,” shouted Joyce and the
audience responded, giving
the six member group their all.
Commenting after the show,
Glen Murdock, one of the
founders of Mother’s Finest,
gave the credit for the success
of the show to the audience.
“We thrive on an enthusiastic
audience,” he said, “it’s up to
them if we are a success or
not.”
The group opened the show
with one of their classics,
“Somebody’s Watching You,”
wearing tennis shoes and
sweat bands. Mother’s Finest
performed a high pitch brand
of energized music that pierced
the eardrums of everyone
attending.
“Close Your Eyes Girl” (look
inside, girl) featured the
singing guitar of lead guitarist
Gary “Moses" Moore who
seemed to give his guitar a
personality all its own.
What has set Mother’s
Finest apart from the
thousands ofotherrock groups
is they are a predominantly
black group that have ven
tured into a spectrum of music
usually reserved for white
performers. However, Michael
Keck, keyboards, said that the
group decided that rock was
what they would specialize in,
early in their career.
“We have stuck with rock
during its up and down
periods, and plan to stay with
it for as long as we are a group,-
” he said.
“Rock is not something new
for black people, in fact, we are
the ones who started it. It
wasn’t Elvis Presley, it was
Chuck Berry, Little Richard
and others like him who
started the Rock and Roll
movement,” Keck added.
The racially mixed group
reached their height with their
latest album, “Mother’s Finest
live” which has taken them
from playing 5,000 seaters to
top billing national tours. The
group contends that their
background lies in playing for
small groups.
“There is something that
you can getfrom a small crowd
that you can’t get from a large
one,” Glen said, “We played
here at Clark while we can still
get intimate with the people.” •
The homecoming concert,
which was the final event of a
week’s activities sponsored by
the Clark College Student
Government Association, was
opened by “The Chapparrall”
which featured Clark’s own
Michael Guinyard and Horace
Henry.