Page 88 - ThePhoenix1997-98

Thursday, December 11, 1997 - Page 12 FEATURES More lies behind the Kit Kat Klub than meets the eye BY KAT.,; HAMPSON Ed Milliner. Later, the developing anti- The chemistry between Townsend 'find arc more politically charged. "If you could News£dilor Semitism of the other characters culminates Resch is not compelling, and it is hard to see her," performed by Gross and recent into a hatred so great thai Fraulein Schneider believe that they are in love. The scene in alumnus Chester Stacy, is about the Master There was a Cabaret, and there was a breaks off the engagement. which Cliff and Sally become romantically Master of Ceremonies, and there was a city Cabaret provides far more than mere en- involved is confusing. At first it seems as if of Ceremonies' love for a gorilla. The end of 10 represent the gorilla the song reveals the called Berlin in a country called Germany. tertainment. It is an eye-opening portrayal Cliff admits he is gay, yet a minute later he Jewish people, demonstrating how anti- "It was the end of the world ...." When of the infiltration of the Nazis into German embraces Sally. It is unclear as to whether American writer Clifford Bradshaw (Mark society, designed to leave the audience this is a mistake in the production. or whether Semitism infiltrated all aspects of German society. Resch) arrives in Berlin in 1930, he finds a shocked and disturbed. it is an inference to his hidden homosexual- society in the midst'of an economic depres- The characters represent a broad spec- rty. The production is well performed and the sion, politically dissatisfied, and uncertain trum of positions, ranging from Ernst, a The Cabaret acts are well orchestrated singing and dancing are generally of a h-igh of the future. A meeting with Ernst Ludwig member of the Nazi Party, to Cliff, who to effectively illustrate the changes in soci- caliber. Cabaret is an enjoyable show, al- use more charisma though (Dan Franko), a small time smuggler, opens leaves the country disgusted with the situa- ety. At first they are bawdy but harmless. and energy at times it could the audiences' affec- 10 capture the doors to the Kit Kat Klub, a place where tion. These extremes encompass characters such as the "Two Ladies" number in which tions. It does, however, succeed in portray- Germans can forget their troubles for a time such as Sally, who ignores the situation, un- Gross and two dancers, Erin Owen and Elton and enjoy the Cabaret. able to see how it can possibly affect her- Keith, describe their menage-a-trois. ing the chaos which confronted the world This club is the main setting of the musi- self. Her selfish desire to achieve fame as a However, in the second act the numbers during the rise of Nazism and the emotional faced by society. confusion Resting the lungs for a day "[Cabaret does] succeed in portraying the chaos which confronted the world during the rise of Nazism pickup lying KASSOUS BY NIKKI and the emotional confusion faced by society." Assistant Femures Editor on Red all of the cigarette butts left each of One Square. penny from the cigarette butts collected was donated to On Thursday, November 20, smokers at the American Cancer Society. Jacobson said cal Cabaret, recently brought to Alumni Hall performer leaves her oblivious to the threat- Western Maryland College were asked to put that Substance Free is planning to put all of by WMC Theatre. Cliff becomes entangled ening political climate. away their cigarettes for the day as part of the butts in a jar to let WMC students guess in the lives of the club's rather shady cus- Another character who refuses to accept The Great American Smoke-Out which fea- how many were collected. Jacobson was sur- torners as he falls in love with the British reality is Herr Schultz. In spite of the diffi- tured events sponsored by Substance Free. prised how many butts were in Red Square. starlet Sally Bowles (Megan Townsend). culties he is already facing, he cannot imag- "To get people to stop smoking for one "I myself was totally surprised; nobody in our The story of their relationship is punctu- ine the horrific affects of this hatred. day," was the purpose of the day, according club thought we would collect nearly that ated with various show routines by the Mas- Milliner's portrayal of Schultz's bumbling to Dana Jacobson, president of Substance many," she said. ter of Ceremonies (James Gross) and the Kit naivete is chilling to the audience who, un- FI7e. Three different events were held to Senior biology major, Sarah Chenoweth, Kat Klub Dancers. Gross has a dominating like the character, knows the end of the story. encourage students to abstain from smok- collected the most butts at the event. It took stage presence which captures the attention Townsend's small build and childlike ing. A t-shirt swap, a cigarette buttcJeanup, her an hour to a~ass' almost a zip-lock bag of the audience. With his clown-like makeup appearance are well suited for the ironic in- and a candlelight ceremony highlighted the Full of cigarette butts. "It was 'interesting and exaggerated gestures, the Master of Cer- nocence of Sally. Her singing voice is strong day's activities. because I knew just where to go [to pick up emonies provides an ironic commentary on and in spite of a wavering British accent, she Outside of Gler, between the lunch and the butts] because you always walk by the j the state of society, which borders on the shows promise in her first main WMC The- dinner- hours, Substance Free- set up a table areas where people are smoking," she said. grotesque. arre role . at which individuals were invited to receive Chenoweth chose to participate in the event As the musical progresses, the: influence' Resch, a seasoned WMC performer, is a Great A~erican Smoke-Out tee-shirt one because "I thought it was a good message and of the Nazi party over the German people is very believable as a struggling writer, dis- of. three ways: by turning in a tee-shirt with a good thing to be involved with." more apparent. Cliff's landlady, Fraulein turbed and confused as he watches events, a cigarette logo or design, by turning in a The Great American Smoke-Out at WMC Schneider (Kim HaJl), becomes engaged to which he is powerless to stop, unfold before pack of cigarettes, or by donating $3 to the- vigil in a candlelight Herr Schulz, a Jewish greengrocer played by him. ' American Cancer Society. According to culminated a Candle Not a Cigarette." entitled The "Light Jacobson, aliSO of the tee-shirts were gone candles were lighted in memory of those who by the time the swap ended. have died of lung cancer. As each candle was The next event was a cigarette butt cleanup. About 20-25 students helped to Conti';ued'0o/age J 3 . v: Celebrating storytelling scribing the Art of Storytelling class she IIV SARAH RADICE , I SWjfWriler teaches. TheA-rlof Storytelling class began in 1993, when Dr. Montgomery decided to Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Little reintroduce tne Class after it had not been Red Riding Hood. Snow White .and the. taught for several years due 10 lack of stu- Seven Dwarves. What person does pot re- dent Interest. ' member with fondness the excitement and 'The goal ~fthe.class sounds deceptively wonder of being told stories as a child? Yet, simple: to teach students how to tell stories. it was not always the story itself that made Yet, "there is a lot of work involved in being the experience fun, but rather the skill of the a good storyteller," Hay said. Students learn storyteller. to select reasonable stories for telling, the Interest in honing that skill was what took process of story learning, and presentation 15 WMC graduate students to Gettysburg, techniques, such as how to relate to an audi- PA. on November 22 to participate in ence, and how to make a story entertaining. GET MONEY FROM YOUR UNCLE INSTEAD. Tellabration '97. The storytelling event was Although storytelling can be a subjective held in and sponsored by The Center/El art, Hay said she grades students on "con- Your Uncle Sam. Every fees. They even pay a Oat rate year Army ROTC awards for textbooks and supplies. Centro community education and cultural crete things such as use of voice, gestures, scholarships to hundreds of You can also receive an allow- facility, and was promoted by the National body language and story delivery in order to talented students. If you iDE anceofupto$IBOOeachschool Storytelling Association. give them feedback." Many students are ei- qualify,thesemerit-based year the ~cholarship is i~ The WMC students were all members of ther teachers or are graduate students study- scholarships can help you effect. Find out today If the Art of Storytelling class. They presented ing education or library studies. pay tuition and educational you qualify. stories especially for preschoolers and their While audience turnout for Tellabration families as well as stories for all ages. Spe- '97 was not what was hoped for, public re- cial presentations included Greg Allison's action was favorable. "I wasn't surprised, ARMYROTt performance of Laura Krauss Melmed's ~ because storytelling just hadn't been pre- THE SMARTEST COLLEGE COURSE YOU C.IlN TAKE ~ in American Sign Language, in- sented in the area before," commented Hay. terpreted by Beth Ann Monn. There were But she added that the overall experience was also presentations by local youth. very positive. For details. ccdl WMC Army ROTC at 85'·2720 "I love it!" exclaimed Joanna Hay in de-