Section C·Page 4
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, March 11, 1999
Above: The Unity dance group practices a dance for the Rock Chalk Revue in the dance studio at Hashinger Hall. The group will perform as an opening act at the revee tonight. Photo by Christina Neff/KANSAN
Lefr: Elisabeth Ashley sings country music. Ashley will perform as an opening act in the revue Saturday night.
Contributed photo
Right: The Pool Boys are an acoustic folk-rock band that has a religious message. They will perform tomorrow evening at the revue. Contributed photo
Opening acts go from
Unity, The Pool Boys and Elisabeth Ashley will precede 50th anniversary revue acts
HIP-HOP TO HYMN-LIKE
By Matt Cox
Special to the Kansan
Eve Bradley worried that her hip-hop dance group had no place in Rock Chalk Revue.
She wondered how open the Rock Chalk crew would be to a dance group opening the mainly greek variety show.
When Bradley, Shreveport, La. senior, found out her group made the cut, she figured the Rock Chalk committee actually didn't mind featuring a dance group in the revue.
This year's Rock Chalk opening acts—the talent that performs before the show's production numbers go on—span the music spectrum from country to dance.
A different act will open the Rock Chalk Reve each night.
Each of the opening acts said they had a different motivation for doing what they did and told a different story about why they existed.
"Every year, we break more barriers," she said.
"It's really an outlet for people who love to dance to do what they love," said Bradley, president of Unity.
Unity started three years ago doing greek parties and eventually worked its way to the Granada, 1020 Massachusetts St.
Unity, a hip-hop dance company will show off their twists and turns tonight.
Bradley described the group's dance style as funky and smooth. She said its works were choreographed to modern hip-hop artists such as Oukast and Monifah.
One of the group's dreams, to perform on the Lied Center stage, will come true tonight.
"We weren't sure if it was going to be appropriate for Rock Chalk Revue," Bradley said.
Unity practices twice a week from 7 to 9 p.m. in Hashinger Hall. The practice and dedication seems to pay off more and more with each performance, Bradley said.
Tomorrow, The Pool Boys, an acoustic folk-rock band with a religious message, will go on stage at 7 p.m.
"We've never played at the Liee Center. It should be fun," said Chris DeTray, Bucyrus senior, guitar player and singer for the band.
The three-member band has been together for almost two years and now has a solid fan base. About 450 fans attended the group's recent CD-release party.
The Pool Boys didn't have time to worry about Rock Chalk tryouts because they had two shows in Iowa the day before the tryout and one show the night of the tryout.
De Tray said they played almost everywhere they could. They've played at the Jazzhaus, 926 1/2 Massachusetts St., out-of-state colleges and festivals as far away as Atlanta.
He said they planned to tour the Midwest this summer to promote their new CD Storehouse Full. They hope their current negotiations with a record company will get them a supporting record and/or a tour deal, he said.
"We're doing it to promote the gospel," said DeTrav.
The band is a ministry for God, he said. They also lead a praise gathering at Wescoe every Tuesday night at 8:45 p.m. called "Open Swim."
saturday night will feature a country vocalist for the opening
act.
Elisabeth Ashley, Prairie Village freshman, will sing some of her favorite country songs.
She plans to use back-up music on cassette to sing a few songs from Patsy Cline, The Dixie Chicks and Patti Loveless.
"I saw an ad in the UDK and figured I had nothing to lose," Ashley said.
Ashley said she developed her own bluesy, ballad-based voice from listening to her dad sing at home and from participating in choirs in high school.
She has performed in weddings and choir contests in the past, but her only paid performance was last year during spring break. While she was in a casino in the Bahamas, a drunken older woman playing the slots asked if anyone could get up and sing.
Ashley volunteered and the woman told her to get up there and sing. She sang a few of her favorite country songs and the Titanic theme for the woman. After she was finished, the woman handed her a $100 tip. Ashley said she was surprised at the large amount.
"I left quickly after that, in case she handed me the wrong bill," she said.
Ashley plans to pursue her singing career, but she is at KU to earn a degree in communication studies that she can fall back on.
"I want to try out Nashville for a little while after I graduate," Ashley said.
None of the the Rock Chalk Revue opening acts will be paid to perform, but all the acts said they didn't mind. They agreed that the exposure was the most important part of the show.
"I'm just happy I get a chance to perform," Ashley said.
Lied Center elevates revue's quality
Lori O'Toole
Special to the Kansan
Students and staff who make up the Lied Center technical crew do not usually work as civil engineers, but the Rock Chalk Reve gives them a chance to build something from the ground up.
The 50th anniversary production "Wonders Never Cease" will be the sixth Rock Chalk show performed in the Lied Center.
"It's kind of fun," Technical Director Lee Saylor says. "It's something my crew looks forward to every year. It gets something different in here."
Saylor calls the usual Lied Center productions "packaged shows" because those productions are already put together and the performers simply adjust to fit on the stage. Rock Chalk, however, designs much of its show with the Lied Center stage in mind.
Saylor, who has worked at the Lied Center since it opened in 1994, served as a staff adviser from the beginning, giving student directors advice and ideas.
"My job is to make sure their show works on stage," Saylor said. "A lot of the directors don't do theater, so I'm there to help."
"We treat every organization the same, whether it's the New York City Opera or Rock Chalk or a lecture by the business school." Pawlikki said. "They each get professional lighting, sound, advice on microphones and monitor speakers."
In addition to personnel, Fred Pawlicki, operations director, said the Lied Center provides high-tech equipment that makes the show look more professional.
The Rock Chalk participants have access to the stage, theater equipment and dressing rooms for a week, allowing several days for rehearsal before the opening show
Thursday night. Participants can also store all show materials in the center during the week.
Hoch Auditorium was home to Rock Chalk beginning with its first performance April 1, 1950. Then in 1991, lightning ignited a fire, which destroyed the building. Hoch Auditorium has since been rebuilt and is part of Budig Hall.
State of the art accommodations have not always been a part of Rock Chalk performances.
With nowhere else to go, Rock Chalk participates crammed into the Lawrence High School auditorium during the 1992 and 1993 shows. Classrooms served as dressing rooms, and participants had to take home all props and costumes so they would not disrupt the high school classes.
"As far as continuous work for a week, Rock Chalk is about as busy as we get," Pawlicki said. "It's high-tech because each group puts on a show."
Pawlick said most shows presented in Lied Center run about two hours with intermission. Rock Chalk, however, has five separate shows with a break in between.
Things are more convenient for the actors and actresses now with the Lied Center, where a lot of behind-the-scenes work makes
the show run smoothly.
rauneki explained that the technical crew rehearses with the actors and actresses the week before the show.
It's a real challenge, he said. Julie Gorman, Alpha Chi Omega's director of "Swinging to Victory," said she was looking forward to performing in the Lied Center.
The Lied Center has been home to the Rock Chalk Revue since 1994. Participants say that the building's design and the excellent quality of its equipment lend a feeling of professionalism to the show. The revue will be performed at the Lied Center tonight, tomorrow evening and Saturday evening. Tickets are available only from the Student Union Association and participants in the show — not the Lied Center Box Office. Photo by Mike Kelly/KANSAN
"It's a real challenge." he said.
Gorman said after all the hard work on the production, it was a good feeling to be able to present the show professionally rather than some amateur production.
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