University Daily Kansan
Monday, April 9, 1973
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Behind the Scenes
Even Sunday, as sets were struck anue the 1973 Festival of the Arts passed into a memory, the walls of Hoch Auditorium still reverberated with the classic blues of B.B. King and his guitar, Lucille, and the clamor of frenzied fans of the "King."
King was indeed the climax of a weeklong parade of talent which peaked again and again, making this year's Festival a true success. From the wise and worldly wrist of Kurt Vonnegut's play, "Happy Birthday, Wanda June," to the synthetic sounds of R. A. Moog, the melancholy music of Jimmie Sperrier coupled with the quick and ribald comedy of David Steinberg, the fervor of John Lahr and the grace and beauty of the Eleo Pomare Dance Company, and at last the zenith that was King, the Festival carved for itself a lasting place of honor at the University of Kansas.
Wayne Sherman puts on a final touch of makeup before the show. "Happy Birthday, Wanda June," opened this year's Festival of the Arts.
story by
Mary Lind
photos by
Carl G. Davaz Jr.
Gary Andrew, St. Louis sophomore, adjusts spot lights before the Wednesday night show.
The stage crew Sunday prepares the set for performances to be held during the week-long
Composer and performer Jimnie Spherei exhibits his warm personality, on stage and off. His Wednesday night concert was regarded as one of the highlights of the Festival.
Blues King Excites Enchants, Enthralls
By DAVE STRINGER Kansan Reviewer
An evening of extraordinary blues is what happened Saturday night at packed Hoch Auditorium as B.B. King and his band, "The Trap" put the on lid in the 1973 Festival of the Arts.
King came on stage greeted by cheers from an audience obviously prized for his music. B.B. promised a good show and he let no one down. He put Lucille, his guitar, in the center. He cleared, clear blue stylings and received a number of standing ovations for his efforts.
Each of the many numbers he played was a highlight for someone in the audience as all the songs were familiar. "I Believe I Got Some Help I Don't Need," "Everyday I Hammurah Blues," "Am't Nobody Home," "Hammurah Blues," "Am't Sing the Home," and "The Thrill Is Game" were only a few of the many numbers King played that were anticipated by the crowd.
King was his on the blues "shuffles" like "Why I Sing the Blues," in which his guitar playing was spotlighted. His vocals are highlighted on slower tunes such as
"Guess Who?" and "The Thrill is Gone"
“Guess Who?” and “The Thrill is Gone.” King probably has done more for the blues than any other artist, bringing it to the fore. Blues have played the world over. In doing this he creates blue's roots, B.B.'s blues are polished; they're clean, like his guitar playing.
Saturday night's show, abet brilliant, was, nevertheless, a show and not the setting the blues have traditionally commanded. It is not that the quality of King's blues is any less than that of earlier artists who never "made it," it's just that the difference in King has made it; his music, his performance, his somehow that is an irony. For the blues have been the music, the complaint, of those who have not made it.
B. B. has said that his brand of the blues is commercial, and that was proven Saturday night. The Las Vegas night club setting and the music were perfect for each other.
B. B. King was alive and well with his version of the blues at KU. But the true blues you will have to search for and find are there else. It won't come to Lawrence.
Dance Reflects Art, Sensitivity and Action
By DAVID HEALY Kansan Reviewer
Art came to the University of Kansas Friday night.
Inside Hoch Auditorium, life was beautiful. The people were beautiful, the
color was beautiful, the motion was beautiful.
Their lightning danced red, green, orange, black, white and blue. It was a kaleidoscope of continuous variation. It moved, it surged, it waxed and it waned.
The Eloe Pomare Dance Company displayed a great sensitivity to form, to connect with the audience.
Bodies were suspended in the air. They flew, they hovered, they floated and they swam. There was action, violent action, at least one. The bodies were denied. Sometimes it was awkward. The
action would appear to be heavy out or it might not be failed and it never stopped.
A luxuriance of drapery emphasizes the body and defined the motion. It unites the body with the mind.
Although the themes were ethnic, the dance was art. There was no moral and no poise.
Talent personified was exemplified in Portare's so-called "Narcissus Rising", which contained a little leather fetishism and a lot of Hell's Angel.
As the curtain opened, a bright spotlight from center stage shone into the audience. It blinded the crowd to the arrival of a cyclist, whose greased, shiny body was covered with thick black leather goggles. Satan was incarcerate and his black shadow loomed in the red vonder.
According to the Festival of the Arts' catalogue, the purpose of the Eleo Pomare Dance Company is "the creative utilization of black talent and ability in contemporary dance in an effort to break away from the confined stereotypes of Negro or primitive dance."
KU Student Leads Lansing
Youthful participation in a city election met with success last Tuesday when Lansing voters elected John Gorski, 21, a University of Kansas senior, its mayor.
Gorski, who gathered all the names of registered voters and went on a door-to-door campaign to get acquainted, tallied 435 votes in his beat opposition, who received 323 votes.
The voters, according to Gorski, were responsive and eager to discuss city government.
"There were a few older voters who wanted my campaign as a prank," he said. "In fact, an 88-year-old woman told me to come when I was old enough to run for office."
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Other changes needed, according to Gorski, are a recreation center, a better location and more training.
Gorski is a full-time KU student majoring in social welfare, but he said he thought that his school activities would not interfere with his responsibilities as mayor.
Gorski said that he wanted to change the police department, which he had given power to the police in 2008.
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