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University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, Feb. 23, 1965
Evening of Dance Offers Beauty, Fun
By Larry Ketchum
An expectant crowd nearly filled Hoch Auditorium last night to view the American Ballet Theatre's presentation of three ballets, "Les Sylphides," "Fall River Legend" and "Graduation Ball."
The first ballet, "Les Sylphides" by Michel Fokine, is considered his masterpiece in ballet. The American Ballet Theatre's production was the last to be personally supervised by Fokine. It is included in the repertory of almost every ballet company and is considered to be the greatest test of the dancers' poetic expression, form, and style.
"FALL RIVER LEGEND," based on the notorious Lizzie Borden hatchet murder case of 1892, was the second ballet offered last evening. The ballet is by the famous choreographer Agnes De Mille.
The last ballet was the humorous "Graduation Ball," choreographed by David Lichine, a California ballet teacher.
The program noted that "Fall River Legend" was not patterned after the murder case, but that the legend of Lizzie Borden offered a study of the turmoil which would tempt a girl to murder her parents.
Dancing before a backdrop featuring the silhouetted form of a house and a tortured red and black lighting scheme, the dancers used eloquent body line and movement to convey Lizzie's agony as she made the decision to murder her parents.
"GRADUATION BALL" offered pure fun to the audience. The dancers portrayed young graduates of a dancing academy in Vienna and the ballet served as an opportunity for the ballerinas and danseurs to demonstrate both skill and stamina in performing strenuous tour jetes, entrechats and puirettes.
Almost steady applause throughout the ballet showed that the audience appreciated the dancers' skill.
THE AMERICAN BALLET Theatre was founded in 1940 and has toured continuously since its founding. Of the 50 states the company has appeared in 48 of them as well as touring abroad nine times. It was the first American ballet company to ever perform in Russia.
Since 1955 the company has made five State Department-sponsored tours to foreign nations. Recently the company returned from a nine country tour in Latin America.
Coeds Rousted During Early Morning Fire
By Mary Dunlap
As the fire trucks roared by, one coed turned to the other and said nonchalantly, "Oh, I guess it's another fire."
Although fire trucks may become nearly as ordinary on Daisy Hill as cold north winds, several residents of Hashinger Women's Residence Hall had some misgivings and adventures during the early morning fire yesterday.
Many of the students were in 8:30 classes when the fire, ignited from a butane torch, broke out. Nearly 100 women were evacuated from the hall.
SUSAN LAWRENCE, Great Bend senior, said that she woke up and saw the fire trucks outside. "The fire trucks were here before the alarm went off," she said. "One girl jumped on a bus dressed in a sweatshirt and jeans and went on to her class," she added. Most of the girls, however, dressed in pajamas and robes, crawled into cars to keep warm.
Ruby Downs, Raytown, Mo., sophomore, said one girl slept through the whole fire. "It's the first time in 20 years of fire drills that it has been a real fire," she said.
One girl, sitting under a hairdryer, learned of the fire and raced back to her room to grab a picture of her boyfriend and his pin. Clad in a nightgown, she raced into the freezing weather. Outside, she came face to face with a fireman and suddenly realized what was happening.
AFTER EVERYONE was back in the hall, a light note took the chill edge off the alarm and incident. While workmen were repairing the glass in the fire alarm, the alarm accidentally went off again. The girls began to evacuate the hall once more, before they were re-assured that everything was back to normal.
Clovis Lathrom, one of the two men injured in the fire, suffered similar injuries in an explosion in Templin Hall on January 17. 1963.
Lathrom suffered second-degree burns in the Templin explosion when he attempted to open a hatch on a boiler before it had sufficiently cooled.
He and Bernard J. Hill, the other man injured, are currently reported in good condition at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.
THE FIRE WAS confined to a small area. A few of the floor tiles were removed, a small portion of the lower wall charred, and a curtain ruined by smoke or water. Paint on one portion of a wall was slightly washed off.
The fire proved several things to
nail residents about the procedures that they might have to go through should another evacuation of the building be necessary.
The ordinary fire drills are usually held at night. The usual procedures that are used, having floor officers check rooms for any occupants left after the building is evacuated, would be impossible during conditions such as that of yesterday's fire.
ALSO, THE system of communication could easily break down in such a case. Conceivably, the main desk could be surrounded by smoke and would not be available for communication.
Russia. China Cultures Traced
Both Russian and China have rejected their own cultures and have looked to the West for modernization, Donald W. Treadgold, of the University of Washington and one of the leading American experts on Russian history, said last night.
in his lecture Prof. Treadgold drew a parallel between Russian philosopher Chaadaev and Chinese writer-scholar Lu-Hsun and their works. Both men were the first in their countries to advocate "uncompromising Westernization."
IN DRAWING HIS parallel, Prof. Treadgold said both Chadaev and Lu-Hsun were influenced by the great Russian writer Gogol. However, Prof. Treadgold said, both misinterpreted him. Chaдаaev misinterpreted Gogol's religious views and Lu-Hsun saw Gogol just as a social revolutionary writer.
After a brief resume of the history of Western influence on Russia and China, including such aspects as Christianity, enlightenment, socialism and communism, Prof. Treadgold discussed Chaadeev and Lu-Hsun and their work in some detail.
Chaadaev, who lived from 1794 to 1856, expressed his ideas in a "Philosophical Letter," which was published in 1836. It expounded the idea that Russia had contributed nothing to Western culture. Chaadaev glorified Western culture, and ascribed its high standard to Christianity, in particular to Catholicism.
By repudiating Russian culture, Chaadae upset public opinion so much that Czar Nicolas I had him declared insane. Chaadae then wrote his "Apology for a Madman."
LU-HSUN LIVED and worked 50 years later, from 1881 to 1936. Influenced by Western ideas during his study in Japan, he wrote "A Madman's Diary" in 1918.
It was a satire on the animal forces of traditional Confucian society. Lu-Hsun felt that "if China was to survive, it had to westernize."
Prof. Treadgold explained that in repudiating their countries' culture, Chaadaeav went much further than Lu-Hsun, who could not step over 2000 years of Confucian tradition.
Lu-Hsun was therefore more acceptable to the public. But like Chaadaev, Lu-Hsun became alienated from Left and Right. It is therefore ironic that the independent, anti-authoritarian Lu-Hsun has today become a Chinese Communist example of social realism, Prof. Treadgold said.
TODAY, THE GROUPS that Chaadeav antagonized in Russia, the Slavophils and the Westerners, have become conciliated, Dr. Treadgold said. In China, however, where several centuries of Western thought were introduced at once, no conciliation is possible.
It may be said that neither Chaadaev and Lu-Hsun would like the Westernization which they advocated as it has taken shape in the Russia and China of today, Prof. Treadgold said.
NOW! at 6:45 & 9:10
"NONE BUT THE BRAVE"
Ends Tonite — 7:00 - 9:00
"GIRL HUNTERS"
Friday Night Rock Chalk Revue Tickets on sale at Information Booth
Starts Wednesday!
A Varsity Art Attraction!
Interviews For S.U.A. Hospitality Committee
President's Luncheon & Easter Egg Hunt Also Small Dance Committee
Applications Must Be Picked Up and Returned By
3:00 p.m. Wednesday Feb. 24th To The S.U.A. Office
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