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Theatre student
UDK-VOICE OF STUDENT ACTIVITY
Directs Topeka play
From Malaysia to Colorado, all the world's a stage for Steve Grossman.
By JOHN HILL
His purpose is to keep people awake, and alive, through the theatre.
Steve Grossman, Glencoe, Ill. senior, who has a double major in drama and psychology, presently is directing "Carousel" for the Topeka Civic Theatre which will be given Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
THEATRE IS VERY VITAL to Steve Grossman, who has been active in KU drama for years, has had extensive professional experience, and began a summer theatre in Colorado which he will return to this summer.
"I think the theatre is an important institution because it keeps people alive," Grossman said.
"I think it's very easy to go to sleep on your feet," he said, "and so many of us do it all the time, and it gets to be a habit and we're not even aware that we're not alive.
"WHERE THERE'S AN institution around that will still shake you up a bit, or amuse you, or educate you, or in some way move you, and it's still potent enough to keep your blood circulating."
"For that reason alone," he said, "just for its ability to keep us a little more human, a little more aware, it's a valuable institution to me."
Grossman said, "then it has the effect of keeping us awake—really, keeping us alive.
The Topeka community cast includes local college and high school students, an orthopedic surgeon, a real estate broker, an attorney's wife, a high school teacher, a French teacher, and a disc jockey.
With this philosophy in mind, Grossman said he could not even consider refusing to direct the play in Tokepa. He drives 60 miles at least five days a week to rehearse, and he receives neither money nor college credit for his work.
"I HAD NO IDEA what to expect from a community theater." Grossman said. We were swamped with auditions. I could have cast the play two or three times."
KU students that will be involved in the production besides Grossman are David Miller, Glenview, Ill., sophomore, Lance Hewitt, Topeka sophomore, and Jim Woods, Topeka graduate student, and Jack Hurley, Lawrence sophomore.
"THEY'RE AMAZINGLY talented," Grossman said. "It's just an astounding group.
"I'm a highly unorthodox director," he said. "I have my own theories as to how the theatre works, and why. I have surprised them, and they have taken to the surprises like troopers."
What are Grossman's plans when he graduates this semester?
"I'm trained as a director but whether or not I'm going on with it, I don't know. Right now, I haven't got the theater plans past the summer." Grossman said.
HE BEGAN A SUMMER theatre last summer in Creede, Colorado, a mining town, and he will return there this summer with a group of 12 KU students to perform until September 11.
The next day he will begin his career as a Peace Corps volunteer, and will teach in Malaysia.
"The Peace Corps offers me a chance to study people in depth." Grossman said, "and that's the province of the artist. I see it only in those terms. 'It's a liberalizing and a growing experience for me—it will 'stretch' me."
10
Daily Kansan Tuesday, May 9, 1967
1. Your hot dog's getting cold.
I'm not hungry.
3. Tell me.
it'll be years and years before the kid is self-supporting.
2. For a man who's just announced that he and his wife are expecting their first, you're none too cheerful.
I had a disturbing thought.
5. Wonderful.
But what if I should die, perish the thought, before they earn their PhD's?
4. It's not unusual for fathers to provide for their children until they're through school.
That's just it— Jane and I love kids. We want 5 or 6.
6. If you plan with Living Insurance from Equitable, you can be sure there'll be money to take care of your kids and help them complete their education. On the other hand, if you make it to retirement, you can use the cash values in your policy for some swinging sunset years.
I'd like the mustard, relish, pickles and ketchup.
For information about Living Insurance, see The Man from Equitable. For career opportunities at Equitable, see your Placement Officer, or write; Patrick Scollard, Manpower Development Division.
The EQUITABLE Life Assurance Society of the United States
Home Office: 1285 Ave. of the Americas, New York, N.Y. 10019
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© Equitable 1965