KANSAN REVIEWS
ARTS COMMENT:
Since its conception three years ago, KU's Festival of the Arts has been something of a milestone among college arts programs. The week-long displays of artistic opinion and talent have managed to touch virtually all aspects of the arts.
In the past two years such names as Edward Albee, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Bill Evans, Odetta, Oscar Peterson, experimental filmmaker Ed Emschwiller, Mark van Doren and the Harkness Ballet have appeared on Hoch Auditorium's stage to make public their opinions and contributions to American art.
This year's lineup is no exception. The Festival opens Sunday night with a performance of Jean Paul Sartre's "No-Exit," presented by the Contempo Players from Moylan, Pa. Sartre's "twilight zone" drama of an existentialist's vision of hell is always fascinating. Sunday we shall see if the Contempo Players can do it justice.
Monday New Yorker film critic Pauline Kael will speak on the state of film today. Miss Kael is a critic known for her love of "old-fashioned" films, that is, those with plots. She will not lecture, but will entertain questions from a panel of faculty and students.
Something new for the Festival comes Tuesday. "Beyond Words," a soundless program by the National Pantomime Theatre, will attempt communication through visual impressions.
Wednesday one of jazz's all-time greats, Dave Brubeck, comes to KU for a concert. With him is his trio and Gerry Mulligan on baritone sax.
Thursday will be a night of experimental films, with New York filmmakers Jonas Mekas and Robert Kramer presenting and discussing their films. Note the placement of Mekas and Kramer a full four days after Miss Kael's program.
After a rest on Friday night, audiences will return to Hoch for the final performance of Festival Week, a concert by blues vocalist Lou Rawls, whose mixture of ballads, blues and soul has made him one of the top performers on college campuses today.
It is, of course, too early to pass judgment on his year's Festival, but if the celebrities can put out as much effort as Festival chairman Kent Longenecker and his staff did in obtaining them, 1969's Festival should be the most entertaining and enlightening to date.
FILMS: 'Foiled again!'
BY BOB BUTLER
Kansan Arts and Reviews Editor
The history behind "Uncle Tom's Cabin" is rather interesting-at least it's more interesting than the film itself.
"Uncle Tom's Cabin" was made in Germany with German-speaking actors, which is why the sounds they're making don't quite correspond to their lip movements. It was made by someone or something named Kroger Babb. Kroger Babb could be the director, the producer or the film company—it's not made quite clear.
A friend who spent several years in Germany tells me the film was not too popular there, an understandable situation in that aryan country. So now Harriet Beecher Stowe's immortal classic comes to America, slightly modified.
The modifications are mostly sensational: lynchings, a levee breaking, Simon Legree whipping half-naked slave women, a slave being eaten by an alligator and other various tortures, atrocities and gories. Finally, Eliza crosses the frozen river (a scene, I recall, which was actually in the book) and the movie grinds to a halt.
With a script like that it's amazing that anything about the film is good, but in the technical production Kroger Babb went out of his way. The photography is quite good and the settings are perfect representations of Southern squaler.
But most audiences will squirm uncomfortably when Uncle Tom comes on as a kindly Nat Turner, singin' spirituals and prayin' for his enemies.
The whole thing is in bad taste. It will scare kids, keep adults groaning and make any self-respecting black man wince.
RECORDS: BeeGees
Bv WILL HARDESTY
The BeeGees have been derogatorily called the teenieboppers of rock music. One writer has disdainfully written that the BeeGees are better at composing for a 400-piece orchestra than at playing hard rock sounds.
ODESSA by the BeeGees on Atco will probably be a controversial album.
These writers don't seem to realize not all modern rock music is played on electric guitars. I will agree they have a legitimate point when they say the BeeGees are not particularly
good singers. However, their music de-emphasizes this inability, and their voices are made to fit pleasantly enough with the rest of the musical goings-on.
Mar.13
1969 KANSAN 5
At any rate, the BeeGees are back with this new two-record set.
The style is the same one the BeeGees have made famous—the minor key, generally sad themes, definite (but not overpowering) beat, acoustic guitars—and orchestra.
BeeGees fans will like the album. BeeGees non-fans will not. Those who are un-committed should like it. It's very good and quite creative.
Celia Stetson, Carl Latcham and Jean Gordon star in Sartre's "No Exit," kicking off the Festival of the Arts at 8 p.m. Sunday in Hoch Auditorium.
Award given to Campbell
NEW YORK (UPI) — "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," by Glen Campbell, won a Grammy, the recording industry's most coveted award, as the best album of the year last night.
THIS WEEKEND
SUA Pop Film
"BLOW-UP"
50c
Kansan Arts Calendar
Today
7 p.m.-Films by Festival Underground Filmmakers-303 Bailey
8:20 p.m.—"What's Happening to Jeromy, Jereomy, Jerromy?" —UCCF Building, 1204 Oread
Fridav
2 p.m.—Reception for opening of Julius Hatofsky exhibit—Museum of Art
4:30, 7, 9:30 p.m.-SUA Films-Underground feature by Robert Frank-"Me and My Brother"-4:30 Forum Room, Union, 7 & 9:30 p.m. 303 Bailey
7 & 9:30 p.m.-Popular Film
—"Blow-Up"-Dyche Auditorium
7:30 p.m.-International Film Series-"Mahanagar"-Hoch Auditorium
7:30 p.m.-Folk Dance Club-
173 Robinson
8:20 p.m.—“What's Happening to Jeromy ...?”—UCCF Building—1204 Oread
Saturday
7 & 9:30 p.m.-Popular Film—"Blow-Up"-Dyche Auditorium
8:20 p.m. — "What's Happening to Jeromy . . ." UCCF Building,
Sunday
3:30 p.m. - Concert Chorale-
Swarthout Recital Hall
7 & 9:30 p.m.--Popular Film
"Blow-Up".p.dyne Auditorium
8 p.m.-Opening, Festival of the Arts—"No Exit"-Contempo Players-Hoch Auditorium