‘Hair’ entangles audience in 60s conflicts

‘Hair’ entangles audience in 60s conflicts

http://pittnews.com/newsstory/hair-entangles-audience-in-60s-conflicts/

Courtesy Joan Marcus

“Hair”

Now through Sunday

Diane Paulus

Heinz Hall

Pitt Arts Tickets $27.50-$62.43 (must be purchased by Thursday at noon)

Tickets $20-$69

412-392-4900 or www.pgharts.org

Director David Truskinoff hopes he can not just entertain, but also inspire his audiences to act like the characters in “Hair.”

The show follows the lives of a tribe of long-haired hippies in New York City. Claude, his friend Berger, their roommate Sheila and their companions struggle to balance their own beliefs and their relationships with their conservative families with rebellion against the war and the politics of the time.

Truskinoff hopes that the musical’s look at the ’60s counterculture movement will inspire young people to raise their voices.

“During the 1960s, younger people in their teens and twenties and college age were so much a part of the political goings and the protests,” Truskinoff said, remembering the Civil Rights, feminist and hippie movements of the time.

“They had such a strong voice. Sometimes, unfortunately, it isn’t the same today ... It can only be a good thing for younger people to see that now and to revisit what the movement was about. I can only hope to get it sparked up again,” he said.

The award-winning musical originally opened on Broadway in 1968, pushing boundaries the same way its subject matter did. The show’s use of “slang, profanity, nudity and overt sexuality,” as well as the presence of a racially integrated cast on stage created a major stir and was incredibly progressive for the time, said Richard Teaster, manager and director of Pitt’s Men’s Glee Club.

One act even ended with a nude scene, creating commotion in a culture where simply growing out one’s hair was a radical notion.

Though the show came from a different time period, the issues and ideas within it remain powerful and important today, said actor Josh Lamon, who plays several characters in the production, including Claude’s father, Margaret Mead and a member of the Tribe.

“It’s great because young people are introduced to this era that shows the hippie movement,” Lamon said. “It isn’t just hair and flowers, it was a protest and was about how important it is to stand up for one’s belief.”

Lamon’s hardest job is to act as Claude’s father, a conservative who wants his pacifist son to join the Vietnam War.

“We’re so different,” Lamon said. “I actually base the character off of my grandfather. [Claude’s father] is a conservative Republican who believes we have to fight the war no matter what, and he pressures his son to go to Vietnam. To play this character is challenging for me, but it is interesting, especially because I see older generations relate to the parents in the show.”

Considering recent events in Egypt and even the current political divide in the United States, the messages in “Hair” and the views of all the characters remain incredibly relevant as people struggle to make themselves heard today, Lamon said.

The music in “Hair” is just as important as the story. Teaster mentioned in an e-mail that the songs that presented their messages in ways that were less “in your face,” such as “Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In,” can still be heard on oldies stations today.

But the ironic songs were not received well at the time it came out, Teaster said.

“From a purely musical perspective, the show was not well-received by such legendary Broadway composers as Leonard Bernstein and Richard Rogers,” Teaster said. “Bernstein remarked, ‘the songs are just laundry lists.’”

The music has also proved to be a major influence on more recent works, Teaster said.

“I think the work influenced other pieces which would incorporate more rock idioms such as ‘Tommy,’ ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ and even shows as recent as ... ‘Spring Awakening,’” he said.

Working with the show now creates fond feelings of nostalgia for Truskinoff, who began working on “Hair” immediately after the end of the revival tour of “Rent” last year.

But portraying the turbulent time period these songs came from is an immense task which required time and research long before production began, Truskinoff said.

In addition to trying to make the show as authentic as possible, Lamon also sought to maintain the atypical interaction between the cast and audience actually pulls the audience into the show.

“At the end of the show, the entire audience is invited on stage to dance with us,” Lamon said. “It is remarkable to see people let go and hug each other, and to look out and see people dancing in the aisles and holding hands. You don’t get that with other shows.”

Even the 10-piece band gets into the show, standing on stage rather than sitting in an orchestra pit and allowing interaction between the instrumentalists and the characters, even though the band isn’t always a key part of the plot.

While all of the musical’s themes are delivered in an entertaining fashion, Truskinoff approaches “Hair” with respect, feeling that it allows serious commentary on issues such as the war today and where civil rights issues stand.

“The underlying themes remain real today and are very serious,” he said.

Hofstetter’s comedy album intermittently funny, consistently button-pushing

Hofstetter’s comedy album intermittently funny, consistently button-pushing

http://pittnews.com/newsstory/hofstetters-comedy-album-intermittently-funny-consistently-button-pushing/

Courtesy Steve Hofstetter Multimedia

Steve Hofstetter

Pick Your Battles

Next Round Entertainment

Grade: B-

Can the tragic death of someone hit and killed by a car while texting be funny?

“You know the person on the other end of the text message was pissed off he wasn’t responding.”

Well, you decide.

This is one of many controversial lines from Steve Hofstetter’s comedy stand-up show Pick Your Battles, which features political and social humor that’s likely to entertain many who appreciate the comedian’s style of delivery, but is just as likely to make a couple of listeners frown.

Hofstetter’s album chooses to provide comedy by waging war on random topics, with each track titled, “The War On (Insert Topic Here).” Texting, bad tattoos, cities and many other subjects are lampooned.

Most of his humor follows a pattern that sounds logical and intelligent, although whether people will ever agree with anything he says is another matter. For example, “Every guy thinks he’s better than average in the bedroom. And half of you are wrong. Because that’s how math works.”

But more conventional jokes like this one come later, because Hofstetter launches straight into his routine with two tracks on abortion. This is the first sign that the entire show is a comedy act people will either love or hate. If anything, it feels as if this topic drags on too long, and the humor during this section is his weakest. Accordingly, the album starts slowly and sometimes painfully. But even the comedian acknowledges this, stating during the recording, “You’re not all with me. That’s okay. You’re not all going to be with me.”

The humor picks up once this subject is dropped, and Hofstetter finds keen observations to make about shopping centers, gender, dating and more. The final track is “The War On Steve Hofstetter,” in which the comedian interacts with and answers silly questions from an easygoing audience.

Nevertheless, the flow of the show is a bit bumpy. Hofstetter’s disorganized style makes it difficult to tell when one sketch ends and another begins, and sometimes even he seems to lose track of what he’s trying to say, losing the joke along the way.

Another flaw with any CD version of a comedy show is the loss of interaction — the mood of a room of laughing people cannot be adequately replicated with a recording.

Overall, though it sometimes feels like jokes are forced, it’s enlightening to hear someone’s opinion in a manner not intended to attack or demean. As Hofstetter himself says, “I’m trying to make you laugh. It’s a positive intent. You get offended by a joke, it’s an accident.”

Turpentiners take ‘Stage Center’

Turpentiners take ‘Stage Center’

http://pittnews.com/newsstory/turpentiners-take-stage-center/

The Turpentiners

Calliope Center Stage

Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

6300 Fifth Ave.

Thursday, 7:30 p.m.

$12 ($10 for students)

412-361-1915

When one musician headed to college and couldn’t take his piano along, he picked up the harmonica instead — and became obsessed with playing it.

Today Stu Braun continues to play his harmonica with Pittsburgh band The Turpentiners. The band will perform a mix of original pieces and traditional American blues , country and swing music. It is the second band featured this year in the Calliope Center Stage Concert series.

This isn’t the first time The Turpentiners have performed for the Calliope Folk Music Society, according to the nonprofit’s executive director Patricia Tanner.

“Many musicians in The Turpentiners also perform in other projects and have performed for Calliope in those groups,” Tanner said in an e-mail. “The band leader, Ben Hartlage, has been involved in the Calliope community for many years and is a former board member of the organization.”

Formed in 2007, The Turpentiner’s features Hartlage (guitar/vocals), Adam Frew (upright bass/vocals), Megan Williams (violin/vocals), Ron Mesing (dobro) and Braun.

Co-founders Hartlage and Braun had known each other for 10 years prior to forming the band. Braun was born in Pittsburgh and studied in St. Louis, where he took up and mastered the harmonica in lieu of his piano.

He returned to Pittsburgh from a trip to Europe in 1997 and met Hartlage. Both were working with other bands at different times. In 2007, both men’s bands disbanded.

“Stu started talking casually to me about playing together as a guitar/harmonica duo,” Hartlage said in an e-mail. “I think it finally came together when he booked us for a neighborhood festival that he helped organize for the Propel Charter School, where he works. We both liked the sound as a duo and decided to give it a go.”

Soon the pair began receiving requests for weddings and private events. Feeling that a duo performing wouldn’t be a “full enough” sound for a wedding, Hartlage brought Mesing and Williams into the mix.

“Both of them fit right in with the sound and gave us the opportunity to expand the repertoire in new directions,” Hartlage said. “The sound continues to evolve as we work more together and play to each other’s strengths.”

Hartlage created the name for the band, taking inspiration from a New Lost City Ramblers recording of “On Our Turpentine Farm.” Three years later, the band continues to play.

“I don’t think we really thought much about getting our name known,” Hartlage said. “We’ve just sort of focused on playing music we enjoy and playing it as well as we can and having fun with it. Most of our gigs have come from word of mouth. People who see us somewhere and find a way to get in touch with us. We’ve been kind of on an extended streak of good fortune to this point.”

As for their music, the band covers half of its songs and plays original songs as well, Braun said.

“The band members ... perform a wide variety of vintage American music,” Tanner said. “The Turpentiners are a young local group, and an important part of Calliope’s mission is to provide performing opportunities for local artists.”

“The show on Thursday will be half-and-half as well,” Braun said. “[Ben] is good. He writes songs that you’d think were 80 years old. The original songs pay tribute to the old-style songs as well. It’s not all stuff from the 1930s.”

“Sometimes we cook up an original, but the focus is mostly on some real fine old chestnuts from the vaults,” Hartlage said.

Performing live has been the band’s strong point for years. Though the topic of recording a CD has come up, it hasn’t happened yet, Hartlage said.

“We have a couple of songs/videos on YouTube and God knows where else from cellphone videos and such,” he said. “When you’re not the kind of band that will move CDs by the bushel, it’s just hard to justify the expense of a 1000-plus CD print run and design and packaging and studio time.”

But CD or not, the band cares about and loves performing, Braun said.

“Good times and bad, music’s always been there,” he said. “It’s been a driving force in my life. I’ve never wanted to not play. I couldn’t imagine not playing in some capacity.”

‘Madagascar Live’ drops anchor in Pittsburgh

‘Madagascar Live’ drops anchor in Pittsburgh

http://pittnews.com/newsstory/madagascar-live-drops-anchor-in-pittsburgh/

“Madagascar Live”

Feb. 3–6

John Tellem

Benedum Center

Tickets $18-$45

412-456-6666 or pgharts.org

"Madagascar Live"

When one actor walks onto Benedum Center’s stage performing as a lemur this weekend, it might be hard for the audience to resist singing along with the incredibly catchy lyrics: “I like to move it, move it.”

Drew Hirshfield plays King Julien in “Madagascar Live,” a family musical based on the 2005 DreamWorks animated film “Madagascar.” The 90-minute show is the first live production by DreamWorks Theatricals, which produces stage productions based on DreamWorks films.

The show follows a group of friendly animals raised in Central Park Zoo that are unexpectedly shipped from New York and shipwrecked on the island of Madagascar. Alex the lion, Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe and Gloria the hippo soon meet with the island locals and must adapt to their new surroundings.

Taking a story between two mediums is pretty common, but not always an easy task for directors. But since part of theater is creating a world for people to step into, taking a film to the stage is a little easier because the world has already been envisioned, according to Lisa Jackson-Schebetta, assistant professor in the Department of Theatre Arts.

“The challenge with a show such as this is meeting filmic expectations,” Jackson-Schebetta said in an e-mail.

However, Jackson-Schebetta stressed that the two different mediums just offer two ways of looking at the same project and “Madagascar Live” will probably do things that the film could not.

“[Theater] engages the imagination in different ways. It asks us to imagine along with the actors and story on stage,” she said.

Hirshfield was intrigued by the idea and imagination behind the show from the beginning, attending audition after audition before receiving the part of King Julien, a lemur who rules over his tribe on Madagascar.

Hirshfield plays one of the smallest animals in the show. Aurelia Williams, however, plays one of the largest: Gloria the hippo.

Originally a psychology and education major, Williams began to sing in high school for fun, but never took singing seriously until a friend in graduate school urged her to audition for shows. Williams took the advice and began receiving callbacks and job offers even before she finished her degrees.

Williams finished school and received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Rutgers University and a subsequent master’s degree in elementary education, but she opted to go forward with her theater career.

“My parents thought it was too important to at least try,” Williams said.

The idea was that if she didn’t like it, she could go back to the education field, Williams said. Eleven years later, she has no interests in leaving, and her favorite roles on the stage let her laugh and make the audience laugh as well.

Williams thinks that the role of Gloria is perfect for her.

“Gloria is hilarious,” Williams said. “I cannot wait to get an audience in there because we’re laughing just as a cast and crew.”

Williams was already a fan of the movie when she heard about auditions. The live show has more songs than the movie and also expands on the characters and jokes that played on screen, Williams said.

The biggest challenge isn’t the singing or the dancing, Williams said. The biggest challenge is the fact that she plays a hippo and has to dress like one.

“I’ve never played an animal, number one, much less a hippopotamus,” Williams said. “My costume is just big with a big booty. Gloria is famous for that at this point. The spatial awareness with this costume is a little different. I have to watch out because I can knock things over.”

The costumes are a point of interest for Hirshfield as well, since they do pose a “particular challenge,” he said.

“The costumes are bulky,” Hirshfield said. “They are absolutely amazing to look at — beautiful, incredibly creative, elaborate — but because they are so unique they do create some challenges for the actors.”

“Each costumes is made from various materials specific to each animal,” Williams said. “Mine is made from a wrinkly velvet material like looks like a hippo, and my face has a headpiece where you can see my head. You see our faces and know we’re there. It’s a collaboration of the person and taking on the sense of the animal. It’s not a typical kids’ show where you see big fuzzy heads with bodies bumping around. I’d see it without kids.”

But aside from the difficulty of the costume, Williams raves about working on the show.

“The music is fabulous,” she said. “That’s what makes this different: It’s a musical with original scores. I don’t think you can compete or compare to a live dancing and live singing and costumes. It’s magical.”

Pitt student spends 7 years on novel

Pitt student spends 7 years on novel

http://pittnews.com/newsstory/pitt-student-spends-7-years-on-novel/

For most girls, the end of a relationship means calling up the girlfriends to watch a movie or two — ice cream optional but recommended. But not for Kell. Instead, she develops fantastic powers and is recruited for a battle in space.

Kell is the creation of Pitt student Azia Squire, and the main character in her upcoming fantasy novel, “Liquid: The Unit.” The idea for Kell, her powers and her battle has been seven years in the making. But the upcoming publication of “Liquid: The Unit” isn’t the first for Squire.

By Ryan Samson | Staff Photogapher

Azia Squire

Another piece, titled “Affect-Effect” was published in 2008. Squire noted that her writing style has evolved and improved vastly since then.

“I plan to keep publishing, and this was just the first,” Squire said in reference to “Liquid: The Unit,” which she considers her first true novel because she’s taken more critical direction with the writing in this work than she did with “Affect-Effect.”

Squire is a junior studying English writing, philosophy and anthropology. The 20-year-old Atlanta native chose to study at Pitt because of the prestige of its philosophy department and the full scholarship she earned as a Gates Millennium Scholar.

Though Squire had developed and revised the story of Kell by the time she arrived at college, she only had “vague ideas, images and scenes” in her mind for the story when she began writing seven years ago. It took time to flesh out the story and specific details, including what Kell’s power would be: the ability to turn her body into a mercurial substance that burns through almost any material.

“I wrote the original idea when I was 13,” said Squire, who submitted the short story version of her latest work to a writing contest at Stockbridge Middle School. “I ... came back to it later after I won the contest. I looked at it and began writing a couple more drafts.”

Her reinvented version expanded on the idea Squire originally created with a new story and new characters. The story is based heavily in her imagination rather than in research. But despite Kell being a strange character in a fantasy story, Squire described her as a universal person.

“When you read the story, she’s whoever you want her to be,” Squire said. “She’s your eyes into the story, and I would hope that she would be a role model for anyone. It’s not for any specific demographic. It deals with themes and issues that any person can relate to.”

Such themes include the idea of creating and understanding identity as well as growing up and maturing — which Kell is forced to do pretty quickly.

“It’s about how the people and the experiences that you have lay a hand in shaping you as a person,” Squire said. “It’s also about being swept up in things that you can’t control. And yes, I’ve had experiences like this, but I think we all have. Identity and loss of control are things that everyone can relate to.”

The editing process sped up when co-workers at her 2010 internship with a publishing company in Ireland offered feedback on the manuscripts. Back at home, friends and family had also scanned manuscripts in the past and offered feedback.

Strangers helped out, too. Squire met and accidentally switched flash drives with Jessica Rohan, who has a doctorate in linguistic anthropology.The two began talking at a Starbucks in Pennsylvania when Rohan complimented Squire on her Vespa. They sat together and accidently swapped flashdrives upon parting. Rohan returned the files with notes, leading to a back-and-forth process between the new friends.

“On a scale of Stephenie Meyer to Stephen King, she’s an F. Scott Fitzgerald,” Rohan said in an e-mail. “I like the sense of raw urgency coupled with the sleek, modern sensibility. Her writing is well-dressed, which is a quality that few modern writers possess.”

Squire assisted in her book’s publishing process, learning about interior book design and creating the layout of the paperback edition that will be published and available on Amazon and at Borders in February, although no exact release date has been set.

Squire continues to prepare for the ongoing publishing and marketing process with manager and publicist Latonia Hodo in Atlanta, who is assisting with setting up book signings and school readings. The book is “original,” Hodo said, explaining that the novel fits some classifications for the fantasy and science fiction genres but also reaches beyond them.

“There’s a lot happening in it,” Hodo said in an e-mail. “It’s rapid, but it doesn’t rush through the more subtle emotional moments that connect you to the characters; neither does it rush through the descriptions. [Azia’s] writing really does its work to help you build this universe in your mind.”

With the book finally approaching release, Rohan looks forward to seeing its impact.

“I envision it taking the genre in a new direction and really challenging preconceived conceptions of the genre’s parameters, which until now have been rather limiting,” she said.

Squire intends to go into the publishing business as an editor, acknowledging the changes in the industry that created challenges when she was writing. The workload became intense as she tried to prove that she could not only write her book, but could also sell it.

“You have to be able to adapt a lot now” she said. “It’s kind of scary, but it’s kind of cool. It’s like the music industry. The medium is changing, and you adapt with it.

“People are not really going into bookstores and buying physical books anymore, things are on devices, things are on the internet,” Squire said, explaining the importance of “making your book available in the formats [and] promoting on the Internet.”

—Editor’s Note: Squire is a staff writer for The Pitt News.