FEBRUARY 2, 1968
MW V-Show Approaches
Close to 370 students are helping to turn that slogan into fact this year by working since Thanksgiving on committees, acts, publicity, and the many other aspects of Maine West's biggest annual production.
Three performances of the two-hour show will be given at 8 p.m. in the auditorium next Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That leaves only one week to get tickets from the bookstore and Maria Schaefer's in Des Plaines. All of the seats are reserved and cost $1 for Thursday's performance and either $1.25 or $1.75 for Friday and Saturday evenings.
"Kingdom Hall Resurrection-ists," "Play town Place," "Dream Girl 1929," "Figfield Dollies," "From Turf to Surf," "Flicker Funnies," "Yes We Can Can," "Old Fashioned Christmas," "Spunky and His Bunch," "Repercussions," and "Debussy and Bartok" are some of the acts in keeping with the theme "Reflections."
Other names that will soon be circulating around Maine are "Cotton Candy Capers," "Happy Together," "Girl Gazers Delight," "Alehouse Lament,'' ''Lollipop Kids,'' ''Mirror Mirror Mouseketeers," "Dogs World," "Swingers and Old Lace," and "Under the Rainbow."
Still others include "On a June Night," "Echoes of Broadway," "Musical Moods," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Vaudeville Parade," "Mellerdramer," "Try to Remember," "Peanuts," "Goldilocks and the Three Bears," "Pollution," and, of course, a ''Finale.''
According to Bob Connelly '68, V-Show coordinator and dialogue director, that not only adds up to 30 acts, but to "the most professional and entertaining show we've had in years."
Among the acts are take-offs on Spanky and Our Gang, the Mickey Mouse Show, the old-fashioned melodramas of the 1890's, pollution (based on the Tom Lehrer song), and the Dick, Jane, and Sally readers.
The show will also include a Dixieland band, several folk groups, a song from the musical, Fiddler on the Roof, two piano solos, a drum act, and two dramatizations of the popular comic strip "Peanuts."
A parody of Dream Girl 1967 will contain impersonations of Jean Harlow, Betty Boop, Helen Morgan, Fanny Brice, Ruby Keeler, W. C. Fields, Rochester, Clark Gable, and Eddie Cantor.
Other highlights of the show include four dance chorus numbers. According to Linda Larsen '68, dance chorus director, these will include the can-can, a tap dance, and even a "Charlie Chaplain" dance. Linda revealed, "We've been working every night after school. There's going to be a lot of action in the dances."
Cheryl Sehueler '68, student director of V-Show, sums things up with, "All of the acts are so good it's hard to pick out one as the best. We've got a lot of people with exceptional talent involved this year."
Perhaps one reason that there are so many people with exceptional talent is that the staff had close to 90 acts involving an estimated 250 students from which to choose. The tryouts, held in November, produced about 175 students actually working on stage for V-Show.
Since the V-Show requires practically no scenery, the Art Department will be using a new approach with regard to the backdrops this year. Instead of the regular scenery used in
stage performances, they have constructed four by six-foot cubes and oblongs which will be stacked and arranged to give the desired effects.
These solid figures are painted on four sides so that they can be turned to face the audience in accordance with the requirements of an act. This type set saves space in an overcrowded backstage area.
A new system of lighting will also be used. The painted cubes will change color via different combinations of lighting. The sets and the ideas behind them have been almost wholly created by a student committee headed by Gordon Shirling '68.
Mr. Mark Mattson, a new teacher at Maine this year, summarized his work with this committee by saying, "I have the pleasure of working with some very talented students."
Robert Schwenke '68, student music director, with the help of faculty director, Mr. Robert Kuite, has settled on the Broadway showtune of "Cabaret" as the finale of this year's V-Show. The music of this tune will be put to lyrics specially composed for the occasion. Bruce Nelson '69 and Ted Wagner '69 will assist Bob and Mr. Kuite in the musical direction of the show.
Other members of the V-Show staff include Janice Barkell '71, Diana Townsend '69, and Beth French '68, assistant choreographers; Glenn Mc Gee '70, stage manager; Bob Henrich '68; lighting director; Lee Rodin '68, make-up director; Carol Hway '68, business manager; Al Long '68, publicity manager; and Mr. Eugene Patrizi, faculty costume director.
The act captains this year are Pat Cordts '69, Jill Fedder '71, Lori Ware '68, Robert Schwenke '68, Jim Pasternak '68, Valerie Neal '71, Scott Hayward '70, Hillary Packard '70, Carol Mielke '69, Mary Ann Wallace '68, Ned Peterson '71, Lauri Scheuler '69, Vicki Anderson '68, Carolyn Hummel '69, John Houston '68, Kevin Dole '68, Judy Dudable '68, Judy Harms '70, Debbie Hansen '69, Sue Chamberlain '70, Beth Hel1cr '71, and Marty Bushey '69.
This year there will be no narrator because of the time element. The Thursday performance of last year's show was two hours and 45 minutes long. This year the staff has tried to include only the best acts in the show and is hoping for a two hour performance.