The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 79, No. 26, Ed. 1 Friday, April 3, 1992 Page: 15 of 24
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
THE RICE THRESHER FRIDAY, APRIL 3. 1992 15
Get Me On
Poi Dog brings '\blo, Yolo to African tomorrow night
by Richard Johnson
I first saw Poi Dog Pondering back in 1989,
when they opened for Michelle Shocked at the
Tower Theatre. I had heard of them, but 1 wasn't
familiar with any of their songs. To me, they
were just another band whose records graced the
music'collection of KTRU. Like most people, 1
was waiting to see Michelle Shocked, so initially
1 didn't pay much attention to Poi Dog. But after
a song or two, they caught my ear.
For starters, the number of people on stage
playing music looked more like a neighborhood
hootenanny than a cohesive band (the typical
four person formula where guitar + bass + drums
+ vocals = rock-n-roll, dude). And for each band
member (there were about nine at that time),
there were at least three different instruments.
Usually, that's a soundperson's nightmare. But it
worked—quite well, in fact. Unfortunately, by
the time I had really taken interest in their show,
it was over. But a few key sounds and phrases
kept going through my mind: something about
wanting to be your watermelon, a great song that
kept saying fruitless, and a song about everybody
trying to do something, though I didn't remember
just what exactly they were trying to do.
A few days later, I found myself at KTRU
with both of Poi Dog's albums, desperately
trying to find anything remotely similar to what I
had heard. I must admit that with song tides like
"Everybody's Trying," "The Watermelon Song,"
and "Fruitless," my search was pretty easy. And
that's how my love affair with Poi Dog Ponder-
ing began.
Their music is rhythmic and percussive in a
Polynesian sense, and great to dance to. The
guitar parts arc usually subLle, as in reggae,
though a few Poi songs feature a harder, edgy
sound. Most Poi songs feature either an
accordian or some type of horn, both of which
are provided by Dave Crawford. Susan Voelz
adds violin parts that borderline on fiddle, though
rumor has it that she claims not to know how to
play fiddle-style. The bass has a higher profile in
most Poi songs than with other bands, which can
be attributed to their island sound (they're
originally from Hawaii). The ever energetic
Frank Orrall, Poi's frontman, keeps the audience
under a sort of spell with his stage presence.
The uniqueness of Poi's first two albums lies
not only in their creativity but also in their
Hello, hello again
Friendly neighborhood Hawaiian hootenanny: they play three Instruments each.
recording. Despite using so many instruments in
each song, their first two albums were basically
recorded live, without those awful studio
gimmicks that tend to ruin a good song. The
results are that both albums sound amazingly
good, even to the point of getting rave reviews
from audiophile magazines like Absolute Sound.
Unfortunately, their new album, Volo Volo, has
fallen into the trap of being overproduced with a
certain slickness and commercial appeal that
might be as irritating to hardcore Poi fans as it
was to me.
Recording quality aside, Volo Volo lacks
focus. As evident from the record, Poi has
reached the point in their rise to recognition
where the harsh realities of becoming a
nationally accepted, marketable band could force
them into the position of making an album with
"hit" singles that will score on college radio and
MTV's "120 Minutes." Thankfully, they appear
to have rejected this future as much as accepted
it (and there lies the confusion). For instance,
tracks such as "Jack Ass Ginger" and "Get Me
On" definitely fall into the hit category. On the
other hand, the wild Hawaiian "Te Manu
Pukarua" sounds more at home at an all day
Polish wedding party than on an album that is
shooting for the top of the lucrative college radio
charts.
The song "Lackluster" is a perfect example of
what might be happening to Poi's sound. They
debuted this song well over a year ago on the air
at KTRU, and it has become a highlight of their
shows ever since. As typical with most Poi
songs, it kind of makes you want to get up,
dance, and wear a big smile on your face for the
rest of the day. The album version of "Lacklus-
ter" has been stripped of this energy, and in its
place are the usual studio suspects: too much
reverb, out of place distorto-guitar solos, and a
sense that the song has been packaged, pro-
cessed, and is now ready for your consumption.
And then there arc songs that sound just like the
Poi of old, such as "I've Got My Body."
Though my loyalty to Poi remains firm, 1
would certainly recommend the first two Poi
albums over Volo Volo, especially for those who
arc looking for a good introduction to Poi Dog
Pondering. And, as an expert on Poi concerts
(I've seen 7 or 8), I would certainly recommend
your attendance this weekend. The new songs
will probably sound much better live, and their
older material will be, as usual, incredible.
Poi Doc Pondering
The Vatican, 880-3433
Sat., April 4
Every four years, Wiess mounts musical farce of Hamlet
by Shala Phillips
In the late 60s, George Grenias, author of
Hello, Hamlet, and now Houston comptroller,
spent a lonely night wandering around the Rice
campus, debating just how far he could go from
Houston on his meager bank account. It was the
night before Wiess College's first production of
Hello, Hamlet. Grenias, unbeknownst to the
college cabinet had spent the entire theatre
budget on this one production—a play not even
chosen to be one of Wiess' two plays that year.
Grenias knew that if the play failed and the
Cabinet discovered his budgetary, cr, innova-
tions, they would not be pleased with him.
It was a bleak night
But the farce was so successful, Wiess
reproduces it every four years. This year's
production features an incredibly versatile stage,
talented lighting and music technicians, and
lively interpretations of the roles by the various
actors. Grenias's version of Hamlet is packed
with not-so-subLle revisionist humor.
In Hamlet, Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, has
poisoned her husband in favor of his brother
Claudius. Hamlet is visited by his father's ghost
in the first scene and vows to revenge his father.
Critics make much of Hamlet's delay in avenging
the death (he waits five acts). But Grenias casts
all scholarly interpretations aside in favor of the
simply comic: Hamlet suffers from an Oedipus
complex.
Hello, Hamlet turns the Bard's work on its
tragic head, from the opening scene when
Claudius reprimands Hamlet not for his dour
looks, but for his unprinccly glee so soon after
his father's tragic death. He urges him to "Put on
a Tragic Face." After being visited by his ghostly
sire, Hamlet's dilemma is no longer the classic
Leaving no part of this
play untouched,
Greanias' pen has
crafted theme-
crushing changes.
question "to be or not to be," but rather "who
done it?"
Grenias has even overcome the ultimate
hurdle in transforming Hamlet into a comedy:
Shakespeare's bloody ending, which few
characters survive. This poses a problem for a
comedy. Fortunately, Grenias' characters possess
a remarkable ability to revive minutes after
receiving fatal wounds.
Grenias denied himself no liberties in
reinterpreting the text. Polonius' rambling
speeches have been translated into the babblings
of a chronic drunk. Hamlet's father has become a
ghostly salesman, perhaps trying to sell his son
the idea of excising whatever has gone rotten in
Denmark.
Leaving no part of this play untouched—
Greanias' pen has crafted changes as theme-
crushing as his rcevaluation of Hamlet's delay to
something so subtle as having the line "Get thee
to a nunnery!" spew from the drunken Polonius's
mouth, not Hamlet's.
The cameo appearances of characters from
random Shakespearean dramas arc especially
delightful. Richard III invades the second act
crying his famous line, "My kingdom for a
horse!"
Other familiar Shakespearean figures include
MacBeth (Marc Kossovcr), MacDuff (Adam
Smith), and English professor Denis Huston
(David Krewinghaus), who enters at various
times during the performance to discuss such
things as foreshadowing and plot development.
The cast performed well in the recast roles,
obviously enjoying the changes in the tradition-
ally somber play. Karen Foster used her strong
voice to great advantage as Gertrude, Queen of
the Danes.
Adam Thornton portrays the homosexual
Horatio without succumbing to too many clichcd
stereotypes. His Horatio, Hamlet's bosom
companion within the play, has a penchant for
cream dresses and thigh-high black leather booLs.
Alison Cohen captures Ophelia's spirit,
transforming the potentially weak character into a
model of feminine strength. Throughout the
play, she ishotly pursues her cold-footed lover.
The three witches gleefully dominate their
scene, catching hold of Hamlet and preparing to
sacrifice him for their current concoction.Thc
hags, played by Kristi Holder, Jen Jacobs, and
leva Swanson, bend before their pot toiling over
their noxious brew. When Hamlet and Horatio
first enter their shop looking for a bit of poison,
they cackle their pleasure at finally acquiring
some Danish blood.
Derek Holland plays Hamlet with a great deal
of humor as he whirls from encounters with one
character after another.
Colin MacAllister's Polonius is delightfully
drunk. His interaction with his son Laertes is
thankfully brief in Grenias's version. "Remember
what I told you," he says, referring to long-
winded advice he never actually gives in this
production.
The chorus proved to be remarkably versatile,
see Hello Again, pace 18
The Rice Players present Write
Onstage, a trio of student-
written, student-directed one-
acts by Kyle Henry, Eric Garland
and Peter Sharoff. Famsworth Pavil-
ion, Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., $4 students.
527-4040.
Hello, Hamlet, a musical farce, will
play at Wiess College, Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m.,
$4 students, $6 non. 630-8850.
The Mystery of Edwin Drooo, a you-
choose-Jt mystery, has two days left.
Sid Richardson College basement,
Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., $3 students.
Knock, a French play produced by Club
Chouette, will be at Hamman Hall,
Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m.
Film nchr: The Big Heat (Glenn Ford,
director Fritz Lang), 7:30 p.m., and
Odds Against Tomorrow (Harry
Belafonte, Robert Ryan), 9:10 p.m.
Rice Media Center, $4.
Chamber Musk Recital. Shepherd School
violin, viola and cello faculty will play
Mozart, Brahms and Bruckner. Stude
Hall, 8 p.m.
Thomas Hasan, bass trombone,
Master's Recital. Duncan Recital Hail,
6 p.m.
The Outdoor Concert: KTRU pre-
sat sents a free concert in the Smith
Courtyard (by Anderson Hall). Austin's
Glass Eye, Joint Chiefs (with Flesh
Mop's former singer), Ufungus-
umungus and GutLogic will play from
noon until 6 p.m. Valhalla will be
open throughout the day.
Mastro4anni: Big Deal on Madonna
Street, Media Center, 7:30 p.m.
Dawn Sheridan, soprano, Senior
sun Recital. Duncan Recital Hall, 8
p.m.
Australian Cinema: Careful, He Might
Hear You, Media Center, 7:30 p.m.
Auditions for Mixed Signals, an
mon award-winning educational play
about acquaintance rape. Will Rice
College PDR, 7:30 p.m.
CampanleOrchestra: Berlioz, Morse and
Schubert. Stude Hall, 8 p.m.
"7 "Blurring the Boundaries Between
' UE Geometric Abstraction and Sur-
realism: the Case for Irene Rice
Perelra," a lecture by UH art profes-
sor Karen Bearor, Sewall Hall 305,
5:30 p.m.
Tl Houston Premiere: The Kill-Off.
sat Director Maggie Greenwald will
introduce the screening of this adap-
tation of a Jim Thompson (Grffters)
novel. Sat.-Sun.,Media Center, 7:30
p.m.
T<5 The 29th Annual Rice Student
thu Exhibition opens at 6 p.m. The
works, by students in studio art
classes this year, are selected by a
faculty jury. The "progressive open-
ing" begins at the Media Center at 6
p.m. At 6:30, It moves to the Sculp-
ture Courtyard at Sewall Hall. Awards
at 7 p.m.ln the Sewall Gallery. In-
cludes performances by dance stu-
dents and the Rice Players
Yes, Virginia, there will be a shuttle
bus. The exhibit will be on view until
May 2.
Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra:
Stravinsky's "Symphonies of Wind
Instruments" and Shos-takovlch's
Symphony No. 11. Stude Hall, 8 p.m.
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Kim, Leezie & Carson, Chad. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 79, No. 26, Ed. 1 Friday, April 3, 1992, newspaper, April 3, 1992; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245811/m1/15/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.