ｾＭ ...... ______,.______ｾ ｾ ｾＭ

MARCH 2, 2012 ARCADE B4 Getting to know the Gentlemen of Verona

BY DERRICK TOUPS DT: How was it working specifically on "Two SENIOR STAFF WRITER Gents;' a lesser-known Shakespeare play? It's one of his earliest, so it's not as strong as his lat- er works. With a colorful cast of vampires, skate- SE: It is a pretty clumsy play. There's a horrible boarders, potheads and preps, the department ending where Pr9teus has an attempted rape, of theatre and dance opened its "Clerks"-style then Valentine discovers him, rescues Sylvia, rendition of Shakespeare's "Two Gentlemen of and decides, "Oh, you can have her because Verona," directed by Gary Rucker, Tuesday in our friendship's more important." It's definite- conjunction with The Shakespeare Festival at ly a play of problems, but it's cool to see ear- Tulane. The Arcade sat down with the two gen- ly things that Shakespeare later develops like tlemen themselves, sophomore Jesse Friedman cross-dressing, the weird attraction to those in (Valentine) and senior Stephen Eckert (Prote- drag and the sympathetic servants. us), to discuss the process of putting on the de- JF: Something that I think is attractive about partment's first Shakespeare play since "Cym- a lot of Shakespearean comedies - this may beline" in 2004. sound weird - is the naivete of his protago- nists. I think it's pretty endearing and attracts Derrick Toups: You've both worked with the audience to the characters. Shakespeare before, through monologues and scenes. What was the biggest challenge in tak- DT: Stephen, as a Bachelor of Fine Arts candi- ing on such a large role for an entire play? date, was there any special pressure on you for Stephen Eckert: I would say the amount of lan- this role? guage. It wasn't too difficult, mostly intensive. SE: This role was going to be my thesis role. The language of this play is fairly straightfor- I'm an exception for the performing candidates ward and not as tricky as other shows. since I'm directing "Hay Fever" (April 17-22) Jesse Friedman: I think applying the differ- for my thesis. I've worked with Gary as an as- ent layers. First getting the language down and sistant director and also directed him in "God then layering Gary's vision for the show - how of Carnage;' so there was more pressure in per- these characters interact with each other and forming for him because I value his opinion a how their.. attitudes are . lot. DT: How was working with Shakespeare's lan- DT: Jesse, did you pursue the Goth Valentine guage and meter? How di4 you prepare? Did and the latter part of the play differently than you scan the show together? you pursued the beginning? SE: We were pretty much on our own, though JF: A .choice that I made was that I approached we were given a few rules about scansion. Gary the vampires with a certain amount of trepi- wanted to make a few things more contempo- dation, but when I come back out, I've sort of rary for clarity. I was fortunate to take a Shake- embraced the lifestyle. I don't think I've gone speare verse class with Buzz [Podewell] that through a full-fledged vampire transformation. helped a lot. I don't think" it really changed as much inter- JF: I have the benefit of being in "Shakespeare nally as I convince myself it has. I'm .still after on the Road" with Chaney Tullos this semester, the same things (longing to be back with Syl- via), and I think I'm still the same guy at heart, so we were doing lots offundamentals with me- DANNY YOO I CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER ter, rhythm and scansion during early stages of though I do feel that I go through an arc. · rehearsing for the show. Sophomore Jesse Friedman (left) and senior Stephen Eckert (right) discuss character DT: Stephen, how did you transform into the development and working with Shakespeare's meter in "Two Gents." DT: How was this show different from other scheminp Proteus? shows you've been in? SE: Thats something I really enjoyed working he certainly has those moments. It's much more what he wants. This cast has gotten along well, SE: Memorization is easier with Shakespeare with Gary on - finding an arc. I start out as kind fun than to be the nice guy. and we've all been professional. We've also had because of the meter. There's not a lot of sub- oflikeable and friendly. [Proteus is] a great guy, an amazing stage manager, James Lanius, III. text, which makes it easy to figure out what's but in Verona whenever Valentine is there, he's DT: What has been the best part of this process? He's amazing. He's kept everything running like going on; it's not Chekov. It's very freeing when always going to be No. 2. And so when Valen- JF: I really enjoyed working with Gary. I real- clockwork. The efficiency of working with Gary you don't have to overthink it. It's there for you, tine goes, it's his chance to be in love and be the ly love how straightforward he is, not only the and James has made this process super easy. and you can just trust it. man. Then he has to go off to Milan where he's efficiency of his rehearsals, but also in how he JF: This is the biggest role I've had, so definite- No. 2 again. So I think pursuing Sylvia is his gives us notes and tells us what he wants. He's ｃ ｈ ｾ ｃ ｅ ly the most lines I've had to memorize. Parts way of making up for that. I enjoyed becoming always to the point, and there's no beating NEXT TO CATCH "TWO GENTS": the douchebag in this play. I've been very lucky of the character just come out by themselves around the bush. because of the way it's written, and that's real- in the roles I've performed, but I've never really SE: Working with Gary was my favorite part 2 p.m. Sunday in the Lupin Theater ly helpful. been the villain. Proteus really isn't a villain, but of the process too. He's a director who knows

A foodie's \[be ｾ ｲ ｣ ｡ ｢ ･ Ｇ ｳ gutlle to black metal paradise

BY SONYA ZHONG CONTRIBUTING WRITER BY SAM ABRAMOWITZ I STAFF WRITER If you consider yourself a food- Most people's gut reaction upon hearing the word "metal" is to imagine a bunch of ｳ ｷ ･ ｡ ｴ Ｉ ｾ ie, be sure to check out Gambit's sec- longhaired dudes headbanging and screaming at one another. Rejecting any possibility of the ' ond Annual Food Revue Wednesday genre's listenability based on these tired stereotypes, however, would be a grave mistake. Black at the City Park Pavilion of the Two metal as a genre is more accessible than ever before to the average audio connoisseur, and ex- Sisters. panding your musical horizons is always a good thing. The event will feature food from more than 30 popular New Orleans A little history restaurants, as well as Abita beer, The most historically important groups of this early, deYelopmental era of black metal are Mar-Go-Ritas and Dai-Go-Ris from Britain's Venom and Sweden's Bathory, both of whom are highly indebted to bands like Mo- Big Easy Blends, and wine from torhead and Slayer. While Slayer is defined by extremely fast and intense thrash metal and T- Cork & Bottle of Mid-City. Partici- shirt sales, Motorhead plays a punk and heavy metal hybrid that serves as the embodiment of pating restaurants range from local its frontman's masculinity. Aside from its tendency toward low production quality, Venom's favorites La Petite Grocery to Little sound does little to separate the band from other speed and heavy metal bands of the early '80s. Chinatown. The Gambit selected these restau- Still, Venom was influential for two simple reasons: First, the band's 1982 album Black Met- rants based on reviews and features al is responsible for the genre's name, which, in an interesting turn of fate, was extremely im- written by Ian McNulty, a freelance portant for the reimagining created by later Norwegian counterparts. Second, the lyrical con- journalist and author who contrib- tent of Venom's songs reflects a more primitive form of the heartfelt anti-Christianity found in utes to Gambit, New Orleans Maga- Norse black metal. zine and WWNO, the New Orleans Though not the first to define the genre, Bathory - named after the infamous Hungarian National Public Radio Affiliate. This murderess - was arguably the most important pioneer of black metal in the '80s, serving as a year's event will also include a food major influence to the crucial '90s Norwegian scene. The intro track of the group's self-title de- drive for Second Harvest Food Bank but album supplies a relentlessly morbid atmosphere through the use of menacing, washed-out of Greater New Orleans, and attend- church-bells and drones. ees are encouraged to bring canned goods to donate. There will also be Suggested listening: Black Metal by Venom (1982), Bathory by Bathory (1984) a food-sourcing component on site which will take any leftover food Darkthrone COURTESY OF VENOMSLEGIONS.COM A bla.ze in the Northern Sky froip the vendors. Though both Bathory and Venom were influential, the Norwegian scene they inspired is the Don't fret about the fact that there's ､ ･ ｦ ｩ ｮ ｩ ｾ ｩ ｶ ･ era of the getue, primarily responsible for creating what we call "black metal" today. no way you can afford to eat at all of ｓ ｰ ｯ ｾ ｧ ｣ ｯ ｲ ｰ ｳ ･ Ｍ ｾ ｡ ｩ ｮ ｴ and bullet belts, these Norse warriors redefined the genre musically and the delicious restaurants in New Or- ｴ ｨ ･ ｭ ｾ ｴ ｩ ｣ ｡ ｬ ｬ ｹ Ｎ The irreverence of black metal reached its peak with the Norwegian scene, as the leans. The Gambit Food Revue has a devoti<;>n to the music led to several church burnings and one highly-publicized murder. Not solution: Try cuisine from more than only did the Norwegians establish black metal as a rebellious force in a stagnant culture, but 30 fantastic restaurants while drink- ｾ ･ ｹ also managed to make huge steps in furthering the genre musically. Not only did it be- ing beer, wine and spirits for the price gm to focus percussively on manic blast beat drumming, but this new form of black metal was of one meal. also ｭ ｾ ｲ ･ convincing in its ｯ ｭ ｾ ｯ ｵ ｳ tone and subject matter. The vocals became a full-fledged The event is presented by Louisi- demons yowl, and the thrash riffs of Bathory and Venom were traded in for dissonant minor ana Fish Fry Products and sponsored chords and ｡ ｴ ｭ ｯ ｳ ｰ ｨ ･ Ｎ ｲ ｩ ｾ while. retaining the ｧ ･ ｾ ｲ ･ Ｇ ｳ DIY ｰ ｲ ｯ ､ ｵ ｣ ｴ ｩ ｯ ｾ value. Darkthrone was a by Nordic Kitchens. Tickets cost $45 perfect example of this rnnovatlon, and the bands 1994 album Trans1lvanian Hunger is debat- for regular admission, which allows ably the most significant album of this era. The title track embodies all the changes mentioned customers into the event at 7 p.m., or above, with the guitar sticking to the strumming ofeerie minor chords, while the vocals resem- $65 for VIP Early Adinission, which ｢ ｬ ｾ the .v?ice of an angry zombie. The effect of all this build-up is a convincing, horrifying and allows you to enter at 6 p.m. Tick- harr-ramng atmosphere that cannot be replicated through other sounds. ets can be purchased at www.be- stofneworleans.com, or by calling Suggested listening: Transilvanian Hunger by Darkthrone (1994), Det som engang var by Burzum 504-483-3101. (1993), De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas by Mayhem (1994) USA! USA! Participating restaurants: Mandina's, G.W Fin's, Cowbell, The With this background in place, we can look at where black metal stands today. 1hough the Rib Room, Manning's, The Bombay genre is still. largely pl.ayed in the traditional style throughout Northern and Eastern Europe, Club, The Irish House, Carmo, Bayou the bu:geonmg ｾ ･ ｮ ｣ ｡ ｮ ｾ ｣ ･ ｮ ･ has ｢ ｾ ｧ ｵ ｮ to m?ve to the foretront in terms of both popular Hot Wings, Fat Hen Grocery, Banana reception, an? critical ｡ ｣ ｣ ｉ ｾ ｮ Ｚ ﾷ ｾ ｡ ｮ ､ ｳ like Nachtmystium is the Pink Floyd of American black Theo's Pizza, Saffron Nola, Brazil- metal, employmg psychedelic synths and even intelligible, melodic vocals to switch things up. ian Market & Cafe, Taceaux Loceaux, :1hese bands have ｭ ｡ ､ ｾ great strides in increasing the accessibility of the genre while remain- Courtyard Grill, LOLA, Mayas, Lib- mg true to the Norwegian sound that defines it. erty Kitchen, Cafe Abyssinia, Fa- Suggested listening: Assassins: Black Meddle, Part 1 by Nachtmystium (2008), Aesthetica by Liturgy toush, Cordina Mar-Go-Rita's, Re- Liturgy COURTESY OF ll.1YSPACE.COM/LITURGY demption, Sylvain and K-Paul's. (2011), Celestial Lineage by Wolves in the Tltrone Room (2011)