Investiaation Unfolds as Requiem Mass
University Theatre staged a
requiem mass for six million
victims of Nazi concentration
oamps Friday night with its
presentation of Peter Weiss’
“The Investigation.”
And the drama which unfold
ed on the UT stage had the gen
eral tone of a eulogy—simple,
somber, and straightforward.
Still, one can carry this fun
eral analogy only so far with
out contradicting oneself — the
implication here is that Weiss
has attempted to bury a corpse.
On the contrary, he has un
earthed one—a very ripe one—
in creating a documentary
drama which details the admin
istrative measures taken by
Nazi Germany in the manage
ment of Auschwitz, a detention
extermination center in which
many of the measures of the
greatest bloodbath in history
were implemented.
No Applause
What results is a disturbing,
possibly a devastating, remind
er which kept Friday’s audi
ence uncomfortable throughout
its three-hours-plus run, caused
a considerable number to leave
during intermission, and (quite
appropriately) elicited no ap
plause at the final curtain.
The factor chiefly responsi
ble for the play’s impact is its
basis in fact—playwright Weiss
has gleaned all dialogue from
court records of testimony giv
en at the Frankfurt war trials
of 1964-65.
This testimony, which led to
the conviction of 21 of the
camp’s officers, coldly recon
structs conditions of unbeliev
able brutality which are repug
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nant even to those persons not
affected by World War II.
Weiss utilizes this carefully
edited material in re-creating
the atmosphere of the trial. His
play is merely a framework for
a factual courtroom drama in
which numerous witnesses are
called to testimony against the
camp officers; by exposing the
audience to the evidence pre
sented, Weiss ostensibly calls
upon them to serve as jurors.
Beyond this, there is no sem
blance of plot.
The production which unfold
ed Friday night was of gener
ally commendable quality, dem
onstrating once again director
Jean Cutler’s ability to adapt
unconventional drama to the
UT stage.
Action in Audience
Cutler has encouraged the de
velopment of individual charac
terizations in assigning the roles
of witnesses and accused, and
he uses every available amount
of space in sustaining the ac
tion of the play—an important
factor in the presentation of a
vehicle whose format remains
relatively unchanged.
Cutler’s most significant idea
in this respect was to have wit
nesses and accused move into
the audience following inter
mission. This inventive piece of
direction made the drama more
personal and, needless to say,
twice as effective.
There were a number of
standout performances among
members of the large cast, with
David Grieve and Mark Mali
nauskas taking top honors in
their roles as witnesses. J.
David Baldridge tended to rush
his lines in his role as the judge,
but the formidable question
and-answer aspect of his part
makes this excusable.
Charles Blankenship and Ben
jamin Masters, as the prosecut
ing attorney and counsel for de
fense, were also excellent. Gor
don Scott, T. Blake Conley, and
Robert Emmons were effective
as three of the accused.
Cinemagraphics
All this aside, I could argue
the use of two devices employ
ed in the production. The first
involves projection of cinema
graphics as a kind of graphic
blandishment for many of the
play’s sequences — unquestion
ably well-done, these films oc
casionally created effective con
trasts to the action transpiring
on stage, but eventually serv
ed little purpose save to pro
vide minor distraction.
Secondly, the use of Black ac
tors in the roles of witnesses
and accused seems to be carry
ing civil rights to a ridiculous
extreme. It might be argued
that this tokenism was intended
to point out the significance of
race as an integral part of Nazi
policy, but, this being common
knowledge, one is all the more
aware of the impossibility the
presence of a Negro Nazi officer
represents. The departure from
observed fact in this connection
is in uncomfortable contrast to
KWAX—Dial 91.1 FM
Tuesday, May 21
1:00—Sign-on: The University Hour
1:30—Legendary Pianists
2:00—Out of Sight with Sound: Mary
Newman is your hostess. At 3,
Jon Wu
5:00—News
5:30—Bill Hagerman Commentary
5:45—Rod and Charles Show: “The
Story of a Tail”
6:00-9:00—Chamber Music, with hos
tess Claire Quebedeau
9:00—KWAV Controversy with Rob
ert Packwood
10:00—News
10:15—Evening Concert: John Diehnel
is your host
12:00—Midnight: KWAX Unlimited:
Host, Elwood Cushman
the stark realism of the play as
a whole.
“Pot Shot”
I might permit myself one
pot-shot in questioning the rele
vance of the play itself. Those
affected by Nazi policy during
the war need hardly be remind
ed of it, and current parallels
to Nazism in world conflict pro
vide a more educational exam
ple than the play itself.
“The Investigation” points out
nothing that cannot be seen in
news coverage of the Vietnam
war—and it emerges as a play
which is nauseating rather than
cathartic.
It plays again May 22-25, and
tickets may be purchased at the
UT box office from noon to 5
p.m. daily.
lock
CRAIG
' Pd. Pol. Adr. by
Craig for
Commlaatoner
1159 Emerald
Eugene
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