I
Film has talent, substance
Yes indeed, it’s just what this coun
try needs — “Purple Rain,” a new
MTV-inspired film starring a popular
rock star, promoted by a hit sound
track album — which was, by the way,
released before the film — and a
number one song.
But wait, there’s something more to
this movie. Underneath the flashy
editing and arresting images are two
surprises: substance and talent.
Prince, the popular rock star, stars as
himself basically, although his
character is known as “the Kid.” His
band, The Revolution, is his real life
stage band, and they, and most of the
rest of the cast, use their real life
names for the film.
The Kid is a self-centered rock musi
cian performing with his band in a
club known as First Avenue, a place
that features hip new groups who
usually go on to greater fame. His
rival, Morris Day, the lead singer of
another club group, The Time,
schemes to get The Revolution kicked
out of the club. The Kid, being a
moody new-wave rebel, helps Morris’
cause by acting immature, undepen
dable, callous and rude.
- The love interest {there has to be a
love interest) is Appolonia Kotero, a
beautiful, buxom woman looking very
much like a young Rachel Ward; she
has about as much presence but far less
talent. Appolonia sets her sights on the
enigmatic Kid after seeing him per
form. Then she allows herself to be
teased and abused as they become
more and more involved.
It’s a real surprise to find “Purple
Rain” an enjoyable, well-made,
dramatically effective film. On the sur
face it resembles this week’s newest
rock video. But director and co-writer
Albert Magnoli maintains a balance
between the visual extravagance and
abstractions of the three-minute shorts
and the overall narrative framework of
a full-length film. Of course, the film
is written to revolve around Prince’s
performing talents, but they fit suc
cessfully into the story while remain
ing both the visual and the dramatic
highlights of the film.
The film is by no means complex,
but it works-in some serious themes
and adds a lot of clever touches. The
Kid’s parents are a troubled couple.
His father is a failed musician who has
turned to alcohol. In frustration he
beats his wife, which causes the Kid to
despise his fathar until, in a particular
ly effective scene, he too lashes out at
Appolonia.
Prince can definitely sing and per
form, and when he’s not on stage he
does a good job of looking intense and
enigmatic. But his line readings are
particularly poor, as are Appolonia’s.
Morris and his sidekick, Friday
Jerome, almost make up for the defi
ciencies of the lead actors by providing
marvelously funny characters who
nearly steal the show.
As simple as the plot is, it builds to
give the final stage performances an ex
citement beyond the mere magic of the
spectacle. More than simply providing a
soundtrack, those ending performances
add energy, exciting drama, and the
final elements in the characterization of
the Kid, whom we somehow still feel for
despite his problems.
There’s no doubt that this is Prince’s
show, and by the end you have to at
least respect him as much as, if not
more than, his character.
Plays at Cinema World.
By Sean Axmaker
Courtesy photo by Cliff Coles
The Lost Boys will take the stage at the Hult Center this month in the
Eugene Festival of Musical Theater’s production of “Peter Pan. ’’
Peter Pan comes to life
Tinkerbell, Captain Hook, The
Darling Family and Peter Pan himself
will cdme to life this weekend at the
Hult Center for the Performing Arts
when the Eugene Festival of Musical
Theater Inc. presents the venerable
musical, ‘‘Peter Pan.”
After several months of planning
and rehearsals, the production, starr
ing Eugene actress Roxy Ragozzino
and directed by her husband Ed
Ragozzino, will open Saturday at 8
p.m. in the Silva Hall.
Producer John Cole calls it *‘a stun
ning show.”
“I expected it to be great, but it’s
exceeding that,” Cole says. “We all
think it’s the outstanding event of the
summer.”
Producers say they have strived to
make the show a close re-creation of
the original Broadway production.
The authenticity in design and pro
duction values is complete, they say.
In fact, the stage flying techniques are
under the direct supervision of Peter
Foy, the developer of the apparatus
used in the first Broadway production
starring Mary Martin.
The sets, which Cole describes as
"large and unusually comprehen
sive,” have been designed by na
tionally acclaimed Jerry Williams.
“The set is filled with beautiful, ex
citing things to look at,” Cole says.
"It’s truly spectacular.”
Roxy Ragozzino stars as Peter Pan,
and Rex Rabold as Captain Hook and
Mr. Darling. Nicola Foster is the
choreographer, and the music direc
tor is Nathan Cammack. The lighting
is designed by Michael Vennerstrom.
"Peter Pan” will be presented
through August 25. There are no
Monday performances. Wednesday’s
shows start at 6:30 p.m., and Sun
day’s matinee is at 2:30 p.m. All other
shows begin at 8 p.m.
Tickets range in price from $5 to
$17.75 and are on sale at the Hult
Center Box Office and all Hult Center
Ticket Outlets.
Booklet guides hikers to a variety of Oregon’s trails
By Julie Snippen
Of the Emerald
With the end of summer ses
sion now in sight, many hook
weary students may be looking
for the perfect escape from the
campus, their home, or even the
city limits themselves.
The Oregon Student Public
Interest Research Group has an
answer to this search in the
form of a booklet on hiking en
titled “An Oregonian’s Trail
Sourcebook,” containing maps
and other information for
would-be pathfinders.
With the help of the U.S.
Forest Service and a handful of
other people, Stephen Mark has
assembled this how-to guide,
which is available for $2 in the
OSPIRG office, Suite 1, in the
EMU basement.
Mark’s end product contains
maps of hiking possibilities
statewide; background on
Oregon’s trails, graced with in
spiring thoughts from famous
writers; and dozens of simple
but charming illustrations.
While striving for com
pleteness in itself, Mark admits
the booklet alone cannot cover
all of the details in the state’s
trail system.
“Oregon has more than 7,800
miles of trail over all types of
terrain, and a descriptive work
covering the entire state is far
beyond any author’s
capabilities,” Mark states in the
introduction. “This sourcebook
is an attempt to document trail
information in the form of maps
and resource listings. My goal is
to refer interested persons to the
proper information source for a
■*HT » J.
given area, while suggesting
new places to explore in Oregon
and the surrounding area.”
The booklet is arranged in 10
geographically bound areas in
the state and provides resource
listings at the beginning of each
specific section, as well as a
general listing in the front for
Oregon as a whole. The phone
numbers and addresses of
various contact agencies, such
as the American Hiking Society
or the Desert Trail Association,
for the 10 individual districts
are included.
Helpful publications, cover
ing everything from "177 Free
Oregon Campgrounds” to
“Waterfalls of the Pacific Nor
thwest” to the "Hiker-Biker
Guide to Oregon” are also
listed.
Maps are divided into two
parts: major hiking areas and
parks with hiking access. Areas
designated as major hiking in
dicate that there is at least one
trail beginning from a given
point. Parks with hiking areas,
on the other hand, show lands
with hiking access but few, if
any, maintained trails.
Unlike the resource listings
that are grouped geographically
in the booklet, the hand-drawn
map boundaries are politically
defined. The 10 mapped
regions are titled as follows:
Coast, Columbia Gorge, Wyeast,
Willamette, Cascade Lakes,
Mazama, Paiute, Blue Mts., Jef
ferson and Owyhee.
All together, the sourcebook
contains about 300 major hiking
areas and the same number of
Graphic by Rob Kraft
parks with hiking access.
Hikers can choose trails as
familiar and close in proximity
as Pre's Trail at Alton Baker
Park or paths in Hendricks Park
to more exotic locations such as
the Big Lava Bed in the Colum
bia Gorge or a walk in the
higher elevations of Vulcan
Peak in southwestern Oregon.
For the daring who want
more than an afternoon hike,
the booklet has several trails
mapped, including the Pacific
Crest Trail (running from the
Mexican border to Canada) and
trails on the mountain slopes of
Bachelor, Fuji, Hood and Shasta
as well.
According to the guide, the
abundance of trails in the region
is somewhat difficult to docu
ment as information on them re
mains more "elusive” than that
of highways or other roads.
Source collection is hindered
because "trails are subject to
different degrees of
maintenance and use,” making
access a problem.
The state’s Department of
Transportation has made an ef
fort to remedy this problem by
hiring a trails coordinator to
serve as a contact person for
outstanding trail information
and to oversee development of
the interconnection of routes
statewide, Mark says. As
justification for the appoint
ment, he cites the results of the
Oregon State Parks Depart
ment's 1975 visitor survey,
which showed that "trail
related activities lead all other
outdoor recreation activites in
Oregon by a wide margin.”
As a sport, wilderness hiking
has increased five times quicker
than the population, three times
faster than automobile camping
and has made a 16-fold jump in
popularity since 1945, Mark
found.
But even as the number of
people using the trails has in
creased, many of the trails
(more than 1,000 miles worth)
are untraveled and may not be
fully usable without additional
financing by the Forest Service,
he says. Thus the public is en
couraged to take an active role
in trail management by direc
ting letters to the relevant
legislator and/or agency of
ficials listed in the booklet.