'Sleepwalkers' called a success
despite inconsistencies in acting
By Marty Schwarzbauer
Of Ike KiMrtId
After the Nov. 15 performance of Andries
Oiiphant's "The Sleepwalkers," a man approach
ed Oliphant in the hallway outside Villard Hall's
Pocket Theatre and said he had not enjoyed the
play, but that he had been moved by it. Oliphant
smiled, shook the man's hand and thanked him.
That exchange describes both Oiiphant's in
tent in writing "The Sleepwalkers” and the
overall effect of this Theatre 4:30 production, the
play's premiere run.
Although the play deals with the problems of
an urban black South African family facing the
long-term imprisonment of their son, Oliphant
and director Andrew DeRycke are successful in
preventing the play from becoming too heavy
handed.
The combination of intimacy and repression
one would expect from theater of this nature was
effectively conveyed in the Pocket, with the sim
ple staging, the proximity between actors and au
dience. and with the stone-faced prison guards at
the end of each aisle.
The cast, consisting of graduate teaching
fellow Sharon Elise (previously listed as
Claeyssens) and local musician Willie Dee as
Elaine and Luke, the parents, and Daniel Corona,
a University student from North Africa, as Nor
man, their son, performed very well within the
confines of a short rehearsal run and numerous
scheduling conflicts.
Dee does an especially wonderful job carry
ing the vocal character and body language of a
tired old man. His range from apathy and indif
ference to explosive temper tantrums is quite con
vincing. as is his use of the newspaper both as a
prop and a symbol. His portrayal of L.uke s rela
tionship with his son. though, wasn't as clear as
it could have been.
Elbe communicates a nice sense of motherly
doting and conveyed a feeling of someone who is
used to talking to her husband and son. although
she is aware they probably aren’t listening.
Her off-focus acting is also good, and her ef
forts to bring l.uke and Norman out of reminisc
ing a depressing past are believable. However,
some of her mood transitions, especially when
building into anger, are too abrupt.
Corona's portrayal of Norman also works
well. His sense of fatigue and disorientation in
the prison flashback scene and his physical acting
later in the homecoming dream sequence are
noticeably effective, but there are times when his
accent and enunciation are hart! to understand.
"The Sleepwalkers” deals sensitively with a
highly explosive social situation, and is therefore
an important topical example of contemporary
revolutionary theater
Because of the large numbers unable to set!
"The Sleepwalkers" in the small space at the
F’ocket Theatre in November, the Anti-Apartheid
Coalition of Eugene is sponsoring another pro
duction of the play with the original cast. The
show will run at 7:30 p.m Dec. 20 at the Eugene
Council for Human Rights in Latin America. 1236
Kincaid St., behind the University Bookstore.
Women
Continued from Page 8
Nicolle Aislinn. another partici
pant. "There's a feeling of
sisterhood here, and I know I
don't have to go through this
alone.”
Other people emphasized the
new awareness they had gained
about men and the way they
sabotage any chance to establish
a healthy relationship with one.
"We stay away from nice,
stable men,” Reddon said. "1
had one that was interested in
me, and it scared the hell out of
me. So 1 chased him away.”
Robin Johnson, another group
member, believes that some
people resisted going for help
because they associated support
groups and therapy with radical
feminism, she said.
“We're not just sitting around
here being man-haters,"she
said. "Our goal is to become
whole women so we can be
healthy partners and involved
in healthy relationships. Men
are victims, too.”
The other workshop par
ticipants agreed.
"I’d like to see a workshop
like this for men,” Aislinn said.
"Instead of women who love
too much, it should be called
people who love too much.'
Co-participation in therapy
would give men and women a
chance to process and grow
together, participants said. This
could lead to later participation
in a co-educational support
group and hopefully increase
the chances of parents not pass
ing their destructive cycles on
to their children, they said.
“Co-alcoholism is a disease
that can be transmitted,”
The road to recovery from
"Women Who Love Too Much":
1. Go for help.
2. Make your own recovery the find priority in yoor life.
3. Find a rapport group of peer* who understand,
4. Develop your spiritual side through daily practice.
3. Stop managing and controlling others.
i. Learn not to get hooked into the games you’ve played
7. Courageously face your own problems and short
comings.
8. Cultivate whatever needs to be developed in yourself.
9. Become selfish; realize that you can’t help anyone
elae until you help yourself.
10. Share with others what y**u have experienced and
learned.
Johnson said. “It's important
that we heal ourselves so we can
break the cycle and provide
healthy, functional life-coping
skills for our children."
"Young people have an ad
vantage today." Keddon added.
"They’re more conscious of the
way dependency can interfere
with their lives and feel more
comfortable asking for what
they want in a relationship. 1
think there's real hope for the
future that we can lick this
thing."
Hess and Villagian said they
plan to hold another workshop
next month. It will be limited to
15 participants.
On-going classes are also
available on Monday and
Thursday of every week from
7:30 to 9 p.m at the Unity
Church in Eugene. The sessions
are free to anyone who wishes
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