Photos by
Cati iarine
Kendall
h
Luke Hamilton plays L
John, Megan Smith
plays Barbara, and
Darlene Dadras plays
the Daik Witch in the
University Theatre’s
‘DarttoftheMoon.’ _
jT*>
me University Theatre s production of Dark
of the Moon’ evokes an Appalachian myth
By Jack Clifford
Oregon Daily Emerald
here is no other place quite like
the Appalachian Mountains.
Snuggled up to the Eastern
seaboard and ranging from Que
bec to Alabama, that chain of ter
rain is literally and figuratively
shrouded in magic and myth. Something
funky happens in those smoky hills, and the
University Theatre production “Dark of the
Moon” aims to let us in on the secret.
Written in the early 1940s, this supernat
ural love story is based on the ballad “Bar
bara Allen,” which has its
origins in the United King
dom. The tale made it to the
States sometime in the 17th
century and of the 140-odd
versions, one in particular
describes a witchboy falling
in love with Barbara Allen.
The play’s authors, Howard
Richardson and William
Bemey, used that theme for
their fable.
Set in North Carolina, this
performance of “Dark of the
Moon” is true to the region’s
culture, says director Joseph
Gilg, right down to the back
woods music and Southern
dialect. But if you’re think
ing the storyline sounds like
Hank Williams, Jr. meets
Loretta Lynn, leave your
cliches at home.
“These are people that would be stereotyped
as ‘hillbillies,’ and it’s very easy to think of
them as rural hicks,” Gilg muses in reference to
the 24 characters who make up the cast.
“Really, though, they’re trying to solve a
very serious problem, and from our own per
spectives and our own standards they may
seem very unsophisticated about that. But we
tried to approach them as real, three-dimen
sional people, living, breathing, with hopes,
desires and dreams and good thoughts.”
The “very serious problem” is this rela
tionship between Barbara Allen and the
witchboy named John, who is granted his
wish to become human so he can woo Bar
bara. They eventually marry, then Barbara
gives birth to a witchchild, whom her mid
wives bum. The deeply religious communi
ty finally helps Barbara break the spell over
John, but with devastating consequences.
“Dark of the Moon” premiered on Broadway
in 1945 and was first produced one year later at
the University under the direction of retired
University theater professor Horace Robinson.
This entire UT season has been a tribute to
Robinson, with his former students directing
plays he previously oversaw. Gilg was a stu
dent during his mentor’s last two years as a full
time faculty member in 1973-75.
Gilg chose “Dark of the Moon” at least in
part because of the play’s elaborate stage en
vironment and the mood it creates.
“I think the set is quite abstract, which is
what I was going for,” he observes. “I like to
refer to it as a good machine for acting, be
cause it’s fun to move actors around. I’m
able to put them in good positions relating
to one another, and that always helps ad
vance the dialogue with
the audience.”
■
What ‘Dark of the Moon’
When: May 21-22 and 27-29
and June 4-5 at 8 p.m.; May 23 at
2 p.m.
Where: Robinson Theatre
in Villard Hall
Tickets: $4.50 for students; $8
for faculty, staff, senior citizens
and non-UO students; $10 for the
general public. Matinee tickets
are $5 for students, $10 for the
general public. Call 346-4191.
Another way to capture
the crowd’s attention is
through the play’s music.
The selections not only pro
vide atmosphere and local
color, Gilg points out, but
also commentary on the ac
tion, the characters and the
relationships in the play.
“This is a culture where
everybody is in some way a
musician, where everybody
plays an instrument,” adds
Linda Danielson, who along
with University folklore
professor Dianne Dugaw,
designed the play’s music.
“We actually jettisoned the
original music because it
was a cross between Burl
Ives and Rodgers and Ham
merstein. The sound now grows out ot tne ac
tion and is very organic to the culture.”
The selections are what Danielson calls
‘traditional Southern mountain music,” with
fiddles, banjos, guitars, and even an Ap
palachian dulcimer providing the melodies.
Of course, the third leg to any solid pro
duction is a capable cast, and Gilg is im
pressed with his collection of talent.
“Luke Hamilton, who plays John, and
Megan Smith as Barbara are very seasoned vet
erans actors, and they usually make a director
look very good,” he comments. “Rowan Mor
rison, as Preacher Haggler, is doing a terrific
job with a fire-and-brimstone approach
If you have never experienced the myste
rious qualities of the Appalachians, get
ready for a surreality check, Gilg says.
“People coming to the play from Eugene
will in fact enter another world,” he surmis
es. “But I think in terms of the story being
told, they will be able to connect with those
people and those problems and that effort
to solve those problems.”
Dark of the
Moon
^Howard Richardsorn&Sj
William Berney
Directed by Joseph Gilg
\ c
A RobinsonThe^tre Production
11^21,22; 27, 28, 29; *
Pm 5, 1999
•8:00 P.M.
Special benefit matinee performance
Sunday, May 23, 2 !\M.
Food for Lane County
Box Office 346-4191
Erb Memorial Union 346-4363
University of Oregon
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