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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 10, 2000)
School of MUSIC FEBRUARY CONCERTS Clip and Save this Calendar! For more information on School of Music events, call 346-5678, or call Guardline at 485-2000, ext. 2533 for a taped message. Sat. “EXOTIC PERCUSSION” 2/12 Children’s Concert Series 10:30 a.m., Beall Hall $3 adults, $2 children & students, or $5 for a family Sat. JAVANESE GAMELAN 2/12 Concert & Shadow Puppet Play World Music Series 8 p.m., Beall Hall $10 General Admission, $8 students & senior citizens Tue. LESLIE STRAKA, Viola 2/15 Faculty Artist Series 8 p.m., Beall Hall $7 General Admission, $4 students & senior citizens Wed. OREGON WIND ENSEMBLE 2/16 UO Ensemble 7:30 p.m., Beall Hall $5 General Admission, $3 students & senior citizens Fri. OREGON COMPOSERS FORUM 2/18 New music by UO graduate composers. 8 p.m., Beall Hall FREE Admission Tue. OREGON BRASS QUINTET 2/22 Faculty Artist Series 8 p.m., Beall Hall $7 General Admission, $4 students & senior citizens Thu. UNIVERSITY GOSPEL ENSEMBLE 2/24 UO Ensemble 8 p.m., Beall Hall $5 General Admission, $3 students & senior citizens 2/25- DANCE 2000: “For Dr. D.” 2/26 Faculty Dance Concert in honor of Frances Dougherty 8 p.m. Fri.; 2 p.m. & 8 p.m. Sat.; Dougherty Dance Theatre $10 General Admission, $6 students & senior citizens Fri. CLASSICAL MUSIC OF SOUTH INDIA 2/25 World Music Series 8 p.m., Beall Hall $10 General Admission, $8 students & senior citizens Fri. THE JAZZ CAFE 2/25 UO Jazz Combos 8 p.m., Gerlinger Alumni Lounge $5 General Admission, $3 students & senior citizens Sat. THE 100th MONKEY ENSEMBLE 2/26 UO Contemporary Ensemble 8 p.m., Beall Hall FREE Admission Sun. OREGON STRING QUARTET 2/27 Faculty Artist Series 2 p.m., Beall Hall $7 General Admission, $4 students & senior citizens Sun. CHAMBER MUSICALE 2/27 UO Chamber Ensembles 4:30 p.m., Beall Hall $5 General Admission, $3 students & senior citizens Mon. OREGON PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE 2/28 UO Ensemble 8 p.m., Beall Hail $5 General Admission, $3 students & senior citizens Tue. CAMPUS ORCHESTRA 2/29 UO Ensemble FREE Admission 8 p.m., Beall Hall Heather Brooks °.esignhe - "■"-SBas. ■ Heather Brooks finds that art imitates life as she balances obligations to a career and her family By Jack Clifford Oregon Daily Emerald One particular scene in “Top Girls,” University Theatre’s cur rent production, drew a response on opening night that corroborat ed the play’s theme. While a female character was getting dressed on stage — stand ing there in her all-in-one bra and girdle set — someone in the back of the audience let loose with a wolf whistle. “I thought ‘I can’t believe that,’” Heather Brooks says. “I can’t be lieve that we were in a theater and we’re making a statement and people just see skin and have to whistle.” Brooks was paying special at tention to the crowd’s reaction that night because she designed costumes for “Top Girls.” The statement she refers to is one of women’s roles in society and how they are blocked from attaining their goals. The plot for “Top Girls” revolves around a group of women, fictional and historical characters, who dialogue through out about women’s need to bal ance career and family life. “We really wanted to keep the ideas of restriction and constric tion very much out there,” Brooks says about her final clothing cre ations. “I think that most people [watching the play] understood that we were using costumes to create forms and silhouettes to follow with our concept.” Brooks, who is a graduate stu dent at the University — in fact, “Top Girls” is her final project to complete a masters in costume design for theater degree — can relate to the some of the ideas rep resented in writer Caryl Churchill’s provocative script. The Ontario, Ore., native re ceived her bachelor’s degree at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, but not before she en countered a setback in her fresh man year. Starting out her academic career as an actor, Brooks had to put that goal on hold when she becan^p pregnant. She found that not only was the switch to a costume design'degree easier on scheduling conflicts, but i-■tt.....v,..,;...y.vtty,w i ii — -on_<szm,_L_J Courtesy University Theatre Yasmin Ravard, as Pope Joan (right), interacts with Dull Gret (Rachel Aanestad, left) and Marlene (Bekki Barnhart, center). the art aspect now appeals to her, as well. “I just love the idea of creating a visual image for the actor,” she says. “The characters and the ideas down in the script can come to life visually with the use of costumes.” Planning meetings for “Top Girls” began last October, and throughout the holidays Brooks and her three assistants re searched historical facts, then took to the streets to find appropriate fabrics for the necessary dresses, kimonos and other outfits. Isn’t all work and no fun, how ever. One character, Pope Joan, wears a heavy, stiff costume and a big wrap cape — “It’s called a cope. The pope wears a cope; is n’t that a kick in the pants?” Brooks says, with a laugh — and the design team spent hours glu ing emblems onto the cope. “I was just so thrilled with that,” Brooks says excitedly. “I mean how many jobs do you have where you get to hot glue the Pope? This is just the coolest job.” Yasmin Ravard, a freshman theater arts major, played the role of Pope Joan, and she says that Brooks executed her purpose to a T. The character’s costume was heavy and cumbersome, which made Ravard feel restricted in her stage movement, but the actor points out that fit well with the conservative nature of Pope Joan. “Heather did a really good job — I feel like a pope on stage,” she says. Brooks has only two more pro ductions to watch her final pro ject in action; “Top Girls” finish es its run at Robinson Theatre with shows Friday and Saturday. While she admits to a hankering to design a “pretty show ... with ribbons and lace,” such as “Sun day in the Park with George” or “A Little Night Music.” Foremost for Brooks, however, is returning to her main role in life, as mother to her two chil dren, Natasha, 7, and Ariel, 6. Just as important is her need to write a 300-page paper to wrap up her master’s degree and then find a decent-paying job. Hmmm, a woman balancing her career goals with her family and social life. Sounds like Brooks is a “top girl.”
