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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 2000)
(£l¡e sportiani» © heeruer Arts George Fox to Host One-Person Play on Multicultural Issues A one-person play that addresses issues o f m ulticulturalism in today’s society through the eyes o f young adults w ill be presented free to the public on G eorge Fox U niversity’s N ew berg cam pus on T uesday, Nov. 14. The program begins at 7 p.m . in W ood-M ar A uditorium . T he play follows a b rie f perform ance by lo cal C h ristian rap g ro u p , “ D A S PHA T.” “Faces o f A m erica” stars actress B ernadette Balagtas, w ho presents eight characters all based on true stories researched through w ork shops and interview s w ith high school and college-age populations. The eight characters depicted each represent a different cultural aspect o f A m eric an society : A fric an , A sian, M exican-A m erican, N ative A m erican, East Indian, European, H appa (m ixed blood), and an "all- in-one G eneration X -er.” B alagtas starred in “The D ebut,” the first Filipino-A m erican m ovie to be released in the United States. She appeared in Jam es B rooks’ “As G ood As It G ets,” and w as an origi nal contestant in the H aw aii-based television show “ D estination Star dom .” She also perform ed in N BC ’s “Friday N ight,” and is a host and peform er at fam ed Laugh Factory in H ollyw ood, Calif., w here she regularly perform s w ith such popular com ics such as D avid A lan G rier, Ja y M o h r and D am on Wayams. The program , w hich is de scribed as appropriate for high school students and older, is presented by W ill & Coinpany, a Los A ngeles-based dram a group dedicated to shattering stereotypes o f race and gender. Daryl Dixon, G eorge F o x ’s director o f m ulticultural ser vices, said the program is a creative w ay to inspire consid eration o f im portant issues. “ I think it’s valuable to bring it to c a m p u s ,” h e sa id . An Opera to Remember Bv Jov R amos T he P ortland O bserver M aking his debut with Portland Opera as the star o f Otello, John Keyes recalled that his favorite oper atic experience was not perform ing at a prestigious opera house, but sing ing to inner-city kids in his hom e state. For him, that experience alone topped the recordings he did with L u cian o P a v a ro tti and P lác id o Domingo. During an outreach event spon sored by a W isconsin opera com pany he worked for, Keyes was asked to perform before an all-Black el em entary school in M ilwaukie. Be ing raised most o f his life in a pre- dom rnately White part o f town, Keyes felt uncom fortable doing it. In atten dance w ere little boys wearing T- shirts with tuxedos and little girls wearing T-shirts with ball gowns. Before the ev en t, the k id s w ere gro o m ed in the m an n ers o f a t tending an opera. T o top o f f the event, the elem e n ta ry sch o o l kids w ere a llo w ed to m eet w ith the a rt ists. K eyes ad m itte d to feeling funny b ein g aro u n d B lack s d e sp ite th e ir rousin g en th u siasm . W hile still in costum e, K eyes felt a tug at h is leg. L ooking d o w n , he n o tic ed a g o o d -lo o k in g A frican American boy about 8 yeans old who asked him something where Keyes only heard the word money in his question. Assuming the boy was hitting him for November 8, 2000 Focus cash, he brushed him aside and told him that he didn't have any. The child emphatically answ ered. “No!” to mean he was misunder stood. He reached into his pocket andplaced adime in Keyes ’ s hand “Hegaveittotheopera. I lovedit!" beamed Keyes. When he walked away, Keyes noticed how poor the boy was in his tattered pants and worn out shoes. Because ofthe boy’s kind ges ture, Keyes still keeps the dime taped down in his make-up kit. The dime serves as a constant reminder ofan important lifelong lesson that Keyes holds true to which is not to ever judge others by the color o f their skin. “Throughout history, theatre has been a valuable tool to present is su e s to th e p u b lic a t la rg e . Shakespeare did it in his day. It will help us to understand m ore in areas Page 3 o f m ulticulturalism . W hen you can educate and entertain together, it’s a pow erful com bination.” For m ore inform ation, call 503/ 554-6117. Some people still think a mouse always has whiskers. They need you. You know co m p u ters are a key to o l in to d ay’s world and use th em everyday. Many people don’t. H e lp th e lib rary in tro d u ce these people to everything o ur co m p u ters have to offer. B ecome a volunteer T echno H ost . 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