The Bakersfield Californian from Bakersfield, California • Page 27

CSB play is curiouser and curiouser 'Alice at Eight' drips insanity By ROBIN WITT Staff Writer As Alice, the 8-year-old Candida in Wonderland, might say, "Things are curiouser and curiouser," and by the end of the evening of Cal State Bakersfield's production of "Alice at Eight," things have become more curiouser than ever. "I don't understand," admits Alice. "Neither does any one else," responds the hooka smoking caterpillar, snakily played by Bart Alford. But then who needs to understand. It's all good fun, smacking pot shots at social conventions of England that nobody except those who created them ever understood either.

"Alice," directed, written and produced by Cal Keet, associate professor of English at CSB, plays tonight, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and again Saturday at 2 p.m. at CSB. What the novice actors lose in experience (only a few have prior acting accomplishments to their names), is made up for in audience appreciation. It's insanity in which the entire family can participate. The theater-in-the-round almost begs some in the audience to jump onto the stage and throw off a few lines.

Any interloper might need to be a little mad to jump in, but insanity is the name of the game. In the middle of a mock jury trial in which the Duchess has been accused of "perpetuating logic," and of "having a cat that grins," Alice suddenly becomes the object of the surrealistic witch hunt. "But there's not an atom of truth in it," screams Alice, played by Glenda Dennis. "Well, that saves us a universe of trouble," pontificates the judge (Bart Alford), "Since we need not find any (truth)." Mumbling in W.C. Fields one- liners, the judge bumbles his way through a trial that made no sense in the first place, and makes even less sense in its verdict.

Alice is declared "guilty" of what the audience never knows exactly, but then neither does Alice. The queen and her lackey jury march off stage, raging," She guilty, guilty, Alice. Her sentence is unknown, except perhaps to live eternally in sanity and misunderstanding. Never fear! "Alice" is theater of the absurd, and makes no pretensions otherwise. It is a testing of Alice's sense of what is correct and real, and begs the audience to resam- ine its own belief of what is real and what is not.

It is full on non sequiturs, which have meaning only to the Mad Hatter and his cohorts. Tweedle-Dee-Dee and Tweedle-Dee-Dum, played by Randy George and Steve Swarts, engage Alice in a make believe trip on the ocean in which they are the oarsman and helmsman and Alice is the sails. Suddenly Tweedle Dee Dee shrieks, "We're going to be swallowed by a giant fish." "Yes," concedes the moronic Tweedle Dee Dum, "But can it dance." Who knows? Who cares? Who even knows if it exists? In "Alice at Eight," it might. One thing is for sure. The queen exists, in all her most elegant drag.

Jack Signorella as the Queen Virginia, the queen is a Jack) easily is the best actor in the production. He, or is it she, rules the cast with a baseball bat literally. Stomping on stage in Navy surplus boots, Signorella almost brings the show to a stop. "Who are all deeze guys?" he asks in superlative Brooklynese. He offers his hand to the Cheshire Cat (played with feline slinkiness by Ro Cox), and suggests she "kiss my hand if it pleases her." "It pleases me not," answers the impudent Cheshire.

"It smells." And smell it might, Signorella is brutishly masculine as a queen ought to be feminine. "Off with her head," he rages. "Off with her head." Signorella has been of the stage and it's apparent. When the mock trial begins, he glares at the audience, then changes into a self-assured expression of knowing. It's not clear what he knows, since nobody, including Alice, knows what's happening.

In a suberb gesture of pampered royalty, Signorella waves with disdain at the judge to let the trial begin. Some of the audience may have missed the gesture, but it is the little things which lift Signorella above the others in the cast. Others in the cast include Frank Zerbel (White Rabbit), Alix Smith (Conductor), Kay Barry (Train Rider), Robert Blanche (Vender), Jim Horton (Mad Hatter), Steve Ireton (March Hare), and Maureen O'Connell (Duchess). After the performance Keet told The Californian the production was ragged in parts, but generally "I think they (the cast) did very well for a first night." In what he called "an essentially family show," Keet said "kids can probably respond to 'Alice' better than adults." But most of all Keet said, "It's nice to see people jamming the show even if it is free." Wednesday's perform- ance was open to student body card holders, and some had to be turned away. There was not a seat left in the theater.

During intermission, Alice invited the audience to come up for cookies and lemonade. So many took the invitation, the cups ran out. For any drama enthusiast who might be a little crazy or who wants to go a little mad (and what theatergoer doesn't want to'lose his mind for an hour or "Alice at Eight" is the place to be. THURSDAY, MARCH 4, 1976 Tweedle Dee Dee (Randy George), Alice (Glenda Dennis) and Tweedle Dee Dum (Steve Swarts) set off on a make believe ship in "Alice at Eight," now at Cal State Bakersfield. Everything is going well until Tweedle Dee Dee sights a giant fish which is going to swallow the trio, he believes.

"Yes, but can it dance?" asks Tweedle Dee Dum. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. for the collegiate play. 'LaMancha'and 'Sugar' picked by civic opera "Man of LaMancha" and "Sugar" are the two musical offerings of Bakersfield Civic Light Opera for the Summer of '76. "LaMancha" acclaimed by many to be the world's greatest musical play is scheduled June 18-19-20 and 2526; "Sugar" a fun-filled evening of laughter and incredible musical madness is scheduled July 16-17-18 and 23-24.

Performances will be in Harvey Auditorium. Confirmation of shows and performance dates was made during a San Francisco meeting of Jim Fillbrandt, BCLOA president and Ron Steinman, director. Steinman, whose home base is Japan, again will summer in Bakersfield while directing the productions. Auditions for both shows are Friday, Saturday, Sunday March 19-20-21 and will be held at West High School, Fillbrandt announced. Friday, March 19 auditions are slated from 7:30 9 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday March 20-21 auditions will be from p.m.

As in past years, with Steinman in Japan while auditions are being held, video tapings of those auditioning will be made and forwarded to Steinman, Fillbrandt said. Notification of audition dates and times were mailed this week to all previous auditioners and performers; but, Fillbrandt emphasized, auditions are open to all interested persons and he is anxious that anyone interested and wanting more detailed information call BCLOA at 832-8401. In writing about casting requirements, Steinman noted there are no surprises in "LaMancha," for most theater folk are well versed in the show. "However," he said, "that is not the case for Our production will be a premiere one for Bakersfield, though almost everyone is familiar with the Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon movie, 'Some Like It from which the stage musical was adapted." "Sugar" is the story of two musicians, circa 1931 in Chicago, who disguise themselves as female band members in order to elude gangsters who want to "rub them out" because they have witnessed a gangland shooting'. Joe (Josephine) and Jerry (Daphne) become sax and bass players in "Sweet Sue and Her Society Syncopaters" all-girl band and head for a road trip to Florida which theoretically will get them out of the clutches of the mob.

This proves to be a horrendous miscalculation, as the mob is "conventioning" in the same Florida hotel in which the band is playing. "Need we say more about this madcap musical mixup?" asked Fillbrandt. Sugar, the Marilyn Monroe movie role, Sweet Sue and from 6 to 15 girls for the orchestra, are the basic female roles open in the In addition to Joe and Jerry, there is Osgood, a millionaire playboy who falls madly in love with "Daphne;" Bienstock, and the band manager; and the mob with Spats, Dude, a collection of hoods and lesser gangsters and Knuckles', several millionaires and a bellboy. Miscellaneous roles are those of backstage hands, male musicians, train announcer, offstage voices, reporter, cab driver, conductor and female dancers. Don Quixote is the leading male role in "LaMancha" and Aldonza, the leading female role.

Sancho heads the male supporting cast with the Padre, Dr. of the Mirrors; muleteers (six); barber and Captain of the Inquisition. Female supports are Antonia, the housekeeper and the inkeeper's wife. Knight's attendants and guards are miscellaneous roles. "LaMancha" requires 13 males, four females and approximately six others.

"Sugar" requires 18-26 males, eight to 17 females and an undetermined number of others. "One thing I want to make special note of," Fillbrandt said, "is the site for auditions. We will be auditioning in the lecture center of West High School on New Stine Road not at the other high school which has previously been our home base." Bruce Kratt and his pretty assistant, his wife, Melanie, illustrate the old levitation trick. Like all Kraft's magic, it can be explained, but don't pect him tol Like the other dozen members of Bakersfield Assembly 69, Society of American Magicians, he is sworn to secrecy. Mrs.

Jim Caswell and her children, Lisa, 7 and Keith, 3, load books into their stationwagon for transport to Bakersfield High School cafeteria for Kern High School District Faculty Wives' annual used book sale Saturday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Profits are for scholarships and the public is invited to browse and buy. Mrs. Caswell said many bargains will be offered, with books priced from 15 to 50 cents in one category. Popular selections are cook books, children's books and hundreds of paperbacks.

Some reference and rare books also will, be on hand. (Californian Photo) Magical group keeps world of illusion lively By ROBIN WITT Staff Writer Who says the hand is quicker than the eye? Bruce Kratt, that's He can run off a couple of card tricks and leave your eyeballs bugging out and your hand reaching to scratch your head. Then you laugh. "Ah, come on," you say. "Your're doing it with mirrors.

Try it again, you faker, and I'll catch you." He does it again, and you're faked out again. "Ah, nuts. I gotta learn this guy's secrets." But he won't tell you anything. The grand wizard (really he's only the president) of Bakersfield's Assembly 69, Society of American Magicians, is sworn to secrecy, in the ancient way since magical lore began. The only way you can learn the tricks is to join him and it's for sure you can't beat him.

He and his society meet at 7 p.m. the first Friday of every month at Thurston's lock- smithing and magic shop, 122 Washington Avenue, Oildale. As an interesting historical sidelight, the magic shop's owner, George Thurston, is related distantly to Howard Thurston, a contemporary of Harry Houdini and a former president of the Society of American Magicians. The 13 members and associate members of Assembly 69 keep magic alive despite the scoffers, sceptics and deadpans who wouldn't recognize good fun if it jumped out of a tophat in the form of a white rabbit. In Mark Twain's "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," a New England mechanic was whisked away mysteriously to the English Middle Ages where he did battle with the venerable Merlin the Magician.

Twain was of the unimaginative opinion that Merlin bamboozled, med and otherwise rode roughshod over the kingdom, and ought to be banned to perdition. But what did Mark Twain know? He's dead and Merlin the Magician still is around. At least his magic is alive. Kratt, a 32-year-old mechanic, can make you doubt your sanity with his slejght-of-hand, but he insists it's only illusion. "The secret of magic is misdirection.

You get a person's mind on something else" and then abracadabra, whammo! "People want to believe you can cut her in half (in the case of a saw illusion). They want to be fooled," Kratt told The Californian. As an example of the way people want to be fooled, Kratt cited Howard Thurston's 1930s disappearing duck illusion. Thurston would put ducks into a box in the middle of the stage and then walk away with a beguiling female assistant to another part of the stage. The trained ducks, on cue, simply would walk in a straight line off stage.

Kratt swears one of Thurston's contemporaries, a trained magician, saw the trick four times before he saw the duck, in plain sight, walk off stage. "If I told you the secrets of my illusions, you'd be so disappointed you really wouldn't want to hear," Kratt says. In fact when he shows his wife an assistant for big stage tricks any of the secrets, she invariably is disappointed. SAM members make no pretension their tricks are reality. They are illusion and nothing else.

And although Kratt is a semi professional who performs occasionally for civic groups and charity functions, he says it's the joy he brings to children and not the money which makes the hard work of pratice worthwhile. The organization's aim is to guard "against the use of magical principles for fraudulent purposes" educational campaigns, SAM's official handbook says. Kratt's speciality is bringing joy to youngsters on the big stage, as opposed to the other major illusion branch sleight- of-hand. His pride is a homemade trailer which he drags around town to various Called the Magic Castle, it's see 30.