Newsday (Suffolk Edition) from Melville, New York • 91

a -l ARTS ENTERTAINMENT A Dogma Taught No New Tricks Part SaS MUSIC REVIEW5S3 THE RAVEONETTES An idea whose time already came Monday at Bowery Ballroom i i I was duotonous if a word Standing at opposite ends of the stage Wagner and Foo sang in relentlessly dose harmony while a drummer crashed out simple surf-rock rhythms and a second guitarist added howling distortion to the nostalgic melodies That was their formula and for 45 minutes they stuck to it (With some cheating: the drummer used a laptop to switch on backing tracks one of which sounded suspiciously like a high-hat) Despite all this effort the Raveonettes have arrived at a sound that somebody else already created Twenty years ago a Scottish group called the Jesus Maiy Chain had the odd yet brilliant idea of spraying feedback over old surf-style pop songs The result was a weird tension between new and old happy and sad angry and joyous But the Jesus Mary Chain write up a manifesto They just did it While the- Raveonettes owe every twangy guitar and chorus to the Jesus Mary Chain not a calculated rip-off They seem sincere in their desire to create something new and interesting Maybe they chose the wrong set of rules maybe they thought this wheel needed reinventing terribly sorry we wrote all the songs in the same Wagner said near the end of the concert He was kidding but now would be a good time for the Raveonettes to go back to the drawing board 2 By Rafer STAFF WRITER hooting must be done on location Props and Bets must not be brought in Special lighting is not acceptable The film must not contain superficial from the manifesto of Dogme 95 the Danish film collective that aims to bring an end to overblown Hollywood moviemaking Like many artistic manifestos not a magic formula for creativity but a way to shake off old tiresome values Manifestos have served that purpose for a number of dynamic art movements from Bauhaus craftsmen to Futurist painters What happens however when- you use dogma to create rock and roll? Clearly going to run into problems Manifestos aim to regulate artistic expression Bock and roll on the other hand thrives on spontaneity and instinct put it on a leash and it dies That stopping the Raveonettes from setting strict limitations on their music no accident that the band hails from Denmark: Guitarist- songwriter Sune Rose Wagner and bassist Sharin Foo admit that I Photo bjr Kobort Bpcncor Sharin Foo left the bassist of the Ravaonettas performs Monday at the Bowary Ballroom Dogme 95 inspired them to come up with some rules of their own To wit: Songs may not last longer than three minutes more than three chords are not allowed the drummer may not use a high-hat or ride cymbal As if that limiting enough the first album It was recorded entirely in the key of B-flat minor For the second album Gang of the Raveonettes branched out: in B-flat major The result of course is a repertoire of 21 songs that sound pretty much the same The concert technically be called monotonous I guess it This Will Close Before It Opens busy summer just got a little less busy The Broadway-bound production of Shop of currently performing its out-of-town tryout at the Hay-house in Coral Gables Fla announced this week that the show has cancelled its New York engagement The current production will close in Florida on June 15 directed by Connie Grappo and starring Alice Ripley and Hunter Foster was to open at the Virginia Theatre on Aug 14 a late-summer slot that saw the opening of last smash hit would have joined the new musical and the revival as the Great White summer offerings The production closes despite some optimistic reviews from the local press In a statement producer Marc Routh explained feel an obligation to everyone involved with and to the ticket-buying public to insure that the work we present on Broadway represents the best work we can do In spite of the great number of talented people involved the elements of this production did not come together in the way we would have The cancellation recalls a similar occurrence this Bpring when a much-publicized revival of "The Miracle (starring Hilary Swank) closed after its tryout in North Carolina just' weeks before it was to have arrived on Broadway The producers of also announced that they would pursue a production of the musical directed by Jerry Zaks whose current show Jules Bad is in previews at Lincoln Center not yet known if any members of the Florida cast will be involved in the new production which aims to open on Broadway later this season Move on Hold Reports that will transfer to the Helen Hayes are premature at least according to David Fishelson the artistic director of Manhattan Ensemble Theatre The popular one-woman show about Golda Meir currently packing houses at theater in SoHo has been extended at its current venue until July 6 Fishelson says that MET is pursuing a commercial run for the show he say at which theater but no final arrangements have yet fallen into place Also premature is any speculation that Harvey Fierstein will definitely leave when his year-long contract with the show is up in August assume I will stay the gravel-throated actor said in a recent interview negotiating to be clarified the man one of the top contendere for a Tony on Sunday night one of the wonderful things is that for once in my life as an actor not all that One Hot Woman Playwrights Horizons has a hit Doug bio-play Am My Own has extended six weeks to July 20 and producers are checking out the one-man show for a commercial transfer (Chase Mishkin whose last project was the ill-fated caught a recent matinee) The production has won critical raves for Jefferson Maya the lone actor who portrays not only the subject a German transvestite who survived both the Nazis and the Communists but also a varied array of other roles In constructing his portrait of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf (born Lothar Berfelde) Mays had help from many audiotapes of his interviews with von Mahlsdorf a rare the actor said after a performance just steeped myself in her Mays says he have an answer to the questions both historical and moral raised by von Mahlsdorf shadowy involvement with the Stasi as much an enigma to me as she is I hope to the he said believe that she believes her story all 1 Red Carpet but No Blue Eyes City stargazers hoping to catch the action on the red carpet at the Tony Awards this Sunday can skip jostling for a good vantage point outside Radio City Music Hall in favor of watching it at home From 6:30 until 8 pm 24-hour local news network NY1 will cover the celebrity arrivals But viewers hoping to see Paul Newman on the red carpet will be disappointed The nominee for best performance by a leading actor in a play (for his role in has bowed out not only does Newman forgo most awards ceremonies these days but he also according to the story bandied about town no longer owns a tux Hot Ticket The heat from this hot ticket comes from stripping for a good cause: The annual extravaganza features Broadway performers taking it off to raise money for Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS Hosted by Fierstein and Marissa Janet Winokur and featuring appearances by Jane Krakowski (appearing nearly nude every night in and Eartha Kitt Bares 13: Burlesque Is will play two shows 9:30 pm and midnight on June 15 at the Roseland Ballroom (239 52nd St) Ticket prices begin at $50 ($40 for the midnight show) For more information call 212-840-0770 ext 268 or log on to www broadwa3rcares0rg E-mail Gordon Cox at newsdayplaymind springcom CO "a 3 CO cn i.