tl20031106-000 "ion 2 p.m. 'p.m. g i c son's on hael 'S body 'S what said LeBron back in was a but in Sports inked a it deal )1 diplo-e of the his first player Eed and story of S than tion got ben he nst the of the cs and struggle rhelmed le adult mes did He fin-with 25 bounds an 18- hool. good as .he con-ing yes. ed with d eight ive line n nick-basket- VIichael ;tations L James Iressure es this he did night. nad six om his ipletely passer; ;nd: he be the 1st like ere for James itching TOLUD/1/ Baltimore's #1 College Paper - Published Twice-Weekly - www.thetowerlight.com Thursday, 11/6/03 Petition works to stop dissection 5 President to be installed Friday 8 Exhibit expresses sculptor's theme 15 Ryan film fails to make the 'Cut' 15 Departments Opinion 2 News 5 Nation 7 Police blotter 8 Cuisine 10 Arts 15 Sound Bites 16 Entertainment briefs 18 Sports 24 In this corner 24 Face-Off 20 Punt, Pass & Pick 23 Classifieds 19 'Hair' brings 60s to TU stage Controversial rock musical opens this weekend; cast finds hippie roots in history Kristen Bott Erica Kritt The Towerlight Hippies�those freedom-loving tree huggers from the 1960s�will make their way to the stage of Stephens Hall Auditorium with tomorrow's opening of the rock opera ""Hair."" ""Hair"" is based on a group, or tribe, of hippies in the late 60s, explained Tammy Enright, a junior theater major and the show's stage manager. The show comes complete with a painted bus, a peace flag, fire and characters in flight. The storyline is based around the show's protagonist Claude, one of five lead characters who each repre-sent a different aspect of the hippie generation. McCaul Baggett, a junior theater major, plays the part of Claude. ""[Claude] is everyman,"" Baggett said. ""He is the guy that everyone can relate to. He is recruital to the army to go to Vietnam. He needs to cope with the feeling [of] being sent to your death."" Claude is surrounded by peers with much stronger beliefs, like Berger, a free-spirited teen experi-menting with drugs and relation-ships. Sophomore theater major C.J. Kish, who plays Berger, said his char-acter ""can do anything he wishes, and that is so liberating."" The lead female is Sheila, played by senior theater major Jessie-Faye Wiedel. ""She is the leader of the protests. That is 'Sheila's thing',"" Baggett said. Lonnie Finley, a junior theater major, plays the character Hud, a character who Finley described as ""very involved with race and equality, but really relaxed and laid-back as well."" Paul Wussman, a senior theater major, plays the role of Woof. ""Woof is young and new to the hip-pie scene,"" Wussman said. ""He is openly bisexual and struggling with his Catholic upbringing. He is trying to find himself among this tribe,"" Lisa Johnson/The Tawerlight C.J. Kish, who plays the character Berger, is lifted by other cast members during one of the opening scenes of the rock musical ""Hair"" during a rehearsal last week. The show opens in Stephens Hall Auditorium Friday. Wussman said. Their common questioning of soci-etal norms and the political move-ment of their country unifies the characters. They deal with their issues through free sexuality and drug use. To show these aspects of the culture, the cast has had to delve deep within themselves, and ques-tion their own beliefs. ""Rehearsals for this show were non-conventional, to say the least,"" Wussman said. Director Diane Smith-Sadak, who is in her fifth year at Towson as coor-dinator of the acting program, took the actors back to the era of the 60s with a visit to the Vietnam and Korean War memorials in Washington D.C. and by listening to psychedelic music and viewing the unusual art of the period. ""It was critical for the cast to go and witness the history of the era to understand the loss and significance of this American generation,"" Smith- Sadak said. ""I tend to have my rehearsal processes be much more experiential outside the rehearsal hall. I did whatever we [could] to enter into the play's microcosm."" Visiting the Vietnam memorial put everything in perspective for the cast, Finley said. ""We did a lot of table-work on the dramaturgy and social politics of the time,"" Wussman said, referring to the extensive background information Smith-Sadak gave to the cast to study. The students were also required to learn a craft in order to connect more with their ""hippie"" alter egos. ""I had learned carving in the past,"" Finley said, ""but I expanded on it by carving tribal symbols."" Ian Carroll, a junior theater major in the ensemble, also learned a craft. ""I learned how to make incense and studied tarot cards and astrolo-gy,"" Carroll said. Baggett emphasized the closeness of the cast and the major bonding that occurred. ""My favorite part of the show has been the cast. We have gotten so close, we've all become great friends,"" Baggett said. The 30 or so members of the ensemble refer to themselves as ""the Tribe."" ""We are actually a tribe, we have spent so much time together, inside and outside of rehearsal,"" Finley said. See HAIR, page 16 Today High 66 Low 45 Friday High 58 Low 34 Saturday High 49 Low 27 Sunday High 43 Low 41 Monday High 54 Low 44 "
