Word: duking
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...little imagination the viewer can make out forms that suggest radio towers, musical instruments and sound waves, and pretty soon, the whole painting begins to pulse with the rhythm of a jazz tune. Davis often incorporated his interest in jazz into his work, and he attracted the likes Duke Ellington and George Wettling to his exhibits as a result...
...Kingsmen suggested that the group dress 50's style for the concert and, without telling the group, distributed handbills which read, "So you think you're an Ivy Leaguer? Bullshit. Underneath your button-down shirt is the eighth grade greaser standing on the corner, whistling 'Duke of Earl' to yourself and watching the girls go by. Come down to Ferris Booth Hall where the Kingsmen will be reliving the old days. Come dressed...
...Isabella, a strictly moral novice, who is called from her convent to argue on her brother's behalf. He tells her she can prostitute herself to him in exchange for her brother's life, or she can allow Claudio to die. Isabella never actually chooses between the alternatives. The Duke has been nearby all the while masquerading as a friar. He helps Isabella trick Angelo, furthering his own purpose of determining "if power change purpose...what our seemers...
...MAIN FAULT in the play lies in the direction. Even as 19th century Vienna does not give the production a cohesive structure, so over and over again, the director misses opportunities for immediate dramatic power. In the last act, when Isabella seeks vengeful justice from the Duke, she perfunctorily genuflects as the addresses him. That little gesture steals significance from the way she breaks down and later begs the Duke on her knees to show mercy to Angelo. And this is only one of many thoughtlessly staged scenes...
Still, although the direction is weak, other elements carry the show. At once commanding and warm, Thomas Champion has the necessary stature for the good-natured, safety-net God of a Duke, a ruler who visits his people in disguise, manipulating their lives as much when incognito as when in regalia...