The Mixed Tape Film Series, WUAG 103.1 FM and ACME Comics have joined forces to present Star Wars Uncut, which will be screened at 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26 at the Carolina Theatre (310 S. Greene St., Greensboro).
This international filmmaking experiment is perhaps the ultimate tribute to George Lucas’ classic 1977 space opera as conceived by Casey Pugh, an innovative web developer and designer who took 15-second clips from the original Star Wars and forwarded them to like-minded filmmakers, animators and video artists from around the world, encouraging them to remake each segment.
Pugh then selected the best versions of each
15-second clip submitted and edited them
together in chronological order. It’s a “new”
Star Wars… although perhaps not a better one!
(Hey, if Lucas can keep reworking the movies,
why not give someone else a chance?)
The film’s technique varies from scene to
scene: Some were re-created in live action, others
in claymation, others in animation, others
with Legos!
No matter how many times you’ve seen Star Wars, you’ve never seen it like this before!
Prior to the screening, there will be a
silent auction of original Star Wars artwork
as created by local and national comic-book
artists, painters and fiber artists. In addition,
members of the
Carolina Garrison
of the 501st
Legion will be
in attendance,
proudly adorned
as Imperial Stormtroopers
and
other characters
from the Star
Wars films. Yes,
the Force will be
with them.
All proceeds
from this exclusive
screening
will benefit the
Masonic Home
for Children
in Oxford, NC, which helps children in need
of loving, stable and benevolent home. The
home’s official website is: http://www.mhcoxford.
org/
To see the Star Wars Uncut trailer, see
vimeo.com/6788001
Admission is $6; $4 for college students
(with valid ID). For tickets or more information,
call the Carolina Theatre box-office at
336.333.2605 or visit the official website:
www.carolinatheatre.com.
Another classic example of ’70s pop culture
that has endured is Godspell, the Tony Awardwinning
musical by Stephen
Schwartz and John-Michael
Tebelak, which premiered 40
years ago.
Based on the Gospel of St.
Matthew, Godspell brought a
new rock ‘n’ roll spirit to the
story of Jesus Christ (and, not
surprisingly, aroused some
controversy because of it — as
did Jesus Christ Superstar).
Godspell originally opened
off Broadway in 1971 and
ran over 2,100 performances,
winning four Drama Desk
Awards including Most Promising
Composer and Most
Promising Lyricist (both for
Schwartz) and Most Promising
Director (Tebelak). The show
then moved to Broadway in
1976, winning the Tony Award
for Best Original Score, and
ran over 500 performances.
To commemorate Godspell’s birthday — and
a recent 40th-anniversary Broadway revival
— Masterworks Broadway has released a
two-CD collector’s edition that includes the
original 1971 off-Broadway cast recording
and the soundtrack from the 1973 film version,
which marked the screen debut of actor Victor
Garber (Hey, I’ve interviewed him!) as Jesus
Christ. Garber had appeared in the Toronto
stage production of Godspell, where his costars
included Gilda Radner, Eugene Levy and
Martin Short, and the musical director was Paul
Shaffer!
Undoubtedly, the best-known song
from the show was “Day by Day,” which
reached Number 13 on the Billboard Pop
Singles Chart in the summer of 1972. Says
Schwartz in the liner notes: “The popularity
of the record helped make the show a
bigger hit, and at one point there were 10
companies playing simultaneously around
the United States, plus other productions
in London, Paris, Australia, South Africa,
Germany, etc.”
The Broadway revival, the first in the show’s history, opened in October at the Circle in the Square Theatre and is currently cruising on the Great White Way.
For more information about this and other recent Masterworks Broadway releases, including interviews with Stephen Schwartz and performances videos from Godspell, visit the official website: www.masterworksbroadway.com.
