Friday, November 7, 1997
This one shall be called a master thesis project
THEATER: Students put themselves on the line in one-person
shows
By Jammie Salagubang
Daily Bruin Contributor
Imagine standing alone, with only a single voice to break the
silence. Countless faces peer out from the darkness, waiting to be
entertained and engaged.
Three third-year master of fine art (MFA) student actors face
this challenge as they perform the first installation of one-person
shows, titled "This One Shall Be Called Woman." As a requirement
for their thesis projects, Rebecca Winston, Robert Francis Yonchak
and Yvonne Caro-Caro will perform 30-minute, one-person shows on
Sunday in McGowan Hall.
"To put your ass, so to speak, on the line in a project like
this really takes a lot of courage," says Rob Duval, a third-year
MFA student. "It really is a big risk to say this is who I am, this
is me, presenting this work."
Rebecca Winston’s piece, "The Book of Esther," focuses on a
woman who joins a Jewish terrorist group, the Lehi, and shares her
name with the Biblical Jewish queen. Set in the 1940s, she plays a
woman distraught over the Nazi murder of her parents.
"It’s an exploration of extremism: what elements create a
terrorist," Winston says. "I’m trying to deal with the issue of
violence and what justifies violence, if anything does."
Winston’s work also has autobiographical strains, drawing on her
own Jewish background.
Yonchak calls his piece, "The Women in My Life," concentrating
on Karen Carpenter, Princess Diana, Mother Teresa and his
grandmother as role models.
"By choosing a hero, it says a lot about you as a person,"
Yonchak comments. "It sounds like a story about these four women,
but it’s really about the journey of my life."
Yonchak explains each of the four women represents a stage in
his life, but that they are also important for who they are in his
life.
"I really hope that after the audience has watched my play, that
they feel good about themselves and the people who they love in
their lives," Yonchak reflects.
Caro-Caro’s show, "Tina Modotti: A Current Balance," centers
around photographer/communist/actress Tina Modotti. The piece
details the events of Modotti’s deportation from Mexico.
"This play is about a lost woman and her struggle to find home,"
Caro-Caro says.
Although she performs alone on stage, Caro-Caro fills her work
with elements besides acting. She also uses music, dance and sound
effects created by her own voice.
"I believe that an artist, if you want to make theater, you can
make theater," Caro-Caro asserts.
THEATER: "This One Shall Be Called Woman" plays at 7 p.m. on
Sunday at UCLA’s McGowan Hall, Room 1330. Admission is free. For
more information call (310) 206-6293.