The UA Archive Ensemble, under the direction of Keith Pawlak, will be behind the screen performing Robert Drasnin’s score to the film "Teenage Devil Dolls."
The concert will feature a live presentation of the score, set to film, and a narration by School of Theatre Arts faculty artist Monte Ralstin. Following the concert there will be a discussion with the composer.
The 60-minute feature was a 1956 Look Magazine intercollegiate award winner for best college-made film of the year. It was written, produced and directed by Bamlet L. Price Jr. for a master’s thesis at UCLA in 1955. Price, who also acted in the film, hired a fellow graduate student, Robert Drasnin, to write the score to the picture. The score is being presented for the first time from manuscripts housed in the UA School of Music’s jazz and popular music archive.
"Teenage Devil Dolls" tells the story of a young girl whose life spirals out of control through drug-induced juvenile delinquency. The plot follows in the path of the exploitation films of the 1930s and 1940s – most notably via parallels to the marijuana classic "Reefer Madness." The film, which was originally released as "One Way Ticket to Hell," was re-titled for home video and late-night television viewing in the 1980s.
The UA School of Music’s jazz and popular music archive holds several prominent American music collections, including Artie Shaw, Les Baxter, Nelson Riddle, Paul Horn, Robert Drasnin, Paul Weston and Jo Stafford. For more information visit the School of Music Web site or contact Keith Pawlak, music curator, at keithp@email.arizona.edu.
Admission: $9 general; $7 seniors/UA employees; $5 UA students
Audience: All
Crowder Hall
Ingvi Kallen
School of Music
520-626-6320
ingvi@email.arizona.edu
