Dukakis Proclaims Harvard Arts Day

Gov. Michael S. Dukakis will officially proclaim March 18 the state-wide Harvard and Radcliffe Arts Day tomorrow at 10:10 a.m.

The proclamation celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Harvard-Radcliffe Office of the Arts and the performing arts extravaganza to be held this Sunday in the IAB. Anne E. Higgins '85, the student producer, said yesterday.

Last month, Higgins wrote to Dukakis with a request that the governor recognize the anniversary of the Office of the Arts this year.

Organizations and individuals within the state can petition the governor for acknowledgement of an accomplishment or anniversary. The governor's proclamation office then rules on whether the event deserves recognition, said Vincent Loporchio, a spokesman for Dukakis.

Higgins said she specifically asked that the March 18 date be set aside so that the official commemoration would coincide with Sunday's performance.

600 People

The show, Monkey Eating Peach. Rat Stealing Pumpkin and Phoenix Among the Peonies, will be held in the IAB and will involve between 500 and 600 people, Higgins said.

Director Peter Sellars '80 said the show is an adaption of a traditional Chinese village play called The White Snake. Sellars had previously considered basing it on a 14th-century Russian play or a work by Moliere.

Monkey Eating Peach was originally the idea of director of the Office of the Arts Myra A. Mayman.

"I thought the best way to celebrate the tenth anniversary was to focus attention on what the students have been doing this year--to get all the art students together," said Mayman.

Mayman said the governor's proclamation was "a remarkable but well-deserved occurrence."

"What the Harvard and Radcliffe art students do is not just for Harvard students--people come from all over the state and enjoy our performances," she added.

The cabaret-like production will combine dancing, music, drama and singing provided by about 40 student groups, including the Harvard Band and other instrumental ensembles, various singing groups and acting and dance troupes.

Auditions for actors will be held on Saturday.

The group will construct a backdrop "a little bigger than a movie screen" depicting the Harvard Stadium to transform the fourth floor gym of the athletic facility into a theater. Higgins said. Officials, however, say the building will not be substantially modified.

Time constraints will also prevent extensive preparation. Sellars will hold rehearsals the same day as the production, relying on routines already familiar to the participants rather than inventing new ones, but at the same time incorporating the many aspects into the framework of a traditional play.

Moral Improvement

Sellars last month described the production as "partly a farce, elocutionary, choreographic, for the improvement of morals."

But Radcliffe Pitch Katherine E. Cox '86 said the extravaganza sounded "pretty casual and pretty confusing. "The women's a capella ensemble is among the groups performing.

"The most important thing about the production is the overall effect of having all groups thrown together, and not just one in the spotlight," Susan G. Greenbaum '85, another Pitch, said yesterday.

Higgins' petition is only one out of 15 that the governor will sign tomorrow.

Dukakis this week will also proclaim 1984 the year of secretaries and commemorate the 20th anniversary of a Boston ballet company.

Requests from university organizations are not uncommon. Loporchio said March 22nd will be Lambda Chi Alpha Day to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Boston University's fraternity.