'Frame 312' supposes Zapruder film was altered

  • By TOM TURBIVILLE

  • Posted: Sunday, November 7, 2010 7:00 a.m.
  • Text size: A A A

When the news release from StageCenter came my way that they would present "Frame 312" on their downtown Bryan stage, I was intrigued to say the least. Being the history buff I am, I thought I was familiar with about everything that had ever been produced having to do with that tragic day at Dealey Plaza nearly 47 years ago.


For sure there has been volumes upon volumes published and several movies filmed about the assassination of President Kennedy in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Most of those have tried to carry the banner of conspiracy, the notion that the Warren Commission got it wrong, that Lee Harvey Oswald either did not act alone or was a patsy in what was the crime of the 20th Century.


"Frame 312" started at StageCenter's 201-B West 26th playhouse Thursday and the first weekend run is done but it continues the next two weekends, with 7:30 curtains this Thursday, Friday and Saturday and again Nov. 18-20. It's directed by Reid Self, who also stars as Tom, along with StageCenter veterans Harold Presley as Mr. Graham, Deann Richards as Marie and Ciara Ressler as Stephanie, among others.


The title of course refers to one frame of the most famous footage ever taken by an 8mm home movie camera, that filmed by Abraham Zapruder that captured the murder of Kennedy and the wounding of former Texas Governor John Connally as their motorcade made its way through downtown Dallas on the way toward the Dallas Trade Mart for a presidential speech that was never spoken.


I must insert here that I have perhaps a more keen awareness of the assassination than many. I was a 15 year-old high school sophomore in San Antonio on Nov. 21, 1963, when I joined my school mates to watch in person, President Kennedy and his wife Jackie, ride in that same black Lincoln Continental limousine -- passing no more than 25 feet in front of me. My most vivid recollections of that 30-second pass-by was that Kennedy was tanner and the First Lady was prettier than either ever appeared on television. Less than 24 hours later, I would sit in disbelief with those same classmates in front of a small school-owned black and white TV set, watching those still unforgettable accounts of a president slain.


Make no mistake, this play, written by Keith Redden, is fictional. Lynette (played by K'Lynn Childress in the 1960s and by Maggie McGraw in the 1990s) has a deep secret. She possesses and has been hiding the original Zapruder film for 30 years when she finally decides to tell her children that she owns the conclusive evidence that Oswald did not act alone in the killing of Kennedy. But the play's make-believe premise is that federal officials actually confiscated the film from its owner Life Magazine and altered it starting at frame number 312, making it appear conclusively that Oswald had indeed acted alone.


The play's focus continues not only on the pros and cons of the conspiracy theories, but the effect it has on Lynette's family.


In addition to those already mentioned, "Frame 312" stars Leni Mex as Margie, Ted Foote as Mr. Roy, William Myrick as Agent Barry, Gina Yannitell Reinhardt and Amy Ressler as Doris, and Andrew Kurtzman as the Conductor.


Tickets are available at the Arts Council office at 2275 Dartmouth in College Station. For more information, go to www.stagecenter.net.


Dangerous Liasons coming to A&M


The Texas A&M Department of Performance Studies brings Christopher Hampton's play "Les Liaisons Dangereuses", better known as Dangerous Liaisons, to the Rudder Forum.


The theatrical adaptation of a book by Choderlos de Laclos, it has been the subject of two films, the most recent in 1999 titled Cruel Intentions, starring Ryan Phillipe and Sarah Michelle Gellar and the older 1988 movie by the same name starring John Malkovich and Glenn Glose.


"This story is about a friendship that gets twisted by power, and it has direct relevance to the lives we live today," says director Amy Guerin. "We have all fallen in love with people who weren't good for us, had friends who were more like enemies, and have been dumped for seemingly no good reason. These characters are telling a story that we have all lived through, and watching their struggle only highlights my belief that true love can prevail, if we only have the strength and will to see it through."


Hampton's version of the play debuted on London's West End and later was featured on Broadway.


"Dangerous Liaisons is a dark and sexy play that is funnier than you might think," says Guerin. "What happens in the story brings you to the edge of your seat and leaves you there the entire time. Even if you know what happens, you still want to know, 'what happens next?'"


"Dangerous Liaisons" will run from Nov. 11-13 and Nov. 18-20 in the Rudder Forum at 8 p.m. It will also be presented on Nov. 14 and 21 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $5 for students. Tickets can be purchased in person at the MSC Box Office or online by visiting performancestudies.tamu.edu.


Save The Date


* Sunday: University Art Galleries Department presents Mobile Structures Children's Workshop, 2 p.m., Sterling Library Annex (845-8501, uart.tamu.edu)


* Tuesday-Dec. 1: Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History presents "Raramuri: Runners of the Sierra Madre" (776-2195, brazosvalleymuseum.org)


* Friday-Saturday: Brazos Valley Tropue present "Heroes - A Patriotic Salute", Fri at 7:30 p.m., Sat at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. (846-4903, bvtroupe.com)


* Nov. 14: Brazos Valley Symphony presents "Carmen" with Sasha Cooke and Emily Pulley, Rudder Auditorium, 5 p.m. (696-6100, bvso.org)


* Nov. 18: MSC Opas Imtimate Gathering presents "Time for Three", Rudder Theatre, 7:30 p.m. (845-1234, mscopas.og)


* Nov. 30: MSC Opas presents "An Irish Christmas with Ronan Tynan", Rudder Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. (845-1234, mscopas.org)


* George Bush Presidential Library and Museum presents "The Heart Truth's Red Dress Collection", runs through Aug. 14, 2011. (691-4000, bushlibrary.tamu.edu)


* All month: Children's Museum of the Brazos Valley offers various programs, including Monday Madness, from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (779-5437, www.mymuseum.org)


Tom Turbiville is The Eagle's arts columnist. He's also sports director for WTAW-1620AM Radio. E-mail him at tom.turbiville@ theeagle.com .

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