By Richard Whatley
A&E Staff

TRISHA O'BRIEN/Photo Editor Russell Wright (right) is demonstrating his martial arts talent to one of his students in Alexander City. Wright is a fourth-degree black belt and is one of the few people to have the privilege to perfom Halo Aura.

If you attended the University Program Council's talent show about three weeks ago, you may remember the final act that won third place.

Russell Wright performed a dazzling and hypnotizing rare act called Halo Aura to music provided by Jason Willis. The act had the audience in amazement and cheers.

It is one of the most visually stimulating performances ever created. It is a light show using techniques and tools of martial arts.

Halo Aura was created by Roy Williams who has copyrights to the act. Wright is one of the few to have written documentation of freedom to perform this act at will.

Wright is a senior in radio, television and film at Auburn. He was born in Hawaii, and then moved to Jacksonville, Fla., in third grade.

He had been interested in martial arts as a young boy, and when he was 15 he started practicing martial arts.

"That was sort of a tension release of having never been good at sports, and so I found my forte in martial arts," Wright says.

He then met Williams, creator of Halo Aura, in

Jacksonville. Williams became a father figure to Wright because he was raised mainly by his mother.

Williams allowed Wright the rare opportunity to train privately with him, while also keeping an eye on Wright's academics.

"(Grand) Master Williams is an incredible Renaissance man, to say the least. He is a bona fide genius who has rewritten many different things about martial arts. (He is) also a great man in general; a philosopher, an artist, a physicist. He has a doctorate and is a very versatile man," Wright said.

CONTRIBUTED

Williams had studied basic martial arts based on physics using Lissajous patterns, which are patterns made up of rings and ratios of movement.

He applied this to the basic openhand martial arts and weaponry. The next step was Halo Aura.

Halo Aura is a performing art combining ultraviolet light and martial arts moves choreographed to music. Different martial arts weaponry colored in fluorescent hues gives off the different effects. It is performed in the dark using black light.

The weapons usually used are the well-known nunchakus. They are handmade, designed and patented by Williams. They do not resemble the normal sticks that everyone is familiar with. They range from the usual two-stick assembly up to four sticks on one.

To describe the performance is no easy task.

"It's a moving meditation. You kind of have to step out of yourself to be in balance with these two tools," Wright said.

"They are both in sync, but yet they are both going at different speeds or tempos," he said, "and the cool thing about it is that people tend to get lost in it while they are watching it. It's like a mental meditation. For those out there performing it, it is a moving meditation."

When a performance is caught on film, a theophany can be seen. A theophany is a visual manifestation of a figure that the viewer sees, like making out shapes in clouds.

About the photography art of Halo Aura, Wright said, "In the still shots you are actually able to see these theophanies that are captured in 3-4 seconds of what you would typically see in the performance.

"Through those blurs and dimensions blending together you see the different theophanies, like dolphins or birds and even faces. It is really open to personal interpretation."

Halo Aura is a growing art that has been unsuccessfully copied in movies.

You may remember the scene in "Batman Forever" where Robin fights a gang in an alley that is lit up with fluorescent light, and the gang has the same lighting on their bodies. The gang leader is actually trying to perform an obscure form of Halo Aura, but does not pull it off.

Williams will be in an upcoming movie from an independent film company playing the bad guy who will use Halo Aura at the final showdown of good and evil.

Wright was considered for a demo team after less than a year of training. He worked with Williams on the show for four years before moving to Alexander City, where his family is originally from.

Wright then got permission from Williams to do his first solo performance at Camp ASCCA. He has been performing solo shows ever since, as well as training a team of his own to perform Halo Aura.

He is a fourth-degree black belt, which is a master rank, and he has been teaching martial arts in Alex City at his dojo United Artist for seven years.

Wright said, "I would definitely like to be able to pass the art out to some groups that would appreciate it. One of those groups that I have seen that pretty much did was college-type audiences.

"I really want to be able to see people identify with something that is new and really visually and mentally stimulating. I would like to be able to do some shows while I am still here in Auburn. "Since I love Auburn so much, I would like to pass the art along and have the people appreciate it while I am in this community," Wright said.

If you would like to contact Wright about Halo Aura, you can call him at his place of business at (205) 329-9199.

NSO loosens up to play for children

By Andy Acton
Assistant A&E Editor

ELIZABETH HYMAN/Photo Staff NSO members play the oboe, flute and harp for a captivated, young audience at Cary Woods Elementary School last Friday.

The National Symphony Orchestra of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts delighted children from Cary Woods Elementary School last Friday with sounds from the "Unlikely Trio."

The trio, consisting of orchestra members William Wielgus, Carole Bean and Dotian Levalier, played familiar songs with an oboe, a flute and a harp.

Other members of the orchestra also performed small concerts on Friday at Wrights Mill Road Elementary School and Northside School in Opelika.

The trio at Cary Woods began the concert with a mystery tune. When the song ended, Wielgus asked if anyone in the crowd knew what the trio had played.

After different variations had been played by the trio, only a few of the children raised their hands to make a guess, and one of them guessed right.

However, Wielgus waited to reveal the song's title and the trio played "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" in its original form.

As soon as the first notes came out of the oboe, the room filled with laughter and excitement as a hundred hands shot up in the air to guess this favorite childhood song.

Quardedric Wilson, a 7-year-old student in Shauna Young's first grade class, said "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" was his favorite.

"I just like it," he said after the concert was over.

Wielgus said moments like these are different from the concerts they perform on tour.

"This is a lot more fun because we get to interact with the kids," he said. "It's a lot different than the regular orchestra. There's a lot more personal involvement."

Aside from playing mystery melodies such as "The Flintstones" and "Beauty and the Beast," member of the trio explained their instrument to the crowd.

The trio showed the children how each instrument was played and the variety of sounds each instrument could make.

This musical lesson was met with "oohs" and "aahs" from the crowd.

Cherry Pittman, a 7-year-old student in Young's first grade class, said she liked all the instruments.

"I liked the flute because it makes a bird sound," she said.

Pittman, the winner of a McDonald's gift certificate for guessing which member was playing the melody, said her favorite song from the concert was "The Flintstones."

"I like it because I watch cartoons all day," she said.

Levalier said the concerts at the schools was another way to bring music to the people.

"One of the most wonderful aspects is the fact that we volunteer our own shows and ideas," she said. "It's a lot of fun because the show changes each time according to the audience."

Levalier said the concerts are a good way for people to be exposed to the music and learn the different instruments.

And the instruments were a favorite among the students at Cary Woods.

Some of Cherry's classmates, like Christopher Rhodes, 6; Kendall Hutchinson, 7; Shona Battles, 7; Passious Ellis, 7; Shanbrell Scott, 7; and Quay Mitchell, 6; enjoyed the harp.

"I like the harp because you can do all sorts of things on it," Shona said. "You can make drum and guitar sounds."

For Pittman's other classmates, the favorite instrument was the oboe.

"He made it sound louder than the other instruments," 7-year-old Kacy Pugh said of Wielgus' playing on the oboe.

Ryan Poh, 7, said a different instrument was his favorite.

"The best was when theyÊplayed the piccolo," he said.

But other classmates such as Andrew Hart, 6; Jordan Martinez, 7; Sterling Lay, 7; Amanda Edel, 7; and Adam Carter, 6, liked the entire performance.

"It was good," Martinez said.

For Carole Bean, who plays the piccolo, her favorite part was the kids.

"They need to have people in schools doing these programs," she said.

DOUG MOORE/Photo Staff The ensemble played selections from three different composers.

Goodwin Hall was filled with the sounds of the National Symphony Orchestra Chamber Ensemble Sunday night.

The 10-member ensemble's performance was one of the many events scheduled for orchestra members as they complete their 10-day residency in Alabama.

The orchestra, based at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., began its tour of the state last Wednesday in Mobile, said David Hardy, a cellist in the ensemble.

The full orchestra played to a packed house Friday night in Opelika. Bassist Robert Oppelt said the orchestra played in Birmingham Saturday and in Montgomery Sunday afternoon before the ensemble returned to Auburn to play Sunday night.

"It's been a really busy week. We're trying to pack in as many performances as possible," Oppelt said.

The ensemble's performance Sunday was divided into three sections, each written by a different composer.

The first section contained three numbers from "Trio for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano." The performers were Rudolph Vrbsky on oboe, Daniel Matsukawa on bassoon and Lisa Emenheiser Logan on piano.

The second section, Martinu's elaborate "Cello Sonata No. 3," featured Hardy's spirited cello-playing and pianist Logan.

For the final section, nine of the ten Ensemble members appeared on stage. They performed Spohr's "Nonet," the longest selection of the evening. It contained complex arrangements where particular instruments, such as violin and clarinet, carried the melody of the song.

David Zevac, a senior in operations management, was impressed with the ensemble's performance.

"My parents saw them last week in Mobile and said that I should definitely go. I wanted to see the full orchestra Friday night, but it was sold out," Zevac said. "Auburn was lucky to have such a prestigious group. This was a great musical experience."

Hardy said the approximately 100-member orchestra has enjoyed its stay in Alabama.

"The trip has been terrific. The people of Alabama have been just wonderful. I really enjoyed playing in the area and here at Auburn," Hardy said.

The local orchestra performances were sponsored by the Opelika Arts Association in conjunction with the Auburn Chamber Music Society and the University music department.

Review by David Ching
Staff Writer