November 20, 2003

Company donates textile technology

UNL received the donation of novel textile manufacturing technology on Nov. 14 from the Procter & Gamble Co.

Commonly referred to as Sulfur Dye Protection Technology, this Procter & Gamble creation has shown potential to significantly improve color fastness and reduce damage to fabrics used by millions of people around the world.

"With its widely respected reputation for textile manufacturing research, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Department of Textiles, Clothing and Design has the skills, staff and resources necessary to continue the development of Sulfur Dye Protection Technology," said Nodie Washington, P&G associate director for fabric and home care global textiles and laundry product development.

"With a little more research this discovery may one day play an important role in better fabrics and clothing for millions of consumers."

UNL was selected because of its proven track record in developing new textile manufacturing technologies. In addition, Yiqi Yang, (shown at right) who will lead the further development of the donated technology, is a recognized leader in textile chemistry, textile dyeing and polymer science.

"I am thrilled that our textile science research team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has the opportunity to continue the research and development of the sulfur dyeing technology," Yang said.

"We are sure that the results of this donation will benefit the textile industry and consumers substantially. Procter & Gamble has been most generous and supportive of this important research effort."

As sole new owner of the technology, UNL will benefit from all future revenues if Sulfur Dye Protection Technology is successfully developed and commercialized.

Sulfur dyes are typically used to inexpensively produce black, brown, navy and olive colored fabrics. A primary problem with sulfur dyes is that the color bleeds when washed, and this has been a significant factor in their recent decline in usage.

Another problem with sulfur dyes is the tendency of sulfur-dyed fabrics to form acid in storage. The acid weakens the cotton, making the fabric or garment unusable.

Research by Procter and Gamble shows that treatment of sulfur-dyed fabric with Sulfur Dye Protection Technology improves the fastness of sulfur dyes to laundered fabrics. This research also indicates that the use of Sulfur Dye Protection Technology decreases the tendency of sulfur-dyed fabrics to degrade in storage.

Artist-in-residence Bill Hastings works with UNL dance students to restage the choreography of three pieces by legendary director Bob Fosse. The three Fosse works will be performed in the spring dance concert Feb. 28-29 and March 1. Photo by Brett Hampton.

Artist helps dance students with Fosse works

By Kathe Andersen, Hixson-Lied college of fine and performing arts

The UNL Dance Division has received a National College Choreography Initiative award for $7,500 from the National Endowment for the Arts, which supports the guest residency of Bill Hastings to restage the works from three musicals by legendary director and choreographer Bob Fosse.

UNL is one of only 35 universities to receive NCCI funding this year and one of 14 schools nationwide who received a second award from the NCCI in this second round of funding. Two years ago, UNL Dance Professor Lisa Fusillo won a NCCI award to restage the works of Charles Weidman.

Hastings, a teacher at Peridance Center and the Broadway Dance Center in New York City, was at UNL this week to work with dance students. He was also on campus Sept. 20 to Oct. 4 and will return in the spring. He and the students are working on three Fosse pieces: "Steam Heat" from The Pajama Game, "Dancin' Man" (Fosse's tribute to Fred Astaire) from Dancin' and "Rich Man's Frug" from Sweet Charity.

"I have thoroughly enjoyed myself (working ewith the students at UNL)," Hastings said. "The students are very eager and have worked hard for me."

The three Fosse works will be performed in the spring dance concert Feb. 28-29 and March 1. In addition, the UNL dancers will give at least four additional community performances this spring, including performances at Eastmont Towers, Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital, Tabitha and Savannah Pines. UNL has also partnered with several area dance studios in the Lincoln area for Hastings to give masterclasses in those studios.

Fosse was a legendary Broadway icon who staged multiple Broadway blockbusters including Sweet Charity, Pippin, Chicago and Dancin'. He won eight Tony Awards during his career. In 1973, he received an Academy Award for directing Cabaret, a Tony for directing Pippin and an Emmy for directing "Liza with a Z" starring Liza Minnelli. He is the only director to win all three major industry prizes in a single year. He died of a heart attack in 1987 during the run of the revival of his Sweet Charity in Washington, D.C.

Hastings has performed in more than 40 musicals and plays and was a featured dancer in Dancin' and Sweet Charity. He worked directly with Fosse in Dancin' and has been the dance captain for several shows, including Cabaret. He also assisted Chet Walker during the creation and staging of Fosse's choreography for the Tony Award-winning musical Fosse, in which Hastings was a featured dancer.

Hastings, an Oklahoma native who went to school in Louisiana, was "in awe" of Fosse when he came to New York and started working with him.

"He loved dancers. That was very important," he said. "They weren't just a tool for the choreography. He wanted to get the best out of you that he possibly could. He loved people that moved and he loved dancing."

Fusillo said the Fosse style of dance has unique characteristics.

"(The Fosse style) is all about the magic of the movement," she said. "Fosse pushed the limits of physicality. He almost defies the limitations of the body - as if the dancers have no joints or solid bones -and also defies gravity to create that magic. It's also about subtle looks and glances, small movements that become noticeable. The difficulty of being subtle is that it has to come from within you. When Fosse's style is imitated, those subtle movements often become large and over-exaggerated."

Hastings said Fosse's style was similar to that of a movie director.

"He could get the audience to watch a particular movement on a particular dancer or group of dancers, much like a movie director (can do)," Hastings said. "If you watch a movie, and the director slowly zooms in on an eyeball, then you have no choice but to look at the eyeball. Mr. Fosse could do that same thing on stage, brilliantly focusing the audience to a particular movement."

Fusillo said UNL students are enjoying the challenge of re-creating that Fosse magic.

"The students have loved it," she said. "It's refreshing for them and something that's completely new. I saw them struggle a little bit with the subtleties, but they have worked hard at it."

Hastings said restaging pieces like this "takes a great deal of time." The UNL dancers have a limited amount of time to work with Hastings, but they are very focused.

"They are working very hard to give the best product," Hastings said. "Mr. Fosse would be very proud."

The National Endowment for the Arts launched the NCCI in 2000. Through this initiative, colleges and universities nationwide will unite professional dance artists with college students to restage classic American dances or create new works. A significant component of the program is the sharing of work with the larger community beyond the performance of the dance piece.

"We're reaching out into the community in a different way this time," Fusillo said. "Last time, we visited a lot of schools. This time, we're working with the community dance studios. It's been very exciting and very enrgizing."

About the works Bill Hastings, who has performed in more than 40 musicals and plays, describes the three Fosse works that the UNL dancers are restaging: "Steam Heat" from The Pajama Game (1954) "This is the number that brought [Bob Fosse] attention for his choreography. It is unique in its simplicity and established his look. Chet Walker, whom I assisted during the creation of Fosse, said Fosse's work could be divided into two periods: the 'ice cream period,' which represented the earlier, MGM-style musicals, and his 'dark period,' which were more sensual and sexual. 'Steam Heat' is in the 'ice cream' period." "Dancin' Man" from Dancin' (1978) "The title has a double meaning. There is the pedestrian approach of using the word 'Dancin',' with the apostrophe, and it also has a very sophisticated feeling. He dedicated it to Fred Astaire, whom he admired more than anyone. They both had a number of similarities. They both had roots in vaudeville, and they had a love for dance and performance." "Rich Man's Frug" from Sweet Charity (1966) "'Frug' is a take-off of the dances of the 1960s, similar to what you would have seen at the Peppermint Lounge in New York City [which was known as the headquarters of "The Twist" in the 1960s]. There is an air of sophistication to it. It takes place in a nightclub populated by the nouveau riche, and they are doing the 1960s dances. It is both literal and tongue-in-cheek. That's the brilliance of it."

Steve Childers, a carpenter for building systems maintenance, adjusts a Vending Miser sensor in the lobby of the Beadle Center. The sensors detect when a person is near and turn on the vending machines. Photo by Kirk Conger.

Vending machines save UNL money

By Kirk Conger, Facilities Management

The last time you headed for the break room to purchase a soda, you may have noticed a small device with the green light on the ceiling or been surprised by a vending machine that sprang to life as you approached.

That's because UNL's 185 pop vending machines have gone on an electricity diet.

The machines are now controlled by Vending Misers, sensors that detect motion and turn the machines on when a potential customer approaches. The machines stay on for 15 minutes after a sale, so they rarely turn off during the day. But during times when buildings are generally empty, such as at night and on weekends and vacations, the machines save an average of 40 percent of their energy. During those times, the compressor runs occasionally to keep the beverages cold, and the lights stay off.

The average UNL soda machine uses $125 of electricity each year. Vending Miser's savings of $50 a year will pay back the cost of the project in a little more than four years.

The project was funded by the Nebraska Utilities Corp., which will use the savings to finance other energy projects and infrastructure improvements.

UNL Facilities Management & Planning has many projects under way to cut energy costs. For information or to make a suggestion, contact Kirk Conger at <kconger2@unl.edu>.