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 November 4 concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in Crowder Hall and will feature a live presentation of the score set to film. The performance will also feature narration by the School of Theatre Arts faculty artist Monte Ralstin. Following the concert 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 U.C.L.A. 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 TV 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 http://web.cfa.arizona.edu/music/index.php/research-activities or contact Keith Pawlak, music curator, at keithp@email.arizona.edu.