big rock

In the list of things I must see, Stonehenge ranks pretty high. Sad, that I lived in England for some time and never made it there. I would have missed seeing the new excavation, though, and I really want to get a look at that. I am a history junkie, and stories like this grab me. I get quivery at the idea of this stone age accomplishment. Maybe its the irrefutable evidence that man is able to accomplish feats that seem insurmountable at the time. I would have loved to see them raise this structure. That's where my history addiction really comes from. It will never be enough to read about it. I want to have seen them do it.

Dorky? Yes.

Shut up.

red stapler

A while back Blogomatopoeia, formally BLOG!, formally Juneau What I'm Saying, and currently never posting enough, shared this great editing job on The Shining.

Here is the converse, changing a comedy to a horror flick. I have had the link around for a while, and kept meaning to post it so...enjoy.

oh tennessee

Whenever I hear the term memory play I start to get groggy. It seems to be that memory plays all become dream plays. Not dream plays that are odd and absurd and adrenaline pumping, but dreams that are really languid and mellow and make me want to take a snooze. So, for the most part it is not a selling point for me to bill something as a beautiful memory play, or a wistful memory play. For me, that just means, it will be hard to stay awake, so drink some caffeine before taking a seat at the theatre so that I wont miss lovely language, and pretty stage pictures. I know that there are pieces with action and pace and spark that fall under this umbrella, but it has been so long since I have seen one like that, that I have a hard time dragging myself to anything that is termed this way.

art skipping

Let me take a moment to bring your attention to a proposition that just passed in the Virginia General Assembly yesterday.

HB 1442 will require high school students to take 2 years of vocational training in order to graduate. I don't have a problem with the idea that high school students should be exposed to different fields prior to making their career or college choices. Under the new bill students will be required to take two years of a vocation that will

"(i) prepares students for entry into the workplace; (ii) leads to an industry certification or occupational competency assessment approved by the Board of Education; [ and or ] (iii) provides a foundation for further education or training or preparation for employment and shall be developed by the school division, consistent with Board of Education guidelines and as approved by the local school board."

This may seem benign enough, but in fact it hurls another rock at the arts which are NOT included in vocational training. The arts are not seen as a vocation. The only way to be exempt from this requirement is by being an ESL student or in an arts magnet school or acadamy (which are not an option to most of the state). The problem arises because when we require these students to take two years of vocational training it fills up their already booked school schedule. As it is, the elective classes (which currently encompass vocational and fine and performing arts classes) are already competing for students. This will add to the slow decline of the arts in our public schools. No matter how many studies show that students who take classes in the arts tend to be better and more creative students the progression to eliminating the arts in school continues. With this bill it is not done maliciously, but by omission. I don't want the bill eliminated, I want it to include the fine and performing arts, I want it to acknowledge that training in the arts could lead to a job.

pages to pick

I am officially reading for two theatres that I have never worked (sans staged readings) with. In the past my reading for theatre's has essentially been me reading plays I felt like reading, and then finishing them and thinking 'This would be a great piece for So & So theatre to do, let me send it to Artistic director friend, or director friend, etc.' A couple theatres simply asked me to send whatever I wanted their way. It has worked well. Two suggestions picked up in the past year.

With these, I will actually be sifting through submissions. I have been told that the process can become arguous at times. I have no doubt that this may be true. I am, nevertheless, very happy to be doing this. I enjoy reading plays. It is that simple. I am quick to love plays that are heavy in magical realism. I love plays that are poetic and theatrical. I enjoy realism, but as a reader, I tend to pass them by, so I am going to have to fight that impulse to give a fair shake to all the plays.

I also get stressed about anything that I advocate for that gets produced. One of the shows that I passed to a certain awesome director here in town is going up soon. I am extremely excited to see it staged and intensely want it to be well received. I keep thinking to myself; will the audience appreciate this as much as I do?; what business do I have saying what's worth being produced? I am still new at this, and still have no comfort level. I am not a director, and have no wish to ever be one. I read a lot of plays where I find things wonderful, but would have no idea how one would stage. It makes me extremely respectful of writers and directors, both have vision that I lack.

As I write I see that another script just came into my inbox. So off I go. Quasi intrepid explorer that I am.

lions go roar

I just took Smallest to a music and dance class. She is usually so confident and sassy, but she was strangely quiet. She was not scared or whiney, just silent. It was actually pretty funny because she seemed to be doing the whole thing with a complete air of superiority. I started making up her inner monologue...

"Sure lady, keep walking like a duck, and trying to get me to look like a fool. Well I don't play your reindeer games. If you continue to babble at me with this obnoxious pseudo baby speak I will have to take you down a few pegs. Pretend to be a frog? That is NOT how a frog jumps you lost little children, you mindless drones; THIS is how a frog jumps. Can someone please stop the degrading prattle and the cooing parents and challenge me! THIS! THIS is all you have got!"

I thought she would have no interest in returning, but she says she wants to go again. Mystifying.

waking up

Hello world. I have been catatonic since my last post. That little fever and cough progressed into something extremely debilitating. It was so bad on Friday I actually had Mr. hpmelon come home from work to look after the smallers, because I could not actually get myself up from the bed. After 24 hours on a concoction of drugs I began to feel somewhat lucid and was able to drag myself to what is definitely the worst first rehearsal I have ever had. I was so feverish, words actually were swimming before my eyes, and I continually had to pause to cough, like some hacking old man...charming. I barely spoke (other than the read through), and my director let me go immediately after the read was done, and has given me the next few days off to recuperate.

Why did I go? I hate missing the first rehearsal. It is never a wildly fun time, but there are so many logistical things that need to be taken care of, and my brain needs those things in order to move on to the artistic side of things. I also know how crappy it is for a director and a cast to listen to a first read without one of the leads there. Not that I was good, mind you, I sucked yesterday. I mince no words, I was awful, but I was there.

I was extremely grateful though to hear the director speak about the play. He described the play as a release, an exhalation. He believes that prior to the onset of the play the country has been in a breath holding state, waiting for peace. He said he believed that is where we are in America right now. That we are all holding our breath, waiting for an end to war, waiting for a time of renewal. He talked about how he sees the winds changing, and that he thinks America is on the brink of a positive new change. I actually found myself getting very emotional hearing this. I tend to be a cynic about the state of our country. I guess I believe that we will never get the chance to let out that big sigh. That we will go from one bad choice to another without ever taking the time to fix the wrongs. So it was inspiring to hear this director, who I consider intelligent and worldly, to speak with such optimism. That single moment, made my day.

101 this morning

I woke up yesterday with a fever and a cough. The status is the same today. The smallers were sick over the holidays so it was just a matter of time before it got to me. I hate being sick. I hate feeling so fuzzy in the head. I have been having to make some choices about acting work and I am worried that in my haze I did not think them through enough. I start rehearsals for my next show on Saturday and have not done much work on the script yet.

This continues to be the part that almost wasn't. At first it was the show dates, then it was another part, but in the end I accepted and thought it was settled. Then, I got another offer yesterday, which I had to turn down due to this commitment. All actors hate turning down a part. Whenever there are this many issues surrounding a role I tend to think the fates are trying to tell me something, but then again its probably just life. That is the way the cookie crumbles etc. I am a big believer, though, in honoring your commitments; and pulling out of a show, days before rehearsals start is just bad karma.

I hope to be rewarded in the end with a good experience and piece of mind that I did the right thing; and hopefully the theatre that made the last offer will ask again in the future.