Saturday, November 17, 2012
Remember
Sing me a song,
A song about times remembered and times ahead
About loves found, loves lost and all the love in between
that still holds on like the last notes of a symphony brought to a close
Sing me a song and let's all sing it together
And not care for just a little while who's with who
Or who's mad at who, or if we've ever even been friends before.
Let's sing together and just forget.
Forget silence. Forget waiting.
Forget sitting watching and debating on
Whether or not to take the first step.
Forget the empty, forget the time,
Forget the stresses and the endless push
for more More MORE.
Remember, This. These people
This moment. Remember a feeling
When even those who sat apart were together.
Remember looking up and seeing the smile you've been waiting for
Coming from where you didn't expect it.
Remember how it felt to doubt the night could ever be done
And we would have to return to our lives at the end of this song.
Remember the cries of laughter and the roar of tears,
Remember twenty "one last songs."
In this no-one's land. In this space between stained glass worlds,
Take a minute. Take my hand. And let's sing a song and cry a tear together.
Let's smile and not think of whether we'll ever be together like this again.
We're here now. And that is perfect.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Natstolgia
Well there are two shows left of Ah, Wilderness and it's starting to get about time to wrap it up. There comes a time in every show I've ever been in when you've lived in the character long enough and it's time to move on to the next one. Don't get me wrong I will be sad when it's over and I will go through all the stages of nostalgia and remembering all the fantastic moments that were a part of this show. But I'm looking forward to the letting go of this character and moving on to the next adventure.
I think I'll miss this one though. Nat Miller has been an interesting character to play. I've made some discoveries about myself and how I act that I never have before. It was an exciting process that I feel could have gone a lot deeper than our show had time for. But I'm glad I got as far as I did and that by the start of the show I knew the character well enough to trust him to come out once I was onstage. Nat is definitely one of the roles I'll remember for a long time.
But it's not over yet. Two more shows! Can't wait for tomorrow night.
Have a quote!
"All the best performers bring to their role something more, something different than what the author put on paper. That's what makes theatre live. That's why it persists."
-Stephen Sondheim
Thanks for reading! If you have a favorite role that you'll never forget, leave a comment!
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Sleep
This is the most prominent thing on my mind tonight and I need to get to it soon so this maybe a bit short.
Here's a thought I have about sleep. What if we are only allowed a certain amount of waking hours in our entire life. So we can spend those waking hours however we want. So all those people who sleep now will live longer and even though I'm awake for more things things right now I'll die sooner because my waking hours quota will be filled. Then it would be safe to say that our time on earth is characterized by the experiences we are awake for. So what remains is to decide whether you want to use those experiences up earlier or later. So don't stress about not sleeping, we all have the same amount of time to be awake. Worry more about what you are doing with the time you're awake. That is up to you.
Well wasn't that a lovely hypothetical? Now....... Have a quote that might kinda contradict what I just said...
I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?
-Ernest Hemingway
Here's a thought I have about sleep. What if we are only allowed a certain amount of waking hours in our entire life. So we can spend those waking hours however we want. So all those people who sleep now will live longer and even though I'm awake for more things things right now I'll die sooner because my waking hours quota will be filled. Then it would be safe to say that our time on earth is characterized by the experiences we are awake for. So what remains is to decide whether you want to use those experiences up earlier or later. So don't stress about not sleeping, we all have the same amount of time to be awake. Worry more about what you are doing with the time you're awake. That is up to you.
Well wasn't that a lovely hypothetical? Now....... Have a quote that might kinda contradict what I just said...
I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?
-Ernest Hemingway
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
On Texas
Ok so I've been stewing about this all day and I have a couple minutes so I'm going to get it down.
I'm sure you've heard about all the states signing petitions to secede from the Union. Yeah, ok, big deal, happens every election. And I'm sure you've also heard that Texas has a petition that is signed by right around 25,000 signatures, a number that is worthy of the attention of the white house and the president. I don't even take issue with that. It's a valid, if somewhat childish way for some Texans to get their voice heard on issues that they feel are important.
This is what I take issue with. This quote is made by Peter Morrison the treasurer of the Hardin County (Texas) Republican Party.
"We must contest every single inch of ground and delay the baby-murdering, tax-raising socialists at every opportunity. But in due time, the maggots will have eaten every morsel of flesh off of the rotting corpse of the Republic, and therein lies our opportunity... Why should Vermont and Texas live under the same government? Let each go her own way in peace, sign a free trade agreement among the states and we can avoid this gut-wrenching spectacle every four years."
Now lets just avoid the first couple of sentences that employ a blatant use of dramatic and evocative language and focus on the last two sentences.
"Why should Vermont and Texas live under the same government? Let each go her own way in peace, sign a free trade agreement among the states and we can avoid this gut-wrenching spectacle every four years."
First of all the reason why we all live together under the same government is twofold (and really so-many-more-fold than that, but I'm only going to talk about two)
1. It's good to have different views within one government. If we all just took our toys and went off to our own separate corners of the room, it might be "easier", but the values of having to defend your ideas against someone who believes as strongly in their ideas as you do would be lost as well as the opportunity to realize your ideas are wrong and improve on them.
2. One of the reasons we are all together is that we work together and to work together peacefully you need to take into account your work-partner's beliefs and thoughts. You can't just roll in and push your agenda on your business partner. Likewise you can't just pull out of an integrated relationship with your partner and expect that you will have equal or free trade. Trade, work and business requires the maturity to realize there are differences in what you believe, that that's ok, and being able to move on past your differences and live with each other.
Second of all. I'm as big a hater of political adds as anyone. And yes the election gets long. But this "gut-wrenching spectacle" is the product of two centuries of women and men's hard and tireless work to build a country where people are free to disagree, free to run adds, free to write petitions to secede and not have an army marching towards them the next morning, and free to vote for who is the best person to lead the country. And yes there are things to fix still and yes it isn't perfect and yes we will always disagree and that's ok. We need to disagree. But I suggest to Mr. Morrison that he take a step back and look at the privilege he has in making these claims and voting before he applies any more ridiculous 'gut-wrenching" language to his arguments.
And now that I'm off the Elephant and Donkey train for the day, I have a much better quote for you.
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Thanks for reading. Let me know what you think!
I'm sure you've heard about all the states signing petitions to secede from the Union. Yeah, ok, big deal, happens every election. And I'm sure you've also heard that Texas has a petition that is signed by right around 25,000 signatures, a number that is worthy of the attention of the white house and the president. I don't even take issue with that. It's a valid, if somewhat childish way for some Texans to get their voice heard on issues that they feel are important.
This is what I take issue with. This quote is made by Peter Morrison the treasurer of the Hardin County (Texas) Republican Party.
"We must contest every single inch of ground and delay the baby-murdering, tax-raising socialists at every opportunity. But in due time, the maggots will have eaten every morsel of flesh off of the rotting corpse of the Republic, and therein lies our opportunity... Why should Vermont and Texas live under the same government? Let each go her own way in peace, sign a free trade agreement among the states and we can avoid this gut-wrenching spectacle every four years."
Now lets just avoid the first couple of sentences that employ a blatant use of dramatic and evocative language and focus on the last two sentences.
"Why should Vermont and Texas live under the same government? Let each go her own way in peace, sign a free trade agreement among the states and we can avoid this gut-wrenching spectacle every four years."
First of all the reason why we all live together under the same government is twofold (and really so-many-more-fold than that, but I'm only going to talk about two)
1. It's good to have different views within one government. If we all just took our toys and went off to our own separate corners of the room, it might be "easier", but the values of having to defend your ideas against someone who believes as strongly in their ideas as you do would be lost as well as the opportunity to realize your ideas are wrong and improve on them.
2. One of the reasons we are all together is that we work together and to work together peacefully you need to take into account your work-partner's beliefs and thoughts. You can't just roll in and push your agenda on your business partner. Likewise you can't just pull out of an integrated relationship with your partner and expect that you will have equal or free trade. Trade, work and business requires the maturity to realize there are differences in what you believe, that that's ok, and being able to move on past your differences and live with each other.
Second of all. I'm as big a hater of political adds as anyone. And yes the election gets long. But this "gut-wrenching spectacle" is the product of two centuries of women and men's hard and tireless work to build a country where people are free to disagree, free to run adds, free to write petitions to secede and not have an army marching towards them the next morning, and free to vote for who is the best person to lead the country. And yes there are things to fix still and yes it isn't perfect and yes we will always disagree and that's ok. We need to disagree. But I suggest to Mr. Morrison that he take a step back and look at the privilege he has in making these claims and voting before he applies any more ridiculous 'gut-wrenching" language to his arguments.
And now that I'm off the Elephant and Donkey train for the day, I have a much better quote for you.
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Thanks for reading. Let me know what you think!
Monday, November 12, 2012
Words and Auditions
Alright Day two.
I'm gonna share two interesting things I learned today.
Thing One
I really dislike the Message Bible. I'm a firm believer in words being beautiful and having specific purposes and if you lack the intelligence to read them or the desire to learn what they are, you shouldn't complain about being unable to read them. I apply this belief to many areas of my life including theatre, books, conversations and yes, the Bible. This argument often leads me to criticize efforts of people like the authors of the Message Bible for what I think is a dumbing down of words that, while they take a while longer to understand, are beautiful and should be learned and appreciated.
But today that argument got flung in my face. I notice that happens a lot when I try to impose my thoughts or act knowledgeable on or about the Bible. I read today that some devout Israelites and followers of God pray a prayer every morning. The book I was reading used The Message translation of the prayer from Deuteronomy like this,
"Attention Israel,
God, our God. God, the one and only,
Love God, your God, with all of your heart, love him with all that you have, love him with all you've got."
Now part of me still writhes at that translation and wishes it was the traditional "Love the Lord your God with all you hear and soul and etc..." But there is something really beautiful about the reckless abandon in the phrase, "Love him with all you've got." I think it's something to aspire to... even if I have to be wrong about the Message to have it be so.
Thing Two.
I love auditions at Northwestern College. I've been to other environments where the pressure of an audition or a performance of a monologue wrecks the entire event and turns it into a nightmare of self loathing and sometimes in the worst scenarios forgetfulness. But it's not so here. I know at least for me auditions here are so much fun. Often times we get to cheer on our fellow actors and watch what they do. This might be unique to our department and if it is the rest of the theatre world is missing out. It's so good to look out on the audience of your peers during an audition and see in their eyes that they want to hear what you are saying and they are entertained by what you're doing.
The long and short of it is, I have no idea how my audition went tonight, but I am so grateful to all my friends in there who put great work into their monologues, allowed me and others to watch them, and then in turn watched what each other had to offer. Whatever the outcome of tonight winds up being, thank all of you who are reading this and even those who don't for a terrific evening.
And now... HAVE A QUOTE!
"The good die young but not always. The wicked prevail but not consistently. I am confused by life, and I feel safe in the confines of the theatre."
-Helen Hayes
I'm gonna share two interesting things I learned today.
Thing One
I really dislike the Message Bible. I'm a firm believer in words being beautiful and having specific purposes and if you lack the intelligence to read them or the desire to learn what they are, you shouldn't complain about being unable to read them. I apply this belief to many areas of my life including theatre, books, conversations and yes, the Bible. This argument often leads me to criticize efforts of people like the authors of the Message Bible for what I think is a dumbing down of words that, while they take a while longer to understand, are beautiful and should be learned and appreciated.
But today that argument got flung in my face. I notice that happens a lot when I try to impose my thoughts or act knowledgeable on or about the Bible. I read today that some devout Israelites and followers of God pray a prayer every morning. The book I was reading used The Message translation of the prayer from Deuteronomy like this,
"Attention Israel,
God, our God. God, the one and only,
Love God, your God, with all of your heart, love him with all that you have, love him with all you've got."
Now part of me still writhes at that translation and wishes it was the traditional "Love the Lord your God with all you hear and soul and etc..." But there is something really beautiful about the reckless abandon in the phrase, "Love him with all you've got." I think it's something to aspire to... even if I have to be wrong about the Message to have it be so.
Thing Two.
I love auditions at Northwestern College. I've been to other environments where the pressure of an audition or a performance of a monologue wrecks the entire event and turns it into a nightmare of self loathing and sometimes in the worst scenarios forgetfulness. But it's not so here. I know at least for me auditions here are so much fun. Often times we get to cheer on our fellow actors and watch what they do. This might be unique to our department and if it is the rest of the theatre world is missing out. It's so good to look out on the audience of your peers during an audition and see in their eyes that they want to hear what you are saying and they are entertained by what you're doing.
The long and short of it is, I have no idea how my audition went tonight, but I am so grateful to all my friends in there who put great work into their monologues, allowed me and others to watch them, and then in turn watched what each other had to offer. Whatever the outcome of tonight winds up being, thank all of you who are reading this and even those who don't for a terrific evening.
And now... HAVE A QUOTE!
"The good die young but not always. The wicked prevail but not consistently. I am confused by life, and I feel safe in the confines of the theatre."
-Helen Hayes
I'm a twit
Well I did it. After much trepidation and doubt I have actually set up and put some effort into my twitter account.
Trouble is I have no idea what to do with it now... I kinda get what it's for but now I have to start using it. If anyone's reading this and has any brilliant ideas as to what I'm supposed to do with my newly developed bird account feel free to chime in.
I'm challenging myself to writing. I need to start writing more and get myself in the habit of crafting words on paper... or whatever this is. So I'm going to try to write something here every day. It might kill me and I might miss a couple days here and there but I'm gonna give it a shot. It's gonna be anything from incredibly deep things to just me talking about random stuff that I've thought of during the day. If you're reading I hope you enjoy.
For today I'm going to write about something I saw today. I went and watched Perks of Being a Wallflower. First of all, very good movie. I would highly recommend it. Admittedly I haven't read the books so i don't know how it measures up in comparison to that but as an outsider I enjoyed it a lot. It made me think a lot about my experience growing up.
I was home schooled growing up and didn't attend public school until my junior year of high school. I was spared a lot of the "Nightmare" that everyone claims high school is. Though my parents did a good job at being sure I got out a lot I was kept relatively safe and at home a lot so I didn't have to fight for all that much growing up. That seems to be something that is a recurring theme in a lot of depictions of high school: the kids in school are all fighting for or against something. Sometimes it's overwhelming odds and sometimes you fail against them. But sometimes friends come together and overcome the odds and at the end they feel they've accomplished something. While I'm grateful for my experience as a home school-er and I'm proud of where it's put me now I can't help but feel sometimes I missed out on something that could have been gained from public school. That sense of camaraderie and partnership that comes from conquering something bigger than you can control and conquering it with your companions is something I wish I could have had more of as a kid.
That's all for tonight. Thanks for reading.
Have a quote for the day.
I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.
-Oscar Wilde
Trouble is I have no idea what to do with it now... I kinda get what it's for but now I have to start using it. If anyone's reading this and has any brilliant ideas as to what I'm supposed to do with my newly developed bird account feel free to chime in.
I'm challenging myself to writing. I need to start writing more and get myself in the habit of crafting words on paper... or whatever this is. So I'm going to try to write something here every day. It might kill me and I might miss a couple days here and there but I'm gonna give it a shot. It's gonna be anything from incredibly deep things to just me talking about random stuff that I've thought of during the day. If you're reading I hope you enjoy.
For today I'm going to write about something I saw today. I went and watched Perks of Being a Wallflower. First of all, very good movie. I would highly recommend it. Admittedly I haven't read the books so i don't know how it measures up in comparison to that but as an outsider I enjoyed it a lot. It made me think a lot about my experience growing up.
I was home schooled growing up and didn't attend public school until my junior year of high school. I was spared a lot of the "Nightmare" that everyone claims high school is. Though my parents did a good job at being sure I got out a lot I was kept relatively safe and at home a lot so I didn't have to fight for all that much growing up. That seems to be something that is a recurring theme in a lot of depictions of high school: the kids in school are all fighting for or against something. Sometimes it's overwhelming odds and sometimes you fail against them. But sometimes friends come together and overcome the odds and at the end they feel they've accomplished something. While I'm grateful for my experience as a home school-er and I'm proud of where it's put me now I can't help but feel sometimes I missed out on something that could have been gained from public school. That sense of camaraderie and partnership that comes from conquering something bigger than you can control and conquering it with your companions is something I wish I could have had more of as a kid.
That's all for tonight. Thanks for reading.
Have a quote for the day.
I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.
-Oscar Wilde
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