Its been a while, but here goes

Golly, it has been a little while since I last blogged. So much has happened...lets see where to start...

First, the audition I went on was for Periwinkle National Theatre's tour of HALFWAY THERE.

That being said, getting that job has opened a door for me. Actually it kicked me in the ass a little. So, I quit my PR job. I think that I need to focus hard-core on working in the business here, and with my cushy job, I cant do that. I am only going on safe auditions, and I need to get out there more. And make money. So thats that.

Tim and Derek came over President's day weekend, and I made some good 'ole gumbo for everyone. Beau (their puppy) stayed with us while they went to the theatre, and Naomi had a field day. I haven't seen her play like that in years. It was so refreshing. Beau is welcome in our house ANY day.

Later that night, Justen, Tim, Derek and I went to a local bar called Albatross. I have nothing else to say about this bar. Its there. 'nuff said.

LOST is actually getting better. Thank God. Maybe it wont get canceled now. We will see.

Are Jim and Pam ever gonna get together on the Office? I wonder. Cause probably if they did, there wouldnt be any reason to watch. Except that I love that show. I love it bad.

We saw Pan's Labyrinth recently. I will write a separate review of it at some point, but the gist is, go see it. Its beautiful. Its also a bit bloody, but it is good. If you are expecting Narnia, its not like that at all. More like Titus. or if Titus and Narnia had a child, it would be Pan's Labyrinth. Oh, and the child would have to be Spanish.

I have been working hard on my ancestry. Nothing crazy new to report except that Gore Vidal is actually a very close relative to me. 3rd or 4th cousin. Kinda cool, since I like him.

OK. time to go back to work.

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Mimin' Hurts, 'yall

So on Saturday, which was also the day of Jen Nelson Lane's big blowout birthday party, I went to an audition for a character in a TYA show. The character is basically the personification of bad. He tempts the characters back into a life of drugs, booze, or whatever. ANYWAYS, the part is masked, and a mime.

Ok, so it has been a while since I have mimed. Maybe since my last mime at grad school (i remember all of us doing a scene where we were all in a gym. Then another scene where we were attacked by our bathroom necessities---mine was shaving cream.) where was I...OH yeah. pain.

I did a little of the choreography from the show as well as some leans and other basic mime stuff on Saturday. No problem. I was actually quite good. Problem is...it is monday now, and I still cant walk right. I used muscles that havent been used in years. There are parts of my quad which are used in mimin' that arent used in anything I have done since 2003.

I put a heat patch on today, and had to take it off cause I was sweating my ass off. And it felt like the skin on my thigh was gone. all of it.

Anyways, I have a callback for this part on Wednesday. Please pray for my little used muscles.
and my burned up thigh.

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Spring Awakening

Last night, Justen and I went to see Spring Awakening with Brent (who was in town for the week). It has been a while since we had seen a show for several reasons--nothing really piqued our interest, and we just never went to get tickets. I am so glad that we decided to go see this show. Duncan Sheik (of the 90's Barely Breathing) and others have adapted Frank Wedekind's 1891 play "Spring Awakening" to this year's Broadway smash. The play centers around a group of teens who are dealing with their burgeoning sexuality juxtaposed with the adult world which is withholding information from them in the name of protecting their innocence.

The cast is an ensemble of fresh-faced young actors (average age here is probably 19) who take on this material with voracity. What RENT was to me years ago is what I feel this will be to young people seeing this today. The music is angst ridden: at times melodic, at times raucous. The stand-out of the cast is definitely John Gallagher, Jr. in his role as Moritz. From the moment he takes the stage in the first number, you can see he has a fully developed character that only comes more to life throughout his subsequent scenes. Also noteworthy is Lea Michelle, playing the female lead role Wendla. Her angelic voice echoes throughout the theatre as pure as a ringing bell from her first scene to the last. Jonathan Groff, who plays the male lead Melchior, comes off a little flat against the colorful supporting characters.

The choreography, done by Bill T. Jones, is at times beautiful and at other times odd. I found the phrase of movement repeated throughout the show to be quite interesting, yet I could decipher no real reason or meaning for it. There were points in the show when I felt that the movement expressed the pent up sexuality of the characters, and other times when it seemed that the characters were simply playing with themselves. or mentally challenged.

The set design and lighting design were brilliantly executed. It is obvious that these two designers worked very closely together to achieve a certain aesthetic. The show is played on a simple acting space with audience on three sides and the band behind. The characters intermingle with the audience, some vocalists are seated as members of the audience the entire time. This Brechtian presentation forces actors to become observers thereby almost making the "audience" another character in the play. I would even go so far as to say that at times, the set and lighting were just as interesting as the characters on stage.

New York Times, New York Post, and USA Today have all called this the best musical of the year. I would have to agree. (But I have not seen any of the others). The raw energy of this show leaps from the stage early in the show (BITCH OF LIVING) and stays strong. Due to plot points being resolved in the second act, the mood is much softer and the energy is a little low. I'd love another big number early in ACT 2, but honestly couldn't imagine where it would go.

Overall, I think that Spring Awakening is the show to beat at this year's Tony's. I hope that this show stays around for a while. It is so refreshing to see something on Broadway that is truly original. Like it or lump it, Spring Awakening is a force to be reckoned with.

Enjoy the clips:

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Anna Nicole Smith

I have learned that Anna Nicole has passed away. Get ready for the media maelstrom to commence. Its so strange that this one event can trump all of our PR efforts.
uggh.

OK, now that the news has broken....
I can not believe that I knew about it moments after it happened. MOMENTS. Calls poured in from all over bumping our client.

Now we just have to take this and use it to our client's advantage.

Anna Nicole Smith was just slapped with a class action lawsuit yesterday due to her TrimSpa campaign. It's a shame when someone's celebrity is related to their drug use, family trauma, and string of lawsuits. This was inevitable.

Now, the question I ask you....how come i know within minutes of Anna Nicole's death? Wonder how much better this world would be if every soldier that died in Iraq got the same media attention---we knew all about their life, their children, their families.
When we were at the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam, I noticed the following quote:

"One single Anne Frank moves us more than the countless others who suffered just as she did, but whose faces have remained in the shadows. Perhaps it is better that way: if we were capable of taking in all the suffering of all those people, we would not be able to live." Primo Levi

Wonder how different we would be if we DID know?
ADDENDUM:
This is from THINKPROGRESS. I have to admit that I am quite embarrassed.

References to Anna Nicole and Iraq on Cable Networks After 3PM ET:

NETWORK	ANNA NICOLE	IRAQ
CNN	141	27
FOX NEWS	112	33
MSNBC	170	24

Time Of Segments Devoted to Anna Nicole and Iraq on Broadcast Networks:

NETWORK	ANNA NICOLE	IRAQ
NBC	3:13	0:14
CBS	2:00	2:17
ABC	2:21	2:58

Transcript:

LARRY KING: The death of Anna Nicole Smith — it’s the number one story around the world tonight.

BILL O’REILLY: Hi, I’m Bill O’Reilly. Thank you for watching us tonight. The talking points memo will be in our second segment this evening. It concerns how the left sees Americans killed in Iraq. But first, 39-year old Anna Nicole Smith dead in Florida.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: For better or for worse, would you call Anna Nicole Smith an American icon of the early 21st Century?

ANDERSON COOPER: Jennifer, you met Anna Nicole back in the early-90s through Playboy. You saw her at the Playboy mansion. What was she like back then?

GUEST: Back then…I remember coming home from college and everyone was talking about this really hot woman and um…

RITA COSBY: Although it’s interesting — we talked to a friend earlier today and he was saying she was dumb like a fox.

GUEST: Exactly.

ANDERSON COOPER: ‘Cause a lot of women become Playboy Playmates, but they don’t end up with long careers — certainly not in the spotlight.

MSNBC GUEST: But you know everytime we saw Anna Nicole, the reason people are watching is to see what she said or what she was trying to say through some of her slurred words.

GRETA VAN SUSTERN: Anna Nicole did not live anonymously in the Bahamas. People there knew she was living there.

RITA COSBY: So what was the charismatic blonde like behind the lens, and why was she so intriguing to so many people?

LARRY KING: Larry, this story will have a lot of legs, won’t it?

GUEST: Oh absolutely.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: David, why the obsession with Anna Nicole Smith? Why have the cable shows and even the broadcast news shows — and certainly the morning shows tomorrow — why have they all focused in on this story? And why are they going to be providing a lot more time to Anna Nicole Smith than the war in Iraq and the possible coming war with Iran?

GUEST: Well, you know, America has fallen in love with Anna Nicole Smith.

JACK CAFFERTY: Is Anna Nicole Smith still dead, Wolf?

WOLF BLITZER: Yes, We’re going to be updating our viewers shortly on –

CAFFERTY: Can’t wait for that.

BLITZER: — the mysterious circumstance surrounding that. Jack, thank you.

(SOURCE)

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Couch to 5k Week 1 Run 2

Well, here is my second run of the "training" program. There was a lot of rain, and I was dodging puddles the whole time (while getting wet). But, I still feel like I did a great job. If the image does not load, I did a total of 2.59 miles in 32 min and 13 seconds. (this is still the same 5 min warm up, 60 sec. run, 90 sec walk (repeat 6 times) then cool down for 5 minutes) I will be doing this again tomorrow, then next week moving on to Week 2 of the challenge.

I have also challenged my self to log 28 miles this month. Should be easy, if each of these is 2.5 miles. (They will be longer next week because there is more runnin')

Hope that everyone out there in Cyberbia has a great weekend. I know I sure am gonna try.

Speaking of trying, I think that Justen and I are going to take this new bottle of $20 wine we bought and go to the cafe on the corner. Gotta love New York--where you can bring your own bottle. everywhere.

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Overheard in Forest Hills

Overheard today in Forest Hills, NY
Group of 3 13 year-olds:

Girl: Did you know that Zeus had sex with three girls?
Boy 1: Really?
Boy 2: What's his last name?
Boy 1: Who's class is he in?
Girl: We don't know him. He's a God.
Boy 1: A God?
Girl: Yeah, a Greek God.
Boy 2: Oh.

I thought I was going to choke on my Cherry Coke.

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