A Whole New World

Don't worry I am not going to launch into a Disney song. But it really is, and not one that came in with a bang, but through a slow evolution, too slow for some but hopefully not too late for everyone.

What do I speak of? As Vince noted in this post another red district went blue in a special election. This is very bad news for republicans. And why is this happening? Of course a change of guard is in order with certain low opinion ratings but also the old strategies aren't working. The repubs tried to tie the dem candidate to Rev Wright to no avail. But why is this not working? One big reason, the so called "Greatest Generation" is dying. a new generation is coming of age. An even newer "new one". One that is more influenced by Chris Rock than even Bob Dylan.

Please don't allow us to forget how great the greatest generation was. What they did for us and the whole damn world. But if you were black, or gay or a woman, or a Hispanic...they weren't so great. In other words the ol' southern strategy, tie a dem to blacks or other "others" and you win....isn't working. Richard Nixon is rolling around in his grave.

So it's like all the work is paying off, Martin's dream is coming into view.

Hats off to
Rosa,
To the guy who got a billy club in his face
To the woman who got a picket sign shoved into her stomach
To the man who didn't walk away from his best friend who just came out
To the kid who had lunch with the black kid even though every one laughed at him (or worse)
To that girl who walked alone into school at Little Rock
To the woman who got the silent treatment after getting her first promotion
To the everyone who stands up, often alone and does the right thing .....

Hey...it's bloody paying off mate!!

Stop the world I want to get off...

Hey I think I just did.

What a week-finally I can sit and contemplate it all. After a whirl wind of life and insanity. Heat and rekey'd doors, Good byes, parties and Office Space gifts.

To explain the latter-some of the boys at work gave me a "box of flair" and a red stapler. I have attached photo, if you haven't seen Office Space you really should. I was very touched by said gifts. If you haven't seen the movie you don't understand. But rent it. So Monday was a good day, our of semester ending party with boys on staff and then that evening to calshakes inside scoop-an audience enrichment meeting about their first play Pericles. I always consider the first "Scoop" the official beginning of summer. I know all the other pagans say Memorial weekend but I know better...the boobs!

But it was downhill from there. I had much to do at work to ready for our final on Thurs. Of course having put too much off today before. But still confident I can get it all in. I arrive at work Wed. and my key doesn't work. What is this? No worries I think , I just walk over to UC police station to find out. Turns out the building was rekey'd as part of some security program
to avoid Virginia Tech type of things. I would find out later my dept was told but the person who was told was new and didn't know who else to tell. Sigh...So it take another hour for someone to get me into my office. But this is short lived as they won't issue a key (long story) So I have to run around campus dealing with all this as the heat is building. Thurs involved more of this when it was well into the 100s. By Friday I am gone...brain fried with all the chaos. And it's a huge grading day. By noon I think "Why did this University give me a job, what a joke, I am incompetent and clueless" But later...I managed to calm down, become sane and then I thought "Wow this University is lucky to have me, I am so resourceful and got through all of this" It's funny how quickly we can switch up.

Ended the day by going to see a truly Wonderful production of Curse of the Starving Class at ACT. I really really loved it. I have always loved that play. And they did it great. Even the small touches. A special favorite play of mine about family just dealing with ghosts and the changing American landscape. I haven't seen it for many years. I went through my Sam Shepard phase in the 80s...don't all young girls? I mean after they got off their "David Cassidy" thing they start quoting from Tooth of Crime? I don't think there was anything wrong with me. ;-)

Ok ta ta, til next time...

That moment..ah that sweet moment.

We have all sat through overly long, blow hard productions of plays that we think will never end.
The night is getting longer, our patience is growing thin and our butts seem to be making permanent crevices in the seats. The last cocktail is no longer buzzing...we are angry, we feel used. We are burnt out ready to bellow "Damn the arts" This is how the election has felt for me lately. I couldn't take it anymore, was disillusioned, bitter-clinging to yogurt pops and wine.... But then there is that moment, when a lighting cue comes up, when you realize it CAN'T go on forever, even if it seems to. That things are winding down...well that is what last nights results are. I reluctantly logged on to my computer after yoga last night, fearing a disappointment, that NC would fall for fake "gas tax" pandering promises... I was thinking "I will disown these people if they can't figure THAT one out," But no, my fellow Americans are fellow Americans. And they didn't fall for it. And like that final lighting cue in that overly long, bad production... I read Vince's email simply titled Obama, and it said " Dude, it's over. Obama is the nominee. Thank gods." Sigh. I said. Now I avoid pundits like plaque, cause they ARE plaque but I did have to watch Charlie Rose panel on it all and not one didn't agree.

It's over.

The Whew heard around the world

Well yesterday was a big deadline at work. I sit here amongst the aftermath, there are several papers strewn about. I am exhausted. It was a deadline for students to turn in some work.
As people tend to do, the students wait until last minute to turn things in so it's chaos. But now we can relax a bit. But really it takes all you have to get through these things, like tax season for accountants or opening night for theater people.

On a more exciting note, my friend Al is up for a non speaking role in Calshakes Uncle Vanya. This is very exciting. He also could end up understudying. Well it's very exciting cause he really has a great chance, he has the perfect look. Is available and reliable. And Robert gave him a recommendation. So cross your fingers for Al for this Monday at 5:30 when he will audition with Timothy Near at Heinz ave Calshakes offices. Break a leg my friend...

How weird was THAT?

So yesterday I had the surreal-estate experience. My sis and I spent the day in Walnut Creek and decided to go to the old "hood, where we grew up. And drove by childhood home and what do we see before us? Is that a sign on the door and a real estate sign out front? Yep our childhood home was in...foreclosure. It felt like a scene from a Russian Novel, the American suburban version of Dr Zhivago. The door was also open so we wandered in. I never thought I would see the interior of that house again. It was odd to see ones childhood bedroom and your parents master bedroom. Most of the house had been redone, but they did keep the vanity in the bathroom and a few other things. I was tempted to take some photos but it felt wrong somehow. But to see plants my Mother had planted 40 years ago still there, the trees, some light fixtures. It was all very strange. I was a bit emotional even. But it also didn't look like a home i was familiar with, you really do move on literally and figuratively.

Pride and Pleasure

Last night i saw my friend Al in a play called Redwood Curtain done by San Leandro players..
Redwood Curtain is a play by Lanford Wilson about a Vietnam Orphan, trying to find out who her American GI father is, working off scant information. She has been lied to her entire life so she isn't exactly straight with the truth herself. It was written during the post war Rambo period (great joke on that) when the war was being trivialized. It is one thing to enjoy the aesthetics of a play but to feel really PROUD of a production is another. This was both. Al was wonderful as at first your basic angry vet hiding in the woods in the safely damp "Redwood Curtain" Later he becomes more nuanced as a troubled man with secrets he thought were better kept that way, (Al played it interestingly, that the man and the man whose secret he kept were once...closer than it might appear...ah nice touch Mr B.) Anyways, great show I keep really being moved by these small house productions.

Other than that enjoyed the loving down time lately. You know if I were born during the Whitman years I would have written poems glorifying loafing WAY before he did! Ah this is great. Yesterday I took a long walk around my neighborhood. One more day of complete insanity at work (Monday is big deadline for students) but can deal with that.

Blogg-ability, Blog-able, meaning worthy of blogging.

I am in process of a project that is truly blog-able. I am sure that is a new term somewhere... But if not I will coin it. Anyways, this actually quite interesting. I am in process of working out the use of a campus facility for a theater project. It was a bright or just "why not try" idea I had months ago. I will back track.

A few months ago some of the young tutors here and I were telling our usual bend of geek jokes and I got to thinking, hmmm this could make a fun show. Skits, jokes. Musical comedy bits came to mind even. Some of the boys were enthusiastic when I mentioned it them. For some reason I just got this bee about it, just keep proceeding as if it WILL happen, even if it doesn't...keep on trucking. So then I thought what of a venue? Being a college employee I figured maybe the theater dept here. so I wrote to them thinking I would probably get lost in a big mash of emails but delightfully I got a response quickly about who to write to. So I wrote to the right folks, once again thinking little response but once again they wrote back quickly. Apparently is it possible being that is be during summer when the said facilities aren't used. I came out to see the space thinking it would be a rehearsal hall but it's an actual theater! My heart leaped! It really did! So we parted saying we would get in touch about dates later. I proceeded to write several song lyrics. And have some skit ideas. So latest is I wrote to dept again, found some dates. Spoke to primary collaborator, who approved the dates. Theater dept is good with dates, it looks like Aug 2 and 3. Which is good timing. So it really looks like this is happening. A night dedicated to Geekiness, to Focus, to Love. I don't want to cling to "geek cliches, going to stick more with the focus. But it will be unique, I mean we are talking about a skit called Esperanto Password!

So this is my birthday.

At my age, I think mostly of my parents at this time. Jim and Gloria, two Kennedy era liberals. Solid well educated, "elitist" Democrats. I know I shouldn't bring up politics now but I can't help but think of it when I think of my parents. My Mom for instance was this staunch follower of Adlai Stevenson back in 50s. A man who was considered too "Egg head" to be President. My Dad was a solid labor guy, got his masters in labor relations at Cal. Went on to be Director of Industrial relations for county of Alameda.

So 47 years ago my Mom got admitted to Kaiser walnut creek. And low and behold.

ALSO On this day in history:

1940 - "Pennsylvania 6-5000", the classic Glenn Miller signature song, was recorded on Bluebird Records.

1967 - Muhammad Ali, the former Cassius Clay, refused induction into the U.S. Army.

Also know on or around April 28th 1961 the first american "advisors" went into Vietnam. Today there are several Hilton Hotels.

of play runs and horizons

Well yesterday as I mentioned was critics day at fringe. So far so good when I meet with my actresses, we had a loose fun run through as always... get our props set up, I note no one seems nervous, but while i mentioned the critics day weeks ago, I chose to not bring it up again.... Then our intrepid artistic director Annette Lust does her curtain speech blurting out "there are four critics in the audience" well you could feel the tension rise, one actress walks over to the bathroom. But after a tentative start they did great, Annette then also proceeded to drop a bottle smashing it to bits DURING the show. But my gals didn't flinch. I was so proud of them!

So it sort of feels over now. We have one more show on Sat. but i have friends coming for my birthday and will be more focused on that. In fact my actresses are joining us and I dont' even care if they get sloshed...well maybe I care a little. But overall we can have more fun on Sat.

To Be Judged...and Judge

Well today my play will go before critics, now not biggees but still there is something about being judged that gets to our inner core. Maybe it's back to survival cause being judged poorly in some ways might push out of the "circle" in prehistoric days (or even current historic days) Or in the jungle being looked at by all eyes means you might be dinner. But what, me worry? Actually I don't too much cause I really feel fine about what we have done...and damn GOOD about what we have done. My actresses have their parts, the script is a fine/good short funny script that also makes you think a little bit (just a little...don't want to push things ;-) ) Anyways, after today's' matinees, I only have one more show left which is more about being my birthday celebration.
Have a group of friends coming to party.
So here's to more theater. Hey myself and my other fringers deserve a nod, we all took short amateur script, cast them, led it through tech and all, and made a show. And we all did well.
It's actually quite remarkable. And we all work full time etc too.

God I love Yoga!

What is yoga?--->
Yoga is a term used for a number of Hindu disciplines designed to aid the soul's merging with Hinduism's highest god, generally involving moral restraints, meditation, dietary restrictions, and the awakening of physical energy centers through specific postures and exercises.

All I know for sure is that I feel a hell of a lot better after I do it. I got into a new class over in Contra Costa adult ed. It's great, I had really missed my Alameda class after I moved.
But found this one, I feel so liberated. I slept better. Our teacher was talking about eating foods that provide balance and interestingly I didn't feel like eating meat much after. Anyways, one can't ignore the difference after doing yoga.

The Boss endorsed Obama which is kind of neat. I don't know what difference it makes. But who knows.

Gosh I have been posting a lot. But I am feeling melancholy as the passage of time never ceases to amaze me. Some of the boys who started working at my center 3 years ago are graduating. Were 18 year old wet behind the ears kids, now 21 year old wet behind the ears kids. One is venturing off to Stanford for grad school. The other is going to Redmund to work for the evil empire. Sigh I will just miss them. David and the singing and the online humor. Ben the various angst with life and girls. They are good guys, as are most of the tutors here. So they will ride off, to become facebook friends who you send little notes to, not people I see every day anymore...

And so it goes....

Well we are having this unseasonable warm weather. It's sort of dominating everything. Last night I was up until 3am, with screen door only, and it was STILL warm. Well it took a front seat at the theater too. Friday night was very warm and well our opening was a bit rocky. My actresses looked visibly startled that there were patrons RIGHT in front of them and to both sides (it's an incredibly intimate theater) , and lots of lines were dropped. Some jokes weren't set up, but we had re blocked things after dress rehearsals feedback and I was more worried about that, and THAT went great so I was happy none the less. Well but today it went VERY well, they were great, got their lines, seemed comfortable, used the stage well, and the audience dug it. I got a ton of "Great jobs" and some "This one worked" from people who knew it hadn't before, which I truly appreciated. Sigh, you have no idea what a relief that is. I say as a playwright I feel like my kid is in the spring pageant. You get nervous in a weird way. So that was fun. Now on to next weekend and then last show is 26th and my birthday celebration.

I also did my taxes online this year, which was so damned easy I don't know why I didn't before.

My play opens tonight, my play opens tonight...

True on a make shift stage in the middle of a college campus but still...I was just remembering the genesis of this play...(she says as image goes blurrywith woman scratching her chin...) All plays have a story of their coming about,just like every relationship does. This one was born of pragmatism. I wanted a two woman play, that could be easily directed. No I was not running through fog and got some divine inspiration. Although that has happened. My first play, I heard a pompous comment by a computer science professor that really annoyed me, and to get even...I wrote a play using that comment that I hoped played up how pompous this guy was. I sent it to
a group called playground, the produced it. My first play was produced, this does not happen in real life, and believe me I have had plays rejected since. But my first was produced and I got 200 bucks to boot. I also was mentioned in e-picks on sfgate, something like "top notch scripts included Carol Marshall's..." Since then I have had inspirations at times, or just an idea that sticks in my craw. So back to the present play. I was at work (where I do most of my writing, my job has very busy...and very un-busy times, so during slow times I often write...) and I was chatting with the kids at work and said "I want to write a two woman short play and so what should I call it, something like Lesbian Rhapsody"...? laughs arose, and they loved the title. So I thought hmm...no matter what I am calling it Lesbian Rhapsody, even if it has nothing to do with Lesbians. Then I got to thinking what if two women are tired of the husbands and want to "make themselves Lesbians" which of course can't quite work out. So this is what I did. And then I posted it on my blog and Celeste wrote to me and said "Hey this happened to my Dad's girlfriend" I also took it to a group called Playcafe and had it read and they loved it. Thus I thought ok, it works. So I submitted it to Marin with intentions of directing it myself. My first directing job. Thus I am about to open it. I wrote it pretty quickly too, I tend to write rather quickly. With Marin you know you can make changes so I don't worry as much. So here I am.

So now to a small degree I have done it all in theater. Even acting, I went on stage last Spring for an event called "Bust out Comedy" where you perform your own work. I did a skit I wrote. Everyone kept saying being on stage would give me this high and it didn't. I kept waiting (hey that's a good title for a play "waiting for the high") And I figure if you don't love it, don't do it, cause there are tons of people who want to be on stage. I have now directed, which was ok but not drawn to again. Tech I enjoyed. I also did costumes once that I found fun. But let's face it, I only really love the writing part. And I love the process of getting an idea and then starting to write the dialogue out. There is a difference between being a writer and being a playwright. I have oft said it's like the difference between date and escort. Play writing isn't about truth as much as finding truth through stories, and discovering and connecting with audience through our differences and our common bonds (yeah something like that...) Play writing is a more manipulative thing.

Anyways, on to opening, nervous abound!!!

Catching up:

I should update. Well have been busy. On Sat. I went to see Bruce Springsteen concert. Last Tues my sister writes to me to invite me to the concert for my birthday, well she's a good person but she actually wasn't that generous intentionally. Some long story about buying tickets months ago and putting them aside... But whatever I got to see BRUUUUCEE. It was great. I love his new stuff, I just ordered his new CD which contains wonderfully passionate song "The Last to Die" taken from John Kerry's line "Who will be the last to die for a mistake". He also did "Born to Run" which is my fav oldie and sort of my motto song ;-) You know, Tramps like us...

Then we had dress rehearsals on Sunday. Walked into chaos, first show setting up, lights being set up. Tech guys smiling at me. I need to give them another cue. We go on second, so tension during the first show knowing we go on. And then...few laughs. Ut oh. We got a problem I can tell. Some laughs but it's tense, too tense for a comedy. Well I of course stick around for the feedback this panel gives after. It's a mixed bag, they like the play, great dialogue they say. But the performances are too 'timid". it didn't work they say. They didn't feel the actresses were good friends. So we go back to drawing board. and re blocked it. Turns out there is more pathos in my play than I knew. Why is there always pathos in my plays? So we went more for that.
And well...it felt better after a rehearsal and work through. So crossing my fingers for Fridays opening. I am sure even Mike Nichols has to rework things after dress.

So that's me, I also saw a very good and engaging production of Government Inspector at ACT.
I love the line in it where someone says they knew someone was the Government Inspector cause they "didn't leave and didn't pay" Very funny.

More on my play. This is our production photo I got yesterday. Why do all my plays have booze as a key element...discuss amongst yourselves... Anyways, so we did a rocky run through at first but by third it was smooth and funny and fun.

Tech rehearsals were my fav part. I have figured out cause I am a geek. And that's...ok. I really liked running the tech cues. I was GOOD at that. I mean being clear and giving the tech boys instructions. So we have lights down, an intro song then run the play until they need music for dancing... then finale music. Yeah!

We have dress rehearsals on Sunday. Which hopefully will go ok. And then open on the 11th.
I am excited more than nervous.

I have been reading James Carpenters blog and its inspiring me to be a little more in depth with mine. You know less "I had the sour dough instead of the sweet today". Kind of stuff but that said I will start with the anecdotes:

I had a wonderful spring break and sorry to see it go. But enough to keep me propelled to April to not mourn too much. I went to Pt Reyes on Tues and reminded of how beautiful it is over there, I recently got nailed (by an Eastern European) appropriately for stating, or rather whining "It's hard to live in the bay area" cause yeah rents are high but we have so much here. And yeah I can't jet off to places but I can drive like a half hour either direction and see the most wonderful stuff. I also went to Half Moon bay where yes...I had the sour dough and not the sweet. Yesterday was about sharing a birthday celebration for my dear friend Deborah, had her over for wine and chocolate and then saw a very smooth well done Tartuffe by Masquers, my beloved theater company across the street.

Now on to more depth: Week 3 of directing my own play for Marin. I am finding directing my own play more daunting than I thought, it's sort of like having to slow dance with yourself. You may have the will but not the distance. I am finding it odd to say the least. Now I always pride myself on being less egomaniac than many of my fellow playwrights in that I am open to changes, in fact I love them, and would never in a million years consider giving actors notes behind the directors back as I hear of. I back off willingly. But at the same time, it's your baby and at times your ability to remain objective "Oh he's so CUTE" when he really looks like Winston Churchill kick in. But overall it's really going well. We did a run through on Tues that was a disaster but then later did it in front of a couple of other actors from other shows, and what i love about theater was, one might think oh the actors will be nervous with audience but they got a ton better. You could feel the energy in the room rise. It's cause that's why they do it, not to mess around with it alone but to have it SEEN. So that run was the best and the most fun. Getting actors off book opens up a whole new world "wow, that's right we need to work on timing" and crap like that.

My actresses have better ideas than I do most of the time. Which I have to suck up and say ...yeah that's a better idea. I could get bent out, but I want the show to look good. I mean it's not epic, it's a short funny play with some physical comedy. One challenge is there is a kiss and it's between two women (yes i wrote that, I also wrote one grabs the other's ass...) which is nervously approached. I think I defused some nerves by congratulating for taking this on. A friend recently directed a play where two women kiss and one actress actually turned down the part cause of this. So I told my two they have guts. They do. Actually we sort of fudge the kiss, but the ass does get grabbed. So come to see it if you want to know how ;-)

One challenge too directing or putting on small shows like this is you have actors who have a ton going on in their lives, and they aren't paid by you. So you have to keep all this in mind. it's an art in and of it's self. I just roll with it.

We have tech rehearsals on Sunday, so that means bringing a script to the tech folks and showing them when to play music. I had a CD made of the cuts I need, I of course had to choose Beatles music which you can't just get Mp3's made of, I had to have a CD made from a CD.
I have three cuts, opening music, music for middle dancing scene and then closing music.

So in conclusion, I might be into trying to direct another play but not my own. Although I say this now, who knows what may come up later.

And so this is Spring Break:

So I am off this week. My plans for today were basically to have no plans. Just enjoy the fact I don't have to rush off to be at work. Ah so lovely the simple things.

Other things though, I am going to explore Mt Tam later. I also am going to work on my music revue thing and get into producer mode with it. Meaning getting organized about what we want to do in it. Getting an outline of show. We are planning on several things at this point: Songs and music in general, some long skits and then some very short "bits" humorous exchanges. I am also thinking of adding some audience participation things. Once I get the outline we can move from there, see if we want to invite others to join us, look for submissions.

I also have rehearsals for my marin show on Tues. And then I need to get CD of Beatles music to Friend Evan so he can burn me a CD for the show too. Silly me picked Beatles music that you can't download anywhere, so I couldn't do the simple thing of sending mp3's to Al and have him burn it. Ah well I have the vision of Beatles music so must work for my art.

More later, will blog about my week.

Wistful Thinking

Last night I saw Carrie Fishers "Wishful Drinking" one woman show about her life. One very funny line was she said she told her younger friends "One day you will be in a pool hall somewhere, you will look up at the TV and see me as Leia...with two dates under neath and you will say "yep that's what she said would happen" Well obviously being in Star Wars set her up for one kind of life. Also talked of her various relationships, and ultimately...her fight with mental illness. The latter part I found the most poignant, because (never sure how much you should say in a blog ...but whatever..what am I clinging to...) my Dad was diagnosed Bio-polar and manic depressive. So I saw it up close and have worried it could show up in me someday. Although I am nothing like my Dad, he looked and also acted like Montgomery Clift the actor. Yes tall, dark, very handsome, very ill. Very withdrawn, literally couldn't laugh out loud. Ok, so you see we are very different. But anyways, I found the show more moving than I thought. yes it was self indulgent, but in a good way.

Also I should have blogged about Obama's speech on race and the 5 year anniversary of the war but I think I have had blinders on due to things. I just sent Mr Obama another donation cause win or lose that speech rocked and took balls. I was very proud.

Spring Break Mode: The Ahhh Heard Around the World

Well sliding into spring break. I have today and tomorrow to get through but it's already starting up. Easy to park this am etc. We all need it, busy year. Presently I don't have major plans except for weekends but want to keep it that way. I have some ideas, like a leisure day in Half Moon Bay and other thoughts. Also I need to work on my musical revue thing. I have several lyrics and need to finish more of those. And then the dreaded music part, but heck with Sondheim they talk most of it, I can do that too.

Recap of latest events: Had a blast partying in Mission last Friday for our dear friend Evan's b-day. Was reminded of my suburbanism many times (can't these outdoor places have those space heaters...sheesh...) But thoroughly enjoyed it and neat people. Had rehearsal number two for my Marin play on Tues. It went well and I feel confident now it will go swimmingly. We have the blocking down, and I picked the music which was bugging me. I have a dancing sequence and I needed the right music and it fell into my lap. I also have the curtain call music which is perfect.
The actors just need to get their lines but they will. I mean after last spring fiasco that way I was nervous but I trust these guys.

Tonight I am going to see Carrie Fisher's one woman show at Berkeley rep.

Til later....