Done In By Technology

I had a perfectly good post for tonight. It had a bunch of photos and this app doesn't seem to have a graceful way to post photos amongst text - just puts them at the end. There's no fun there. So I used the other app I have for publishing to the blog and for reasons beyond me it just won't publish.

Maybe I'll have more luck tomorrow.

Vote for Comment of the Week

Here are this week's contenders:

Student #1: has left a new comment on your post "Utah School Stops Musical Because of 'Sexually Sug...":

This reminds me of my experience with my parents when doing my first High School Musical; "RENT". Unfamiliar with story and the true meaning of the play, and reason for its importance they were unhappy with the content and that we were allowed to do it as high school students. It containing drugs, aids, homosexuality, sex, etc...the main focus was LOVE, and how important it is to give and receive love no matter what you have and what your going through because ultimately, to love is why we've been put on this earth.
With all of that being said, I think the best way to measure a show, is to recognize its message, and to look at the good of the show and how it can impact lives, rather than the little worldly things that are in the mix of the true message. The arts are only reflections of our reality...do people not look at themselves in the mirror everyday before leaving the house for work, school, outings, etc.?

Student #2: has left a new comment on your post "Aubrey Ireland, College Student, Wins Restraining ...":

I think helicopter parents are the worst thing that has happened to this generation of young adults. By the age of 18 (and for many of us, before then) we've learned how to do our laundry, cook our own food, make our own friends, make decisions about our body, earn our own money and choose how to spend it, choose how we work and what we like to work on. I'm very grateful that my mother took a hands-off approach in raising me, because I learned to be independent early on, making my life as a young adult much easier. I cannot even imagine what my life would be like if my mother had decided to be a hovering sort of parent. I'm very glad that this student was able to escape from under her parents. Being the major funder of a college education doesn't make someone your master. If a debt institution had set in place monitoring systems on her cell phone and computer, it would be a breach of civil rights and there would be no debate as to how wrong this is. In this case, her parents were using the fact that they were paying for her education as handcuffs, and they choose to monitor her life. They were in essence a sort of debt service, and it doesn't matter who or what does monitoring of this sort, if an adult doesn't want to be watched, he or she shouldn't be. 

Student #3: has left a new comment on your post "The Evolution of Asian Eyebrows: A (Dia)critical C...":

wow, do some things go unnoticed. I remember when Les Miserable came out, many of my costume design friends were complaining that Anne Hathaway's eyebrows were far to perfect to fit the time period, but none of them have eve mentioned the false stereotype in asian yellow face eyebrows. I'll admit I didn't even think twice about the eyebrows in "Cloud Atlas" I just took what I saw as reality. Because this style eyebrow has been around for so long, I think society has just stopped second guessing it. but now that I think about it more it really is a problem. Why do we have to exaggerate someones eyebrows just to be across a point. Also, why does to shape of the eyebros have to be such an "evil" one. It all seems quite racist. 

Student #4: has left a new comment on your post "TV episodes dropped after US shootings":

I long for the day when people will admit that PARENTING is the main issue here! You are in control of shaping your child until they go to school and then they are influenced by their peers and even then, good parenting still reigns over ALL! Regulate what your children watch, regulate what they do. Form good relationships with them, talk to them, educate them.

I watched many violent films and played many violent games as a child, but am I out there shooting up people? NO! Why? Because I understand the difference between fiction and reality. I also have a great value and respect for life. This was instilled in me from a very early age and still is now. Even when there was no television/media people (Greeks, Romans) were still fighting and killing over land, power and for pure greed. This sad aspect is the unfortunate element of human nature. However now it is seen as a cool thing to have a gun/weapon and use it. Killing innocents because you are angry or simply because you want to. Some people have no value for life and I think that this is the bigger issue!! 

Student #5: has left a new comment on your post "It’s All About “Process”":

--OPPOSING VIEW WARNING--

It's interesting to me that the new play competitions and festivals featured here all have an element of brevity - from the ten-minute play festival to the theatre that asks for only the first ten pages (because "if you've got it, it should be obvious"). It's less of an encouragement and fostering and more of an audition for the playwright's tone and style when put before an audience. Are those the merits of a playwright, being able to tell their story in ten minutes? Or is it enough (reasonable?) to expect that someone who can weave an intriguing nugget can then sufficiently stretch a story to 90 or 120 minutes? Over two acts? I take issue with these abbreviated play festivals, not because of commercial success (the descriptions of avid attendance dismiss that notion), but because it's not necessarily representative of the real situation for a play in full production at most any theatre in the country. It may play amazingly on rehearsal cubes for 10 minutes, but remember, "If I don’t like what I’m seeing now, there will be something else in 10 minutes.".

Put your votes in the comments here.

Worth a Look

First off I should say that when I went to do the "worth a look" stories this week I came up with a list of 15, so you may want to check out the Greenpage proper.  Failing that:

Here are a few posts from last week's Greenpage that might be worth your time:

Reality shows may put crews too close to cutting edge

latimes.com: Monica Martino had filmed tornadoes in the Midwest, ship collisions in the Antarctic and crab fishermen in Alaska's Bering Sea. But those experiences didn't prepare her for a terrifying nighttime boat ride in the Amazon jungle. In February, the 41-year-old co-executive producer was thrown into a murky river after getting footage for "Bamazon," a series for the History cable channel about out-of-work Alabama construction workers mining for gold in the rain forest of Guyana.

Posted by David at 1/22/2013 07:31:00 PM

Utah School Stops Musical Because of 'Sexually Suggestive' Elvis Songs

www.huffingtonpost.com: A parent who was "All Shook Up" about Elvis Presley songs in a high-school drama prompted educators to cancel the musical, deeming it too sexual. But the decision was reversed Thursday by administrators at the high school south of Salt Lake City. The administrators at Herriman High School received permission from the copyright owners of "All Shook Up" to edit some of Presley's songs and make scene changes in the American jukebox musical that borrows from William Shakespeare.

Posted by David at 1/25/2013 07:13:00 PM

Aubrey Ireland, College Student, Wins Restraining Order Against Helicopter Parents

www.huffingtonpost.com: Sometimes parents just don't know when to let go, but it's rare when a judge needs to intervene. That was the case for Aubrey Ireland, a 21-year-old music theater major at College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. She convinced a judge to grant her a restraining order against her parents, David and Julie Ireland. Posted by David at 1/22/2013 06:58:00 PM

We are in the middle of an arts reformation!

The Pink Line Project: A call to action from arts advocate and revolutionary Ben Cameron, who says we are in the middle of an arts reformation not unlike the religious reformation. Both fueled by technological advances, both redistribute culture, both take away the intermediary between man and the divine experience. Pay attention!

Posted by David at 1/25/2013 06:51:00 PM

Why we’re not done talking about diversity.

mingzhuhii.net: I don’t want to be the annoying non-white woman who goes on about the need for more interrogation around the diversity of (and in) our arts practices and structures. I’m uncomfortable enough with culturally specific labels as it is, and worse with impatient stereotypes driven by some kind of fear-induced backlash against political correctness. Especially in an industry (or series of industries that sit alongside each other) that is/are supposed to be liberal, open-minded, progressive.

Posted by David at 1/25/2013 07:04:00 PM

NFTRW Weekly Podcast

This week's effort:


This week's stories:

• Drexel Introduces Kiosk that Dispenses MacBooks
• Table Saw Safety: Why the British Think We're Crazy
• 6 Ways to Focus Without Taking Adderall
• This Mind-Boggling Installation Breaks The Laws Of Physics--Or Does It?
• 5 Things I Learned About Australian Theater
• The Staging of Ralph Ellison's 'Invisible Man'
• Why most "work made for hire" agreements in theatre don't work.
• Les Mis Film Used DPA 4071 Lavalier Mics to Capture Audio
• Opera About Walt Disney Refused Permission To Use Disney Images
• A Way Without Words: Mummenschanz Mimes Celebrate 40

But probably not in that order.

This week's participants are: Taylor, Chris, Cat, Dale, Margo, and Lauren.

I Don't Believe You

I should probably do two posts at some point to get a day ahead, and then when I miss the deadline it will be less of a technicality.

Today I had interviews for the School of Drama. I can't remember how many times I've done this. There are probably as many as a dozen opportunities per year, maybe I do half of them, so in the neighborhood of 60 times? 4-5 candidates an outing, sometimes more, so somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 candidates? Must have been more than that actually. I used to be at the interviews more in my early years.

We have this form people have to fill out before they get their session. It has a place where we attach a picture, and we will append their resume, if they remember to bring it.

BRIEF TANGENT: WHEN INTERVIEWING FOR A PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL BRING A RESUME!

So there's a picture and maybe their resume and the bottom half is for our notes: who was there, anything of particular interest, and out rating of the candidate against a bunch of standards we've come up with over the years. I don't have one in front of me, but the list sounds something like: resume, portfolio, presence, presentation, academics, ideas, expression, maturity, and tenacity. They all mean roughly what you think they would.

The top half of the form is to be filled out by the candidate and includes address and other contact information, a space where you can write anything you like, and then prompts for GPA, Class Rank, and SAT/ACT scores, along with any AP scores.

I interviewed for college in... 1985 maybe, that's like 150 years ago, right? If someone today walked up to me totally out of context and asked me what my SAT score was I could tell them. In point of fact I could come up with SAT, ACT, and class rank. I don't off the top of my head remember my GPA, but lets be fair, it was 150 years ago and I am not currently applying for colleges.

Which is all a very long winded way of saying that if when you fill out the form and decide to leave the test score blank, and then when we follow up in the meeting and ask "Did you take this test? What was your score?" and you decide to answer: "I don't remember." Well, you just sound foolish, and pretty much everyone in the room assumes you are lying.

Based on the impact that exchange has on the interview process I'd have to say that your score would have to be PRETTY BAD for this to be a net positive effect. Truth be told, the folks at your interview weigh the test score lower than the people not at your interview. You HAD to tell those other folks, so it's already hurting your chances as much as it can, you can actually only HELP yourself by giving us the score at the interview, regardless of how bad it is.

If you have a lousy interview and a lousy score - you had a lousy interview anyway so it didn't really come into play. If you had a good interview and a lousy score, we can ask what you think happened with the score and possibly weigh your response in how we lobby our own and the university admissions discussions. If you have a lousy interview and hide a bad score, the hiding will only amplify our other judgements. And if you have an otherwise good interview and hide a bad score we'll be wondering what it was you were hiding and how hiding that fact reflects on our assessment of your maturity. Also, when it comes back from admissions that you had a bad score, and it will, we will be caught unaware, unable to place the piece of information in context, and unready to form a case in your favor.

So please, if you are going to college interviews anytime soon, be conversant about your GPA, Class Rank, SAT/ACT, and AP scores. If you think you'll be nervous and will blank on the spot, take a moment and jot the relevant information down on an index card or a copy of your resume (you know, the resume you will remember to bring) so that you have it right in front of you when you need it. That way, even if the score isn't what you would hope it to be you will come off as prepared and organized rather than as being evasive.

Tu Bishvat

Tonight we had dinner with friends. A shabbat dinner, Friday night and all, with people pretty well more observant than I am (a post for another day). The part that was interesting to me was that part of the celebration tonight was in recognition of Tu Bishvat.

The holiday is sort of the spring harvest festival; a difficult thing to be in the correct mindset for after breaking in the new snowblower on 6" of freshly accumulated snow on the driveway (that could also be a post for another day). There was lots of fruit and an interesting twist on wine drinking where everyone starts with a glass of white - representing winter - and then as you drink the white wine you top it off with red - representing the life of the spring - until eventually you wind up with a glass of red wine.

(there's another another post here about an interesting dinner with food pairings for dynamically changing wine color. That post might be beyond my skill-set though).

I've never to my recollection taken part in any celebration of this holiday to date in my life, and yet it played a significant part in my growing up. All through dinner tonight I was thinking of my Mother.

I guess Mom really didn't know anything about the holiday either, particularly when it was. So one of her standard responses to when we were going to do something or see someone would be "next Tu Bushvat." I guess it was her way of saying "5th of never." So along with all the bits and pieces I learned tonight about the holiday, and along with the humor I tried to find by crossing this holiday with Passover (yes, another another another post) and by asking when we would celebrate Trombonisvat... with all of those things I got to think a lot about my mom.

It's too bad I think. From what know about the holiday I think mom would have enjoyed Tu Bishvat had it been something to her more than an expression.

Never Ending Project

I've been working on the schedule of classes, again.  It's the project that keeps on giving.  I think I'm almost home though.  Take a look:

Yes, that says 8:00am.  I hate it too.  I thought that 8:30 was bad.

There are two mistakes I know of on the thing.  Can you find any more?

Ellipses...

It is really, really cold...  That house on Fifth looks a lot nicer than the last time I was there...  Posting every day is harder than it should be...  I thought Hilary Clinton did pretty well with the committee.  I bet the committee thinks otherwise...  We're into interview season at work.  It's like Sam used to say on West Wing "I live here in January"...  My brother in law is moving to New York.  That might complicate the holiday planning...  Keep expecting to sit down for the next Steelers game.  It's going to be a while...  It's hard to give critical notes to people that are essentially volunteering.  Don't want to scare them off...  Here's my teaching week: teach, guest, teach, film, guest, film.  That'd make my father proud...  The Carnegie Mellon School of Drama will be 100 years old later this year.  I haven't been there the whole time...  The President looks more than four years older - not like Mondale did after losing - but older.  Lots of interesting TD jobs open.  Maybe I should freshen up my resume...  Did I mention that it's cold?  I had to move up a coat.  I don't remember it like this in Pittsburgh for a while...  I decided to follow a whole lot more people on Twitter this week.  Picked up a bunch of followers too, but I'm now upside down...  Did you watch the BBC series "Survivors?"  It's pretty good, and the premise is all too possible...  They're lifting the ban on women in combat.  It's taking too long, but we move a little bit all the time...  I still have to write a state of the option thing for work.  The list of things I still have to do for work is pretty long...  Looks like Apple took a bit of a hit today.  I wish that really meant something to me...  There are actors reading the Greenpage officially this semester.  Never thought I would see that happen...  Hockey is shorter this season.  Should I follow the Penguins regular season or just be a playoff fan?  I feel like I should be more of a fan...  Legislators in Texas are trying to make strippers get licenses and have them on their person at all times.  Sounds like an opportunity for tattoo artist to get into the license business...  Nice to have Justified back.  I miss Raylan while he's gone...

Vote for Comment of the Week

Here are this week's contenders:

Student #1 has left a new comment on your post "The Pros and Cons For Actors Moving With a Show":

So, lovely. You created a pretty little show off Broadway and the man with the money wants to move you uptown for a lot more money. Great, huh? I'm surprised this article didn't mention anything about the actors who, building a show in a Steppenwolf or OB venue, have to change their mindset to work in an exponentially bigger house. Mannerisms must get bigger, not to mention strengthening the voice to support a larger sound. Add to it the fact that some of these productions were extremely limited runs (even as little as 3 weeks or so) and now you're going to a permanent 8-shows-a-week gig. That takes some warming up. Sometimes you live in Chicago and don't want to move to New York; or maybe starting a long-term occupancy in New York represents a significant need for assistance in transportation and moving costs. There are serious considerations for both the actor and the producer, mentally/spiritually/physically and financially, that go beyond what the increase from LORT to Broadway salary scale is. 

Student #2 has left a new comment on your post "What Molly Did Next":

I loved reading this article and following Louise Brealey's path to overcoming her fear and growing as a woman and actress. Nudity on stage is always a very sensitive topic, and should be handled as so. Brealey's realization that she was able to turn her fear of being naked in public into a strength, placing her in a position of power, is an interesting exploration of what nudity means to oneself and in society. Brealey declares she wants to appear natural, not like some kind of unreal goddess; yet eventually, because she plays Helen of Troy who has to be the most beautiful woman there ever was, she somewhat fits her appearance to what a woman should ideally be according to today's societal standards. Now, is this simply part of her role, and therefore her duty as a performer, or does this show another facet of the issue? Beyond the idea of the taboo and the embarrassment of nudity, I think this article also makes a strong statement about society's expectation of women's beauty, a controversial topic that has often been examined, discussed and re-examined. All in all, I am simply glad I got to read such an personal and insightful article on one of the most sensitive issues in theater. 

Student #3 has left a new comment on your post "Texas Lawmaker Wants Strippers To Wear Licenses Di...":

I think this idea has potential, but it seems to have been taken too far. While requiring strippers to take courses about how to remain safe is a good idea, I think pushing the cost onto the employees is questionable. If the employers are the ones making a lot of money off of their businesses, they should be the ones who offer safety training and incur the expense. Most other companies that have employees that are required to have safety training sessions are required to supply that training at their own cost. Why should this be any different?

I also question why these employees should be required to keep their license on their person at all times while working. There are not many industries that require this, so why would strippers need to? It would make sense that their employers must have a copy of the license on record and would need to provide proof of licensing in order to put an employee on payroll, but it seems extreme to require the employee to display that license at all times.

I am also curious as to what rmarkowi meant by "forcing people from legitimate jobs and opening them to harassment." How is requiring someone to obtain a license forcing someone from a legitimate job? Isn't that making their job more legitimate? 

Student #4 has left a new comment on your post "Table Saw Safety: Why the British Think We're Craz...":

Yeah, sure they get some things right, just don't ask them to plan an invasion of occupied France. Dunkirk aside, both British and American commentators posting below this article hit on the truth about the table saw: there is no substitute for common sense and no safe-guard against carelessness. The table saw is a dangerous tool, yes, but so is a sharp chisel. The closest I've ever come to losing a finger was using the latter. Why? Inattentiveness and lack of experience. The immitigable fact is the cost of acquiring experience with the table saw, or any tool, can be high. Government doucuments and regulations are what they are, and hearing different approaches to and set ups for a tool use is helpful and instructive, as long as we remember that the buck, or maybe in this case it would be more appropriate to say the kickback, stops with you. 

Student #5 has left a new comment on your post "'Adventure Hour' Is A New Take On Old-Time Radio":

This article reminds me why I love theatre so much. There are always people finding new ways of making theatre that incorporate other art and story telling forms. Old-Time radio shows have been a favorite story telling style of mine since I was about 10. I am very inspired by the work that the two Ben's are doing. I would love to see one of these shows or even better be part of putting on a "fake radio" show myself. To me one of the most important elements of radio shows is that everyone needs to be listening in at the same time. This connects the audience even though they are in different homes or cars. This sort of connection between the audience members is lost today because of the "any time" qualities of the internet and recorded shows. The one place that live still remains strong is in theatre. So this connection speaks strongly to me. This weekend I'm going to listen to the podcast online.

Worth a Look

Here are some articles from last week's greenpage that might be worth your time:

The Staging of Ralph Ellison’s ‘Invisible Man’

NYTimes.com: THE estate of Ralph Ellison had never allowed his classic 1952 novel “Invisible Man” to be adapted for another medium, until Oren Jacoby came along. And even after Mr. Jacoby turned the 439-page book into a play — with not a word of new dialogue, as part of the agreement — many theaters passed on staging it, calling it unwieldy or wrong for their audiences.

Posted by David at 1/19/2013 03:17:00 PM

Why most “work made for hire” agreements in theatre don’t work.

Law Offices of Gordon P. Firemark - Top Los Angeles Theatre & Film Entertainment Lawyer: Writers and Producers familiar with the way things are done in Hollywood have surely seen the ubiquitous term “Work Made For Hire” in their contracts. It's often a surprise, however, when they learn that in the theatre, Work Made For Hire is the rare exception, rather than the rule.

Posted by David at 1/19/2013 03:03:00 PM

Les Mis Film Used DPA 4071 Lavalier Mics to Capture Audio

Stage Directions: The film version of the musical Les Misérables was one of the most exciting musicals in decades both because it’s such a well-loved musical with an all-star cast—and also because of the radical new way the film was recorded. Rather than filming actors merely lip-syncing to tracks they had recorded in the studio, the production recorded vocals live on set, with live piano accompaniment playing to them via in-ear monitors. To capture the raw emotion of this live performance the director, Tom Hooper, wanted to film with multiple cameras from multiple angles, which precluded the use of boom mics. In order to make that happen, and still capture quality audio, production sound mixer Simon Hayes used 50 DPA 4071 lavalier microphones. More details about his choice—and why he was so enthused about the sound.

Posted by David at 1/19/2013 02:54:00 PM

Opera About Walt Disney Refused Permission To Use Disney Images

Techdirt: Techdirt has noted before the hypocrisy of Disney in refusing to allow others to draw on its creativity in the same way that it has drawn on the art and ideas of the past. Here's another example, but this time it's an opera that's had difficulties

Posted by David at 1/16/2013 03:03:00 PM

A Way Without Words: Mummenschanz Mimes Celebrate 40

NPR: Mummenschanz isn't your white-faced, Marcel Marceau mime. The bizarre masks, costumes and choreography cloak the human form to tell stories that convey messages about our lives.

Posted by David at 1/18/2013 04:01:00 PM