Worth a Look

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

Architecture and the Lost Art of Drawing

NYTimes.com: IT has become fashionable in many architectural circles to declare the death of drawing. What has happened to our profession, and our art, to cause the supposed end of our most powerful means of conceptualizing and representing architecture?

Posted by David at 9/13/2012 04:21:00 PM 

A Response to Not So Modern Music Blog

hudsonsounds.org: I will diverge from my typical comments on pianos and all things piano to speak instead about music in general in response to a very thoughtful blog by my friend and colleague, Mary Jane Leach. In her recent blog, she brings up some very vital points regarding what is considered ‘modern’ and how the presenters/performers and audience relate to such in music. I found her comments thought-provoking and it struck a chord with me in a completely different way.

Posted by David at 9/17/2012 03:20:00 PM 

A Tech Expo Challenge

usitt.org: Here’s a challenge to all USITT members: make this the biggest Tech Expo ever! What does that mean? It is simple. Take a little time to look over the past production challenges and triumphs; if there is a unique or innovative solution, share them with the rest of the membership.

Posted by David at 9/17/2012 04:10:00 PM 

New Exhibitors Line Up for PLASA Focus: Stamford

Lighting&Sound America Online - News: Momentum for PLASA Focus: Stamford 2012 is growing fast with a host of new exhibitors choosing their positions on the show floor. The free two-day event takes place November 12-13 at the Stamford Marriott, Connecticut, and will showcase the very latest in theatre and event production technology.

Posted by David at 9/15/2012 04:22:00 PM 

Visual-Effects Artists Fear Reprisal If They Voice Support For Unionization

ibtimes.com: A lot has changed in the visual-effects industry since 1902, when Georges Méliès shot a fake rocket into a man's face for the pioneering science-fiction film "A Trip to the Moon." But perhaps the biggest change is where visual effects now stand on the box-office totem pole. The wattage of star power has long been on the wane, and today's young moviegoers line up not for big names, but for big effects.

Posted by David at 9/13/2012 03:15:00 PM

Ellipses...

First post to the blog using the tablet and the new keyboard. All I need now is a mouse and I will have succeeded in turning a perfectly good tablet into a pretty lame laptop... Smooth Criminal projects went pretty well. Have to think about some changes for the next time... Beginning to feel confident enough about the Presidential race to maybe spend what money I might on Congress instead... Gave up on Misfits. I feel like a bad sci-fi fan... Mrs. TANBI hooked up Amazon Prime with video streaming, of The West Wing - 24 hour mobile on demand West Wing. There's an unparalleled time killer... Speaking of time killers, my Tiny Tower game is up to 102 floors. I was thinking about calling it quits at 100. Guess that didn't happen... Went to work today on the holiday. Gonna try to have both the holiday and work tomorrow... I've also become a fairly addicted Bejeweled Blitz player. Do yourself a service and don't load games onto your mobile devices, no matter what any 8 year old thinks of your selections... Lots of new TV picking up. Added Mob Doctor and the new JJAbrams to the DVR along with season 2 of Homeland. I've also got high hopes for Last Resort. One would think I would have learned my lesson from Sarah Connors and just not start watching new shows... The hectic pace of my spring semester made me forget that I'd actually managed to make the fall semester pretty manageable... Here's a thought for further discussion later: instead of pouring more money into college and making sure everyone gets to go let's direct that funding to primary and secondary education and make them so good everyone doesn't have to go to college... This morning I was growling at the terrible news coverage on CNN and then I remembered I was watching MSNBC... It's unlikely that Tony Gonzales will manage to land me 23 fantasy points tonight. Maybe I just shouldn't play fantasy football... Getting ready for a week of automation training out West. That should be cool... To those that celebrate: Happy New Year...

Hula Cam

Great idea, even better execution.


I never would have thought of that.

Smooth Criminal 2012

So we brought back the Smooth Criminal project this year in Technical Direction 3. I can now safely say everyone did a great job and although we were pretty nervous about it nobody fell over.

I think if I do the project again in the future I am going to specify a required final angle as after discussion it seems like there would be more R&D required if instead of just doing the best they could they actually had to reach a certain angle of lean. Probably it would require additional modification of the boots. We also talked about maybe putting together an actor, a TD, and a costume technologist into three person teams working together. Maybe next time. For this round we can now declare a winner in the lean but don't fall competition.

First up is Robert:

Robert only manages a 20 degree lean, but he's tall and there'd be a lot of torque in play. Then there's Sonia:

Sonia managed a 21 degree lean. her choice of shoe basically negated any help she would have gotten from her ankles for a deeper lean. Who knew?  I think she's also the only one actually leaning forward at the waist.

Next is Tiffany:

Tiffany gets to a 27 degree lean. Now we're starting to get into the range we need to be. I think Tiffany gets further forward in the group shot above.

And finally we have Luke:

Luke pulls off a 36 degree lean making him this year's champion by 9 degrees.

Congrats to everyone on work well done and on time!

Vote for Comment of the Week

This week's contenders, put your votes in the comments for this post:


Comment #1: a new comment on your post "Working class prefers comedy and the intellectual ...":

I liked this argument better when it was called Upper Class likes Noh and Lower Class likes Kabuki.
Its a cultural issue. We are looking at too closely. These two styles of story telling happen to both classes and both can empathize with each genre. There's no boundary to be drawn. So I would agree with Dale. Comedy and drama are human experiences and all humans can relate equally to both.
I wonder how much of it has to do with socioeconomic roles and stereotypes that people feel the need to fill or become. Do rich people really like opera? Or do they like to laugh? Are those art-house dramas actually comedies that take themselves too seriously because they are catering to a certain audience?
Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to drink some chocolate milk and watch Remains of the Day again. 

Comment #2: a new comment on your post "Strippers on a train: The reality of Chinglish cos...":

This was interesting to me to read about, since I've never heard of seen of a set up like this before, I do think it is amazing though. I like the collaboration between the design team that took place in order to make this be able to happen. The entire production team all had to be on the same page in order for this to be executed. This is definitely one of those elements that isn't appreciated or necessarily noticed by the audience but has a lot of thought and organization put into it. I'm sure they are amazed once the same actor is on stage 40 seconds later wearing a different outfit however, but don't think twice about all the work put into it!  

Comment #3: a new comment on your post "Public Funding?":

Barring magic wands, or perhaps even more unlikely a change in the political wind, it might be more instructive to look at this issue from somewhere closer to reality. In a country where per capita government funding for the arts is basically non-existent (in the U.S. less than 50 cents per capita per year, God Bless America), artists depend on commercial success or private funding to realize their visions. Again, realizing that this situation is not likely to change in our lifetimes, maybe we should look on the bright side. I don't know if I think that's such a bad thing that a free market rather than a bureaucrat should decide what art should be produced and what is best left un-produced. Call me a Republican, but I think it's a mistake to place any power concerning taste in the hands of government. From commercially successful, subscriber-based theaters to hillbilly art collectives making floating sculptures out of trash, there are many ways fund the endeavor. In my limited experience, most of them involve creating within your means and being true to your goals than free piles of cash. Good art will always find a way to get done, and if your worried about it, so will bad art (and yes, there is such a thing).  

Comment #4: a new comment on your post "In Some sweet day Series, Dance Meets Visual Arts":

With the focus that our society now puts on collaboration and communication, a combination of the visual and performing arts in a museum space really isn't surprising. An interesting point brought up in this article is that despite curators' efforts, there seems to be a resistance from the visual arts world to accept performance and dance in an exhibition space as a legitimate component of the museum's collection. Because of the ephemeral nature of the performing arts, it is difficult to integrate them as permanent exhibitions, necessitating an incredible amount of comprehension and cooperation between the various groups in charge of putting together these wonderful dance and performance pieces, which are truly innovative.  

Comment #5: a new comment on your post "A Review of ‘Phantom’ in Bellport, N.Y.":

I would really like to see "Phantom." I've already seen the Lloyd Webber version, and I've read Gaston Leroux's novel in french. Of course, the Webber version is overly commercialized and became a different story from the original novel. "Phantom" probably does not have the rock music, which would again bring it closer to the Leroux's idea. I'm very interested in Eric. First of all, this production gives him an identity, helping the audience relate and pity his deformity. Second, his personal struggle to show Christine his face is more interesting than the action-packed Webber production. I feel that Eric's actions will evoke a more powerful emotion from the audience; there's just something so interesting about watching a character with an inner conflict