January's Odds And Ends

Howdy all

It's been a long, long time since I updated you all on Trish and my comings-and-goings... I've actually had this post slowly baking all week, adding little bits to it here and there... but as time marches on and more keeps happening in the world, I figured I'd better take a few moments this morning to get it finalized and up here. So, lets get you all caught up on a few bits of news, some thoughts on current events, share a couple of funny items with you... mostly a big ol' grab bag of the chaotic thoughts running through my head as 2008 gets rolling.

In other words, this is going to be one of those long, rambling, nonsense-ridden posts you've gotten used to. Go ahead, get some coffee or something to eat. I'll still be here when you get back.

Ready? Ok... then... here we go...

>> First off, Dead of Winter Opens Next week! You may remember my mentioning the upcoming show's MySpace page in an earlier post this month... things have been shaping up quite nicely as we enter our final week of rehearsals (and tech weekend, which is going to be a particular adventure for us given the fact that these plays deal with the supernatural. Thankfully we're in the very capable hands of sound designer extrodinaire' Gordon Romei and stage manager/ lighting designer Julie Booth... the tech process might be painful, but the final result is sure to be magical).

One bit of "DOW" news I don't think I've shared with you... Sharon Sassone (known as "ShaSha" to many in the Portland theater community) was originally cast in the show, but she's had a family emergency which is going to force her to return to Chicago. Luckily, Trish had an open schedule for January and February, so she's agreed to step in and take on ShaSha's roles (she's in two of the three short plays that make up the evening of ghost stories). She's been sweating blood and putting her nose to the grindstone to try and get the lines down in time for our opening next week; she plays a medium who speaks in unearthly voices in one piece and a tough rural Oregon woman in another... there's been a lot of line running around our house the past couple weeks.


What, you may ask, are the plays that make up Dead of Winter? The evening begins with Whitechappel (Winner of the Sam Bass One-Act Contest in Austin), which takes us to a London flat which may or may not be haunted by the grandfather of serial killers, Jack the Ripper. I'm in this piece, as is Trish. Next is a World Premiere written especially for The Bluestockings (who co-produce the evening with playwright Steve Patterson's production company, Pavement Productions). Wet Paint invites us into a house which may or may not have uninvited guests, and a rainy night's séance which may or may not be harmless fun. Trish is also featured in this play. The evening rounds out with The Body, a visit with a grieving coroner who may or may not be a little too in touch with one of his "patients." The Body was featured in The Nature of Fear and Its Effects, produced by Jobsite Theatre at the Tampa Performing Arts Center.

So, make plans to join us the first four weekends in February at Performance Works Northwest (4625 SE 67th Avenue, Portland) in the Foster Arts District. The show runs Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays through February 23rd. Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door, and $10 for students and seniors (Thursdays are sliding scale). Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.theblustockings.com/, or call 503-777-2771 for reservations.

It's winter, after all... Bare trees. Fog. A chill breeze. It's the perfect time of year to cozy up and tell stories about things that might be there, in the dark. In the night. And that's just what these three psychological chillers do: explore that which isn't there…unless it is!

Hope we see you at the show!

>> Lady Wasteland has posted its seventh and final episode of its pilot run (ironically entitled "The First") at http://www.ladywasteland.com/. It's been a wild ride... over the course of a month-and-a-half Lady Wasteland has generated tens of thousands of hits worldwide (a large concentration coming from Asia... in fact, there's been a lot of buzz about it on the Asian Entertainment community site Alive Not Dead), and it's received a lot of attention from video sites like revver.com, dailymotion.com, crackle.com, and many others.

So, the big question is "What happens next?" Creators Mark Roush and Greg Demchak are actively looking to either syndicate the show for television and/or expand its presence as an online webisode series. A lot of it depends on how much demand there is for more... the comments sent through the web site and left on video sharing sites have been overly positive. Assuming Mark and Greg can secure funding (or syndication) from financial backers, they're hoping to start production of a new set of episodes in late spring or early summer.

So, as is so often the case, it all depends on the money. Spread the word to people who may not have seen the series... if we get enough demand, and we can show the numbers to potential backers... who knows what might happen?

>> We could only hope to be as popular as this little flash video that's been making the rounds of the internets (that series of tubes) called "Animator vs Animation." Have you seen this yet? It's a hoot, and very skillfully made. Check it out for yourself (sorry to those of you who are on dial-up; it probably won't run so smoothly for you). Thanks for sending it along, Jelly!



>> Mike Huckabee is one creepy, theocracy-cravin', squirrel-eatin' lunatic.

(Thanks to Steve Patterson for the image. He may not have created it, but he's the one who posted it on his blog for me to swipe.)

Ok, so you all know that Huckabee pulled a surprise win out of the Iowa Caucuses... a big surprise, since the establishment in the Republican party doesn't even like him much. Some non-rabid Republicans have started to warm to him, because he seems like less of a toadie to corporate intersts, and more committed to good Christian values like social justice and helping the poor.

Before you start warming too much to the Huckster, though... you might just want to listen to this:




Creepy... aren't the conservobots complaining about how "un-democratic" Iran is because their religious leaders run the country? Hmmmm... and lets not forget the squirrel eating!

Now don't get me wrong - lots of people eat squirrels (I guess). As Portland radio personality Rick Emerson has taken to saying, though, between Huckabee's use of Chuck Norris in his campaign ads, Nature Boy Rick Flair in his personal appearances (and his offer to make him Director of Homeland Security), and his rallying around the Confederate flag... he seems to be counting on the "Foxworthy vote" to get him in the white house.

The simple fact of the matter is the Christian Evangelicals who used to be a major power in the Republican party (the looniest of them included, like the wack-o's that are going to picket Heath Ledger's funeral) are Huckabee's strongest base of support. More moderate Christians like the fact that he talks the talk... but they're a little leery of "ammending the consititution to fit 'God's Law.' "

This is causing something of a rift in the Republican party, since the Republicans currently in power were happy to pander to that group for votes, but didn't really believe in what they believe in, or consider them worth their time once they actually got elected. Now, the Evangelicals have their very own VERY Evangelical candidate, and the Republican party main-stays are getting nervous about the Loony-wing of the religious right actually having real power in the party. It's tough when a party's own hipocracy turns around and bites it, huh?

>>Meanwhile, Fred Thompson finally dropped his shambling saunter towards the White House... I think the proprietor of Socks and Barney (a great polictical satire comic online; go back and read from the beginning; it's good stuff) said it best in this comic strip.

>> While we're on the subject of politics, I have to say that John Edwards is looking better and better as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama's campaigns keep devolving into name-calling and cat-scratching. I'm not going to go into ALL the reasons why I'm a big Edwards supporter - this post has gotten too long as it is - but suffice it to say he's got the experience, he can bring people people together, he can negotiate AND fight for the middle class... he's the real deal. I know Barack Obama is many people's sentimental choice, but lets be honest - he's got 2 Years of national-level political experience. I know Hillary Clinton is many people's "safe choice," but we've seen plenty of the down-sides she has to offer in recent weeks (aside from the fact that she's a total corporatist - one of the major problems we face in the US these days is too much corporate power, and I don't think she's going to change that).

Take another look at Edwards... he's not flashy, he doesn't have the campaign war-chest to buy as much TV advertising as Clinton and Obama (and, funny thing... the news media doesn't pay as much attention to him... hmmmmmm...) but I, myself, think he's the right choice in 2008.

Of course, I'm a registered Independent, so I can't vote in Oregon's Democratic Primary... this is really the only venue I have to make that point :) Again, I think Socks and Barney hit it right on the head...

>> So, that's pretty much where my head's been of late... I just figured I had to get this up here instead of constantly adding to it and never posting it. As we close out January and move on into the next month, I'll try to get better about posting shorter, more to the point posts.

Feel free to come to my show and remind me to do so...

I've really got to get going now... hope you're all doing well...

-Harold