By Sunday we had the drill down. We showed up early, got wristbands (high numbers but not too bad for our favorite spot in the back), went home to chill, then came back to get into the pen. We decided to slow our roll and not show up to the pen super early, instead giving … Continue reading Sunday 5/31 – Night 4
Interlude II
MONDAY 6/1 AND TUESDAY 6/2 We had expected Sunday to be our final show together, and I was even more bummed for a solo visit to the Wednesday show than I had been for the Saturday show. Something deep down inside us didn’t want to be separated, so we spent the lingering two days before … Continue reading Interlude II
Wednesday 6/3 – Night 5
By the night of the last show, there was nothing else we could hope for, nothing else we could want. Any and all of our desires had been answered and all we could feel was gratitude. We made new signs, for myself, another one that said “Thank You” and Nia drew a globe inside a … Continue reading Wednesday 6/3 – Night 5
Background
It started with a song. Or maybe a video. I seem to remember airplanes. Oriental rugs on a Charles de Gaulle runway. Four guys fresh from the 90's jamming to the coolest hit of the new millennium. For some reason, it’s a sound that I remember as much more visual than music would seem, but it … Continue reading Background
Tuesday 5/26 – Night 1
I was ready. I had spent the past several days reviewing the U2 canon — watching old tours and shows (PopMart Live from Mexico City 1997. Glastonbury 2011. Under a Blood Red Sky 1983), reviewing popular songs and their lyrics, skimming forums for set lists, and something new that completely blew my mind—watching live feeds and … Continue reading Tuesday 5/26 – Night 1
Isolating Tensions: Foreground & Background in “Children of Men”
The world in P.D. James’ novel The Children of Men differs vastly from the onscreen realm that we see in the 2006 film adaptation. The basic premise remains the same: widespread infertility has halted the birth of human babies for nearly twenty-five years and Oxford professor Theo Faron, along with the rest of humanity, calmly and apathetically … Continue reading Isolating Tensions: Foreground & Background in “Children of Men”
What We Talk About When We Talk About Theatre: “Birdman” Review
But how can we talk about Birdman? It, like Raymond Carver’s elusive love, cannot be talked about but only around. It can only be seen in contrast to what is not seen, its presence detected by way of what it moves, and creates, like wind in the trees or antibodies in the blood. In contrast to … Continue reading What We Talk About When We Talk About Theatre: “Birdman” Review
Answered Prayers: “Foxcatcher” Review
In the closing moments of Bennett Miller’s 2005 film Capote, director Bennett Miller tells us that “More tears are shed over answered prayers than unanswered ones.” Foxcatcher tells a similar tale. It is cold in the same way that Miller’s Capote is cold, a pensive progression of events that will soon go awry in the pursuit of answering prayers. … Continue reading Answered Prayers: “Foxcatcher” Review
(Don’t!) Let the Beat Drop: “Whiplash” Review
Like the title suggests, Whiplash is a jarring and explosive event, striking with a force and power that stuns and reverberates for moments to come. Director Damien Chazelle doesn’t direct a film so much as he conducts an orchestra, leading with a barrage of percussion and brass then, deftly, employs gentle finely-tuned writing to create … Continue reading (Don’t!) Let the Beat Drop: “Whiplash” Review
Steady Hands. No Fast Pans. Don’t Use the Zoom. “Nightcrawler” Review
Dan Gilroy’s Nightcrawler wants to be noir in the same way that Lou Bloom wants to be a cinematic auteur, clinging with tight desperation to an idea that can never fully come to fruition. Instead it lurks in shadows and creates a quiet, pensive beauty grown from a horror that should deeply disturb us but … Continue reading Steady Hands. No Fast Pans. Don’t Use the Zoom. “Nightcrawler” Review
