...and it seems like I should be going out tonight...I wish I was 22 again...blah blah blah...all you regular readers know the Thursday drill. :-)
FLT3
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Thursday, February 16, 2006
End of week thoughts
As usual, Thursday night is approaching, and the old sentimental thoughts of Thursday night college revelry come to mind. I think I'll be 80 years old and Thursday night will still conjure images of The Varsity, The Hound's Tooth, or The Brass Monkey. (The Varsity is long-demolished, and I have no idea if either of the other dives still exist, but they will all live forever in my memory, where "college" always means "late 1980's." :-)
Last Sunday was the BATA (Birmingham Area Theatre Alliance) Gala, featuring 5-10 minute excerpts from the offerings of various local theatre groups. The selections ranged from truly amazing to somewhat less than perfect, but the overall event was entertaining and fun. Brent and Leah (King and Anna, respectively) did the "Shall We Dance" number from K&I, which went very well.
The main event of the gala was the presentation of the lifetime achievement award to Jack & Suzanne Mann. They have been prominent in Birmingham's theatre scene for years, and the award was well-deserved.
I am once again subbing at Pizitz Middle School today. So far, the kids are sedate enough...maybe the anticipation of a 4-day weekend has them numb with excitement...or maybe the lunchroom served Nyquil milkshakes today. Either way, I'm not complaining.
FLT3
Last Sunday was the BATA (Birmingham Area Theatre Alliance) Gala, featuring 5-10 minute excerpts from the offerings of various local theatre groups. The selections ranged from truly amazing to somewhat less than perfect, but the overall event was entertaining and fun. Brent and Leah (King and Anna, respectively) did the "Shall We Dance" number from K&I, which went very well.
The main event of the gala was the presentation of the lifetime achievement award to Jack & Suzanne Mann. They have been prominent in Birmingham's theatre scene for years, and the award was well-deserved.
I am once again subbing at Pizitz Middle School today. So far, the kids are sedate enough...maybe the anticipation of a 4-day weekend has them numb with excitement...or maybe the lunchroom served Nyquil milkshakes today. Either way, I'm not complaining.
FLT3
Monday, February 13, 2006
Movie Review
After seeing CURIOUS GEORGE on Friday night (see previous post for details) I can honestly say that I would give it 3 stars, possibly 3.5 as I have only two real complaints...but we'll get to those in a minute. My comments are overwhelmingly positive, and I think the producers have hit upon a mostly-perfect style to keep a CG franchise alive and well for a long time. While not identical to the original H.A. Rey illustrations, George and friends are based very closely upon the original, and maintain the style and feeling of the beloved books. With one exception...
As voiced by Will Ferrell, The Man In The Yellow Hat has become less of a benevolent father-figure and more of a buffoon. His bumbling and stumbling are funny, just not really "right" for TMITYH. I would have much preferred to see (hear?) someone like Dick Van Dyke (who also voices one of the characters) as TMITYH, with Will Ferrell as a bumbling lab assistant or jungle guide. Ferrell was funny...just not appropriately cast.
My other complaint is a small one, as the "problem" was very short-lived. However, (and this is a frequent criticism I have with much children's literature) there were a couple of genuinely scary moments in which George appeared to be in real danger. As I admitted, these were few... one of these lasted for about two seconds (a fall from a great height, only to be caught and saved at the last minute by TMITYH) and the other about two minutes (a not-so-happy segment in which The Man is despondent over a mishap at the museum and George is put on a boat back to Africa...of course, The Man realizes how much he loves George and rushes down to the boat and saves him.) Okay, so we're not talking Bambi's mother or Old Yeller-type "oh my God, I want to kill myself" tear-jerking, but especially for the younger ones, these segments may have been a bit too intense. I would have found it much more palatable to have seen a secondary character emperiled in some way, and George and TMITYH rushing together to save "Fred" or whoever...I'm sure I've put waaaaaaaaaaay more thought into the subject than the average 6-year-old (ie the movie's target audience) but I think it would be better not to have the kids genuinely fear for the safety or well-being of a character in whom they have put an emotional investment. I mean, let's face it...do you really care what happens to "random guy we've only seen once or twice?"
Bottom line, however, is that there is (of course) a very sweet and happy ending, the film is cute and faithful to the books, and overall, the casting is superb. As a CG fan, I recommend it highly.
FLT3
As voiced by Will Ferrell, The Man In The Yellow Hat has become less of a benevolent father-figure and more of a buffoon. His bumbling and stumbling are funny, just not really "right" for TMITYH. I would have much preferred to see (hear?) someone like Dick Van Dyke (who also voices one of the characters) as TMITYH, with Will Ferrell as a bumbling lab assistant or jungle guide. Ferrell was funny...just not appropriately cast.
My other complaint is a small one, as the "problem" was very short-lived. However, (and this is a frequent criticism I have with much children's literature) there were a couple of genuinely scary moments in which George appeared to be in real danger. As I admitted, these were few... one of these lasted for about two seconds (a fall from a great height, only to be caught and saved at the last minute by TMITYH) and the other about two minutes (a not-so-happy segment in which The Man is despondent over a mishap at the museum and George is put on a boat back to Africa...of course, The Man realizes how much he loves George and rushes down to the boat and saves him.) Okay, so we're not talking Bambi's mother or Old Yeller-type "oh my God, I want to kill myself" tear-jerking, but especially for the younger ones, these segments may have been a bit too intense. I would have found it much more palatable to have seen a secondary character emperiled in some way, and George and TMITYH rushing together to save "Fred" or whoever...I'm sure I've put waaaaaaaaaaay more thought into the subject than the average 6-year-old (ie the movie's target audience) but I think it would be better not to have the kids genuinely fear for the safety or well-being of a character in whom they have put an emotional investment. I mean, let's face it...do you really care what happens to "random guy we've only seen once or twice?"
Bottom line, however, is that there is (of course) a very sweet and happy ending, the film is cute and faithful to the books, and overall, the casting is superb. As a CG fan, I recommend it highly.
FLT3
Friday, February 10, 2006
Curious George, The Curious Little Monkey...
Okay, admit it, those of you who grew up in the 70's were singing the tune from the Curious George cartoons that used to come on "Captain Kangaroo," weren't you? :-) Today is opening day of "Curious George: The Movie," and I am proud to say that my 35-year-old-grown-up-adult behind will be in a seat at the theatre. I'm sure I will be about 6 times the age of most of the other patrons, but so what? As those of you who know me can well attest, I am a HUGE Curious George fan. (Have been since I was about 3 years old and first encountered the books.) I have decided that my other childhood addiction, "Gilligan's Island," actually overlaps with George's world... George lived in the jungle, right? Gilligan, The Skipper and company were always interacting with monkeys, right? There you are...Curious George was born on Gilligan's Island! (The only problem with this theory is that it makes The Man With The Yellow Hat yet another one of the heartless visitors to the island who left the castaways stranded...oh well, maybe he only had room on his boat for George... :-)
This has been a MUCH better day than yesterday, as I have been back at VHHS, leaving the evil brats of the middle school behind. It still baffles me how kids can go from completely out-of-control middle schoolers to normal, reasonable high schoolers in only a couple of years. C'est la vie, I suppose.
All is well on the theatre front. "The King & I" is going well, and the BATA Gala (sort of an annual get-together for local theatre groups, with everyone showing off a selection from an upcoming show) is this weekend. CenterStage will be presenting the "Shall We Dance" number, which should be very good.
Just 40 days until Spring arrives.
FLT3
This has been a MUCH better day than yesterday, as I have been back at VHHS, leaving the evil brats of the middle school behind. It still baffles me how kids can go from completely out-of-control middle schoolers to normal, reasonable high schoolers in only a couple of years. C'est la vie, I suppose.
All is well on the theatre front. "The King & I" is going well, and the BATA Gala (sort of an annual get-together for local theatre groups, with everyone showing off a selection from an upcoming show) is this weekend. CenterStage will be presenting the "Shall We Dance" number, which should be very good.
Just 40 days until Spring arrives.
FLT3
Thursday, February 09, 2006
Trying Not To Explode
By the time anyone reads this, I may be in jail for killing children. I am subbing today at Pizitz Middle School, and the kids are beyond uncontrolled. No amount of asking them sweetly to be quiet or yelling "SHUT UP" seems to be working. It's amazing to me how the same little hellians become relatively decent and normal when they reach High School. These kids are evil, though...rotten to the core. (Ask me how I really feel...)
There's only about an hour and a half to go...maybe I'll survive. No, rephrase that...maybe THEY will survive. I have really started to develop sympathies for all the middle-school teachers I thought to be so mean and unreasonable when I was 11 or 12. If my contemporaries and I were this awful (and I'm sure we were) it's amazing that we weren't all thrown in jail by 8th grade.
Oh well...that's why they pay me the big bucks, I guess...
FLT3
There's only about an hour and a half to go...maybe I'll survive. No, rephrase that...maybe THEY will survive. I have really started to develop sympathies for all the middle-school teachers I thought to be so mean and unreasonable when I was 11 or 12. If my contemporaries and I were this awful (and I'm sure we were) it's amazing that we weren't all thrown in jail by 8th grade.
Oh well...that's why they pay me the big bucks, I guess...
FLT3
Monday, February 06, 2006
BMH B**CHES!!!!!!
Oh yeah, I had me a real big time at the movies last night. It was beyond magical...beyond amazing. It was, in all honesty, the BEST NIGHT EVER!! I will never look at the medium of film in quite the same way ever again.
And what happened, you may ask? Well, I'll tell you. I went with a couple of my friends to see the finest film ever made. Raymond, Lindsey and I (now known as the BMH Posse) saw BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2. It transcended cinematographic excellence, with the zany comedic stylings of Martin Lawrence as "Big Momma," and the performances of the other actors who (I'm sure) have names, but I can't recall any of them. The subtle nuances of Lawrence's performance ran an emotional and dramatic gamut that neither DeNiro or Olivier could approach. The script was subtle, yet sparklingly enchanting, and the supporting characters were well-written and completely three-dimensional.
So many emotions after such a wonderful film...it really makes one ponder the meaning of life, the true definition of honor, and the innumerable mysteries of God and the universe.
If BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2 does not win Best Picture of 2006, it will be a travesty. Surely Oscar will smile on this heartwarming contemporary classic, which is sure to be studied for years to come by actors, writers, and directors alike. It is, in every essence of the word, a masterpiece on par with any script by Oscar Wilde or Noel Coward.
BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2 may usher in a new era of world peace and universal prosperity. God bless Martin Lawrence!
BMH B**CHES!!!!!!
FLT3
And what happened, you may ask? Well, I'll tell you. I went with a couple of my friends to see the finest film ever made. Raymond, Lindsey and I (now known as the BMH Posse) saw BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2. It transcended cinematographic excellence, with the zany comedic stylings of Martin Lawrence as "Big Momma," and the performances of the other actors who (I'm sure) have names, but I can't recall any of them. The subtle nuances of Lawrence's performance ran an emotional and dramatic gamut that neither DeNiro or Olivier could approach. The script was subtle, yet sparklingly enchanting, and the supporting characters were well-written and completely three-dimensional.
So many emotions after such a wonderful film...it really makes one ponder the meaning of life, the true definition of honor, and the innumerable mysteries of God and the universe.
If BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2 does not win Best Picture of 2006, it will be a travesty. Surely Oscar will smile on this heartwarming contemporary classic, which is sure to be studied for years to come by actors, writers, and directors alike. It is, in every essence of the word, a masterpiece on par with any script by Oscar Wilde or Noel Coward.
BIG MOMMA'S HOUSE 2 may usher in a new era of world peace and universal prosperity. God bless Martin Lawrence!
BMH B**CHES!!!!!!
FLT3
Friday, February 03, 2006
Spring approaches, as does the weekend
As of today, 3 February, 2006, we have 47 days until the first day of Spring. Yay!
Today is going well. As usual, I am subbing at VHHS. The kids are fine, keeping the noise at a minimum and at least sort of pretending to do their work. So far, so good, and I have a back-to-back lunch and planning period, so it should be an easy day. Fridays usually are.
The King & I is going well. We have most of the show at least roughly blocked, and can start to work on refining and polishing. Tomorrow is an all-day rehearsal day, so I am hopeful that by next week we will be really getting down to perfecting the show.
FLT3
Today is going well. As usual, I am subbing at VHHS. The kids are fine, keeping the noise at a minimum and at least sort of pretending to do their work. So far, so good, and I have a back-to-back lunch and planning period, so it should be an easy day. Fridays usually are.
The King & I is going well. We have most of the show at least roughly blocked, and can start to work on refining and polishing. Tomorrow is an all-day rehearsal day, so I am hopeful that by next week we will be really getting down to perfecting the show.
FLT3
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