I got this DVD from Netflix the other day and ended up watching it twice before I sent it back. I'd seen bits of his before on Comedy Central, but this was my first whole special of his I'd seen.
I have to say, for a guy that doesn't swear a lot and who revolves most of his act around food - I laughed and laughed through the hour and some minutes.
We're lucky enough to host Jim Gaffigan here at TBPAC on Dec. 9. He's actually just one of many great comedians that we'll host over the next few months. Carlos Mencia has already sold out two shows, we also have Bruce Bruce on Sept. 22 and Demetri Martin on Oct. 22.
Now if we can only ever manage to get Jon Stewart back ...
- David J.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Five years later, Jobsite Theater remembers ...
From local actor/director Paul Potenza:
For me there is not a better place for recreation and relaxation than Key West. A world away from the pace of life that I am used to at work and at home. A getaway. Getaway from this. Getaway from that. Getaway from almost everything.
Almost everything.
I am one of those people who travel with my cell phone, even on vacation. With a business and with family responsibilities it is a necessary item and it makes keeping tabs on everyone much easier. On the morning of September 11, 2001, I did just that. It was a beautiful morning in the Keys. There was a picturesque blue sky; warm breeze and all seemed right with the world. I took my cell phone outside on the balcony to enjoy the view while checking my voicemail. There was a cryptic message from my sister Maria calling from Tucson, Arizona. She sounded upset and nervous. “Paul, it’s Maria. I have been trying to call Claudia to make sure Tommy is ok. I can’t get through. I didn’t call Mom yet. Call me as soon as you can. I know you’re in the Keys and I feel awful. Call me if you can get hold of them. Call me as soon as you get this message. I’m home.” I immediately got a sinking feeling in my stomach that something terrible had happened. Claudia is my sister who lives in New York and Tommy is her husband. My brother in law is also New York City firefighter and the Queens Trustee. They have been married for over 25 years and Tom is more like a brother to me than an in-law. He has always been there for me and provided me with support and advice. I told my wife, Roz, to turn on the television. The first thing she said to me was “Oh my god ... the Twin Towers are gone.”
We stayed glued to the television for the next several hours, just devastated and in shock at what we were seeing. Just outside our window, people strolled in the tropical paradise oblivious to the horrific scene that had unfolded 1,200 miles away. We made frantic phone calls. Phone circuits were overloaded and many people weren’t able to make contact with their loved ones in New York for hours. We were fortunate and got through. Are you okay? Where is Tom? Is he safe? Is he okay? Once again we were fortunate. Tom was not in the city when the planes hit the Towers. He was safe.
I was born and raised in New York City. I love that city. No matter where I live it will always be home to me. That day and the days that followed I felt so lost and so far away from home. I felt like someone or something in my life, in my world, needed me and I was helpless to get there. It was an enormous feeling of loss. These feelings consumed me.
They consumed a nation.
In October 2001, I was guided through the site that is now known as Ground Zero by my brother-in-law, Tom. That day changed my life. The sights and smells of what were once the Twin Towers were emotionally overwhelming. It was also powerful and a true testament to the human spirit. Witnessing the search and rescue for the remains of lost loved ones by the country’s finest and bravest was awe inspiring.
As I walked around the site, word came that someone had been found. A temporary morgue had been set up in an old financial building and Tommy needed to speak to a chaplain. He asked me to wait outside. While I stood there looking at the devastation and watching the desperate searching for victims, I started to feel very uncomfortable and out of sorts. What was I doing here? I wasn’t helping. I was just ... staring.
Then, just as Tommy was headed back from inside the makeshift morgue, someone shouted “ATTENTION!” Instantly, men stood upright as a small off-road vehicle the size of a golf cart pulled up. On the back of the vehicle was a firefighter with an American flag draped over his body. I stood next to Tommy as I watched the dignity and respect that was given to this fallen hero. The reality of this place smacked me in the face. After this man’s brothers lifted him up and carried him in, Tommy turned to me and asked, “You ready to go?” I was.
In retrospect, I know I was fortunate for this experience, because it does make you so thankful and appreciative for what we have. Nonetheless, all the sorrow I felt does not compare to the sad injustice suffered by so many and their families. I pray for them.
Theater has always been a great source of pride and joy in my life. In January of 2002, I went back to New York City and saw the play THE GUYS by Anne Nelson at the Flea Theater.
THE GUYS takes place less than two weeks after September 11th. New Yorkers are still in shock. One of them, an editor named Joan, receives an unexpected phone call on behalf of Nick, a fire captain who has lost most of his men in the attack. He’s looking for a writer to help him with the eulogies he must present at their memorial services. Nick and Joan spend a long afternoon together, as Nick recalls the fallen men, recounting their virtues and their foibles, and Joan fashions the stories into memorials of words. In the process, Nick and Joan discover the possibilities of friendship in each other and their shared love for the unconquerable spirit of the city. As they make their way through the emotional landscape of grief, they draw upon their love of the city they call home, on humor, on the tango, and the enduring bonds of common humanity.
Immediately after the performance I thought about how I might become involved in a production of this play in Tampa. I wanted to do this for more than just artistic reasons. Many more. Ultimately, it is with the direct assistance of Anne Nelson that this hope has become a reality. Jobsite stage the southeastern US premiere of THE GUYS in 2003.
The Jobsite Theater will now present an encore performance of the THE GUYS at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center’s Jaeb Theater on Sept. 11th at 8 p.m. All tickets are $30.
All proceeds after expenses on this production will be donated to the Tampa Firefighters Museum. Please join us for this very special night.
Thanks,
Paul Potenza
Monday, August 28, 2006
It’s Monday morning, my best friend is in the New York Times and I have an idea.
Oh, I’m sort of new by the way – Kari G., audience development manager, local actor and a refugee from Los Angeles. Nice to meet you. You look lovely. That tie/blouse/pajama top really brings out your eyes.
I have spent my whole life in the theater and film industries, at 31 I have already vested into my pension with the Screen Actors Guild. But before I figure out how I’m going to spend my $84.37 monthly allotment, I have a little bit more art in me.
Back in the glory days of theater school, when we were young, fair, fit and had livers of steel, my best friend John Pinckard and I knew we would be rich, famous, and take pleasure in being deliciously cruel to the miserable lovers in our lives who failed to see our greatness and dumped us (usually in exotic locals like a filthy pool hall in Gainesville, FL).
Almost ten years later, I open the Sunday arts section of the New York Times, only to find out that there are some former paramours of John who might want to get comfortable with the phrase, “Pucker up, buttercup.”
His idea? Why not take the best shows of the NYC Fringe Festival (now celebrating 10 years of showcasing bizarre, twisted, controversial and hilarious original productions) and give them an opportunity to extend the life of their show? Brilliant!
Fringe is only a festival after all, and often the most interesting and popular shows sell out before the population at large can enjoy them. Good buzz on a Fringe production can mean that the allotted six or so performances each production is given sells out almost immediately.
My brilliant best friend John lays out his vision for FringeNYCEncorse in the Arts section of the New York Times!
Ten of the audiences’ and critics’ favorites from the current festival will run in repertory at two downtown theaters through Sept. 24 in what the organizers, Britt Lafield and John Pinckard, say will become an annual showcase called FringeNYC Encores. For the Fringe, this provides another opportunity for its shows to be noticed by producers and earn a possible commercial transfer.
What a great idea for Tampa! Why can’t every local theater company get together at the end of the year and remount our favorite (or most successful) production(s) in rep for a couple of weeks? Patrons can purchase a single pass, good for all shows and then, let the encores begin!
Sure, it would be a logistical nightmare. Sure, there are a million reasons why we shouldn’t. Sure, we have limited resources. But on a Monday morning, over a really bad cup of coffee, I’m just going to sit and dream. An encore presentation of the best of local theater…
Sigh.
I should probably answer some of my voice mail.
- Kari G.
Oh, I’m sort of new by the way – Kari G., audience development manager, local actor and a refugee from Los Angeles. Nice to meet you. You look lovely. That tie/blouse/pajama top really brings out your eyes.
I have spent my whole life in the theater and film industries, at 31 I have already vested into my pension with the Screen Actors Guild. But before I figure out how I’m going to spend my $84.37 monthly allotment, I have a little bit more art in me.
Back in the glory days of theater school, when we were young, fair, fit and had livers of steel, my best friend John Pinckard and I knew we would be rich, famous, and take pleasure in being deliciously cruel to the miserable lovers in our lives who failed to see our greatness and dumped us (usually in exotic locals like a filthy pool hall in Gainesville, FL).
Almost ten years later, I open the Sunday arts section of the New York Times, only to find out that there are some former paramours of John who might want to get comfortable with the phrase, “Pucker up, buttercup.”
His idea? Why not take the best shows of the NYC Fringe Festival (now celebrating 10 years of showcasing bizarre, twisted, controversial and hilarious original productions) and give them an opportunity to extend the life of their show? Brilliant!
Fringe is only a festival after all, and often the most interesting and popular shows sell out before the population at large can enjoy them. Good buzz on a Fringe production can mean that the allotted six or so performances each production is given sells out almost immediately.
My brilliant best friend John lays out his vision for FringeNYCEncorse in the Arts section of the New York Times!
Ten of the audiences’ and critics’ favorites from the current festival will run in repertory at two downtown theaters through Sept. 24 in what the organizers, Britt Lafield and John Pinckard, say will become an annual showcase called FringeNYC Encores. For the Fringe, this provides another opportunity for its shows to be noticed by producers and earn a possible commercial transfer.
What a great idea for Tampa! Why can’t every local theater company get together at the end of the year and remount our favorite (or most successful) production(s) in rep for a couple of weeks? Patrons can purchase a single pass, good for all shows and then, let the encores begin!
Sure, it would be a logistical nightmare. Sure, there are a million reasons why we shouldn’t. Sure, we have limited resources. But on a Monday morning, over a really bad cup of coffee, I’m just going to sit and dream. An encore presentation of the best of local theater…
Sigh.
I should probably answer some of my voice mail.
- Kari G.
It’s Monday morning, my best friend is in the New York Times and I have an idea.
Oh, I’m sort of new by the way – Kari G., audience development manager, local actor and a refugee from Los Angeles. Nice to meet you. You look lovely. That tie/blouse/pajama top really brings out your eyes.
I have spent my whole life in the theater and film industries, at 31 I have already vested into my pension with the Screen Actors Guild. But before I figure out how I’m going to spend my $84.37 monthly allotment, I have a little bit more art in me.
Back in the glory days of theater school, when we were young, fair, fit and had livers of steel, my best friend John Pinckard and I knew we would be rich, famous, and take pleasure in being deliciously cruel to the miserable lovers in our lives who failed to see our greatness and dumped us (usually in exotic locals like a filthy pool hall in Gainesville, FL).
Almost ten years later, I open the Sunday arts section of the New York Times, only to find out that there are some former paramours of John who might want to get comfortable with the phrase, “Pucker up, buttercup.”
His idea? Why not take the best shows of the NYC Fringe Festival (now celebrating 10 years of showcasing bizarre, twisted, controversial and hilarious original productions) and give them an opportunity to extend the life of their show? Brilliant!
Fringe is only a festival after all, and often the most interesting and popular shows sell out before the population at large can enjoy them. Good buzz on a Fringe production can mean that the allotted six or so performances each production is given sells out almost immediately.
My brilliant best friend John lays out his vision for FringeNYCEncorse in the Arts section of the New York Times!
Ten of the audiences’ and critics’ favorites from the current festival will run in repertory at two downtown theaters through Sept. 24 in what the organizers, Britt Lafield and John Pinckard, say will become an annual showcase called FringeNYC Encores. For the Fringe, this provides another opportunity for its shows to be noticed by producers and earn a possible commercial transfer.
What a great idea for Tampa! Why can’t every local theater company get together at the end of the year and remount our favorite (or most successful) production(s) in rep for a couple of weeks? Patrons can purchase a single pass, good for all shows and then, let the encores begin!
Sure, it would be a logistical nightmare. Sure, there are a million reasons why we shouldn’t. Sure, we have limited resources. But on a Monday morning, over a really bad cup of coffee, I’m just going to sit and dream. An encore presentation of the best of local theater…
Sigh.
I should probably answer some of my voice mail.
- Kari G.
Oh, I’m sort of new by the way – Kari G., audience development manager, local actor and a refugee from Los Angeles. Nice to meet you. You look lovely. That tie/blouse/pajama top really brings out your eyes.
I have spent my whole life in the theater and film industries, at 31 I have already vested into my pension with the Screen Actors Guild. But before I figure out how I’m going to spend my $84.37 monthly allotment, I have a little bit more art in me.
Back in the glory days of theater school, when we were young, fair, fit and had livers of steel, my best friend John Pinckard and I knew we would be rich, famous, and take pleasure in being deliciously cruel to the miserable lovers in our lives who failed to see our greatness and dumped us (usually in exotic locals like a filthy pool hall in Gainesville, FL).
Almost ten years later, I open the Sunday arts section of the New York Times, only to find out that there are some former paramours of John who might want to get comfortable with the phrase, “Pucker up, buttercup.”
His idea? Why not take the best shows of the NYC Fringe Festival (now celebrating 10 years of showcasing bizarre, twisted, controversial and hilarious original productions) and give them an opportunity to extend the life of their show? Brilliant!
Fringe is only a festival after all, and often the most interesting and popular shows sell out before the population at large can enjoy them. Good buzz on a Fringe production can mean that the allotted six or so performances each production is given sells out almost immediately.
My brilliant best friend John lays out his vision for FringeNYCEncorse in the Arts section of the New York Times!
Ten of the audiences’ and critics’ favorites from the current festival will run in repertory at two downtown theaters through Sept. 24 in what the organizers, Britt Lafield and John Pinckard, say will become an annual showcase called FringeNYC Encores. For the Fringe, this provides another opportunity for its shows to be noticed by producers and earn a possible commercial transfer.
What a great idea for Tampa! Why can’t every local theater company get together at the end of the year and remount our favorite (or most successful) production(s) in rep for a couple of weeks? Patrons can purchase a single pass, good for all shows and then, let the encores begin!
Sure, it would be a logistical nightmare. Sure, there are a million reasons why we shouldn’t. Sure, we have limited resources. But on a Monday morning, over a really bad cup of coffee, I’m just going to sit and dream. An encore presentation of the best of local theater…
Sigh.
I should probably answer some of my voice mail.
- Kari G.
Friday, August 25, 2006
USF alum makes it to The Daily Show
Aasif Mandvi, the new Middle Eastern Bureau Chief for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart has a Tampa connection - the theater department at USF. He won an Obie for his play Sakina's Restaurant, and was in both Eric Bogosian's subUrbia and Trevor Nunn's revival of Oklahoma. A lot of folks might recall him as Peter Parker's pizza shop boss in Spider-Man 2. He's been seen on TV in everything from Law and Order to The Sopranos to Sex in the City to Oz.
Check out a clip of on TDS here.
Check out a clip of on TDS here.
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
TBPAC: When you're wrong ...
We all make friendly wagers around here sometimes in the marketing department as to how a show will perform. Most of the time we're pretty on the mark (feels good to know we know our business), but there are those times when we get nailed hard - for better or for worse.
Most recently, we booked a little show called So You Think You Can Dance. It's based on a TV show I've never even heard of, and I saw a ticket price of around $50. A few of us balked, saying no way was that going to fly. Then we heard rumors there may even be two performances if sales warranted it.
"You have to be kidding," I thought. We've seen other TV shows with decent appeal not do well, or pull out before they even made it near Tampa (See: Nashville Star).
Well, two sold out shows later and I am just wrong, wrong, wrong. It doesn't happen often, but I suppose I'm completely out of touch on this one. I guess that's what I get for not watching much network TV. If it would have been 24: The Musical, I would've known ...
- David J.
Most recently, we booked a little show called So You Think You Can Dance. It's based on a TV show I've never even heard of, and I saw a ticket price of around $50. A few of us balked, saying no way was that going to fly. Then we heard rumors there may even be two performances if sales warranted it.
"You have to be kidding," I thought. We've seen other TV shows with decent appeal not do well, or pull out before they even made it near Tampa (See: Nashville Star).
Well, two sold out shows later and I am just wrong, wrong, wrong. It doesn't happen often, but I suppose I'm completely out of touch on this one. I guess that's what I get for not watching much network TV. If it would have been 24: The Musical, I would've known ...
- David J.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Demetri Martin on "Mice Pace"
Check out video of him at the Just For Laughs Festival here.
Demetri Martin plays TBPAC on Oct. 22.
- David J.
Demetri Martin plays TBPAC on Oct. 22.
- David J.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
TBPAC: 2006 - 2007 tickets on sale now!
Most of the shows in TBPAC's 2006 - 2007 season just went on sale at noon today, including some pop acts and comedians like Nick Lachey, Jim Gaffigan, Demetri Martin and Gipsy Kings.
There's also a full slate of operas, plays, dance events, concerts and a whole lot more. Several of the touring Broadway shows have their onsale dates, and did not go on sale with the rest of the season.
Wanna start shopping? Visit our online brochure here, then you can order online or call 813.229.STAR before the tickets to all these great shows run out! That's not just the marketing guy in me talking - it happens more often than you think!
- David J.
There's also a full slate of operas, plays, dance events, concerts and a whole lot more. Several of the touring Broadway shows have their onsale dates, and did not go on sale with the rest of the season.
Wanna start shopping? Visit our online brochure here, then you can order online or call 813.229.STAR before the tickets to all these great shows run out! That's not just the marketing guy in me talking - it happens more often than you think!
- David J.
Monday, August 14, 2006
Be our friend!
We've had a TBPAC MySpace page for a while, and for the majority of that time we've been trying to figure out what to actually do with it. I think we've finally decided to let it just be, and do it's own thing out there in cyberspace.
That doesn't mean though that we don't want friends.
We can do a lot better than 31, so if you have a MySpace profile would you consider taking a moment to go over and add us? You'd be extra swell if you did ...
- David J.
That doesn't mean though that we don't want friends.
We can do a lot better than 31, so if you have a MySpace profile would you consider taking a moment to go over and add us? You'd be extra swell if you did ...
- David J.
TBPAC: Ontario, Take 2
As a person whose main focus at work is e-mail and web marketing, I tend to speak to people quite a bit electronically and on the phone, but meet very few of these folks in person. One of the most rewarding aspects of attending a conference for work is I get the opportinity to finally put faces with voices (or e-mail signatures).
While in Toronto I finally got to meet a colleague from The Living Arts Centre of Mississauga, Ontario,
http://www.livingartscentre.ca/
someone I have communicated with for a couple of years via e-mail and telephone, but had never met. I was curious to see how alike (or dislike) TBPAC and The Living Arts Centre are, so she drove me out to her Centre, a 225,000 square foot multi-use facility that hosts performing arts events as well as an arts educational program.
One of the main differences is The Living Arts Centre’s education program seems to place an emphasis on studio arts as well as performing arts. I visited the Centre in the evening and unfortunately my colleague was unable to give me a full tour, but while there I did witness one of their resident artists working in the glass workshop (and it looked like very hot, sweaty work) and I also saw other students working in clay in the ceramics studio.
The juxtaposition of performance space and studio arts struck me, especially after experiencing the art of the Chinese lanterns. It reinforced for me that art is many things, but mostly it is a living, breathing extension of the artist himself (or herself). That so many artists share this part of themselves and put it out there for everyone to see, to criticize or to laud. And it reminded me how lucky we are in Tampa Bay, lucky enough to have splendid and differing venues in our own back yard.
- Leeann D.
While in Toronto I finally got to meet a colleague from The Living Arts Centre of Mississauga, Ontario,
http://www.livingartscentre.ca/
someone I have communicated with for a couple of years via e-mail and telephone, but had never met. I was curious to see how alike (or dislike) TBPAC and The Living Arts Centre are, so she drove me out to her Centre, a 225,000 square foot multi-use facility that hosts performing arts events as well as an arts educational program.
One of the main differences is The Living Arts Centre’s education program seems to place an emphasis on studio arts as well as performing arts. I visited the Centre in the evening and unfortunately my colleague was unable to give me a full tour, but while there I did witness one of their resident artists working in the glass workshop (and it looked like very hot, sweaty work) and I also saw other students working in clay in the ceramics studio.
The juxtaposition of performance space and studio arts struck me, especially after experiencing the art of the Chinese lanterns. It reinforced for me that art is many things, but mostly it is a living, breathing extension of the artist himself (or herself). That so many artists share this part of themselves and put it out there for everyone to see, to criticize or to laud. And it reminded me how lucky we are in Tampa Bay, lucky enough to have splendid and differing venues in our own back yard.
- Leeann D.
Ontario's Chinese Lantern Festival
Last week I was lucky enough to travel to Toronto Ontario to attend a ticketing software conference for TBPAC. During the day it was all work, but on one of the evenings I attended the Chinese Lantern Festival at Ontario Place (Ontario Place is like a cross between Lowry Park Zoo and Adventure Island, without the animals). According to local travel magazines, the Chinese Lantern Festival of Ontario is the largest Chinese lantern festival of its kind outside of Asia.
In a word, this festival was … amazing.
It took a co-worker and I about 2.5 hours to experience the entire park and it may seem as if that is a long time to walk around and look at a bunch of fabric and wire with lights, but we could’ve spent a couple more hours experiencing the entire festival. As it is we missed out on much of the live entertainment and the Cinesphere 360 movie about China.
The lanterns mostly depicted figures from Chinese mythology and the theme of the dragon and the phoenix was highly represented, but there was also a lantern of the Great Wall (I estimate it was 20 feet high and maybe 70 feet long – I’m not talking about night lights here) and a 200-foot dragon that was mostly made of dishes. Yes, dishes. There was also a set of peacocks that was made out of 1” x 1” jars filled with colored liquid.
My co-worker remarked at the patience it must have taken the craftsmen to put these lanterns together and I answered that it must be no different than any other artist toiling for their art. I have witnessed other co-workers who put in a full week in administration here at TBPAC just to spend their nights rehearsing and fine-tuning their performances for a full run of a show here in the Shimberg. It is art.
And these lanterns were truly … ART.
- LeeAnn D.
In a word, this festival was … amazing.
It took a co-worker and I about 2.5 hours to experience the entire park and it may seem as if that is a long time to walk around and look at a bunch of fabric and wire with lights, but we could’ve spent a couple more hours experiencing the entire festival. As it is we missed out on much of the live entertainment and the Cinesphere 360 movie about China.
The lanterns mostly depicted figures from Chinese mythology and the theme of the dragon and the phoenix was highly represented, but there was also a lantern of the Great Wall (I estimate it was 20 feet high and maybe 70 feet long – I’m not talking about night lights here) and a 200-foot dragon that was mostly made of dishes. Yes, dishes. There was also a set of peacocks that was made out of 1” x 1” jars filled with colored liquid.
My co-worker remarked at the patience it must have taken the craftsmen to put these lanterns together and I answered that it must be no different than any other artist toiling for their art. I have witnessed other co-workers who put in a full week in administration here at TBPAC just to spend their nights rehearsing and fine-tuning their performances for a full run of a show here in the Shimberg. It is art.
And these lanterns were truly … ART.
- LeeAnn D.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Let your voice be heard
Weekly Planet currently has their polls open for their annual Best of the Bay Awards. Among the categories are Best Live Music Venue (we have several, you know, including the Jaeb Theater, Ferguson Hall and Carol Morsani Hall) and Best Theater Company (Jobsite Theater is TBPAC's resident theater company). You can also vote for your favorite local art gallery as well as all your local favorite places to eat, party and play.
Take a few minutes and get in on the voting!
- David J.
(Disclosure: Ok, so since I work in the building and am the artistic director of Jobsite it's no secret I'd want you to vote for us. Not trying to be sneaky there.)
Take a few minutes and get in on the voting!
- David J.
(Disclosure: Ok, so since I work in the building and am the artistic director of Jobsite it's no secret I'd want you to vote for us. Not trying to be sneaky there.)
Monday, August 07, 2006
Stage to screen
Playwright Martin McDonagh says he's giving up writing plays to write and direct movies.
The distinctive voice behind "The Beauty Queen of Leenane" and "The Lieutenant of Inishmore," McDonagh's next film project is "In Brugues," which he told Variety is about two hit men spending Christmas in Belgium.
If that sounds much like his plays, you're right.
Still at the Lyceum Theatre in NYC, "The Lieutenant" features an IRA terrorist who wants to split from the group because they're not violent enough. When he comes home to comfort a sick cat, mayhem -- as they say -- ensues. One character says amid the carnage and confusion, "This story just gets worse and worse and worse," which has become my personal mantra.
Variety says his two trilogies of "corpse-strewn black comedies of the grotesque, written in the space of just 18 months, ... owed much to Scorsese, Tarantino, TV soaps and punk rock."
Sounds just right for Hollywood, but the theater will miss him.
TBPAC also plays host the the southeastern United States premiere of McDonagh's dark tale The Pillowman in October, produced by resident theater company Jobsite Theater.
- Michael K.
The distinctive voice behind "The Beauty Queen of Leenane" and "The Lieutenant of Inishmore," McDonagh's next film project is "In Brugues," which he told Variety is about two hit men spending Christmas in Belgium.
If that sounds much like his plays, you're right.
Still at the Lyceum Theatre in NYC, "The Lieutenant" features an IRA terrorist who wants to split from the group because they're not violent enough. When he comes home to comfort a sick cat, mayhem -- as they say -- ensues. One character says amid the carnage and confusion, "This story just gets worse and worse and worse," which has become my personal mantra.
Variety says his two trilogies of "corpse-strewn black comedies of the grotesque, written in the space of just 18 months, ... owed much to Scorsese, Tarantino, TV soaps and punk rock."
Sounds just right for Hollywood, but the theater will miss him.
TBPAC also plays host the the southeastern United States premiere of McDonagh's dark tale The Pillowman in October, produced by resident theater company Jobsite Theater.
- Michael K.
As David mentioned in last Monday’s entry, I’m happily back from a “brief sabbatical” (as I like to reference it) from the TBPAC. During those three months I lived and worked in St. Pete. For those who don’t know the area very well, Tampa Bay separates the cities of Tampa and St. Petersburg (editor's note - even though those out of area are probably more accustomed to hearing the area referred to as "Tampa Bay" which we locals all agree is just water). You’re probably wondering why I’m talking about bodies of water in a culture blog. Because in my short three months I met one too many people who refused to venture into Tampa for fear of crossing THE BRIDGE (AKA, the Howard Frankland - yes, that's the correct name). Before I left on “sabbatical” us marketers use to talk about The Bridge Theory, but to experience it first hand ... WOW, it’s truly a reality. I never would have thought there was that many people out there who let a little bridge deter them from experiencing all the culture Tampa has to offer.
So a quick message to all my friends and neighbors in St. Pete … do yourself a favor and brave the bridge! I promise, it’s much shorter than you think, the view is gorgeous (especially at sunrise and sunset) and the cultural rewards at the other end will be worth it!
And my friends in Tampa who don’t like the bridge, the Southbound lanes work well too!
**steps off soap box**
So a quick message to all my friends and neighbors in St. Pete … do yourself a favor and brave the bridge! I promise, it’s much shorter than you think, the view is gorgeous (especially at sunrise and sunset) and the cultural rewards at the other end will be worth it!
And my friends in Tampa who don’t like the bridge, the Southbound lanes work well too!
**steps off soap box**
I killed AOL
I didn't mean to. I only dropped my long-time subscription to the service because I had moved up to DSL.
And I had been planning to do it for some time, but never got around to it. Inertia is a powerful force.
Then I read a story about one guy's experience in trying to drop his AOL service. He was on the phone for something like 30 minutes. He was so miffed he put the whole exchange online. It was a PR nightmare.
When I read that, I figured I had found the perfect day to cancel my service. Can't you just imagine the customer service meetings, the memos, the e-mails that were flying around the offices when that story hit?
- Michael K.
And I had been planning to do it for some time, but never got around to it. Inertia is a powerful force.
Then I read a story about one guy's experience in trying to drop his AOL service. He was on the phone for something like 30 minutes. He was so miffed he put the whole exchange online. It was a PR nightmare.
When I read that, I figured I had found the perfect day to cancel my service. Can't you just imagine the customer service meetings, the memos, the e-mails that were flying around the offices when that story hit?
- Michael K.
There is a brand new opening number for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels that David Yazbek has written for the tour! The world premiere of this new number is happening this weekend, and the creative team is thrilled with the change. It's obviously very exciting for a touring production to have a brand new musical number, tour market audiences will get something that New York theatergoers haven't even seen!
- Summer B.
- Summer B.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Still wild about Harry
Helena Bonham Carter is signed on to play Bellatrix. *mwror*
Two guys that have no room to talk beg J. K. Rowling to spare Potter's life in the final book.
The rumor mill has been heavily floating the seventh book's release on ... wait for it ... 7/7/07.
- David J.
Two guys that have no room to talk beg J. K. Rowling to spare Potter's life in the final book.
The rumor mill has been heavily floating the seventh book's release on ... wait for it ... 7/7/07.
- David J.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
'If you love this, you'll like that'
The upside of being a music-loving baby boomer is that you had a chance to see Jimi Hendrix, The Doors and some of the original Motown groups. The downside is that every day you're getting closer to meeting Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison. -- Newsweek, July 17, 2006 (paraphrased for space and clarity)
OK, so maybe live music isn't so much your thing any more. But music's still important right?
We've talked in this space before about the difficulty in finding new music, beyond a dozen new songs on commercial radio and WMNF's eclectic assistance.
That's where the web comes in.
Following the same models as Amazon and Netflix, a score of new websites offer recommendations based on your previous buying patterns or your music profile.
Here's a smattering, as listed in the Newsweek article:
pandora.com -- You tell then your favorite artists and then they program a radio station for you, using "the DNA of the music" as analyzed by 400 distinct variables such as tempo, voice pitch and range, etc.
Last.fm -- Also offers personalized radio stations, but uses a computer application to log and analyze the songs you like -- based on what you play in your computer library and iPod. By using "the wisdom of crowds," they think they can suggest songs for you from the playlists of people who like some of the same artists.
mog.com -- A music networking site, mog.com posts the titles -- only the titles -- of all the music in your library (you can manually edit out that Village People CD) and helps you find people like you.
iTunes.com -- Apple's service relatively recently started a Beta site, which instantly recommends songs as you play them on your computer. Some of the choices are obvious. Bob Dylan=The Band. Others are a little more quirky.
A great source of new music is Paste Magazine, which just increased frequency to about 10 times a year. With the magazine, you get a free sampler CD of artists, plus a few DVD of music videos, movie trailers, etc. I first heard of Band of Horses via Paste, as well as Carrie Newcomer, the Wailin' Jennies and Josh Ritter.
And all of this brings to mind a story in The New York Times about the "graying" of bricks-and-motor music stores. Young people buy everything, including music, online, and now even boomers may head there for their music, too.
I do, though, miss the days when I heard exciting new songs much more frequently on the radio, and went to a corner shop that had a guy whose musical taste I trusted. Some of those stores, like Vinyl Fever, are still around but their numbers are declining.
Happy listening.
- Michael K.
OK, so maybe live music isn't so much your thing any more. But music's still important right?
We've talked in this space before about the difficulty in finding new music, beyond a dozen new songs on commercial radio and WMNF's eclectic assistance.
That's where the web comes in.
Following the same models as Amazon and Netflix, a score of new websites offer recommendations based on your previous buying patterns or your music profile.
Here's a smattering, as listed in the Newsweek article:
pandora.com -- You tell then your favorite artists and then they program a radio station for you, using "the DNA of the music" as analyzed by 400 distinct variables such as tempo, voice pitch and range, etc.
Last.fm -- Also offers personalized radio stations, but uses a computer application to log and analyze the songs you like -- based on what you play in your computer library and iPod. By using "the wisdom of crowds," they think they can suggest songs for you from the playlists of people who like some of the same artists.
mog.com -- A music networking site, mog.com posts the titles -- only the titles -- of all the music in your library (you can manually edit out that Village People CD) and helps you find people like you.
iTunes.com -- Apple's service relatively recently started a Beta site, which instantly recommends songs as you play them on your computer. Some of the choices are obvious. Bob Dylan=The Band. Others are a little more quirky.
A great source of new music is Paste Magazine, which just increased frequency to about 10 times a year. With the magazine, you get a free sampler CD of artists, plus a few DVD of music videos, movie trailers, etc. I first heard of Band of Horses via Paste, as well as Carrie Newcomer, the Wailin' Jennies and Josh Ritter.
And all of this brings to mind a story in The New York Times about the "graying" of bricks-and-motor music stores. Young people buy everything, including music, online, and now even boomers may head there for their music, too.
I do, though, miss the days when I heard exciting new songs much more frequently on the radio, and went to a corner shop that had a guy whose musical taste I trusted. Some of those stores, like Vinyl Fever, are still around but their numbers are declining.
Happy listening.
- Michael K.
Getting 'Drowsy'
"The Drowsy Chaperone," winner of five Tony Awards, is still at the Variety Theatre in NYC.
But British producer Cameron Mackintosh wants a London production, say the nice folks at Variety magazine.
Too soon to tell whether he'll get his wish. And folks in the States are wondering when we'll get the first national tour of this surprise hit from Canada.
- Michael K.
But British producer Cameron Mackintosh wants a London production, say the nice folks at Variety magazine.
Too soon to tell whether he'll get his wish. And folks in the States are wondering when we'll get the first national tour of this surprise hit from Canada.
- Michael K.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Get in line for 'Line'
OK, it's confession time.
I've never seen "A Chorus Line."
For a Broadway fan, that's inexcusable. For someone who works in the biz, I could get fired.
I'll get a chance to make up for that lapse this fall when "A Chorus Line" returns to the Schoenfeld Theater on Oct. 5. At one time the longest-running American musical in Broadway history*, it closed in 1990. The backstage plot featured a look at dancers auditioning for a new musical.
The revival will still be set in the mid ''70s, according to a story in Variety. "It's got to stay true to the morality of 1975 and the perspective of the year," original co-choreographer and now director Bob Avian told the magazine.
- Michael K.
I've never seen "A Chorus Line."
For a Broadway fan, that's inexcusable. For someone who works in the biz, I could get fired.
I'll get a chance to make up for that lapse this fall when "A Chorus Line" returns to the Schoenfeld Theater on Oct. 5. At one time the longest-running American musical in Broadway history*, it closed in 1990. The backstage plot featured a look at dancers auditioning for a new musical.
The revival will still be set in the mid ''70s, according to a story in Variety. "It's got to stay true to the morality of 1975 and the perspective of the year," original co-choreographer and now director Bob Avian told the magazine.
- Michael K.
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