Sunday Sins, Monday Regrets

Too many Chee-Its and not enough sleep. Surely this will come back to haunt me with more then just bad dreams.

But, while the weekend doesn't end honestly, it was well spent.

Friday night was the first night of our subscription tickets to A.C.T. I anticipate the whole season will leave us dizzy, such is the hight of the cheap seats. But, a little vertigo seems like a small additional fee for a whole season. This first show was, of coarse, Scapin, brought to us by Bill Irwin. I can't tell you the joy of watching Bill Irwin and Geoff Hoyle play on stage in this delightful adaptation of Moliere's servant/master comedy. There were times when the pace seemed to be slower then necessary, and sometimes the design on the floor had a disorienting effect from our great height. Bill Irwin's clowning didn't always hit the mark, but even that was a joy in itself. It almost made me wish the whole show was just a little less crisp. I know, that sounds like an odd thing to wish for, and to tell you the truth I can't quite articulate what I mean. It was good to go to the theatre and have such a good time. The sense of joy was palpable.

Saturday night I attended Piano Fight's FundFight Night where Matt and I were proud to give a little bit towards the theatre complex they are planning on building and dance to Das Socken Hopfen. Unfortunately, we missed the show, but the band is always good. Rob Ready's got a good set of vocal chords on him.

Today started with the 3pm show of The Portrait of Dorian Gray. Oh, Rhino...Rhino...Rhino...I really feel like I can't give you any sort of fair review as I slept through most of the show, cringed at some of it, and then was confused by other parts. I really did feel like the adaptation and the intention was good. The pace was just so slow and, at times, labored. There were whole scenes that had nothing to do with story or mood or feeling or character development or anything else as far as I could tell. Of course, it had the Eureka Theatre working against it as well. I've never liked that theatre. The stage is awkward, the fans make me dizzy as the lights bounce off their twirling blades, and oh my god the seats are painful. And yes, I realize I've forgiven A.C.T. for making me dizzy, the stage being difficult to look at, and...yes...their seats make my knees hurt. At least at A.C.T. I have the option to pay for a better seat. There is not better option at Eureka. I give Rhino a lot of credit, when in doubt, they just empty the stage and put great costumes on the actors and get an awesome light designer. It looked beautiful.

The day ended, well before the Chees-Its, with "Alice!" at Noh Space. I've seen this piece and the company grow and develop over the last year. I am very proud of the work they've done and I think this is the beginning of something really special. I did miss some part from previous incarnations, and there were new sections that didn't seem quite as polished or thought out. Still, I feel like this company is going to go on and create other very unique pieces. I hope they keep working on "Alice", but more then that I just hope they keep working, building, learning, and growing together.