RELEASE THE HOUNDS!...Let the hunt begin

This is  Hatchard's...the oldest bookseller in London

I casted my ballet for the favourite novel of the passed 200 years.

After the trudge of public transportation...I sat to deduse the next course of action

There! I have found my final mark! The Victoria!!!

Here, I am drink an attemp of a Black Velvet Cocktail. Twas a tasty mark!

Tea Time Please

Tea has lost its slender in America unless if it is iced or something obscure. Really in the States, tea is just a drink. There are no fancy bells or whistles. There are no pomp and circumstance. It is just a drink. For Britain, tea is something else entirely. The East India Company was established to procure tea form fringes of the empire. They commanded a hefty portion of the monarch’s navy.  It is not just a drink but also a ritual. I witnessed this at the posh department stores of Harrods. Their tearoom had a wide selection of teas and vittles. It was rather funny. When an American thinks of “teatime” its either about golf or the stereotypical period of the day posh British aristocracy sit idly by sipping a mysterious potion called “tea”. It was really so…of course that could be the fact I was drink tea among very rich and powerful people (Harrods has a reputation to be very aristocratic). I felt like I was a player in The Importance of Being Ernest. I had this weird obligation sit up straight and take the utmost care with my table etiquette. I could have easily seen Algy or Lady Bracknell. As I think back to Oscar Wilde’s play, teatime played a significant role throughout the play. When he wanted to make a specific statement about the upper class, the action of the scene happened during teatime. In the third act, Algy and Mr. Worthing are arguing about Bumburying and the future of Cesily. You would think it would be a serious rising action in the plot. It is though, but delivered in the contrary. The two gentlemen’s man argument is about what is being served at tea rather then the main issue.  Algy goes on to say, “I hate people who are not serious about meals. It is so shallow of them…” This is a jag to the upper class. This entire scene shows how trivial people can get when doted in luxury. So drinking tea at Harrods was like trivial comedy by Oscar Wilde.

The Fringe...That was different

Sometimes we, people, forget real intrinsic value of a story. It becomes a product. It is then mass-produced, boxed, and then sold to the highest bidder. It can be a very profitable way to think about theatre, but like any other form of expression it needs to be treated as something sacred. Storytelling, it’s one of the oldest professions. Away from West End you have the “fringe”. It is a sanctuary for new and innovative storytellers. 

I had the pleasure of seeing how this “fringe” worked. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. The venue was Soho Theatre…more or less a dive bar from outside. I was intrigued to be quite honest. A little box office was segregated away from the mirth. A few steps over was a spiral staircase leading visitors to the theatres. Apparently, the façade of a bar actually had three black box theatres. That’s impressive. This establishment took great pain to perpetuate the art of theatre. Once climbing to the staircase, I came to a black-box theatre. It wasn’t very impressive. It was simple, with a simple lighting plot, and a simple configuration.  I had paid to see the one man show, Before Us. It was the brainchild of a Stuart Bowden. Upon walking in to the space I am acquainted with falsetto opera. There were no distinguishable lyrics. I was quit confused and amused. We sat in our seats when a man appears from behind a curtain wearing nothing but a green sack and green socks.  That was amusing. It was random, but amusing. I had never seen anything like this show before. There was no preparation I could have done, so I could participate as an objective critic. In the long run, I’m ok with that. The premise of the piece was about an unknown species is only left with one survivor. This creature, played by Stuart, only wanted to be remembered in a realm of solitude. The story was told through simple light cues and music. Stuart employed a loop board, synth, and ukulele. It was highlighted with great loneliness and comedy. I saw something different. It was hilarious and moving. It was so immersive; her actually had the audience end up on the floor. I can hardly explain what I saw because it was so radical. I just know it was unconventional, weird, and great storytelling.

Drop the Wrench and Pick up a Brush!

                          (This preconstruction as the Bankside Power Station, taken by Marcus Leith, Tate Photography.)

Industry, it seems to be the mechanized soul to an empire. England’s industrial revolution brought advancement in almost every facet of commerce through the empire. Patriots could travel from one Indian province to the next. Cotton from Egypt could then be mass-produced into textiles and then sold amongst the empire. Technology was certainly booming.

  

(These are the before an after of the Turbine Hall, Taken by Marcus Leith, Tate Photography.)

     



     When I think of the “industrial”, I think of gears and cogs within massive machines.  Each and every part is moving codependent to each other. The Tate Modern was such, employed as the Bankside Power Station. What became known as Turbine Hall was once the internal organ filled generators…the “industrial”. Now, it’s been repurposed. The entirety of the space is but a glimpse into what was deemed a technological necessity. With all the gear and cogs gone, its quite stark and barren. It is a very minimalist statement to say the least: concrete and space. To be quite honest, it was rather stark. It was like a giant aircraft hanger.  The current purpose is for temporary art installations. The architects envisioned this massive space to be a communal environment for all people to enjoy new innovative pieces. Of course, when I was visiting there was no massive statement of art; just space.

(A series of paintings by Mark Rothko)

     
      Aside form this massive hanger, what inspired me were the galleries.  The Tate had quite a collection ranging from Dalí’s to Picasso’s. 

Metamorphosis of Narcissus, 1937, Salvador Dalí’s

       I grew up learning about these artists from my mother and father. Seeing their work was almost meeting them face-to-face. It’s an odd thought experiment. Konstantin, from Chekhov’s Seagull, had one insightful anecdote about art, “I’m more and more convinced that the point isn’t old or new forms, it’s to write and not think about form, because it’s flowing freely out of your soul. ” Art does come from the soul and its form has no relevance. Seeing these pieces of art in a way, I saw their soul. I suppose I can say it was a pleasure to meet them.

(Reborn Sounds of Childhood Dreams I, 1961-5, Ibrahim el-Salahi)

(The Three Dancers, 1925, Pablo Picasso)

     





      In my opinion, the Turbine Hall, as massive it maybe, wasn’t the important part. It what the Turbine Hall held internally. It was repurposed from the industrialist to become a home for the artists. It is a solemn home for artists’ imagination and souls. In a way, Tate Modern is a rallying cry, “Out with the wrench and pick up the brush!”

The Bane of The Seagull

I have been to outdoor theatre venues before, symphonies and operas, never for plays. It was an interesting production of Anton Chekhov’s Seagull. My exposure to Chekhov’s literature has been minimal. I have been casted in one of his other plays, The Cherry Orchard. From my exposure before seeing Seagull, I have found that Chekhov isn’t one of my favorites. It’s difficult to produce his plays. At face value they appear as tragedies with funny moments highlighted with over the top dialogue and characters. In fact, his plays were never written to be tragedies, but comedies.

I was quite surprised with this production. The outdoor venue played very well with the rural setting. More importantly it was funny. I finally saw a Chekhov that was funny. Unfortunately, this production could be caricaturized like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly except with: The Actors, The Director, and The Sound Designers (in said order). The director did very well creating a picturesque experience. Matthew Dunster, the Director, knew what he wanted from the cast and the cast, as a whole knew how to achieve their goals with his directions. The production had some very interesting takes on design. All of was perfect except the BLOODY Sound Designer! Forget about the outside being distracting (the setting of the play was more less outside), this designer was the distraction. Everything would be going perfect except the designer’s soundtrack would disrupt the scene. The designer would use a loud and long bass sound in selected moment. I have no idea why. First I thought it was supposed to show conflict, and then I guessed it was foreshadowing actions in the story arch, and then the same track was used for scene transitions. I have no clue why this designer chose this track. I am quite soured about that one little facet of the production. With out it or if other track where selected like a deep cello solo would have been great. It is unfortunate that one detail could derail an entire performance.  I guess you win some and you lose some.

Bend It, Like In Light Refraction

            To be quite honest, I can be very critical of musicals. As a performer, I’ve only been in one musical, so my knowledge about the process creative for an actor is somewhat limited. Although as a member I have seen many, from The Producers to Wicked. Basically I have been spoiled with films, and commercial theatre. For me to see a musical, I have to be in the mood or familiar with the writer, music, or plot. I still appreciate the passion and will power artists put into a production. I I love seeing the Lighting of Musical. The Production of Bend It Like Beckham had some good thing and amateur aspects to it. The pieces design was very out-of-the-box and the Lighting was the highlight of the production.  I could tell that a new theatre director undertook this play and it turned out it was. The director, Gurinder Chadha, was the writer and director of the original film. Apparently she didn’t have theatre background. It seemed there was a lot packed into one performance. There wasn’t enough room on the stage for the choreography to be affective and there were some plot holes. I’m not here though to be critical about the performers, writer or director. I wasn’t all that impressed, but I was absolutely impressed with aesthetics. 

Neil Austin, the lighting designer, met with us before the show. He gave us a tour and gave us a Q&A about the show and the industry. Apparently, the director and scenic designer wanted the set to be a bright yellow. This color pallet can be a challenger for a lighting designer. Due the laws of light refraction and additive color theory, yellows absorb blues. Unfortunately the most used color used in musicals to evoke dramatic moments is usually deep blues. Apparently, from what Neil Austin said, there would be different parts of the set colored while huge portions that where to be lighted remained yellow. To add on top of that when actor would be blocked they would have the exact opposite color desired. There were a lot of compromises and physics involved. At this time, we hadn’t seen the performance yet, so I had no idea what to expect. Now after seeing the aesthetics and learning what went into the process…I was in in awe! The lighting was very much influenced by Bollywood. Which in fact are my favorite color pallet with yellows, reds, oranges, and greens. They managed to project blues and some pinks. That means Neil had to mix colors like deconstruction a math proof. Of course one of the play’s biggest motifs was Football (soccer). Obviously, you can’t go about a theatre punting goals. The solution this predicament was a football (soccer ball) attached to cables that would lift and go along a flight path upstage, and even cooler projections. Moving lights would project an image of a ball with all its stitches. It would move from the stage and among the audience.  It may seem like cliché gimmick, but while in the moment it was very effective. The Lighting Design was the main feature of the show. I wish more directors, actors, musicians, and the audience, knew how difficult it can be as a designer, especially lighting designers. I would suggest this production to up and coming lighting designers. It’s like a case study students need to see learn about the process of being innovative. Nothing in theatre goes according to plan, so it’s important to take on the challenge and be creative.