Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Monday, September 10, 2012
Personal defection from bombardment
I have been talking to my friend Beth about this recently. Over a month ago I warned everyone that I was no longer going to hold back when someone asked my opinion. But I had this epiphany this morning. That not holding back has nothing to do with them and everything to do with getting things off my chest not helping them out per say. So I take back what I said. And go the other way.... I am finished offering advice. I don't have the energy to keep trying to hold the hands after they ignore the advice or say "well I kept asking for advice and no one gave me any" after I talked to them for hours. I know I have been busy. I know that I have been so bogged down with my own ick that it is hard to climb out of it --- but when I am there repeatedly for so many no matter what time of the day and night but I can count on one hand the ones that truly know what is going on with my life.... I am out of balance and it ends for me now.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Re-Posting: How the American University was Killed in Five Easy Steps
This is a re-posting of an article that someone blogged about how American Colleges are being destroyed.
How the American University was Killed in Five Easy Steps
How the American University was Killed in Five Easy Steps
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Reviews about Ruhl's "The Clean House"
“One of my favorite moments in the
play is when Lane, the woman who wants her house cleaned, is imagining her
husband with his soul mate (hint: it’s not Lane) and the maid walks in, sees
the people Lane is imagining and asks “Who are they?” It’s such a great,
theatrical moment, the acknowledgement that we are not looking through a window
into the ”real” world, but instead, viewing the realities of our world with new
eyes.”
“One of my
favorite things about the costuming is the subtle shift in the second half of
the play when everyone’s color palette begins to move from the extreme
color/lack thereof, to a more moderate and similar place on the scale…except
Matilde, who may be the protagonist, but who also seems to facilitate a journey
for the other characters rather than taking one of her own.”
Works Cited
dramachicks.
"Views and Reviews: THE CLEAN HOUSE by Sarah Ruhl." dramachicks.
August 2, 2012 2012.Web. <http://dramachicks.wordpress.com/2011/11/08/views-and-reviews-the-clean-house-by-sarah-ruhl/>.
On a personal note, I really understood this
play. I read it and picked up the nuances
and the subtle pieces that Ruhl was trying to point us towards. So, when I read the reviews I was looking to see
if the reviewer was looking at the surface of the play and ignoring all of the
rest. I wanted to know whether or not
they were just tossing something onto the page (print or web) because they had
to or were told to.
With my first pick I read
the wordpress blog by dramachicks. I was
not disappointed. I immediately knew
that she “got” what Ruhl was trying to accomplish. Admittedly, the author of the blog is a huge
Ruhl fan, but that does not take away from her deep understanding of what Ruhl
wanted with “The Clean House”. The two
quotes from the review above speak to the deep meaning of the play and the
deeper understanding of the blog author.
She didn’t just see a funny play, she saw a play with a story with a
fable and allegory and the romances of the heart, life, and spirit mixed
in. I agree with the thoughts of the
author and I applaud her understanding and critique of the play.
“And yet thanks to the alchemical imagination of Sarah Ruhl, the gifted
author of “The Clean House,” this strange grab bag of ideas and images,
together with some more exotic ingredients, magically coheres to form one of
the finest and funniest new plays you’re likely to see in New York this season.”
“But this peculiarity epitomizes a fundamental message of Ms. Ruhl’s
odd and enchanting play: We may never come to a full understanding of the jokes
life plays, but the wisest and possibly noblest response is to have a good
laugh anyway.”
Works Cited
Isherwood,
Charles. "Always Ready with a Joke, if Not a Feather Duster." The
New York Times, sec. Arts: Theater: 31 Oct 2006. Print.
However,
when I saw the New York Times listed as one of the potential review sites I was
intrigued because I wanted to see what a “well respected” and “highly esteemed”
newspaper thought of the play. I was
really disappointed.
If
I read this review and never read the play or saw the play I would think it was
merely a fluffy comedy without substance.
In a time period in my life where I am pinching pennies and my
entertainment budget is very small I have to be choosy with what I am spending
it on. I would not have gone to see this
play based on this review.
This
reviewer does nothing for Ruhl’s writing or this particular play. His comments about Ruhl are flippant at best;
his words about her writing are the equivalent of patting her on the head and
saying, “oh nice play sweetie now go play with your toys while the adults
really write plays”. I was insulted on
Ruhl’s behalf. He didn’t review the play
either. He glossed over it, he failed to
convey that there was something deeper, something more in this play. He failed to share with his readers that this
play will leave you with conversation starters and mental self-awareness
conversations.
His
use of “strange” “grab bag” “magically” “odd” seem especially out of place in a
serious review. His last few lines are
his attempt at making some far reaching message that the rest of his review
fail to live up to.
He
spends more time praising the actors of the play then actually telling anyone
about the play. If I was going to New
York City as a tourist and wanted to find a show or two to catch, after reading
this review I would not pick “The Clean House” and I would be missing something
great, just like Mr. Isherwood has.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
The Book Cave
Hey yall when I am sneaking around on Facebook (ya know when I should be doing homework) you can find me and the rest of the ladies over at The Book Cave... come and join us.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Book-Cave/243978118975177
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