As you may have noticed, I've been absent lately. Between the show and a week-long family vacation on the Oregon coast, I haven't been able to check my f-list or update or anything--which is too bad, since I wish I'd recorded my thoughts about the show while they were still fresh. Anyway, here's a little round-up of things I've been thinking about.

If you want me to know/see anything, let me know! Sorry I've missed a bunch, and I won't be able to catch up.

"The Naked Time"
The crowds and the reaction, despite our low budget and some rain, leave every indication that this was a success! By our fourth show, we had standing room only, speaking to the power of word-of-mouth over any advertising we could do. We also had people complaining about how few shows we were doing (as in, their friends wanted to come but didn't know in time) and people very generously wanting to help out. Enough that unless something happens we'll definitely be back next year.

The show was very simple but, I think, effective. We went with colored t-shirts in blue/yellow/red, the set marked out by folding chairs, wooden blocks, and chalk. I think we could go even more minimal, which might offset some of the remarks we've heard about a lack of "professionalism" presumably because we didn't mimic the costumes. The shirts were convenient, sure, but also a valid choice and I thought they looked good and clean and simple. Our attempt was not to recreate the show, but to treat it as you would Shakespeare--it's an interpretation. Hence, also, the casting.

We learned a lot from the experience and one day we'd like to expand our repertoire to Shakespeare (in space?), original works, other television (possibly), and adaptations of books and fairy tales. How to go about it, I'm not entirely sure, but we did this by just deciding that we could. And we did. I was, and am, extremely proud of the results.

Plenty of photos here.

Inception
( Cut because feelings tend to run high about this and I didn't like it. But I have a few things I want to say about why. )

Tl;dr: basically Cillian Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Ellen Page need to make out.

Sherlock Holmes
I didn't talk about this at the time, because again, feelings were running pretty high, but I didn't like the recent film. Don't get me wrong, I love adaptation and playing with old works but they need to do one of two things, for me: show me a faithful adaptation of the material in another medium or give me exciting new insights. The Ritchie film, for me, only pushed Holmes closer to everything else, and was neither "my" Holmes nor one I was curious about.

The reason I mention it now is that the new BBC show is. I've only seen the first episode but oh my goodness, I loved it. Not unequivocally--I actually hate the "look" of it, the text all over the screen, the jerky chase sequence, that sort of thing. (I am not a fan of the idea that something needs to be moving ALL THE TIME to keep our interest.) But Holmes and Watson? I'm sorry, Sherlock and John? I love them. I thought the writing, the character work, and the acting were all great, and most importantly a lot of thought was put into updating these characters and making them people who weren't the originals, but were entirely valid interpretations of who those people would be. And that's exactly what I wanted. I am excited about watching the last to, and I suspect I'll be upset about there being no more.

YOU
Your turn! Write anything I should read? Have exciting news? Anything interesting going down either in life or on the internet? Something I haven't touched on you were curious about?

I need to update--and catch up--but we have the great good luck to have a trailer put together before our final weekend. And some photos, courtesy of Riley's friend and chaeche. Thank you!

I haven't watched the trailer. I can't really watch myself act, or I feel like I should never inflict myself on anyone ever again, and I don't need that right now! Pictures are bad enough. But I know other people will get a kick out of it. We had a great first weekend, and we're hoping for another.

( And photos! )
If anyone else has photos, feel free to share them!

A few photos from a recent rehearsal.



( almost as though they were irrational, drugged )

On Saturday, lettered, Mr. Daroga, my!Spock and I went down to Portland to see Atomic Arts' production of "Space Seed," a TOS episode. Last year's "Amok Time" was our inspiration for this summer's project, so we were excited to see the new show, advertise, and talk to the cast. (Also eat at our favorite Lebanese restaurant and go to Powell's.)

The production was, I think, better than last year's. Very streamlined, very simple, the adaptation and staging were elegant. I thought the acting had improved: Khan and historian McGivers were particularly awesome. They take a differen tactic than we do. It's clear what lines people are cast along, and it's a little more faithful to the original, while ours is somewhat more transformative--same script, more gender/race-bending (where possible). And their sets, while minimal, are more complex than ours. Their uniforms more precise.

After, we spread out and papered the audience with fliers. They all seemed really enthusiastic and thought it was a great idea. The cast came up and asked, "are you Seattle?" and seemed very encouraging and eager to see our take. It was an overwhelmingly positive experience and we've also got write-ups in several Portland papers, in reference to this production. I feel we're gonna have an audience.

Here are my favorite photos from Saturdays' performance. Clicking gets you much bigger versions at my flickr account.

( 22 pics )

A few things. First, our poster for Outdoor Trek, drawn by our Uhura and colored/design by Mr. Daroga.

( The Naked Time! (SFW) )

There are also a few new blog posts at our Captain's Blog.

Next, this rose bush. When I moved in, there were several very old, very tall bushes. I know nothing about gardening or roses, but I have attempted to keep up with them. However, everything I've read suggests cutting away old wood--but nearly all the growth on these bushes is on old growth. So I've never been able to cut them back very much, and they end up just HUGE and with DOZENS of (small) roses all over them. I really like it.

Anyone who wants to keep up with my Outdoor Star Trek project, or pass the links around for some of that new-fangled viral marketing, please check out our new Captain's Blog and @hello_earth on twitter. lettered/tkp and I will be posting there regularly with behind-the-scenes info and insight into the process of bringing "The Naked Time" to the stage.

I have to say, a surprise!marching band (particularly a punk/indie one) is a million times better than the regular kind. Especially when you're at an art opening and think some high school is practicing way too close until you realize they're coming up the stairs at you and are actually dressed all in black/white/red and are not at all high schoolers. I like to imagine they just crash various events.

News of Outdoor Star Trek interest:
Casting is completed, and at this point it seems that another girl and I are "vying" for Kirk and Spock. As in, she was the top pick for both, so we're going to work out who's-who in rehearsal. That should be interesting. I am somewhat delighted by the notion that people cannot actually be delineated as one or the other--I would have thought that Kirk/Spockiness (as individuals, not slash) was somewhat innate and mutually exclusive. Then I would have thought again and laughed at myself.

I am actually posting, however, to point out two awesome Dreamwidth communities I am avidly following and highly recommend:
writingthewall is a discussion community devoted to real person fiction, and all the discussions so far have been fascinating.
queering_holmes is a very interesting community "for research/discussion of Sherlock Holmes and queerness" which spans the books, the new movie, and in general the treatment of queerness and homosexuality in the 19th century as well as today's fandom.

I knew next to nothing going in to the University of Washington's production of Bat Boy: The Musical on Friday save that it was based on the Weekly World News story and the Oberon to my Puck (that's not figurative) had shaved his head to play the title role. I now wish I'd caught it earlier, so I could have gone back and seen it again. It had everything: "freaks," ironic musical theater tropes, real message couched in irony to salve its utter obviousness, blood, near nudity, a love story, ( spoilers ) and bats. lettered and I were aware the entire time of our own and each other's buttons being continually pressed, and it was delicious. (We are entertainment-psychic, by which I mean we can sit silently together in a theater and communicate via body language some fairly sophisticated commentary. Mr. Daroga and I have this as well, but it is a different language.)

In brief, the story follows a young man, half-human, half-bat, discovered in a cave in West Virginia by three siblings, one of whom is attacked when she offers him Fritos. Naturally he is captured and turned over to the local vet and caged, clad in a loincloth and unable to speak. He is gradually "civilized," falls in love with his protector's daughter, and longs to join the real world. Of course, the real world (or small-town W.V. anyway) is suspicious and uses "Edgar" as a scapegoat for their problems. There are whiffs of every wild boy/freak story ever, strong echoes of Joseph Merrick, slapstick humor, soap opera plot twists, and various other assaults on taste. In short, I love it.

The treatment of rural white folk is lamentable, as it entirely follows the bigoted, small-minded, ignorant stereotype. On the other hand, the preacher is one of the few who does not reject Edgar on sight, so religion is treated as something corrupted in specific practice, not absolutely. And the setting is, after all, a direct reference to the original story.

I'm not sure what else to say, other than my former castmate was AMAZING and I predict great things for him. I never really paid Bat Boy much heed, though, and I was so delighted by it I had to pass it on.

This weekend also brought me Bleacher Bums at my old theater, mostly notable because I got to see a bunch of my theater friends, and more interestingly Exit Through the Gift Shop, the Banksy film that's sort of about street art.

I don't want to give too much away, as I went in cold, but I also am not sure how to review it. I'm not sure yet how I feel about it or what I want to say. But it was interesting and a bit of a puzzle and well worth it, even if I would love to see a film about street art that went in a bit of a different direction.

( In Outdoor Star Trek news... )