Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Slow Jitney with Unforgivable Sasquatch, Paul Williams

It's been a heady week of entertainment.  Last Sunday, there was the matinée of the documentary, "Paul Williams Still Alive", followed by schnitzel salad at the Back Abbey.   Most of Paul's hits are songs about co-dependency, but what is falling in love anyway? The only job more codependent than lover is mother.  

I liked this doc and I like Paul Williams.  I just wish filmmaker and writer, Stephen Kessler, would have shut up so Paul could have told more stories about his nomadic childhood and his larger-than-life, alcoholic father.








Friday, there was the stage play, "Jitney," at the Pasadena Playhouse.  This is the eighth in August Wilson's Pittsburgh Cycle of plays.  It was OK, but I had a beef-- eight men in the cast and only one woman.  Jitney was, however, more enjoyable than Wilson's somewhat repetitious plays, like "Gem of the Ocean."  There aren't enough playwrights in America today-- let's all write some plays.

The next morning, it was a French-Italian film, "Unforgiveable".  The latest flock of Euro films misses the mark by a meter or two.  This one was right down there with "The Intouchables." The most interesting aspect of the movie was that Judith, the female lead, wore the same dress on four different days.  That would never happen in an American flick, but what a boon for the wardrobe mistress.  Fewer costume changes, less clothing to clean and press.  Easy to keep catalogued and ready for scenes.


Last night, the gay (and I mean gay in the sense of happy), mad whirl culminated with the star-studded entertainmentpalooza launch of Jeremy Radin's new book, Slow Dance with Sasquatch.
                                                                               
I am a fan of Jeremy's poetry since hearing him breathe fire into a poem about bears on Lummis Day at El Alisal. Who but Jeremy would have thought to turn his launch into a cabaret by including live music from The Flash Cards, poetry by Derrick Brown, Brendan Constantine (a frenetic favorite), Amber Tamblyn and literary sword-swallower, Brett Loudermilk?

The evening in the Skylit Theatre on Vermont was sparkling, funny, majestic, wistful, moving, human and authentic.  What a privilege to be among the 100+ to hear this courageous poet speak his truth. And I mean courageous in the sense that his Dad, grandparents and sister were in the audience.  As his friends keep remarking on his FB page:  he da man.

9 comments:

  1. Marta,

    I happened to be up at 5:20 a.m. I haven't gone to bed yet. Just after midnight I picked up an old contemporary romance from my files and I decided to breath new life into it, and kept breathing, and breathing. I thought I'd check out your blog before I hit the mattress and I'm glad I did. Lucky thing you sent me an e-mail reminder of your blog -that's how I came to stop by and read your lovely comments on plays and books and magical happenings. Thank you for a simply elegant and enjoyable report.

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    1. Hey Carole,

      I like how you picked up an "old contemporary" romance-- and right after midnight, yet. We are both night owls. I DID go to sleep from midnight to 2AM, then got up, sat up and wrote till 5:30. Thank you for reading my blog post and commenting!

      I ask you to become a playwright while you are writing old contemporary (!) romances. It's true that there is a dearth of playwrights in the USA. We need more women on the stage.

      Marta

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  2. Ah I wanted to see Jeremy's reading but couldn't make it. I'm glad you reported that it was good. The others, I'm going to have watch!

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    1. John,

      You missed THE BEST book launch ever. I hope someone was filming it, but I suspect the answer is no. It wasn't just Jeremy who was smokin' hot, it was also the assorted talent he assembled-- an embarrassment of riches.

      Thank you for visiting and commenting.

      Marta

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  3. I'm assuming all this entertainment is in the Los Angeles area. (Pasadena and Vermont Ave. mentioned) Sounds like you had a lot of fun this past week.

    I love European films-they give you a different perspective on life. I used to watch Sophia Loren's early Italian films late into the night (I think with sub-titles) and enjoyed every crazy moment.

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    1. Hi Cora!

      Yes, all this entertainment was in the City of the Angels, present company included. See my white wings hidden under my hoodie?

      What could ever compare with some of Sophia Loren's early films? Certainly not the contemporary European product. They seem to be grinding out banal movies, just as we do. Have all the good plots been taken? I don't think so-- look at how prolific we writers are. Why aren't they turning more of our books into scripts?

      Thank you for stopping in and making a comment.

      Marta

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  4. Too cool! I feel like I'm standing still after reading where you go and what you do. I love plays. Live theater is still the best way to feel the strength of the language and emotions. I've considered that my India story could be a play...hmmm...I'm excited about Judy's writing prompts that she will be facilitating starting in August. I need a kick in the pants!
    Lovely reading...thank you...
    Charlotte

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    2. Hello Char! I agree with you about live theater being great, but you should have been at Jeremy's book launch-- now THAT was the best theater EVER!!!

      I like the idea of making the India book into a play. Also a grown up lady porn movie.

      What's all this then about Judy's writing prompts in August? My invitation to partcipate seems to have blown off the porch.

      Marta

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