so much to catch up on…

so… i havent posted in a while…

because ive been super busy.

first order of business… MY SHOW OPENS ON THURSDAY!!!!

for more information:  http://unrecuerdo.wordpress.com

it is a site-specific interdisciplinary (dance, theatre, music, installation work) performance that addresses the closing of boulder’s only dual-immersion bilingual school (the performance takes place in the actual school building and we utilize classrooms, hallways, and the interior and exterior walls).  tackling issues of (mis)eduacation, immigration, and identity, while exploring the namesake of the school, george washington.

so yeah… if youre in the area, you should come.  its gonna be rockin.

also, in news… ive been sewing again!  i know that kinda sounds crazy, but after some (slightly) traumatic experiences in the past, sewing left a bad taste in my mouth, but… inspiriation has struck and washed away the grossness of the past with a cool minty kind of awesome.

basically, i made my jacket for the show, but… its not just a costume for a performance, because im probably going to end up wearing this jacket just… all the time.

and, note, that i didnt make it entirely, i actually cut up an already existing jacket and moved this around and added stuff and changed things… and it all turned out surprisingly great!  its incredibly unique and striking, which is how i like to roll.  hopefully you guys’ll think its as cool as i do… either that or you wont, and i’ll feel like a crazy person. either way:

so… yeah… its got an asymmetrical design with rough edges.  its a pretty dramatic looking piece of clothing… when i wear it, i feel kindof like an anime-punk-ninja.

but yeah.  thats the news!

oh, and i’ll be back in/around chicago in a week or so.

 

a question…

guinea pigs are neither italian nor swine…

whats up with that?

 

…a brilliant thought

mango hi-chew is the result of a delicious mango lassi mating with a starburst.

think about it.

 

“blog? what blog?” and “Road Trip ‘08! part one”

grievous apologies for the silence as of late!

its september already… damn, where did the summer go?!

oh. right. i sacrificed my summer to shakespeare, hehe.

i know its been a while since ive done a post, and i apologize profusely, as soon as the shakespeare festival got into full swing, my schedule got a little ridiculous, and then i moved… and didnt have internet for a while… the the festival closed, i moved again, got adjusted, and was on vacation in chicago visiting my family.

but… last night at around 5 pm, i embarked on a journey (sound cue 24, “dont stop believing” by journey… go).

point of departure: vernon hills, illinois

point of arrival: champaign-urbana, illinois.

now… this is merely the first leg of the road trip that will ultimately take me back to boulder, colorado (where i live).  and i dont have to be there until sunday night, so… im gonna take my time and enjoy the wonders of the open road.  (it also helps that i have a fancy new car !!!)  yes yes ladies and gentlemen, you heard right… this once-unwavering supporter of public and eco-friendly alternatives to transportation is now a fossil-fuel squandering plebian.  ::sigh::

okay… enough with the self-disparagement…

my car *rocks*

its a 2009 (yes… brand spanky-new!) Scion xB… oh yeah… a boxy-mcgee, slightly awkward, seemingly absurd, but all sorts of amazing car.

so.. *why* am i in champaign-urbana right now?  welllll… theres actually quite alot to it.  mostly its because theres a certain someone who lives here that ive been crushing on for quite a while, whom ive gotten to spend some time with this past weekend up in chicago, in addition to the fact that my brother lives here, and so do alot of my friends, not to mention the university i used to attend before i went to naropa is a mere 45 minutes away (which i will be visiting later today!).  but… currently, im sitting in a closed cupcake/tea/coffee shop (that my friend diana works at) enjoying the aroma of cupcakes in the oven, sipping on some chilled black blackcurrant tea.  being back in central illinois (even though it hasnt even been 12 hours since ive gotten here) is slightly surreal… but good.  its been making me think about where ive come from, how much ive changed over the last 2+ years since going out to colorado, and… i guess im just thankful for all of the experiences ive had that led up to that point (even the shitty ones).

anyways… i wont bore you all any more while im waxing nostalgic and contemplative, but stay tuned for more correspondance!

next stop on the road trip:  kansas city!!  i dont care if its missouri or kansas, it just better look out, cuz im a-comin’!

 

with sound in our ears we play endlessly…

week two of the colorado shakespeare festival has begun. huzzah.

despite being absolutely knackered and kindof wishing i was in an empty studio by myself and rolling on the floors… ive been surviving. the road to recovery from such an emo-tastic post has been rather arduous, but the harrowing journey has been soundtracked quite fabulously, and often allowing moments of hope and reverie.

currently ive been listening to Coldplay’s new album “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends”. (oh yes… ive got a naughty sneaky copy…muahahah). the title song(s) are absolutely amazing… Viva La Vida being my favourite due to its pulsing orchestration and intriguing lyrics.

in addition to the new Coldplay… ive been balancing myself out with “með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust” which roughly translates to: with sound in our ears we play endlessly.

…or so i think.

this is the new Sigur Ros album, and its absolutely incredible.  the first single from the cd is Gobbledigook, and the song is very uptempo and energizing and amazing.  the band has it up and streaming freely from their website as well as other places like lastfm and myspace… so… check it out!

annnyways… if any of you out there reading this is in colorado this summer… you should come see the Colorado Shakespeare Festival! go to www.coloradoshakes.org for more info.

oh… and if anyone has a good “life-plan” that they’re thinking i should follow after my contract is up at the end of august… let me know! im open to all suggestions and submissions

 

…back to square one

so… this post is gonna be one part emo, one part self-deprecating, one part overwhelmed, one part scared, and possible one part hopeful.

what set this all off is really silly.  for serious.  but… it all kindof snowballed and freaked me out enough that i have to write something down to try and sort through my jumbled brain.

so… i auditioned for a show, and i didnt get cast.  its not that big of a deal.  seriously.  and i dont know why i let it get to me… but for some strange reason it has.  i mean… in my field, rejection is a part of job description, right?  right.  but… then again… what *is* my field?  

the further i get into rehearsals in the colorado shakespeare festival, the more and more i realize how much of an outsider i feel like in the traditional theatre world.  but… when it comes to post-modern, avant-garde, progressive “performance art” world… i still feel out of place.  im not normal enough for the traditionalists and im not avant enough for the avant-garde.  

and so here i am.  a nebulous amalgam of two vastly different worlds trying to make sense inside my body.

i had a conversation with a friend today about “art”.  good, bad, and the idea of passing judgement on something/someone in the name of…art.  and in this conversation i finally articulated my theory that it doesnt matter who says what about anyone’s art.  it really doesnt.  the only thing that matters is that my own aesthetic becomes sharpened with all of the art i encounter.  whatever resonates (be it good or bad) from other peoples’ expression, transcends the silly labels of “good” and “bad”… and that resonance can fuel inspiration, or frustration, or awe, or disgust… and in the end, it makes a mark, for better or for worse, on…well… my aesthetic.  

anyways… i should have included “one part ramble” in the recipe for this post…

so.  since i didnt get cast, my reasons for staying in boulder after my contract with CSF is over are becoming rather thin.  i know that i dont want to leave… and yet simultaneously i do.  and yet… the day when i have to make an actual decision on whether or not i stay or go is drawing closer, and i dont know any more than i did a month ago.  i mean… if auditions for another show that i want to be in come up, will i just go and do that? is my life just going to be a cycle of auditions, rejections, and occasional successes?  why is the primary way to get a job as a performing artist so ridiculously un-holistic and impersonal?  is that really the next step my life is going to take?  am i going to be trapped doing work that barely resonates with me for the rest of life just because its the only type of work that will pay?

…how am i going to change the world with my art if my art never gets made?

where am i going to go?  what is the next step i need to take in order to get to my future goals?  

and why the fuck is everyone else so happily in love? and why does that make me feel so fucking alone and depressed?  it seems like everyone else has someone sometimes.  

so… thats whats been going on in my head the last couple of days.  i totally understand if no one reads this… actually it’d probably be better if no one did… because im pretty sure i sound like a big bag of crazy.

 

i should probably stop here… so i will.  dont worry friends and lovers, i’ll get out of this place soon… hopefully…

 

Test Site Project 1

hey everyone! im doing a site specific performance-piece at the denver museum of contemporary art tonight!!

it’ll be lots of funnnnnnnnnnn!!!

 

lookit ‘im bein’ a fancy lad!

(note: read the title of this blog with a ridiculous cockney accent…)

so.  ive got some media to post… so i hope you enjoy!

first up is my new swanky headshot!

then… a video clip from youtube of fight choreography stuff ive been helping work on for “3 Musketeers” for CSF

booyah!!

 

milestones and turning points

so… i graduated.

YAY!!!

as of May 11th, 2008 i now hold a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Contemporary Performance with emphasis in ensemble physical theatre/dance theatre from Naropa University.

its pretty wonderful being graduated now, but its also kindof terrifying.  although… ive got awesome news!

ive been cast in the Colorado Shakespeare Festival this summer, so i’ll be appearing Three Musketeers and Henry VIII!

(booyah for being employed in my field right after graduation!  in your face, world! im a Big Fucking Artist now!)

but annnnyways… after my contract is up at the end of August… i have no idea what im gonna be doing or where i’ll be.  its funny how my buddhist university was constantly teaching me and training me about groundlessness and “not-knowing”, but now that im in the thick of it… its kindof terrifying.  but… the good news is that now, the world is my oyster and for the first time ever… im not tied down anywhere.  i think that for the first time in my life… i dont *have* to be anywhere.  i guess its an odd sort of freedom that im not used to, but i like it.

so yeah… thats whats been going on in my life since i last blogged.

and now that im a college graduate, all i know is… this summer is gonna be great!

 

this is what i do… pt. 2

Pictures from my thesis production entitled: Peripeteia

Peripeteia: (Greek, Περιπέτεια) is a reversal of circumstances, or turning point.

The show revolved around the ideas of “beauty” and “violence”, and the thematic question was “Can beauty be violent? Can violence be beautiful?”

The show itself was a self-scripted original dance/physical theatre piece that incorported authentic storytelling, improvisation, music, and dance.  hopefully i’ll get to put up some video as well, but until then, enjoy these lovely photos.