tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-193209212024-03-07T16:36:39.606-05:00Teresa's Political Theater BlogI love music theater, music and Politics (Hillary Politics) in that order! Join me...TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-12293462593683188402016-06-23T13:02:00.004-05:002016-06-23T13:02:56.243-05:00Here is my new Zazzle Website to raise money for Hillary4Americahttp://www.zazzle.com/teese_4_hillary<span class="fullpost"></span><br />
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Some of the proceeds will go to donate to Hillary's campaign. The rest will go to my expenses as I travel to other states to campaign for her. I have pledged to go to NH first. Where to next I am not sure. My products will not hit the market until 6-24-16.</div>
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Cheers Hillary Peeps</div>
TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-50697536543580669192008-12-31T12:07:00.002-05:002008-12-31T12:11:15.816-05:00Fort Lauderdale PlayersI was just contacted by an old friend from Fort Lauderdale Players through facebook. There is a page for the players and I hope everyone who is a member there will take a look at the content here and comment. It would be great to hear from you all.<br /><br />Explore, that is a diary about Michael and one about Ed and some content about what I have been up to in the last 11 years.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span class="fullpost"></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-75567309071362414762008-04-14T21:26:00.003-05:002016-08-01T10:52:39.447-05:00Mostly OperaYesterday a group I belong to called Mostly Opera performed a concert. It went very well dispite the fact that we never had a real tech rehearsal and our curtain stopped working. We flew by the seat of our costumes and it was a lot of fun.<br />
I sang "Stride La Vampa" from Il Trovatore. It is a Verdi Opera and Verdi writes wonderfully for my voice type. So it is always a pleasure to sing his music.<br />
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The scenes we preformed were from Turandot, Manon, Carmen and La Traviata. They were wonderfully costumed and staged by Helene Tinsley with our Musical director Linda Houck.<br />
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In a few weeks I have a concert with a group called Ekumen Choral. We sing Eastern Orthodox Liturgy in Russian or Ukrainian Church Slavonic. It is all sung a-capella since the orthodox church doesn't allow instrumentation.<br />
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I am updating this today to say that our Leader and conductor Patrick Marcinko died last week. He was a brilliant musician and no one could interpret the music of the Eastern Orthodox Church the way he did. It is honestly both the most difficult and most satisfying music I ever sang. Above this diary is one that has a link that used to connect to a recording we did many years ago. Sadly that link leads no where anymore.<br />
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Teresa<br />
<br />TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1146586691498884722006-05-02T11:12:00.000-05:002007-01-15T11:28:27.563-05:00Sorry, you don't know Jack (the life of a friend)(cross posted at daily kos)<br /><br />When Jack was little, about 2 or 3 years of age, he never told me specifically, his father left. Or maybe he was driven out, Jack was not sure. All he knew was that his father was a WW2 vet and an alcoholic who was later maligned to Jack, or Johnny as he was known then, as a bad man and bad father.<br /><br />Johnny's mother remarried when he was six and one day, he found himself at a boarding school for the orphans of Military vets. He had a mother and a father and a step father, but Johnny was left sitting on a bench at a home for orphans, wondering when his mother was coming back to get him. It was a nice place and Johnny was excited to be going to school there. The school was only a short drive from his house, but why was he sitting on a bench alone waiting for his mother and where did she go and when was she coming back? She said he should sit still and that she would be right back. But he waited and waited and she didn't come back.<br /><br /><br /><span class="fullpost"><br /><br /><br />Why was the matron carrying his suitcase and where did that come from? He hadn't packed it and he didn't know if his mother had, but there is was with his clothes and he was being taken to a room which some strange woman was telling him was his room.<br />There were a lot of beds all lined up and perfectly made. He wondered who slept in all those beds.<br /><br />The strange women told him it was almost dinner time. He wanted to go home for dinner. Maybe Mommy was making pot pie. He didn't want to eat here with other kids he didn't know. Could they tell he was crying?<br /><br />A year later Johnny's little sister, Judy, came to live at Scotland School. It was a little easier for her since her brother was there already. He'd been home for a week and she had seen him at Grandma's house over the summer. He was happy to have Judy there. She reminded him of home. <br /><br />During the summers Johnny and Judy spent time with Grandma. She was their father's mother and the absolutely best thing Johnny could remember about his childhood was sitting in her lap being rocked. She would hold him and rock in the chair and tell him what a good boy he was and how much she loved him. <br /><br />Johnny was very small for his age, and very blonde. Judy and Johnny made quite a picture, two tiny blonde children born in the 1940s. They grew up together and were very close. They were closer than most brothers and sisters. And they lived in an orphanage just down the road from their mother, step father and half brother and sister who were born after Johnny and Judy went to live at Scotland School. <br /><br />For one week in the summer they went home. It could only be one week because otherwise the state would give custody back to Mommy and they would get to go home to live. They worked in the fields during the rest of the summer.<br /><br />When Johnny was in high school he played baseball, and he played the trombone and I think the trumpet. He wanted to be a musician and had some talent. He thought, maybe he could be a music teacher. But his guidance counselor told him to learn a trade; there would be no money for college. So he learned about electronics from the school handyman. He liked working with maintenance man. It gave him a chance to get away from the Matron who beat them for breaking rules, and have some independence on campus.<br /><br />Johnny was an elf of a young man, all of 5'4", with a personality both optimistically joyous and despairingly angry by turns, the kind of man who used to be referred to as a bantam Rooster. I didn't know him then, but I imagine he was as much an endless talker, a laugher and a fighter as the man I met 50 years later. He had dreams. One of them was the dream of family. That was the big one.<br /><br />When Jack graduated from school he was allowed to live at home for a bit while he found a job. He worked in the local Five and Dime but that didn't last long. The woman who was his supervisor used him as a scapegoat for her own laziness and he was fired after a time. So he was told to get a job or get out and he joined the Navy. This started the 12 year period that was the best and the worst time of his life. He both loved and hated the Navy. It turned him from a republican to a democrat. He loved the comradery and sense of shared purpose. He came to hate the senseless rules and the senseless war.<br /><br />The Navy lied to Johnny about his height and for the rest of his life he was convinced he was 5'6". Johnny's height was not the only thing the Navy lied about. They told him that he could be on a submarine. They didn't tell him that very few men made it through the training. Jack couldn't do the underwater training so he went to electronics and it suited him well. That was 1960 and Jack spent the next 12 years in the military. He served 4 tours of duty in Viet Nam during that time. <br /><br />Eventually Jack found himself on the battle ship "New Jersey". Here is the story of his time on the ship. It is no wonder he ended up with PTSD.<br /><br /> <blockquote> "...New Jersey's third career began 6 April 1968 when she recommissioned at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Captain J. Edward Snyder in command. Fitted with improved electronics and a helicopter landing pad and with her 40-millimeter battery removed, she was tailored for use as a heavy bombardment ship. Her 16-inch guns, it was expected, would reach targets in Vietnam inaccessible to smaller naval guns and, in foul weather, safe from aerial attack.<br /><br /> New Jersey, now the world's only active battleship, departed Philadelphia 16 May, calling at Norfolk and transiting the Panama Canal before arriving at her new home port of Long Beach, Calif., 11 June. Further training off southern California followed. On 24 July New Jersey received 16-inch shells and powder tanks from Mount Katmai (AE-16) by conventional highline transfer and by helicopter lift, the first time heavy battleship ammunition had been transferred by helicopter at sea.<br /><br /> Departing Long Beach 3 September, New Jersey touched at Pearl Harbor and Subic Bay before sailing 25 September for her first tour of gunfire support duty along the Vietnamese coast. Near the 17th parallel on 30 September, the dreadnought fired her first shots in battle in over sixteen years. Firing against Communist targets in and near the so-called Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), her big guns destroyed two gun positions and two supply areas. She fired against targets north of the DMZ the following day, rescuing the crew of a spotting plane forced down at sea by antiaircraft fire.<br /><br /> The next six months fell into a steady pace of bombardment and fire support missions along the Vietnamese coast, broken only by brief visits to Subic Bay and replenishment operations at sea. In her first two months on the gun line, New Jersey directed nearly ten thousand rounds of ammunition at Communist targets; over: 3,000 of these shells were 16-inch projectiles.<br /><br /> Her first Vietnam combat tour completed, New Jersey departed Subic Bay 3 April 1969 for Japan. She arrived at Yokosuka for a two-day visit, sailing for the United States 9 April. Her homecoming, however, was to be delayed. On the 15th, while New Jersey was still at sea, North Korean jet fighters shot down an unarmed EC-121 Constellation electronic surveillance plane over the Sea of Japan, killing its entire crew. A carrier task force was formed and sent to the Sea of Japan, while New Jersey was ordered to come about and steam toward Japan. On the 22nd she arrived once more at Yokosuka, and immediately put to sea in readiness for what might befall.<br /><br /> As the crisis lessened, New Jersey was released to continue her interrupted voyage. She anchored at Long Beach 5 May 1969, her first visit to her home port in eight months. Through the summer months, New Jersey's crew toiled to make her ready for another deployment. Deficiencies discovered on the gun line were remedied, as all hands looked forward to another opportunity to prove the mighty warship's worth in combat. Reasons of economy were to dictate otherwise. On 22 August 1969 the Secretary of Defense released a list of names of ships to be inactivated; at the top of the list was New Jersey. Five days later, Captain Snyder was relieved of command by Captain Robert C. Peniston...." (http://www.battleshipnewjersey.org/...)</blockquote><br /><br />During his time in Long Beach Jack met a nurse named Linda. She was from MN and Jack thought, somewhat sheltered. They fell in love and married and their son was born while Jack was in the Navy. Linda told him she could not stay married to him if he stayed in the service so he retired from the Navy and went home to his family. But Linda was mistaken. She didn't want to remain married to Jack at all. He said it was something about his temper and the lack of communication. I can believe that. He was both temperamental and too scared of losing family to be able to talk about problems in a relationship. <br /><br />They divorced and she moved to MN only to be followed by Jack who wanted to be near his son. Eventually unable to find work and depressed over losing his family, he moved back to York Pa and started a new life. <br /><br />That is where he was when I met him on line many years later. He was divorced for the second time. He had spent 23 years working for a union book binder and serving part of that time as Union steward. But in the early 90s he got oral cancer, lost part of his jaw and had it replaced with a steel plate, developed an aortal aneurism, lost part of his foot which would not heal, and that is how I found him on disability and singing fast towards homelessness. <br /><br />We met on the AOL message boards. On any given day my name was the topic header in 50 percent of the posts as argumentative people tried to harass me off the Clinton impeachment board discussions. Jack thought I was funny and I thought he made great points. Some of my favorite snarky expressions are those I learned from Jack.<br /><br />Jack and I became friends and really something more than that. He came to live with me in the late 90s because he was falling through the cracks on SS disability and I was in need of someone to share the house keeping and teen age son chauffeuring. Jack had given up on life in some ways I could not accept. So I was frustrated with him and knew I would not spend the rest of my life in this indefinable, platonic but deeply loving companionship. Still, we were like an old married couple. <br /><br />We had a great deal of fun, Jack and I. He was willing to go to the plant store with me. We spent many Saturdays driving around NE PA looking for interesting Nurseries. He put up bird feeders and we watched birds using a book to identify them. We tried to outsmart the squirrels and lost most of the time. One of them we named "Steelheart" after one particularly odd "survivalist" character on AOL. Our neighbor caught that squirrel and took him fifteen miles away, but damned if the thing didn't show back up a few days later. We knew it was him because of the big chunk of tail he was missing.<br /><br />We spent time with each other's families. He went to my family stuff (which is more than I can say for the man I was married to for 13 years) and I went to his. But the best thing he did for me was this: he kept his temper at me in check.<br /><br />He sometimes went in to the kitchen and slammed cupboards and mumbled under his breath which used to make me furious. I would yell at him to "say it to my face". But he couldn't because he was too mad and he was afraid of this temper and he was giving me a gift. He was showing me that I was worth holding his temper for and that I was worth worrying about losing. I was amazed to learn that he was famous in his family for having an uncontrollable temper and that he had never walked away from a fight in his life. That is not the way he acted with me.<br /><br />I don't know if I will ever have another "relationship" in my life. I am not so sure I care. I have not taken good care of my health and I have some personal work to do. But if I ever do, I know that the person will have to spend time doing things I like to do, to work at finding common ground and he will have to be as kind and considerate as Jack tried to be and was. I know I deserve that because Jack showed me so.<br /><br />Two years ago on the 28th of April, Jack died of Lung Cancer. Several years earlier he had a heart attack and we both quite smoking. But it was way too late for Jack. He was now in his 60s and had smoked since he joined the Navy in 1960. He spent 2 months on the couch taking pain pills and waiting for what the doctor said was a pulled muscle to stop being so painful. For the last few weeks of those 2 months the doctor was looking for cancer all over Jack's body because Jack was anemic and losing weight. The one place he didn't look was Jacks lungs because they always sounded so good. Finally one day Jack described his pain in more detail and was sent to the hospital for a chest X-ray. He never left the hospital that day or ever and died three weeks later. <br /><br />Jack used to drive me out of my mind with his idle chatter. He talked more than anyone I have ever known and sometimes in my head I would chant "shut up shut up". After a day spent talking to people for a living I just wanted some quiet. After a day with no one to talk to, Jack wanted to talk to me.<br /><br />When he was dying, those last four days or so, he slept all the time and I would ask people to come to the hospital because I knew when other people were there Jack would wake up and talk to them. With me he was comfortable and so he slept as I sat there hour after hour praying for just a little more idle chatter from him. <br /><br />Thank you for reading. I wanted to post this on the second anniversary of Jack's death but I was too busy. </span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1145416811573731812006-04-18T22:12:00.000-05:002006-04-18T22:20:11.680-05:00AL GORE, Comeback Kid version 2.0? WaPo says perhaps<p> By now everyone knows I am the number one fan of the idea of an Al Gore presidency. I think we need him not just because he is the best and brightest but because he has an inate decency and humanity rare in politicians. He is smarter than almost everyone, he is decent, he is experienced and he has great character. </p><p> Here is what the Washington Post published today. </p><p> Oh, and by the way.... I don't give a damn if he has gained some weight, must we always have that banal reference? Good lord, so have I. It's been a freaking depressing 5 and 1/2 years.</p><br /><br /><blockquote style="font-family: times new roman; font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Boring Al Gore has made a movie. It is on the most boring of all subjects -- global warming. It is more than 80 minutes long, and the first two or three go by slowly enough that you can notice that Gore has gained weight and that his speech still seems oddly out of sync. But a moment later, I promise, you will be captivated, and then riveted and then scared out of your wits. Our Earth is going to hell in a handbasket.</span><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> You will see the Arctic and Antarctic ice caps melting. You will see Greenland oozing into the sea. You will see the atmosphere polluted with greenhouse gases that block heat from escaping. You will see photos from space of what the ice caps looked like once and what they look like now and, in animation, you will see how high the oceans might rise. Shanghai and Calcutta swamped. Much of Florida, too. The water takes a hunk of New York. The fuss about what to do with Ground Zero will turn to naught. It will be underwater.</span> </p></blockquote><p> Think of that, much of the coast underwater, large parts of our oldest most historic cities. What about Europe, Asia, India, Africa and Australia? Most of the great cities of the world are on the coast of one continent or another.</p><p> </p><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-family: times new roman; font-style: italic;">You cannot see this film and not think of George W. Bush, the man who beat Gore in 2000. The contrast is stark. Gore -- more at ease in the lecture hall than he ever was on the stump -- summons science to tell a harrowing story and offers science as the antidote. No feat of imagination could have Bush do something similar -- even the sentences are beyond him.<p> But it is the thought that matters -- the application of intellect to an intellectual problem. Bush has been studiously anti-science, a man of applied ignorance who has undernourished his mind with the empty calories of comfy dogma. For instance, his insistence on abstinence as the preferred method of birth control would be laughable were it not so reckless. It is similar to Bush's initial approach to global warming and his rejection of the Kyoto Protocol -- ideology trumping science. It may be that Gore will do more good for his country and the world with this movie than Bush ever did by beating him in 2000.</p><p> Gore insists his presidential aspirations are behind him. "I think there are other ways to serve," he told me. No doubt. But on paper, he is the near-perfect Democratic candidate for 2008. Among other things, he won the popular vote in 2000. He opposed going to war in Iraq, but he supported the Persian Gulf War -- right both times. He is smart, experienced and, despite the false caricatures, a man versed in the new technologies -- especially the Internet. He is much more a person of the 21st century than most of the other potential candidates. Trouble is, a campaign is not a film. Gore could be a great president. First, though, he has to be a good candidate.</p></blockquote><p> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/17/AR2006041701259.html">More here</a> </p><p> PS... I have a very good friend who is a conservative who said to me about 15 minutes ago (as we were driving home from rehersal) "we better start doing something about global warming". Boy was I tempted to rub it in. But all I said was "but remember Bob, 5 years ago people were making fun of the idea". </p>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1141069382774440952006-02-27T14:38:00.000-05:002006-02-27T14:43:02.786-05:00Lord Of The Rings, the MusicalIf you click the title of this diary, you will get the goolge page for LOTR the stage show. I have been looking for a review and have not found one. I heard about this by clicking on blogwaybaby.com. <br />If you go to the <a href="http://www.lotr.com/">web site</a> and look at the pics you will find that their "Strider" looks a bit like his movie counterpart. <br />The Show is playing in Toronto and I think it would be a lot of fun to see, but I wonder if it is the type of thing that could play in NYC?TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1139032259039124292006-02-04T00:39:00.000-05:002006-02-04T00:50:59.053-05:00DFA members running for office<p> I think this is great. Many DFA members are<br />running for office. They are taking the Jim and Howard Dean's<br />message to heart and getting involved in the political process.<br /> Go take a look at <a href="http://blogforamerica.com">Blog for America</a> and join up if you haven't yet and if you like what you see. <br /><br />This is grassroots action at it's best. </p><br /><br /><br /><span class="fullpost"><br /><div style="padding: 10px; background-color: rgb(204, 240, 255);"><br />All over the country, Democracy for America members are stepping up and running for local office. It's what we're all about--citizens taking action and making America better.<br /><br />Win or lose, these rising stars are doing what too many in Washington fear to do--fighting for what they believe.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.debrashore.org">Debra Shore</a><br />Debra Shore is a DFA member running for Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District in Cook County, IL. She believes that we can be caring stewards of our natural resources, while building a better, healthier community. DFA members across Chicagoland support Debra because they know that the best way to elect new leadership is by<br />working at the grassroots level.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.karenfelthauser.com/">Karen Felthauser</a><br />Karen Felthauser is a long time DFA member, Williamson County Democratic<br />Party member, and community activist. She recently decided to run for the Texas State House in District 52 - just northwest of Austin. Karen will make Texas more progressive by helping provide quality and affordable education for all Texans, protecting and conserving the state's public lands, and ensuring that everyone has access to quality, affordable health care.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.eleshagayman.com/">Elesha Gayman</a><br />Elesha Gayman, a member of Democracy for America-Quad Cities, is running for the Iowa House of Representatives in District 84. Elesha's dedication to her community inspired her to enter the non-profit sector as a grant writer, fundraiser and volunteer. Now, she is running to bring new energy to the Iowa State House.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://andymeisner.com/">Andy Meisner</a><br />Andy Meisner is running for re-election as a State Representative in Michigan. He has been involved in the Royal Oak-DFA group since early 2004. In Lansing, he has fought to bring new jobs to Michigan and to ease legislative restrictions on stem cell research. With your help, he will continue to promote a strong Democratic message for the state and help take back the Michigan House.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.ron-rice.com/">Ronald Rice Jr.</a><br />Ronald Rice Jr. is a member of New Jersey for Democracy and co-organizes the Essex County, NJ DFA group. He is running for West Ward Councilman in the City of Newark. In 2002 he ran for councilman-at-large and received more votes than any previous first-time candidate in the history of Newark. His campaign is about changing the culture of city politics, empowering residents through education, and community control of all city development.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.votetyharrell.com/">Ty Harrell</a><br />Ty Harrell is a DFA member in Raleigh, North Carolina who has spent years fighting for Democratic ideals. He has lectured at Duke University and is currently on the Arts and Sciences Development staff there. Ty is taking his experience and skills on the campaign trail in his bid for the State House in District 41. He believes North Carolina needs a better education system and a stronger health care program in order to improve the lives of its citizens. He will promote fiscal responsibility by rewarding small businesses and companies that create jobs in the state and close the tax loopholes on companies that move their business away from North Carolina.<br /><br /><br /><br />These DFA members are doing their part. They get an "A" from DFA. That's why we're adding them to the "DFA-List."<br /><br />But they need your help to win. Please visit their websites and help them in any way you can.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.dfalist.com">DFA List</a><br /><br />Thank you for helping our next generation of leaders succeed.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Jim Dean<br />Democracy for America</div></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1138460046687135392006-01-28T09:09:00.000-05:002006-01-28T10:51:03.016-05:00Didn't they just close "A Chorus Line"?<p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/broadway/musicals/images/pic_chorus.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/broadway/musicals/images/pic_chorus.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><p><br />So, I am surfing Al Gore's internets and I found this item:<br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 5, 5);font-family:times new roman;font-size:110%;" >"Charlotte d'Amboise & Michael Berresse Set for B'way's Upcoming A Chorus Line" </span><br /><br /><br />Didn't they just close that show? Was it really 16 years ago? That hardly seems possible. I first saw the show in 1976 as a High School senior. It was the senior trip of Washington Free Academy in Salem NY. There were 78 of us in the class and 2 did not graduate, so 76 graduated in 1976. We tinfoil hatters think they administration failed two people on purpose to be...you know.... clever.<br /><br />We were allowed time to see Manhattan and eat dinner. Then we went to the theater and saw "A Chorus Line" (some of the kids saw other shows). It was the second cast, so Ann Reinking was playing Cassie. She was great of course. I don't think there is a better dancer for that role. I was blown away by the production. <br /><br />In the early 1990s I took production pictures of a production of the show in south Florida. I don't know where those pictues went to. I wish I knew, because they were some of my favorite work. <br /><br /><br /><br />Click the "read more" link below to read the article about the coming broadway production.<br /><span class="fullpost"><br /><br /><div style="border: thick groove #339966; margin-left: 1%; width: 105%; padding: 2px 2px 2px 2px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 105);"></span><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">... Tony-nominated actors Charlotte d'Amboise and Michael Berresse are set to play Cassie and Zach, respectively, in the upcoming Broadway revival of A Chorus Line., according to The New York Times.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">D'Amboise recently left the company of Chicago, a show in which she has performed on and off for years. She won a Fred Astaire Award for her performance in the Broadway revival of Damn Yankees and earned a Tony nomination for Jerome Robbins' Broadway. Her other Broadway credits include Carrie, Song and Dance, Cats and Contact. At one point, she was also supposed to headline the recent Broadway revival of Sweet Charity, but instead she played the very beginning of the show's run and served as Christina Applegate's standby.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);"><br /></span><p><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">Michael Berresse</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">Berresse is currently appearing in The Light in the Piazza. He was nominated for Tony, Astaire and Outer Critics Awards for his performance as Bill Calhoun in Kiss Me, Kate. He also earned an Olivier Award nomination when he appeared in the tuner in the West End. Berresse originated the role of Fred Casely in the Broadway revival of Chicago before taking over as Billy Flynn both on Broadway and on tour. His other Broadway credits include Damn Yankees, Guys and Dolls, Carousel, Fiddler on the Roof and The Gershwins' Fascinating Rhythm. Berresse appeared on the big screen in AI: Artificial Intelligence. He will soon direct and choreograph the musical [title of show] at the Vineyard Theatre.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102);">A Chorus Line, the legendary musical about a lineup of Broadway gypsies baring their souls for a grueling audition, features a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, music by Marvin Hamlisch (who will orchestrate the revival) and lyrics by Edward Kleban. A Chorus Line was originally conceived by director/choreographer Michael Bennett out of a series of interviews with Broadway dancers. It premiered at the Public Theater under the watchful eye of producer Joseph Papp in early 1975 and quickly became the must-see show of that season. A Chorus Line opened ln Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on July 25, 1975 with Donna McKechnie as Cassie and Robert LuPone as Zach. It remained at the theater for a record-breaking run that lasted until April 28, 1990 (running a total of 6,137 performances). It won nine 1976 Tony Awards including Best Musical as well as the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Richard Attenborough's film adaptation of the show premiered in 1985....</span><br /></p></blockquote></div><br /><br /><br />To read the rest of the article please click on the title of this post up above. <br />The graphic is found at <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/broadway/musicals/chorus.html">The PBS Broadway site</a></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1132979957502373462005-12-25T00:31:00.000-05:002005-12-07T20:51:45.606-05:00Why a blog?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/jbrel.1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/jbrel.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 0);font-family:lucida grande;" >Why a blog? Because there weren't enough blogs already, obviously.<br />I decided to add my voice and see what happens and where this blog takes me.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);font-family:lucida grande;" ><------This is a picture of me and friends in ... 'Brel, guess which one is me. Clue: I am the one who burns and peels in the summer. I used this pic to introduce my blog, because it was watching a tape of this production that was the final straw against my resistance to talk about theater. I don't think I ever watched this video, even when I first got it in the early 90s. Wow, I am older and wiser and a better singer. But I have not been involved in theater for many years except for singing concerts with various groups. I need to find a way back....perhaps working with kids, we shall see.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >I met all three of the people in this picture when I was doing a production of NINE. I auditioned for Michael who was sitting in the the darkened audience and said, when I finished singing, "you have an absolutely beautiful voice". You've gotta love a director who says such a thing to you in an audition.<br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 0);font-family:times new roman;" > The guy with the long Black hair was Leslie McMillen Perez, who played Guido. The pretty woman behind me is Ann Jackson who played his mother. The other tall handsome guy is Jeff Morell, who was not in the show, but was Michael's S.O. and so he would come to rehersals and during the times when Michael would try to stage a "dance" number, when my body just would not go in the right direction, Jeff would make motions for me to follow and mouth directions to me. Jeff, Michael, Bob, Larry, Leslie, Ann, Jonathan...how very lucky I was to audition for that show and how lucky I am to have a record of Leslie, Ann, Jeff and I all singing together in 'Brel.<br /><br />Later, after Nine had run its course Leslie and Ann got involved in this production of Brel and when they were looking for two other people who could sing, they thought of Jeff and I... at least that's how I think we all ended up working together again.<br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0); font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1134185816098504862005-12-09T22:29:00.000-05:002005-12-25T08:39:27.023-05:00THE COLOR PURPLE is what's new on Broadway<span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);font-size:130%;" >The Color Purple</span><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);"> is the newest show on Broadway I believe. It opened officially a few days ago and has had postive reviews plus GIGANTA publicity thanks to Oprah. Here is their official website.</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">I have seen some clips, this one is on Broadway.com. The picture above is a picture from TheaterMania.com. I have not seen the show and I have no idea if I woul dlike it better than the brilliant movie version. I expect I would, because live theater is usually better than any movie. But are there images from the movie which that I would miss? Probably, but I will be interested to see over time how the show is recieved by audiences and how long it runs.</span><br /><span class="fullpost"><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">You know, I remember when the movie came out and it was fashionable to bash Spielberg as a director. But he did a brilliant job with that movie. I hope that the Broadways production is as good and I wish them many broken legs.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Other good websites for theater info and gossip.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Internet Broadway Database</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Talkin' Broadway</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">BlogwayBaby.com</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 0); font-weight: bold;">What the critics are saying according to the official website:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" ><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 102);">"BLESSED WITH TALENT.</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 102);">A bright odyssey of survival and triumph with a fairy-tale sense of wonder,'Purple' strikes sparks."</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 102);">- Ben Brantley, The New York Times</span><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:180%;" ><span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51); font-weight: bold;">"IT'S FABULOUS!</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51); font-weight: bold;">A SOARING, JOYFUL BROADWAY MUSICAL."</span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51);">- Richard Corliss, TIME</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: times new roman; font-weight: bold;">"VIBRANT & WINNING!</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: times new roman; font-weight: bold;">Oprah Winfrey's favorite new musical is blessed by glowing performances from a sisterhood of talent."</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: times new roman; font-weight: bold;">- Clive Barnes, New York Post</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51); font-weight: bold;">"PURE HEART!</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51); font-weight: bold;">It celebrates inspiring relationships of faith and love. LaChanze is A MARVEL! A BROADWAY HIT!"</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(204, 153, 51); font-weight: bold;">- Elysa Gardner, USA Today</span><br /> </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: verdana; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">"A sweeping story that's impressively intimate and EXCEPTIONALLY MOVING, with DYNAMITE PERFORMANCES. 'The Color Purple' SINGS TO THE SOUL! A WINNER!"</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-family: verdana; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">- Roma Torre, NY1 News</span><br /><br /><br /></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1134176297208491522005-12-09T19:57:00.000-05:002005-12-11T12:06:39.896-05:00In Honor of a friend for World AIDS Day<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Michael%2CBob%2C%20Jeff%2C%20Larry%20and%20JR.0.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Michael%2CBob%2C%20Jeff%2C%20Larry%20and%20JR.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" ><strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Here is a Picture of Michael with some of his best friends. Michael is the one in the back with the solid Green shirt.</span><br /></strong></span><blockquote><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">Director Ready for His Final Curtain</span></span></strong></span> <p><em>Miami Herald - Tuesday, December 9, 1997</em><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><b><i>Paul Brinkley-Rogers, Herald Staff Writer</i></b></span> </p> <hr noshade="noshade" size="1"> <!--xx-->The jalousie windows of Michael McCord's bedroom are open to the world where he was a player, a force in the theater. The late-afternoon shadows are moving in on the lush garden where his dogs are playing. <p> Lying in his sickbed, the veteran Fort Lauderdale theater director and longtime AIDS activist knows that death is waiting for him -- perhaps jealous of the sheer will he is exerting to stay alive until Christmas Day. </p> <br /><span class="fullpost"> <p> That's the way you keep going, one day at a time, says this man hooked up to an oxygen tank. McCord is bone thin, less than 90 pounds now, his energy sapped by his medical problems. His doctor has told him he could go at any time. </p> <p> With death that palpable, he says, you get busy. You make your own funeral arrangements, telling everyone not to wear black. You pick the music, but you don't tell your friends what it is, because if you did, it would not be a surprise. With your parish priest, you walk that final mile together in prayer. </p> <p> "You are living with a little thief," McCord, 42, says of the process of dying. He does not sound exasperated, just knowledgeable. </p><br /><br /> <p> "Every week, it steals away another part of me. I am continually adjusting. I am continually saying things like, `OK, you can't stand up in the shower any more. What are you going to do? OK, you'll get a shower chair.' " </p> <p> He's no longer able to walk a great distance. A cane will do. Going out to dinner or the theater is no longer an option. He stays home. </p> <p> "So you think. You think, `How am I going to be at peace and know that everyone else in my life is at peace?' You make plans. You make arrangements. That's what's neat about dying slowly like this -- you have time to do that. It's not like being shot on the South Florida highways, where you are suddenly snatched away." </p> <p> Being bedridden, terminal, is not easy for a man who was dance captain for West Side Story on Broadway in 1980, a demanding job that made him responsible for keeping the dancing first-rate. It's not easy for a man who directed critically acclaimed productions of Evita, Li'l Abner and Sweet Charity with the Fort Lauderdale Players. A man who enjoyed steak, vodka and an eight-year relationship with his companion, actor Jeff Marroll, who, last week of all weeks, was told that his mother had died. </p> <p> The first hint of McCord's lethal illness came Sept. 17, 1987. </p> <p> That was the day, in Fort Lauderdale, in the middle of rehearsals, when he thought he had the flu but instead was told by his doctor that he had a fungal lung infection. </p> <p> He was having such a difficult time breathing that the hospital told family members that McCord might not make it through the night. </p> <p> "They all came to the bed and sat with me," McCord said of this first of several near-death crises brought on by the HIV infection. "They touched me." Perhaps because of that contact, by the next day, he was sitting up and eating. </p> <p> Told that he had AIDS, his first reaction was not fear. Instead, it was "to keep working, to go on with the show." </p> <p> As late as July, with his weight dropping to 100 pounds, he was firing up The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas for the Fort Lauderdale Players. </p> <p> "Dying?" he said. "It's the thing we all have to do, whether it's AIDS, cancer, a heart attack. Hopefully, it's at the end of a long and fruitful life. You can't cheat death. But as my doctor said, it is amazing what the human spirit can do." </p> <p> Those who counseled, doctored and worked with McCord know what he means. </p> <p> "People tried to tell him to take it easy," said J.R. Davis, 45, who danced with McCord back in 1980 in New York City and worked with the director in several summer productions in Fort Lauderdale. "He would not. He was driven. He bounced back from near death several times, and in each case, it was the will to live." </p> <p> McCord's physician, Dr. Frank Tomaka, said: "This man was working 80 hours a week even as late as September. It was a schedule I would have trouble keeping. We'd talk about that schedule, but it was clear it was that which kept him going mentally, emotionally, and when he couldn't keep going, then he was ready to die." </p> <p> The Rev. John McLaughlin, pastor of Oakland Park's Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, says he has seen many parishioners succumb to AIDS. "What made Michael special," he said, talking about McCord's decision a year ago to reconnect with the church of his childhood, "was his focus. He's really an inspiration to deal with spiritually."<br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Link</span></p> </span></blockquote><p> </p><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >Below is a picture of Michael and I and the musical director for a show in Cumberland Md, called Somthing's Afoot. Michael Played Flint and he was really good. I knew he was a great director, but he had really terrific timing as an actor too. In addition he did the choreography and had a heck of a lot of fun reminding me how I had two left feet. M is in the blue turtle neck .</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Castparty.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Castparty.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-family:times new roman;" >This is Michael and our Miss Twead sitting on the top of a Mountain. I am telling you, if you want to have a really wonderful time doing theater, audition for the Cumberland Theater. They hire equity and it is an absolutely beautiful place to live for a couple of weeks or months. </span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Michael-Cumberland.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Michael-Cumberland.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1134175858656013752005-12-09T19:50:00.000-05:002005-12-09T19:50:58.670-05:00Why I hope Al Gore is our next PresidentIn 1988 when I was first aware of Al Gore he seemed young, but there was something special about him as a candidate. When he spoke you could tell that he cared about the things he was talking about, that he was knowledgable about his subject and that being knowledgable was also important to him.<br /><br />Here are the things I know about Gore...<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Cross posted at <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/25/19349/8314">dkos</a><br />Cross posted at <a href="http://politicaltheatreblog.blogspot.com/">PoliticalTheaterBlog</a><br /></span><br /><span class="fullpost"><br />He is <span style="font-weight: bold;">dedicated to the environment</span>:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> There are scientific warnings now of another onrushing catastrophe. We were warned of an imminent attack by Al Qaeda; we didn't respond. We were warned the levees would break in New Orleans; we didn't respond. Now, the scientific community is warning us that the average hurricane will continue to get stronger because of global warming. A scientist at MIT has published a study well before this tragedy showing that since the 1970s, hurricanes in both the Atlantic and the Pacific have increased in duration, and in intensity, by about 50 %. The newscasters told us after Hurricane Katrina went over the southern tip of Florida that there was a particular danger for the Gulf Coast of the hurricanes becoming much stronger because it was passing over unusually warm waters in the gulf. The waters in the gulf have been unusually warm. The oceans generally have been getting warmer. And the pattern is exactly consistent with what scientists have predicted for twenty years. Two thousand scientists, in a hundred countries, engaged in the most elaborate, well organized scientific collaboration in the history of humankind, have produced long-since a consensus that we will face a string of terrible catastrophes unless we act to prepare ourselves and deal with the underlying causes of global warming. [applause] It is important to learn the lessons of what happens when scientific evidence and clear authoritative warnings are ignored in order to induce our leaders not to do it again and not to ignore the scientists again and not to leave us unprotected in the face of those threats that are facing us right now. [applause]</span><br /><a href="http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/gorespeech/">more</a><br /></blockquote><br /><br />He is <span style="font-weight: bold;">not afraid to criticize Bush or republican policy</span>:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> The direction in which our nation is being led is deeply troubling to me -- not only in Iraq but also here at home on economic policy, social policy and environmental policy.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Millions of Americans now share a feeling that something pretty basic has gone wrong in our country and that some important American values are being placed at risk. And they want to set it right.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> The way we went to war in Iraq illustrates this larger problem. Normally, we Americans lay the facts on the table, talk through the choices before us and make a decision. But that didn't really happen with this war -- not the way it should have. And as a result, too many of our soldiers are paying the highest price, for the strategic miscalculations, serious misjudgments, and historic mistakes that have put them and our nation in harm's way.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> I'm convinced that one of the reasons that we didn't have a better public debate before the Iraq War started is because so many of the impressions that the majority of the country had back then turn out to have been completely wrong. Leaving aside for the moment the question of how these false impressions got into the public's mind, it might be healthy to take a hard look at the ones we now know were wrong and clear the air so that we can better see exactly where we are now and what changes might need to be made.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> In any case, what we now know to have been false impressions include the following:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (1) Saddam Hussein was partly responsible for the attack against us on September 11th, 2001, so a good way to respond to that attack would be to invade his country and forcibly remove him from power.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (2) Saddam was working closely with Osama Bin Laden and was actively supporting members of the Al Qaeda terrorist group, giving them weapons and money and bases and training, so launching a war against Iraq would be a good way to stop Al Qaeda from attacking us again.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (3) Saddam was about to give the terrorists poison gas and deadly germs that he had made into weapons which they could use to kill millions of Americans. Therefore common sense alone dictated that we should send our military into Iraq in order to protect our loved ones and ourselves against a grave threat.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (4) Saddam was on the verge of building nuclear bombs and giving them to the terrorists. And since the only thing preventing Saddam from acquiring a nuclear arsenal was access to enriched uranium, once our spies found out that he had bought the enrichment technology he needed and was actively trying to buy uranium from Africa, we had very little time left. Therefore it seemed imperative during last Fall's election campaign to set aside less urgent issues like the economy and instead focus on the congressional resolution approving war against Iraq.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (5) Our GI's would be welcomed with open arms by cheering Iraqis who would help them quickly establish public safety, free markets and Representative Democracy, so there wouldn't be that much risk that US soldiers would get bogged down in a guerrilla war.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> (6) Even though the rest of the world was mostly opposed to the war, they would quickly fall in line after we won and then contribute lots of money and soldiers to help out, so there wouldn't be that much risk that US taxpayers would get stuck with a huge bill.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Now, of course, everybody knows that every single one of these impressions was just dead wrong.</span><br /><br /> <a href="http://www.moveon.org/gore-speech.html">link</a></blockquote><br /><br />He is a <span style="font-weight: bold;">man of faith</span> but a real one who believes that we should <span style="font-weight: bold;">value diversity</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">strengthen all families</span>:<br /><br />Two reviews of his and Tipper's book JOINED AT THE HEART :<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold;"> From Publishers Weekly:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> "For us, as for most Americans," write the former vice-president and his wife, "family is our bedrock, and we believe the strength of the American family is the nation's bedrock." But the American family has changed substantially in the last half century and so have the cultural and economic conditions under which it exists. The families the Gores have encountered in a decade of research reflect these changes: one couple has children from the husband's three different relationships, a gay white couple adopts two black children, a single mother struggles with poverty. The couple add stories from their own marriage and consult with historians, sociologists, psychologists and educators, giving the American family the same comprehensive treatment Al's Earth in the Balance gave the environment. Al and Tipper examine subjects as diverse as the increased divorce rate, the parent-teen gap, dual-income households and the health problems associated with sleep deprivation. They divide the book into themes, including love, communication, work, play and community, and show how these factors influence one another, taking a holistic approach to the underlying problems affecting today's families. Yet although they declare America should "provide every possible support to those most important to us," they make very few firm recommendations on government policy; those reading with an eye toward identifying planks in another Gore presidential campaign will have their work cut out for them.</span> "<br /><br />Photos not seen by PW.<br /> Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> From Library Journal:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">"Coauthoring this very readable work, the Gores affirm their respect and support for culturally and structurally variant American families, loving individuals committed to each other's welfare. Based on personal experiences and interviews with others in traditional and nontraditional relationships, the authors offer a sampling of caring individuals struggling to balance family, work, play, and community to support one another, adults and children, together with the future of this country. The Gores relate these families' experiences to the environments in which they live, offering a critique of the social programs needed to support successful family life: affordable shelter, reliable and competent child care, pre- and post-school time supervised activities, employee family-leave provisions, well-run community facilities, and services for all age levels. They argue that it is increasingly critical to maintain and grow our country's various sources of "social capital," to understand and support families, the too often unacknowledged vital units of our American society. This convincing, multiresourced work is recommended for public and academic library purchase. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 7/02; also released this November is The Spirit of the Family, a photography book edited by the Gores.-Ed.]-Suzanne W. Wood, formerly with SUNY Coll. of Technology at Alfre."</span><br /><br /> --Suzanne W. Wood, formerly with SUNY Coll. of Technology at Alfred<br /> Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.<br /><br /> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0805068937/ref=cm_ayancoding=UTF8&v=glance%20%A0">link</a><br /></blockquote><br />Yes while he is a <span style="font-weight: bold;">brilliant policy wonk</span> he is also very <span style="font-weight: bold;">funny</span>:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> The veep's playful antics are particularly legendary among staff members. On one flight home after a trip to the former Soviet Union, Gore ambled back through the staff section and came across his national security adviser, Leon Fuerth, fast asleep against a window. Sensing a photo op not to be missed, he sat down beside him and launched into an animated discussion of U.S. policy toward Russia. Gore leaned into him and grew increasingly demonstrative as Fuerth remained slumped down, totally oblivious to the tongue-lashing, the photographer and the circle of giggling staff members who had gathered around. According to his aides, Gore is notorious for such stunts -- and usually makes sure his unsuspecting target receives a copy of the photo.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> .......snip......</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> Presidential adviser Paul Begala called Gore's dry wit "a really rare gift because it deflates egos, it eases tension. In a very deadpan, exaggerated, comic sort of way," Begala said, "he'll make fun of the president or of other big-shots by sort of pretending to be an absolute yes man: 'That's a great idea. We should definitely do that. Why stop there?' It's a kind of humor that requires a deep reservoir of self-confidence, a sense of real familiarity with your colleagues ... and obviously high intellect to be able to turn it around."</span><br /><br /> <a href="http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/weekly/aa100300a.htm">link</a></blockquote><br /><br /><br />He is <span style="font-weight: bold;">visionary</span> in matters of the <span style="font-weight: bold;">environment and technology</span>:<br /><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">"The project, which would need approval by Congress, is expected to cost between $20 million and $50 million. Gore sees it as an invaluable resource for scientific, educational and weather research.<br /><br />It would show hurricanes and other threatening weather patterns, forest fires, cloud formations and other phenomena in real time. There are no full-Earth images now available, although existing satellites track regions of the world.<br /><br />The vice president announced the program Friday at a technology conference at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.<br /><br />"As we connect all our classrooms to the Internet, we have the opportunity to bring new education and potential scientific projects as well as global weather observations to millions of American classrooms and living rooms via television and computer," Gore told an audience of academics, industry leaders and politicians."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.cnn.com/TECH/space/9803/13/gore.satellite.late/">more</a> </blockquote><br /><br />He was right about <span style="font-weight: bold;">Social Security</span>:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"> Stance on Social Security reform featuring private accounts: opposes.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> "We have the chance to reform Social Security the right way, in a way that preserves its basic guarantees, pays down our debt, keeps our economy strong, and enables us to meet our other great challenges." Gore has detailed a plan to keep Social Security solvent through at least 2050. As President, Gore would use today's budget surpluses to pay down the national debt and use the interest saved from debt reduction to shore up the Social Security Trust Fund. Gore would also raise benefits for widows and eliminate the motherhood penalty that reduces benefits for women who take time off from work to raise their children. Gore supports a guaranteed benefit for Social Security and opposes raising the retirement age. "Social Security isn't supposed to be a system of winners and losers. It's supposed to be a bedrock guarantee of a minimum decent retirement,"</span><br /><br /> [Source: press release for speech delivered at Fordham University, NY May 16, 2000] <a href="http://www.socialsecurity.org/election00/candidates.html">more</a></blockquote><br /><br />And he was right about about the <span style="font-weight: bold;">war in Iraq</span>:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">"I want to talk about the relationship between America's war against terrorism and America's proposed war against Iraq.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Like most Americans, I've been wrestling with the question of what our country needs to do to defend itself from the kind of focused, intense and evil attack that we suffered a year ago September 11th. We ought to assume that the forces that are responsible for that attack are even now attempting to plan another attack against us.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> I'm speaking today in an effort to recommend a specific course of action for our country, which I sincerely believe would be better for our country than the policy that is now being pursued by President Bush. Specifically, I am deeply concerned that the course of action that we are presently embarking upon with respect to Iraq has the potential to seriously damage our ability to win the war against terrorism and to weaken our ability to lead the world in this new century.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> To begin with, to put first things first, I believe that we ought to be focusing our efforts first and foremost against those who attacked us on September 11th and who have thus far gotten away with it. The vast majority of those who sponsored, planned and implemented the cold-blooded murder of more than 3,000 Americans are still at large, still neither located nor apprehended, much less punished and neutralized. I do not believe that we should allow ourselves to be distracted from this urgent task simply because it is proving to be more difficult and lengthy than was predicted.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> Great nations persevere and then prevail. They do not jump from one unfinished task to another. We should remain focused on the war against terrorism.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"> (APPLAUSE)</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> And, I believe that we are perfectly capable of staying the course in our war against Osama bin Laden and his terrorist network, while simultaneously taking those steps necessary to build an international coalition to join us in taking on Saddam Hussein in a timely fashion. If you're going after Jesse James, you ought to organize the posse first, especially if you're in the middle of a gunfight with somebody who's out after you.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"> I don't think we should allow anything to diminish our focus on the necessity for avenging the 3,000 Americans who were murdered and dismantling that network of terrorists that we know were responsible for it. The fact that we don't know where they are should not cause us to focus instead on some other enemy whose location may be easier to identify. </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">We have other enemies . . .</span>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/transcripts/gore_text092302.html">more</a></blockquote><br /><br />I have no idea if Al Gore has any plans to run for President. <span style="font-weight: bold;">But I do know that he is the <span style="font-style: italic;">best qualified candidate</span> for the job IMO</span>.<br /><br /><br />I wanted to include this information on Gore's new position on healtcare. As one of the posters below reminded me, Gore decided that single payer healtcare was the only thing that would save our broken system.<br /><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> In Surprising Shift, Gore Says He Favors Single-Payer Health Care System WASHINGTON – Noting that 40 million Americans now have no health insurance, Al Gore says he now favors "single-payer" national health coverage, a proposal that would require a massive change in the health insurance system<br /><br />With single-payer coverage, money to pay for health care – such as insurance premiums and tax dollars – would be collected by a single agency, which would then pay for comprehensive coverage for all citizens.<br /><br />Gore, the 2000 Democratic presidential nominee and a potential candidate in 2004, offered his views in response to a question at a synagogue in New York during a tour promoting his book "Joined at the Heart," written with his wife, Tipper.<br /><br />"I was planning to wait and make a major speech on this and I probably should, but I'll just answer your question candidly," Gore told the moderator.<br /><br />Gore's comments Wednesday night were first reported by ABC News' Internet political report "The Note" and were confirmed by Gore spokesman Jano Cabrera, who said any details would come in a future speech on health care.<br /><br />"I think we've reached a point where the entire health care system is in impending crisis," Gore said. "I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that we should begin drafting a single-payer national health insurance plan."<br /><br />Depending on the details, calling for a single-payer plan could be a very dramatic step for Gore. During the 2000 primary campaign, Gore attacked Democratic rival Bill Bradley's central proposal – universal health care – calling it too expensive and not expansive enough to help poor people afford full coverage.<br /><br />Another potential Democratic candidate for president, Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, pushed for health care for all Americans in a speech Thursday night to an education group in Washington. He wants to expand coverage under Medicare and Medicaid to cover people who don't have insurance.</blockquote> <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/1115-07.htm">more</a><br /></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1134175382444130162005-12-09T19:41:00.000-05:002006-04-06T18:47:56.673-05:00Missing Ed<span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">I went to my sister's house for ThanksGiving. While there we watched </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Chorus Line</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> on DVD. My sister's S.O., Ray had discovered that his principal (he is a teacher) conducted the show on broadway for many years, so he wanted to see what it was all about. And also because Ray is now exploring musical theater, just as he spent some years learning about Opera.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">So anyway, we watched the movie and I was pointing out who was who and what they had done. I pointed out Nicole Fosse and tried to explain who Bob Fosse was...lol, so strange to me that anyone would not know. I also mentioned that Terrence Mann of the magnificent baritone voice and stage presence, had been in Les Miz etc... and was a theater legend of sorts. Ray was impressed that someone who played such bad guys could also make "Larry" so likeable in the movie.</span><br /><br /><span class="fullpost"><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">So I went on line at their house to see what else Mann had done, it had been years since I had really paid attention to the theater in NY. I had forgotten that he was in Assassins, a show I had done in Ft Lauderdale. I couldn't remember what part he had played and I HAD THE CD and had listened to it many times. My guess was that he played </span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);" class="tiny">Czolgosz and I was right.<br /></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">After talking theater for a good part of the day, I went home and started looking around at links on Al Gore's internets. I was looking for information on the revival of </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Assassins</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> and read a bit about Sondheim, who is someone I admire very much and whoes music I had just sung a week before at a concert.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">From there I started googling old friends in Ft Lauderdale and decided to see if I could find my friend Ed Dellicarpini who had directed Assassins and who was one of a handful of people from Florida I really missed.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">I found out I was way too late. Ed died of AIDS two years ago. I am so sad and so disapointed in myself for not following through a few years ago when I was feeling like I should call him. I know it sounds (reads) weird, but I am a tiny bit psychic or maybe just intuitive. I should have listened to the little voice in my head that told me "call Ed, you want to speak to Ed because you miss him so much".</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">The last time I saw Ed was at the memorial service of my friend Michael (in 1997) who I blogged about a few days ago. Michael and I had a falling out several years before he died and we never really made it up. He had been my best friend, soul mate (his words) and mentor for years, but when it was time for me to leave the nest neither one of us handled it well. We had several screaming angry fights and after I left florida (I had been divorced from my husband and "divorced" from my best friend and mentor and I couldn't stand to be there anymore, amoung other reasons.) and Michael never forgave me, at least not that I knew.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">So I just cut everyone off, because I didn't think I mattered and I didn't want to be tempted to move back there. I knew that there were several people who could make me want to move back and Ed was one of them. It had only been a year since I moved away. So even though was said to each other "let's keep in touch", we did not.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">I first met Ed when I was doing a production of </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Baby</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> at Broward Community College. He was a student there but older than some of the other people in the cast, some where between their college age and my age of about 33 or 34. Ed was one of those people who had been wounded by something or someone and put on a cynical shell to protect himself. He was funny as hell and his humor tended to run to imitations of PeeWee Herman and scathing comments about other people.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">I think, if I remember, that Ed came along in the Gillen Brey package. Gillen is one of those people who decided we were going to be friends and that was that. Where I am reserved with people, Gillen is a big puppy who comes up and jumps all over you demanding love. She and Ed were best friends, they thought with one brain and directed </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Assassins</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> together.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">So Ed came along with Gillen and over time he and I formed a mutual affection that suited both of our reserved natures. We once went to Metro Zoo in Miami to take pictures, as we were both camera nerds. That was a really wonderful day and the day Ed introduced me the </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Secret Garden</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);"> cast CD. I listened to it for several years and I still do from time to time. I believe it is Lucy Simon's finest work, one of the most beautiful scores for a musical ever. </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Lilly's Eyes</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">, nuff said.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Several years after I got to know Ed and Gillen and Diane Woodle, Diane, Gillen and I were riding in a car and talking about how Ed needed to get tested, considering how often he left our company to "go walk amongst his people". I forget exactly who confronted him, but he didn't want to know and said he would not get tested. He reconsided at some point and indeed we found out he was HIV positive sometime in the mid 1990s. Of course we were all sad, but at the time Michael had been living with full blown AIDS for almost 10 years. But we forgot that Michael was drivin by the need to stick around and run everyone's life (to our advantage more than not. He really cared that everyone be doing well before he died). We didn't think about friends who died after a few short years. Now the standard would be that everyone would live for at least 10 years. After all Michael had been diagnosed in 1987 when the drugs and treatments were almost non existant.<br /><br />So I thought Ed would be around for a lot longer and it was a selfish idea that the world would accomodate me. In the end I hear that Ed shut a lot of friends out, except Mickey and as Kevin said, "good for Mickey" for refusing to be shut out.<br /><br />************************************************************************************<br /></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Here are some pics of Ed and various other friends. This one below is Ed as Booth and Kevin Bogan as Charles Guiteau. I can't come up with the name of the guy playing </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);" class="tiny">Czolgosz, but it will come to me or I will find a program later.</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Assassins-GunSong.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Assassins-GunSong.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ed and Val greeting some kids who want to meet Dorothy. </span><br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Ed-WizardOfOZ.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Ed-WizardOfOZ.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-weight: bold;">This is Ed in Candide, you can guess the character I think.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Ed-Candide.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Ed-Candide.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-weight: bold;">Ed getting made up for Sweeney Todd, my first production with The Fort Lauderdale Players and the show that introduced me to Ed and to Kevin who's talent and beautful voice I immediately admired.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Ed-SweenyTodd.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Ed-SweenyTodd.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Ed and Sam decided that there should be at least one pregnant women in Sweeny so they stuffed my costume and the director decided to go along with the idea. I ended up with Sam and Ed on stage most of the time and they were brutal with the attempts to make me laugh. Staying in character was a challenge. After one performance a woman walked up to me and said how angry she was that the director would allow a pregnant woman to move the house. She was very relieved to find out that I was just good at acting pregnant, not actually "with child".<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">As usual I couldn't make a serious face for the picture. I had to mug instead. As you can see our "back story" was that Ed was my older abusive husband. Being in this production is one of my favorite memories even though my only claim to fame was singing in the letter quintet.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Ed%26TeeseSweenyTodd.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Ed%26TeeseSweenyTodd.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">Our trip to the Zoo. </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/1600/Ed%26TeeseZooAdventure.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4258/519/320/Ed%26TeeseZooAdventure.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153); font-weight: bold;">Love you, Miss you Ed. </span><br /><br /></span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19320921.post-1133898065876841592005-12-06T14:26:00.000-05:002006-04-06T20:47:53.056-05:00Want to hear some great music?<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I'll bet you have never heard this music before. It is the music of the Eastern European Orthodox church.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">You may recognize Rachmaninoff and Tchiakovsky, but I'll bet you never heard Bortniansky, Gretchininoff, Vedel, Beresovsky or Archangelsky.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">This group singing is the Ekumen Choral from Olyphant Pa. The day we sang this music all the soloists were sick with bad chest colds and throat infections. Someone had shared a nice virus the week before apparently. So we were not at our best, but still the music is so beautiful it is worth the download if you have never heard it before.<br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">You will discover that we sing a capella and in eastern church slavonic with either a Russian or Ukrainian pronunciation depending on the composer and our audience.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">The other thing you might notice is that the mic was too close to me and my voice carries. Generally we have a more blended sound.<br /><br />We sing in NYC at the Ukrainian Festival every couple of years. The festival is held in lower Manhattan and it is worth going to for the art and jewelry along with the slavic food you will not generally find outside of the Slavic community.<br /></span><a href="http://www.coloradofullcircle.com/cheswick/"><br />http://www.coloradofullcircle.com/cheswick/</a> <span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"><------ This is a site where the files are hosted. </span>TeresaInPahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07780694526240162239noreply@blogger.com0