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I'm Still Here
Nov. 1st, 2022 07:01 pmI have a bunch of things to write about. The biggest one is the rest of the presentations from the Jewish genealogy conference, but that really demands its own longer entry.
Shameless Self-Promotion: Artists Standing Strong Together puts on an intergenerational storytelling event on the first Friday of the month. I am part of the show on Friday November 4th, from 7-9 p.m. Eastern time. I’ll be telling one of my most popular stories, my adaptation of a folktale about the wise men of Chelm. It’s free (with donations requested) but registration is required at tinyurl.com/Nov2022TGIF.
Dropkick Murphys: I went to see the Dropkick Murphys at the Lincoln Theatre on Tuesday night. They had two opening acts. I liked Jesse Ahern’s music quite a lot, but he could use some lessons on talking to audiences, since he kept his song intros to things like “is everybody having fun?” Someone I know used to coach folk singers on storytelling and he could definitely use lessons from her. The second opener was Jaime Wyatt, who has a nice enough voice but, overall, was too country for my tastes.
The Dropkicks have a new album out (“This Machine Still Kills Fascists”) and did a mix of songs from that and older stuff. The story behind the album is that they were invited by Woody Guthrie’s daughter to go through the archives of his music and lyrics and they wrote songs using some of Woody’s lyrics. This sounds odd at first, since they are mostly thought of as a punk band, but it makes a lot of sense when you think about their political leanings, which are liberal in the Bostonian working class style. (For example, they’ve sued Republican politicians to keep them from using their songs.) Anyway, there was great energy in the theatre and I had a good time.
Here, have a sample. Two 6’s Upside Down.
Medical Stuff: I got my bivalent COVID booster on Wednesday. I had some soreness in my arm, but nothing significant. I also was somewhat tired, but that could also be related to having been up late the night before. I also got blood drawn for various tests. And I ordered my new glasses.
Intimate Apparel: A Facebook friend who I hadn’t met in person before invited me to join her at this play by Lynn Nottage at Theatre J. (We are connected through the Style Invitational Losers, as well as having another mutual friend.) She had gotten tickets as part of a two-for-one deal, so it was free. I had mixed feelings about the play, which tells the story of a black seamstress named Esther who gets involved with a man named George (played by Manu Kumasi, who I thought gave the best performance of the show). He writes her letters from Panama and she agrees to marry him sight unseen. The other characters are the owner of the boarding house she lives in, the Orthodox Jewish man she buys fabric from, and a wealthy white woman and a black prostitute (apparently a long-time friend), both of whom she makes garments for. The marriage doesn’t turn out quite how she hopes, which isn’t particularly surprising. There was one shocking moment in the play, but there wasn’t much follow-through on it. And the thread involving Esther’s relationship with the fabric merchant was unconvincing. There was a talkback with the costume designer afterwards, which was moderately interesting. I’m glad I saw the play, but I hesitate to recommend it.
Shameless Self-Promotion: Artists Standing Strong Together puts on an intergenerational storytelling event on the first Friday of the month. I am part of the show on Friday November 4th, from 7-9 p.m. Eastern time. I’ll be telling one of my most popular stories, my adaptation of a folktale about the wise men of Chelm. It’s free (with donations requested) but registration is required at tinyurl.com/Nov2022TGIF.
Dropkick Murphys: I went to see the Dropkick Murphys at the Lincoln Theatre on Tuesday night. They had two opening acts. I liked Jesse Ahern’s music quite a lot, but he could use some lessons on talking to audiences, since he kept his song intros to things like “is everybody having fun?” Someone I know used to coach folk singers on storytelling and he could definitely use lessons from her. The second opener was Jaime Wyatt, who has a nice enough voice but, overall, was too country for my tastes.
The Dropkicks have a new album out (“This Machine Still Kills Fascists”) and did a mix of songs from that and older stuff. The story behind the album is that they were invited by Woody Guthrie’s daughter to go through the archives of his music and lyrics and they wrote songs using some of Woody’s lyrics. This sounds odd at first, since they are mostly thought of as a punk band, but it makes a lot of sense when you think about their political leanings, which are liberal in the Bostonian working class style. (For example, they’ve sued Republican politicians to keep them from using their songs.) Anyway, there was great energy in the theatre and I had a good time.
Here, have a sample. Two 6’s Upside Down.
Medical Stuff: I got my bivalent COVID booster on Wednesday. I had some soreness in my arm, but nothing significant. I also was somewhat tired, but that could also be related to having been up late the night before. I also got blood drawn for various tests. And I ordered my new glasses.
Intimate Apparel: A Facebook friend who I hadn’t met in person before invited me to join her at this play by Lynn Nottage at Theatre J. (We are connected through the Style Invitational Losers, as well as having another mutual friend.) She had gotten tickets as part of a two-for-one deal, so it was free. I had mixed feelings about the play, which tells the story of a black seamstress named Esther who gets involved with a man named George (played by Manu Kumasi, who I thought gave the best performance of the show). He writes her letters from Panama and she agrees to marry him sight unseen. The other characters are the owner of the boarding house she lives in, the Orthodox Jewish man she buys fabric from, and a wealthy white woman and a black prostitute (apparently a long-time friend), both of whom she makes garments for. The marriage doesn’t turn out quite how she hopes, which isn’t particularly surprising. There was one shocking moment in the play, but there wasn’t much follow-through on it. And the thread involving Esther’s relationship with the fabric merchant was unconvincing. There was a talkback with the costume designer afterwards, which was moderately interesting. I’m glad I saw the play, but I hesitate to recommend it.
