"During production of her 2004 experimental, non-fiction film Cabin Field, independent filmmaker Laura Kissel became interested in the life cycle of the cotton plant. Cabin Field focused on a mile-long stretch of agricultural land in Crisp County, Georgia, and, during production, Kissel visited a local cotton gin. In the course of that visit a local farmer told her that all of the cotton being processed at the gin was being sent to China. Witnessing the small town of 500 and the Hispanic workers who labored at the gins, along with their dependence on China's need for cotton is what set in motion the concept for Kissel's feature documentary Cotton Road Movie. ..." For more, read the article on page 6 here:
"See Rock City & Other Destinations" at Trustus: A Stage-cation Well Worth the Trip - a review by Arik Bjorn
Americans are suckers for a good travelogue set within the boundaries of their own white whale nation. Perhaps this is because so many of us spend most of our lives in some little corner of the vastness that is the Fruited Plain. For millions, just a trip from Manhattan to Coney Island, or from a one gas station town in North Carolina to Lookout Mountain, Georgia, represents an odyssey. And a visitor from Niagara Falls may as well be an extraterrestrial being to someone living in far-off Roswell, New Mexico. As I drove home from Trustus Theatre’s production of See Rock City and Other Destinations—tempted to put the pedal to the metal and drive north on I-95, past South of the Border and to wherever life takes me—I couldn’t think of any other significant musicals with expedition as a central theme. (Sorry, Oh! Calcutta! doesn’t count.) Yet there are so many great American travel books. My favorites include Umberto Eco’s Travels in Hyperreality and Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods. But every American travel narrative, in my opinion, bows to the greatness that is John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley. (Charley was Steinbeck’s trusty French standard poodle.) There are many diadem quotations in this book, but this one is a true gem: “We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us. … The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it.”
And that is the message at the heart of Adam Mathias and Brad Alexander’s award-winning production (2011 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical, Outstanding Book and Outstanding Lyrics), presented in yellow-golf-sweater and tour-guide-khaki splendor by veteran director Dewey Scott-Wiley. As Scott-Wiley states: “We may embark on these journeys looking for escape…these destinations have the power to open our hearts and minds to real change.”
Steinbeck would agree.
In short, See Rock City presents separately parceled stories about average Americans pursuing humble dreams against the backdrop of popular tourist destinations: two strangers eating pie en route to a breathtaking view in the title town, Rock City; a conspiracy theorist seeking otherworldly companionship and self-validation near Area 51; a chemistry of multi-generational coupling before the normally unromantic backdrop of the Alamo; sisters celebrating ice, whales and ashes on an Alaskan cruise ship; two “d!ckheads” discovering forbidden love during a Coney Island freak show ride; and a bride-to-be barreling with nervous laughter at Niagara Falls.
The trick to nailing any stage expedition is set design. I admit I was nervous at first when I sat in my cozy Trustus seat and beheld the minimalist design that included not much more than two red diner stools. But once the curtains opened, Baxter Engle’s amazing three-screen projection design turned the entire stage into an animated album of famous American landmarks: the Space Needle, Wrigley Field, the Golden Gate Bridge, etc. The projections continued throughout the show, providing the patron with a believable sensation of “being there.” In fact, during the Niagara Falls vignette, I practically felt water spraying on my chest—then realized I had spilled Cabernet on myself. (Still, though, adult beverages in the comfort of one’s seat. Go, Trustus!)
Another major success of the production was the musical trio of Randy Moore (musical director, piano), Ryan Knott (cello) and Jeremy Polley (guitar). Moore makes a spot-on choice by concentrating on strings and conjuring the spirit of Woody Guthrie and so many other American road-trip artists. In fact, halfway through the production my mind couldn’t shake sounds gone-by of Neil Young’s "Harvest Moon;" I could practically taste the beef jerky of road trip yore.
Thousands of hours of effort go into every stage production, and every reviewer shouts curses at his or her limited space to credit those who deserve praise. The entire See Rock City troupe is worthy of accolades for acting and song; same for all of the technical staff. Truly outstanding are the voices of Kendrick Marion as Cutter the “motherf&%#er” prep school student and Kevin Bush as Jess of the Rock City-bound jalopy. I’ve seen Matthew DeGuire in many a role on Columbia stages, but it’s well worth the price of admission just to see him as a carney in lumberjack plaid and as Grampy, channeling the voice of post-stroke Anthony Hopkins in Legends of the Fall. Vicky Saye Henderson and Kyle (happy birthday!) Collins demonstrate ballet-like romantic chemistry, and it was a pleasure to see USC bioinformatics doctoral candidate Chase Nelson prove that science and the arts can mix—just don’t tell his Ph.D. advisor that he camps out in the New Mexico desert waiting for aliens. And stealing the first act is a “green jar from Home Depot,” tossed back and forth by Henderson, Linda Posey Collins, and Caroline Jones Weidner; what it contains, you’ll have to travel to Trustus to see.
See Rock City & Other Destinations is a weekend-worthy stage-cation and a wonderful theatrical reminder that setting sail for somewhere else, letting a trip “take you,” is what life is all about. Who knows what you’ll discover when you get yourself to the theater.
See Rock City & Other Destinations runs March 14-April 5 (Thursdays through Sundays) with all performances beginning at 8 p.m. with the exception of 3 p.m. matinee performances on March 23 and March 30. (There is no matinee on March 16.) Tickets are $27 for adults, $25 for military and senior, and $20 for students. Half-price Student Rush-Tickets are available 15 minutes prior to curtain. Trustus Theatre is located at 520 Lady Street in the Vista. Call 254.9732 for more information or to reserve tickets. Parking is available on Lady Street and on Pulaski Street. The Main Stage entrance is located on the Publix side of the building. To learn more about Trustus Theatre , visit www.trustus.org . The Thursday preview performance of See Rock City & Other Destinations was a “Dining with Friends” fundraiser to benefit the AIDS Benefit Foundation of South Carolina. Kudos to this group for its excellent philanthropic work!
~ Arik Bjorn
OH, THE PLACES YOU’LL GO -- A look at the technical theatre of See Rock City & Other Destinations - A guest blog by Chad Henderson
See Rock City & Other Destinations opens on the Thigpen Main Stage this Friday at Trustus Theatre. This uplifting musical charts the journeys of various characters as they become risk-takers in order to find connection and answers to life’s questions through visits to various American tourist locales. This award-winning script takes audiences to Rock City Gardens, The Alamo, Roswell, Niagara Falls, Glacier Bay, and Coney Island all in the course of two hours. One might question how these tourist sites could manifest in a theatrical setting before the audience’s eyes, but the bold visions of director Dewey Scott-Wiley and designer Baxter Engle proposed the answer: projection mapping.
Projection mapping is a projection technology used to turn facades into display surfaces for video projection. Often times the surfaces used are unexpected such as a building or a room that is painted uniformly to accept projections. By using specialized software, a two or three dimensional object is spatially “mapped” on a virtual program which mimics the real environment it is to be projected on. The software can communicate with a projector to fit desired images onto the surface of that object. This technique is often used by artists, advertisers, and promoters alike who can add extra dimensions, optical illusions, and notions of movement onto static objects. See Rock City & Other Destinations will mark the inaugural use of this type of technological design on this scale for the 29 year old theatre company that is constantly striving to bring current productions to Columbia.
Director Dewey Scott-Wiley assembled a talented cast for this moving production, but she knew that the technical theatre aspects of the show would have to match the thrilling performances of the actors. Many theatres have the privilege of fly systems and off-stage storage space for large scene changes – but Trustus simply doesn’t have those abilities. So the question remained: “How do we transport across America in a time efficient and visually appealing way?”
Baxter Engle, a Trustus Company member since 2007, suggested the first-time use of projection mapping on the Main Stage to take audiences on this journey. Engle has designed many creative projection designs for various productions in Columbia including Town Theatre’s Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and Trustus’ Assassins, A Christmas Carol, and Henderson Bros. Burlesque. He also had the opportunity to design large-scale projections for internationally known designer Nic Ularu when he worked on Ularu’s original production Fusions, which premiered at the World Stage Design conference in Cardiff, Wales last summer. Naturally director Dewey Scott-Wiley, who is in her second year as artistic director at Trustus, jumped at the chance to bring something innovative to the Thigpen Main Stage.
Through the use of two projectors, a program called QLab (not usually associated with projection mapping), and various surfaces created for projections in the scenic design (designed by this humble blogger) – Engle is able to transition from Rock City Gardens, a journey down the highway, Glacier Bay, and Coney Island all with the click of the spacebar on the computer that’s running the program.
Modern theatre is certainly trending towards the use of projection technology in productions. It is cost efficient because it keeps scenic material costs low and allows for less backstage crew work in scene changes. In many cases it can add a mood or image into an audience’s experience that would be expensive or impossible to create live on stage. Some productions are even using holograms for scenic elements or characters in modern productions. See Rock City & Other Destinations will mark a technological advancement for the Trustus, but the goal is creating the sense of travel that the script asks for.
Audiences craving “new” can be rest-assured that See Rock City & Other Destinations will deliver. The show may not come with popular name recognition, but Trustus’ production comes with a talented cast, the music and book delivers in a big way, and the spirit of the production is steeped in innovation. This show is about risk-taking and the creative team of this production is striving for just that.
“You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.”
― Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!
SEE ROCK CITY & OTHER DESTINATIONS runs at Trustus Theatre March 14 – April 5, 2014. Tickets may be purchased online at www.trustus.org or by calling the box office at (803) 254-9732.
Addie Sims is Coming to Town -- at the SC State Museum
We write about her in the next issue of Jasper (releasing on Sunday, March 16th with a party benefitting Girls Rock Columbia at the Art Bar on Park Street), but Addie will actually be making her contemporary debut the day before and we'd hate for you to miss it.
The South Carolina State Museum is celebrating Women’s History month by opening a virtual exhibit, The Art and Life of Addie Sims: A Look into Her World, which features works of art by South Carolina Civil War-era artist, Addie Sims. The unveiling of the new virtual exhibit will take place during a public opening reception from 3 – 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 15 at the State Museum.
The virtual exhibit is comprised of original paintings by Sims, which tells the story of her struggles to pursue a career in art despite the social barriers and the intervention of the Civil War. The exhibit also features two portraits of family members painted in Charleston in the 1820s.
To celebrate the launch of the virtual exhibit, the museum will host an opening reception on Saturday, March 15. This reception is a one-time opportunity for guests to see Sims’s original paintings on display. After the reception, the museum will place the paintings in storage for conservation and preservation. In addition, there will be a special talk by her relative, Rev. Tommy Sims, on her life and work, followed by the unveiling of the new virtual exhibit that is accessible through the museum’s website. Guests will be able to speak to some of Sims’s relatives who will be onsite.
“Women artists were rare for that time, so that makes this art important, especially for South Carolina,” said JoAnn Zeise, curator of history, S.C. State Museum. “Her story is also intriguing because she passionately wanted to be an artist rather than follow the traditional path for antebellum Southern women. I am excited to introduce the world to the great talent of this previously unknown artist.”
Sims’s paintings portray real-life slaves on her father’s plantations and are portraits of actual relatives. These portraits are personal and are not caricatures or idealized versions of black life so often portrayed by white artists of this period. The artwork depicts such scenes from her native Union County as a beautiful brook in “Nott’s Branch,” her grandfather in “Portrait of William Sims (‘Grandpa Billy’)” and an old-growth forest in “Forest Scene with Broken Trees.”
Sarah Adeline “Addie” Sims was born in 1828 in present-day Union County and grew up wanting to be an artist, an unusual occupation for a woman at that time. Studying both at Limestone Springs Female Academy (now Limestone University) and under the Bounetheau’s at Mrs. DuPre’s Seminary in Charleston, Addie mostly painted landscapes and portraits. She also carved small figures and cameos from a local rock called soapstone.
The State Museum would like to thank Sims’s descendents, who graciously donated pieces of her original artwork to the museum, which will hopefully inspire the public and researchers to delve into her life and the life on her plantation.
The opening reception is included with museum general admission or membership. The virtual exhibit will be accessible starting March 15 and will be available 24/7 and will be free of charge at scmuseum.org/exhibits.
SC Young Filmmakers Project -- Call for Submissions
Jasper is a nut for the sweet intensity of a well-made film and thrilled that this program opens the door to that special magic to young SC filmmakers. Here's hoping you'll help us pass the word along!
It's simple for South Carolina high school students to enter the SC Young Filmmakers Project. Make a short film (at least 30-seconds long, two-minutes max). Shoot at least one scene at a South Carolina State Park. GO WILD! with your imagination. Be clever and creative. Most importantly, create a film with a story.
Deadline for entries is midnight on Friday, March 21, 2014. The Top Ten finalists will screen in a special program at the 2014 Charleston International Film Festival. First, second, and third place winners will receive cash prizes.
For complete rules and how to enter, visit our contest page here.
For a complete list of SC State Parks (there are 47 of 'em across the state), click here. And check out our YouTube channel for more info, including winners and finalists from last year.
Any questions? Email sarah@indiegrants.org.
HOW TO ENTER THE SOUTH CAROLINA YOUNG FILMMAKERS PROJECT:
1. Make an awesome short film, following the contest guidelines and shooting requirements found here.
2. Upload your film to either YouTube or Vimeo. These are the two standard video sharing sites; if you don't have an account for one of them, it's easy to set one up. And now that you're making movies, you'll probably be using them a bunch.
3. Tag your video with 'SC YOUNG FILMMAKERS' once you've uploaded it.
4. Complete the official registration form by clicking here. You must complete the registration form by midnight EST on March 21, 2014. Be sure to include an accurate YouTube or Vimeo link to your entry in the form.
Four Questions for Jeremy Joseph - Founder of Villa Ville Cola
Villa Ville Cola: New all arts festival to be held at Conundrum
Whose idea was this?
The idea for the festival was started by Jeremy and Becca Joseph.
What's the philosophy behind it?
Their aim is to facilitate community transformation by bridging gaps between various art forms, artists at different stages of their careers, of differing ages, scenes, and lifestyles. They hope that by bringing all these artists into one space it will lead to a synergy of new ideas amongst everybody at the festival.
Who are the folks working on it?
Jeremy & Becca Joseph, Cecil Decker, Page Chilton, and Paige Haggard. Drake Cartrette, designer at Before the Ink is Dry, created the event poster.
Will this be an annual event?
That’s the hope. First they plan to make year one awesome.
~~~
Columbia, SC – dozens of Columbia-based artists across many different artistic disciplines are coming together Saturday, March 8 from 12:30 – 6p.m. in the outdoor space at Conundrum Music Hall to participate in and launch the first annual Villa Ville Cola. The concept behind this new festival is to provide a platform and opportunity of expression for every art form in our city that en masse facilitates community transformation. The festival will feature local arts and crafts booths, a music stage featuring special acoustic performances from a variety of local acts, a film-festival (inside Conundrum), and a performance stage featuring local poets, comedians, improv, dance, circus, magic, and more. By bringing together a large group of diverse Columbia artists into one place for a unique day of arts and community building we hope the event will be a worthy addition to Columbia’s vibrant artistic scene. Tickets are $2 at the gate. For more information please visit www.villavillecola.wordpress.com
Arts and Crafts vendors Music Film
JellyKoe Falling Off A Building James Owens
That Godzilla Guy Marshall Brown Aaron Wyrd
PIENSA: Art Company Release the Dog Tyler Errigo
Owlette Daddy Lion Anthony Stagliano
Birdies by Shayna The Post-Timey String Band Cecil Decker
Lorna Festa Dr. Roundhouse Jordan Wilson
Lila Shull & Grievances PrettyFeet Jordan Young
Tennyson Kovach Corley William Glenn Christopher Karis West
Hillbilly Luthiers
J. Beads
Alicia Hope
Sank Parfwa Deece
Frenijo Designs
Live Painting by Jean Bourque
Soda City Cirque Mind Gravy Poetry Showcase ft.
OverReactors Improv Justin Blackburn
Columbia Comic Showcase Debra McQueen
Jenn Snyder Ken Denk
Wayne Cousins Merlyn the Mystic
Topher Riddle Ritual Abjects
Matt LaBorde Fortune Telling
Midlands Capoeira Angola Face Painting by Dorothee Walters
Please Note: Some language and content at Villa Ville Cola may not be suitable for children.
friends of the richland library
Fall Lines literary magazine deadline extended and $500 in cash prizes announced
Fall Lines
a literary convergence
Jasper is pleased to announce the addition of two $250 cash prizes, one for poetry and one for prose, offered by the Friends of the Richland Library for the 2014 Fall Lines: A Literary Convergence project and competition. Given this exciting new information we are also delighted to extend the submission deadline until midnight on Sunday, March 16th, 2014.
We'd also like to note that while deadlines are sometimes extended due to a shortage of submissions, we are delighted that this is not the case. We have been overwhelmed not only by the number of submissions we have received, but also by the quality of the submissions themselves and the professional status of the authors submitting. We have happily received submissions all the way from emerging writers to Marjory Wentworth, South Carolina's Poet Laureate herself. We have no doubt that Fall Lines will be a new force on the literary landscape and we are thrilled that Columbia, SC is the journal's home.
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Fall Lines – a literary convergence is a new literary journal based in Columbia, SC and presented by Jasper Magazine in partnership with Richland Library, the University of South Carolina Press, Muddy Ford Press, and One Columbia.
With a single, annual publication, Fall Lines is distributed in lieu of Jasper Magazine’s regularly scheduled summer issue. While a limited issue of three thousand copies of Fall Lines will be printed, Fall Lines will be available in its entirety in a downloadable e-format via RichlandLibrary.com.
Fall Lines will accept submissions of previously unpublished poetry, essays, short fiction, and flash fiction from January 1 through March 1, 2014. (NOTE – THIS DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO SUNDAY, MARCH 16TH, 2014.) While the editors of Fall Lines hope to attract the work of writers and poets from the Carolinas and the Southeastern US, acceptance of work is not dependent upon residence.
Please limit short fiction to 2000 words or less; flash fiction to 350 – 500 words; essays to 1200 words; and poetry to three pages (Times New Roman 12 pt.) Submit your work via email to Editor@JasperColumbia.com with the words “Fall Lines” in the subject heading along with the category (above) of the item being submitted. While you are invited to enter up to five items, each item should be sent individually as a single submission. Please include with each submission a cover sheet stating your name, age, email address, and USPO address. There is no fee to enter.
Publication in Fall Lines will be determined by a panel of judges and accepted authors will be notified in May 2014, with a publication date in June 2014. Accepted authors will receive two copies of the journal.
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The Columbia Fall Line is a natural junction, along which the Congaree River falls and rapids form,runningparalleltothe east coast of the country between the resilient rocks of the Appalachians andthesofter, more gentle coastal plain.
Body & Movement Explored – This Weekend's New Choreography Ballet Performance with William Starrett -- By Deborah Swearingen
Whether you’re from South Carolina or not, you can probably relate to the vitality that flows from the warm rays of the sun. Columbia City Ballet’s Artistic Director William Starrett understands this better than most. His ballet for Body and Movement Explored was inspired by his love for the sunshine. He hopes his choreography to Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Hymn to the Sun” will warm the audience enough to satisfy them until summer finally makes its return.
After having great success in its first year, Body and Movement Explored is back for year two – bringing a mixed repertoire that combines all of the talent, technique, and experience of this accomplished company. The program is Columbia City Ballet’s outreach for developing young choreographers and stretching the talents of local artists. Professional dancers have the opportunity to work with a variety of choreographers to truly bring their visions to life.
One of the most unique aspects of the show is its fast pace. Varying from a more traditional full evening ballet, Body and Movement Explored consists of a mix-up of smaller ballets. This setup ensures that there is something for everyone in attendance. Even if you don’t particularly care for one of the shows, you’re sure to thoroughly enjoy another.
“It’s like an appetizer sampler plate,” Starrett says, laughing. “You can sample everything – all the fun foods we love in one evening.” Since a lot of subjects and issues are best addressed through smaller ballets, Starrett feels the show will spark audience debate.
New choreography helps to keep the art form vibrant and alive, Starrett says. Artists constantly reinvent themselves, and as artists evolve, so should the art form. Keeping up with the evolution of the human race is also important, and choreographers must learn to deal with issues from new perspectives.
But original choreography also comes with challenges. Time and space are issues that every choreographer faces, particularly in a show like a Body and Movement where several dancers are in multiple ballets. It can also be tough to ensure that dancers fully understand the vision of the choreographer. Getting the dancers to retain and produce a high percentage of the vision is difficult, but ultimately what makes being a choreographer so rewarding for Starrett.
Body and Movement Explored will be held at the CMFA Art Space at 914 Pulaski Street in the Vista on Thursday, Feb. 27 through Saturday, March 1 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Student tickets are $10 with a valid student ID. Tables that seat 10 people are available at $300 or $500 for prime location. To purchase tickets in advance, visit Columbia City Ballet offices on the corner of Main and Taylor Street, call 803-799-7605, or go online to bme2014.brownpapertickets.com.
The event will be choreographed by William Starrett and Pat Miller Baker; Wayland Anderson, Jordan Arthur Nelson, Ricky Davis, and David Ligon.
"The 39 Steps" at USC's Longstreet Theatre - a review by Jillian Owens
Do you enjoy mystery, intrigue, espionage, ridiculous accents, and fast-paced gender-bending craziness? Do you also happen to be a fan of the films of Alfred Hitchcock? If your answers to these questions is no, just stop reading this right now (because I probably don’t like you very much). If your answer is yes, you’re in luck! Based on the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock classic of the same name, The 39 Steps (adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan) at USC’s Longstreet Theatre is almost word-for-word the same script as the film.
The plot is simple. An innocent man by the name of Richard Hannay (played by Josiah Laubenstein) meets a beautiful German woman who turns out to be a spy. She ends up murdered in his apartment, but in her last breaths warns him that he must save England from an act of terrorism that could happen at any time. He ends up blamed for her murder and must try to stop this nefarious scheme without getting caught by the police who are hot on his trail. But there’s a twist! While the words and plot are essentially the same, the play veers off into being a zany comedy that reminds one of Monty Python or Benny Hill. Oh yes...and the multiple roles of the play are played by just 4 actors.
You might think this sounds like a mean-spirited jab at Mr. Hitchcock, but it isn’t. It’s more like poking fun at a dear old friend. Overdone and campy with silly sight gags and bawdy physical comedy, The 39 Steps is hilarious. While we only see 4 actors, the multitudinous technical crew is working its crazed magic behind the scenes, with rapid-fire costume, lighting, sound, and set changes. 22 of Hitchcock’s other works are referenced in this production as well...can you spot them all?
I was a bit nervous as I entered the theatre. This production of The 39 Steps appeared to be cursed. The ice storm of the previous week led to every theatre technician’s worst nightmare...not being able to work for five days when your show is supposed to be in technical rehearsal the week before your opening. Whether the treacherous ice that shut down USC was a result of some unsuperstitious sort uttering the name of The Scottish Play or just lousy luck, the 50+ cast and crew members of The 39 Steps were in a bind. When department chair Jim Hunter explained all of this in his pre-curtain speech, I groaned a little inside. Was this basically a pre-emptive apology for what was going to be a sloppily-executed production? I’m pleased to say: Jim, you can scrap that speech. All of the around-the-clock last-minute building and tweaking paid off, and The 39 Steps went off without a visible or audible hiccup.
The two guest co-directors, Jim Helsinger and Brad DePlanche,prove to be a dynamic duo in executing an extremely demanding production. The set by Xuemei Cao is gorgeous and ever-changing, but it almost seemed too large for the play. The lighting design by Ashley Pittman and the sound design by Britt Sandusky were no small feats either. I’m going to do something that almost never happens in theatre reviews and congratulate the Stage Manager, Lacey Taylor, for managing and calling an extremely difficult show under some pretty scary circumstances.
But what good is a technically spot-on show without the actors to bring the story to life? Josiah Laubenstein is a fine and upstanding Richard Hannay with a talent for physical comedy. Melissa Reed handles the roles of his multiple love interests (with multiple accents) with endearing panache. Still...my favorite scenes in this production were with James Costello and Trey Hobbs who played countless characters. It’s rare to see two actors who have such a great comedic chemistry together. I overheard several audience members (who apparently don’t read their programs) ask, “Are they brothers?”
The 39 Steps is one of the funniest shows I’ve seen in over a decade, and definitely one of my favorite Theatre South Carolina Productions. Unfortunately, this show has a very limited run and this is your last weekend to catch it, which I hope you will. You’ll have a frightfully fun time.
~ Jillian Owens
Show times are 8pm Wednesday-Friday, and 7pm Saturday. There is an additional half-price late night performance on the final Saturday, March 1. Tickets for the production are $12 for students, $16 for USC faculty/staff, military personnel and seniors 60+, and $18 for the general public. Tickets can be purchased in advance by calling 803-777-2551 or by visiting the Longstreet Theatre box office, which is open Monday-Friday, 12:30pm-5:30pm. Longstreet Theatre is located at 1300 Greene St. For more information about The 39 Steps or the theatre program at the University of SC, contact Kevin Bush via phone at 803-777-9353 or email at bushk@mailbox.sc.edu.
You're invited to a Poetry Reading from Brains, 25 cents: Drive In -- Selected & New Poems by Jerred Metz
Poetry Reading
Sunday March 2, 3:00 – 4:00
Selected and New Poems by Jerred Metz
Aldrich Press
Invites you to a reading from its newest publication
Read by Jerred Metz and Sarah Barker
Music by Stevie Patt
Side Door Theater at Trustus
520 Lady Street, Columbia, SC
RSVP at 803 730 8594 (cell) or jerred.metz@gmail.com
Free/ cash bar opens at 2:30
“Jerred Metz comes as close to speaking in an inner voice as is humanly possible…where trees speak, the moon blossoms and ‘His hand cradles a fish’…(he) ‘harvests jewels’ in perfectly polished poems.” --from Howard Schwartz, widely regarded poet, author, folklorist, and editor of dozens of book.
Poetry (Brains, 25¢: Drive In) at Trustus Side Door Theater
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On March 2, 2014 Aldrich Press hosts a reading by Jerred Metz and Sarah Barker from Metz’s newly published book. Joining in will be Stevie Patt, guitarist and songwriter.
Place: Trustus’ Side Door Theater -- 3:00 until 4:00. The reading is free. Books are for sale.
About the book’s poems, the writer Michael Castro (Human Rites, poems) wrote, “ Metz’s poems speak an elemental language of rocks, water, bones, and blood. . . . Lines often blossom kaleidoscopically with startling juxtapositions.”
Jerred Metz has lived in Columbia since 1998. This is Metz’s fifth book of poems following Angels in the House; The Temperate Voluptuary; Three Legs Up, Cold as Stone: Six Legs Down, Blood and Bone (riddles); and Speak Like Rain. . Then followed three books of prose, Drinking the Dipper Dry: Nine Plain-Spoken Lives (1981 K.M. Gentile Publishing), Halley’s Comet, 1019: Fire in the Sky (Singing Bone Press, 1984), and The Last Eleven Days of Earl Durand (High Plains Press, 2005.) Also articles, stories, poems, and a widely performed play Halley’s Comet, 1910: Fire in the Sky. Metz taught writing at Webster University, literature and writing at Coker College, and teaches at Strayer University
Sarah Barker, actress and professor of theatre at USC will join him in the performance, reading several poems. http://easyalexander.com
Songwriter, singer, and guitarist Stevie Patt, is a veteran of the NYC and Columbia music scene. He plays with The Mississippi Kites) http://www.reverbnation.com/mississippikites
Alicia Ostiker -- a Poem and an Invitation from the JCC
Elegy For Allen
That was a break In the fiber of things Sorrowful When Ginsberg died Because I still have students Wanting to be Beats And even some Wanting to be Buddhists Why not, but when That brilliant Jew poet took The train for the next world American nirvana Temporarily went with him. Not that he ever attained The tranquility Supposedly sought, He was so nervous And somehow ailing, The neurotic utopian Prophetic fairy side Of the guy never Surrendered really To those Asian things And too much ginseng Makes a man feeble-like. Yes, B— says You would be there At a party and he’d say Excuse me I have to follow That young man, you’d think Fine but why are you obliged To announce it, why not Just do it.
The greatest Jewish poet After Celan and Amichai, I cry, grieving, and B— says better not try To sell him as a rabbi Though what else is he For heaven’s sake Beads and bells And dreams of peace And all.
~~~
The University of South Carolina and The Katie and Irwin Kahn Jewish Community Center Present
an evening of poetry with Alicia Ostriker
Thursday, March 20th at 7:30 pm
“I write as an American, a woman, a Jew, a mother, a wife, a lover of beauty and art, a teacher, an idealist, a skeptic. Critics seem often to remark that I am ‘intelligent’—but I see myself also as passionate. Actually, I am a combination of mind, body, and feelings, like everyone else, and I try to get them all into play.”
Ostriker has received awards and fellowships from the NEA, the Guggenheim and Rockefeller foundations, the Poetry Society of America, and the San Francisco State Poetry Center, among others. Ostriker has taught in the low-residency Poetry MFA program of Drew University and New England College. She lives in Princeton, NJ, is professor emerita of English at Rutgers University.
This event is FREE and open to everyone.
For more information, please call Laurie Slack at 787-2023 x201
The Man That Got Away -- Remembering Andrew Quattlebaum by Alex Smith
The ice and snow started falling late Tuesday afternoon, February 11, 2014. By Wednesday afternoon, the ground was covered in thick, white sheets of frozen, fallen precipitation, as unlikely (in late winter in Columbia) as the news I received in an e-mail that same Wednesday evening that my friend and long-time collaborator Andrew Quattlebaum had died the day before.
I met Andrew when he was a boy, a student at Heathwood Hall, and a member of the Trustus Theatre Apprentice Company. I helped my friend Tamra Stevenson direct a production of LINE by Israel Horowitz for a state high school drama competition that year, and Andrew was among the students we cast. I paid especially close attention to his work in this production as he was playing the role of Fleming, one which I had played in a previous production.
I became very close with the kids in the Apprentice Company that year. I felt a deep affinity with many of them for many reasons, and the one I felt for Andrew was especially strong. I was almost ten years older, but the similarities of our personal experiences made it especially easy to open up to him with regard to my shyness, my issues with having been “the fat kid” when I was young, my sadness over my parents’ divorce when I was young…we shared so many experiences that our ability to communicate developed into something of a shorthand.
This is not to say that our shorthand was limited to the negative. Far from it, we were both voracious readers and unapologetic autodidacts. We were both rabid for information, for knowledge, for that mental spark that came from putting it all together and making it make sense, even if only to ourselves, but often to and with each other. We shared a passion for music, and Andrew always had some new music he wanted to know if I’d heard, turning me on to a lot, especially in the last few years when I, admittedly, had reached a point where it was becoming harder and harder to seek such things out. Of course, we lost each other on certain topics: I was never nearly smart enough to engage with him in discussion of quantum physics, and I never could convince him of the fact that Barry Gibb is one of the greatest songwriters of the twentieth century. C’est la vie…
The point is, like many of the other relationships I cultivated as a result of meeting that amazing group of kids that were in the Apprentice Company the same year Andrew was, he and I became friends in life and contemporaries in the world of acting, film and the theatre. When I wasn’t working directly with him, I was marveling at his work…but I was one of the lucky ones who got to work with him a great deal, and there is not a moment of that time that I would trade for the world.
I said it in an essay I wrote about the first film we worked on together, SUMMER KNOWLEDGE, but it bears repeating: The thing that always amazed me about Andrew as an actor was that no matter how outlandish a direction or line you threw at him, he always made you believe it. In that very film I required of him delivery of a complete non-sequiter of a line as the culmination of a scene full of dialogue on the page: “To crush the earth until it curses requires strength.” His delivery of that line was so jarringly right that I ended up cutting all but one other line of dialogue in the scene for the film’s final edit. He believed so earnestly in the line itself, and in the elusiveness of there necessarily being meaning within every thought or function that made up the dramatic structure of a piece of art, that all you needed to know about his character, aside from his name (which we had just been told), were those very words, and everything that occurred with and about the character of Paul (who he also played in the next film we worked on together, INSIDE) from that point forward made perfect sense. This was, for me, the unique mark of his already outrageous talent that hovered just below the surface of every choice he made, but which ultimately made the performances that those choices added up to unforgettable.
I said in the same essay that I would get him to play that same character forever, and, at least in INSIDE and, for a brief moment, in the production of THE GRADUATE I directed at Trustus in 2006 (which remains one of my favorite casts from any show I’ve directed), I did. In one scene, late in the play, Andrew was playing a quackish family counselor to Benjamin Braddock and his confused parents. As the session devolved at its end into a generational argument between son and parents, complete with yelling, I asked Andrew to make the counselor’s exit out the office window instead of a nearby door, which he did, close on the heels of laughing hysterically in response to Mrs. Braddock saying, “Doctor, I think we…”, and then, once he had the Braddock’s and the audience’s full attention, suddenly stating with deadly seriousness, “I’m not a doctor.” What the “doctor” was in that moment, as was the character of Paul in both films, was the man that got away.
I didn’t expect life to imitate art. I simply took for granted that there would always be the next thing we worked on together. I think a lot now about the work we didn’t get to do together…the fact that, among many other things, after two films as a supporting player, I had an outline for a film that would focus on the character of Paul…I think about the production I wanted to direct someday of WAITING FOR GODOT with Patrick Kelly as Vladmir and Andrew as Estragon, or the dream production of OTHELLO which Darion McCloud and I have been talking about for years, and the fact that, to both our minds, there really was no one other than Andrew to play Roderigo to Darion’s Othello and my Iago…Christ, I’m getting so old now that I can’t help but imagine how amazing Andrew’s Iago would be However empty his leaving us has rendered those dreams, though, I remind myself that those of us who were fortunate enough to have shared in his immense well of talent were indescribably lucky to have witnessed Andrew’s (far too) short career.
I’ve been trying to balance the personal and the professional as I wrote what I have here about Andrew, and I see that I’ve failed. It’s mainly because the two intertwined between us, and a great deal of our time spent together was working, but it’s also a lot easier to forget to cry when you’re composing hyperbole about your friend’s talent and not just saying what you feel.
I will always wish that we had a little more time to work together, a little more time to create, but, ultimately, what I really am wishing for is just a little more time with my friend.
Andrew was a beautiful, beautiful person, and I am lucky to have counted him among those I hold dear to and deep in my heart. I loved him, I love him still, and I will miss him for the rest of my days.
The SC State Museum is Showing the Arts Some LOVE -- Art Day at the SC State Museum!
The South Carolina State Museum will be celebrating South Carolina visual art and artists by presenting a day of hands-on activities, artist demonstrations, behind-the-scenes tours of the art collection and much more at Art Day on Saturday, March 1 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
According to Anna Kate Twitty, PR manager at the museum, "Art Day offers a unique look into South Carolina [visual] art and artists with activities for all ages. The event will feature hands-on 'creation stations' from University of South Carolina’s Art Education Department, which will focus on South Carolina art from the State Museum’s collection. Guests will have the opportunity to interact with and see demonstrations by South Carolina artists, Paul Moore (pottery), Gene Speer (printmaking), Brian Rego (painting), Alicia Leeke (painting), Herman Thompson (sculpture) and Rick Wells (painting)."
South Carolina art and artists, like Paul Moore (pictured), will be featured. Photo courtesy of the S.C. State Museum
We also hear that there will be live music along with special guided "behind-the-scenes" tours of the museum’s art storage areas, (which, by the way, contain over 4,000 works of art!)
“South Carolina has an incredible representation of visual culture across the state, spanning over 300 years,” says Paul Matheny, chief art curator, S.C. State Museum. “This rich cultural diversity is easily overlooked. Art Day at the State Museum brings our visual culture to life for our statewide community and beyond.”
For the aspiring or emerging artists, the museum is also sponsoring their inaugural College Art Day on Friday, Feb. 28 from 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. According to Twitty, student artists are invited to explore South Carolina colleges and university art departments, meet current students and faculty from colleges from across the state, including Coker, Lander, Winthrop, Furman, and Francis Marion universities as well as Columbia College, Spartanburg Methodist, and USC - Beaufort, and hear from alumni applying their art degrees in their professions.
“We’re looking forward to hosting College Art Day, which will offer a forum for middle and high school students to discover the vast educational and professional art opportunities that are available in our state,” says Matheny.
(Event guests at Art Day and College Art Day will have the opportunity to explore the museum’s permanent galleries and the temporary exhibition, This Just In, which features highlights of recently acquired artifacts representing art, history, natural history and science/technology. Both events are included with museum general admission or membership. Visit scmuseum.org to learn more.)
Review -- Janet Kozachek's "Small Works" at the Orangeburg Arts Center - by Lee Malerich
I first met Janet Kozachek years ago at the old House of Pizza in Orangeburg, one of the only places to have lunch in that small town back in the day. I was immediately touched. She looked exactly like a character in one of my childhood story books. It was about the Golden Goose, and how the townspeople (in a long sticky line) exhibited their greediness for gold by being unable to unhook from the chain of folks who had tried to pinch a golden feather. It is an old Russian tale.
Janet looked like the girl who was directly attached to the goose in my book. It was stunning. Russian in extraction, her almond eyes and her Chagall-like wisps of hair connected me immediately with this old memory.
Janet came to us with amazing recommendations: she was the first non-Chinese person to earn a Certificate of Graduate Study from the Bejing Central Art Academy (1985), and a graduate degree from Parsons School of Design (1991). She studied ceramics in Holland in 1986, and later with the granddaughter of Maria Martinez. In 1999 she was the founding president of the Society of American Mosaic Artists (SAMA). Her work is just as broad as this mosaic of an education.
All of this background is represented in her exhibition of Small Works currently at the Orangeburg Arts Center. In most of the works, one can detect the influence of multiple academic experiences, but clearly created by western hands. Local art viewers remembering the Impressionist exhibition at the Columbia Museum last year could find common ground between Janet's paintings and the work of Chiam Soutine, then exhibited.
The series of little painted vessels (there are seventeen), done in acrylic, stand boldly and aggressively on their trimmed ground, allowing examination of their surface creatures. One can find small worlds pictorially within these vessel walls. The grounds on which these vessels sit seem likewise worldly-influenced, and all nervously vibrates. Janet creates these little wonders by paint removal and scratching as much as by application with a brush. She calls them "painting/monoprints". The center Chinese stamp on the wall of this teapot means "the person inside".
Tango dancers done in quick calligraphic-like lines exhibit Janet's Chinese self, tapping into the gene-mixing of her history and coming up with a hybrid. To some Janet has added cartouches saying (in translation) "Chinese tango".
The most unsettling and evocative works are a series of paintings of troll dolls (yes, the ones from the sixties), the doll shapes again dominating the clipped ground. The surfaces of these examples are brilliant and shiny, done in oil paint created by Janet using Renaissance techniques. Some of the paintings in the exhibition feature likewise Renaissance ground preparation. This extra work on the part of the painter makes the surfaces seem magic.
The detail and description in these paintings is masterly, and examples include both the fronts and the backs of these dolls. But why troll dolls?
In a way, the brilliant colors used in the dolls seem to be pure light and heat that needs to attach to something. Simple, geometric, vibrating Amish quilts come to mind as similar in color "heat" if not in visual language. The trolls can be spooky, but their description is not. Here's why they exist: Janet was very ill when they were created.
Janet has suffered through an undiagnosed illness for some years. During the time the troll paintings were created, she was at a low point, could barely leave the bed, and could lean up to paint just sometimes. These dolls were collected by her, at hand, and she could lift them. Therefore, she painted them. That simple.
Could one make an allusion to the boomer experience with these paintings? Maybe, who else would know about these strange beings? Further, in the example above, we see a black troll. There were no black trolls. Perhaps in this one she asserts a sense of place.
In general, this exhibition is a tribute to the healing nature of art. All of these small works being done (over 90 in all) during the course of her illness, it is proof that the time she has had to be quiet has not been lost.
A former instructor of art at Columbia College, Coker College and OC Tech, three time SC Arts Commission Fellowship recipient, and winner of a Regional National Endowment for the Arts award, Lee Malerich shares her home in Neeses with artist Glenn Saborosch. Her most well-known work consists of personally expressive narrative embroideries; the most topical ones are about her battles with colon cancer. In a new life, and producing new work, Lee is making sculptural work from waste and found objects from flea markets, a long time interest not served by the embroidered work. What is common about all her efforts, including creating an art village from ten acres, is that creativity heals. She also blogs at: leemalerich.wordpress.com
Muddy Ford Press Releases New Anthology - A Sense of the Midlands - on February 22nd
Furthering their efforts to both build a community of local literary artists and recognize the multiplicity of talented, professional poets and authors already at work in the South Carolina Midlands, local boutique publishing house Muddy Ford Press will release their tenth publication, A Sense of the Midlands, on February 22nd, 2014.
Edited by Cynthia Boiter with poetry editor Ed Madden, A Sense of the Midlands anthologizes 33 Midlands area writers.
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Writers include James Barilla, Ray McManus, Tom Poland, Cassie Premo Steele, Kristine Hartvigsen, Darien Cavanaugh, Nan Ancrom, Nicola Waldron, Ruth Varner, Lauren Allen, Julie Bloemeke, Brandi L. Perry, Mahayla Bainter, Laurel Blossom, Matthew Boedy, Matthew Fogarty, Melanie Griffin, Linda Lee Harper, Terresa Haskew, Thomas Maluck, Rieppe Moore, Zach Mueller, Robbie Pruitt, Dianne Turgeon Richardson, Kevin Simmonds, Randy Spencer, Alexis Stratton, Frank Thompson, Ed Madden, and Ivan Young. Local artist Jarid Lyfe Brown created the cover of the book from an original painting.
The public is invited to celebrate the launch of A Sense of the Midlands on Saturday February 22nd from 5 – 7 pm at the Columbia Music Festival Association Art Space at 914 Pulaski Street in Columbia’s historic Vista. Admission is $15 which includes a copy of A Sense of the Midlands, admission to the reception from 5 – 6 during which authors will be available for signing, and admission to a reading from the book from 6 – 7. (Two attendees sharing a book will be admitted for $20.)
Muddy Ford Press is the underwriter for Jasper Magazine – The Word on Columbia Arts. All Proceeds go toward the publication of Jasper.
For more information contact:
Robert Jolley at publisher@MuddyFordPress.com or
Cynthia Boiter at Cindi@JasperColumbia.com.
Live Music Review: Jonny Lang & Buddy Guy @ The Township Auditorium
As much as I love live music, I kind of get why people can get down on going to rock shows. It can often be a frustrating experience—a din of guitars and drums played by musicians who look like they don’t even like to be on stage, and vocals either inarticulately delivered or buried under the instrumental barrage. Even if the music is good, sometimes the experience isn’t.
That was not the case this past Saturday at the Township Auditorium.
In a warm-sounding auditorium that has booked a slew of blues-inspired guitar slingers of late (Warren Haynes’ Gov’t Mule project played just a few days earlier, and the Tedeschi Trucks Band headlined in mid-January) Jonny Lang and Buddy Guy performed in the grand tradition of bluesmen who know what it means to put on a show.
Jonny Lang, more than 40 years Guy’s junior, rightfully opened up the evening. Lang has been a guitar protégé since his teens, releasing his smash debut Lie to Me at 16 and, following a stint in rehab in his early 20s and a slew of questionable releases in the aftermath of that experience, returned to form on last year’s Fight for My Soul release. Lang’s guitar chops were never in question as he roamed the front of the stage repeatedly to give everybody a taste of his lightning fast shredding, even if he still suffers a bit from the selection subpar material. More importantly, though, he probably won the crowd over even after the guitar-awe died down with the fact that, despite wreaking of the blues, Lang and his deep-grooving four piece backing band tend to end up more in soul and gospel territory than a standard 12 bar. He’s truly underrated a singer—there were moments where the band got quiet and he showed surprisingly nuance for music that can too often get a little blustery, even scatting a bit with a falsetto that I didn’t even know he had. Ill-fated Macklemore haircut aside, it was also nice to see that his performance style seemed entirely genuine. He spent most of the evening with his eyes closed in unswerving ecstasy, almost as if conjuring up whatever faint connection he had to the legion of blind bluesmen who paved the way for the kind of music Lang now makes.
Following up Lang wouldn’t be easy for most, but I’m not sure if anybody has ever showed up Buddy Guy. At 77, I was a bit concerned that Guy’s prowess might have begun fading a bit, but I shouldn’t have been. With a remarkably similar line-up to Lang’s band, Guy delivered a set that not only demonstrated why he’s considered a primary influence on 60’s blues-guitar gods like Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimi Hendrix, but also that his unique style of blending standard Chicago blues with noisier and more unpredictable elements is still fully intact. While he was in fine voice throughout the evening and seemed so comfortable in the role of bandleader and entertainer that his gravitas seemed to envelop the entire auditorium, it was some of his standard trademark tricks—playing long guitar solos while wandering deep into the crowd, suggestively (well, provocatively) playing his guitar with his, um, crotch area, and delivering up some ribald humor (“I came here tonight to play something so funky you can smell it!”) that were likely still the most memorable moments of the show. My only complaint is that the show ended a tad too soon for my tastes, and without Lang returning to the stage for some sort of collaboration.
However, judging from the crowd’s mood upon leaving the venue, I can safely say that you should never pass on an opportunity to ever see these two performers if you can help it. -Kyle Petersen
V-Day USC presents The Vagina Monologues
By Deborah Swearingen, Jasper Intern
Vaginas – are you shocked yet? There is no denying that a lot of us have ‘em, so why do we feel so uneasy talking about it? Although it is basic female anatomy, just saying the word often makes us blush. The Vagina Monologues aim to tackle questions like this, along with a variety of other issues that generally make some people uncomfortable. The event comes to the University of South Carolina every year around Valentine’s Day, but its name seems to bring an equal amount of confusion each time. People cringe and wonder – are we really having a play… about… “private parts”!?
The answer is yes. Yes, we are. But likely not in the context that some would assume. Columbia’s rendition of Eve Ensler’s episodic play aims to raise money and awareness for issues that women face every single day. Some are funny – sex, masturbation, pubic hair and orgasms (just to name a few). But several of the issues discussed are quite sad and have serious implications for those suffering. Rape, molestation, and genital mutilation are never pleasant topics, and each can be equally difficult to face. But none of these issues should be ignored. Sexual violence is real, and events like this help give many a voice that they may have trouble finding on their own.
Leia Cain and Roxy Lenzo worked together to co-direct this year’s show. Cain has been involved with the Vagina Monologues for nine years and says throughout the night, the audience will “laugh, cry and laugh so hard they cry.” Clearly, the show is meant to evoke emotions of all kinds.
Perhaps one of the most notable aspects of the experience is its charitable nature. All proceeds go to Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands, which provides both prevention education and services to those affected by sexual violence. Last year, $7,000 was donated to Sexual Trauma Services, and about $1,000 was given to the international V-Day Foundation, a global movement to end violence against women and girls.
The Vagina Monologues begin this Friday, February 14th in the Law School Auditorium at USC and run through Sunday, February 16th.. Doors open at 7 p.m. to provide time for the pre-show silent auction, but the play begins at 8:00. Tickets can be purchased at the door or online at http://vmonologuesusc.wordpress.com/tickets/. General admission tickets are $12, but students get a reduced fee of $10. On Valentine’s Day, a special rate of two tickets for $20 is offered for couples.
Cain says to get involved next year, all you really need to do is pay attention around November. The event is advertised via flyers, Facebook and word of mouth.
For more information, visit the website http://vmonologuesusc.wordpress.com.
By Deborah Swearingen, Jasper Intern
American Gun’s Heartbreak Valentine’s by Joanna Savold
A ‘heart-filled’ performance is coming to the Art Bar this Saturday night: American Gun’s annual “A Heartbreak Valentine’s” show. The Columbia-based band has been hosting this event for the past seven years. It’s a cocktail of live music and specialty drinks, and the perfect scene to celebrate Valentine’s Day for singles, couples, and rock fans alike. Originally, American Gun’s early songs of love and loss fit the February holiday too easily to pass up; now, while the band’s themes have changed over time, they still keep the tradition and draw people from across Columbia to the yearly show.
Previous Heartbreak Valentine’s showcased roller derby girls serving jello shots and even a kissing booth, but the main attraction is always the music. Todd Mathis of American Gun says the band usually introduces its new songs during this performance to kick off the new year: “Out with the old, in with the new.” The unique venue also offers the band a chance to showcase its rock and roll style to a new audience, since the Art Bar event draws both regular fans and new listeners. In addition to their own performance, American Gun always strives to bring in excellent local talent for its openers, and this year will be no different. This Heartbreak Valentine’s show’s lineup includes Prairie Willows, Zach Seibert, and Youth Model, an eclectic all-local set – from ukuleles to pop/rock – that is sure to rock the house. American Gun will, naturally, close for the event.
The night of heartbreak and killer tunes starts around 9:30 this Saturday, February 15th, at Art Bar on Park Street. The doors open at 8, and it’s recommended you get there early for the best experience.
"Puss in Boots" is the cat's meeow! A review of the new show at Columbia Children's Theatre
Columbia Children’s Theatre brings back a hit play from their very first season, and audiences will enjoy a wild and clever journey with the current production of Puss in Boots. The lively tale chronicles the adventures of a suave cat and his master Tom as adapted from the original Perrault story by director Jerry Stevenson. In Stevenson’s version, Puss and friends cavort through the Old South, complete with lavish costumes and splendid scenic elements. Cast and crew deliver high quality performances at CCT, and this solid production is no exception. Children will enjoy sassy Puss in Boots and his companions, relishing the rollicking slapstick humor and broad characterizations, while adults will snicker (and snort, truth be told) over the more sophisticated wordplay.
Columbia’s beloved storyteller Darion McCloud played the title role at the performance I attended. His infectious charisma infuses the character with irresistible charm and saucy swagger. With McCloud at the helm, the entire cast achieves energetic commitment and memorable magnetism. In the central role of Tom, Paul Lindley II creates an appealing character that pursues “riches beyond compare” through a riotous escapade guided by the wily Puss in Boots. Along the way, the pair encounters a vivid assortment of villains and heroes portrayed by top-notch actors, including Denzel Devereaux (Lee O. Smith), Miss Sassafrass St. Simmons (Toni V. Moore), Prissy Pat (Elizabeth Stepp), Voodoo Vickie (Kendal Turner), and Governer O’Grovener (Julian Deleon). Matt Wright and Stepp deliver memorable performances as Tom’s dim-witted brothers Buford and Shuford. Bonita Peeples plays the role of Puss in Boots at certain shows, and her captivating portrayal of several other parts in the performance I attended suggests her certain success in the title role.
Stevenson (Director) and Evelyn Clary (Assistant Director) have crafted a strong production that looks great and will “wow” audiences. Clever staging, inventive scenic design, and impressive costumes invite viewers into an entertaining version of the Old South. Donna Harvey and Stevenson achieve considerable success with costume design and construction, particularly with many actors playing more than one role. Crew members pull off a complicated production with nary a hitch, thanks to stage manager Crystal Aldamuy and light board operator David Quay.
While physical humor abounds in this production, the cunning use of words provides much hilarity as well. McCloud’s rapid delivery of a speedy recap of the entire plot is astonishing. Word-based jokes (“catastrophe,” “catapult,” “catwalk”) appeal to viewers of all ages. During the “chipmunk” sequence, my preschooler laughed himself silly; the kid actually exhausted himself with full-on belly laughs. (Go see the show and you just might do the same.) As the actors keep young audiences engaged with visual surprises, they also challenge children’s minds with thought-provoking words. My six-year-old guffawed at wordplay with “Grovener” and “red rover,” while her parents chuckled at Gone with the Wind references. The convoluted plot can be a bit perplexing to follow, especially during the fast-paced conclusion, but this will not diminish audience affection for Puss in Boots.
Opportunities for audience involvement include children providing Puss and Tom with “gifts for the Governor” as well as more informal moments, such as an onstage drum roll that inspired my four-year-old son to join in with his own impromptu drumming. After a vibrant performance, actors demonstrate admirable energy when interacting with the young audience members during the post-show autograph session. (This “meet and greet” opportunity has become such a highlight for my kindergartener that she now proclaims “Time to get autographs!” during every curtain call.)
Check out Puss in Boots and add a delightful spark of warmth and laughter to your winter weekend. At CCT, theatre artists love kids, and they inspire kids to love the art of theatre. Visit http://www.columbiachildrenstheatre.com for ticket information; the show runs through Sun. Feb. 16.
~ Melissa Swick Ellington
A heart-warming tour of "Second Samuel" - a review of the new show at On Stage Productions
There may be snow and ice across most of the southeast, but there is warmth to spare in the little town of Second Samuel, GA (so named after the Yankees burned the first town down) where colorful Southern eccentricity blends with a timely message of tolerance and acceptance. Pamela Parker's Second Samuel has been produced at dozens of theatres, from Wetumpka, AL, to Perth, Australia, and off-Broadway by this production's director, Robert Harrelson. Harrelson, the founder of On Stage Productions in West Columbia, has a nice little under-the-radar hit on his hands, and it only runs through this Sunday at the On Stage Performance Center, at 680 Cherokee Rd.
Our narrator and tour guide is B-Flat (Sam Edelson), an appealing, innocent young man (or older teen) given his ironic nickname by piano teacher Miss Gertrude for his lack of musical ability. (His actual surname is "Flatt," first initial "B.") B-Flat is just a little slow, or what they used to call "simple" in the play's 1949 setting. Think Jethro from The Beverly Hillbillies, or Eb from Green Acres, just more loveable. As played by Edelson, one imagines that B-Flat is probably just awkward and perhaps dyslexic, with minimal education. His description of his hometown's quirks is fairly eloquent and insightful, in the manner of Big River's Huck (another under-educated outcast thought to be simple), and one local accurately observes that the boy may have more sense than anyone else. Plus his big heart makes up for any intellectual shortcomings. Like Steel Magnolias, the local ladies gather to chat at the beauty parlor, while the men convene at "Frisky's Bait and Brew," the kind of place where you can get a Nehi and a Moon Pie as easily as a cold beer or a shot of whiskey. Every character would be at home in Mayberry, Hooterville, or Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County. I mention these iconic rural settings from fiction not to imply that author Parker is necessarily influenced by them, but rather to note that she is working in an easily recognizable tradition, with all the stock character types - archetypes even - that we expect. What she does with them, however, is quite creative, and caught me completely by surprise.
1949 was the summer that the beloved Miss Gertrude died, and the play's action commences with preparations for her funeral, as everyone recalls how she touched so many lives in some way. Assorted plot twists transpire, taking the broad, southern-fried comedy of the first act into slightly more serious and meaningful territory in the second. Hilarious characters still are funny, but they face decisions that will define just who they are, both as individuals and as a community. A good parallel might be socially conscious sitcoms from the 70's like All in the Family, or warm family-themed shows from the 80's (e.g. Family Ties or The Golden Girls) where outrageous characters engage in outlandish antics, but there's still an "Awwwww" moment at the end.
A friend noted that everyone seemed perfect for his or her role. A few of the cast are clearly newer to acting, while some have been shining in lead roles for decades, especially at community theatres in Lexington and Chapin, but everyone plays a specific type convincingly. Parker's dialogue flows very naturally, and all the cast has to do is go where the words take them. Debra Leopard and MJ Maurer are especially convincing as histrionic ladies with big hair, while Courtney Long as pretty young Ruby has fewer lines, but is always enaged in the action on stage. As Leopard and Maurer squabble with the town troublemaker (Anne Snider) Long is giggling silently at every word, indicating how seriously the audience should take them. David Reed as the local funeral director has some inspired comic moments. Full disclosure: he and I did a show together 20+ years ago, and so I am familiar with his real voice and mannerisms. Here he affects the soft, high voice of a prim Southern gentleman, and creates a very believable character. Some of the show's biggest laughs come from physical comedy where Reed is drinking, while the beauty parlor ladies are screaming: everyone's pace and pitch is perfect, while Brandon Moore's split-second timing on light cues makes everything flow at a lively pace. Also deserving of praise is the sincerity that A.T. Marion brings to the pivotal role of "U.S." In rural 1949 Georgia, the challenges faced by U.S. as a person of color are obvious, and Parker never sugar-coats the historical context. U.S. wisely explains to B-Flat that each of them is different, but then, who isn't in some way? The charm of the town, and the play, is the way in which the town's residents ultimately look out for their friends. (They even pretend to believe the man who swears he was kidnapped by Nazis from a U-boat off Myrtle Beach , when everyone knows this was a story concocted to explain a week-long bender.)
The space at On Stage, a former retail shop that probably specialized in country-western attire, is limited, and director Harrelson does an excellent job of blocking, given the close quarters. More importantly, he has cast the right types to bring out the depth and nuances of the work, which can be enjoyed at face value as a variation on Mayberry or Vicky Lawrence's Momma's Family, or taken at a much deeper level.
On Stage Productions is now in its fourth season (see the current print issue of Jasper - vol. 3 no. 3 - for some details on its origin) and is a wonderful little gem that's not nearly as out of the way as you might think. From downtown Columbia, you simply cross the Blossom St. bridge and head out Charleston Highway, veering on to Airport Blvd. Cherokee Lane is the right just before I-26, which it parallels, and you're there in not much more than 5 minutes. When my friend Melissa saw and reviewed their last production, her young daughter told her "This looks like a fun place to do a show," and I heartily agree.
Second Samuel runs through Sunday, Feb. 16th - visit http://www.onstagesc.com for ticket information.
~ August Krickel