Lazy blogger here. It isn't that there hasn't been a lot to blog about - last weekend was full of film and dance and hikes and science world nerdy fun. Still, the impulse to write - well, it just wasn't there.
Consider this a pre-boarding announcement for a blog later this week that hopefully will be more interesting.
I've been going through a fair bit of change over the last year - changes of focus, changes to routine. Some internal changes, some external - my hair is probably 6 inches longer, and my body is three sizes smaller. Those are things will fluctuate over time I'm sure. Impermanent change.
And I've been fussing over the last year about a permanent change - a tattoo. I've known what I want, and where I want it, for a long time - actually I've known what I want for at least four years, but I didn't decide on the where until more recently. The last year has been a strange roller coaster of trying to find the right person to do it. First, I wanted a woman. I found someone amazing in Montreal who travels to Vancouver from time to time, but she didn't get back to me. I gave up on her, and tried to find a woman in town whose work I really liked, but couldn't. And, to be honest, what I want done isn't all that complex, and isn't going to be of much interest to the 'superstars' in town anyway - and things are such that good artists can pick and choose their clients. Then my brain flipped on the whole "female artist" thing, and I started looking at the guys in town. AND - I found someone whose work felt right...but I was also pulled by the work of a junior guy that was working at the same shop. A couple of weeks back, I decide to try to make an appointment. Ya, well, guy number one was dead - a heart attack in January apparently. Which left me with the junior guy. I met with him last week, and for some reason (hopefully not delusional) he feels right. He's got a nice manner, and none of the ego that can go along with the industry these days. He will get some artwork to me early this week, with plans to do the work on Thursday if it all pans out. I have a feeling this long journey has ended up with me being where I was meant to be.
So, think of me Thursday afternoon, crashed out on T1s and praying that this permanent change will turn out OK.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Sunday, February 03, 2013
Still standing ... you
Still standing you. [or] Still supporting you. [or] Still bearing you. [or] Still standing for you. [or] Still standing with you. [or] Still standing. [or] Just still. (PuSh 2013)
Ah yes, that time has come - it was my last PuSh show last night, the remarkable Still Standing You - a contemporary dance piece quite unlike anything I've seen before. I went with my discerning partner in dance viewing, A. ("hey, do you want to go see a dance piece with two naked guys throwing each other around?" "Sure!") - ok, our decision making isn't always the most refined process, but we both love being challenged, and PuSh programming is almost always a safe bet.
I looked for clips of the work online - this one isn't great, but it is the one that best gives the arc of the performance. It starts with one man balanced on the other's feet, talking to the audience very casually about his experience in the city they are performing in, which sets up a particular relationship with the audience. It takes away any preciousness or pretension from the work, cues you in to the fact that it is OK to laugh, and begins the process of setting up the dynamic between the two men, which is maybe best outlined by the quote at the top of the post. The piece moves from the two growling and taunting and jockeying for position through to moments of remarkable tenderness and support. It's every relationship. With the caveat that most relationships don't involve one partner attempting to consume the other's Superman underwear. And most dance pieces don't include remarkably intricate moves that result in mind bogglingly manipulated foreskins (yes, this is not a work that could be performed by the circumcised). A remarkable, incredibly physical, funny, moving piece. Gads, I love the arts.
DRODESERA 2012 We Folk! - PIETER AMPE & GUILHERME GARRIDO "STILL STANDING YOU" from Centrale Fies on Vimeo.
Other than that, I had a chance to catch up briefly with a dear pal from Toronto this week - someone I've known since 1988, and my first friend when I moved back east. So good to see her, and so good to see the gods smiling on her life. The gods have perhaps not been smiling on Maggie, who had to have her teeth cleaned and one extraction this week (I was arguing for a gold crown but no dice). She is finally getting back to normal, despite having to suffer through having meds squirted down her throat twice a day.
And as for me? Well, I am in a battle with my dissembling brain, an organ that likes to taunt me from time. Hopefully the 20% of my brain that seems to realize what is fantasy and what is reality will win out. Memory is truly a funny thing. The saying "time heals all wounds" really means time will give your brain a chance to rewrite history, and blur the pokey edges. That's not a bad thing, but you have to be on your toes enough to know what's going on. I will put my pointe shoes on.
Ah yes, that time has come - it was my last PuSh show last night, the remarkable Still Standing You - a contemporary dance piece quite unlike anything I've seen before. I went with my discerning partner in dance viewing, A. ("hey, do you want to go see a dance piece with two naked guys throwing each other around?" "Sure!") - ok, our decision making isn't always the most refined process, but we both love being challenged, and PuSh programming is almost always a safe bet.
I looked for clips of the work online - this one isn't great, but it is the one that best gives the arc of the performance. It starts with one man balanced on the other's feet, talking to the audience very casually about his experience in the city they are performing in, which sets up a particular relationship with the audience. It takes away any preciousness or pretension from the work, cues you in to the fact that it is OK to laugh, and begins the process of setting up the dynamic between the two men, which is maybe best outlined by the quote at the top of the post. The piece moves from the two growling and taunting and jockeying for position through to moments of remarkable tenderness and support. It's every relationship. With the caveat that most relationships don't involve one partner attempting to consume the other's Superman underwear. And most dance pieces don't include remarkably intricate moves that result in mind bogglingly manipulated foreskins (yes, this is not a work that could be performed by the circumcised). A remarkable, incredibly physical, funny, moving piece. Gads, I love the arts.
DRODESERA 2012 We Folk! - PIETER AMPE & GUILHERME GARRIDO "STILL STANDING YOU" from Centrale Fies on Vimeo.
Other than that, I had a chance to catch up briefly with a dear pal from Toronto this week - someone I've known since 1988, and my first friend when I moved back east. So good to see her, and so good to see the gods smiling on her life. The gods have perhaps not been smiling on Maggie, who had to have her teeth cleaned and one extraction this week (I was arguing for a gold crown but no dice). She is finally getting back to normal, despite having to suffer through having meds squirted down her throat twice a day.
And as for me? Well, I am in a battle with my dissembling brain, an organ that likes to taunt me from time. Hopefully the 20% of my brain that seems to realize what is fantasy and what is reality will win out. Memory is truly a funny thing. The saying "time heals all wounds" really means time will give your brain a chance to rewrite history, and blur the pokey edges. That's not a bad thing, but you have to be on your toes enough to know what's going on. I will put my pointe shoes on.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
