Today, I have a bad case of lethargy. I have tried to start three things, and have ended up looking at the wall each time. I'm deep into two books by Diarmuid O'Murchu, on the relationship between theology and the new and contemporary physics. Sounds heavy, I know, but he is a brilliant writer who unpacks the spiritual significance of the evolutionary process in a masterful way.
I need this kind of intellectual sustenance and forward thinking. Living here in the heart of Alberta's Bible belt, where everything, including religion, is terribly conservative, a breath of fresh theological air is necessary now and then.
I started Umberto Eco's new book, The Prague Cemetery, which I'm having trouble finishing. Eco's writing style isn't my favourite, and his subject (creation of the fictional "Protocol of the Elders of Zion") is distressing in the extreme. His goal is to demonstrate that the virulent anti-Semitism of 2oth century Europe was based on a work of fiction created specifically to encourage and support anti-Semitism. The subject, and most of the characters in his novel, is vile.
I imagine by now that you are wondering if there is any light in my life at the moment. Re-reading above, it doesn't sound like it, does it. Truth to tell, these days I live in a very serious 'world.' But before you give up on me, let me tell you that we have tickets to the local High School's production of Peter Pan on Saturday evening. The scuttlebutt I hear on the street is that the show is hilarious and well done.
A discovery I made a few years ago, while rehearsing for a production of A Christmas Carol in Bashaw, is that small communities all over Alberta have local theatre companies that come together each year to produce one, sometimes two, plays of musicals! Bashaw has a theatre group, Consort produces a dinner theatre, There's the Rosebud theatre further south - they even have a bit of a theatre school in Rosebud! All kinds of unlikely people 'tread the boards' in these little towns, producing their own entertainment and fun during the darkness of winter. Advertising is confined to notices in local papers, posters in the Post Office, and an overwhelming compilation of 'word-of-mouth' boosting. People travel to other towns to see the performance of people 'over there,' and that usually involves up to an hour's drive each way! A local company - "Klaglahachie"- is mounting Fiddler on the Roof next year. I am currently wrestling with the notion of auditioning for the part of Tevye! I have the beard, and I can do the accent. But can I sing well enough, or muster the energy for three months of three or four rehearsals every week? Stay tuned!
Ruminating on theatre activities helps me access many memories of great times backstage in amateur productions, as well as the wonderful feeling of being onstage and giving others pleasure while having a ball while immersing oneself in another character!
I need this kind of intellectual sustenance and forward thinking. Living here in the heart of Alberta's Bible belt, where everything, including religion, is terribly conservative, a breath of fresh theological air is necessary now and then.
I started Umberto Eco's new book, The Prague Cemetery, which I'm having trouble finishing. Eco's writing style isn't my favourite, and his subject (creation of the fictional "Protocol of the Elders of Zion") is distressing in the extreme. His goal is to demonstrate that the virulent anti-Semitism of 2oth century Europe was based on a work of fiction created specifically to encourage and support anti-Semitism. The subject, and most of the characters in his novel, is vile.
I imagine by now that you are wondering if there is any light in my life at the moment. Re-reading above, it doesn't sound like it, does it. Truth to tell, these days I live in a very serious 'world.' But before you give up on me, let me tell you that we have tickets to the local High School's production of Peter Pan on Saturday evening. The scuttlebutt I hear on the street is that the show is hilarious and well done.
A discovery I made a few years ago, while rehearsing for a production of A Christmas Carol in Bashaw, is that small communities all over Alberta have local theatre companies that come together each year to produce one, sometimes two, plays of musicals! Bashaw has a theatre group, Consort produces a dinner theatre, There's the Rosebud theatre further south - they even have a bit of a theatre school in Rosebud! All kinds of unlikely people 'tread the boards' in these little towns, producing their own entertainment and fun during the darkness of winter. Advertising is confined to notices in local papers, posters in the Post Office, and an overwhelming compilation of 'word-of-mouth' boosting. People travel to other towns to see the performance of people 'over there,' and that usually involves up to an hour's drive each way! A local company - "Klaglahachie"- is mounting Fiddler on the Roof next year. I am currently wrestling with the notion of auditioning for the part of Tevye! I have the beard, and I can do the accent. But can I sing well enough, or muster the energy for three months of three or four rehearsals every week? Stay tuned!
Ruminating on theatre activities helps me access many memories of great times backstage in amateur productions, as well as the wonderful feeling of being onstage and giving others pleasure while having a ball while immersing oneself in another character!
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