In the meantime...Fairies

Are You An English Major?

If you are, I'd like to ask you a few questions:

1) Do you read the required novels on time, every time?

2) If so, do you enjoy that?

3) Are you both critical and creative in your essays?

4) Do you find symbolic meaning in every word you see?

5) Do you get 80s on most essays?

6) Do you feel like an incompetent, illiterate fool if you don't?

I am an English Major at the University of Toronto, and today I came to the realization:

I hate studying English at U of T. I hate writing essays. I am neither argumentative nor creative.

I have no passion or interest for dwelling on the meaning of certain words nor the placement of particular commas.


I cannot tell you why I Majored in English. I truly can't.

Linda Griffiths’ Age of Arousal: Play Review

            Age of Arousal written by Linda Griffiths and directed by Kate Lynch along with David Jansen, was performed at The Helen Gardiner Phelan Playhouse at U of T from March 5^th-16^th. Griffiths’ play was highly influenced by a piece which had been written in the 1800s, The Odd Women, written by novelist George Gissing. She is quoted as saying, “Age of Arousal was ‘Wildly inspired’ by George Gissing’s The Odd Women. ‘Wild’ – because of liberties taken. ‘Inspired’ – because without his inspiration: there would be no play.” Griffiths is a writer and actor and studied at Dawson College, the National Theatre School of Canada and McGill University.  She is the recipient of five Dora Mavor Moore awards, a Gemini award, two Chalmer’s awards, the Quizanne International Festival Award for Jessica, and Los Angeles’ A.G.A. Award for her performance in John Sayles’ film Lianna (cite Wiki). Considered one of “Canada’s originals” (Maclean’s Magazine, 1991), Griffiths’ Age of Arousal won the Betty Mitchell for Best New Play. Her array of decorated awards is indicative of the masterful artistry showcased in her writing.  

The cast of this production was comprised of student actors – some from U of T, and some from abroad. Director and actor Kate Lynch played the role of Mary Barfoot; Briar Knowles, Ottawa and Toronto actor, as Rhoda Nunn; Anahita Abolhassani, University of Toronto student, as Alice Madden; Sally Nazaki, established theatrical actor, as Monica Madden; Connie Wang, also a University of Toronto Studem, as Virginia Madden and Matthew Lawrence, one last U of T drama major, as the cunning Everard Barfoot. These students were valorous on stage – fearless demanders of their listeners’ attention and respect for their craft through their boisterous line delivery and solid command of the stage.

            At a time when women “outnumbered men by 500, 000 and were destined never to marry”, these student actresses had to embody every characteristic strength of the 19^th century female. Lynch’s production of Age of Arousal cleverly showcased the raw and invigorating political content of the script. The dialogue focussed on female emancipation through the expression of personal and intellectual growth, but particularly sexual freedom, by keeping the staging clear of props, the lighting easy, the colour of the costumes muted. This forced the audience into a position of attention which hinged on the actors’ every last word, as there were no distractions to hinder our focus.

A play about five women living in the 19^th century as the Suffragette movement began to take socio-political constructs by storm, they find themselves in circumstances which test the boundaries of feminist virtue. The play begins with Miss Barfoot and Rhoda and the exchange of an intimate kiss – the first indication that a romance exists between the two. It is not long before we learn that they share the passion for strengthening female work ethic, intellect and inner strength. We are then introduced to the Madden sisters who emulate every characteristic of a woman Barfoot and Rhoda resent and strive to eliminate. Through the introduction of the typewriter, Barfoot and Rhoda aim to take these seemingly impressionable ambitionless women and turn them into confident, working strongholds. However, when Dr. Everard Barfoot meets these women and a love affair is sparked between the youngest Madden sister, and a very surprised Rhoda, they are put to the test of their values. Do they abandon their firm belief in girl power and give into companionate love? Or do they hold onto their steadfast beliefs, and abject the compromise ensured in handing over their hands in marriage to a man?

The incorporation of feminist ideals – like striving to establish equal work opportunities for women by teaching them work ethic in a secretarial college – and sentiments of sexual emancipation – to engage in casual sex, or not to? – was interwoven in the discourses between characters. Expressing their inner feelings to the audience through the artistic form of “asides”- a dramatic device in which a character speaks to the audience, we were aware of the sexual energy vibrating of these females throughout the entirety of the play. What provided the foundation for this presentation of deeply charged dialogue was the minimalist stage set. Their representation of the characters was so charged with emotive energy and clarity, that the need for a more detailed set was unnecessary. A wall painted white with two windows and French doors painted white served as the backdrop which did not change throughout the entirety of the production. During set transitions, props were removed or added, but there was rarely any more than a table and chairs on set at a time. There were no paintings, there was little colour. The set did not distract the viewers’ eyes from the detail of the characters’ dialogue. During moments when there were several characters engaged in “asides”, a heavily decorated set may have distracted from the numerous spoken trajectories taking place.

            Also assisting in the deterrence of any further distractions from the complexity of conversation, was the simplistic use of lighting. The lighting throughout the show was lowered and raised intermittently to indicate scene changes or mood implications. The colours of the lights were mostly a dim yellow, pale white or at times a muted blue. At no point throughout the performance were the colours of the lights vibrant or gaudy. By keeping the lighting easy on the eyes, the emphasis was concentrated on the interactions and discussions between characters, and not on locations where light was being focussed or coloured. This said, a dimming effect was used during monologues or “asides”. When a character chose to reveal their inner thoughts about sexuality, most often, a spotlight would be cast around them so as to focus specifically on the delivery of the aside monologue. This technique did not serve as a distraction by any means, and instead served as a stylistic element which drew the audience attention in further.

An additional way the focus was maintained and reflective of the content of the dialogue was through the simplicity of the costumes. Authentic of the 1890s, the costumes worn by the actresses were made from very pale-coloured fabric. The youngest, and interestingly, most sexually free, character, Monica Madden, however, wore dresses which emphasized the feminine curvatures of her body, which were louder in colour: at one point, a rich orange. Comparatively, the remaining female characters wore costumes which did not accentuate their female characteristics, and were dark green, grey, black, and beige coloured. Because of the dull color scheme, as a viewer one is not taken back or drawn in by the stimulation that might have been offered by a costume of brighter colour. In this way, it was easy to connect Monica’s more openly sexual demeanor with the more vibrant, flaunting colour of her clothing. Rhoda and Miss Barfoot, disciplined and zealous suffragettes, for example wore dresses which evinced no hint at skin or sexual appeal.

            Age of Arousal incorporates sexuality in ways which support the outward ideals of feminism which are conveyed throughout the entirety of the play. A play largely about encouraging women to emancipate their inner feelings of intellectual or perhaps monetary repression, sexuality acts as a cohesion of female independence and expression. The times the audience becomes aware of the nuanced subtleties of sexuality is through the dialogue the actors have with themselves. For instance, in a conversation between Everard and Monica, we are only presented with their true, most often sexual, inner thoughts when they engage in side remarks which employ actor and audience and remove themselves from the actor to actor interaction at hand.

            This play brings its audience to consider the achievements of feminist suffragettes – to mull over the societal views that have changed, as well as the ones that haven’t. We are called to observe what equality means, for men and women. This play warrants further discussion about where men and women are to draw the line, in sexual relations as well as in societal and personal relations, before independence is threatened. How far must one go to preserve their independence? How much are people willing to bend or accommodate their values for the sake of personal pleasure or gain? It seemed an unspoken consensus that the audience was quite pleased with what they had seen that night – as presumed by the numerous nodding heads and smiling faces, and the occasional comment of “Wow, she was great”. With a cast of six members and a show that was a little over two hours long, it is commendable that the actors had the talent to carry such a lengthy, meticulous piece.

How to Handle a Break-up in Your Twenties

Cry.

Get it all out. Don't even bother trying to play the part of the person who couldn't care less - unless you do. If you're hurt, cry. What's important here is to allot an amount of time for mourning.

I'd say give yourself a week. An entire week. Allow yourself to slack off, cry yourself to sleep, become engorged with chocolate and ice cream, or survive on cigarettes, coffee and weed as I have. You get the point, give yourself a week to hit rock bottom. Listen to love songs, stare at their Facebook profile pictures, wait for their name to appear on the screen of your phone, begin text messages that you have no courage to send (don't send them unless you know exactly what you're doing), reminisce about all the things you could've said...would've said...should've said.

And then, by the end of the week, let go. Let go of their face, of the detail around their eyes. Let go of their scent and the shape of their nail-bed. Because it's gone now.

Thinking about the ghosts of their presence will do nothing but drive you to the madhouse.

By letting go, this is what I mean:

- thank God for their presence in your life - it was there for a reason, we may not be ready to know
- accept that what you had was beautiful but that the reason for it's end is telling.
- it ended because it had to
- release the memories from your mind
- do not torture yourself by regurgitating these memories
- put them in a box and hide it away at the back of your mind

Now,

Find assurance or comfort in the fact that life is a very curious thing. There just might be a time where you become two people that are now ready to take on the world together. Consider the time apart as prep. You had to develop on your own to become the person who just might fit your once-love's life.

Go out with your friends. I know how much I hate when people say that. "Keep busy". "Find a hobby". "Call up an old friend"

You really don't have to do any of this. What I do recommend is a daily joint. When your body is numb, somehow, you're able to repeal thoughts that might hurt you. Or you find the answers you were searching for.

If you don't smoke weed then just do what you love. If you play the piano, you hammer away at that thing. If you play soccer, you take every chance you get to run around on that field.

Eventually you will have filled the void with other things. With things you love, or help you grow. And then just like that - you've forgotten what it was like to be unhappy.

I'm only two days in. Wish me luck.

What do YOU know about the Streamy's?

You got the Emmy's.
You got the Tony's.
You got the Golden Globe's.
You got the SAG Awards.
You got the the Juno's.
You got the Oscar's.
You got the Grammy's.


You got... the... Streamy's?

Yes, the Streamy Awards.

This award show is not for the professional actors, the creatively developed musicians but for people, like you and me, who have hours upon hours of time on their hands and use it to produce videos which they post on YouTube.

This is the award show for the best vloggers. "To recognize and honour excellence of online video."  There are about 35 categories each praising the work of the video writers, organizers, directors and actors. It's presented in the sparkling city of Los Angeles, California. 

First streamed in 2009 the Streamy Awards have gained popularity steadily from the world wide web, so much so that Larry King in the flesh presented the nominations for an award at the 2013 show. 

He presented alongside Jenna Marbles (w-o-w). This girl, for those who might not know her by name (where do you live...):

Just take that in for a second.

And watch this,

Now, I need to take a second to acknowledge that my girl Grace Helbig took home two awards this year, for Best Personality and Best First-Person Series. Big UPS.

For those of you who don't know her as Grace Helbig, you might know her as "dailygrace" - her vlogging username.

Or just watch her for about 3 minutes:




Well, I personally had no idea that an award show like this existed and am still trying to sift through my feelings towards them. I mean, how does one classify an experienced professional YouTuber versus a novice noob.

Is the title "actor" now redefined? Is acting in front of a computer the same as acting in front of a camera while an assistant feeds you a script?

I just don't know how the universe of YouTube has come this far... Americans now use funding (from where?) to present this show to award a bunch of people who really, really, loved their hobby.

But I suppose all genius and success stems from developing hobbies anyhow.

Guess I should keep up this blogging gig for a bit then, eh?






love.

Inside the Actors Studio: Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman is talented, eloquent, humbling, and a real joy to watch. Through this one interview you will learn much about her life that you may have never known; like the fact that her last name is in fact Hershlag...and not Portman, or that she is a Harvard grad who majored in Psychology (apologies to religious Portman fans who know her like the back of their hands). Let's take a look and some clips from Portman's portfolio of work.


"The Professional"

 


 "Garden State"

"Star Wars"

Her work chronologically!





Just because I can't get enough!

peace

What is the "Harlem Shake"?

It's everywhere. Within milliseconds the globe has been bombarded with these damn video clips. First it was Kony then it was the escapist Ikea monkey and now it's the Harlem Shake.

According to Wikipedia, my internet friend who has never led me astray, the Harlem Shake is, in fact, a meme! Except, this internet meme comes in the form of a video. The innovators of this infectious meme were five teenagers from Queensland, Australia. On YouTube they go by the name of TheSunnyCoastSkate. On February 2nd the teens uploaded their video which was soon proceeded by YouTube vlogging sensation Filthy Frank's own version.

Here, first listen to the original track.






 Now watch the video that gave the Harlem Shake trend its kickstart:

 



Now for Filthy Frank's version:

 


 And if you haven't had enough here are some U of T produced, which I think are fucking great.



St. Michael's College REPRESENT:

 




 U of T's Faculty of Music!!

 




U of T's Con Hall!!!!





I'm sure you have heard enough Harlem Shake for the rest of your life. I will never download this song onto my iPod. Never.





I'm so sorry to do this to you, but you need to see this one. It's by far the most chaotic piece of incredibility I have seen thus far. Wilfred Laurier University's Harlem Shake. Even staff got involved. Take this in:







:)

QUARTET

What a fabulous movie. The dry British wit, the cast of acting monarchs *ahem Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon*, the intermittent performances - violins, oboes, pianos, trumpets, clarinets - and the rather astounding operatic combinations.

What begins as a walk-through of a retirement home full of artists and musicians who still gather to practice and perform amongst each other lead to the developing of a love story between two opera powerhouses that had fallen out of love while in the prime of their musical careers.

Jean Horton (Smith) had been out of the opera business for years after the pressure of performance  for the sake of positive reviews overwhelmed and consumed her. She chose to tune down the bellowing of her life by moving to Beecham House, a retirement home of men and women who left behind artistic legacies like she had. Beecham House was also home to her ex-husband, Reggie (Courtenay). Unbeknownst to Jean, Reggie has no interest in seeing her again. But I'll let you watch the movie to witness how that unfolds.

Anyhow, so Beecham is also home to Cissy (Collins) and Wilf (Connolly), retired operatic starts who had lived full and successful lives. The four share this one thing: they had performed in Giuseppe Verdi's "Rigoletto", and Jean was said to have perfected the vocal performance.

The retirement home is in poor financial state and so Cedric, the self-proclaimed director of most musical performances of the House, suggests the four perform the Quartet one last time in hope of raising money to save Beecham.

I'm not revealing any more. You simply must watch this film.

The script was written tactfully and woven with sensibility and humour. There is a tenderness maintained through the script which is taken to a deeper emotional level through the sheer talent of these acting greats.

You will laugh continuously, you will find yourself surrounded by an audience of a median age of 65, and you will find yourself holding your breath at the beauty of the English landscapes, rolling hills and the continuous sound of operatic beauty.

Executive producer and director of this film, Dustin Hoffman reigns king of multifaceted areas of talent.

The Very Best: Nostalgia

I had been brainstorming about movies I'd watched as a kid and stumbled on the name of a certain movie. When I finally came up with the title of it I knew I had to share it with the world so that it may never be forgotten.

It was then that I figured I should make a list of five moderately unpopular movies that had a ton of impact on my developing childhood mind.

So here they are!

Happily Ever After - something of a sequel to "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves". Here we meet Snow once again and the Dwarves' cousins, the Dwarfelles!

Watch the full length movie here:

A Troll in Central Park - an exiled troll with a green thumb and knack for making the world a happier and greener place, is sent to Central Park where he meets two young children who help him get back to his home!

Watch the trailer here:

The Princess and the Goblin - while her father is away at war, this princess is getting tired of being cooped up in her castle. She comes across a secret, magical attic which leads her to the magical underworld led by goblins!

Watch part one:

The Brave Little Toaster - just like our toys come alive at night, our household appliances come alive when we leave the house. This is the story of a little toaster and his appliance friends who embark on a journey to find their original masters!

Here's the full movie:

Thumbelina - A colourful rendition of the traditional story of a courageous girl who braves the world at only two inches tall!

Watch the full movie!

Watch these movies and show them to your kids. Guaranteed they will never forget them.

"Started from the Middle" - Drake (A Break-down)

Drake dropped his new record this week - "Started From The Bottom", and, being born and raised a Toronna girl, wanted to express some opinions I have about it.

Firstly, take a look at the video if you haven't yet seen it:

Bones to pick: 

One, Drake grew up in Forest Hill. For those who are not familiar with that neighbourhood, it's stated as being "an affluent neighbourhood in central Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Along with Lawrence Park, Rosedale, and The Bridle Path, it is one of Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods", courtesy of Wikipedia. 

He did not slum it like 50 cent or The Game (what happened to that guy?) did or hustle "to make some money to feed my daughters" like Biggy, or come from Georgia and drug deal like T.I. and has not been to jail multiple times like Weezy has. 

So... is "the bottom" relative? No. "The bottom"  is the grind, the hustle, the struggle; not having food on their plates, and scars from bullet wounds. "Starting from the bottom" does not mean, growing up in one of Toronto's wealthiest communities to date. Sorry Drake, you're not as hood as you consider yourself to be.

In fact, I'm sure Nas and Immortal Technique are somewhere out there laughing hysterically while they watch pretty-richboy-Drake's new video. I sure as shit did.

I come from "Vaughan and Oakwood" which borderlines the division between Forest Hill and the government-funded housing. I might say I grew up in the best of both worlds. I've seen "the bottom" and I've driven through the Bridle Path, and man, Drake's conception of "low" is completely skewed.

Forest Hill abode

A, perhaps, more humble living space in F.H.

Shit, there's even bus service

He grew up without a father most of his life. My condolences entirely. I have several friends who grew up the same way and it's tough - "tough" might even be an understatement. But he went to school in a very well-to-do frou-frou part of Toronto. Forest Hill Collegiate Institute was where all the Forest Hillites sent their children. Rich kids. Loads of rich kids. 

Commenting on his "sub-par" living conditions, Drake expressed his mother  "wanted the best for her family. She found us a half of a house we could live in. The other people had the top half, we had the bottom half. I lived in the basement, my mom lived on the first floor. It was not big, it was not luxurious. It was what we could afford." 

Come on. Give me a break. There is absolutely no one should be complaining about having an entire basement to himself, especially when that basement is situated in Forest Hill. It was renovated for Pete's sake. It was spacious. It had a recording studio in it. Fuck off, Drake.

Next,

You will see that Drake worked at Shopper's Drug Mart. Poor kid. My heart goes out to him. He had a part time job - man, that's the pits. 

Spare me.

He grew up the way every middle class individual did. He did not come "from the bottom". He did not come from the top, alright. But he definitely came from two thirds of the way, and that's better than most.

So, Drake. Lose the "I had to hustle to get here, I had to put my education aside to do this, I had to starve for days" attitude. You had clothes on your back, a car to drive, a job to tend to, and friends of status. You are not hood. You did not live the thug life.

That is all.

Just Can't Get Enough - Catch Up

We all have them. Those distractions that we delve into during procrastication. Some of mine come in the form of tweezers, #imgfave, and Twitter. Those which I'd like to share with you today come in the form of weekly sitcoms. Currently, I watch three shows religiously.

1. GIRLS

    2. Once Upon a Time

    3. The Vampire Diaries

I have wrecklessly hopped onto the bandwagon with absolutely no intention of getting off. Take me away, take me to your people, get me into that TV screen.

WARNING: WILL BE SPILLING SECRETS - VERY DEEP, VERY DARK ONES

If you enjoy either of these shows as much as I do, hooray - let's be friends. The point of this blog will be to catch you up if you have not seen the last episodes of each show.

GIRLS

So, Hannah's at work with Ray. It's beautiful and sunny outside, the customers are enjoying their lattes and Ray is glad that he's less of loser today because he is spending his time working - or so I'd assume. Anyhow, a man - a delicious, muscular, golden-haired, blue-eyed man - walks into the cafe and right up to Ray questioning why his garbage bin has been filled with Ray's garbage for the last few weeks. His demeanor is pleasant enough, he seems merely to want to know why this is happening and put a quiet and amiable end to it. Ray does not feel the same way. He flies off the handle completely and cusses off pretty, unknown, stranger in very unfriendly ways.

Pretty, stranger man leaves the shop demanding to have his garbage bin empty so that he can fill it with his own garbage. (LOL...thanks Dunham, what a scenario one might find themselves in). Hannah then runs after pretty boy and follows him to his house. She proceeds to knock on the door. He opens the door, invites her in, offers her some lemonade and she reveals it has been her that has been emptying Ray's garbage into his garbage bin -  for numerous reasons, none funny enough to even bother repeating to you. Then they have sex. Then they have sex again. And again, and again, and once more. Then she makes him beg her to stay the night, which shes does (blantantly gladly) and then they have sex again. He continues to melt us with his eyes and she continues to caress his completely hairless body.

This... This is he.



Hannah then realizes something she had not been aware of before. She wants to be happy. His kindness and friendship (and hanky panky) had demonstrated to her that she infact desired this happiness for herself. She delivers a shpiel about how she had always wanted to experience everything so that she may edit and convey the experience to others. But not anymore. His sexytime was so damn good that she became enlightened. Shit. Sorry, Hannah. Looks like everyone needs real love somtimes, too.



Once Upon a Time

Mr. Gold, Emma and Henry leave Storybrook together embarking on a journey in search of Rumple's lost son. Mr. Gold has serious travel anxiety. Back in Storybrook, Evil Queen Regina who has buddied up with hell-on-earth - her mother - wreaks havoc on the town by releasing a Giant human-hating captive. Snow, Charming and the Dwarves attempt to keep Anton the Giant at bay and away from the town. Anton is convinced Charming was the man that betrayed him years ago. We soon learn that man was Charming's twin brother, who had died eventually, years before. Eventually Snow and Charming work their way into Anton's heart as he realizes they are kind humans and nothing like Charming's evil twin. He softens and agrees to their terms of friendship.

Surprise! He has a magic bean on him, which when fully grown will lead to another realm. The looming  thought at the back of everyone's mind is what Cora could have intended by Anton's and Snow/Charming's meeting. She is a mastermind, after all, and would have foreseen this occurrence.   Ignoring the possibilities of disaster, they plant the bean and Anton, whose magic has worn off and is now human-sized, becomes a member of the Dwarf pack; inheriting the name "Tiny". Hooray... for now.

The Vampire Diaries

I'll keep this short. Everyone's still on the hunt for the cure. Klaus remains locked up under Bonnie's spell with Caroline and Tyler. Bonnie and Jeremy are captured by Shane. Damon captured by fifth member of Vampire Hunter familia. Elena calls Caroline and expresses the utter distress she feels now that Damon is lost. Caroline offers to help from home. Tyler finds Klaus' sword which would reveal the path to the vampire cure. The three "pals" figure out the encrypted message only to learn that there is just ONE CURE for vampirism. Klaus yells this out when Caroline is on the phone with Rebecca. Rebecca, at the time, was the only one with this knowledge. She tells Stefan, Stefan tells Elena. Eventually everyone knows there is only one cure. Somehow most of the crew makes it down into the cave where Silas is buried. Only Bonnie and Jeremy make it to his tomb - Shane has a broken leg; he's useless and they couldn't care less about his survival. Upon seeing the tiny box which holds the cure, they realize there must only be one dose. Bonnie also figures out the only way to loosen the stone-cold vampire's grip on the cure, is to wake him via blood-feeding. Then BAM!!

Catherine strikes again. Bonnie gets stabbed, so she's knocked out. Catherine grabs Jeremy's neck, bites it, and forces it over the frozen mouth of Silas. Silas wakes... Catherine grabs the cure and Silas snaps Jeremy's neck. Was Jeremy wearing the protective ring?? I cant' say I saw it - might have to re-watch the last five minutes of the show.

Peace. Love.