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Video: OPI's Instinct of Color
Nov. 5th, 2012 12:12 amThis video is bizarre and gorgeous and I kind of love it.
War Horse on stage
Oct. 15th, 2012 08:14 pm
Jared was kind enough to take me to see the theatrical production of War Horse at the Boston Opera House this Friday. I've wanted to see it for ages, partially because of the reviews, and partially because I was so astounded by the amazing puppets. They did not disappoint; they moved so much like real horses it was uncanny; you almost forgot they were puppets. The puppeteers, I was amazed to learn, were actors with no previous puppeteering credits, it was just a combination of their training and the ingenious design of the horse rig that allowed for such a convincing performance. The show was such an amazing use of the theatrical medium, conveying the motion of the running horses with passing setpieces even though they were just moving in place, and even portraying an entire Panzer tank rampaging through the trenches. It was really mind-blowing. And the show was much better than the movie. The film, though it did some things well and I enjoyed much of it, was too overblown-- all the sweet moments and all the tragic moments were turned up to eleven, and whenever you just began to recover from the latest punch to the gut, it threw another tragedy at you and punched you again. The play was more toned down, more believable and less histrionic, and I think it worked much better. Plus I love horse stories, especially when they're not squishy little girl tales, so a period piece involving the nobility conveyed on man by loving a horse was right up my alley. I'm so grateful to Jared for taking me, and I was so happy to share the experience with him.
Why can't we all write a Warhorse?
Jul. 8th, 2011 12:29 pmOne thing that I found really frustrating during residency was the constant hammering of the notion of keeping your play as basic as possible because otherwise, nobody would want to produce it. Keep your cast tiny. Keep your sets minimal. Your milieu inexpensive. Your themes current. Make sure the audience understands it and blah blah blah. It was kind of maddening to me, as it seemed like unless you wanted to write some more fucking Beckett-style nonsense, nobody was ever going to be interested in your plays.
But today my mom told me about this new play on Broadway called Warhorse. She said that it's a meditation on wartime about a boy whose beloved horse is drafted into service in War World I, and he follows him through the war to take him home. She said that the show portrays horses with gorgeous, fully articulated puppets that move and behave so much like real horses that it's mesmerizing. She suggested I look them up on Youtube, and my God, I was amazed.
Look at this. This is magic. This is fabulous theater. I am in AWE of how much those puppet draws me in. They are huge and gorgeous and they move like real horses. They are so fucking beautiful and ingenious and perfect that I can't imagine how much more powerful my theater experience would be going to see this because of that touch.
And this play demands it. The heart of the story of Warhorse is about how the best in the human spirit is brought out through the love of horses. You don't FEEL that on a visceral level without the force and shape and awe-inspiring presence of a horse right there to drive it home to you. But how would you ever get a horse onstage? Does this story not belong onstage because that's an impractical thing to write into a show?
But the play was good enough that somebody made it happen, regardless of the difficulty. And this show is a smash hit. I think it just shows that if your play is good enough, people will make it happen the way it needs to happen. Yeah, we are certainly not all going to get lucky enough to get such a big budget, or even any attention at all. I just can't help but think why teach people to write a worse play just to handle concerns of ever getting off the ground?
But today my mom told me about this new play on Broadway called Warhorse. She said that it's a meditation on wartime about a boy whose beloved horse is drafted into service in War World I, and he follows him through the war to take him home. She said that the show portrays horses with gorgeous, fully articulated puppets that move and behave so much like real horses that it's mesmerizing. She suggested I look them up on Youtube, and my God, I was amazed.
Look at this. This is magic. This is fabulous theater. I am in AWE of how much those puppet draws me in. They are huge and gorgeous and they move like real horses. They are so fucking beautiful and ingenious and perfect that I can't imagine how much more powerful my theater experience would be going to see this because of that touch.
And this play demands it. The heart of the story of Warhorse is about how the best in the human spirit is brought out through the love of horses. You don't FEEL that on a visceral level without the force and shape and awe-inspiring presence of a horse right there to drive it home to you. But how would you ever get a horse onstage? Does this story not belong onstage because that's an impractical thing to write into a show?
But the play was good enough that somebody made it happen, regardless of the difficulty. And this show is a smash hit. I think it just shows that if your play is good enough, people will make it happen the way it needs to happen. Yeah, we are certainly not all going to get lucky enough to get such a big budget, or even any attention at all. I just can't help but think why teach people to write a worse play just to handle concerns of ever getting off the ground?
Map board for The Stand
Dec. 20th, 2010 01:19 pmWhen I am home for Christmas, I want my mom to help me make a very important gamepiece for The Stand. Control of the land surrounding the town and the various features of that land matter a lot to the plot of the game, so I wanted a large and well-illustrated visual representation for it. What I want is for my mom, who is an artist, to draw or paint me a large detailed birdseye representation of the land on paper so people can see what it looks like and what visible features it has. I will then grid off the paper to parcel the land out. Things out on the land that have the capability to move around will be represented by miniatures. Each space will also have a little flap cut in it to make a tiny window that will conceal the non-obvious information about the space, which you can only open and examine if you have the proper knowledge or abilities.
Travel across this space is non-negligible. I haven't exactly worked out the mechanics of it, but in order to make travel across the board possible within a reasonable amount of time, you need to have a horse to ride. But all the town's horses died in a recent jag of illness; there's only one horse in human possession at the start of the game. So the only solution is to track down the local mustang herd and wrangle yourself a mount. I have yet to design it, but this process will be a minigame. Anyone is allowed to try to wrangle a mustang, though some people will have a Wrangler ability that will give them a bonus when they make the attempt. If you are successful at the minigame, you get a horse of your very own to keep, complete with a card with the horse's picture and stats on it. There will be a few different things you can do with horses, but the primary one is the ability to travel to areas of land outside of town for examination, claim, or otherwise.
Travel across this space is non-negligible. I haven't exactly worked out the mechanics of it, but in order to make travel across the board possible within a reasonable amount of time, you need to have a horse to ride. But all the town's horses died in a recent jag of illness; there's only one horse in human possession at the start of the game. So the only solution is to track down the local mustang herd and wrangle yourself a mount. I have yet to design it, but this process will be a minigame. Anyone is allowed to try to wrangle a mustang, though some people will have a Wrangler ability that will give them a bonus when they make the attempt. If you are successful at the minigame, you get a horse of your very own to keep, complete with a card with the horse's picture and stats on it. There will be a few different things you can do with horses, but the primary one is the ability to travel to areas of land outside of town for examination, claim, or otherwise.
Secretariat
Oct. 26th, 2010 01:21 pmSaw Secretariat this week and really enjoyed it. He's always been my favorite racehorse. As great racehorses go, people tend to disagree whether Secretariat or Man O' War was the greatest of all time. Man O' War had the better, more consistent record of winning races, but I have always preferred Secretariat because when it came to sheer equine speed, he was beyond any other horse that ever lived.
Big Red, you see, was impossible. He was capable of moving at speeds that, before him, people had believed no horse could. He was strangely fickle about unleashing that speed; his winning record was far from perfect, since some days he just wouldn't break it out. But still, he could sprint so fast that he could hang back at the rear of the pack and explode forward for the win. He was what was known as a pace stalker, a horse that just barely matched the speed of his opponents for the majority of a race and then kicked into gear to beat them at the end. The kind of speed he opened up with broke records that have never been equaled-- he won the mile-and-a-half Belmont by a shocking thirty-one lengths. The announcer yelled out at the time, "He is moving like a tremendous machine!" He really was, after all. When they autopsied him after his death, they found he had an enormous twenty-two pound heart, which people theorize delivered so much more oxygenated blood to his muscles than any of his competitors. He was a freak. He was a miracle.
It's a good film, well-made and interesting to watch. The dialogue was a bit cheesy in places, but they didn't squishify the horse too much and the dramatic tension built during the races was awesome. I spoke with Jared afterward about it. He'd also liked it but he said he was a bit weirded out by their choice to play "Oh, Happy Day" over the last few strides of Red's Belmont win, jokingly asking if they were saying the horse was Jesus. I laughed that no, but I still found it an appropriate song-- that too was impossible, and yet. It was a really beautifully set up shot up, too, with silence as Red went into the curve and then bursting into the song as he exploded into the final stretch. Very beautiful, and about a truly amazing animal.
Good Kincaid
Jan. 6th, 2009 10:51 amToday is Epiphany, as well as Carmen's birthday. She would have been fifteen today; this is the first birthday she's not been around for. My dad put a picture on her on the refrigerator of when she was in her prime. She really was a beautiful dog.
Had a riding lesson today. Went better than I expected it to, given how long it's been. But I'm pleased with how well I rode, and though Kincaid may have been totally unable to go round, at least he wasn't as stiff as he sometimes is. I hear they've been jumping him again, which I hate since it makes him get all strung out and go really heavy on his forehand, and I could definately feel the effect. He just doesn't carry himself well enough to maintain it with that intensity of work. But I managed to keep him in a good frame. Unfortunately, even though I've been working out, my muscles just weren't used to that particular kind of punishment-- seems like the only place the muscles in riding ever get used are in riding. So I'm parked out with sore hips and thighs for a while. Ah, well, hard work is good for 'em.Thanks to having to kind of stay in one place due to the soreness, perhaps I can use the remainder of the evening to get some writing done. I made a little progress on Oz since I've been home, but not nearly as much as I'd like to. A little focus of some kind is in order. I get back to Waltham on the 11th, and school starts up again the 13th, so I should try to use my free time while I can.
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May. 24th, 2008 10:06 pmJust got out of the first shower I've taken in the brand-new shower my parents had built in the master bathroom at my house. It's really beautiful, all black marble tiles with white veins to match the bathroom floor. The fixtures are all brass, with two showerheads, one a huge wide rainshower spout, one more like a traditional kind on a rod so you can both move up and down and remove it to use it handheld. You can even use them both at the same time if you don't mind lower water pressure. Very pretty, very luxurious.
I'm kind of frustrated with the progress of my skin. I know it's been only a little over two weeks, but I wish my acne was a little farther gone. I've been using my acne medication faithfully, and I guess it is getting better, however slowly, but it's still got a long way to go and it's drying my skin out. Just got to stick with it, I guess.
Had a an early morning riding lesson today. Kincaid was better than I expected him to be, so I'm pleased. Got a good workout in the process, keeping up with my intention to excercise every day. I've managed to either run, ride, or use weights every day since I got home. Tomorrow my mom and I will be going to ride together, her on Braveheart and me on Kincaid.
We've also decided to make a berry pie. Mmmm, my favorite.
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Apr. 22nd, 2008 01:12 pmAmazing how I can be home for three days and have already turned my bedroom into a disaster area. Perhaps some cleaning is in order.
I went to see my family's horse Braveheart today. Well, mostly my mom's horse, but we all love him. For those of you who haven't seen his picture on my phone six or seven times, he's a pinto bay Tennessee Walker who is very, very beautiful. I should be taking a riding lesson sometime this week. That'll be good for me, I'm extremely out of practice. The horse I typically ride, Kincaid, is probably just as bad.
I think I'd like to do some work on a larp today. Men of Respect seems to be nagging at me. Maybe I can actually make some progress on it. I should probably do some schoolwork too, but unsurprisingly, I'd rather work on the larp.
Post-useless-weekend
Mar. 17th, 2008 09:21 amToday is St. Patrick's Day, and my dear, mean old horse's birthday. Rish would have been 24 today. I miss you, you jerk.
I thoroughly enjoyed my do-nothing-be-useless weekend, so much so that I am very sad to see it go. I got my car back from my brother, who used it to go home for break. This week shouldn't be so bad, but still, there will be stuff here and there to do. I'm just glad I should still be free enough to be able to help Jared when he needs it, he's got a fair amount of work yet.
Easter is this coming Sunday. Still not sure what's happening with that. My parents are supposedly coming up to spend the weekend with my brother and I, but since he's not going to be available for all of it, my dad, who is a little bit grumbly about doing more traveling on top of all he's done for work lately, is a little less keen on coming up. I'll have to get after them to tell me what the plan is, so I can plan accordingly.
My brick, Kincaid
May. 26th, 2007 09:30 pmHad my first riding lesson since I've been back today. It was good to be back at my old barn. I ride a big chestnut ex-racehorse named Kincaid. He needs a lot of retraining; he doesn't carry himself properly at all, so I've been putting him through a rigorous dressage regimine to teach him to use himself like he should. Dressage is a style of riding, named for the French word for training, that encourages both horse and rider to carry their bodies and use their muscles for optimum balance and performance. Kincaid's a difficult horse to ride, and there's nobody really good enough for him who's around full time, so every time I go back to school, all my hard work with him undoes itself. It's kind of frustrating, but at least during the summer I can ride regularly and give him the kind of work he needs. And I hated the riding instructor I had to go to when I was riding with the equestrian team at school. Her knowledge was unbelievably limited; she knew how to throw us over jumps, and that was about it. Now, I do jump, I have for all the ten years I've been riding, but the fact that she had absolutely nothing to tell us about getting our horses using themselves properly was just unacceptable. She didn't know a lick of dressage. And dressage is what gets both you and your mount to do this. A horse should be encouraged to support his back with the muscles of his stomach and rock as much of his weight back onto his hind end as possible-- this is called "going round." No matter what you're doing, whether jumping or reining or eventing or cutting, this is how your horse should carry himself. When I'm told to stop trying to accomplish this because "these horses don't go round"? Something is VERY, VERY WRONG. Dressage makes EVERY RIDER AND EVERY HORSE OF EVERY KIND BETTER AT THE THING THEY DO. I don't care if you're a goddamn barrel racer-- dressage makes you a better rider and your horse a better mount. HELL, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE JUMPING.
Gee, I didn't mean to turn this into a rant, but getting actual instruction today reminded me just how infuriated I've been with the riding situation at Brandeis. I didn't have a choice up till now because, without transportation of my own, I could either ride through the school or not ride at all. But next semester, since I'll have my car up at school with me, I'm going to find a barn of my own and an instructor that teaches dressage-- as in, one who won't yell at me for riding my horse properly. And in the meantime, it's good to be back at my old barn, working with my big dumb brick Kincaid. He's not very smart, but he tries hard.
Gee, I didn't mean to turn this into a rant, but getting actual instruction today reminded me just how infuriated I've been with the riding situation at Brandeis. I didn't have a choice up till now because, without transportation of my own, I could either ride through the school or not ride at all. But next semester, since I'll have my car up at school with me, I'm going to find a barn of my own and an instructor that teaches dressage-- as in, one who won't yell at me for riding my horse properly. And in the meantime, it's good to be back at my old barn, working with my big dumb brick Kincaid. He's not very smart, but he tries hard.
St. Patrick's
Mar. 17th, 2006 10:03 amToday is St. Patrick's Day.
On the sad side, today would be my Rish's twenty-second birthday. Getting up there for a horse, but not extremely old. Happy birthday, boy. I love you.
On the happier side, I'm going to a St. Patrick's Day party. I'm probably going to be the only one not drinking. But I'm cool with it. They're nice people, and it should be fine. If things get too weird, I can just go.
Also, I'm getting my hair cut today. Not short, before you ask-- I couldn't bear it short. I just want to try something to give it more body, like maybe layers in the front. I'll see if I can get a good picture of it afterward. Let's hope this goes better than the last time I tried, where there was barely any change in the front and EIGHT GODDAMN INCHES off the back.
Wish me luck.
At 8:41 tonight, on January 30th, 2006, the esteemed Thoroughbred Irish Laugher passed away, at the age of not quite twenty-two.
Born March 17th, 1984 in Lexington, Kentucky, son of Bailjumper and Chatty Kat, dark bay with a blaze and hind socks, short at fifteen-two hands, raced for three years, with one win to his name, lately of Manito Equestrian Center. Missing his left eye, which inspired his nickname "Rish," nasty cribbing habit, tendency to bite, stormy disposition, and a hand gallop fit for a Macedonian king. Angry, brilliant, cunning, driven, hard-bitten and hard-biting, rakishly handsome, the partner of my efforts, the object of my most reverent adoration, and the truest soul I have ever known.
My Bucephalus.
My Rish.
Bucephalus characters
Jan. 22nd, 2004 06:16 pmThe newest story I've been working on is that of Bucephalus, the magnificent warhorse of Alexander the Great. Using a mixture of history and my own innovation, I've been constructing a tale that tells what that time was like for Bucephalus.
Here is my cast of equine characters, mostly made up. More to be added later.
BUCEPHALUS- Alexander's warhorse. He is huge and mighty and handsome, coal-black but for a single white star on his forehead, the strongest and fiercest horse in Macedonia. His name means 'ox-head' because he was so big. As it was historically, no one could ride this incredible animal but Alexander, because he alone noticed that the horse was terrified of the movements of men's shadows, so when he turned him to face the sun and keep the shadows behind him, he could be ridden. From that moment on, they were inseperable.
When Bucephalus was very young, a general in Philip's army, Attalus, had a mind to buy the even now singular horse, and decided to train him. B is frightened by Attalus's rough handling of him, and refuses to listen. In a rage, Attalus runs the young horse down with a whip until he collaspes. The general lashes the young horse until he is unconscious. The last thing the horse sees before he's out cold is the man's shadow falling over him from behind. From that moment on he has a fiery hatred hatred for humanity, who has been so cruel to him, and has a viseral terror connected to men's shadows falling on him that makes him react violently to any man trying to ride him. He does not want anything to do with mankind, and hates all of them indiscriminately. Until, that is, he begins to know Alexander, who is extraordinary enough to change him mind. But there is a lot of anger of which Bucephalus must let go, an anger that has consumed him all his life.
CYTHERIA- Bucephalus' mother. She had been one of the fastest racehorses in the country, until Alexander's father King Philip, who was an admirer of her, bought her to be his saddle horse. She is bay, and B gets his star from her. Bucephalus's ordeal hurt her terribly, but she feels his loathing for all humankind is wrong. She, as both a racehorse and a palfrey, knows the bond that can be formed between a horse and his rider, and tells Bucephalus that there may be great evil in the race of men, but there is great good as well.
When Bucephalus and Alexander first come together, it is Cytheria who explains how important B will be to the prince. One such as him, she knows, will do great and important things, and in battle, it is the responsibility of his steed to keep him safe. She says "The fate of nations shall rest on Alexander, but the fate of Alexander shall rest on you." She keeps Bucephalus from losing himself in his anger, and teaches him of what his purpose in life must be.
ANCHISES- Bucephalus's father. He died some months before B's birth. Bucephalus is the very image of him, expect that B is bigger and has a star rather than a stripe. Ahcnises was one of the greatest warhorses the calvary of Macedonia had ever seen, though he fell in battle.
MAEGERON- King Philip's warhorse. He is huge and thick, an unmarked dark bay, and covered with scars. He is a little old for a warhorse, but still strong. He is the consummate veteran, and has borne Philip in countless battles. He knew Bucephalus's father Anchises and fought side by side with him once. It is he who teaches Bucephalus of the significance the calvary in battle. "Worlds are made," says Maegeron, "On the backs of horses." He is also the symbol of the bond between horse and rider.
PHOEBUS- The warhorse of General Antipater. A sturdy chestnut calvary horse with an upright mane and eyes that are more golden than brown.
NIKE- The general Parmenio's warhorse. A bay calvary mare with long legs and a streamlined build purchased in Greece.
THALIA- The saddle mare of Alexander's best friend Hephaestion. She is a light, fast, red chestnut.
BOREAS- A gray ex-racehorsee now used as an advance calvary scout horse.
AZURO- The brown heavy calvary mare of General Cleitus.
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