Paintings and poems and passion

In which our Diva has all sorts of inspiration

Look what I finally went to visit a couple weekends ago!

If you're not able to get to the Art Institute (which I highly recommend if you can), you can get a much better look at the painting on their website. For the benefit of those not mildly obsessed with the Pre-Raphaelites, it is of course Dante Gabriel Rossetti's Beata Beatrix, famously regarded as a posthumous tribute to Elizabeth Siddal after a long engagement, a shortish marriage, a lot of drama, and an early grave.  The one here in Chicago is actually the second of three versions in oils, and the only one with the additional panel at the bottom. There are also at least one watercolor and a charcoal sketch. (The significance of his returning to this image so many times -- not that it's the only time he did that, but it's probably the most consistent -- is an open question tackled by many a biographer and art historian, and well beyond the scope of this post. *g*)

If you've been around this blog a while, you know that I've been trying to write a one-woman show about Lizzie for... kind of a ridiculously long time, actually. If you have no idea what I'm babbling about, click the "lizzie" tag to catch up.

One stumbling block I keep hitting in my progress on the project (which has actually kindasorta been progressing recently, albeit in a few rather stream-of-consciousness chunks that remain light-years from performable) is that I have very limited patience for sitting and reading poetry.  Dunno why, exactly, but it's exactly like trying to sit and read Shakespeare. Which is to say, mostly pointless.

So the other day it finally occurred to me that what I needed to be doing was listening to poetry. There are lots of bits and pieces of various people's poems -- Lizzie's own, Gabriel's, a few of Christina's, plus the Tennyson and Blake and Shakespeare and Dante that constantly hung in the air at Chatham Place -- that I know how I want to weave into my script, and I know there are lots more waiting to fire the right synaptic connections.

I would just like to take this moment to point out that LibriVox is AWESOMECAKES.  Not that I didn't already know that, but I have discovered it all over again, and now I want to send all the volunteer readers pie.

Not quite as useful, but deeply cool in a spooky sort of way, is this YouTube channel I stumbled upon called Poetry Animations, where someone has digitally animated vintage images (mostly of the poets themselves) to readings of all manner of poems. They're less freaky than the talking baby on those e-trading commercials, though in some cases only slightly less so. F'rinstance, this one that uses Holman Hunt's portrait of Gabriel, which I've always found slightly freaky anyway. (Though I rather suspect the actual subtext happening on the day was less the apparent "I am looking right through your soul!!" and more "Bored, bored, for God's sake, are you done yet? BORED.")



All in all, I've had quite good luck... with everything except Lizzie's own poems. If anyone has recorded them, I can't find it. Looks like I'll have to do it myself. Woe. ;-)

In the process of my hunting, I had the idle thought that the BBC could probably make a bundle with an audiobook of Aidan Turner, who played Gabriel in their Desperate Romantics series last year, reading his poetry. Then I looked at the official site and discovered that they sort of figured that out, only they just put Turner on a windowseat in costume and filmed him performing six sonnets, one for each week the show aired. Like most BBC web media, alas, the videos are not available outside the UK, but if you're there, check 'em out.

The series has just come out on DVD Stateside, and I love it to bits in all its completely irreverent and historically-cavalier glory. I was already a fan of Turner's work on Being Human, and his Gabriel is highly entertaining as well, but it's always been the women of the Pre-Raphaelite circle I found most interesting, and the three primary ones in the series -- Lizzie (Amy Manson, who has since been great fun to watch as Daisy, the free-spirited and pragmatic vampire introduced in Being Human's second season), Effie Millais (Zoe Tapper, who had me at Nell Gwyn in Stage Beauty), and Annie Miller (newcomer Jennie Jacques, who could not be more adorable if she were made entirely of puppies) -- don't disappoint. I know some of my fellow PR-ophiles have insurmountable issues with it, but if you take it for what it is, it's a rollicking ride. And not without its moving moments too, genuine in spirit if not in the letter of the facts.

My favorite is unquestionably the montage near the end, after Lizzie's death, with Hunt and Millais contemplating their studies of her as Sylvia and Ophelia respectively, while Gabriel feverishly pulls Beata Beatrix from a blank canvas. I don't even care that the reproduction is pretty dodgy, bearing little resemblance to either the real painting or Amy Manson. (Mind you, the real painting is generally regarded as not a terribly accurate likeness of Lizzie either, so that sort of works in a weird way anyway.) I cried like a big ol' sappy sap, and don't care who knows it.

Sorry, wrong redhead

In which our Diva was planning to blog about something else entirely today, but...

First, the good news: As mentioned in this Fangoria interview with director Mark Vadik, Cyrus: Mind of a Serial Killer will be the closing feature at the Atlanta Horror Film Festival on August 15.  There's a bit of a kicker in the fact that it'll be in a city where I'm going to be (for Dragon*Con) just three weeks later, but it's still pretty cool.

Google Alerts are really handy for letting me know about things like that article. Then there are the... less useful links it turns up.  On today's interwebz, pretty much as soon as you have an IMDb page, you start turning up on all kinds of goofball "celebrity" sites. The one with my horoscope and biorhythms and stuff is particularly entertaining. Mostly, though, they're clutter.

In any case, most of these things are automatically generated, including the ones that pull bits of text from various places -- say, random celebrity names and assorted porny keywords -- and splice them together into bogus metadata to lure you to a page and infect your machine with malware.  At first, I thought the link that had my name and "show her left tit" in the same sentence was one of those. Then I realized that (a) the sentence made sense, and (b) it was describing a particularly intense scene in Cyrus.  There's just one... no, actually, there are a number of problems with that. But the first one that sprang to mind was that I'm not in that scene.

The link checked out according to my virus-protection software, so I let curiosity get the better of me. And yep, it was exactly what it sounded like, to wit, a site (I trust you'll excuse me for not linking it) collecting video clips of nudity or near-nudity from assorted sources. (It's apparently the updates from a particular day, which I assume explains why it randomly runs the gamut from an actual porn star's artificially enhanced full toplessness to a few frames of a Doctor Who companion's upper thighs under her fluttering nightshirt.)

Now, we all know The Internet Is For Porn. I think about that every time I hear or read a comment from an actress about how she chooses whether to do nudity in a role. The most common litmus test is whether it's integral to the story.  (Which is perfectly reasonable, if unavoidably subjective. I'm not saying there's no such thing as a story that can't be told effectively without it, but I personally think they're rarer than people tend to think.)

That reasoning is solid as far as it goes, but it only goes as far as you can rely on the story to remain intact. And these days, that's until about 24 hours after the pirated DVDs hit the streets of Bangkok or wherever. After that, congratulations! Your bits have almost certainly been yanked out of context and thrown up in sloppily-constructed virtual galleries for the convenience of any bored guy with an internet connection and a roll of toilet paper. Which is a very, very different transaction with the audience from the one you had in mind.

Thus it is that, in this particular instance, an actress who worked her ass off in an emotionally and physically exhausting role has one of its most disturbing moments amputated, its significance reduced to a glimpse of aureola. And, just to top it off, labeled with a caption identifying it as someone else entirely.

Funny thing -- Jill Sandmire was the one to note that there were four red-haired women among the principal cast: herself, Anne Marie Leighton, Patricia Belcher, and me.

Four quite distinct women, or so we concluded during that idle conversation between shot setups. But apparently we're interchangeable to some virtual voyeur who's only interested in our bits.

Stay classy, pal.

A Midsummer Night's Quote List

A Midsummer Night's Dream Official Quote List
Storefront Shakespeare, Summer 2010

Is it gonna be a wall? Like, a wall wall... I am so tired. Proceed.

I will sacrifice my body if I need to.
-- But we need your body!

So there's a frog and an alcoholic chainsaw-wielding princess.

There will be audience everywhere. You'll be tripping over them. But don't actually trip over them.

I have anointed an Athenian's eyes. And so far I am glad I did... sort.

Believe me, King of Shadows... What's happening? Oh, I'm scared of him.

Ho, ho, ho!
-- Santa?

Tim, be gentle with her hair.
-- It's my real hair.
-- It's her nice clean real hair. Look how shiny it is.

I have a reasonable good ear in music. Let's have some Ace of Base.

You look so awkward.
-- Maybe that's because I'm 17 and she's 24.

The rite of May is basically to fornicate.
-- Fornicate among the flowers.
-- It's midsummer, so they're a little late.

Take a moment. Say, "Hi! Hi! Hi! I'm not a donkey!"
-- You jerk. You didn't even call!

And ladies, take your places.
-- Take your places, ladies.
-- Take your places, ladies. Get steppin'!

We don't have time to explain it to the audience.
-- You're dead. Shut up.

Racole will be here soon, and she's bringing toilet paper, and paper towels, and a dog.
-- One of these things is not like the others.

I thought we were getting a robot dog.
-- This is the understudy.

Doesn't a regular warm-up include ice cream?

This tulle presenteth Athens.

Were we just having fun?

Do not interrupt the Duke macking on the future Duchess.

Come, my Hippolyta. What cheer, my love? Where art thou?

On whom I might approve this... What?

You're enjoying this too much. She's hitting you. Stop smiling.
-- Oh.
-- Is there something we should know, Demetrius?

Look how I go, swifter than arrow from Tartar's bow! You guys are in my way!

Do I need to go get ice?
-- No, it's okay.
-- Can you fall on me without hurting yourself?

With Bottom around, I need a drink, man!

We're using Bandit because he's such a quiet dog.
-- A very gentleman-like dog.

To make our sides lit... Oh, that's not it.

Believe me, King of Shadows, you should slap me.

No throwing against the wall, or you'll plaster it.
-- I will!
-- Do you know how to plaster?
-- I'll figure it out.

Manly man.
-- Put a stick up your butt.
-- Yeah, that's basically what I mean.
-- I got a stick.

And crowned with one -- I have a question. Can they be somewhere else?

Okay, go back. Start picking up your monologue.
-- Oh, jeez.

No, that part was acting. I was fine until he stepped on my hair.

And then you storm off.
-- Aww.
-- No, wait! Let me change something!

Merry and tragical? Tedious and brief? Did I just fuck that up?

How many characters can the stage manager play tonight?

I'll try not to almost grab your thingy.

Why are you walking away? I'm talking to you! You don't love me!

This tickles my funny... funnily.

Thou! Thou! Thou hast no cause to break character!

Stand forth... *beat* *beat* Demetrius.

Messengers of strong...
-- Prevailment?
-- Prevailment.

Slowly. Very slowly.
-- Until you feel like an idiot.
-- I'm way past that point.
-- That's acting. If you feel stupid, you're doing it right.

I am a really bad stripper. I get paid in quarters.

We were out there and we were trying to sell ourselves. But, y'know, not literally.

Gina. Gina. Gina. Gina. Gina. Gina. Gina. PUCK!!

I'm like the Girl Scout from Hell.
-- Buy my cookies or die! You will eat these Tagalongs and you will like them!
-- But I'm allergic to peanuts.
-- I DON'T CARE!

What's the sugar for?
-- It has fun in fire.

S'mores in five.
-- Ooooh. Sugar and fire.
-- The perfect combination.

It's an air cannon. It's not dangerous.
-- That comes under famous last words.
-- Or a challenge, if you're the MythBusters.

To eat makes our speaking English good.

The bacon! MY the bacon!

I can't disobey Nora. She's the director. That would make me a diva.
-- Aren't you already one?

Russell, where's your lightsaber?

Ossifer, I'm home. Take me drunk.

Can we paint on my abs?

The counselor was like, "When he flexes you can see his abs?" Oh. Awkward silence.

X is for Ecstasy, which I smoked before I did this show.
-- You smoked Ecstasy?

Okay, why does the bathroom have a sign that says Careful, there may be a squirrel in here?

Lisa used to make me scream like a girl, and I liked it.
-- I think that's too much information.
-- I was Christmas Past.
-- I had to wake up with her in my bed and pretend I didn't like it.

Gina, you need to stop hitting on your stage manager.
-- Stop looking so sexy!

Ben, I love you! Why can't we be together?
-- You know why!
-- I'll turn you straight!

It's not recognizing your face. It's recognizing your boobs as a face.

No one's judging you. Put your clothes on.

Theatre in the round. More like orgy in the round.
-- Promenade theatre: Where the actors touch you. And you like it.

What did I say? Did it make sense?

I'm not coffee-smart.
-- What kind of smart are you?

You found a Walgreens?
-- I found a 7-Eleven. Gotta love the quality of a 7-Eleven. I think I'm bleeding.

I'm smelling that menthol.
-- I don't have to cough anymore, but I want a cigarette.

You've got sticky stuff all over your pants.
-- That's what they all say.

Agh! You're fifteen. Stop looking like you're not!

Nadia, I promise not to injure you today.

It should say Fairy Blaster 9000, because Hippolyta would totally have one of those.
-- Be vewy, vewy quiet. We'we hunting faiwies.

Armed. And legged as well.
-- Especially in those boots.

Tim, there's a bunch of people that look like you outside.

That's okay. You can't break character if I accidentally shoot you while you sleep.

You have to suffer for your art.
-- I did! I got dropped!

Dog crushed by stripper boots. No, sorry, dominatrix boots.
-- No, remember, I got them at a store that caters to drag queens.

Be careful on the ladder.
-- Jackie Chan does some of his best stunts on ladders!
-- Jackie Chan has broken every bone in his body multiple times.
-- I'm not Jackie Chan!

We should really do the fairy free-for-all dodging of the cars.
-- Storefront Shakespeare. In front of the store.

I do have multiple personalities. No, I don't.

Danielle, would you like a sucker?
-- Ooh! Caramel apple apple stuff!

Gina, you have to do the play naked.
-- Then it's A Midsummer Night's Wet Dream.
-- That's the after-show.

I dare you to put that whole wad of noodles in your mouth.
-- It's bigger than your head.
-- It's bigger than Bandit.
-- Can you eat the dog in one bite? If not, don't try it.

My greatest altruistic act is not having children and not cloning myself.
-- I have yet to meet a child who made me regret my vasectomy.

Marky, you should totally ask Nora if you can wear that in the show.
-- Uh, hi, Nora.

Okay, now they're having a slap fight over the hot dog costume.

I call everybody sweetie, honey and dear, which half of them haven't realized is code for dipshit, moron and asshole.
-- And the other half don't care.

Are you bringing sexy back?
-- Honey, I brought it. I used it. I'm tossing it aside.
-- Oooh, sloppy seconds! I'll take it!

Has anyone seen my clothes?
-- That sounds like me after too many wild nights.
-- Sounds like something you'd hear after Rocky.

I haven't slapped you!
-- Yet.

Russell, there are no more naked women, so you can get out your computer.
-- Why would you let the naked women stop you?

I've got ice in my butt.

I don't want to leave when I hear farting problems.

Man, if I were a klepto, this place would be awesome.

Karma!
-- Yeah, I think there might be a lightning bolt. Or a bus. Or it might pull a My Name Is Earl on you.

Russell, did you spend the night?
-- Not intentionally.

Guess what? I just took, like, a ten-hour nap.

Hippolyta, I wooed thee with my hot dog and won thy love --
-- Doing thee... Those weren't injuries, dear. It was a cocktail weenie.
-- It was cold out!

I have Tourette's that comes and goes when it's convenient.

What did you do to Tinkerbell?

*koff* Hey, babe. *koff*

It's harder to storm upstage.

What the ever-loving fuck is going on out there?
-- I don't know. I was there, and I don't know.

One night to get it right

In which our Diva is a snarky waitress named Sheila


The feature I worked in last summer, One Night, is now available on DVD! I've seen my scene, but not the whole film, and I'm excited to check it out. I really loved the script.

It's a sort of postmodern romantic comedy in the vein of Garden State or The Pompatus of Love, and was very much a labor of love for the writer/director, Sebastian Howley, who's a great guy with all kinds of big dreams. I hope he achieves them all.

Going, going, gone!

Last chance to see Midsummer tonight!

It's been a wild ride sometimes, but I wouldn't have missed it. I do rather miss our Geneva space, but yoga studio (which is where we are now) = amazing bower.

The quote list is EPIC.

Babes With Blades beginner workshops!

In which our Diva encourages you to get violent

For anyone who's wanted to dip their toe in without committing the time/money/risk-of-intimidation for a full college course or what-have-you, the ever-awesome Babes have just the ticket!

Stage Combat Basics For Adults

Sunday, August 1
10 am - 1 pm
Interested in playing with swords onstage, but never had a chance to take a stage combat class?

Well, here's your chance!
We're going back to the basics - all beginners (over 15) welcome!
$30 - minimum age 15.
Under 18 - signature of parent/guardian required for participation.

Stage Combat Basics for Kids

Sunday, August 8
10 am - 12 pm
Beginner class for kids - $25 - open to ages 10-16.
Signature of parent/guardian required.

If parent/guardian cannot be present the day of the workshop to sign the permission form and waiver, give us a call - we'll try to work something out!

Both workshops will be at Chase Park
4701 N. Ashland Ave.
Chicago, IL 60640

Call to register: 773.904.0391

or go to http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/116261

Questions? Want to hear about the next one? Please email workshop@babeswithblades.org

Song for today: "Cross the Line" by Superchick, because it makes me want to get my swords out and play!

The history books will clean it up

In which our Diva celebrates independence in a musical way

Love this movie so, so much. Of course, TCM is starting it fifteen minutes after I have to leave for the theatre! Only a matinee today, so that we can grill and gawk at fireworks with our families. (Remember, six more performances of A Midsummer Night's Dream!)



Yes, it's about a bunch of landholding white men squabbling amongst themselves. Make no mistake, what they made in that hot room in Philadelphia was a beginning. It's still a work in progress.

And so long as that work continues, it's worth celebrating. Have a safe and happy Fourth!

Canada Day!

In which our Diva wishes a safe and happy one to north-of-the-border friends

Last time I was there for the occasion, it was in this form (in the Windsor parade).

Needless to say, the blue spangly outfit doesn't fit anymore. But I can still twirl my tiny baton for you!

Titania's tunes

In which our Diva shares her musical inspiration

The playlist I compiled for this rehearsal process...

1. Invocation ~ Loreena McKennitt
2. Love And Anger ~ Kate Bush
3. Summerland ~ Gypsy Nomads
4. Beauty Has Her Way ~ Mummy Calls
5. Stolen Child ~ Loreena McKennitt
6. Sweet About Me ~ Gabriella Cilmi
7. Elan ~ Secret Garden
8. Siren ~ Sarah Brightman
9. Endless Dream ~ Conjure One
10. The Mummers' Dance ~ Loreena McKennitt
11. Possession ~ Sarah McLachlan
12. Moon Dance ~ Enaid & Einalem
13. Gorgeous ~ Idina Menzel
14. La Luna ~ Sarah Brightman
15. Bard Dance ~ Enya
16. Into The Fire ~ Sarah McLachlan
17. Beyond Imagination ~ Opera Babes

A Midsummer Night's Dream opens TONIGHT! Visit Storefront Shakespeare for details and to buy tickets online. Hope to see you there!

I am a spirit of no common rate

In which our Diva outlines the particulars of how this summer doth tend upon her state

Storefront Shakespeare presents
A Midsummer Night's Dream

228 S Third St, Geneva, IL:

• Friday June 25th at 7pm
• Saturday June 26th at 3pm and 7pm
• Sunday June 27th at 3pm
• Thursday July 1st at 7pm
• Friday July 2nd at 7pm
• Saturday July 3rd at 3pm and 7pm
• Sunday July 4th at 3pm
• Monday July 5th at 7pm

2035 S Washington St, Naperville, IL:

• Friday July 9th at 7pm
• Saturday July 10th at 3pm and 7pm
• Sunday July 11th at 7pm

All tickets are $10.

I know I'm usually Babbly McPosterson during theatre rehearsals but haven't been this time around, and I'm not sure why that is.  This Monday I'll see the Geneva space for the first time, and our set will be coming together in it over the next couple weeks. Very excited about that!

Song for today: My Titania-inspired playlist is just about where I want it to be, and I'll be posting it here and sharing it with my castmates soon. I missed doing this for Pride & Prejudice, but for that the purpose was really served by the music in the show, especially since I was involved in two of the dances.  The right mix of music really helps get my head and heart in the right starting place before a rehearsal or performance.

This Midsummer has a contemporary fantasy sensibility, and that's reflected in some of the decidedly contemporary songs that felt right to put in the playlist. Idina Menzel's "Gorgeous" is one of them -- a great fit for Titania and Oberon's tempestuous relationship!

If I had a million dollars

In which our Diva displays her preference for experiences over stuff, though stuff is nice too

If I had a spare few hundred bucks lying around:

When I designed costumes for Barnum a few years back, I got to participate in one of the circus workshops arranged for the cast at The Actor's Gymasium. A. Maze. Ing. I've wanted ever since to do a full session of their aerial class. I'm still determined to get the knack of wrapping my feet in the Spanish web so I can actually climb up to the loop and play. I did have a great time on the lyra, though, and also discovered that I do in fact still have my 180-degree split -- by being hoisted seven feet off the floor that way!  They're also affiliated with Lookingglass Theatre, one of the companies at the vanguard of physical theatre in Chicago.

If I had a spare grand or so lying around for airfare and lodging, I'd be headed to London in October for the UK premiere of Cyrus: Mind of a Serial Killer at the Gorezone Film Festival. (Despite the topless promo photo of one of the emcees at the top of their webpage.) I love a good horror weekend anyway, it'd be all kinds of fun to do the whole red carpet thing, and I could visit with friends in the UK. My role in that is, of course, too minor for them to send me anywhere, but I'm still holding out hope that there will be some kind of event Stateside that I could go to. Apparently it's already out on DVD in Australia (a couple blog reviews have popped up on my Google Alert), and I'm hoping to get a copy of it soon.

If I had a spare three or four grand, and the ability to take a month off besides, I'd finally go to Shakespeare & Company's full Intensive program. I learned so much just in the couple weekends of theirs I've done -- one in 1995 and another in 2001 -- that's still very much at the core of my actor's toolbox.

Of course, spare cash lying around is, as for pretty much everyone else these days, not so much something I have. I'll just have to make do with playing one of my dream roles in an exciting production with a brand-new theatre company. Darn. ;-)

Song for today: Been running through my head, and inspired this post. Which, considering I've been neglecting this blog for a couple weeks for lack of inspiration, is a darn good thing.

Gotta say, though, I have several real green dresses, and I don't think there's anything cruel about them. ;-)

That kind of woman

In which our Diva has a Song for Today and a challenge to meet

Brought to my attention by our Midsummer director, who also happens to be an Old Hollywood aficionado as well as the host of the "Sunday Standards" radio show. Quoth she, "Titania is very much that kind of woman."



Clearly I'm going to have to check out more of this Emma Wallace person. Love the song. And love how many times Cyd Charisse in that green flapper number from Singin' in the Rain  keeps popping up in the vid.

I hope my Titania achieves half the glam of these ladies!

Cannes do

In which our Diva has a signal to boost

Melissa Silverstein at Women & Hollywood has been tracking developments in the lineup at this year's Cannes Film Festival, at which not a single film directed by a woman is in competition for the Palme d'Or. (If this doesn't immediately strike you as a problem, W&H is a great place to start reading up on why it is.)

She's by no means alone, and now British-based filmdirecting4women is organizing a petition to point out to the festival powers-that-be that this is a pretty appalling state of affairs.

As people who care about and are interested in films we must protest the lack of female directors in competition for the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. Women make up over half of cinema audiences and we demand a fairer representation of female directors in the main competition.


We are raising our voices in protest in hopes that in the future this will never happen again.

We are watching. We will not be silent.

Please take a moment to check out their website and the cool T-shirts they're selling, and if you feel so inclined help spread the word on your blog/Twitter/etc. I know it's "just movies," but it's also part of the larger conversation about the value of women's work. And that conversation isn't going to be over any time soon. I hope you'll join in.

When in doubt, cute

Busy week, no time to write a proper blog post. (And when I do, I owe Travis a guest blog about Raymond Did It.)

But I get antsy if I go more than a week (OH NOES THEY WILL THINK I AM DED!!!11!!), so in lieu of a proper post, I give you forty-eight seconds of a snoring duckling. I am not even kidding. We are talking lethal levels of cute here.

To dance our ringlets to the whistling wind

In which our Diva takes on one of her dream roles

That audition I was all cagey about the other day? Turned out very well indeed, and I shall be playing Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream, the inaugural production of Storefront Shakespeare.

I'm excited about this for a number of reasons, not least because I've wanted to play Titania for ages. Fourth... possibly fifth? Time's the charm. The first opportunity was for Actors' Theatre of Columbus way back in 1995, and though I was ultimately not cast in that production, it was in reading the "forgeries of jealousy" speech at the callbacks that I fell in love with the role. It was just after I had done a weekend workshop with Shakespeare & Company, at which I learned more in three days than I would ever have thought possible, and I was all afire with the possibilities in the language. I also got a lovely handwritten notecard from the director thanking me for coming out, which is pretty darn cool as consolation prizes go.

There are all kinds of reasons I love that speech, which for me is the heart of the character, but one absolutely critical one is also the easiest to explain. It starts out as a bitter complaint about how everything is All Oberon's Fault, that no sooner does she light somewhere with her court,

But with thy brawls thou hast disturb'd our sport.

The catalog of nature gone awry that follows is some of the most vivid imagery in the canon, but somewhere along the way she reaches the conclusion that

this same progeny of evils comes
From our debate, from our dissension;
We are their parents and original.

"It's your fault, your fault, your fault... our fault." From childish petulance to mature responsibility in under two minutes.

Of course, this is a fairy we're talking about, so the latter doesn't necessarily stick. But I love that she's capable of it if she chooses, and the message that we share both power and responsibility for this world of ours. Even if we're not supernatural royalty whose mood swings literally affect the climate.

I've had quite a long Shakespeare drought. Except for understudying the Widow in The Taming of the Shrew a couple summers ago (when my attention was far more on designing the production's costumes), it's been almost eight years, since... Hey, what do you know? Another Midsummer at Actors'. In which I was really hoping for Titania, of course, but Mustardseed was fun, and I had a great time hanging out with a great company while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.

I'm also thrilled by the energy and vision behind Storefront's genesis, as described on their website:

We live in a fast-paced, mobile society, accustomed to interactive media, in which our phones are computers and through our computers we can interact with people in real time on the other side of the world, and in which children grow up playing interactive video games. To truly engage a modern audience, theater can no longer be a completely passive experience. Our plays are staged with the audience right in the middle of the action so the people will feel that the play is happening to them. No longer passive observers, they are now eye witnesses to the story.

I've been friends with artistic director Nora Manca for a couple years now. I first met her at a cast party for a show I was in with her now-husband, and several months later we were cast as sisters in an ill-fated project I refer to as the slowest-motion train wreck in theatre history. It doesn't matter what the show was, because it never happened, but I met some terrific people through it. Nora's one of those people you can tell, after about five minutes of conversation, is going to do something really special. I'm delighted and honored to be part of its beginning.

And the timing is also great for pointing out that this Friday, Shakespeare's 446th birthday, is once again Talk Like Shakespeare Day, as declared by Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and Mayor Daley. Toss in a "forsooth" or two for me!

Stages and stages

In which our Diva is all along the continuum

This weekend is like a microcosm of the various stages (in the first sense) of what I do. Yesterday during the day was all about shooting another student film, which was a lot of fun because this one was all improvised within a relatively loose structure. I thought it was going to be mostly nonverbal, which as you may have read before I'm kind of ambivalent about these days. On the one hand, I love that aspect of the work, whether doing it myself or watching it in others, and I'm actually kind of proud that I'm developing something of a reputation for specializing in it. On the other hand, though, there's a lot of it on my reel, and the industry and audiences at large still put a high premium on how you deliver dialogue. So I'd kind of like to do more of that, please! (With some cool nonverbal mixed in. That'd be awesome.)

So it was a nice surprise to get on set and find that the director actually wanted me and another actor to talk to one another much more than either of us had expected. The conversation evolved from one thing at the beginning of the day to something really quite different by the time we wrapped, with various takes and angles. I'm looking forward to seeing how it ends up cut together. So much of how your character comes off in a film is almost as much about the editing as about your acting -- just a completely different way to go about telling a story!

Speaking of editing, I went from that shoot to a low-key cast & crew screening of Tasting the End, which looks fantastic. It's a story that certainly could be told in a straight line, and still be effective. But that's not the way Ken chose, and the results are dynamic but still flow and make sense. It's a terrific example of what a filmmaker can do these days with next to no money, and I'm crossing my fingers that it'll get some festival play. It definitely deserves to be seen.

Today I'm delving into my theatre past on various stages (in the second sense), converting some old videos with an eye toward maybe uploading a clip or three to my YouTube account, just for fun. Stay tuned.

And looking toward my theatre future: I've been itching a bit to get back onstage, and have an audition today for one of my dream roles. Won't say any more until I know whether I get it -- not superstitious, that's my story and I'm sticking to it, but there are so many auditions I'd never get anything done if I posted in detail about the stuff I won't get to do! So again, stay tuned.

Song for Today: "The Mummers' Dance" by Loreena McKennitt, just because I was listening to it in the car last night and it's running through my head. It's associated in my head with all sorts of amazing images, mostly because it was used for the theatrical trailer for Ever After. I'll never forget being halfway up the aisle to see a movie that spring, hearing a few bars of the song, and turning around to stand and stare openmouthed at all the gorgeous on the screen. The movie did not disappoint, and is still one of my all-time faves.

Extra, Extra!

In which our Diva has finally posted a new video diary

I've been saying for years I should write up an "extra's survival guide," assuming someone hasn't beaten me to it. In the meantime, here are some top tips from my fellow background players during a recent four-day stint on the ABC pilot Matadors.

In the pattern of the grand design

In which our Diva spins a whole post out of her Song for Today

This time of year, you see The Ten Commandments on a lot of TV stations' schedules. For about a decade now, my tradition has been to bypass Charlton Heston in favor of The Prince of Egypt. It didn't make the money Dreamworks wanted, but it's a gorgeous and heartfelt movie that deserved far better attention than it got. If it had gotten its due... nah, they probably still would have abandoned hand-drawn animation. But the couple of flicks they turned out its wake might have been less forgettable.

The art -- hand-drawn, digital, and groundbreaking sequences blending the two -- is stunning. The voice cast is jaw-dropping, with dialogue spoken by Val Kilmer, Patrick Stewart, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sandra Bullock, Danny Glover, Jeff Goldblum, Ralph Fiennes, etc. etc., and singing duties entrusted to the likes of Broadway powerhouse Brian Stokes Mitchell (who created the role of Coalhouse Walker in Ragtime and currently serves as president of The Actors Fund) and the late Israeli superstar Ofra Haza. And the whole is held together by Stephen Schwartz' songs, Hans Zimmer's orchestral score, and a humanity of storytelling that is by turns heartrending and incredibly inspiring.

One of the most memorable sequences -- the portrayal of the final plague, the death of the firstborn -- is nearly silent, and simultaneously terrifying and tearjerking. But what I always go back to is the musical number "Through Heaven's Eyes," sung by Brian Stokes Mitchell as Jethro. The high priest of Midian, who takes in a fugitive Egyptian prince, welcomes him as husband to his eldest daughter, and sees them both away with his blessing to fulfill a mission from the Hebrew God.

In my book? That's a guy with his head screwed on straight.

For some, this is the midpoint of Passover. For others, Good Friday. For still others, it's sacred in the way that any day is that sees warmer winds blowing through and tiny, tender bits of green beginning to unfurl on the trees and bushes. For some, it's just another day.

Whatever it means to you, any day is a good day for what this one has to say.

Insta-mom

In which our Diva has acquired a teenage son

Casting has just been announced for a couple more roles in Raymond Did It, including Alex Smeltzer as my character's son Edgar. I had a great time reading with all the young actors at callbacks, and was very glad I didn't have to choose among them! I remember a couple points of really "clicking" with Alex in our reading, and I'm looking forward to being his onscreen mom. (Even if it is a little weird to suddenly have a teenager the first time I really play a mom!)

It's always exciting when the words on the page get attached to a living, breathing person, and you can really start working on creating the relationship between characters. Especially with Edgar's dad out of the picture in the movie -- just having a face for our kid gives me all kinds of new insights to work with in figuring out who he was and what our lives were before the movie.

Song for Today: "Sink 'n' Swim" by Plumb. I know this is the third song of hers I've plugged, but I've been listening to her a lot lately, and it's just what's in my head today so I thought I'd share.

Drive-by book plug

J.A. Cummings now has book 2 of her "Clans" series available in e-format.

(Full disclosure compels me to point out that this particular author happens to be my college roommate, maid of honor and one of my best buds. This does not make her books any less awesome. It does, however, mean I can testify that she used "clans" before White Wolf did. *g*)

Go forth and read.