Saturday, September 22, 2018

Summer Entertainment: Plays, Movies and A Concert

 A Thousand Splendid Suns, based on the Khaled Hosseini novel (author of Kite Runner) and produced by San Diego's Old Globe Theater, was one wallop of a drama. When a young girl in war-torn Afghanistan is told that her true love died in battle, she becomes the second wife of an older man who reminds her how lucky she is to have someone who will take care of her. However, her life is anything but lucky. With only a few props, this poignant and wrenching story unravels against

Photo: Old Globe
exquisite backdrops that nearly steal the show. Elaborate cutouts infused with creative colors and lighting tell a story of their own. An early rendering for an outdoor scene depicts the region's rugged mountain range in stark contrast to a later backdrop for a crude hospital setting. Most jarring of all, bright red splashes on a stark white background jolted me during a blood-drenched surgical procedure. Dismal scenes plunk you in the middle of the three-way marriage with wives destined to despise each other, within a country that's lost its way to terrorists who gnaw at the ancient culture and traditions. Symbolic of other chapters unfolding in the region, the play is a tribute to timely drama, wondrous staging and Khaled Hosseini.

American Mariachi was another Globe production with a new take on an old genre of music, The story features the joyful music of Mexico, a national treasure performed throughout the Southwest United States by bands of men in black sombreros and suits dripping with silver embellishments. You can imagine what happens when a group of female musicians decides to go up against the male-dominated industry to form their own band. The theme of gender equality and ownership of the music
Photo: Old Globe
is a driving force front and center, but the underlying thread is one about the impact of the music on the people who've embraced it, specifically a woman whose Alzheimer's has stolen her memory and rendered her half the person she used to be. When she hears  Mariachi music on the stereo, she's immediately transported to a happy time when she was a young girl and fell for the Mariachi musician who would become her husband. A window opens and, for a moment, she stands and dances. A smile brightens her face, aglow with joy. The female musicians are gutsy women (one is the woman's daughter) who persevere against all odds to perform the time-honored classics with triumph and flair.

Newsies at Moonlight Stage in Vista rounded out our summer season of plays with a story about real life newspaper boys who held a strike in 1899 in New York City when publishers increased the price the boys had to pay for their papers. But they didn't stop there. The rabble-rousers invited all of the kids working in underpaid jobs and some in harsh conditions throughout the city to join in the strike, which established a foundation for child labor laws. Steeped in history, this big stage musical featured a show-stopping chorus line, memorable for the newsies who performed the snappy tap dance number. During bows at the end of the show, several pulled hats off to reveal none other than pigtails! I guess the girls wanted to get in on the act too, just like girls throughout history who've disguised themselves as men to fight in wars, write novels, and do whatever they choose.

I'm a big movie fan, always ready to share a few of my favorites. Summer movies were no exception.

Won't You Be My Neighbor? is the movie that most captured my heart. It's a documentary about Fred Rogers, the host of a children's television show in the '70s and '80s. I recall watching it with my kids when they were small, and have to confess I found him a bit mushy, but the kids didn't, which comes across in the depictions of him. We see Fred in a variety of situations over his lifetime, as a gentle soul who could relate to small children, puppets, animals, and even comedians who made fun of him in TV sitcoms. One reason I think this film tops my list is because it's such a welcome contrast to what appears in the daily news and halls of Congress and the White House. So poignant and authentic, it made me weep. So kind and caring. So rare. A must see.

RBG is a close second and also a documentary, this time about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Though she is very slight physically, she stands tall among the DC types who have such loud mouths and unprincipled approaches to governing. She's intelligent, tenacious, kind, clever and whimsical as a key voice on the Court, and she's become something of a pop culture icon, held in high esteem by young people who appreciate her depth, style and pizazz and have produced RBG T-shirts. You might even say she's so authentic that you can't help but like her, regardless of her politics or yours. Honesty and perseverance are hard to beat, especially with a sprinkle of achievement, guts and humor, whch have always served her well. Check it out. You'll feel better afterward. 

For sheer fun, there were three movies in a close race for top place. All were just the right medicine for a Friday night date or girls night out.  


Photo: Oceans 8 Movie

Oceans 8
Sandra Bullock can pull off anything -- floating in space with George Clooney, adopting and raising an overweight black youth from the projects, or going undercover and being crowned Miss Congeniality for it. So how could anyone resist a female version of the guys' movie with Bullock in the lead, and Kate Blanchett and Anne Hathaway as her co-conspirators? May daughter and I saw it together, but she was resistant at first. She later agreed it was a great ride. This film is just as much fun as it sounds. I don't remember the details (they're not really important), but you get the idea if you saw any of the Oceans movies, beginning with Frank Sinatra and Peter Lawford, and updated by George Clooney and Matt Damon. The women deliver with panache, style and enough balls to play with the big guys. The story was all that I wanted it to be, with plenty of intrigue and twists from some of my favorite actresses. At least a few are in roles like we've never seen them before, which makes it all the more fun.

Mama Mia Here We Go Again  
This time we return to the Greek island where the party music and performances are amplified a few notches higher than the original movie (2008) starring Meryl Streep as Donna and Amanda Seyfried as Sophie. Now grown up, Sophie invites everyone back to the Hotel Bella Donna for an anniversary celebration (Donna already died). Newcomer Lily James (Downton Abbey) plays the young Donna (Merly Streep character) in a backstory that retraces her youthful visit to the island where she gave birth to her daughter and took over the hotel named for her. While the first movie had everything going for it (three possible dads) and the replay was destined to be a hit, Lily James enters and knocks it out of the ballpark. Rippling with talent, she puts fizz and verve into the role and Abba dance numbers. You can't help but fall in love with her. Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgard deliver a bit older fatherly good looks with charm and finesse. Cher in a white-and-gold dazzling costume (what else?) enters to perform a show-stopping moment, Meryl Streep returns as a spirit, and Andy Garcia teases throughout, until his long lost love reappears as guess who? 

Crazy Rich Asians
If I could award only one movie for most entertaining it would be this one. Casting, story (romantic comedy), sets and originality, this movie had everything going for it in the world class city of Singapore. The producers took full advantage of the modern architecture and landscape in the urban center, with unique light shows, water features, outrageous gardens, river setting, underground food courts, and ethnic neighborhoods. Lavish mansion showplaces provided the gamut of styles from sophisticated to garish. Characters were drawn in full technicolor, from the brightest to the dullest, the most crass to the most stern, and the most proper to the most flawed. This was the story of true love winning the day, despite the expectations of class, culture and wealth displayed as only Hollywood can. And for someone who's traveled to Singapore to witness the natural and man-made beauty of this Asian nation, I felt the movie was a love letter to the city -- sealed with a kiss. 

The Jackson Brown Concert 
I saved the best for last. This concert at the Greek Theater in LA was an unexpected delight.

Photo: YouTube.com


I was staying with friends in LA who'd gotten tickets to the concert and invited me to come along. I was embarrassed to admit I didn't know his music, but was told I probably knew the songs, but didn't know the name of the guy writing and singing all those hits. And of course that was true. The playlist that night was 24 songs long...from You Love the Thunder, Lives in the Balance, and These Days, to Somebody's Baby (he played this one for his shrink, who told him it was a hit, but Jackson didn't believe him), The Pretender, Running on Empty and Take It Easy (Eagles cover).

There was a strong vibe in the air, like a soothing balm that permeated the audience, for the hometown boy who shared stories about his songs and growing up in Southern California. The music is hard to deny...sometimes sad, sometimes happy, upbeat or nostalgic. But it's more than the music. What makes the artist Jackson Brown so human and so likable is his underlying compassion and concern for people and our planet. Follow the link to his website and learn about the awards he's received for his commitment to critical causes. See the concerts that are performed for people in Haiti, refugees, and others suffering globally. "Music Heals" says it all.

After seeing Bob Dylan perform a couple of years ago at the Greek in Berkeley, I was struck by the difference in these two artists' performance styles. Brown has an amazing connection with his audience. Dylan never says a word, not even when I saw him in 1967 in Louisville. Brown gave the sense he was having a good time, and he wanted us to enjoy the evening with him. He dropped a few comments about politics and other topics, as well. The audience loved it!

This generous entertainer with a "take it easy" style, delivered a near perfect performance in the charming hillside venue, a hidden gem in LA. Thank you, Jackson Brown, for hanging around so long and for giving all that you give.







Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Summertime: Horses, Novels and Hikes

The summer slipped past so fast that I must note a few highlights before they fade away, too. Click on the links for more information. 

DERBY DAY

Our summer usually starts early, with the Kentucky Derby the first Saturday in May. Since the annual event was so much a part of my childhood in Louisville, we sometimes throw a party to celebrate with a few dozen friends, which is exactly what we did this year. We called it a "party with a purpose" because we co-hosted the day's festivities with my spirited fellow board members from Vista Community Clinic. The purpose was to "friend raise" for our favorite charity, which provides affordable medical care to 65,000 patients in Southern California. In addition to our guests, board members invited guests, too.


About 65 partygoers in a variety of fanciful hats and colorful outfits paraded through the house and outdoor areas. The mint juleps flowed, as did the greenbacks, thanks to a new setup courtesy of board member Mark who wheeled in a giant screen and his laptop to track the bets, bettors and horses. Fabulous new signs, one for CHURCHILL DOWNS at the front entry to the house, and another for CLUBHOUSE at the entry to the backyard where most of the action took place, were courtesy of a board member's husband, Pete, who cut and painted wood plaques to resemble the twin spires of Churchill Downs. A hat contest, quiz, couple photos, and ice-breaker name tags (famous Kentuckians) energized the crowd. Several left for home with winnings in their pockets.  
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SCBWI

After all the hoopla, it was time to turn my attention to professional pursuits. The San Diego chapter of SCBWI (Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) hosted an agents day called Mayfest which featured workshops, panels and critiques by local and national book agents and editors. As a member of SCBWI with three books in the works, I teamed up with critique partner Julie to offer elevator pitches for my Middle Grade novels. Success! Three agents asked for written pitches, the first step in finding an agent to represent a book to publishers. My pitches:

1. Abandoned is the story of 13-year-old Olivia, a troubled girl who spends the summer in Kentucky working with abused horses and begins to heal from the grief and guilt over her brother's death. 
2. Wilson in Yellowstone is about 12-year-old Wilson who is searching for his mother's killer, but spends the summer in Yellowstone where he encounters a life or death situation and  learns he's stronger than he thought and can face life without his mother.  


Lowry signs her memoir, Looking Back:A Book of Memories
SCBWI is a wonderful organization for anyone interested in writing for kids of any age, from infancy through high school. The market is huge, including a wide range of books, i.e. picture books like Goodnight Moon and The Day the Crayons Quit, Middle Grade books like Wonder and A Wrinkle In Time, and YA books like The Fault In Our Stars and The Giver. 


Stephanie Garber poses with her novel, Caraval
The FAB SCBWI Summer Conference LA is held in early August. I attended that as well, with my friend, Joyce, whose Pasadena home has a lovely French garden served up with primo wines. Perfect for our end-of-day chill.

The gathering at the downtown LA Staples Center/Marriott numbered more than a thousand writers, agents, editors, publishers, etc. Many of the talks were poignant and heartfelt (writers tend to be that way), delivered by celebrated authors and illustrators, including Lois Lowry (The Giver), and Andrea and Brian Pinkney (Martin & Mahalia: His Words, Her Songs). 

So inspired, I promised myself I'd practice a morning meditation and write every day when I returned home. That lasted three days. I do have a life beyond the laptop, so my creative work is inspired by the weekly critique group deadline. It keeps me at the keyboard up to several days a week, thanks to Val and Julie! 

Portland, Oregon



In June I spent some time in the Portland area with Betsy and Jeff as my tour guides. What a delightful, diverse city. I recommend a visit if you haven't encountered this artsy funky metropolis and foodie hot spot. Most days started with a walk to one of the local coffee shops in their St. John's neighborhood which acquired it's name from the beautiful antique patina bridge that stretches across the Willamette River blocks from their condo. A great walking neighborhood to explore if you're in the area. The streets are populated with a ton of unique shops and venues. Hairlandia, Arbor Lodge Coffee, the Community Cycling Center, and St. John's Theater & Pub are a few of the popular ones.

My daughter wasted no time introducing me to locations beyond her hood as well. We made a respectable haul at Sierra Trading Post, a big box must-see store for discounted outdoor wear. Other memorable stops included an Asian fusion dinner in Alberta, with pastries afterward at Petite Provence. We drove to Kenton for coffee at Posies before we jumped on the MAX and headed downtown to the Saturday Market. On my last day, we took in the five-block enclave of Mississippi Street for boutique shopping and dinner.

But, alas, this trip wasn't just about eating  and shopping, right? Two days of hiking tested my New Balance walking shoes and less balanced feet (hiking boots didn't make it to the suitcase). The NB 990's passed the test. Feet recovered. 

The first trek started at the Lower Macleay Park Trailhead in the city of Portland and wound its way under an old bridge, past a small stone house, up to the Pittock Mansion, surrounded by lush rose gardens. A friendly Asian girl recommended the pink roses for the finest perfume scent. After a few sniffs of vibrant varieties, we agreed. The panoramic view of the city and Mount Hood was awesome from the outdoor lawn where hikers sprawled on the grass to rest and take in the scene before hoofing back down the trail.

The second hike, to Moulton and Yacolt Falls along the East Fork Lewis River in Washington, was especially scenic. In less than an hour's drive from Portland, we set out along a well trodden dirt path, hiking three across, and reached the falls an hour or so later. Picnickers who left their cars in a lot nearby dotted the rocky landscape with blankets and baskets. Several jumped off high cliffs into the icy river below. Betsy and I passed on that e-ticket while Jeff snorkeled the river for fish. 

The bridge is a popular pedestrian destination, forming a lovely archway over the river for picturesque photo ops. 




On the drive home, dark clouds moved in and threatened a downpour, but we took our chances and stopped for a happy hour overlooking the Columbia River. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day and trip to Oregon!