Gratefully Dead Again

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I got a tip from Mark Johnson via Facebook that Further was going to have a concert at the UCF Arena. This band has many of the former Grateful Dead band members. He suggested I get to the Arena early to sketch as the bad ass aging Dead Heads gathered. Walking through the UCF campus I began to see pockets of brightly colored hippies. I walked all the way around the Arena looking for just the right cluster of individuals to sketch. A parking garage right behind the Arena had Grateful Dead music coming from an upper floor. I saw an open SUV tailgate and two grey bearded men in tie dye. I was tempted to go up but there was little light in the garage. I had to look further.

I finally decided to sit outside Tail Gaters Smokehouse. A fellow with a grey beard looked like he had just arrived on his Harley Davidson. He chewed on a tooth pic and sipped his beer. A couple exited the bar. He wore a hat with flames dancing around the rim and an amazing technicolor coat with a rainbow of dancing skeletons. She wore a vibrant rainbow colored dress and a wreath of flowers on her head. I tried to fit her in the sketch twice but she was constantly on the move posing for photos. One fellow with a Grateful Dead messenger bag kept his hand raised with one finger extended. He was probably looking to buy or sell one ticket. Tickets went for $65 to over $100. I wasn’t tempted to buy. Two college girls who looked like flower children danced to the music flowing from the bar. The lyrics caught my attention, “Every picture tells a story don’t it!” A backpacker wandered into the bar looking like he had just hitchhiked to the concert.

I actually went to a Grateful Dead concert when I was in high school. I didn’t have a drivers license yet so I got a ride from a co-worker named George from Zip-Mailing. I was earning money at this part time job to go to college. George had worked there for years. There were some strange scents at the concert, and I remember an amazing never ending drum solo that had everyone dancing in the aisles. I remember dancing with my eyes closed just letting the tribal beat move me. George got wasted, drinking far too many beers. The drive home was terrifying. He stopped once to puke out his driver’s side door. He wouldn’t give up the wheel saying he was fine. I eventually did get home, grateful to be alive.

Red Fox Louge

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Amanda Chadwick and Matt Simantov first introduced Terry and me to the Red Fox Lounge (110 S. Orlando Ave, Winter Park). On the night they took us to the lounge, only Mark the was there behind the keyboard. Amanda boldly insisted that I not sketch until I had a chance to see the full act with Lorna. She claims that a Saturday Night Live writer had seen the Lounge act of Mark Wayne and Lorna Lambry. This writer then wrote a series of lounge act skits build around this couple. Urban myth or fact, this lead Terry and me to return. It was Saturday night and we decided to go to the Red Fox Lounge after an open house at McRae Art Studios. The dark inviting lounge was packed, except for a small table for two right up front.

Mark and Lorna are a married couple who have been performing in the Lounge every night for over a decade. They perform Vegas style with complete control of the audience with a high dose of campy fun. It is obvious they are seasoned entertainers. The room was darkly paneled with a strange neon light beside the bar. A single spot light illuminated Lorna as she sang. A table of women was right next to us and it was obviously a birthday celebration since the birthday girl was wearing a tiara and there were balloons. Mark shouted out, “I need two of you girls to come on up here!” The women hesitated, then three of them got up and began dancing behind Lorna. They laughed and had a grand time. Mark’s laser beam attention focused on me for a moment and he said, “It looks like we got someone taking notes on everything we say!” I smiled and kept sketching. Later on a break between sets he looked at the sketch, put his hand on my shoulder and said, “You are my kind of guy.” An older couple sat in front of us and when Lorna sang the next song, they got up and started to swing dance. They were good! Everyone was hooting and hollering!

A guy in a red T-Shirt was asked to sit next to Lorna for one of her songs. As he got up, he shouted out, “Lorna, you are so sexy!” He sipped his drink as she sang, “Fever“. Then she pulled his head down on her shoulder and she sang softly to him. Mark shouted, “Watch where you put your hands buddy!” Wendy Wallenburg and Carl Knickerbocker showed up. There was literally no place to sit but we squeezed in a couple of more chairs in the doorway. Terry and I left soon after I finished my sketch. Then Wendy and Carl snuggled around our little table. I forgot my hat on the table and only a day later, Wendy was at an event with Terry and it was returned.

Florida Film Festival Opening Night

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The Opening Night party at the Enzian Theater was a $100 a ticket posh extravaganza. I arrived early and was very pleased to find a parking spot in the theater’s usually overflowing parking lot. Such little things keep me happy. I stood at one of the tables in the bar area and considered doing a sketch of the Peroni Girl who would be handing out free beer all night. A guy behind me interrupted my thoughts by saying, “That is one dumb button you have on your bag.” After I explained where I got the button he pressed my sternum and waited for my response. It took me a minute to realize he had seen the word “Press” on my press pass and was taking it literally. He was pressing my buttons so I decided I had to leave. I located a choice seat at the bar.

As I started to sketch, a fellow with a “Filmmaker” ID around his neck sat beside me. His name was Tony Blass and he had just flown in from LA. He was here because a film titled “The One Man Beatles“, which he is marketing, is going to be screened on the final day of the Festival, Sunday April 17th at 12:30pm at the Regal Winter Park Cinemas. This film is about Emitt Rhodes, a rock star from the 60s who was a huge star at the age of 24 but he grew bitter after his recording company sued him and he disappeared off the pop cultural radar. Tony looked parched, so I grabbed a Peroni for him and myself.

Our conversation turned to a common memory of an old TV series called “Dark Shadows.” I remember being ten years old and lying in bed with my mother who had just returned from a New York City hospital. Tony had actually written several books which expanded on the story of the mysterious house called Collin Wood. He went on to let me know that Tim Burton is planning to make a feature film, starring Johnny Depp, which will resurrect “Dark Shadows.” Barnabus Collins may return from the dead.

I then learned that while he is here in Florida, Tony planned to start filming Venus D Lite, who he said, “Can give Madonna a run for her money.” She was in Atlanta on the night of the Film Festival opening, but Tony will be driving her to Miami for two shows and then driving her back to Orlando where she will perform at Pulse at about 10pm on Saturday April 16th. He hopes the footage he shoots here in Florida will be the start of a documentary about Venus’ ambitious and tireless career. I plan to sketch Venus at Pulse and then at the screening of “The One Man Beatles” the next day.

Robert Johnson, the lead singer of Everyday Ghosts stopped by the bar and got hugs from the staff of three bartenders. The last time I sketched at the Enzian he was bartending, but tonight he was going to be performing on stage. Later Beth Black showed up at the bar in her bright red volunteer’s T-shirt. She is a professional violinist who also volunteers for the Maitland Symphony. Ironically her assignment for the night was to be the “runner” for the band. She was getting drinks. At the time, I thought she was the band’s manager. She let me know that Everyday Ghosts had just started playing, so I rushed inside to sketch. Jeremy Meier played drums. Richerd Becker was on Bass and the lead guitarist, Austin, was the son of the band’s manager, Richard “Snake” Glatt. Someone said, “There’s nobody in front of the band”, but then Beth started recruiting partiers around the room to get on the dance floor. Soon there was a crowd of people moving, jumping and twirling to the beat. Some wore costumes like a pink zebra hat and Viking horns. I had sipped two white wines so the second sketch of the band was done with a loose splashing abandon. The whole time I rocked and swayed lost in the musics flow. Now I need to figure out which films to see. Anyone have suggestions?

Winter Park Art Festival

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My wife works for Merrill Lynch. To kick off the start of the Winter Park Art Festival, Merrill Lynch opened the Winter Park office for a kick off party. The office branch has a wide open rooftop patio that overlooks Park Avenue. More important, food and drink were on the house all night. When Terry and I arrived there were lines of people waiting for food. I started sketching immediately. Irving Radar McLean was playing steel drum music all night. He quite honestly never took a break. I caught him briefly between songs to grab his business card. He said, “You’ll be makin plenty of money from that sketch you did of me”. He actually hadn’t seen the sketch but he had noticed me working.

Clients and prospective clients of Terry’s came to the rooftop event. While she was being a social butterfly, I sketched. Looking over the rooftop ledge unfortunately didn’t offer a view of the art festival itself. The show tents began one block further north. With my sketch finished, I then loaded up a plate and grabbed a beer. Terry introduced me to a local magazine art director and I was surprised to find out she knew of my work. After another beer, I relaxed enjoying the sunset as the steel drum lifted me away to a Caribbean retreat.

Big Swinging Dicks

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There was something rewarding about announcing on Facebook that I was going to sketch Big Swinging Dicks. The full title of the play being produced for this year’s Orlando International Fringe Theater Festival is, “Big Swinging Dick’s Topless bar presents The Naked Drag Queen farting”. Now that is a mouthful! I was going to a staged reading of the play. Carl Gauze, the writer and producer, had invited me to the reading which started around 7pm at Breakthrough Theater in Winter Park. Since I work in Winter Park, and I got off at 5pm, I had some time to kill prior to the reading. I went to Shipyard Brewery to wet my palette. There I bumped into Brian Sikorski at the bar. I got to learn a little about his background as an artist. There was also an older couple there who had traveled the country searching for the best micro brewery’s.

I ordered a vegetarian mushroom sandwich which I washed down with several beers. I was satiated and ready to sketch. I walked several blocks over to the Breakthrough Theater. I had never been inside this theater. In the tiny entrance foyer,the cast was seated on the couch and chairs and they were doing a practice run through of the reading. There was one empty chair so I quietly sat down. Several of the actors I knew. Mike Maples was playing the part of a bigoted bar owner who had to change his world view when a drag queen starts bringing in audiences that could not be ignored. Sarah Lockhard landed the choice roll of the drag queen diva. She had the odd distinction of being a woman playing a man playing a woman. She rubbed her hands together as she read. I have seen her perform some insanely funny comedic rolls in the past. I agonized for a moment wondering if I had enough time to sketch. I decided to just jump in. The reading was laugh out loud funny.

When the first reading was finished, the director, Desmond Flynn, offered some notes. Soon people started to arrive. The Breakthrough Theater is a small intimate space. The stage set resembled a quaint 1950’s living room. The second read through was just as funny as the first. This is going to be a fun Fringe show!

Show times…

5/20 FRI 9:25PM

5/22 SUN 12:00PM

5/24 TUE 6:45PM

5/28 SAT 8:25PM

Flash 2

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A second Flash Mob was planned to promote Orlando, The City Beautiful. Secret rehearsals were held at the Orlando Convention Center. I was happy there was Free parking available behind the West building. I don’t sketch many Convention events because of the price of parking. There was a long walk from the back entrance first up and then down frozen escalators. I followed a man who looked to be in his 80s and when I passed him, I followed two high school girls that looked like they knew where they were going. When I entered the convention room I was stunned by the vast empty space. The rehearsal took up less than a quarter of the space. When I entered, Randy Ross was speaking with all the volunteer dancers letting them know that they had to mingle and act natural prior to this flash mob performance. The last Flash Mob at the Millenia Mall, people stood around in a circle leaving the staging area wide open. It was painfully obvious that a staged performance was about to begin. This time they planned to do it right. Linda Elchak of NAO Dance then took over the rehearsal getting two large groups formed. This was the second rehearsal so most people quickly took their places. New arrivals were instructed where to line up.

I love the music they choose for these flash mobs, it is fun to sketch to. My favorite moment in rehearsal came when a group of about 20 retirees took center stage and shook their booties to Whoop There It Is! All the younger performers cheered and whooped. The youngest performer was the nephew of Linda Stewart and he held his own keeping up with the best dancers. Enthusiasm and a lust for life has no age limit. I decided not to publish the sketch prior to the Flash to keep the performance top secret. At one point Linda said, “Don’t go past the grid, you will fall into the water.” At that point I assumed they would perform at Lake Eola. I had to work during the time the Flash Mob happened. In hind sight it would have been an impossible sketching situation. If you went to Spring Fiesta at Lake Eola at the right time then you got to experience a high energy treat!

Spring into Dance

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I returned to Seminole State College to see “Spring into Dance” presented by Yow Dance. I requested a seat in a back row with no one near by. I didn’t want the glow from my tablet to disturb any audience members. The Artistic Director, Eric Yow was seared a few rows in front of me. The performance was a collaboration between Eric’s dance company and some very enthusiastic College students who were studying modern dance under Eric’s supervision. There were a total of eight dance pieces. Some were so high energy, like Word Up, that I was amazed by the stamina of the dancers. The dancers wore blood splattered wedding dresses and moved with zombie like loose muscled fluidity. The stage lighting gave the dresses an eerie iridescence. This was the world premiere of this piece and the audience loved it.

In one piece the dancers interacted with a lone spotlight. They would dance close to the mysterious light with tentative trepidation. By the end of the dance they formed a human pyramid allowing one lone dancer the chance to reach up to the illuminated heights. The last piece was called Blackberry Winter. It was an inspired incessant driving piece that kept a face pace throughout. Groups moved together in unity and just as an action felt complete another group would spiral into action.

Johnny Cash Tribute at Redlight Redlight

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Redlight Redlight, (745 Bennett Rd) is a hip bar that often has themed shows of local artists’ work. On this night the walls were covered with Johnny Cash portraits. Plineo Pinto had several sweet watercolor caricatures that I liked. I bumped into Leslie Silvia who showed me the nasty blisters she got on her hands from a recent crewing competition. She had some nice silhouettes of Johnny Cash. American Destitution, was on stage playing Johnny Cash songs. I asked Jared Silvia how long they had been playing to try and gauge how long I had to sketch. The place was packed so I sat on the floor right in front of the stage to get my sketch.

After the set was over, I talked to one of the performers and he told me this was the first time the band members had performed together in a very long time. I still hadn’t ordered a beer so I muscled up to the bar and ordered a Cony Island Mermaid. The beer was dark and strong. I settled into a corner table and started a second sketch. A movie screen was set up on the stage and Johnny played for the crowd flickering and a bit distorted. His music and the swift kick from the beer made me blue. I wondered what lively conversations were flaring up around me. My hand moved over the pages involuntarily. With my second sketch finished, I decided to get home. As I left a group of graffiti artists stopped me to say hello. I had sketched these artists at Frames Forever and Art Gallery as they worked on large mural panels. I was fading and a bit depressed from listening to Johnny Cash for several hours so I didn’t socialize long. Terry was away at some conference in Texas so I could have stayed out much later. But my work was done.

Yow Dance Tech Rehearsal

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I went to a Yow Dance Tech Rehearsal at Seminole State College. When I arrived scaffolding was in place on stage and the stage lights were being aimed and adjusted. The dancers had not yet arrived. The scaffold had to be moved each time a new light had to be adjusted. The process became a learning experience for the college age stage hands who took their directions from Ellen Bone, the seasoned lighting designer. She took the time to explain why certain adjustments were made and she even walked a student around to give pointers.

When the dancers arrived, the house wend dark and the only thing I could see was the glow of Ellen’s laptop. I switched to drawing on my digital tablet. Apparently the headphones she was wearing didn’t work since she had to shout out her sound cues to the lighting booth at the back of the theater. The dancers performed and lighting adjustments were made on the fly. Sometime the dancers had to stop and wait while the right lighting combination was found.

One of the dance numbers called “Little Boxes” made a strong statement about how children are taught to behave and conform to societies expectations. The dancers shuffled in a chain gang style line. The dance offered a great social commentary about how our suburban society expects us all to be the same. A life of ticky tacky conformity as we move from one box to the next.