Fringe: Onwards!

Posted on by Thor

Onwards! presented by Big Empty Barn Productions from Montreal Canada starred Bremner Fletcher Duthie who sang and played instruments while telling stories. Around the stage were a series of lamps which could be activated with foot switches. Each of his variety acts would require different lighting which he initiated with taps of his toes.

Bremner was tires of auditions. Auditions require an actor to want to fill the role of what someone else requires of them. He reenacted an audition of  some insipid ad campaign to comedic effect. At first he delivered the line fairly straight. Then when asked to show more enthusiasm he overacted the line with operatic bravado. It was hilarious but at the audition he was told to get off the stage.

Fringe helped him realize that he didn’t need to wait for someone else to offer a role that might not fit his personality, but instead he could perform for himself. In a world that increasingly relies on robotic messaging it is more important than ever to remain human and chart your own course. The show had the flavor of an old time vaudeville act.

I couldn’t find any one theme that tied together all the acts but it seemed like Bremner was having wild sweaty fun, so I gladly went along for the ride.

Remaining show times for Onwards! Big Empty Barn Productions Montreal Canada. Yellow Venue in the Shakes. Rated 18 and up. Tickets are $15. Be sure to get a Fringe button for entry.

Saturday May 23, 8:30pm

Sunday May 24, 7:35pm

La Socièti

Posted on by Thor

This sketch was done at a magnificent restaurant in Montreal, Canada called La Socièti. I was eating alone that evening. I remember having a really good stuffed artichoke dish that was delicious.

I am noticing that many of my sketches in public places are of people sitting alone. Edward Hopper is renowned for painting that depict a distinct American isolation. I seem to depict the same thing but it isn’t an artistic choice. I just seem to go places during the quiet hours, especially when I travel.

Today, I had breakfast alone in my hotel but by late afternoon I was having a raucous WWII style dinner with re-enactors in an army tent.I only got one small sketch of the joyous chaos, but I have another chance to catch he scene tomorrow night since they invited me to return.

I could have used Google translate in Montreal but it didn’t have the voice recognition feature. I used the translator quite a bit today but the program isn’t entirely user friendly yet. I have trouble navigating back and forth to translate what I say into French and then in the next moment translate French into English. I am sure t can be done efficiently. I will look at a few You Tube videos tonight to see if I can figure it out.

I lost all battery power on my phone today because I like to listen in on all the conversations around me. Since I am so nosy when I sketch I let the phone die a slow and painful death. It was resurrected in a WWII tent since one f the re-enactors had an iPhone cable. I handed out every business card I had on me today. That had=s never happened before.

Preserving History

Posted on by Thor

I went to Montreal, Canada where the Pam Schwartz, director of the Orange County History Center gave a talk about preserving history after the Pulse Nightclub shooting tragedy where 49 people were murdered in a mass shooting.

The Pulse Nightclub and the Doctor Phillips Center for the Performing Arts became locations where people went to leave memorial items and flowers.

Rather than allow all those items end up in landfills, the Orange County History Center mobilized to collect the memorial items. They were categorized organized and are now at the History Center’s offsite warehouse. Each year after the tragedy the mounted memorial exhibits to honor those who were lost.

I went to several of the History Centers collection days and it was certainly not easy work. Collecting had to be done in the hottest months of the summer. The once beautiful flowers were dead and had a highly pungent smell. The director once told me that she would be happy if she never saw a bouquet of flowers ever again. It is very possible that breathing all that decaying matter affected the lungs of History Center staff.

Some Orlando citizens did not appreciate the work the History Center was doing. To them the collection process looked like grave robbing. There were several people who were combative as the staff did there work on site. The same people would be thankful when they saw how much thought and love went into the memorial exhibits.