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[George]

Did someone delete a post??

[George]

I'm off (actually, I've always been a little off ).  Anyway, the Washington Center for the Performing Arts (where I usher quite often) is having their annual Volunteer Appreciation reception!  We all get together and eat and they announce next year's season.  I can't wait to find out what they're planning.

Oh, I hope you have such a wonderful time! Can't wait to get the news of next season!!!

The reception was nice.  It was just a bunch of tables and simple foods...bread and crackers and cheese, chicken on a skewer with several sauces, fruit and several different kinds of wine.  They had door prizes (I won a $10 gift certificate to a local bookstore!) and they announced next season's shows.  Some of the highlights are:

• Bo Diddley and Friends (I didn't write down who the friends are)
• Wynton Marsalis
• Jerry Quickley in "Live From the Front"
• Dorothy the Dinosaur's Dance (she's a character on "The Wiggles")
• Seattle Symphony with a Baroque program
• Ladysmith Black Mambazo
• Capitol Steps
• Preservation Hall Jazz Band
• Jesus Christ Superstar
• TAIKOPROJECT
• Little Shop of Horrors
• Leftover Stories to Tell: A Tribute to Spalding Gray (Spalding Gray himself performed at the Washington Center several years ago)
• The Carl Rosa Opera Company's production of The Pirates of Penzance!
• and two performances of the (non-Equity??) national tour of Hairspray!

Those are most of the highlights.

[FJL]

Just back from a sparkling one-night-only performance at the York Theater of Doug Cohen's musical THE GIG (featuring Bill Parry, Steve Berger, Karen Ziemba, Michele Pawk, Charlie Pistone, Steve Routman, among so many talented folk).  Lovely way to spend a birthday evening.  

I always seem to be in the same room with The Fantasticks' Tom Jones on my birthday.  For two years in a row, anyway.     Last year, I was at the show First Lady Suite on my birthday and regaled Mr. Jones with the silly fact that I was born the day before The Fantasticks opened so I knew that his show's 45th anniversary was coming up the next day.  Tonight, for the first time since last year on my birthday, I was a few feet from Mr. Jones, but he was swept into other conversations far more important.  But it was a weird coincidence to have seen him on my birthday two years in a row, and never at any other times in my life.

Although my birthday is over, birthday week continues until I see Dear friend Julie next Sunday (coincidentally, a very good friend of Julie's was sitting in front of me tonight, but alas, a fine lass, but not Julie).    

And many thanks to Dakota, Cilla and Danise for the birthday wishes.

[George]

Sounds like a great evening, FJL!

[George]

Another really cool thing for next season is that the Washington Center is doing another silent movie series.  It was very popular.  There's a giant pipe organ built into the theater and Dennis James will play the organ live during the showings.

Also, there is some movie that, for a long time, only about 20 minutes of it was thought to have existed (they didn't say what movie it was).  The rest of the movie was recently found and fixed up and they're going to have the premiere showing (two performances, actually) at the Washington Center AND (this is the cool part) the organ music is going to be recorded live as the soundtrack to a DVD release!  Pretty darned cool!

Actually, it was explained that the organ isn't going to be recorded by conventional means.  They rebuilt and restored the organ a couple of years ago and instead of having the pipes play they way they usually do (however that is), they have the keys and pedals hooked into a computer; then, the computer sends the signals to open the air valves to make the noise.  What they're going to do is have the computer create a player-piano-type file that will be used for the soundtrack, so that if Dennis James makes mistakes on either of the two performances, they can cut and paste sections from the other performance.  Very interesting!