EXTRA CRITICUM

Dazzling lineup for BREVITY FEST III - Dec. 9

Check out the bios for our singer/songwriters and writer/readers. It's a great lineup. To join us, Dec. 9th at El Cid (4212 West Sunset in Silverlake), email your NAME and the NUMBER in your party. There's no cover charge but reservations are strongly recommended as space is limited. Showtime: 7:30PM.

Email us at: tickets@pinkplot.com

Pulled from the Archives: Yearley, Altenburg, Licata, Garrison & Barnes

Every few weeks or so, the editors at E.C. take a stroll through our archives and pull a group of interesting posts that are loosely related in theme to offer up to our readership for a second read. If you have a favorite post you'd like us to "pull from the archives," just email us and we'll try to locate it for you.

Or, you could also just use the handy Lijit Search box in the right sidebar.

 

Sandi Carroll's short solo clown piece FAMOUS!

OK. So, this just in from E.C. pal Sandi Carroll.

 

If you have never seen her solo clown piece, FAMOUS!, in which she plays a very odd girl named Karen, you're in for a treat.

Here's the skinny:

Guidestar's 2010 Fundraising Survey Results

In October 2010, GuideStar joined forces with the National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS), the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, Blackbaud, and the Foundation Center to create the National Research Collaborative and conduct an end-of-year fundraising survey. Representatives of 2,356 public charities and 163 private foundations took the survey online between October 19 and November 3, 2010.  To read the entire report, go here.

Whatcha thinkin' Linkin'? v.1

Every once in a blue moon, Andrew and Roland will post a 3 min. informal podcast consisting of random thoughts, questions and debates on issues of both great and not-so-great significance. We hope you enjoy listening from time to time and welcome your comments, suggestions or requests. Here goes nothin':
[TOPICS COVERED: Why is drag funny? and Which is more powerful: cylons or the smoke monster?]

Rejection? Of COURSE it's personal!

I’m very busy figuring out ways to market and publicize Best Lesbian Erotica 2011, of which I’m the series editor. The part I like best about being editor is sending word to the people whose stories have been chosen that they are in the book…particularly if I know the person who wrote the story.

What’s not as much fun, but is also necessary, is to notify the people who didn’t get in this year. I don’t like doing it, and I don’t like getting those notes myself (particularly if I know the person sending it).

What's your favorite outfit to wear when you’re feeling flirty and want to look your best?

BLOODY, BLOODY HOMO SCRATCHIN' (His Head)

Betrayal, I’m sure you would agree, is a hard thing for all of us. Betrayal from a family member is probably the most painful. The theatre has been my home and construct for family for most of my adult life. It’s where I feel loved, respected, seen and heard without having to work so fuckin’ hard at it. So when I feel betrayed by my family – my fellow artists -- I think . . . I think I want to strangle someone. And I would if I weren’t a rational man.

"Bring me the head of Levi Johnston!"

TV Week reports today that a Wisconsin (naturally) man got up, fetched his rifle and pumped his television full of bullets after watching Bristol Palin's performance on Dancing with the Stars this past Monday night. He then turned the gun on his wife, driving her from the house and, after she called 911, holding the police at bay for 15 hours.

Perhaps he was spending that time phoning in his vote (my guess: not Palin).

It's only November and Crazy Man in a Small Town Season has only begun. Usually we have to wait for February and cabin fever to set in before this kind of thing happens. It's sort of like Ground Hog Day - you can tell how much longer the crazy will last if they see (and shoot) their shadow.

Cronenberg and I

It is with great glee that I came across this tidbit on boingboing:  David Cronenberg has finished production on a film called A Dangerous Method. Based on Christopher Hampton’s stage play, The Talking Cure, it stars Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud, Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung, and Keira Knightley as Sabina, a patient of Jung’s who would become his mistress. (Bad therapist!)

Morality Quiz - vol. 1

Life in the performing arts world presents us with moral dilemmas, almost on a daily basis. Here's a fun little quiz we can all take to assess where we fall on the spectrum between Machiavelli and Mother Theresa.

Hypotheticals.

Wasser(stein) Under the Bridge?

While I meant to blog more frequently than this, the kinds of things I could blog about are also the kind of things that keep me too damn busy to blog. (And the rent is too damn high).

By “the kind of things I do,” I mean: writing plays, producing plays, helping develop other peoples’ plays, attending plays, curating a reading series, keeping up an online bulletin board with opportunities for playwrights, editing an annual fiction anthology, and by day, editing books that make your domestic and international trips more interesting and easier. (Not to mention supporting six guinea pigs, four turtles and a dragon.)

But this weekend’s Internet storm about the Wendy Wasserstein Prize (or more specifically, the choice NOT to give a Wasserstein Prize this year) reminded me that sometimes I blog.

Los Angelinos: Save the Date! Brevity Fest III Dec. 9th

When we dipped our toe in the water with our first Brevity Fest at the homey and inviting El Cid in Silverlake less than one year ago, we never imagined the event would inspire such fierce loyalty and passion. But folks just can't seem to get enough. So if you plan to be in Los Angeles area Dec. 9, please save the date for another evening of songs, readings, great food, drink and general merriment. Stay tuned for details...

Who Is Your Linda?

Last night I had the strangest dream.

I dreamt I was speaking at a national writer's conference, talking about how I had written my book, at long last. I spoke to the entire membership from a booth in the middle of the conference and spoke eloquently how much debt I owed to Linda for all her help in mentoring me through the process of self-doubt, indecision and lack of confidence about my material. I remember saying "Had I met Linda when I was in high school, I would have a Pulitzer (Prize) by now." Everyone cheered. It was a good dream. I mean, who doesn't want to have a Pulitzer?

artists' work/live space available in Hudson

This just in from Linda Mussmann, Founder and co-Director of Time Space Limited, in Hudson. (Linda is referenced in the controversial Hudson piece posted on this site a few weeks back. Also, please keep an eye out for our extended Q&A with Linda right here on E.C. about life as an artist in Hudson. Coming Soon!)

My So-Called Other Life, Redux

"There Is Joy before the Angels of God," a story I wrote that appeared in The Literary Review's Winter 2010 issue, is available online. So if you missed out on the hard copy, you can now read it for free online! Navigating to the story can be a little tricky, so here's a tip: in the page field, where it says 1 of 185, type 99. That will take you right to it.