Eldridge to Moline via Boston - The Long Way Round

Any of you that know anything about me (which is pretty little given recent events) know that I love road trips and just love getting away to places I haven't been before. Well, as fate would have it, a buddy of mine needs to go to Boston for a completion of grad school and a job interview and yours truly is now officially tagging along for the drive.

What's really cool is that this is the buddy that road tripped to Toronto with me back when I graduated college, so this is something like a long-awaited part two trip we never got to take. The really cool thing is, like before, this was just kind of thrown together at the last minute (as was the Toronto excursion), but I think we've got housing arrangements and everything set up. The plan is to stop over in Chicago to see a friend of mine's show at Chicago Shakes, and then back on the road to the East Coast. I'm planning on blowing what's left of my meager savings on the trip to cover gas, food, etc., but it will be so worth it to really get to explore Boston and the New England area. I've been to New York before, but my friends all rave about Boston so I'm excited to see what's there.

I NetFlixed both Casino Royale and Children of Men this past week and loved them both. Interesting enough, the latter starred Clive Owen, who was a front runner to be the new Bond before Daniel Craig popped up.

Children of Men is set in the not-too distant future (2027) where women have become sterile and unable to bear children and the human race faces its existence. Without giving anything away, the story is very compelling and the majority of the movie is shot in these long takes with minimal editing. This gives the story a very documentary feel and must've been taxing on the cast to have to film it that way, but it pays off in an amazing film. Julianne Moore and Michael Caine also play roles and are just as compelling as the Owen. This is definitely not a feel-good film nor is it as action-oriented as I was anticipating, but it's a great film.

Granted, I know I'm VERY late to the party on this one, but Casino Royale was awesome. Any question anyone had about Daniel Craig being the new Bond are all answered in the first 10 minutes. This more realistic, harder-edged Bond is awesome to see as I grew up on watching Bond films with my father (as blasphemous as it is to say, my first Bond was Roger Moore, so I am still trying to work-out the whole Sean Connery thing) and noticed even then how gadget-heavy everything was. This story seems to focus more on Bond's cleverness to get him out of situations rather than so doo-dad Q whips up that just happens to fit Bond's situation perfectly. Judi Dench reprises her role as M and I was sad to see no John Cleese as Q b/c I thought that was a great bit of casting in the past films. At any rate, I am jazzed to see whether they'll do an all-new Bond story or remake another as this version of the franchise should be around for awhile.

The other little thing I've started to get into is the series LOST. It was something I always wanted to check out as I love character-driven stories, but with doing shows and rehearsing, I just never had the time to invest in it. So this past weekend, I got the first two seasons, sat my ass down and watched as much as I could. I'm through season one and halfway through season two and, needless to say, I love it and can't wait for season three to finally makes its way to DVD. If you already watch it, nothing I can say will match your connection to it. If you have not seen it, I highly recommend it. It's got this eerie Twin Peaks feel to it and is one of those great shows where as soon as it's over, you're already primed to watch the next one. The ensemble cast meshes beautifully and I like the fact that there's no real one 'lead' character we have to follow as each individual has an incredible back-story.

For those of you that asked, Henry V wrapped and did extremely well. Being one of the leads, I was very emotionally invested in the show and was glad to hear that we ended up breaking some Prenzie records: 6 consecutive standing ovations, 2 encore bows, and it was also the highest grossing show in the troupe's history despite it not being the show with the most available seats. Personally, I am glad that it's over as I pretty much left everything I had on stage as this was easily the most challenging role I ever had to play. My thanks to everyone that saw it, whether you enjoyed it or not.


Well, that's about it from here. I need to get packing and will post a very photo-laden rant as soon as I return from my jaunt out East. Take care of yourselves.

How I've spent every waking moment the past 2 weeks...

My life is this show right now. It got good reviews so if you're in the area, come see it.

I Wii'd myself.

So after playing on my friends' Wii system in Chicago & having that fun feeling and desire lingering in me for months, I happened to be at the right place at the right time last week and purchased one of the last two Wii's available in the Q.C. area (& also picked up the other one up for a friend). It's shocking how hard these things are to come by, but after playing one, you quickly see why.

I owned an Xbox & PS2 and honestly never paid attention to any Nintendo systems past the original 8 bit. My roommate in college had the Super Nintendo, which we Mario Karted on for awhile, and I purchased an ex a GameCube, but never really got swept up in the kid-friendly Nintendo craze as I was firmly entrenched in the more 'adult' next gen systems. But the appeal of the Wii is undeniable - especially when it's packaged with the amazing Wii Sports. It's all very addictive. Maybe I should go here: Smith & Jones Wild Horses Game Zone Center for Addiction in Amsterdam.

Also saw Hot Fuzz at the theaters recently and it was great. The creators of Shaun of the Dead are behind this one and they definitely have similar feels to them (excessive gore, dry British humor, a ton of cameos, etc.), but this one definitely shows that it has a budget. Almost seizure inducing with its quick jump cuts and blitzkrieg editing style, all in all, it's an enjoyable comedic ride that I think everyone will enjoy. The two leads have an obvious chemistry that just seems to get stronger with each film they do. And supposedly, Peter Jackson has a cameo in the film, but I was searching for and never found him.

By the way, The History Channel officially holds the title of best late night viewing when you're not tired and there's nothing good on TV. I've learned more about the Titanic, World War II, the Knights Templar, technology of the Wild West, submarines, and the mafia in the past two weeks then I ever did in school. To be fair, I did try giving the National Geographic Channel a fair shake to take the title (with it's Dog Whisperer and what not), but it comes in at a solid second in late night viewing - just a step or two ahead of the Classic Songs of the 80's & The British Invasion CD infomercials (bless you, Peter Noone).

I also got to bear witness to one of the greatest 3rd innings ever as the Red Sox' Manny Ramirez, JD Drew, Mike Lowell, and Jason Varitek connected on back-to-back-to-back-to-back homers for the first time in Sox history off of New York Yankees rookie Chase Wright. I was with some loyal Sox fans watching the game together and we were practically on our feet every time the ball was struck and screaming along with the throngs at Fenway. It was awesome and just fueled my fire even more to catch a Sox game out there with my buddy Matt (former CSz'er), who lives out there.

Oh, and after taxes, I'm pretty much broke. That's about it.

C'est la vie.

4.16.07

300, IV, & V

Yes, I went to the opening night of 300 & yes, it's as good as you've heard (meaning the critics hated it, so you'll love it). There's something for the guys (brawling, conquering, braveness in the face of insurmountable odds, bloody battles, etc.) & something for the ladies (cut looking men wearing not much....I guess that applies to something for some guys as well...), and everyone in between. I thought it was a wonderful adaptation of Frank Miller's novel, which makes three for three with Batman Begins and Sin City being the other two. Happily the filmmakers of each of those respective films stayed true to the look and feel of the originals and I think it's paying off (what else can an opening weekend gross of $70 million, the highest grossing opening in March EVER, tell you?).

Henry IV wrapped & despite blanking on stage on the final Saturday performance for a line (& recovering and getting through - something I have never done before & God bless improv skills), the run was very well received and the reviews reflected as much. Not to rest on our gilded laurels, we are already into rehearsals for Part Three of (and the conclusion to) The Henriad: Henry V. I've got even MORE lines than I did in IV and am more freaked out about it than I was for IV, if that can be believed. I am in both Henry V & Creme de Coco (over at St. Ambrose University) at the same time, which is insane, but I'm already off-book for the latter, so that's a minor amount of relief I can take in the situation.

If you haven't seen Borat yet, you owe it to yourself to at least see it once. It won a Golden Globe & was nominated for an Oscar so it must've done something right. It's out on DVD now so do yourself a favor and NetFlix or rent or do whatever you have to to check it out. I think it was easily one of the funniest movies of the year and definitely will have you talking & thinking about America and our view on things at it's conclusion. By the way, the box art, DVD art, & the menu are freakin' brilliant.

What's more is the chameleon-like performance of Sacha Baron Cohen. Watch Da Ali G Show, Borat, and then Talladega Nights & I think you will be shocked at realizing that he can make you not see the actor playing the role, but believe that this character could so easily be a real person in that environment.

Thanks to my friend Casey, I have discovered a new amazing show for anyone remotely interested in Shakespeare (or someone that is a part of a theatre company for that matter) entitled Slings & Arrows. This show is wonderful and has more inside Shakespeare jokes & subtle references than Shakespeare In Love does. The cast is impeccable and all pretty much have ties to the Startford Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, which the entire show is essentially lampooning - and their love for the Bard as well as the insane situations that many a theatre person can identify with shines through. The first two seasons are available on DVD, and the third (and final season) is currently airing on the Sundance Channel, for those of you lucky enough to receive it.

I was able to do some CSz shows again as the rush of the Prenzie shows subsided and it never ceases to amaze me how only one weekend away from doing improv just seems to eat away at me as being too long to not perform. As I'm entering my 13th year at CSz, I realized that I could probably realistically count on barely two hands the number of weekends that I have had "off" from performing down there - & I'm not counting weekends I was on vacation or in another show of some kind, I'm talking about weekends that I was available to work and had the nights off, but still found myself down at the theatre and thrown into a show (much to the chagrin of an ex of mine). It's a genuine passion & I think it's b/c it's one of very few things that I feel I can do well at despite still having so much to learn about it and still coming away with something else to think on every time I walk off that stage.

In closing, I don't know if any of you are familiar with the whole GAP (RED) campaign yet or not, and I'm not going to sit here and preach about it, but I think it's a pretty good idea & a great take on dealing with a very serious issue. So if you get the chance, head over to GAP.COM/RED, & give it a read.