Utwory: Prebirth; The New Beginning; Out on a Limb; Summerland; Lunatic Soul; Where the Darkness is Deepest; Near Life Experience; Adrift; The Final Truth; Waiting for the Dawn;

Wykonawcy: Mariusz Duda – wokale, gitara basowa, gitara akustyczna, instrumenty perkusyjne; Maciej Szelenbaum – pianino, klawisze; Wawrzyniec Dramowicz – instrumenty perkusyjne; Michał Łapaj – organy Hammonda; Maciej Meller – e-bow

Wydawca: K-Scope, Mystic Production

Rok wydania: 2008

Data napisania recenzji: 10.11.08

Subiektywna ocena (od 1 do 10): 9

Nie każdy nowy zespół może zaliczyć swój płytowy debiut od razu w tak znanej w progresywnym światku firmie jak K-Scope (wydającej płyty chociażby Blackfield, No-Man czy Pineapple Thief, będącej filią Snapper Music, m.in. Porcupine Tree). Nie każdy zespół ma w swym składzie reprezentację najlepszych w Polsce muzyków z kręgu tzw. rocka progresywnego. Nie każdy zespół to Lunatic Soul…

Na samym początku należy przyznać, że mamy do czynienia z jedną z najbardziej klimatycznych płyt, które zostały stworzone przez polskich muzyków, a które w szerszym kontekście bez problemu można ustawić w jednym rzędzie z “Secrets of the Beehive” Davida Sylviana, “Shadows of the Sun” Ulvera czy albumami grupy Antimatter.

Lekko jednak rozczarowany ostatnimi studyjnymi poczynaniami macierzystej formacji Mariusza Dudy czyli Riverside, czekałem na ten solowy projekt z wielkimi nadziejami i nie zawiodłem się. “Lunatic Soul” nie jest w żadnym razie próbą odżegnywania się od sukcesu tej najpopularniejszej polskiej grupy prog-rockowej, choć nawiązań do jej twórczości nie jest szczególnie dużo, czasem jakaś charakterystyczna partia basu i głos Mariusza, ale też nie zawsze. Jeśli szukać już porównań to tylko z minialbumem “Voices In my Head”, niby propozycją poboczną, troszkę niedocenianą, a jednak wciąż czarującą takimi perełkami jak “Acronym Love” czy “The Time I Was Daydreamin“. Gdzieś w prostej linii od tych kompozycji wypływa ten muzyczny opis „duszy szaleńca”.

Już otwierający całość “Prebirth” wprowadza nas doskonale w ten mroczny świat dźwięków, dark ambientowe wstawki, odgłosy „biegania” jakby żywcem wyciągnięte z Floydowego “On The Run” i orientalne wstawki jakby z “Passion” Petera Gabriela. Te tropy, są tylko początkiem, ale też dają pewne wyobrażenie  całości. W “The New Beginning” w tle akustycznej gitary, bardzo ładnie pobrzmiewają flety, nawiązujące poniekąd do indiańskich melodii spod znaku Inkuyo oraz ładnie rozmyty pogłosami wokal Mariusza. W “Out on Limb” mamy Mariusza z czasów “Voices in my Head“, świetna mikstura akustycznych brzmień oraz klawiszowego tła. Pewnie byłby to kolejny konwencjonalny utwór dla “fanów” Riverside, notabene jako pierwszy był dostępny na profilu MySpace zespołu, ale to “coś” nie pozwala przejść obok niego obojętnie, ckliwy szloch, a może po prostu czyste piękno z niego pochodzące. “Summerland” pod względem brzmienia ślicznie nawiązuje do krystalicznego brzmienia gitar akustycznych na ostatnich płytach niemieckiego Sieges Even, natomiast muzycznie wydaje się być wariacją na temat poprzedniej kompozycji poddanej “lunaticowej” obróbce.

W utworze tytułowym dźwięki kalimby i sporo etniczno-gabrielowskiego klimatu zostają przełamane perkusyjnym łomotem,  klawiszowym patosem i żarliwym śpiewem Mariusza. “Where the Darkness is Deepest” to raptem czterominutowy przerywnik, tkwiący gdzieś pomiędzy niskimi pulsacjami a’la Brian Lustmord, a kosmicznymi brzmieniami Tangerine Dream. “Near Life Experience” znów ładna mieszanka, gdzie echa kosmicznych brzmień a’la Klaus Schulze, gitara akustyczna żywcem wyjęta z ostatnich propozycji Sieges Even przeplatają się z  dead-can-dance-owymi harmoniami, może nie porywa szczególnie, ale nawet jako płytowy „wypełniacz” prezentuje się znakomicie.

Na koniec otrzymujemy kolejne perełki, począwszy od “Adrift“. Niby Riverside’owa balladka, ale produkcja i brzmienie powodują, że takie zaszufladkowaniu nie jest wcale oczywiste. “The Final Truth” to tutaj odpowiednik “The Curtain Falls” z debiutu Riverside, charakterystyczne, syntetyczne brzmienie perskusji, narastające harmonie i klawiszowy finał. “Waiting for the Dawn” raczej zaskoczyć niczym nie może, ładne podsumowanie płyty w klimatach twórczości Kitaro.

Czy to jest najbardziej klimatyczna polska płyta? Coś w tym jest, choć nie do końca. Mariusz Duda udowodnił, że jako kompozytor ma wiele do powiedzenia i poniekąd ujawnił smutną prawdę, że w Riverside, jednak takie melancholijno-akustyczne klimaty nie mają swojego pewnego miejsca, więc próżno oczekiwać kolejnych perełek jak te z “Voices In My Head“. Płytę bardzo polecam i to nie tylko dla fanów Riverside. Jak widać i słychać, nie tylko Steven Wilson potrafi, na uboczu niejako, tworzyć muzyczne arcydzieła (No-Man czy Blackfield).

Autor: Tomek „BlaKcThrone” JAŁUKOWICZ

And now for a little John Travolta trivia from 1979 or possibly very early 1980. An event that no reporters witnessed; fortunately I did.

The location was Sydney, Australia; in particular the domestic airline terminal at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport.

In 1979  John Travolta arrived in Sydney (for film promotions I guess). It was rumoured that he was following Olivia Newton-John whom some days before had arrived in Australia via Melbourne. Films around this time, Grease, Xanadu; others will know more than I on the subject of films at that time.

His arrival was very low key (unlike now), expected only by some officials notified accordingly. As such, crowds were not an issue, he was hardly noticed in the International Terminal.  

Myself and another colleague in law enforcement were assigned the task of escorting/safeguarding Mr Travolta until he boarded his connecting flight from the domestic terminal. (A tough job, but someone had to do it. We even had an introduction and handshake thrown in).

After waiting in a lounge there was a short walk to board the plane. It was at this point that he was spotted by 3  teenage girls around 15yrs of age. They appeared kind of speechless; one carried a small camera.

They managed to ask John if he would be okay with photos. He smiled, then as now, and posed with two of the girls, while the third (the owner of the camera) pressed the shutter. Two girls were happy.

The owner of the camera excitedly took her turn to pose with John. No click from the shutter, the last frame had been exposed. Disaster. I wanted to help, we all wanted to help, couldn’t.

Time was gone, the plane boarded and John Travolta winged away.

I often wonder about the young lady, who almost made it on film with John Travolta. I guess she has her own very clear picture of that day; just not in the format she hoped. It would be a great memory just the same.

More to come; perhaps same blog time, but same blog channel.

By Comité Paralímpico Español / Manu González

Del 16 al 19 de noviembre el equipo español paralímpico de esquí alpino se ha concentrado en Madrid para ir preparando los Juegos de Invierno que se celebrarán en la localidad canadiense de Vancouver en 2010.

Vancouver se prepara ya para acoger del 12 al el 20 de marzo los Juegos Olímpicos y Paralímpicos de Invierno 2010. Una cita a la que no faltará el equipo español de esquí alpino paralímpico. Y para prepararla adecuadamente del 16 al 19 de noviembre se han reunido en Madrid, donde han desarrollado una de las concentraciones del Programa de Alto Rendimiento Paralímpico (Programa ARPA).

A esta concentración han acudido los esquiadores con deficiencia visual Jon Santacana, Andrés Boira, Anna Cohí y Gabriel Gorce, junto a sus respectivos guías, Miguel Galindo, Félix Aznar, Raquel García y Aleix Suñé, así como la deportista con discapacidad física Úrsula Pueyo.

Todos ellos se han alojado en el Centro de Alto Rendimiento de la capital de España y han entrenado en las instalaciones de Madrid Snowzone, en el Centro Comercial Xanadú de la localidad madrileña de Arroyomolinos. Esto les ha permitido, por un lado, trabajar aspectos específicos de su deporte como la técnica de paso de curva de slalom, y por otro, a través de dinámicas de grupo mejorar el sentimiento de equipo.

Posteriormente, los deportistas ciegos y deficientes visuales continuarán sus entrenamientos en el Centro de Tecnificación de La Cerdanya, situado en Gerona, mientras que los esquiadores con discapacidad física lo harán en el Centro de Deportes de Invierno del Valle de Arán, en Lérida. Luego, ya más adelante, los esquiadores españoles realizarán otras concentraciones que los llevarán a Austria, Francia, Italia y Estados Unidos.

The problem we face:

Every year a growing number of movies are adapted into musicals against their will, and often for little or no profit.  With more and more Broadway producers scouring the pages of IMDB in the hopes of creating something that will stand up to the least common standard of critical and commercial success, one can’t help but wonder if Whoopi Goldberg will reprise her role in the musical version of Jumpin’ Jack Flash.

It is not a new idea, or even a bad one, to assume that a successful film could be turned into a successful musical.  That crafty producer’s trick of avoiding originality until it is absolutely necessary is as old as commerce itself, and even the earliest Hollywood blockbusters were subsequently put up on Broadway and visa versa, but hasn’t the standard fallen too low when theatre goers are being subjected to Xanadu all over again?  It’s true that a few gems have emerged from the reductive formula.  The Billy Elliot musical was good.  Of course, it was adapted from a great movie, and one that was made up largely of dance sequences.  If the stage versions of Saturday Night Fever, Big, and The Toxic Avenger weren’t enough to convince you of the seriousness of the problem, there has been talk of a Pretty Woman musical.

The musical form has a long tradition of adapting from source material, but there was a time, not too long ago, that producers looked to great works of literature and classical drama instead of John Travolta films and children’s cartoons. If nothing is done to stop this trend, we face the possibility of revealing the musical form for the hollow spectacle it has always pretended not to be, while simultaneously ruining all of our favorite B-movies.  Do something before it’s too late.  Incidentally, you’ll know it’s too late when Speed 2: Cruise Control: The Musical hits the stage.  Don’t think it can’t happen.

What you can do to help:

Step 1.  Make your voice heard by signing the comments section of this petition and sharing it with everyone you know.

Step 2.  Avoid all movie-to-musical adaptations in favor of original musicals, and while you’re at it, you may want to avoid any production that requires the additional phrase “:The Musical” be affixed to its title to differentiate it from its original incarnation.  This will prevent the unfortunate viewing of any musical based on a video game, TV series, or comic book.

Step 3.  Let the memories be.  If it’s nostalgia that draws you to the Broadway box office, try to remember that the movie wasn’t nearly as good as you’re remembering it.

Step 4.  If you must reminisce, you can 1) go rent the DVD for roughly 1/30th of what you would pay to see the show, or 2) find a friend who also fondly remembers the film and perform bad reenactments of your favorite scenes.

Step 5.  Finally, for those of you brave enough to subject yourselves to truly original ideas, keep an eye out for a rare breed of music-less theatrical productions, known simply as “plays.”

What a great way to start our new column: “Musical Spotlight” with none other than the fantastical musical, Xanadu. This show deserves a lot more credit than it actually gets. It has roller disco skating, beautiful Greek muses and really short shorts all from 1980. I absolutely loved this show, even though I was sitting on the front row looking up the whole time. Currently, it’s under a restricted license from MTI and there are plans for a tour (though it’s not coming to the Bay Area).

“It’s hilarity on wheels for adults, children and anyone who has ever wanted to feel inspired, as one of Broadway’s master storytellers, Douglas Carter Beane, weaves a moving, electrifying tale of endless fun that will keep you in stitches, while the original, legendary chart-topping tunes lift you out of your seat. You’ll want to keep the music in your head, and Xanadu in your heart, forever.” I couldn’t really explain it any better than that.

Have you seen it? What did you think?

“Xanadu” – Xanadu

My friend, Grace, turned nine this weekend. She was gracious enough to invite me to her skate party. I decided to channel my inner Olivia Newton John. What’s sad is I didn’t have to buy a single thing. What’s sadder is many didn’t think I was in costume.

O projecto Xanadu de Ted Nelson existe desde 1960, e ainda não cumpre os ambiciosos objectivos que Nelson tem para ele. A ideia base do projecto é criar uma base de dados com tudo o que alguma fez foi escrito (livros, ensaios, revistas, cartas, etc.), e com isso criar um verdadeiro hipertexto universal. Nelson acredita que “tudo está profundamente interligado” e que tem que estar online dessa mesma maneira.

Obviamente que este projecto, para ser realizado, não poderá armazenar a literatura mundial num servidor. O sistema usaria um método de partilha de informação. Os textos depositados no Xanadu nunca sairiam dos computadores pessoais, o programa está desenhado para abrir os textos num computador a partir de outro. Quando o utilizador activa um link, o texto que lhe aparece não está armazenado no Xanadu, mas sim no computador de quem o inseriu no sistema. O Xanadu apenas faz a ligação.

Outro problema do sistema seriam os direitos de autor, mas Ted Nelson avança com uma possível solução:”In order to make this possible, the system must guarantee that the owner of any information will be paid their chosen royalties on any portions of their documents, no matter how small, whenever and wherever they are used.”

 “We need a way for people to store information not as individual “files” but as a connected literature” é este o principal objectivo do projecto. Os documentos devem permanecer acessíveis ad eterna sem o perigo de se perderem, serem modificados, censurados ou removidos, a não ser pelo autor. Seria uma ferramenta rápida de consulta, investigação e estudo e Ted Nelson faz questão de frizar que seria acessivel a todos.

8 de noviembre de 2009

So, today in my communications course we had a little contest for how to find information on the internet.  I know, how perfect.  Anyway, the set-up: 11 questions, who can answer the most over a given amount of time.  I’d had my morning coffee.  My fingers worked like magic.  I came up with a total of 11 answers.  Sure, two of my answers were a little wishy-washy (how many searches are made on Google per day [to which no accurate data can be found anyway] and who owns the domain name for Transmeta [to which I only found ownership of the now defunct company, not the domain]).  But the rest… wooo.  Anyway, my prize was an Espresso Royale gift card.  I won coffee!  And after class my teacher said to me, I shit you not, “Garrett, you should become a librarian.”  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!  I was so proud.

On another note: earlier this week I found myself strutting about with a tucked in t-shirt (’cause, you know, it’s cold).  And then I realized: my father does this.  I left it tucked in.

And another thing: we recently read a series of children’s books in my Swedish class, to which I immediately thought “oh I can’t wait to share these with my mom.”  Then I thought, “damn, this is probably what my mom thinks when she gets a new kids book.”  Probably why?  Because my mother still loves reading me children’s books.  The ones she reads in her library.  Or at the very least outlaying the plot to me to a t.

And on a final note: as some of you may know, I received Xanadu for my birthday from one of my good friends.  I’ve been showing it off to (most notably my roommates), and can quote myself saying, “I’m so going to raise my kids on this movie.”  Then I realized, “oh no, that’s what my parents did to me.”

Mom and dad, what did you do to meeeee?

Ah, what a wonderful day.

Listening to: Tropical Iceland, The Fiery Furnaces

Each week, The Broadway Critic will be featuring the news that you don’t want to miss! Come back each week to see what’s happened!

Some hot news on Broadway this week:

• Broadway Magazine reported that the “odds were strong” that American Idiot was going to take over the Nederlander Theatre with an opening in the Spring. (We were very excited about that, considering our review.) It’s not true. Instead, a new jukebox musical, Million Dollar Quartet, featuring songs by Elvis, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis, will be making it’s debut in Spring 2010. We went to the website and decided that we don’t need another jukebox musical on Broadway. Don’t we have enough already? It’s been a critical success in Chicago, but I just don’t see how it’s going actually sell way down on 41st street. Did we have to kill Brighton Beach for that?
• Two million dollars. Really?? I can’t believe that Hamlet actually cost two million dollars in the first place.  With a stage that stark naked and Jude Law as your lead, I figured it was almost free to produce! Well, they’ve recouped their two million dollars. (Fairly quickly, I might add. It did open only a month or so ago.) Congrats. How much do you bet that there will be another Shakespeare on Broadway with another big name!
• Michael Riedel of the NY Post has been pretty awful toward Matthew Broderick. He says, “He has a reputation for being slow (some say lazy) in rehearsals, and his recent stage appearances have been, to put it gently, awful.” Ouch! I’ve never seen Broderick on stage, so I can’t concur, but I do know that this has got to suck for Broderick.
• Most importantly, one of Broadway’s biggest flops, Carrie, is apparently being resurrected. We’ve heard stories about how horrible this show was, but apparently it’s not horrible enough to disappear forever. Sutton Foster is reportedly on the project as well. (Apparently, Shrek’s closing was a little too early!) Marin Mazzie is also on board.
• Finally, Xanadu is going on tour. They had their auditions last Friday in New York City. Sadly, the closest place they are coming to the Bay Area is Sacramento. Check it out from December 28th to January 10th at Sacramento Music Circus. This production needs to be done in the Bay Area and soon. It’s too much fun not to! And now, I’ve got “I’m Alive” stuck in my head.

Until next week…

Unbeknownst to some of you who only know me through this blog, in recent months I’ve been inspired by my love of movies to share my strange cinematic taste with friends, family and passersby.    The tradition has been established, and I thought I’d share it with you, loyal readers, and invite you all to be there in spirit, if not in person on Friday, November 20th at Club Awesome (aka my house, email me for info if you think you can make it!)

And yes, by request from an out of town friend who couldn’t make it last time, there will be a “here in spirit” message wall at the party where all snarky comments, congratulations and contributions will be displayed for our guests!

So what exactly will be on the movie menu?  Here’s the description I wrote for the invitation:

A place, where nobody dared to go - the love that we've come to know - they call it XANADU!

We’re going back to a simpler time before cellphones and the Internet, when Regan was in office and legs were very warm…in our first feature, the legwarmers are sported by Olivia Newton-John as she inspires an artist and a musician to build a roller disco palace called *’Xanadu’*! Will she give up her career as a Muse to be with the man she loves even though he wears vests and pulls his jeans up too high? Watch and find out!

The legwarmers in our second feature are sported by a still to become a jowly Scientologist John Travolta in *’Stayin’ Alive’*, the little known (and hardly watched) sequel to ‘Saturday Night Fever’. Our hero Tony Manero has given up the disco lifestyle and traded in his white suit for a tight spandex leotard and a headband. Will Tony get the lead in the Broadway show? Will he tame the diva and bend her to his will? Will you die laughing when you see his outfit in the big ‘finale’? Come to movie night and find out!
OK, now tell me that although y’all live in faraway places, you’ll do your best to roller disco yourselves to New Jersey and join in the fun!

Anika Larsen has a gift, besides her acting, that she bestows upon theatre audiences nightly…her  supreme voice. She has a way to hit all the right notes and when needed belt them out of this world. Most recently Anika wrote and performed in “Shafrika, The White Girl,” an autobiographical musical about growing up with nine siblings of different races. Anika’s other theatrical credits include Broadway’s “Xanadu,” “All Shook Up,” “Rent,” and Off-Broadway’s “Zanna, Don’t!” She holds a B.A. in Theatre from Yale and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity. Anika is also the Co-founder of Jaradoa Theater, which serves the community through performance-based outreach. Visit them at www.jaradoatheater.org. Currently, Anika can been seen in the Tony Award Winning Musical “Avenue Q” at The New World Stages as “Kate Monster/Lucy.”

1. Who inspired you to become a performer? My 9 brothers and sisters inspired me to be a performer, because I figured out early on that singing loud was the best way for me to get attention in my house.

2. What is the highest and lowest note you can sing? I don’t know. I probably should, but I think deciding where your high and low are can psych you out. If you’re too aware that you’re singing near your limits, your mind might decide you can’t sing a note your voice actually can. I just sing what they tell me to sing.

3. What is the best advice you’ve given someone, but not taken for yourself? Choose your personal life (your family, your friends, your happiness) over your career. I’m trying to do that more, but historically I’ve been bad at it. I’ll bet a lot of us in this biz are.

4. Out of all the people you’ve worked with, who did you learn the most from? My first Equity gig was Rent in L.A., and that cast taught me a tremendous amount about the logistics of the theater business, and about the kind of professional I want to be.

5. Who is the one person you haven’t worked with that you would like to? My friend Catherine Brunell is hugely talented, but also one of the most genuine, generous, delightful people I know in this business. She’s in Mary Poppins now. We met when we were doing different musicals up at the Goodspeed, and we bonded watching Red Sox games after our respective shows. We’ve been great friends ever since, but we’ve never actually worked together–I wanna do a show with her!

6. Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts? What do you order? I don’t drink coffee, and I try to avoid big chains. If I was meeting someone for “coffee”, I’d get green tea at an independent coffee spot like The Coffee Pot. (Hey, that rhymed at the end!)

7. Favorite skin care product? I love my Cover Girl CG Smoother Tinted Moisturizer. It’s lotion with foundation in it, and it’s cheap.

8. Favorite play/musical? Asking for one favorite is kind of a ridiculous thing to do. But I’ve seen In the Heights seven times. I’ve never seen a show seven times. So that must mean something.

9. Favorite website? www.jaradoatheater.org

10. Superman or Wonder Woman? Wonder Woman. Better theme song.

I am in heaven….Olivia, 80’s, and rollerskating.

” and now open your eyes and see
what we have made is real
we are in xanadu”

Olivia Newton John – Xanadu

As a new print of the film generally regarded as the greatest ever made is released, here’s my guide to the Orson Welles masterwork.

A-Z of Citizen Kane

A is for the American Film Institute which, in 2007, voted Citizen Kane the Greatest Movie of All Time – as it had also done in 1998.

B is for Boy Wonder, the nickname given to stage and radio star Orson Welles even before he made Citizen Kane (1941).

C is for ceilings. One of the innovations of Citizen Kane was the way in which the domineering title character was always shot from below, so that his power was always underlined (weaker characters were shot from above) – the result was that the ceilings of rooms were seen for the first time in the movies; in fact this was the first time the sets had had to have ceilings..

D is for debuts. Citizen Kane would have been a phenomenal achievement no matter who had made it but the fact that it was Welles’s debut as a movie director (and actor and producer) is astounding. He had to learn even the basics of filmmaking while he preparing Kane. Despite this – or perhaps because of his lack of technical experience and willingness to experiment – Welles subverted the rules of filmmaking and created a new vocabulary in the language of cinema.

E is for the end. Citizen Kane opens with the end of Kane’s story – his death – and then goes back to his humble beginnings.

F is for flashbacks. The story of Kane’s life is told through a series of flashbacks triggered by a newspaper reporter’s interviews with the tycoon’s former colleagues, ex-wife and friends.

G is for Gregg Toland, the cinematographer hired by Welles because of his flamboyance and unconventional style. One of Kane’s many innovations was “depth of field”, the method Toland devised of composing shots so that the screen was loaded with information and the figures and objects at the front of the screen were in focus at the same time as those at the back.

H is for Hearst, William Randolph – the American press baron who inspired the character and story of Citizen Kane. The film was essentially a thinly veiled biopic, which showed how power corrupted and how great egos are born – and grow out of control. Before the film was released, Hearst offered RKO Studios $800,000 (the cost of the film) to destroy the negative.

I is for innovation. Citizen Kane is packed full of new techniques, from the pioneering use of overlapping dialogue (which Welles brought from radio) to the ahead-of-its-time make-up which allowed the young star to convincingly age by 50 years during the course of the film.

J is for Judy Holliday. The scenes in which Susan Alexander is being bullied by Kane into being an opera singer are similar to those in the 1950 movie Born Yesterday, in which a gangster tries to turn his moll into a refined lady. By coincidence, Judy Holliday, that movie’s Oscar-winning star, was tested for the part of Susan in Citizen Kane.

K is for “King” Cole. The great pianist (and singer) Nat “King” Cole can be heard playing in the scene at the El Rancho nightclub where Susan is working.

L is for legacy. Citizen Kane stands as an astonishingly fresh piece of work nearly 70 years after it was made, and it has inspired countless filmmakers, among them Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Brian De Palma and Steven Spielberg who pays homage to it in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).

M is for Mercury Theatre, the stage company that Welles founded with John Houseman in New York in 1937. Known for its bold, original productions, Mercury Theatre branched out into radio drama – most famously its vivid 1938 dramatisation of HG Wells’s The War of the Worlds, which, although broadcast as a Hallowe’en prank, caused a nationwide panic as thousands of Americans believed they were listening to news coverage of a real-life alien invasion.

N is for Neverland. Michael Jackson’s vast estate – a sort of mini-kingdom – is the closest modern-day equivalent to Kane’s Xanadu, where he stored and showed off “the loot of the world” – the art work, architecture and animals he collected from across the globe. The gothic Xanadu was inspired by Hearst’s gargantuan castle San Simeon which was stuffed with antiques and art and had its own zoo.

O is for Only One Oscar. Yup, The Greatest Film of All Time won only one Academy Award – for the screenplay written by Welles and Herman J Mankiewicz. In 2003, Welles’s statuette was about to be sold in an auction at Christie’s in New York (by Welles’s youngest daughter) but was voluntarily withdrawn so that the Academy could buy it back for $1, a deal which all Oscar winners have to agree to. It had been expected to fetch over $300,000.

P is for Parsons. Louella O Parsons was the Hearst newspaper group’s Hollywood gossip columnist who could make or break careers. When she heard that Welles’s film was really about her boss, she demanded to be shown it – and blew a gasket. It was her report to Hearst which triggered his pre-emptive strike of banning advertisements for the film from his papers, a move which led some cinema chains to cancel their bookings.

Q is for the QT. Several key scenes in Citizen Kane were filmed on the quiet, behind closed doors, so that studio executives couldn’t interfere with the production. The projection room scene, plus the interviews, were passed off as tests but Welles fully intended to use them in the movie – and he did.

R is for “rosebud”, the last word uttered by Kane as he dies in the opening scenes of the film. It is the quest to discover what “rosebud” was that drives the whole film as a reporter is assigned the job of getting to the bottom of the mystery by interviewing as many of Kane’s friends and associates as necessary.

S is for score. Bernard Herrmann’s evocative score – his first feature film score – contributed much to the sinister atmosphere of the film. He went on to compose the music for such diverse classics as The Ghost and Mrs Muir (1947) and Taxi Driver (1976).

T is for twenty-four, the age Welles was when he was making “the greatest film ever made”.

U is for unorthodox. A particularly unusual technique was devised by editor Robert Wise (later the director of The Sound of Music) to make the newsreel footage at the start of the film look authentic and grainy: he ran the film through cheesecloth filled with sand.

V is for vendetta. Hearst’s papers conducted a smear campaign against Welles in revenge for Citizen Kane; one rumour which circulated was that Welles was a communist.

W is for “will-they-won’t-they?”. The release of the film very nearly didn’t happen as RKO’s board buckled under pressure not just from Hearst but also from other studio heads, who felt the controversy would damage the industry. Finally, three months after its original scheduled release date, it opened in New York – the result of Welles pointing out to the studio that his contract gave him the right to sue if the film wasn’t shown within a certain period of time.

X is for x-tras. These included Alan Ladd (who would become a leading man the following year) as the pipe-smoking reporter at the end of the film.

Y is for years. The story of Citizen Kane spans an epic 65 years, from his childhood when he was sent to live in the care of the family lawyer, to his death as an isolated old man. For 50 of those years, Kane was played by Orson Welles.

Z is for the Ziegfeld Follies, the show in which William Randolph Hearst’s much-younger mistress, Marion Davies, was appearing when they first met. Hearst’s relationship with Davies differed from that of Kane and Susan Alexander in the movie in a few ways: although Hearst undoubtedly got Davies into movies, she was actually an accomplished comedienne, whereas her fictional alter ego was a pretty lousy opera singer. And while Susan marries and divorces Kane, Davies, whose movie career made her independently wealthy, remained devoted to her man (though they never married) until his death.
* A new print of Citizen Kane is showing at the GFT, Glasgow from October 30 until Thursday 5, and at the Filmhouse, Edinburgh from October 30 until Sunday 8.

Tuesday Blues day

Hurt you with purple

My lead left you in the red

my raps kept me in the black

My green is obscene

i smoke til i’m yellow

that means mellow I dream in indigo

gray haze seen in the smoke

tan trench coat

white skin, lacks sun

Air Force Blue eyes see action

Your bullshit’s brown

we quick to flush it down

My team moves like Marines in Army green

your black and white is hardly seen on TV screens

I scream

champagne thoughts til your gray matters caught

and your black lungs cough

you slump off

I get in your girls magenta

enter her center

when her peach desert is wetter

left her

red like the wax dripped on the love letter

you sent her

I’ll be tired when i’m dead

til then my eyes stay fire engine red

Getting Gold and going platinum?

wonder if it’ll ever happen from my rappin

For now i’ma stay up in the xanadu smoke

while You’re gayer then heliotrope

No homo(phobe)

Olivia Newton-John is a woman who represents many things to many people. For some she is Olivia Newton-John the Grammy, Country Music, American Music, Emmy, and People’s Choice Award winning artist. For others, she’s “Sandy” from the mega hit movie musical “Grease,” and for countless millions she is an inspiration of survival and strength, winning her own fight against breast cancer. For me, she’s one of my top favorite artists who’s music, movies, and life’s battles have shown me that “No Matter What You Do,” every life experience, both happy and hard, makes us “Stronger Than Before.” Now here’s her story…

Olivia Newton-John was born in Cambridge, England in 1948, moving to Melbourne, Australia when she was five. By 1963, Olivia was appearing on local Australian TV and weekly music programs. She cut her first single in 1966, a cover of Jackie DeShannon’s “Till You Say You’ll Be Mine” and in 1971 she recorded a cover of “Bob Dylan’s “If Not For You,” co-produced by John Farrar, with whom she continues to collaborate with today. In 1973, Olivia released her first U.S. album, “Let Me Be There,” which earned her her first top ten single of the same name. That year, the Academy of Country Music honored her as “Most Promising Female Vocalist” and a Grammy Award as “Best Country Vocalist.” In addition to the multiple awards listed above, Olivia has had five #1 hits (including the smash hit “Physical,” which topped the charts for ten consecutive weeks), 15 top 10 singles, and has been inducted into the Australian Music Hall of Fame. Other music career highlights include: the 1994 release of  “Gaia: One Woman’s Journey”, her most personal (and my favorite) album, which reflects upon her experiences with cancer, the 1999 release of her album “Back With A Heart” earned her a Daytime Emmy Award for her song “Love Is A Gift” which was featured on “As The World Turns,” performing “Dare to Dream” at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the release of “Magic-The Very Best of Olivia Newton-John”, which celebrated 30 years of recordings as well her first holiday album in 2002, “The Christmas Collection.” She has also released a duets album titled “2,” which features many of her Australian friends as well as “Indigo: Women of Song”, a tribute album to many of Olivia’s favorite female performers.

In addition to music, Olivia has delighted fans in such movies as the mega-hit movie musical “Grease,” the cult-favorite “Xanadu” (in which she danced her away across the screen with Gene Kelly), “Two of A Kind,” “It’s My Party,”, and “Sordid Lives.” On television she has light up the screen as host of the internationally syndicated “Wild Life” television show, in the Showtime movie “The Wilde Girls” (co-starring with her real-life daughter Chole), as a guest judge on “American Idol,” a series regular on Del Shore’s “Sordid Lives: The Series” (co-starring Rue McClanahan, Leslie Jordan, and Jason Dottley), as well as the television movies “A Mom For Christmas” and “My Christmas Romance.”

In addition to her artistry, Olivia dedicates much of her time to many humanitarian & environmental causes such as “The Colette Chuda Environment Fund/CHEC (Children’s Health Environ-mental Coalition) which was founded in 1991 after the tragic death of Chole’s best friend from a rare childhood cancer. She is creating the “Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre” (ONJCWC) in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia which hopes to break ground in 2010 as they are still in the fundraising stages (but almost there). The Wellness Centre is the major passion of the centre for Olivia. It will provide a comprehensive range of services and facilities for cancer treatment, education, training and research. Olivia has also released “Liv Aid,” a breast self-examination device which helps women perform self-breast exams with more ease and confidence. Everyone needs to get away and rejuvenate, so Olivia opened the GAIA Retreat & Spa, in Bryon Bay, Australia, a retreat site that bases your stay upon your individual needs. Her outreach and dedication to these causes, always brings Olivia back to music. In 2005 she released the CD “Stronger Than Before,” featuring songs of inspiration, courage, and hope that relate to the many emotions cancer patients and their loved ones face, with a portion of the proceeds going to cancer research. In 2006, Olivia released “Grace and Gratitude”, a relaxation CD to help promote spiritual balance and physical and emotional healing. It’s release coincided with the launch of Olivia’s signature line of body, heart, and spirit wellness products for women, exclusively available at Walgreens stores.

Always spreading love and positive energy, whether through her artistry or personal causes, Olivia Newton-John is here to stay and I’m honored that someone I’ve admired for so many years and has helped me get through some rough times, has taken the time to participate in “Adaumbelle’s Quest.” Thank you Olivia for your love and light and showing me how to “Pass It On.” For much more on Olivia Newton-John be sure to visit: http://olivianewton-john.com/

1. Who inspired you to become a performer? I have always loved to sing and have done so since I was girl, but I guess I have to credit my sister and my mother for really encouraging me to work hard and pursue a career as a young girl.

2. Who is the one person you haven’t worked with that you would like to? That is a huge question! So much talent in the world and I have worked with so many-but one would be Tony Bennett.

3. Who do you consider to be your hero? I have to say my mum for sure. She was an amazing woman who had a gift of seeing the beauty in everything and she passed on this gift – and by her example I learned to deal with everything in life.

4. Is there ever a time you thought about quitting? If so, what did you think about doing instead? The only time I thought of retiring was after I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992. I thought I was going to take time off to just be a mum and enjoy my life in a quiet way, but during and after my treatment I kept writing songs – I couldn’t help it. Music will always be a major therapy for me!

5. If you could dream about anyone while you sleep, who would it be? My wonderful husband, “Amazon John” Easterling. He is definitely – and excuse the pun – the man of my dreams!

6. Favorite pastime? Spending time with my daughter, my husband, and our dogs.

7. Favorite way to stay in shape? I love to play tennis, go for long walks on the beach, do yoga, and I now love to kayak. My husband gave me one for my birthday and I just love it! I also take his company’s herbs and drink his organic rainforest health juice ZAMU every day. It makes you feel amazing and it is extremely good for your body, mind, and spirit!

8. Favorite store to shop in? CVS!!

9. Favorite skin care product? Definitely the Amazon Herb Company’s Lluvia skin care line (AmazonHerb.net). I love their Camu C Serum – it smells delicious. It is great for your skin – packed with Vitamin C!

10. Favorite website? www.Liv.com – this is a site that I am very proud of as it helps bring valuable information to woman about breast cancer and the Liv Aid, a breast self-exam device I designed that helps woman perform monthly self-exams more easily. Early detection is key to beating breast cancer!

11. Superman or Wonder Woman? Wonder Woman. (My husband is Superman!)

A preliminary review by Norwest Energy (ASX: NWE) of the airborne FTG survey results (Full Tensor Gradiometry) has confirmed the structural integrity of Xanadu and Redhill South prospects and as prime targets for drilling in the 2010 drilling season. The two targets – Xanadu and Redhill South – are in an underexplored northern Perth Basin permit, TP/15 (Norwest 100%).

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Advanced survey technology unlocks overlooked oil prospects
• Xanadu and Redhill South structures confirmed as prime targets for 2010 drilling season

The company plans to drill at least one, and possibly both, of these targets during 2010 and is now focused on progressing both the drilling and farm-out processes. Importantly, both wells can be drilled from onshore sites using deviated drilling techniques.

Following the preliminary review of the FTG survey, Norwest now has enough information to confidently work on identifying and securing a suitable drill rig, and to begin the planning and permitting processes for drilling either Xanadu or Redhill South, or both prospects. In parallel, the company will further evaluate data from the FTG survey in conjunction with other data in order to mitigate risk and determine the optimum drill sites.

Click here to view the full announcement.

For further information, please contact:

Peter Munachen or Ernie Myers
08-9227 3240 or info@norwestenergy.com.au

Media and Investor Enquiries:
Steve Rotherham
Fortbridge
0421 488 320
+612 9331 0655

It’s the middle of the summer. You’re enjoying the beautiful weather in Madrid, having a blast on 360° Student Travel’s Spanish Spectacular and all of a sudden you have the urge to go skiing. What do you do?

Obviously, go to Xanadu featuring Madrid’s largest indoor ski and snowboard slopes. It may seem like a dream but Xanadu is one of Europe’s largest shopping centers (think Mall of America) with over 250 stores including movie theaters, restaurants, go kart tracks, a bowling alley and more. All of that fails in comparison to the gigantic indoor dome with enough room for beginnings and expert skiers to hit the slopes in the middle of the summer.

This oasis is complete with faux pine trees and outcrops of rocks. There is even a real chairlift. Want to see more? Check out their website here.

The New York Times did a great article on the complex when it first opened in 2003. That can be viewed here.

Want to experience this in person? Join us on the Spanish Spectacular.

The Westcoast Blogger

I’ve been in conversation with Jason Horejs, owner of Xanadu Gallery in Scottsdale Arizona.  http://www.xanadugallery.com I say conversation, but really all communications have been by email. He has been to my website and likes what he sees which is encouraging as this work is a new direction for me.

Before, most photos included a background of varying California scenic wonders, but I never emphasized or concentrated on such. I am happy to now be zeroing in on my  California Dreaming works; especially while living for a year here in the midwest. I am transformed back to the vibrant hills, mountains and sea side as I pour over my many hundreds of photos. I am looking for the very best; those that have the most potential for eliciting my emotional connection. I then set about to alter and transform them to heighten the emotional aspects of each.

Their beet books insofar as that their bleached and “beet”, a term coined by publishing editor
Grant Michael Gaffey, which means that the books
have been washed, died, and beet, which is
also to say that the books are died with beat before they are published…

A place where nobody dared to go
The love that we came to know
They call it Xanadu

Sung to the tune of ‘Xanadu’:

A shot nobody wanted to get
The bug nobody wanted to catch
Now we have Tamiflu

And now
Roll up your sleeve and smile
Because the swine flu is real
Now we have Tamiflu

A million pigs are dancing
Sneezing droplets in the air
And H1N1 is here
Contagious as hell
Wash your hands well
Extremely

Tamiflu, Tamiflu,
(now we have you)
Our Tamiflu
Tamiflu, Tamiflu,
(now we have you)
Oh Tamiflu

The content herein is Copyright to the author, All Rights Reserved.

I love songs from movies. One song that is top on my list is “Xanadu” by Olivia Newton-John and ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) (1980).

Xanadu stars Olivia Newton-John, Michael Beck, and Gene Kelly, and features music by Newton-John, Electric Light Orchestra, Cliff Richard, and The Tubes.

I haven’t seen this movie probably since I first saw it in 1980 — 29 years ago!! But I have always liked this song. Plus, the fact that Michael Beck, and Gene Kelly were in the movie didn’t hurt either.

Good news for Old Town’s A Red Orchid Theatre: tickets for their current production Mistakes Were Made (our review here), by Craig Wright, have been selling like hot cakes – so much so that they’ve added an extra Wednesday night performance for all of October.  Be sure to check it out before it closes on October 31st.  Mistakes Were Made stars Michael Shannon, and is directed by Dexter Bullard.   (h/t Chris Jones)

Check out the interview with Chicago Shakes artistic director (and founder) Barbara Gaines regarding her direction of the company’s current production, Richard III. Well worth the read.

The Daily Beast has posted a rave review of Tracy Letts’ Superior Donuts, which played last year to positive reviews at Steppenwolf. An excerpt:

Letts and his cast can breathe deeply today. While a far less ambitious play than August, with its three-story set and sprawling cast, Superior Donuts is no less successful for what it aims to be: a tender, funny, and often tragic valentine to Letts’ Chicago in a time of intense cultural change. Fans of August won’t find that play’s heavy, gut-wrenching revelations here, but Donuts was always intended to be a smaller, lighter effort, as delightful and sweet as a doughnut itself. The play, which Letts began writing even before August, earned positive reviews when it first opened in Chicago with the same cast in July 2008, and after a year of Letts’ tweaks and rewrites, it may be even better….

Read the entire review here.

Per Perez Hilton:

Tina Fey’s brilliant comedy, 30 Rock, may be getting the one thing it’s severely lacking – a hot piece of eye candy!

Rumors are circulating that Broadway hottie, openly gay and successful actor Cheyenne Jackson, will allegedly be joining the cast in a semi or possibly a completely permanent capacity.

For those of you who don’t live and die by the goings on of the Great White Way, Cheyenne has been in productions like Xanadu and All Shook Up!. 

More here.

Acabo de terminar leer el artículo de Wired que narra la crónica del Proyecto Xanadu y sinceramente he quedado bastante impresionado, estoy sin palabras.

Tanto por la presunta utopía representada por el proyecto mismo y su alcance como por la excentricidad e ingenuidad de quien han estado involucrados en sus varias muertes y resurrecciones, así como por la excelente calidad del artículo, no puedo dejar de recomendarlo.

Todavía tengo escalofríos.

Via Coding Horror.