Sue Lange's Blog, page 7

Getting the Word Out with Conflicting Messages

I’m in the middle of three projects at the moment. All of them are using social media to “get the word out.” The two foremost projects, “Speakeasy” and “Finding Jenn’s Voice,” don’t exactly have conflicting messages, but the approach to their social media campaigns couldn’t be more different.

Speakeasy is a play about Reading, PA during the Prohibition years. The Roaring 20s. We’re staging this production at the end of the month when an old ballroom will be transformed into a speakeasy. We’ll be serving beer and wine as well as some of Reading’s signature product: pretzels. Our opening song, in fact, is “Pretzels and Beer.” We’ve got Vaudevillian performers serving as a backdrop for the action on the floor where the Socialists, Temperance women, and gangsters congregate.

You’re getting the picture: it’s an evening of light entertainment. I’m pretty sure the show is going to be popular. We’ve already sold a bunch of tickets. That makes sense. People want to have fun. Social media for “Speakeasy” has been a snap.

“Finding Jenn’s Voice,” on the subject of intimate partner violence, is not as easy a sell. People find it hard to look in the face of evil. Instinct tells us to look the other way. We don’t really want to hear Jenn’s side of the story. We’d rather just listen to the news capsules with a few sensational sound bites before heading into the stock report.

The news media pretends it’s a big headline, a major event but worthy of only five minutes air time. It’s unique, but it’s over. It won’t happen again, so let’s move on.

But it does happen again. And again and again. It happens so frequently it’s not really newsworthy. What is newsworthy is the work that a number of people are doing to make sure it doesn’t happen frequently. It’s a cultural phenomenon, this spouse-killing, and it can be prevented. But you won’t hear that on CNN, let alone Fox.

The problem will be solved with education, but that education will never be part of the highschool or college curriculum. It will take the media, but a different avenue than the nightly news. This information can only come outside the Internet/TV realm.

The story requires a documentarian to research the story, document it, frame it, and distribute it in new places. That requires money, which requires fundraising, which requires social media.

Trying to raise awareness for “Finding Jenn’s Voice” requires a firm but gentle presence on Facebook and Twitter. Those two platforms have the power to change the world. We’ve seen it time and again. But unlike that for an evening of fun entertainment, this campaign requires a sober uncompromising face.

The sobriety required to inform the world about Finding Jenn’s Voice is in conflict with the Barnum & Bailey voice required to sell Speakeasy. Social media is a great tool, but it unmasks a person like me. Split between two projects, two loyalties, two voices, even I’m not sure how I feel about anything. Is there evil around every corner, so much that levity is in bad taste? Or is life but a joke, not to be taken seriously?

I feel strongly about both of these projects. I’m 100% committed to both. They’re both very important to me. I’m just having trouble reconciling the social media. Somehow I must convince the Facebook crowd to get on board with both. Is that possible?

Sue Lange

P.S. Please consider a $10 donation to Finding Jenn’s Voice (http://www.seedandspark.com/studio/finding-jenns-voice).

And if you’re in the Reading area Aug. 30, 31, Sept. 5, 6, or 7, consider coming to the show.

Tracy Schott: Finding Jenn���s Voice

The ���Jenn��� in Tracy Schott���s documentary is Jennifer Snyder. In 2011, she was murdered by the father of her unborn child. When Jenn���s aunt Trina called Tracy to ask her to make a movie about Jenn, Tracy shook her head. As a commercial film producer she is too often requested to make a movie about someone���s life story.

But Jenn���s story is different. It���s not so much about the brutal murder of Jennifer Snyder, as it is about an alarming statistic: the number one cause of death among pregnant women is murder.

After Trina contacted her, Tracy did a little research. Although she was dubious about the story���s importance, she Googled ���homicide and pregnancy��� and was shocked to learn the above statistic. How could that be true, she wondered. And more importantly: what could she do about it.

Before becoming a film producer, Tracy was a Social Worker. She left that field because she knew she could make a bigger impact elsewhere. Her training though, the fortuitous call from a friend, and her subsequent quick research on the subject led Tracy to a logical conclusion. Finding Jenn���s Voice is the film that was waiting for her.

She started doing deeper research and learned how preventable intimate partner violence (IPV) is if we are educated about it. She knew that Finding Jenn���s Voice would be the perfect vehicle for education. She���s been passionately working on it since then.

I spoke to Tracy a year ago about the project. Now that���s she���s in the midst of a fundraising campaign to finish the film, I thought it���d be good to check in on her. I stopped by her office in the Goggleworks of Reading, Pennsylvania for a chat.

Sue Lange: The last time we talked you had interviewed Jenn���s family, a number of the law enforcement officers who had dealt with the case, and a few experts in the field of IPV. Where are you at in the process now?

Tracy Schott: We���re about half done with shooting. Then, of course we���ll have about 100 hours of footage to edit.

SL: Wow, that���s a lot. I remember you were trying to talk to David Rapoport���s ex-wife (David Rapoport is the murderer.). Were you able to do that?

TS: No, she has not responded to our requests. And frankly, she too, was a victim of her husband���s coercion and control, and I feel that it���s important to respect her desire for privacy.

SL: I agree. So let’s talk about your process. The new trailer you���ve put together is fantastic. And I noticed you added interviews with more experts on IPV. Now you���ve been reaching out to survivors. What have their stories been like?

TS: I���ve talked to over 30 survivors of attempted murder, many of whom were pregnant at the time. These were all women who contacted me after the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence posted information about my project. These women have had unbelievably harrowing experiences. And they are all incredibly strong. They want to tell their stories. They want to help other people that may find themselves in similar situations.

SL: How will their stories help?

TS: Each one of these women is unique���their scenarios are all different in terms of specific events, murder weapon, location and such���but there are strong commonalities.

SL: Such as?

TS: Each of the survivors I spoke with described the perpetrators as charming and likeable. One woman felt like she���d ���hit the lottery��� because he was so perfect. But eventually, these men became intensely jealous many resorting to stalking and monitoring the women���s activities. They were very controlling, financially, about what the women could wear, who they could see, and their communication with friends and family. All described how they became isolated so that when the abuse escalated or they realized that the relationship was dangerous, they had nowhere to turn. If we can educate women about these red flags in relationships, I do believe we change the outcomes.

SL: So how will this film do that? How will it have an impact?

TS: In addition to the normal distribution channels���film festivals, online distribution, and possibly television���we plan to directly distribute to college campuses. I hope to travel and do talks along with the film. We want to educate women, especially when they���re young. And men. One in four women, and one in six men, will find themselves in an abusive relationship. It���s important for people to start talking about this. It���s surprising and disconcerting how uncomfortable people are with this topic. That needs to change.

SL: Yes. You need to get this film out there. It will be a starting point for the conversation. So how is the fundraising at Seed & Spark going?

TS: Seed & Spark is an amazing crowdfunding platform. There are a lot of platforms out there, but Seed & Spark is the best for our purposes.

SL: Why���s that?

TS: They only do film and it is curated.

SL: I saw that at their website. In fact I posted about that at my blog. I think curation is so important these days with anything, but it���s especially helpful here. We may want to support a project that we know nothing about. If the project makes it to Seed & Spark, at least it���s been vetted.

TS: Also Seed & Spark is woman-run. And they are extremely supportive.

SL: Those two things might go hand in hand.

TS: Maybe. All I know is that within an hour of my launch, I had three donations from Seed & Spark staff. The first one was from the executive director. They know how important it is to have something in the pot right away. They also tweet my project every day. Crowdfunding is about getting the word out on the Internet. Facebook and Twitter are key.

SL: I know you���re looking for funds mostly because you���ve still got shooting to do. Why is that so expensive?

TS: We���ve still got to fly to where the interviews are going to take place. We���re scheduled to be finished on October 10th, but I���ve got about a dozen survivors to shoot yet. They���re located all over the country. One is in the U.K. We might not be able to get to that one. The final shoot is going to be a group interview with as many of the survivors as we can get together.

SL: Where are you going to do that?

TS: I think right here in my office.

SL: Perfect. It���s so comfortable here and conducive to conversation. I look forward to seeing that on the screen. Good luck with all of it especially the crowdfunding. With the funds, you can make all the rest of that happen. Thanks for talking to me about this crucial project.

TS: Thank you for your support and getting the word out about the film!

Tracy Schott is in the process of raising funds to complete Finding Jenn���s Voice. She needs $50,000 to conduct the final interviews and get through post-production. Please help.

Tracy Schott: Finding Jenn’s Voice

The “Jenn” in Tracy Schott’s documentary is Jennifer Snyder. In 2011, she was murdered by the father of her unborn child. When Jenn’s aunt Trina called Tracy to ask her to make a movie about Jenn, Tracy shook her head. As a commercial film producer she is too often requested to make a movie about someone’s life story.

But Jenn’s story is different. It’s not so much about the brutal murder of Jennifer Snyder, as it is about an alarming statistic: the number one cause of death among pregnant women is murder.

After Trina contacted her, Tracy did a little research. Although she was dubious about the story’s importance, she Googled “homicide and pregnancy” and was shocked to learn the above statistic. How could that be true, she wondered. And more importantly: what could she do about it.

Before becoming a film producer, Tracy was a Social Worker. She left that field because she knew she could make a bigger impact elsewhere. Her training though, the fortuitous call from a friend, and her subsequent quick research on the subject led Tracy to a logical conclusion. Finding Jenn’s Voice is the film that was waiting for her.

She started doing deeper research and learned how preventable intimate partner violence (IPV) is if we are educated about it. She knew that Finding Jenn’s Voice would be the perfect vehicle for education. She’s been passionately working on it since then.

I spoke to Tracy a year ago about the project. Now that’s she’s in the midst of a fundraising campaign to finish the film, I thought it’d be good to check in on her. I stopped by her office in the Goggleworks of Reading, Pennsylvania for a chat.

Sue Lange: The last time we talked you had interviewed Jenn’s family, a number of the law enforcement officers who had dealt with the case, and a few experts in the field of IPV. Where are you at in the process now?

Tracy Schott: We’re about half done with shooting. Then, of course we’ll have about 100 hours of footage to edit.

SL: Wow, that’s a lot. I remember you were trying to talk to David Rapoport’s ex-wife (David Rapoport is the murderer.). Were you able to do that?

TS: No, she has not responded to our requests. And frankly, she too, was a victim of her husband’s coercion and control, and I feel that it’s important to respect her desire for privacy.

SL: I agree. So let’s talk about your process. The new trailer you’ve put together is fantastic. And I noticed you added interviews with more experts on IPV. Now you’ve been reaching out to survivors. What have their stories been like?

TS: I’ve talked to over 30 survivors of attempted murder, many of whom were pregnant at the time. These were all women who contacted me after the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence posted information about my project. These women have had unbelievably harrowing experiences. And they are all incredibly strong. They want to tell their stories. They want to help other people that may find themselves in similar situations.

SL: How will their stories help?

TS: Each one of these women is unique—their scenarios are all different in terms of specific events, murder weapon, location and such—but there are strong commonalities.

SL: Such as?

TS: Each of the survivors I spoke with described the perpetrators as charming and likeable. One woman felt like she’d “hit the lottery” because he was so perfect. But eventually, these men became intensely jealous many resorting to stalking and monitoring the women’s activities. They were very controlling, financially, about what the women could wear, who they could see, and their communication with friends and family. All described how they became isolated so that when the abuse escalated or they realized that the relationship was dangerous, they had nowhere to turn. If we can educate women about these red flags in relationships, I do believe we change the outcomes.

SL: So how will this film do that? How will it have an impact?

TS: In addition to the normal distribution channels—film festivals, online distribution, and possibly television—we plan to directly distribute to college campuses. I hope to travel and do talks along with the film. We want to educate women, especially when they’re young. And men. One in four women, and one in six men, will find themselves in an abusive relationship. It’s important for people to start talking about this. It’s surprising and disconcerting how uncomfortable people are with this topic. That needs to change.

SL: Yes. You need to get this film out there. It will be a starting point for the conversation. So how is the fundraising at Seed & Spark going?

TS: Seed & Spark is an amazing crowdfunding platform. There are a lot of platforms out there, but Seed & Spark is the best for our purposes.

SL: Why’s that?

TS: They only do film and it is curated.

SL: I saw that at their website. In fact I posted about that at my blog. I think curation is so important these days with anything, but it’s especially helpful here. We may want to support a project that we know nothing about. If the project makes it to Seed & Spark, at least it’s been vetted.

TS: Also Seed & Spark is woman-run. And they are extremely supportive.

SL: Those two things might go hand in hand.

TS: Maybe. All I know is that within an hour of my launch, I had three donations from Seed & Spark staff. The first one was from the executive director. They know how important it is to have something in the pot right away. They also tweet my project every day. Crowdfunding is about getting the word out on the Internet. Facebook and Twitter are key.

SL: I know you’re looking for funds mostly because you’ve still got shooting to do. Why is that so expensive?

TS: We’ve still got to fly to where the interviews are going to take place. We’re scheduled to be finished on October 10th, but I’ve got about a dozen survivors to shoot yet. They’re located all over the country. One is in the U.K. We might not be able to get to that one. The final shoot is going to be a group interview with as many of the survivors as we can get together.

SL: Where are you going to do that?

TS: I think right here in my office.

SL: Perfect. It’s so comfortable here and conducive to conversation. I look forward to seeing that on the screen. Good luck with all of it especially the crowdfunding. With the funds, you can make all the rest of that happen. Thanks for talking to me about this crucial project.

TS: Thank you for your support and getting the word out about the film!

Tracy Schott is in the process of raising funds to complete Finding Jenn’s Voice. She needs $50,000 to conduct the final interviews and get through post-production. Please help.

Seed & Spark: New Kids on the Crowdfunding Block

Confession: I tried and failed at Kickstarter. Granted my campaign was back in the early days when Kickstarter lured prospectives with this pitch: A lot of people with money want to contribute to projects. It makes them feel like a part of it. Get on Kickstarter to connect with these people.

My problem was I didn’t read the fine print. It went something like this: the “people with money” are actually your friends and it will be your job to make them want to contribute to your project. And not just your friends, oh no. “People with money” includes anybody you’ve ever come across in your lifetime, even if they don’t have a day job or some other source of income. You will need to hound every person in your Rolodex, your elementary school teachers, truant officers, college professors, %*!k buddies, neighborhood homeless, best pals, sworn enemies, and barely passing acquaintances to meet your goal. If you don’t meet your goal you will not only lose all those people you nagged for money, but the amount they promised to donate. You will need to take a vacation from your job and life in order to run the campaign. You will lose any scrap of creativity you have in your chosen field of expression as you transform yourself into a fundraiser. What’s cool about that is when you’re done, even though you will probably have failed, you’ll have the job skills required to work for a non-profit.

What I discovered in those early Kickstarter days is that nobody trusted it. “Why can’t we just give you the money?” people asked when I tried to send them to Kickstarter. “We don’t really trust weird Internet sites.” I didn’t have an answer so I gave up and went about my business, creative soul intact.

Today everybody’s more sophisticatd. Crowdfunding is no longer scary. People with money love donating to projects at Kickstarter. It makes them feel like they’re part of it. Unfortunately you still have to mortgage a couple of months of your life in order to succeed there or on any platform.

Kickstarter has a less than 50% success rate. Sounds bad, but it’s probably not. Almost half the projects are getting funded. Unfortunately that doesn’t mean 1 out of 2 ideas are good and come to fruition. It just means 1 out of 2 project owners are good at selling. Talent at selling is never an indication of worthiness, but that’s another blog post.

Enough about Kickstarter, let’s move on to Seed & Spark, a filmmakers’ crowdfunding platform that got started only last year. Their website states they have a 70% success rate. How’d that happen when they are new and nobody likes weird new Internet sites? One word answer: gatekeepers.

I know, I know. In this post-monarchic Internet world, democracy is king. No gates allowed. But as we’ve quickly seen, when everyone owns the means of production you get a lot of, well, cat videos. At this point a little filtering is a good thing.

So getting a project on Seed & Spark is an accomplishment. It implies an organized campaign, a good product, and an energetic filmmaker. Anyone accepted at Seed & Spark is probably hard-wired to accomplish their goal.

I discovered Seed & Spark through Tracy’s campaign for Finding Jenn’s Voice. My previous posts have details on that, but in short, she’s about half done with production with a lot of interviews left to do. She has all the editing and distribution to do as well. The subject of Finding Jenn’s Voice is dark: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and the fact that the number one cause of death among pregnant women is murder. The premise of the film is that IPV is preventable, but the statistics won’t change unless we start talking about it. Finding Jenn’s Voice is the starting point for the conversation.

Good topic. Important topic. Worthy topic. Damn hard to get people interested. The subject is one that people don’t want to think about. We prefer the reports in the evening news which at best give us lurid details, and at worst side with the murderer (“He’s really a nice guy. Something made him snap.”)

Tracy’s a great filmmaker. Check out the trailer to see what I mean. I hope she succeeds. I hope Seed & Spark succeeds. If for no other reason than the belly-warming bit about themselves they have at their site:

So let’s hear it for the new kids on the crowdfunding block. Good luck to Seed & Spark and their clients. I look forward to some great indie movies in the years to come. If you feel the same way, head over to Seed & Spark and check out some of the flicks that have been funded there already. Their categories are great. I find “Made by Irish people,” and “Trouble in Paradise” more helpful than the typical Netflix categories like “Stuff you like,” or “Movies with Brad Pitt.”  At Seed & Spark you can actually view the movies online without having to wait for them to come to a festival in your town. Three bucks. “One Hundred Mornings” is on my list of things to watch.

See you at the show.

Sue Lange

If you haven’t donated a few bucks to Tracy’s movie, please do so now. She’s still only 14% funded at this point.

Pregnancy and Intimate Partner Violence

Tracy Schott’s documentary, FINDING JEN’S VOICE, is about half-way completed. She’s still got some shooting and interviewing to do before she begins the editing process. To get all of this done, she’s launching a fund-raising campaign  on July 29th. More about this below.

Finding Jenn’s Voice concerns the difficult subject of intimate partner violence (IPV). Tracy became involved  with IPV when a friend related the story of her niece, Jennifer Snyder, who had been murdered by her boyfriend. The boyfriend was married to another woman at the time and when he discovered Jennifer was pregnant he killed her.

Tracy was reluctant at first to work on a project that seemed more appropriate for tabloid journalism. But after doing a cursory search on the Internet, she discovered a horrible fact: murder is the number one cause of death in pregnant women. After overcoming her initial shock, she asked herself what could be done. What could she do about it? Tracy is a movie and tv show producer. The logical answer for her was to use her skills to tell Jennifer Snyder’s story with an eye to educating the world about the larger problem. The result is Finding Jenn’s Voice.

In Finding Jenn’s Voice, Tracy is offsetting the sensationalism the media initially gave Jennifer’s story with a clinical look at the wider problem of IPV. The movie will be a clarion call to our society: we must talk about this, we must make ourselves aware, we must change the story.

The fundraising campaign for the movie will launch at the end of the month. I’ve signed up to help get the word out. I’ll be following along on Facebook and reporting her progress back here. I’ll also be posting general  information on IPV as Tracy continues her research.

For more information on Finding Jenn’s Voice, visit the website. To help in these pre-launch days, you can “like” the Facebook page for Finding Jenn’s Voice, and pass along this information to everyone you know.

Stay tuned.

Sue Lange

Speakeasy: Prohibition in Reading, PA

Hey folks! Here’s my lastest writerly effort: Reading Theater Project is investigating the 1920s and 30s in Reading, PA. What went on with those bootleggers, millworkers, Socialists, and cigar rollers? A lot. And the music was great, too.

We’re in the process of creating our own speakeasy called the Diamond Mine with hostess Victoria “Duchess” Kreska. Patrons include the notorious Max Hassel, sweet young Georgia, and sardonic Li’l Elmer Pickney, reporter for the “best morning newspaper in Berks County.”  On stage you’ll find the fabulous Diamond Mine Vaudevillians.

All brought to you by Danderine. Do you suffer from itchy scalp, or dry, lifeless hair that won’t hold a wave? Sounds like you need Danderine!

The show’s going up on August 30th. Additional performances on Aug. 31, Sept. 5, 6, and 7 at the Olympia Ballroom in West Reading. Go to the website (http://www.readingtheaterproject.com) for tickets, details, etc.

See you there, Suckers!

Sue Lange

Audition for Prohibition

Attention all you flapper wannabes: Reading Theater Project is currently working on their end of summer production. It’s about Prohibition in Reading, PA. As everyone knows, Reading was infamous throughout mobdom of that time as a “wide open town.” We’re spending a lot of time in the vault, digging through the cracking, yellowing pages of the 1920s and 30s archives. You would not believe what we are finding.

 

And we’re not telling about it until it’s time for the unveiling of the production. Meantime you can get in on the action by auditioning for the show. We’re looking for people that can talk, act, sing, hoof, tell jokes, do impressions, or perform anything remotely Vaudevillian. Here’s the official call:

 

The Reading Theater Project will hold auditions for our original production, Speakeasy, a play with music about Prohibition in Reading. Auditions will be on Monday, June 30 and Tuesday, July 1 at 6pm at the TEA Factory at 580 Willow St. in Reading. 

All actors should prepare a 1 minute piece, from the 1920s/1930s era if possible: a monologue, 32 bars of a song, or a performance art style. We are casting adult actors to play Vaudeville-style performers, gangsters, temperance workers, and citizens. Only some roles require singing.

Performances Aug 30, 31 and Sept 5, 6, 7. All roles will receive a stipend. Questions or to reserve your audition space: 484-706-9719 or vicki@readingtheaterproject.com. Details on roles and the production at http://readingtheaterproject.com/productions/auditions/.

 

Hope to see you there.

S.

“Rags, Bones, Gumshoes…”

I love recycling. I’m sure I was a rag picker in a former life. In a future life I’ll be CEO of Waste Management, Inc. For now I’ll just support anybody with a unique idea on reducing landfill.

Today’s Award for Imaginative Salvaging goes to Theresa Legler, of Pittsburgh, PA. She makes earrings out of old vinyl records and used shampoo bottles. I met her at a bar called “Pope’s Place” in the Polish Hill neighborhood. I had travelled to Pittsburgh a few weeks ago for no other reason than that I had a weekend free from the Reading Theater Project and I wanted to take a trip. Why not Pittsburgh?

I hopped the train at Lancaster and six hours later found myself on a bar stool at Pope’s Place, having dropped off my bag at the house where I was staying. A neighbor had recommended Pope’s Place as being close and friendly. It was.

Theresa was sitting next to me and soon we were engaged in conversation. She was impressed with my martini, I was impressed with her conversation. She gave me the rundown on Polish Hill and also Pittsburgh. Apparently Andy Warhol hated it. Hence, the move to NY. Too bad he didn’t stick around for the Rebirth. As has happened in many a rust belt metropolis, Pittsburgh has evolved to trendy. Theresa gave me a couple of recs for good restaurants for dinner the next day.

In the course of our talk, she mentioned her preferred medium for artistic expression being used vinyl. This interested me immensely because I had had a hard time dumping my LP collection in spite of the fact that everyone has been estimating the value of old albums, regardless of their condition, at hundreds if not thousands of dollars a piece. I’m here to tell you that that ain’t true. One purveyor of old music gave me fifty bucks for my 75-record set which included originals of Sinatra, Fitzgerald, and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. Sure there were husks of dried up stinkbugs and other attic frass in the mix, but still, fifty bucks? For vintage K.C.?

The point is used vinyl is about as valuable as used rubber. There’s the same amount of it floating around, too. So Theresa’s work is important. I insisted she run home and get her collection. She obliged and came back with a shoebox of delight. I bought a couple of pair, as did the bartender and maybe a few others, I don’t remember. I’d knocked back a couple of martinis by then.

Soon after the earring transactions Theresa invited me over to the pad she shared with her boyfriend, Brent. We imbibed a little something from an odd contraption I won’t name but will describe as being round, ceramic, and capable of holding heat. Then we moved on to another Polish Hill bar by the name of Gooski’s where I was introduced to the “coolest philosopher in Pittsburgh” who proceeded to serve us shots of some foul liquid not unlike vodka.

I woke up the next morning with a cat sitting on my head. For a while it merely “made puddin’” on my ear while purring at the top of its lungs. When I didn’t respond it started demanding something to eat, this also at the top of its lungs. I took the harangue as long as I could and finally realized I was not getting back to sleep. I crawled out of bed and rummaged around until I found a half-gone can of something in the fridge. No idea what it was, but it shut the cat up.

Sadly, I never saw Theresa or Brent again. Despite that, the weekend was quite nice once I got rid of the hangover.

The following week I lost one of the recycled earrings, one from my favorite pair of course. I have no hope of getting a replacement since each is unique and there are just so many Okeh Records out there. I will probably swing by Theresa’s Etsy site at some point to get a consolation pair. Or two. Check them out yourself. Each one is made of 100% recycled materials. Even the beads come from old lampshades, tacky shawls, or somebody’s collection of souvenir gallstones. Which proves there is no need to throw anything away, ever.

Viva the Pitt!

Sue Lange

P.S. I found that fragment, “Rags, bones, gumshoes…” in a book about the lives of residents in Annville, PA. It was published in the 80s and the stories were about older folks who had been around during the depression. That fragment was part of a song the people who came to collect your old rags sang as they came down the street. Cool little factoid about life among the ragpickers. And you thought they would have said something like “Bring out your threads!”

Reading, PA: Not Dinner Theater, but Dinner AND Theater

The dinner part is at Judy’s on Cherry (332 Cherry Street, Reading, PA).

The theater part is the series of vignettes by the Reading Theater Project entitled One Body.

The dates are Friday, May 30, and Saturday, May 31.

The price is $35. That gets you a prix fixe meal from Judy’s fabulous plein aire menu and a seat at GAPS (128 N 5th St., Reading, PA) where One Body is playing.

The time is 8pm.

FAQ:

Q: What exactly is “One Body” about? A: Eight performers exposed themselves to Pamela Shields provocative “Masturbation Series” of charcoal drawings. We took a look, got over our shock, and put pen to paper. Each vignette is a reflection of our reflection of Pam’s work (which she created from her reflection in a mirror). Lots of reflecting going on. It’s humorous, thought-provoking, sometimes sad, unique. I dare you to take a peek. My own piece is a clownish number to the tune of Washboard Sam’s “By Myself.”

Q: What if I don’t want dinner, I just want to see the show? A: Tickets are $15 for the show only. Or come on Sunday, June 1. There’s no dinner with that performance, but there will be a party afterwards.

Q: What if I just want dinner, but I have no interest in the show. A: Um, just go to the restaurant like usual. However, I don’t think you can get anything at Judy’s for less than twenty bucks, but you can try. I think the Squash soup might be available. Take a selfie while you’re at it, since you’re not into the whole group package thing.

Q: Where do I pay? A: https://www.artful.ly/reading-theater...  Click on Friday or Saturday’s performance. Pay. Call Judy for reservations (610-374-8511). Print out your ticket. Bring your ticket to Judy’s and then bring it to the show.

Q: Who can I contact if this whole thing gets screwed up? A: vicki@readingtheaterproject.com

Q: Will Judy have her limo available like she does for the symphony events? A: Doubt it. You’ll have to drive over to GAPS after dinner. You can park for free in Abraham Lincoln Hotel parking lot. Or better yet, just walk. It’s all of six blocks away. C’mon, have a New York moment for once in your life.

See you there!

 

Lebowski Theory 101

As the whole durned human comedy lurches forward toward the future, culture and social mores lurch along with it. It has been noted recently that Western language, customs, and morality seem to have made a punctuated leap forward following the release of the 1998 movie, The Big Lebowski. At first Lebowski was a sleeper, garnering little comment or praise from the cinema-loving public. But as the years have gone by, linguisticians and cultural mavens, to say nothing of hipsters in the know, have noticed how much of the terminology, philosophy, and intent of The Big Lebowski has crept into our daily lives. How often don’t we hear “No, you’re not wrong, you’re just an asshole,” or “Asian-American, if you please,” throughout the day? Aren’t we all continuing to draw a line in the sand across which you do not… ! And don’t we always answer “Obviously you’re not a golfer,” when asked to identify heavy, round objects?

Although the creep of Lebowski into our language has for the most part gone unnoticed, English professors are finally beginning to take note. More and more they incorporate Lebowski theory into their curriculums. Below is an example of a pop quiz one such pedagogue is using. (Click here for a downloadable pdf) Answers are at the bottom.