Nope, didn’t even make the callbacks.  There was a message waiting when I got home the day after stating that I did not make the show.  It’s been a long time since I didn’t make a show.  This is not what it sounds like- in recent history I have only tried out for Oliver! and It’s a Wonderful Life before Dracula.  I didn’t even try out for Jekyll & Hyde, only responded to a plea for more actors.  Unfortunately along with a rejection comes a void that can’t be filled, a void of never knowing why.  Was something wrong with my audition?  It was only a singing audition and I feel I sang just fine.  The accompanist didn’t always keep up- was that counted against me?  I did a performance, not just the song.  Maybe I should have stood there and just sang?  Maybe my hair which I forgot to get cut bothered them?  Maybe they used the “Will you be willing to be in the ensemble/chorus” question as a weed-out tool- I said no because I would rather try out for Noah than be in the chorus- at my age I have this privilege, do I not?  Did someone find this blog and see I would rather be in Noah?  Was it even about me at all?  I do know it is a relatively small cast for two groups- yes it is a joint production between two groups.  Oh, well.  I am now free to try out for Noah whenever those auditions happen, assuming they don’t just pre-cast it since there is such a small cast.  If I make the show I will know for sure not making Dracula was a God thing (someone was praying for me).  Of course, considering the message of the Dracula story, it may just be a God thing no matter what happens.

Come to think of it, I was rejected more recently- when I did a general tryout for Metropolis last summer.  I was never called back for anything.  Well, that was professional theatre so it was expected.   I do so wish I could just call and ask, but I know that would be improper, so I will just continue to wonder.

Ironic that I just posted about the defunct new Wonder Woman series.  After 33 performances (and 31 preview performances), Wonderland wrapped its Broadway run May 15th.  The new musical about a grown up Alice who yearns for a more adventure-filled life, sets out on a quest beneath the streets of New York City.  There she meets a cast of familiar yet outrageously re-imagined characters.  Funny that with such a short run, the show had produced a cast album.  I suppose that when your wife is Linda Eder who has a recording of some of the songs, it would be entirely possible.  I wonder if somewhere out there is a cast recording of the most celebrated (celebrated but by far NOT the only) flop in Broadway history… Carrie.

Sad to say that I do not think Frank Wildhorn has had a long Broadway run since Jekyll & Hyde. Although J&H had a 4 year run, it still lost $1.5 million.  His Scarlet Pimpernel and Dracula also were not successful.  I guess that being married to a diva is no guarantee of creative success.  OOPS… according to another source the couple has been separated since 2004.  So much for that theory.

Maybe the show was overshadowed by an endlessly publicized, overtly ridiculed, accident prone, re-imagined,  back in preview mode, soon to open show.  Hmmm…. wonder what that is?

I was looking for a collection set to add to my movie library. A few years ago Universal studios released their “Monster Collection” as a boxed set (DVD or VHS). 8 movies in all. Since I had the ones I thought I wanted, I didn’t bother with the set.

Now some of my old VHS tapes are showing there age, and I thought it may be time to pick this up if it was still available anywhere. I did a quick search and found used DVD sets going for over $200. And a new “In the box” set going for close to $500. NO WAY would I pay that much for these movies, I can get them cheaper buying them one at a time when I see them at video stores. The Wolf Man at Wally World was only $7.50

A further search found that those same movies will released as a collection again at the end of this month. Pre-Orders are less than $50. I’m sure if I time it correctly, I can get if for less than that. Here is a toast to patience. 😉

I like a lot of movies. I have a lot of movies. So all is well with the world in that respect. I have been on a classic movie kick recently. Ok, more than just recently. Last year, just before Christmas, I borrowed the movie Nosferatu from a friend. Wonderful silent ‘Vampire’ movie. I think that movie still holds its own against some of the newer movies. After that I just had to watch all of the classic Horror movies I own. Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Mummy and The Invisible Man were jut like I remembered them. I would love to have those movies on some ‘newer’ media. I have them on tape, and never felt the need (until now) to get them on DVD or Blu-Ray. Good Movies.

Just this past weekend and tonight I watched another couple of movies that just don’t get old for me. I watched Casablanca with my youngest over the weekend. She may or may not comment on it. I really enjoyed it. It has been a few years since I last saw it. I just finished watching The Maltese Falcon this evening. Another movie I haven’t seen in years, but the story still works today.

Finally there is one other movie I’ve been thinking about watching. It is a bit strange that I don’t have it in my collection of movies. Another Bogart film that I saw many times from 1984 to 2003. And we were not watching it for Bogart. My lovely bride loved the acting of Katharine Hepburn, we watched a number of her movies more than once. I just don’t understand why we never purchased any. After looking through all of the movie I own, I don’t recall any movies with her in my collection. I may have to do something about that. Anyway, I really want to see The African Queen in the near future. I heard is was just released to DVD.

The point of all of this? Not much really. I just like to watch some of these old classics over again from time to time.

I was strolling around the internet (I don’t surf, that just goes too fast), and I found a few interesting things.

On this site, I found two t-shirts I liked. The first was with Bela Lugosi as Dracula holding the head of a more recent movie vampire (yes, just the head). The saying was “Dracula never sparkled.” Struck my sense of humor today. The other shirt on the same site was “Meat is Murder. Quick eat the evidence.” So today, I guess my humor is heading toward the violent stage. “Here’s Johnny.” 😈

Ok, I knew somebody had the list of what emoticons actually works here. Ok, I found them, thanks again Derek!! Why can’t all of the various chat area, blog sites, bulletin boards, social networks, ect. use the same symbols. Why do they work sometimes and not others. Even being a technical person by trade, I get sick of technology… 😡

Are we headed for a new form of the WWW? Kind of discussed this last night with a friend or few. Mostly about if Facebook would start charging for use. Currently that is just a malicious rumor floating around, but as was said in the conversation, Facebook and other sites like that need some cash to exist. Now this article is more about premium content, but I wonder what premium content is. I already pay for my web access, about as much as I would pay for Cable/Satellite TV, Cell Phone usage ect., so I wonder how much more this would eventually cost. Like most people in the middle class, my budget is strained from all angles. I don’t have pay TV for a number of reason, but one is I really don’t want to pay for TV.

If it ever comes to the point that I have to pay for TV, I’ll stop watching. I’ve said before there isn’t much I want to watch, so it doesn’t make any difference to me. I have internet access to keep up with friends, family, work and news of the day. I pay for that access to offset other areas I no longer use or pay for. If the outlets I use start charging me, on top of my access charge, I may stop using them. Unless I become independently wealthy. I can always go to the library to pick up newspapers and magazines. My taxes go to keep those organizations functioning, so I will use them. I can use other means to contact friends and family. But then as I said earlier, sometimes the technology bugs me….

In what may be a good use for Ebooks, I found this article. Textbooks that can be modified or commented on by the professors/teachers. Cool stuff. I remember in school carting around a lot of books. And then in college pay tons of money for lots of books. Of course the teachers would always comment or add to the material present in the book. This forced the student to carry even more. I like the idea of getting this all on an E-book level and allow the students to carry around less material. Save trees and backaches. Now if they would only come up with a way to make that stupid textbook cheaper.

One final note. I went to the oriental restaurant on Sunday with my daughter. My taste buds were so messed up, I left the fortune cookies in the truck. Since my taste returned today I ate the cookies. The first fortune I had was “Everything will now come your way.” The lucky numbers on this fortune just happened to be the birthdays (day of the month) of my four daughters, myself and my late wife. That is six numbers. The estimated jackpot for the Mega Millions jackpot is now 83 million for tonight’s drawing. I met my late wife in 1983… Is that a sign? I’m not sure I believe in stuff like that, but I bought the ticket anyway. I used my late wife’s birthday as the powerball and put the rest of the days in the regular numbers. One final little note: that combination of numbers never won the jackpot….

Our community theatre, in it’s infinite wisdom, has decided to limit the number of musicals to one per season.  I suppose that I can see the need for this.  A good, well-known musical is much more expensive to produce than a play.  However, it has been pointed out time and again that musicals are the bread and butter of most theatres and if the right musical is chosen and performed well, they generally bring in more money than most plays.  Most of the musicals I have either been involved with or heard about have done well (with one exception but the reasons for the financial loss were many).

The problem is… trying to find plays that will bring in audiences.  It has been suggested that we attempt to focus on seasonal shows.  In October, I cannot wait to be part of the all cast production of Little Shop of  Horrors.  In December, we are performing Miracle on 34th Street.  Both shows would appeal to the seasons.

For next season, we already have the musical locked in.  Taffetas is going to be done in October 2010.  I suggested doing another Christmas show like A Christmas Story (yes the movie has been turned into a stage play that I think would be a riot to perform).  There are also any number of versions of Dickens’ perennial favorite, A Christmas Carol.  I also mentioned via email a suggestion given to me for future October shows: Dracula.  Are there any other shows that would fit into other seasons?  A good romantic comedy for February.  Something like Honk! for future spring shows?

Or another possibility, our theatre has within it at least two people who have the fantastic knack of playwriting.  Many times, these are given spots entitled “independent projects.”  I think that if someone has a piece ready for performance it should be included as part of the season.

So, if any of my readers hiding in the shadows have any suggestions, please come out and suggest them.  I still think that it would not hurt to do Romeo and Juliet.  I know most people cringe at the idea of bringing Shakespeare to a small stage, but I say why not take a chance?

Turn out the lights, sit in the dark and watch these movies. By today’s standards, they are not scary. By the standards of the time, people screamed in the theaters.

Number 1 on my list, I’ve written about before. Dracula with Bela Lugosi, the first well know Dracula, and one imitated more often than any of the others. Lugosi’s vampire became the standard.

Number 2, The Wolfman with Lon Chaney Jr. State of the art special effects of the day when he changed into the Wolfman.

Number 3, Frankenstein with Boris Karloff. Created life goes out of control to destroy its creator and all the things the creator loves.

Number 4, The Mummy with Boris Karloff. Karloff gets to act in this movie and it is worth seeing. His voice and facial expressions are wonderful

Find them, watch them and enjoy.

Happy Halloween

What music they make…

In keeping with the Halloween season, I thought that line was appropriate. Bela Lugosi’s role as Dracula still is one for the ages. Today, that movie seems quaint and common, but in 1931 it terrified the audience. I’ve been told and read that the 1922 silent movie Nosferatu was even more chilling. Someday I must see that film.

Other versions of Dracula were horrific, bad, funny and just plain campy. There was Dracula vs Frankenstein, Dracula vs Batman. There was a Son of Dracula (Young Dracula) and an Old Dracula. Dracula was even Dead and Loving It. He even discoed in Love at First Bite. Today there are many more vampire stories out there, they all started with Dracula.

Why this fascination? Hard to say. Terror lurks in dark places. We as a society gather in light areas. We bring light into the dark. We try to chase away all shadows. Vampires, werewolves and their ilk are creatures of the shadows and dark. They strike a nerve with us. They chill our bones. They the moral of a story. Live a good life and evil will not happen to you. Stay with the group, do not go off alone after dark. There is evil out there and it has a name.

Today, we try to scare ourselves and we call it fun. We have horror movies, haunted mazes and houses, horror books. Things designed to get a bit of thrill in our lives. Things designed to get our blood flowing.

I do love the Halloween season. I wish that our haunted theater had been a reality, now I have no plans for Halloween. I’m too old to go “Trick or Treating” and I know of costume parties yet. Last year, even without the party, I put on my Dracula cape and went around the local area. Maybe this year, I’ll shop at Wal*Mart.

And what brought all this up….

The Children of the Night, what music they make…. Owls in the trees, a dog or coyote howling in the distance on a chill dark night. Yes, the children of the night make music, and to my ears there is nothing better….

And yes, this is a play our theater should do… if we don’t do a haunted house in October, we should at least do one themed play…

To keep up with both blogs, allow me to post some  more wonderfully hideous titles and synopses.  OR…. lets make it even more fun.  I will give a list of titles and synopses.  See if you can guess which one contains the actual description.

1. Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me.  The story of a young child who falls into a well and finds herself in another world populated by giant red ants.

2. Fat Guy Goes Nutzoid.  A large man with a Mohawk haircut escapes from a mental hospital and becomes the friend of two rich kids.

3.  Night of the Day of the Dawn of the Son of the Bride of the Return of the Terror of the Attack of the Evil, Mutant,  Hellbound,  Flesh-Eating Subhumanoid Zombified Living Dead, Part 3.        A horror movie  aficinado takes her fascination too far when she unearths the remains of Dr. Frankenstein, Count Dracula, The Mummy, and The Creature from the Black Lagoon.