Tag Archives: theatre

Let’s Speculate!

Episode #57 of Audio Chimera contains the third episode of my audio drama series Kid Again, about a man who suddenly finds himself young again and back in high school. The series asks the question: What can he change about himself and his experiences that will make this time around more fun? Having been aContinue reading “Let’s Speculate!”

Why Actors Are Scum

Right up front: I totally disagree with the title. But that has been a long-held belief by those not in entertainment. And so, as a follow-up to my last blog post, I wanted to delve a little more into why actors and theatre people have often been, according to an Ordinance by the British ParliamentContinue reading “Why Actors Are Scum”

From Terminally Shy to “Watch Me!”

In Episode #56, I try to find an explanation for how someone (me), who exhibited what I have called “terminal shyness” (see Immaculate Misconceptions, page 16, where I explain why I don’t sing in public), can transform into a college professor of performing arts who has presented at national and international conferences and who hasContinue reading “From Terminally Shy to “Watch Me!””

When I’m 54…or 65…

This is the companion blog to Audio Chimera podcast episode number 54. It’s about my retirement, which happened at 65—in case you couldn’t figure out the title… I’ve heard about people who retire, and then they have nothing to do. Work was their entire life. They waste away and die. Not me. Now, as anContinue reading “When I’m 54…or 65…”

Malapropisms

In  Podcast Episode #53, I talk about malapropisms. This term comes from Mrs. Malaprop, a character in  Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s 1775 play The Rivals. Another character says of her that she uses “words so ingeniously misapplied, without being mispronounced.” We have seen this with comedians, such as Norm Crosby. I used to show a RedContinue reading “Malapropisms“

Abandon Perfection

Buckle up: this is a long one. And it might be my TED Talk. People in my circle have often heard me assert this statement: Abandon perfection. You can never achieve perfection. But you can always strive for excellence. I have seen so many people trying to achieve the perfect result. Usually what happens isContinue reading “Abandon Perfection”

Independent-Thinking Scholar

At conferences, I would sometimes see the title, “Independent Scholar” and, in my snobby way, I would think, “Well, that person can’t find a real job.” Of course, maybe they chose that route. The title of this blog post suggest a scholar who thinks independently of what he or she has been taught. In myContinue reading “Independent-Thinking Scholar”

Podcasts 51 and 52 Part 2

In my previous blog entry I talked about podcast episodes number 51 and 52. Here is a postscript to one aspect of that story. In episode 51 I talked a bit about the comprehensive exams. For those, we were placed in a room for four days, three hours each day, and were expected to writeContinue reading “Podcasts 51 and 52 Part 2”

Completing the Deck

For Season Five, I’ve been using a lot of non-scripted material. For episode 51, I decided to just sit down and talk about the difficulties I had getting my PhD at Berkeley. I then went on so long I had to break it up and make it into two podcast episodes. It’s a story I’veContinue reading “Completing the Deck”