Snowing inside the MALL · 1010 days ago by Raise Plow
We’re performing in a mall. in a mall in the tallest building in Japan. And on our very first day we all had to rush out to make sure we got to see them make it snow inside the mall for Christmas. Yes, Christmas. The culture here seems to be really into Christmas. xmas music everywhere, bad American xmas music orchestrations combined with nasal sounding Japanese children’s voices.
ANYWAY… we got to the mall and the 5 or 6 levels of glass balconies and marble staircases surrounding the glittery chandelier-like, Very tall Chrirstmas ‘tree’ were FULL. can i say swarmed? packed. overflowing with people waiting to see the snow inside the mall. That alone was a little surreal, but we found some spots to see and all the audience were very kind and well-behaved so as to leave a good aisle up the staircase in case anyone needed to walk up it.
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Started with a light show and some fog. Those expensive mechanical lights that shoot all over in swoops. and it went on and the huge gobo outlines of snowflakes on the ceiling created by the lights swooped over and back and forth and around. And the Orchestra music piped through a bounty of speakers as we, the audience gazed on and awaited with anticipation for the snow. and on. and on. And ON. then finally, when you thought, this has GOT to be the last Christmas tune in this medley… it snowed. They turned on the machines and the blowers and it rained down snow through these streamer like circular hangings that don’t look much like snow, but maybe represent it? and the tree changed colors and we were all happy.
so of course, Basil started to clap along with the joyful music and we all prepared to whoop and holler a bit while we partook in a holiday dance, cha cha cha. but we received stony glances from other patrons very focused on the show at center. and we were made to realize… we were very American.
The End.
Japan Amusements · 1011 days ago by Raise Plow
And here in Japan there are many video arcades! I haven’t been to a video arcade since Junior high school when i used to hang out at the Fox River Mall. oh, yea, and that one time i went into an arcade in chinatown NYC.
BUT HERE… we were out with our hosts from the theater/ contemporary art museum in kanazawa and after a formal beautiful funny-fishy meal we all went to the local amusement palace and got a big group picture taken in a photo booth. There was a table of japanese girls doing their make-up to get ready for their photo shoots, but we were just a rag-tag group of misfits. So after the picture and our hosts did some fancy computer additions with the touch-screen gui outside (add some stars, some sparkle, a tiara, some hearts) it printed out STICKERS.
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AND
downstairs looking for dance-dance revolution we found the Taiko Drumming game which Basil and Barbara had previously mastered. So we all played the game and decided we were ready for the most advanced level. I bore down and tried to beat that game. but i’m sorry to say the game beat me. banging that drum with all my might got mighty tiring. but was at least a large source of amusement for everyone around me who took pictures and video of me getting worn out by the game.
Kyoto Shines · 1016 days ago by Raise Plow
Well, here we are in Kyoto, Japan. We were in Kanazawa last week. My camera broke. well, my cell phone software is buggy. so i must wait for all my analog photos (bought a roll of film camera), and remember not to put them through the x-ray machine at the airport! How strange to be without immediate gratification! Except for Kyoto… We’re staying at a Ryokan in Higashiyama-ku, sleeping on thin futons on tatami mats. And the huge Chion-in temple is about 200 yards from our front door. (nearly instant tourism gratification) And otherwise we are surrounded by shrines, emperor’s gardens, and the massive park, Maruyama-koen. Hooray!
picture by Oliver Dalzell
Kyoto is amazing. And I really like Japan. (I’m on tour with Basil Twist and crew with a puppet show inspired by an old japanese art form called, Dogugaeshi. see: http://dogugaeshi.blogspot.com )
observations: they take recycling very seriously. They smoke in many more places than Americans are allowed to. The warm toilet seats are very welcome, but the fake sound of rushing water while doing business is Distracting!
Unilever - London · 1300 days ago by Raise Plow
What does that mean, Unilever?
hmmm…. “is an Anglo-Dutch company that owns many of the world’s consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. ” Bummer. such a nice name, but seems to just be the people who paid for the art. ?? Or maybe it’s a comment on the everyday-ness of slides. Let’s pretend that. It’s nicer.
I went to the Tate Modern finally to go down the Carsten Holler Unilever Series slides. Good to see a bit of fun going on in the museum. They’re beautiful to look at, but more fun because you get to go down slides in a museum. Something it seems that one shouldn’t be able to do. However, the excitement of doing something you’re not supposed to be doing was overwhelmed by the orderliness of doing it. (stand in line. be given free ticket. wait for alotted time. go upstairs. wait in line. give ticket. listen to instructions. put feet in bag.)
It’s ok though, at least Mr. Holler got away with putting them up. Here is a recording of me going down the highest slide. 5th floor to ground floor. The construction of the slide is such that there are many many welded creases, causing lovely auditory vibrations!
Carsten Holler Slide – 5th floor
London Grows Weird Trees · 1634 days ago by Raise Plow
So i’m living here. Short term, yes, but I wouldn’t say I’m ‘travelling’ or ‘touristing’. I haven’t seen Big Ben, i’ve seen IKEA. So i’m walking up the street by my flat and realize it’s lined with these wacko trees. And I think, “Ohmygosh! English kids must think these are normal!?” Just like Jon’s 2-yr old neice thinks it’s normal to converse with a video of me over the internet.
English kids are going to think these trees are normal. Small children will sketch out pointy-twig-branch trees with their crayons. And how does that effect how we relate as adults? I thought Walmart and Starbucks and Hollywood and MTV had put an end to all these differences in collective consciousness! Tricky. It’s a wee bit like moving from one English speaking country to anothe English speaking country: I speak the language, sort of.
I guess that’s why people stay at home. Cause at least i know my peers have all seen that one episode of the Brady Bunch. They’ve all eaten that certain sort of sugar cereal (or not eaten it). They might even have had the same first grade teacher as me. (Seriously, this happened to me recently.)
Oh globalization, you haven’t knocked it out of us yet. England still grows weird trees.
(p.s. Turns out they don’t grow like this, they’re trimmed into it. Perhaps even more baffling as a choice.
Bangkok 1 ...Dec 2005 · 1716 days ago by katebrehm
The massive pink cow out in the street may not have done so well in the pouring rain last night. BUt they all said, NO it won’t rain, it’s not the rainy season. I guess it can rain anytime. like everywhere else.
In some ways it is like everywhere else. in my mind. I guess it’s defiitely not like the middle of WIsconsin. But there are some things that are like New York City. Lots of cars. Lots of people. Exchange temples for big churches. BUt the temples are all painted gold. We don’t have any gold churches back home. And not nearly so many stray cats and dogs.
Nicer trees here. worse pollution. Good street food. (are there restaurants??) I guess there are, but i only see noodles on the street. and 7-11s.
The pink cow is a beautiful puppet adorning the Rajata Arthouse, made by the puppeteers producing the
Hoontown international Puppet Festival. Of which, i am proudly a part. We’ll perform all along the street. with music and puppets and wacky folk. They went out the other day on a TUk TUk. Joe learned hopw to drive it. (uses all four limbs) Dressed up the TUk TUk with a paper mache lobster, and a cardboard CHristmas tree. The puppeteers scared the tourists and inspired curiosity in the THais dressed up in flight suits, santa hats, old man with long beard mask, dresses, etc. and tried to give them free rides. Ha!
Hoping they’ll all stop by the festival this weekend.
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This week in NYC · 1785 days ago by Raise Plow
What’s been up in the city this week? Pics Here
