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The Artist’s dilemma,
A neat little rhyme,
“I must do it perfectly, just right, every time!”
But see, that’s the problem!
With that thought in mind
Each tiny mistake is a bomb, every time
Cause nobody’s perfect,
It’s sad but it’s true.
Don’t hold yourself to that dumb standard set by you!
Because there’s a statement, that might be quite gritty:
Sometimes when you write, the story will sound real shitty
Sometimes when you act, you’ll forget all your stuff
Sometimes when you dance, you might fall, and that’s tough.
But the best feeling in life, past the falls and the hell,
Is that time when you do it like Mozart himself,
You’ll get it, and rock it, and feel like a master
At least, until the next time’s a disaster.
But mistakes are made to learn from, you face them and grin,
Cause the amount of mistakes will decrease, become slim.
So when you see thunder booming in the sky,
Buck up, little buddy, just spread your wings and fly.

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I had the good fortune of attending a production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at The Bay Terrace Garden Jewish Center. In this show we follow a slave named Pseudolus (Frank Josephs) in his attempts to attain freedom. A chance at this appears when he figures out that his young master, Hero (Samuel Kaufman) is in love with the beautiful Philia (Michele Mazzacco). A simple plan to make her fall in love with Hero takes us on a comedic journey of forbidden love and mistaken identity.

What made this journey immensely enjoyable for me, as an audience member was the wit and comedic timing of Frank Josephs and Samuel Kaufman. They bounced off of each other seamlessly. A moment that stuck out was the number, Free in which Pseudolous sings about dreams and aspirations following Hero’s promise of freedom. The faces made by both actors created quite the humorous stir amongst the audience. Mr.Kaufman was quiet for much of the number but exhibited great listening throughout that story telling, which made his character lively.

Great passion was evident within the character of Hero. This character trait was used to add to the comedy when he’d cry out, “Oh, Philia.”, to which Philia would reply, “No, it’s just Philia!” This comedy played off the theme of the young, beautiful and dumb girl. Due to this fact, the actor playing Philia must be quite likeable or the character may slip into the territory of being annoying. Ms. Mazzacco added an undeniable charm to the character that made her constant confusion fun to watch. I found myself hoping for her happiness throughout the entirety of the show. However, Philia’s job as a courtesan did not make that hope easily achievable.

The dilemma keeping Hero and Philia from being together is that she has been sold by Lycas (Roger Leonardis), the owner of many colorful courtesans. In Pseudolous and Hero’s search for her they encounter what Lycas has to offer as far as women go. Here we are introduced to five women who exhibit their many, ahem, attributes. In their attempt to seduce Pseudolous, who has claimed to be a person of status, there were splits, whips and meows galore. The audience, greatly comprised of senior citizens, laughed as those racy parts appeared before us.

After being subject to that performance by the women, Hero finds Philia only to eventually learn that she’s been sold to a warrior who’s return is fast approaching. Pseudolous, thinking fast on his feet, comes up with a plan. He uses Philia’s cheery disposition to convince Lycus that she has a plague whose side effect is smiling often. In his panic Lycus is convinced by Pseudolous to bring her into his custody. Pseudolous claims that he’s already had the plague so it’s best that he watches her because he won’t get it again. This plan gives Hero and Philia time to fall in love with one another. Despite this, she stays true to what she has been taught and says that she will still marry the man she is betrothed to. What unfolds next is a plan to ensure she won’t marry him. Pseudolous tells her to go inside the house and when her warrior arrives he’ll knock three times. Pseudolous goes off in search of a potion that will render her unconscious so Hero can run off with her.

Senex (Eli Koenig), who’s the father of Hero, returns home early from a trip with Domina (Andria Amarosa) and happens to knock three times. This leads to a case of pure confusion regarding the identity of him. Mr.Koenig added to this confusing circumstance because he decided as an actor that his character was in constant confusion! This was evident in how he phrased his lines. Many of them were said as a question which unconsciously added to the already funny circumstance.

There are many other cases of mistaken identity and adventure before this musical rattles to an uplifting end. I appreciated the lighthearted feel of this show and encourage everyone to see a production of it.

High expectations were in place for this production after I’d been told that this would be an exciting new turn for this theater group. They had just gotten a new artistic director who brought a more current twist to what these theatergoers were used to. All of my expectations were met. I sat there throughout the show laughing hysterically at what this theater group brought to the table.

The post A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum : A Review appeared first on EX LOCUM.

I recently had the privilege and honor to interview Noura Boustany Joust, a student at Pace University, who has been creating a short film called The Tattoo, that explores a world in which you are born with a tattoo that matches your soulmate’s. One girl, Lily, falls in love with someone with a different tattoo. Will she be able to break the rules society has forced upon her? I asked Noura some questions, hoping to gain some insight on this extremely creative film.

What inspired you to make this film?

the film is in support of the LGBTQA community. I wrote this film after a friend of mine was disowned by her parents for being gay. The story is a metaphor LGBTQA through scifi people telling you who you can and can’t love.

What does this film represent to you, with its message of going outside of what society deems “correct”?

to me, the film is about love – plain and simple. People should be able to love whoever they want and nothing should get in the way. It also covers abusive relationships. As someone who has been in abusive relationships I think it’s so important to stand up for yourself, and that’s what Lily does in the film.

If you could have any famous actor or actress be in this short film, who would you pick?

oh gosh. I don’t know. I don’t know if that matters to me very much. However, i’d genuinely want lady gaga in my film. her new music video tackles sexual assault in such a raw way and it was breathtaking. I think her spirit and view would really change the film in a good way.

One last question, Noura. If you could have any tattoo, what would it be?

I would tattoo the quote “Do what you live with every heartbeat” on my upper rib. 

Inspiring words and amazing insight from a super-cool director and person! The Tattoo is making its rounds in the film festival cycle (at the Dehli international film festival currently), and will be available to watch by the public come June 2016!

This director is surely INKing outside the box! Stay tuned for more good interviews, and some truly terrible puns.

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Power, lust, and oh so much blood. Intrigued? Well, get ready because Oscar Connelly is directing an entirely student run production of Shakespeare’s most iconic play, Macbeth. The cast is an extremely diverse group of students representing multiple grades and majors at The Professional Performing Arts School. We kicked off rehearsals a few days ago with a read through of the play. The energy in the room was indescribable. Everyone was overflowing with ideas of how to make this production one for the books. Someone once told me, “A director is the person who loves the play more then anyone else in the room.” This statement could not be more true of Oscar. It is extraordinarily evident that his mind is constantly focused on the world of Macbeth. With a director that has such a strong passion for the play, it is impossible for the cast not to feel the same. Today I had my first rehearsal as the Witch. Full transparency, I was nervous. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to live up to the outstanding ideas Oscar has for the character. However all my worries quickly faded away when we began. It’s a wonderfully safe environment that gives you the freedom to be brave and make bold choices. Look out for more posts about the rehearsal process, kickstarter, and performance dates! I am brimming with excitement to continue working with such an incredible group of people tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow…

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