Discovering Sandy Walker

In a waiting room thumbing through an old issue of Harpers magazine yesterday I saw some drawings by an artist named Sandy Walker. They were lively figure drawings in black ink done with a broad brush with very little detail and lots of energy. They looked like (1) Franz Kline paintings and (2) gesture drawings we did in art school.

I was sufficiently impressed to wanted to see more, so the next chance I got I Googled Sandy Walker and saw more paintings and drawings on his website. He does figures and landscapes, some rather traditional and bland, some some very exciting, with lots of energy and movement, interesting spacial relationships or positive-negative reversals.

If you like abstract expressionist drawing of the gestural type, you'll enjoy perusing his site or, if you're anywhere near where he's showing, check out his work. I think you'll enjoy it.

Southern Gothic tale pours on the odd charm

Published in The News Tribune, June26, 2009
Pictured:Cynthia Fischer, left, as Carnelle, Micheal Carr as Delmount and Annette Renie as Popeye, photo by Berrylane photography


I really enjoyed the first act of “The Miss Firecracker Contest” at Paradise Theatre in Gig Harbor. Director Jeff Richards’ set, the costumes by Vicki Richards and the cast were outstanding. The principal actors nailed the quirkiness and the Southern accents of their eccentric characters.

In the second act the weirdness and all of the shouting over one another became a bit too much. They seemed to be trying too hard for laughs, a fault that can be attributed as much to the writer as to the director and the cast. Two new characters were thrown into the mix who added to the silliness but contributed little to the story. Fortunately, the problems in act two were wiped away by the closing scene, which was sweet and tender and fully human.

Beth Henley wrote this play shortly after penning her Pulitzer Prize-winner, “Crimes of the Heart,” and her comic genius is clearly evident in bits and pieces – and in her deliciously coined phrases such as Delmount’s oft-repeated expletive “Lord in butter.”

However, it lacks the humanity of “Crimes of the Heart” and few of the characters are as rich and fully developed. The one exception is Delmount (Micheal Carr). Slovenly and loud, with Roy Orbison hair and glasses, Delmount is the epitome of Southern trailer trash, and yet as real and as believable as any character in the play. He has a checkered past, has spent time in jail and in a mental institution, has an obsession with classic beauty, and experiences recurring nightmares about disembodied parts of women’s bodies. He is clearly sick and tortured, but has the sweetest soul imaginable. Carr brings him to life on the stage with both broad gestures (his explosive anger at Elain) and subtle movements (his shy shuffle when wooing Popeye).

The other well-rounded character is Elain (Donna Long), the rich cousin who feels trapped with a husband and two sons she can’t stand. Long plays this character so naturally that you have to remind yourself that she’s acting and is probably much more likable in real life.

The main character, Carnelle (Cynthia Fischer), is a caricature of a small-town beauty contestant with high hopes and not much talent. It takes talent to play talentlessness, and Fischer does it well. Her tap dance routine in the opening scene starts the show off with a boom, and the way she frantically flutters around the room is precious. Also, her hair is great. Delmount asks if it’s a wig, and Carnelle replies that it is dyed. From the audience you can’t tell which it is – or if it’s Fischer’s natural hair. Whichever it is, it’s beautiful and quite malleable – it turns frightful when she teases it before the contest.

The other outstanding character is Popeye (played with great wide-eyed innocence by Annette Renie). Her sweetness is palatable and believable, even if some of her eccentricities are too absurd even for one of Henley’s Southern Gothic creatures. Popeye had put ear drops in her eyes by mistake and they made her eyes pop out (thus her nickname), and now she can hear through her eyes. Surely that is taking absurdity a step too far. On the other hand, learning how to sew when she was a little girl by making little suits for frogs was a brilliant bit of invention.

The other two characters are Mac Sam (Jon Elston) and Tessy Mahoney (Chelsea Carothers). Mac Sam is oily and detestable and played just that way by Elston, and Tessy is stupid and obnoxious, and her constant whistle-blowing is irritating at best. I don’t fault the acting of Elston and Carothers, but I think these characters hurt the play more than they help it.

One final note: Since I last visited Paradise Theatre, the auditorium has been completely remodeled and is quite beautiful now, with three rows of flat seating up front that can be set up with tables for cabaret or dinner theater, and stadium seating farther back.

I advise asking for either front-row tickets or seats in the upper section, because the three rows in the lower section are on a flat floor, so second- and third-row seats still present the problem of seeing past people in front.

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sundays through July 5, no performance July 4
WHERE: Paradise Theatre, 9911 Burnham Dr. N.W., Gig Harbor
TICKETS: $18 adults, $15 seniors, $8 students; group discounts available
INFORMATION: 253-851-PLAY, www.paradisetheatre.org

Planet CHROMA

Fun stuff at Two Vaults Gallery

Published in the Weekly Volcano, Jun 25, 2009

Chris Blivens’ latest show is called CHROMA because each piece is identifiable by color (Chroma defined in dictionary.com as “intensity of distinctive hue; saturation of a color”). His pieces are fetishistic dolls or sculptures made of carved wood or cloth with twigs for arms and wooden dowels for legs and strange markings and ritualistic jewelry and other accoutrements added to or carved into the bodies. Each piece is a distinctive color. There’s a red one and a blue one and a purple one and a green one, and so forth through the rainbow/color wheel. They are not bright colors. They are dull, dirty and worn looking as if they’ve languished on a trash heap or have been recently dug up from an archeological excavation. They look old, mysterious and somewhat frightening — or comical, depending on your point of view.

Most of them have carved wood bodies. The body shapes are abstract forms with smooth curves, flat on front and back (meaning they’re designed to be viewed from the front or the back only, not all sides). At least one of them has a body in the shape of a guitar. In addition to the long, spindly legs and arms, they nearly all have long necks, most of which are wrapped with coiled wire necklaces, some with the addition of feathers, bones, beads, etc. Their heads are skulls or bird’s heads.

There is a strong Northwest Native American influence.

Blivens defines these figures as fetishistic, as surmised from the title of two pieces, which are called fetish dolls. Each of these has a cloth body with patterned markings and what looks to be belts made from hemp twine.

Many of the figures also wear necklaces and bracelets made of Femo clay shaped into bones, feathers, beaks, and other forms derived from nature.

In addition to Blivens’ sculpture there are a number of large, minimalist sculptures by James Kelsey, along with works by Steve Bernard, Marge McDonald and others as part of the citywide Metal-Urge event. Kelsey’s piece that stands just inside the front door is outstanding. It consists of three open-frame yellow boxes stacked corner-to-corner in a manner that almost defies gravity. It stands almost ceiling high and should really be seen outdoors in a natural setting. (There are, in fact, a number of similar works on his Web site at www.jameskelseystudios.com, which are pictured in natural settings.)

McDonald’s "Nobody But Us Chickens" is one of the best pieces in the gallery. It’s a grouping five abstract forms that look like skinned and headless chickens hanging in a butcher shop, and it is made out of the little metal ID bands that go around chickens’ legs.

Bernard’s robot bugs and figures are well crafted and very funny. There’s one that looks like Rosie the Robot, the maid in "The Jetsons," and another, "Jumpin’ Jack Trash," the title of which gives evidence to Bernard’s tongue-in-cheek approach to these sculptures.

[Two Vaults Gallery, through July 16, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, noon to 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 602 South Fawcett, Tacoma, 253.759.6233]

Surprised by a story on the web

I woke up this morning to quite a surprise. Gabi asked if I had talked to a reporter recently. She has a Google alert in my name and got notice this morning of an article about me on Examiner.com. It was a huge article by Mike Szymanski outing the hell out of me -- OK, I was already out -- a special Fathers Day story: "Bisexual father recalls the tragedy of his bi son's discrimination and suicide."

It's an old story. He took it right off my website and included tons of links to family pictures, etc.

I'm getting old. My brain cells are withering away. I can barely remember what I had for breakfast this morning. The point being that the name Mike Szymanski sounds familiar, but I can't remember ever talking to him. I don't mind the story being out there for all the world to read, but I wonder if there was copyright infringement. I did put copyright notices on my website and did not give permission to reprint such huge sections, which I'm pretty sure goes far beyond fair use quotations. Still, I don't mind. I'm glad that Szymanski thought my story was worth publishing, and hopefully it will touch some hearts and minds in a positive way.

Teaser from The Backside of Nowhere

Here are the first two paragraphs from my new novel, The Backside of Nowhere:

David Lawrence’s many fans were surprised when he began
performing his monologue, Water, Water, which ran six months Off Broadway before becoming a surprise hit on DVD. It showed that the popular actor had a subtle and sardonic genius and a depth of feeling that few fans and even fewer critics suspected. In his monologue, David Lawrence rants, “You know what I love about being a movie star? The money.” And then, after a wink and a dramatic pause, “You know what I hate about it? Just about every damn thing else.”

The audience laughs. On cue or spontaneously, it’s hard to tell. Or is it canned laughter? The camera zooms in for a close-up. David runs his hand across his closely-cropped hair and says with a strong Southern accent (just a trace of Cajun), “Jesus, man. If y’all think you’d like to be a movie star, let me tell you, it ain’t all it’s cracked up to be.” And he winks wickedly at the camera while projected behind him are films of David with his girlfriend, the actress Jasmine Jones. The obvious implication is that if making it with Jasmine Jones is a fringe benefit of being a movie star, then being a movie star is the greatest gig on earth, his protestations to the contrary not withstanding.

... More to come. The book is now available on amazon.com. I should have signed copies by July 15.

Wit enlivens play for sophisticated viewers only

Pictured top, left to right: Eric Brown as Mitchell and Patrick Wigren as Alex
center, left to right: Courtney Taylor as Diane and Rob Kowalski as the waiter
bottom, left to right: Hannah Eklund as Ellen and Patrick Wigren as Alex
Photos by Toni Holm

Olympia Little Theatre ends every season with an envelope-pushing production as part of their “Director’s Series.” This year they push that envelope with an adult-only show that includes sexual situations, brief nudity and adult language, not to mention a huge helping of cynicism. The show is Douglas Carter Beane’s 2007 Tony and GLAAD award-nominated play “The Little Dog Laughed.”

Billed as a comedy, this play is not all belly laughs. It’s a sophisticated and satirical look at modern life in general and Hollywood pretentiousness in particular. There’s a lot of seriousness underneath the jesting, and the jokes are more cerebral than visceral.

It’s an intelligent comedy that is staged with quick cuts and innovative scene changes that happen in full view of the audience. It also features smart, plucky asides addressed to the audience and to empty chairs or imaginary characters, such as an unnamed playwright referred to as “He Meaning Him.”

Director Toni Holm and lead actors Erich Brown as Mitchell, Courtney Taylor as Diane, Patrick Wigren as Alex, and Hannah Eklund as Ellen can be proud of a job well done.

Diane is a high-powered agent trying to land a blockbuster movie deal for her client, Mitchell, who is engaging in sexual acts with a male prostitute, Alex, while he denies being gay, as does Alex, who says he does it strictly for the money and has a steady girlfriend, Ellen.

Diane is the most cynical of all the characters. She refers to Mitchell’s attraction to men as a “slight recurring case of homosexuality.”

She and Mitchell make a deal for a play about a gay couple. She points out it will work because Mitchell is thought of as a straight movie star, so when he wants to come out publicly, Diane is against it and explains: “If a perceived straight actor portrays a gay role in a feature film, it’s noble. It’s a stretch.

It’s the pretty lady putting on the fake nose and winning an Oscar. When an actor with a ‘friend’ plays a gay role; it’s not acting, it’s bragging.”

The play starts out slowly and does not go for the easy laughs as the actors gradually establish their characters. It really gets going with the first sex scene between Alex and Mitchell, which is one of the funniest moments in the play, and which is handled tastefully.

The nudity comes about quite naturally, is fleeting, and should in no way be offensive to sophisticated audiences.

I mentioned earlier that scene changes take place in full view of the audience. This is one of many ways in which this play shines, letting the audience in on inside jokes. Cast members constantly break the fourth wall, the mythical barrier between the audience and the stage; i.e., the illusion that what’s happening on stage is reality.

Abby Wells, acting variously as a waitress and a maid, and Rob Kowalski as a waiter, do all the set changes and, in at least one instance, Wells mimes a conversation with Mitchell as she moves props.

Another way the cast breaks the wall is when Mitchell and Diane are talking to an empty chair representing the playwright and they periodically turn to the audience and tell them to drop the names of three gay actors or insert obscure theatrical references; or when Mitchell and Alex take turns popping up in bed like a Jack-in-the-box to talk about each other while each pretends to be asleep. Such scenes are cleverly written, and the timing and facial expressions on the part of the actors are delicious.

This is the last weekend for “The Little Dog Laughed.” Friday’s show is a special fundraiser for Capital City Pride. I highly recommend that you get your tickets before they’re sold out.

WHEN: 7:55 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 1:5 p.m. Sunday through June 21
WHERE: Olympia Little Theatre, 1925 Miller Ave., NE, Olympia
TICKETS: $10-$12, available at Yenney Music Company on Harrison Avenue (360-943-7500) or http://www.buyolympia.com/events
INFORMATION: 360--786-9484, http://olympialittletheater.org/

The Neddy

Annual fellowship competition nominees

Published in the Weekly Volcano, June 18, 2009
Pictured:
Timothy Cross, “Test Beach”, 2007. Ink, watercolor, and Liquid Paper on canvas, 29 x 39 ½ inches. Courtesy of the artist.
April Surgent, “Between the Night and the City”, 2005. Fused and engraved glass, 16 x 23 x 2 1/8 inches. Collection of Jim and Devon Surgent. Photo: Jeff Curtis.

On a scale from one to10 I give a five to the Neddy exhibition at Tacoma Art Museum. If based on how close the selections come to representing the best of the best regional artists, which it purportedly does, then that score drops to about two-point-five.

There is a good variety of work and everything is skillfully done. Two categories of art are represented, painting and glass, and every piece is technically close to perfection. But there is nothing outstanding in terms of originality or profundity, and there are a lot of pieces that are downright silly.

Take Joey Kirkpatrick and Flora C. Mace’s "Still Life With Plumbs" — yes, take it please, right out of the gallery. Big hunkin’ glass apples and plumbs on a giant plate on the floor. How silly can you get?

Or Gary Faigin’s silly surrealism: house on a cliff propped up by two long poles and a stack of pots on top of a waterfall. They’re beautifully painted, but corny.
On the other hand, Timothy Cross’s paintings and the glass sculptures by Sabrina Knowles and Jenny Pohlman are unique and striking images that are haunting and thought provoking. The collaborative glassworks by Knowles and Pohlman remind me a lot of work by William Morris. Especially intriguing is "Memory Unchained." From double drooping chains hang a group of blown glass pods, seeds, beads, nuts, birds, feathers and other assorted totemic objects, all in various tones of reddish brown with occasional green. Cross’s paintings in ink, acrylic and liquid paper evoke a world of machinery going to ruin. "Test Beach" shows an airplane bursting through or being held by wooden scaffolding. The plane is on fire and trailing billows of smoke. Graphically it balances static and flowing forms with precise line drawings and free flowing washes.

The Neddy is an annual selection of regional artists that culminates with fellowships being awarded to two nominees, one in painting and one in another category, which changes year to year (glass this time). Fellowships this year go to April Surgent, glass, and Eric Elliott, painting.

Elliott paints traditional still life and interior scenes in monochromatic oil paint. The objects almost vanish in the roughly textured surfaces. They are ghost-like images or images as seen through heavy fog.

Surgent works with fused and engraved glass creating dark and smoky urban scenes taken from photographs. "Between Night and the City" pictures dark, shadowy figures on a rainy night in the city with haloed street lights.

Lynda Lowe’s "Psi: The Uncertainty Principle," watercolor, oil, wax on panel, is a darkly beautiful image of leaves and scientific and mathematical symbols on long wooden panels. The colors are a deep, burning reddish-orange with dark browns. With a lighter section just left of center and darker sections on each end and the edge of one section overlapping the physical separation of panels, Lowe makes two panels look like three.

Finally, there are some very nice glass pieces by old favorite Benjamin Moore, one done in collaboration with Louis Mueller.

[Tacoma Art Museum, Tuesday–Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Third Thursdays 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday noon-5 p.m., through Oct. 4, 1701 Pacific Avenue, Tacoma]