http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaDzjvZz2tI

and yeah - I suppose they're kinda adorable too... but that's subjective I guess

So, July is finally here and so my next show is coming up! (I dunno what the heading of this blog is supposed to mean, it just sounded funny to me, probably because the visuals it produces in my head) I'm really really stoked (stoked?) because the show promises to be pretty awesome. It's called GOD ON BROADWAY and I wrote it / compiled it myself - but don't let that stop you from seeing it - lol. It has a bang-up cast of wonderful singers and a set list to die for...

with songs from Fiddler...., Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, Wild Wild Party, Nunsense, The Color Purple, Big River, The Frogs, Spamalot, Once On This Island, The Lion King, and more....

ok, does this sound like a commercial yet? ha ha

Bethany Thomas, Randy Johnson, and Whitney Morse are my fellow performers and we are having a blast with the music (and it's sounding pretty frickin' awesome if you ask me)

Gary Powell is the accompanist and if you have done ANY theatre in Chicago you more than likely have worked with him - or at least heard of him...

Anyways - I hope a lot of people can make it to the show - not JUST because I'm an attention whore, but because it's a fun show with incredible music that I want to share with lots and lots of people:)

OH YEAH - and check out the myspace page (especially the "reviews" - that's my favorite part, but there is also some nice music on there:)

see ya soon!

-Ben-

oh, who the hell am I kidding, it's ALWAYS funny.

I am the FIRST person to laugh inappropriately at any given funeral, wedding, speech..... whatever. Just last week I went to a graduation with Priscilla, Renae, and Will and spent most of the many (too many if you ask me) grad speeches chuckling. So sue me, I like to laugh. I do realize that there are those who would say I need to grow up. And that may be true - or maybe those people are just boring....:)

Life is too short to take seriously. This simple statement is the primary reason why I LOVE the current project I am working on at the Indianapolis Senior Center. The play is called SAVE ME A PLACE AT FOREST LAWN and it's great! It's about two little old ladies and their friendship; good times, painful secrets, shared experiences, quirky senior acquaintances, death ("Forest Lawn" is a cemetery, thus the title).

I have been whipping back and forth to IN to direct the show and we are having a blast. The two casts (we double cast the show so that more people could get the experience) are both talented and wonderful and the performances promise to be touching, memorable, and relevant. I mean, how can you not love a play that has the line, "They think all we care about is grandchildren...heck, I moved to California to get away from 'em"

Aging has always been such an interesting subject to me...well, when it is handled with maturity and reality. It's fascinating to me how some of us get older while continuing to grow and learn, and some of us never seem to grasp the true concepts of life no matter how long we live (ya know, mushy stuff like love, empathy, true beauty and so on). Maybe it's a choice we make sometime along the way. Or maybe it's predetermined for us by the way we are wired or by a higher being... Who knows? It's the speculation and the many layers of possibility that interest me.

For myself...I can't imagine what it would be like to want to stop learning. Sometimes when I think of all the places I want to see and the knowledge I want to acquire I grow panicky with a sort of "OH SHIT there's not enough TIME!!!" feeling...

In the short time I have been directing this show, I have truly LEARNED. The actors I've been working with have helped me discover lessons I never even knew I wanted to explore, and I think those are the best kind.

So, stop on by the center and see the play this next week...I promise you'll laugh (even though it will probably be quite appropriate).

SAVE ME A PLACE AT FOREST LAWN - by Lorees Yerby
Tickets are $6 before or $5 at the door
Friday, June 13th at 7pm
Saturday, June 14th at 2:30 (matinee) and 7pm
Sunday, June 15th at 2:30 (matinee)

well, I guess it wasn't THAT scary...but we did give a few chills (and we managed to freak out a few smaller kids - BONUS)

What am talking about? Well, I performed with two friends at Looptopia (this all night cultural and arts event here in chicago) - and the show we did was a portion of a show I wrote called CABARET POE (See our myspace: myspace.com/cabaretpoe - there's not much on there yet, but oh well)

I co-wrote the show with Edgar Allan Poe (yeah, so what if he's dead? If I wanna write with somebody, d'ya think something like death is gonna stop me? Nooo - insert evil laugh here) The show is basically some of his famous or not-so fam works put to music and what-not.... And I think it's pretty fun.... but can be a little scary for some people, but more moody and intriguing in my opinion.

Poe's work is known for being "macabre" (which pretty much means that it's about death and stuff) but he has alot of pieces that are not about death and he is known as one of the fathers of the detective story.... (not that any of that is in our show, we are all about the macabre - because it's more fun... but macabre isn't definitely scary)

ANYWAYS - we had a lot of fun and looptopia was fun (a little better than last year) and I feel like it will get bigger and better as the years role on.

So, if you know anyone who wants to invest around 10g in a show for this fall - or if you know a really cool theatre in Chicago that will put our show up for all the weekends in October (100-200 seats please:) then let me know:)

So, what do you get when you mix Edgar Allan Poe and someone who knows almost NOTHING about podcasting:

a. drag queens suffocating milky eyed senior citizens

b. three serial killers discussing classic literature over tea

c. some pretty entertaining audio enjoyment (that may not be com-plete-ly right on, audio-wise)

The answer is: all the above (and at least 2 or 3 more analogies that I haven't thought up yet) - see for yourself http://cabaretpoe.blogspot.com/(just click on the link and then click on the link again when you get to the myspace warning about leaving myspace - I promise I am not "phishing" you - are you kidding I don't even know how to set up my podcast correctly)

Here's the deal. For the past 4-6 months I have been writing a piece called Cabaret Poe - using the classic literary works of Edgar Allan Poe and putting them to original music, or offering new dramatic interpretation... it's been really fun and cool. In the meantime two things happened:

1. MistahQue Artistry (a new prod company that I'm part of) was accepted to perform at LOOPTOPIA 2008*

2. Someone (can't remember who) said "Hey, why don't you drum up excitement about looptopia and Cabaret Poe by starting a podcast as sort of a countdown.

Of course I said yes to both of these since I am a performance whore...

Well, the looptopia prep is going GREAT and the pieces we will be performing will be pretty awesome (of course, I'm bound to think this, since I co-wrote them with one of most widely renowned geniuses of literary suspense and horror - who also happens to be dead...BONUS! ..i dunno)

BUT, the podcast thing has been the biggest pain in my ARSE since I received three penicillin in a row in the hind quarters when I was 12 (don't ask, let's just say that it involved a really bad case of strep and a really dumb nurse)

The actual recording of the podcasts was a blast. The other performers and I (Priscilla Parchia and Renae Stone) had a great time performing readings of the actual Poe poems and stories and then had fun, frank, honest discussions about them. My whole thinking was that a lot of Poe's work seems really "high-literature" to some people and they can't get past understanding the text literally in order to enjoy the story and the beautiful writing. So, if we have open conversation by three people who are not necessarily the most renowned literary scholars, then it might help the works of Poe to reach new audiences.

Well, I STILL think this is a great idea, and it may just accomplish that yet - but in the meantime - who knew that creating a podcast for broadcasting over the net would take so much work. Between, editing the recordings, publishing them online, and figuring out how to get them to work properly - I feel like it's been a full time job over the past two weeks. AND for it to end up still sounding odd. The actual podcasts are great and fun listening, but if you know my voice and the voices of the other performers you can tell that the audio is oooohhhh soooo slightly too slow. Which makes us all sound like drag queens or serial killers (I still haven't decided which yet - let me know what you think).

So, log on and check em out. The podcasts are readings of the actual works, NOT the performances of the songs we will be doing at Looptopia. However, all the music underneath is original and by yours truly:)

In closing, if someone ever says to you: "Hey ___insert your name___, you should really do a podcast!" - take off your size 13 stilettos and run your transvestite butt back to your scary-killer van, with no windows, and hide.

cabaretpoe.blogspot.com

*Looptopia is a huge event downtown Chicago happening on May 2nd this year. It's an all night arts even from around 7 at night to 7 the next day with every hour filled with music, theatre, dance, art and just about anything else you can think of - all for FREE. Last year (the first year) it was a great success and it promises to be even bigger this year. Here is the link for it: www.looptopia.com

Ok.....

So, here’s the deal.

My INCREDIBLE friend (Renae), Will and I (and Renae’s husband Jeff a little, too) are writing a brand new musical called....

CUBICLE the MUSICLE....an office fable

Yes, it’s a musical set in/all about the office....

Here is your assignment... tell us your office stories.
What is funny in your office? Have you ever had a conversation and you thought "am I really having this conversation?"
Were you a temp and had your lunch stolen by the mailroom woman who then sat and ate it in front of you as if you didn’t know.... Did you get stuck in the elevator for over an hour and then return to your 2 person office and your supervisor didn’t know you weren’t there (oh wait those are both me - so don’t use those)

We are looking for funny, wonderfully typical stories from the office to be a part of this fun new project... so let me have it:)

p.s. if the musical ends up a flop and you didn’t send your story in I will tell EVERYONE that it’s your fault... and I will steal your lunch and eat it in front of you.

no really - it will totally help us to make it the "everyday" in the office sort of feel we are going for.... so we’d REALLY appreciate your help... and maybe give ya some tickets if we use your ideas:)

love

-Ben-

If only I could afford to do it more often.... as some of you know I have a little bit of home recording equipment (Known as STUDIO Q) and I just did a little cd for my nephew of all disney stuff - but the real studio is a WHOLE different ball of electrical tape (sticky but durable? just go with it)

So, I went to the studio last week at the Indy Music Garage - which is a great place, has great sound, Chris (owner and engineer) is great, and has GREAT prices.... and I would say the word "great" again but I realize it might be starting to "grate" on your nerves.....ha ha ha (I just came up with that right this second - no seriously, it was not planned).....ok so I guess that would have played better live - but whatever

it was great

The cd I’m currently working on is called PUBLIC DOMAIN vol. 1 and it’s all songs that are in the "public domain" - (thus the name) meaning they are older than 1923.

I’ve taken all the songs and made new jazz arrangements of them and some of them are a little far out - but the whole thing has been a blast and I’m really happy with the direction everything is taking.

It’s so weird going into the studio with something specific in mind and, as you are there with your musicians and everybody, it becomes so much more and morphs into something both different than AND exactly like what you wanted.

as you can see I’m a little excited about it.....

Planning on a May or June release - so I will keep everybody posted. And if you are in Indy or Chicago I plan on playing a couple places to promote the pee out of it:)

I think I will be able to put a "teaser" song on my page next week to give a little taste of the honey....but I’m not making any promises...

So, start saving your money - because I’m sure you’ll want at LEAST 15 or 16 to hand out to people (on the street or in your house - your choice)

So, I've come to realize that I have an addictive personality. I never thought so, but over time I've noticed some disturbing occurances that can lead me to no other explanation.

I do not smoke, drink healthily, but not uncontrollably. I do not overeat (on a regular basis), I am not addicted to any sort of drug (except perhaps ClaritanD and caffiene) nor do I have any sort of sexual addiction that I am aware of at this point.

But, recently I have noticed that there is ONE thing I am addicted to: Anything that wastes colossal amounts of time.

For example, I remember what my life was like when I recieved my first SIMS game (played it until my eyelids needed to be forcibly closed).... but that wore off.

Another example is when I first started my MYSPACE page - I spent weeks designing and redesigning my site and talking it over with designers and looking at other sites and picking out photos and BLAH BLAH BLAH....

I can spend DAYS reading - or watching movies - or looking up randomness on the internet - or reorganizing the closet - or playing Ms. Pac-man/Mappy on this little game-thing that plugs into the TV...

Maybe to some, this is not a respectable addiction. To all the heroin addicts and crack junkies this may seem like "kid stuff". But, to me it's serious. When I waste all of this time doing things I want to do, it takes away the time that I would normally have to do all the things I really want to do. Can you see my problem....

What has recently drawn my attention to this phenomena is my new addiction to the website ZAZZLE. I love making little art projects and on this site you can create your own t-shirts if you have the design tools.....SOLD. I have started designing t-shirts and haven't stopped for a week. I haven't slept, I haven't ate, my beard it down to my waste and my mustache is even further....actually none of this is true - but I FEEL like it is. Actually, life has gone on pretty regularly, except for every second I can spare I am making a graphic to put on a t-shirt....

here is an example:

See my gallery at Zazzle



do I think anyone but myself will buy any of this crap? no

is there anything productive what-so-ever in making these t-shirts? no

do I spend FAR too much time on this? of course

thanks for listening....

As many of you know, this past weekend was the launch of our new show "Sex On Broadway". And for those of you who don't know...where the BLANK have you been, suckah?

This was an important weekend not just because we were finally getting to try the show out in front of audiences, but because it is the maiden voyage of our new company MISTAHQUE ARTISTRY. With our new production/artist involvment/multi-media experience company, we hope to produce things that are truly artistic while involving people in the multi-medium arts. "Sex On Broadway" was a mix of classic cabaret format and theatre. The combo ended up being FANTASTIC! Of course, I was one of the writers so I'm bound to feel that way (but I'm right).

Priscilla, Sarah and I had so much fun, that it didn't even feel like work....which I think is how everything should be. All of our crowds were decent in size (and just indecent enough to enjoy the show fully:)

Our Thursday night was a little rough in spots, and at one point all of us totally BLANKED on the lyrics to "The Lusty Month of May" (Camelot) and started humming or lala-ing or simply staring into the oblivion in silence. All of which, somehow making the number all the funnier...but we ended the song with a bang so it's all good.

Friday night - we each had quite a few people there and it was a BLAST! The audience could not have been more into the show and practically pushed us forward. It might have been the most fun I've had on stage - ever!

Renae, has been an amazing asset to the show. When Priscilla and I were writing the Madam Ariola section - we pretty much looked at each other and realized that Renae Stone does not need a script to make you laugh - and left it at that. She was fantastic.

And, of course we could not do it without our accompianist, Molly. Who followed us wherever we decided to go - which sometimes was WAY OFF the beaten path. I'm sure if there was a bubble over Molly's head reading her thoughts (ya know, like a comic book) it would have said "@$%!!!" quite a few times in the show each night...

Saturday night was also a blast - even if we had been a little spoiled by the previous night. The audience was good and the show was really fun. I managed to completely miss an entire cue, Priscilla expressed her need to urinate during the show, and Sarah and I had to share a stool for a whole song - but it's all good.

It was fun....it was fast - and it's just the beginning. Already, there are people trying to get us to play in different cities as well as working on getting the show up again here in Chicago. I'm sure it won't be long before we are "Sex"ing it again real soon.

Y'all come back now, y'hear?

Well, the week has finally arrived.... those of you who have been noticing all of my postings on the bulletin board (annoying, huh?) know what I am talking about the SEX ON BROADWAY show at Davenport's.

I am very excited about it - It will be alot of fun and it looks like we're going to have a great turn out with lots of cool people coming to see us. Priscilla, Sarah and I have been working very hard to iron down any wrinkles in the show (and let me tell you - there have been a couple doozies that needed some water and quite a bit of starch) and now I think the show is a tight, crazy fun, trip through a semi-taboo area that will leave everyone with alot to think about.....

It was hard to put a show together with this topic and not just end up with a total cliche. I mean, there ARE lots of songs about sex in the broadway songbook.....but an hour or so of that would get pretty old. So, when I conceptualized the show, I wanted it to be more than the ACT of sex and more about how sex effects us. I mean, there ARE songs about reference the act or are about the act, but there are also songs about adolescence and molestation. Sex is so multifaceted and effects so many parts of our lives (throughout our lives) that is unrealistic and niave to only caricature it as porn stars and one night stands (but we have those, too). When we were writing it, Priscilla and I tried to make it have moments of truth to offset the silly parts - but just enough silly parts to keep it moving in a fun way. I think it has turned out beautifully...

Ok, so why does this suddenly sound so much like a magazine interview... when did that happen - I'm still getting used to this whole blogging thing.

Anyways - if you haven't already made reservations at Davenport's for the show - give them a call and I hope to see ya there!

-Ben-