Arts

UnScripted Moments: “Fallen” by Mozawa

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A guest post for a continuing Addison Recorder series highlighting Chicago storefront theatre by Leigh Yenrick. Leigh is an actress who has worked in Toledo and the Twin Cities, and who currently resides in Chicago.

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All images courtesy of Mozawa

Tonight, we are highlighting the new kid on the block, Mozawa, opening their inaugural show Fallen at the Collaboraction Theater.  I had the pleasure to go behind the scenes to get a sneak peak into the production, and to sit down with the Artistic Director Matthew Mozawa.

First, a little background on this production, an interdisciplinary theater adaptation based on the short story “In A Grove” by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, and the film “Rashomon” by Akira Kurosawa. Adapted and directed by Mozawa’s Artistic Director Matthew Ozawa, this world premiere hybrid theater event features original score and live performance by Koto performer Yumi Kurosawa and Electronic Sound Artist Mike Vernusky.

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Thoughts from the Dugout: Rockin’ the Postseason

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Image of Kaufmann Stadium Rainout

Royals-Orioles was rained out last night. So here’s a filler column!

We’re three and two games into the respective League Championship Series, and already, it’s as if everything we expected (NLCS) and didn’t expect (ALCS) is happening. However, there are multiple things which I’m interested in writing about this year, so we’re expanding to another field I love – music. Specifically, rock music. Even more specifically, a completely arbitrary way to honor past acts with a designation which may or may not actually mean anything in the long run.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ballot was released last week, and it’s an interesting pool of candidates, bringing together a diverse and completely unrelated group of acts that may or may not actually have to do with rock itself. In order to fully analyze the ballot, I felt that the best way to do it was to look at their blurb on Wikipedia, listen to a song on YouTube, and then compare them with a player/manager from the four teams remaining in the postseason to which they (somewhat) relate. This is why I get my own column – sheer genius and ultra-spontaneous collaborations. Behold, my breakdown of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2015 ballot!

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“In The End”: A G-chat Review of Weezer’s Latest

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Weezer's latest album came out Oct. 7.

Weezer’s latest album came out Oct. 7. (image via)

Meryl and her friend Dennis live in different states but share a years-long love for Weezer. This week they listened to the new album released Oct. 7, and below is their unofficial Gmail chat review of “Everything Will Be Alright In The End.”

Dennis:  have you heard anything from the new Weezer album?
me:  i have not! I heard it’s good though. Have you heard it?
Dennis:  no.  I was a little disappointed in the last one.
me:  yeah… Checking to see if it’s on Spotify… (minute later)  IT IS.
Dennis: it’s on grooveshark too. I’ll listen with you!  ha.
me:  yay! okay fun!

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UnScripted Moments: “Reasons to Be Happy” at Profiles Theatre

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A guest post – and first in a new Addison Recorder series highlighting Chicago storefront theatre – by Leigh Yenrick. Leigh is an actress who has worked in Toledo and the Twin Cities, and who currently resides in Chicago. 

Image of Profiles Theatre Reasons to Be Happy

(Image courtesy of Profiles Theatre)

This week we are taking a look at Profiles season opener Reasons to Be Happy. Written by Neil LaBute, the show is a sequel to his 2008 play reasons to be pretty, bringing us back into the lives of Greg (Eric Burger), Steph (Domenica Cameron-Scorsese), Carly(Sarah Loveland), and Kent (Dennis Bistro). All of them are in their middle aged years and trying to find happiness, whether that would be with each other or in the form of inner peace. I recently got to talk about the play with Profiles’ own Artistic Director Darrell W. Cox who directed Reasons to Be Happy.

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J&STAC: Rat Queens, vol 1

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-J. is a writer for the Addison Recorder. Steph works in a comic book shop. They’re married and have a lot of discussions about comic books & graphic novels. Combine all that into a regular feature and you get “J. & Steph Talk About Comics.”

J. & Steph Talk About Comics: the Pilot Episode

For our inaugural discussion, we’re looking at the comic book that inspired us to do this series. High fantasy, tons of RPG elements, snark, wit, and the most ass-kicking characters this side of a d20 — Rat Queens. Volume 1 is collected in the graphic novel, “Sass and Sorcery,” and volume 2 is currently on its second issue in comic book format.

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“Losers” Showcases Local Improv and Acting Talent

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New episodes of Losers air every Wednesday.

New episodes of Losers air every Wednesday. (Image via)

A new Chicago-based webseries began airing episodes Sept 3, but there’s still time to catch up before next week’s midseason premiere. Losers, a self-described show “about fucking up,” is the debut project by new-on-the-scene production company Cloud Gate Productions and centers around a cast of roughly 40 characters in 25 episodes.

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Welcome to Stars Hallow: An Intro to the Gilmore Girls

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A dedicated fan base broke out in cheers on Twitter when Netflix announced recently that, as of October 1, all seven seasons of the WB show “Gilmore Girls” will be available to stream. Though many of us have been able to re-watch the show on DVD, the possibility of spending time with the fast-talking, trivia-filled titular duo anytime, anywhere fills us with glee. If you’re new to the family and their perpetually-autumnal home of Stars Hallow, let me be your guide into this (sadly fictional) little corner of the world.

The cast of Gilmore Girls

“Gilmore Girls” begins streaming on Netflix Oct. 1 (image via).

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Rock and Roll Rising From the Mud: 10.5 Observations on Riot Fest

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1. Rock and roll is not dead…but it is very dirty.

Recently, Gene Simmons asserted that “rock is dead” – this article can be considered my dissent against that statement. Sales may be dropping, and manufactured pop, rap, and metal may continue to keep their footholds in the musical consciousness, but as long as artists reach the masses with passionate, high-energy performances full of unexpected surprises, rock and roll will never die. Riot Fest, celebrating its tenth anniversary in Chicago, is the ultimate case in point, as I witnessed on the one day of concerts I attended.

Saturday at Humboldt Park proved to be a beautiful day, albeit full of mud leftover from Friday’s rain.  I wore my old sneakers to the festival and immediately threw them out on my return home. Nobody emerged with clean shoes. None of us minded. For my part, I saw nine acts and change from noon to 10 pm, some of whom I was familiar with, some of whom I love, and none of whom did note for note recreations of their studio sound. It was an experience worth every penny.

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Boyhood is A Cinema Experience Unlike Any Other

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Boyhood Ellar Coltrane

It’s like seeing your life flash right by. (Image via.)

Boyhood has been the indie hit of the summer. It has broken out commercially to the tune of $20 million through its first nine weeks of release and received a rare perfect 100 score on the review aggregator Metacritic. After weeks of dithering I finally made time to see the film on Labor Day and can safely say the hype is justified. Boyhood is guaranteed to be among the best films of the year and is a singular achievement in cinematic history. [Read more…]

No Girlz Allowed: Zoë Quinn, Anita Sarkeesian, and Gaming While Female

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This is a guest post by friend of the Recorder, Molly Schlemmer, who expressed interest in writing about a frightfully topical issue, one in which she has the full support of the Addison Recorder.

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Anita Sarkeesian in her latest episode of Tropes vs. Women in Video Games.

I am a gamer.  I am also a woman, which makes me one of those mythic “girl gamers.”  About a week ago Andrew Rostan shared this article from The Mary Sue on Facebook.  My stomach sank as I read it.  Was the gaming world really going to do this again?

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