Not even kidding. Jeff Mills is a God. "It's the small victories," he said, after I thanked him for the day's class. I was freaked out that I would hurt my arm (it's been almost 2 years since the car accident) but everything was fine. It's a lot easier than it looks! The balancing is the tough part. Also, I can TOTALLY do a backward roll now! I was having so much trouble with them at first, but now I'm so pro. Well, I don't want to get cocky. But I've got it down now.
Today was so busy. Voice and Movement from 9 to 12 and then a Movement workshop with Tim Miller, a fantastic artist whom you should look up. He's very political and socially active. The Supreme Court struck down his case against the US Government for taking away his Artist's Grant because of homosexual subject matter. "Standards of decency" are constitutional criterion for federal funding of the arts. Can you believe that shit? Basically, we have no freedom of expression when we use Uncle Sam's money. His master class was very cool. We created our own 30 second pieces in groups of 3 and 4. Mine was very abstract, but he really liked it. The other three people totally gave me a chance to act in theirs. All in all I played myself, a sourfully neglectful father, a fat pervert in a grocery store, and a delicious red apple. I was approached as the latter all damn day. I must have made an impression.
Then I had American Drama in which my phone went off on the LOUD setting! So scary, especially because everyone was falling asleep. I ate with Cassie, constantly asking why she was eating her birthday dinner with ME, and then went to Tim's performance at the Multi Cultural Center. After, I hung with Cassielicious, ate a cupcake, told my famous toilet pregnancy story, made a few friends and then came home. Did some homework and now I be bloggin'!
Oh, I forgot. I went to see Irwin after Drama, and we had a really great little chat about Rabbit Hole, my excitement about the program, Tim's workshop, and I spilled my heart about how amazing it is to be taught by Annie. I feel like when Irwin and I talk, it's a mutual lovefest of the arts. I passionately speak of my love, excitement, frustration, fear of my craft while he nods, wide-eyed and with a deep sense of wonder, as if to say "Yes, I know. You don't know how much this speaks to me. Go on. I am listening." Finally, I left after an invitation to come back next week like always. I later remarked to Cassie that I hoped he had cleaned my jizz of of his casting couch so that Trevor Wade (who came in after me) had someplace to sit. Yeah... self-rape is kinda how I described our passionate chats to CassMcGass.
Well, I'm going to get up EARLY tomorrow to eat breakfast with Cassie and Liz. Don't have class til 1:30 and it's my ONLY day that late, but I'm gettin' up at 8:20. Ew. Need to sleep. I also need to memorize a beautiful poem for a character I'm doing in Annie's class. I started with the picture below and then found a poem that I think creates a really dynamic character. I'll explain more after tomorrow's workshop with it.
The Serenity in Stones
Simon J. Ortiz
I am holding this turquoise
in my hands.
My hands hold the sky
wrought in this little stone.
There is a cloud
at the furthest boundary.
The world is somewhere underneath.
I turn the stone, and there is more sky.
This is the serenity possible in stones,
the place of a feeling to which one belongs.
I am happy as I hold this sky
in my hands, in my eyes, and in myself.
'Night, all.
-Big D
