Happy Birthday to Me...The Rusty Bucket, Huffman Prairie, Hofbrauhaus, Cincinnati Art Museum

I count the short visit with Ray, our oldest son, as the start of my birthday celebration this year.  He was here to pick up his youngest son, Steve, and take him back to London, UK for a visit.  Tom, Ray, and I had lunch at The Rusty Bucket where Ray's oldest son is the chef.  Afterward, Ray continued on to Steve's apartment.

Tom and I drove to Huffman Prairie where the Wright Brothers conducted many of their flying tests. This is the time of year when sometimes we are lucky enough to see bobolinks on the prairie.  We saw two.

Tom didn't have his camera with him so I used my little Olympus Tough to get a picture.  Seeing the bobolink made me smile the rest of the day.

June 13 was alternately rainy and overcast.  Since we were inside during most of the rainy times, the rain didn't  stop our plans.  We ate lunch at the Hofbrauhaus in Newport, Kentucky which is across the Ohio River from Cincinnati.  Both of us enjoy German food.  Tom bought a piece of German chocolate cake to take home for a late afternoon snack.

Newport has been building a lot of expensive-looking high rise condos and apartments in the area.

The Newport Aquarium is near by and so are other restaurants and shops and entertainment.  

We always admire this beautifully carved cabinet just inside the front doors of the Hofbrauhaus.  The dining area is set up for friendly, casual meals.

After lunch we drove back across the Ohio River to Eden Park.  The Cincinnati Art Museum is high on a hill there.

The Burning Man exhibit has been at the museum for some time.  It was in the special exhibit galleries for several months but now the various sculptures are spread among the museum's regular exhibits. Coming up on the sculptures is a bit of a surprise.  There is no mistaking them.  They are unique.

The first one we found was The Five Ton Crane.  It reminded me of an old-time movie theater set up in a street car.  It was an interactive piece of art.  People could climb up into it, sit down and watch movies mimicking the silent films of the twenties.

Since Tom is in a power chair we watched the movies while standing beside the structure. The movies were projected on a screen beyond The Five Ton Crane as well as on the screen with the green curtains framing it.

A "professor" instructed us via a blackboard on what might cause a woman to float into the air after a discreet kiss from a lover....

                                             1. Gravity Allergy

                                             2. Electro - Magnetic Polarity

                                             3. Blood Holds Helium 

This was just one of many silly demonstrations continually flipped through as we watched.

Tom and I stopped to look at some of the museum's regular exhibits, too.  Tom especially liked a painting of sailing ships in a harbor because it was so precise and true in the details.  I liked this one by Robert Henri.

One of the Burning Man sculptures that has been used a lot in the publicity shots is this one.

The dancer is made of triangles covered by a translucent skin. Here is a close up of her thigh.

This photo gives you an idea of her size.

The Burning Man is a temporary art installation set up in a desert between two mountain ranges.  It's name comes from the effigy of a gigantic man which is traditionally burned on the last evening of the exhibit.

This is an facsimile of the effigy.  It is bigger than life size, but not as large as the one that is burned.

The day following the burning of the effigy the entire art exhibit is taken down and moved away.  The goal is to leave the desert exactly as it was before the exhibit. If you google "Burning Man" you can find out much more about the mindset of those who participate in the exhibit each year.

Tom and I wandered around the museum for a little less than two hours.  By the time I have looked at exhibits for a couple hours, my brain is stuffed full.  So many ideas, so many ways that art can be presented.

The drive home was sometimes drizzly. Sometimes rain was pouring down.  We were happy when we arrived home. 

In the mailbox I found birthday cards from my sisters.  Better still were the letters enclosed in the cards.  I am glad I am part of the generation that writes letters.

Tom and I ate our piece of chocolate cake and I enjoyed reading the notes. 

And Now Tom is Eighty....January 19, 2019

On September 12, I took Tom to a Reds game and then to a German restaurant to celebrate his eightieth birthday.  We were celebrating early because his birthday is January 19 which is an iffy day to plan anything in Ohio.

Now I'm patting myself on my back.  On January nineteenth we awoke to pouring rain, rain that was turning to ice and icicles .

Sonja, our daughter, called to say she, Reagan, and Samantha had planned to bring over breakfast to celebrate but when they saw the rain and ice, they decided to send greetings and visit us another day.
(Sonja stopped by on Sunday, the twentieth, after working at Kroger and brought pizza.  It was a pleasant visit.  It is not often that she has time for a relaxing visit with  us.)

Back to Saturday, Tom's birthday.

When Tom checked Facebook he saw that our oldest son, Ray, had posted a very nice tribute to him and what he had accomplished in his eighty years. Ray said, "I live in awe of what he's accomplished in those 80 years."

As the day passed, more and more people he has met and worked with over the years took a few minutes to send him happy birthday comments on Ray's Facebook post.  There were a few comments that made him ( and me) chuckle.  He heard from friends he hasn't seen or heard from in years.

In late morning, our 97 year old neighbor called, said she had something to bring Tom for his birthday. She drove over, said she had some shopping to do before the weather got any worse. We were her first stop.

She brought a practical gift for nearly anyone turning eighty.

By then, I had the cheery pie which he asked for in the oven.

I forgot to take the picture before lunch.  We also had scalloped potatoes with ham which he had also asked for.

But no company.  It was NOT a good day for visiting.  We were glad to see our neighbor returning from her trip to the grocery store because snow had now arrived to cover the layer of ice. And then the wind arrived.  By late afternoon, this is how the bird bath and back yard looked.  The bit of sunshine was nice but it was only a teaser.

It was still snowing when we went to bed.  But the weather did not stop Tom from having a great birthday.

Egad! The Lady in White, a play by Tim Kelly...The First Play of the 2018-2019 Season of The Drama Workshop at The Glenmore Playhouse

Tom, Steve and I went to the last of the nine performances of Egad, The Lady in White, a play by Tim Kelly.  The title of the play comes from a mystery written by Wilkie Collins in 1859.  Collins' book is considered one of the first modern mystery novels.

 

The cast of Egad! The Lady in White. If you click on the photo you will get a larger view of the cast members.  Or you can look at the two photos below.

.  Front row...Ann Barfels as Miss Peach, Peggy Allen as Countess Fosco, Larry Mills as Lawyer Gilmore, Marcha Hunley who was the Director of the play.

   Back row...Linda Abbott asMaestro Lillian Buchanan, Kent Smith as Professor Smyth, Joe Ward as Sir Percival Glyde, and Victoria Kirby-Schwarber as Laura.

 Front row...Gretchen Stommel as Amelia, Victoria Covarrubias as Mrs. Catherick,  and Elizabeth Hickerson as Marian.
  Back row...Stephanie Klein as Dora, Alan Kootsher as Frederic Fairlee, Aaron Ellis as Walter Hartright, and Stefanie Adams as Madame Evan-Mills.

If I have made errors in the identification of the cast members, please let me know.

Below is the cast plus a few of the other people who made this play possible.  On the left, Greg Schaper who was one of the master carpenters as well as an usher and an official host during the intermission on Sunday when Tom, Steve and I attended.On the right are the co-producers, Valeria Amburgey, Dennis Murphy, and Elaine Volker.  They also helped in other ways.  Many other people were involved as well.  I took this photo quickly as the cast and technicians were rearranging themselves for more photos.

It is always interesting to me to see how the stage area and the audience seats are set up for the various plays. For this play, they was set up to accommodate a thrust stage. What I think of as the normal stage area was the luxurious library of Sir Percival Glyde, Baronet, played by Joe Ward.  In scene 7 of the second act, it became, with a change of props, a room in the parish church.

The forward thrust area was the Limmerage House, the home of Frederick Fairlie, a wealthy hypochondriac land-owner.  In the second act, for one scene, it became a cell in Countess Fosco's asylum for the insane.

Between the two "homes" is an area which served as a path and as a corridor.  I've pointed to this area with the arrow.

I know there must be technical names for all these sections of the performance area but  I don't know them.  

In this photo you can see the piano.  The piano player, Linda Abbott, by playing the appropriate music, created an old-fashioned melodramatic atmosphere.

One of the traditions of The Drama Workshop since 1968 has been to have a Sword on the stage during every performance as a symbol of the continuous unity of performers and technicians.  Some times it is easy to spot, sometimes its is hard to spot.  Steve found it quickly.  Do you see it?  He had to tell Tom and me where it was.  Hint:  Only the hilt is easily visible.

As in many melodramas, the acts of the play were separated by musical interludes or "Olios".  The Drama Workshop players developed their own Olios. We were treated to duets and solos by Stefani Adams (Madame Evan-Mills) and Kent Smith (Professor Smith).  The songs were great fun, partly because the audience was invited to join in on some of them.  It has been years since I have sung the chorus to Daisy, Daisy, (Bicycle Built for Two) and The Man on the Flying Trapeze.  The Words for the choruses of When the Roll is Called Up Yonder and Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight were printed in the playbill.

The audience was encouraged to participate in other ways as well.  We hissed and booed the villians and ahhed when we were touched by touching romantic scenes.

But, for Steve, the best part of the afternoon for Steve was visiting with his theater friends. They greeted one another with joy. He hugged them and they hugged him.

Usually we spend time talking with our son, Ray and his wife,Gretchen, but since Ray is on a three year assignment to London, UK we didn't do that.  They are still active with the theater.  He plans to design sets and she is on the Marketing Committee. They will communicate via the Internet.  It is a wonderful world that we live in.

The Fanstasticks, Words and Music by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones, Presented by The Drama Workshop

"Try to remember the kind of September when life was slow, and oh, so mellow..."  This song has been popping into my head at odd times ever since I saw "The Fantasticks"  presented by The Drama Workshop at The Glenmore Playhouse in Cheviot.  Tom, our friend, Pat, and I went to the April 24th matinee.

I'm sorry I didn't get this posted sooner but word of mouth and publicity made it one of The Drama Workshop's ten most attended productions of all time.

Included on the stars in the photo above are the actors and also many of the supporting volunteers who make the community theater possible.  The photos below are closer views of the left and right side.  If you click on them to enlarge them, you may recognize some faces.

Cast members were...

Jonny Hofmann as The Narrator--El Gallo

Maria Huey as The Girl-Luisa

Jacob Lucas as The Boy-Matt

Mark Waldfogle as The Boy's Father-Hucklebee

Russ D. McGee as The Girl's Father-Bellomy

Jack Williams as The Old Actor-Henry

Mike Robb as The Man Who Dies-Mortimer

Geoffrey Hill as The Mute ( also The Wall)

The props and set were minimal just as they were in the original off-Broadway production that ran for 42 years, making it the world's longest-running musical.  It was great fun being surprised by what was found in the boxes to the left and right of the center stage.

I was looking through my old posts and found this one from several years ago which I never posted so I am posting it now.

Always Patsy Cline... the Props on the Glenmore Theatre Stage

When I walked into the theater I was drawn back to my childhood and early adulthood.  The set was the 1961 that I remembered.

Our seats were to the right side so we were seated close to the "kitchen".

Tom was as impressed with the kitchen as I was.  He said, "Take a close look at the calendar on the refrigerator."

Tom, Pat, and I started pointing out other things we remembered.

The broom and dustpan parked beside the refrigerator...the flyswatter where it was handy...the radio on top of the refrigerator...the braided rug...the ruffled curtains on the door...linoleum on the floor.

We remembered the curtain hanging from the sink to cover the plumbing and the Brillo Pads box as well as Bon Ami Shaker container...the cutting boards, the copper molds.  Way to the left is a spice rack typical of the era.  Even the cupboard doors felt right.  Pat spotted a toaster like the one her family had.

And then we began looking at the items on the open shelves.  Do you recognize anything?

On the left side of the theater as we looked at it was a corner of The Esquire Ballroom which was outside Houston, Texas.  This is where Patsy Cline and Louise Seger met.

The sign on the middle of the back wall is a vintage neon Pabst Blue Ribbon Sign which lit when this part of the set was the focal point.

Gretchen Gantner, was in charge of Set Decor and Tobie Braverman was in charge of Properties.  The two women did an outstanding job. I was so drawn into the era that I was still back in 1961 after the play was over.

What astonished me most was the sign below.  It brought back memories that were buried deep.

My dad was an insurance agent and also, for a while, a superintendent for The National Life and Accident Insurance Company.  The company's annual convention was in Nashville and the conventioneers always went to a performance of  The Grand Ole Opry.  Dad was proud that his company had been part of the start of what became a Nashville tradition.  Dad worked for the company nearly all the years that I was growing up.

Our son, Ray, created the central Grand Ole Opry set design  from a small black and white photo he found after much searching.  Until I told him, he didn't realize that his grandpa had worked for the insurance company.

Ray painted the barn detail but Tobie Braverman, Gretchen Gantner, Karen Romero, and Elaine Volker painted the barn.

But before any painting could be done, the Construction Crew built the set.  Builders included Linda Abbott, Lydia Abbott, Clint Bramkamp, John Farrow, Gretchen Gantner, Cynthia Mottel, Dennis Murphy, James Reuter, Karen Romero, Greg Schaper, Megan Schultheis, Patrick Schultheis, Kent Smith, Fred tacon, Eric Thomas, Veronica Thomas, Elaine Volker, Amy Waldfogle, Katie Waldfogle, Mark Waldfogle, and Robert Weidle.

Thanks, all of you.  You helped create a play I will never forget.

Always...Patsy Cline by Ted Swindley, Presented by The Drama Workshop

The Drama Workshop finished off the 2016-2017 with a smash hit for their patrons.  This musical was so popular with the community that an extra weekend was added and people were begging for still another weekend.  But, as a member of the group remarked,  "This is community theater and it is time for us all to get back to our real lives."  My good friend who went with Tom and me said, " I had no idea that this group was all volunteer, that they perform like this for fun, not for pay."

Cynthia Mottel as Patsy Cline treated us to twenty-four Patsy Cline hits, including "Crazy" and "I Fall to Pieces".

Jennifer Keith as Louise Seger, Patsy's fan from the beginning and friend from the time Patsy met her was completely believable as a Texas housewife with a passion for Patsy and her music.

I was dazzled by the entire production.  I didn't realize until I was back in the van that the two women with Cynthia Mottel at a photo opportunity after the play were probably Jennifer Keith and Linda Abbott. I thought they were family members. But I did get this photo of Cynthia.

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The musical production was directed by Robert Weidle and produced by Gretchen Gantner with Linda Abbott as Band Leader and Vocal Director.  Linda Abbott also played the piano.  Her piano playing could have been a solo act and people would have come.

                         The Bodacious Bobcat Band

As an aside and an example of the adaptability of all involved, my son,Ray, said that as of last Sunday there had been six different combinations of band members, depending on who was available for each performance.  But the band always performed flawlessly.

                                The Jordanaires
Standing is Kurt Kishler.  In front is Randy Meyer.  They sang "How Great Thou Art" beautifully as well as backup to Patsy Cline's songs.

Photo of part of the Creative Crew.

Below is a list of the entire Creative Crew.

This production brought back lots of memories from years ago.  I'll save them for another blog.