THE BRIGHT NIGHT ANIMATED BANNER

PROVIDENCE CRAIG'S LIST OPENS!


Amazingly, the free and very successful classified ads site Craigslist has come to Providence. Right now, no one knows about it, so not much action. Hopefully we can change all that!

http://providence.craigslist.org

The Reason I Haven't Been Posting

For those of you that have been following the Blog closely, you may have noticed that it's been a month since my last Post.


Here's why:

I've become the Director of Bright Night Providence, a new New Year's Festival in the tradition of First Night Providence. On December 31, we'll have over 100 performers in 18 venues throughout downtown. So as you can imagine, I've been a bit busy! Tickets go on sale on December 1 at ArtTixRi.com and at all Bank RI locations. So I hope to back in the blog writing business sometime in early January. (I may do occasional updates, but nothing major.) Meanwhile, I hope to see you on Bright Night!

Rhode Island's Department of Health has a very informative website that can help Rhode Islanders manage their health. From lists of public flu clinics to a survey/rating of nursing homes, they've compiled very useful info. Of course, if you are feeling poorly, it won't help you get your health back, and their website won't give you health insurance if you have none, but it's nice to know that the government is working for you, even if it's providing information!

DANCE YOUR PASSION WITH DELILAH

Tiverton, RI -- October 13-15, 2003

Delilah

Barbara Derecktor Donahue

Delilah will be coming to do a mini-festival of bellydance in Tiverton RI. Delilah has been a bellydancer for 30 years, and is currently doing a Gypsy Caravan tour down the Easten Seaboard. She'll be in Tiverton Rhode Island from the 13nth to the 15nth, she'll be giving workshops, performances, a bellydancing bazaar, and much more! This is a unique opportunity to study with a visionary belly dancer.


The festival will be hosted in Tiverton by Barbara Derecktor Donahue, "The Dancing Spirit" of Tiverton. Barbara is also a dancer and bellydance teacher. (and a friend of mine!)

To find out more about Delilah, check out Visionarydance.com


To find out more about the Festival in Tiverton, check out The Dancing Spirit Event page.

RECALL ARNOLD NOW!

The movement has already started!





Fortunately, in Rhode Island, the governor can only be recalled for gross malfeasance. So, Don Bosquet will probably not be governor anytime soon! (Sorry Don!)

Rhode Island Recycles!

The Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation is the state environmental agency dedicated to providing the public with environmentally sound programs and facilities to manage solid waste. The agency funds and manages the state's recycling program, and owns and operates the Central Landfill and Materials Recycling Facility in Johnston, Rhode Island. Created by the Rhode Island General Assembly in 1974 as the Rhode Island Solid Waste Management Corporation, the corporation changed its name in August, 1996. Although not a department of the state government, RIRRC is a public corporation and a component of the State of Rhode Island for financial reporting purposes. To be financially self-sufficient, the agency earns revenue through the sale of recyclable products, methane gas royalties and fees for its services.

ACTION SPEAKS

It's time once again for the annual panel discussions fostered by AS220, the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, and host Marc Joel Levitt. Every Tuesday from Oct 7-Nov 11 from 5:30-7pm at the AS220 Cafe Insightful and interesting panelists engage in discourse (along with audience participation). Admission is 100% free!

This year it's Under-Appreciated Days That Changed America.
OCT 7: POSTWAR U.S. OCCUPATION OF JAPAN, 1946

Can Democracy be "Imposed"?
Guests are William Martel, John Dower, and Neta Crawford


OCT 14: IMMIGRANT & NATIONALITY ACT, 1965

American's "Complexion" Changed Forever
Guests are David Cicciline, Robert Lee, Ronald Fernandez
NOTE: At URI'S PAFF Auditorium at 7 PM, 80 Washington St, Providence


OCT 21: NATIVE AMERICAN GAMING LAW, 1988

A Chance To Take A Chance
Guests are Jackson Lears, Tom Acevedo, and Christine Reilly


OCT 28: PORT HURON STATEMENT WRITTEN, 1962
Students for a Democratic Society Created-1960's Student Radicalism has its "Constitution"
Guests are Paul Buhle, Bernardine Dohrn, Thomas Frank


NOV 4: SACCO & VANZETTI ARRESTED! 1920

Terrorism, Racial Profiling, and Restrictions on Personal Liberties
Guests are David kaiser, Patricia Williams, TBA


NOV 11: UGA COINS THE TERM "GRAFFITI ARTISTS" 1973

"It's Our City and We'll Paint Where We Want To."
Guests are TBA, Providence Police Dept, Ivor Miller, Angel Garcia.

NOTE: Between 4 and 5 pm, the Rhode Island Debate League will hold a debate featuring accomplished high school debaters entitled "Spray This! The Ethics of Graffiti."

FESTIVAL BALLET'S CARMEN

Carmen VMA Arts & Cultural Center Friday, October 3, 2003 @ 7:30 PM Saturday, October 4, 2003 @ 7:30 PM Sunday, October 5, 2003 @ 2:30 PM Purchase Tickets Online

A thrilling production by one of the most talented young choreographers in the country. Boston Ballet’s Viktor Plotnikov has created a bold, new full-length production of Carmen for Festival Ballet Providence. Set to Bizet’s compelling score, this Carmen is a contemporary ballet that conveys the impassioned story through Mr. Plotnikov’s powerfully expressive dance vocabulary, and his "very distinctive voice".

For ticket information, please contact Festival Ballet Providence at 401.353.1129.

During the week of September 29th, the VMA Arts & Cultural Center Box Office will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. to sell tickets to all of Festival Ballet Providence's VMA productions. On Friday, the box office will be open from noon until 8 p.m.; on Saturday from Noon to 8 p.m.; and on Sunday from Noon to 3 p.m. The VMA Box Office telephone number is 401.272.4VMA.

INCARCERATION AND PERFORMANCE

"Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison."
-- Henry David Thoreau

"Performance as an artistic 'genre' is a constant state of crisis, and is therefore an ideal medium for articulating a time of permanent crisis such as ours."
-- Guillermo Gomez-Pena

"Performance is about presence, not representation; it is not a mirror, but the actual moment in which the mirror is shattered…. We experience life, therefore we perform-or rather we perform as we live, love, travel and suffer. "
-- Guillermo Gomez-Pena

Currently over 2.5 million people are held in prison or detention in the United States, with over 3,000 on death row. The United States has the highest incarceration and execution rates among industrialized nations. Varied responses to the expanding penal sites and carceral practices have sparked new forms of research, education, and analysis, art and performance, and narrative-all interrogating the meanings of democracy and captivity.

The 2003-2004 Wayland Faculty Seminar "Incarceration, Narrative and Performance" provides an interdisciplinary examination of "incarceration studies" (history, sociology, criminology, community health, and political science); narrative (memoirs, political manifestoes, literature on ethnicity, race, gender, and captivity); and performance studies (theatre, communication, visual art). Through the humanities, arts and social sciences we explore captivity, community, and democracy in the prison state.


Today at 4 pm, Robert Varea, co-founder of the Soapstone Theatre Company will speak at Rites and Reasons Theatre about his work with prisoners.


Find out more about Varea's work


Find out more about the Wayland Faculty Seminar

I'm working on a new show currently, so I'm raising some money for the show through merchandising. If you like the shirt, buy one! All of the proceeds go towards the building costs of the show, which will premiere in Spring of 2004.



The shirts and merchandise are available through CafePress.com If you want to design and sell your own shirts, feel free to do so-- it's basically free! (Please use my userid mrpunch as a referrer-- I get some kind of credit for it!)

Rhode Island Policy Reporter

My friend Tom Sgouros has a lot of varied interests. He's a trained film maker and artist, a great juggler and former circus impresario, a pretty good self-trained electrical engineer and robot builder, and in his copious free time, he is a policy wonk.


He's recently decided to start a newsletter devoted to Rhode Island policy. Named the Rhode Island Policy Reporter, it's a more or less monthly newsletter that reports on state and federal policy issues in and around the Ocean State. Each issue takes on a different subject and analyzes and reports upon Rhode Island policy. Taxes, the budget, health care, the environment, and other issues are all fair game.


I warn you, it's not for the faint of heart or mind. The newsletter delves deep into what the actors in these policy arenas are doing, not what they are saying. The newsletter is information-dense. Just warning you, in case you were allergic to information!


If you'd like, you can view the first two issues by PDF. The newsletter isn't free (It's $55 a year for individuals, and $110 a year for institutions) but hey, his kids need to eat, y'know?


If you'd like to subscribe, check out the website, or just send your check (or a bunch of small unmarked bills) to:

Rhode Island Policy Reporter
Box 23011
Providence, RI 02903

The Birth of Johnny Appleseed

Today, September 26, 1774 Johnny Appleseed Chapman was born in Leominster Massachusetts. Over the course of his life he travelled far and wide as an itinerant nurseryman, and sowed thousands of apple trees. While he didn't do it out of sheer altruism, at the same time, he wasn't particularly money focused either. He had a vision, he sought it out and practiced it. Read a history of Johnny Appleseed

RHODE ISLAND ORCHARDS!

Now is the time to go to a local orchard and pick your own apples, pears, and other delicious items!

You can get a full list of RI Orchards at the Rhode Island Fruit Growers Website There's also directions on growing apples, a list of farm stands, apple recipes, and lots of other stuff!


You may also want to check out the state's Division of Agriculture's website (part of the Dept. of Environmental Management). They've got some pretty interesting stuff there too!

STONE SOUP COFFEEHOUSE

Stone Soup Coffeehouse is one of the oldest and largest folk music venues in New England. Now in its 23rd season, Stone Soup presents fine folk and acoustic music on Saturday evenings from Labor Day through the end of May. Stone Soup has presented such artists as Pete Seeger, Tom Paxton, Rosalie Sorrels, Cheryl Wheeler, Greg Brown, Patty Larkin, Bill Morrissey, etc. But since Stone Soup's purpose is not to make money but promote folk music, it makes it a point to present gifted artists not as well known as those listed above, and Stone Soup also has an obligation to the many fine artists in the Rhode Island area, which has one of the richest lodes of folk artists in the nation. Stone Soup is an all volunteer, non-profit organization.

For more information, check out their website! or call (401) 457-7147


The 2003-2004 Schedule

September 27 Northern Lights ($12) October 3, 2003 (FRIDAY): Holly Near($18) Holly Near: Advance tickets available October 11 Paul Geremia (opening: Deb Pasternak)($10) October 18 >Les Sampou (opening: Art Tebbetts) ($12) October 25 Spellbinders ($10) November 1 Cactus Highway; Stephanie Corby(double bill) ($10) November 8 Lori McKenna (hoot) ($10) November 15 Cliff Eberhardt (opening: TBA)($12) November 22 Roy BookBinder (opening: Terrence Martin)($10) November 29 Rani Arbo and daisy mayhem (opening: Polly Fiveash and Anand Nayak) ($12)

ROSH HASHANAH

The Jewish Holidays are nearly upon us! Time to get out the shofar (the horn, seen above) and celebrate the New Year, or Rosh Hashanah (which in Hebrew means "Head of the Year") You can find out a lot more about Rosh Hashanah here .


Services vary, but most synagogues have them on Sept 26, Sept 27, and Sept 28. It can be pretty difficult to get a seat at the synagogue (this is the holiday that most people go to temple for, and as a result, it's quite crowded, and often involves tickets, etc.). Several organizations go out of their way to have seats available for unaffiliated people, travellers, and anyone who needs to go to services:


URI Hillel--401-874-2740
Brown Hillel--401-863-2805
Chabad House -401-273-7238

For a list of other synagogues, Look Here!

PERISHABLE’S ANNUAL WOMEN'S PLAYWRITING FESTIVAL
October 2- November 1

Each year for the last 11 years, Perishable Theatre has presented The Women’s Playwrighting Festival. It’s been one of their more popular series. They’ve experimented with a series of different formats, and what has worked for them for the past few years are one act plays. This year's Festival winners and their plays are: Temporaria by MF Unser, directed by Brooke O'Harra Holy Broth by Quiara Alegria Hudes, directed by Nadia Mahdi Johnny Hong Kong by Kathryn Walat, directed by Bob Jaffe Tickets on sale now at ArtTix! Performances are October 2 through November 1 Thursdays at 7PM, Fridays and Saturdays at 8PM, Sunday October 19th & 26th at 3PM $20 ($15 student & senior discount) Call 401-621-6123 or visit the Perishable website for more information.

AVAST YE MATIES!

That's right folks-- It's International Talk Like A Pirate Day! Here are the 5 basic words you'll need as a pirate!: Ahoy! - "Hello!" Avast! - Stop and give attention. It can be used in a sense of surprise, "Whoa! Get a load of that!" which today makes it more of a "Check it out" or "No way!" or "Get off!" Aye! - "Why yes, I agree most heartily with everything you just said or did." Aye aye! - "I'll get right on that sir, as soon as my break is over." Arrr! - This one is often confused with arrrgh, which is of course the sound you make when you sit on a belaying pin. "Arrr!" can mean, variously, "yes," "I agree," "I'm happy," "I'm enjoying this beer," "My team is going to win it all," "I saw that television show, it sucked!" and "That was a clever remark you or I just made." And those are just a few of the myriad possibilities of Arrr! For advanced pirate speaking tips, check out the official website Arrr!

National Prostate Awareness Month

September is national Prostate Awareness Month. There are Awareness Drives, Auctions, and all kinds of stuff to help wipe out prostate cancer.


Prostate cancer is the second most common form of cancer among men in the United States. This year alone, it is estimated that more than 220,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed and that nearly 29,000 men will die from this disease.



To find out what's going on to raise awareness, check out   The National Prostate Cancer Coalition's website. The NPCC, founded in 1996, is the largest advocacy organization dedicated to ending the devastating impact of prostate cancer on men, families and society.

 
The mission of The Providence Plan is to restore hope and create new opportunity for the people of Providence through a comprehensive initiative designed to address the fundamental causes of poverty and urban decline.

The Providence Plan was founded to achieve six principal goals:

• Put people to work
• Retain the city's middle class
• Make our neighborhoods safe and livable
• Prepare today’s children for tomorrow’s jobs
• Provide decent and affordable housing
• Increase jobs and taxes in downtown Providence

The Providence Plan seeks to achieve these goals and others by building partnerships among city, state, and federal agencies; business, labor, civic, and religious groups; community-based organizations; academic institutions; and concerned residents.

To this end, you can check out their website and see what initiatives they ahve going on right now!

DUMMY DAYS!

Heard a great presentation on NPR about a new book about ventriloquism called Dummy Days, written by the guy who is currently directing Shrek II.


NPR put together a great resource page,and the audio will be available after 10 am eastern today.

See the NPR Page

THE CRUCIBLE A strong and ably acted production of Arthur Miller's classic play that thinly veils McCarthyism through the lens of the Salem Witch Trials. It's a great and beautiful play, and the production is rumored to be equally strong. Just 7 more performances left, so make sure to get your tickets!&Thu-Sat, 8 p.m.; Sun, 2 p.m., 7 p.m. location: The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre street:  La Salle Academy, Br. Michael McKenery Arts Center, Pawtucket phone:  401-723-GAMM web page: www.gammtheatre.org begins:  Thursday, September 04, 2003 ends:  Sunday, September 21, 2003

Books, Boats, Brushes, and Taste Festival

I went and performed at the BBB-Taste Festival in New London on Saturday. The weather was perfect, the waterfront was crowded, and there was so much going on!


I performed as both a clown and as an author. I had been hired as a clown, and then it turned out they had a spot on the Children's author's stage open, and they gave it to me! What I didn't realize is how High Powered a festival this was. Other Children's authors included Avi (Newberry award winner!), Joanna Cole (Author of the Magic School Bus), Lane Smith (The Stinky Cheese Man, and illustrator for Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach, and me! I was a little overwhelmed!


Anyway, one of the authors was Walter Wick, the writer/photographer of the I Spy series. He's from Connecticut. His books are absolutely amazing, and ingenious, and if you don't know them, you are going to love them! Check out his website!

Pawtucket Arts Festival

A myriad of events are going to take place at the Pawtucket Arts Festival from Sep 5-Sep 21 in the city of Pawtucket. From studio visits to a Rubber Duck Race,from folk music to discussions about the future of Pawtucket's artists, there's something for just about everyone!


Despite the fact that nearly every other festival in Rhode Island has suffered a body blow in terms of funding (Convergence and First Night, most notably), the Pawtucket Arts Festival is thriving!


So go on down to Pawtucket, buy some local art, have some local food, see some great events, and thank the Lord that someone has figured out how to maintain their festival!

Help Revive First Night Providence!

First Night Providence has gone away, but the artists are bringing it back!

If you'd like to be involved in helping to raise First Night Providence like a phoenix from its ashes, well now is the time to step up to the plate!

There's an artists meeting TODAY

Thursday, September 4, 2003
5PM
Big Nazo Studio
Fulton and Eddy Streets

Please invite fellow artists who are interested in helping to organize/create a festival for this year on a very limited budget.

I'm changing the archiving to monthly, so that there are less archives listed on the left. (That list was getting a little daunting)

ON A BREAK

The next week or so is a crunch time for me, so I'm going to hold off for a bit on posting to the web log. In the meantime, check out some of the archives for cool places to visit about Rhode Island, or maybe just shut off the computer and get some sun!


Check back here after Labor Day (around September 3) and we'll start updating the weblog again.

Giant Harp Playing--8/21 Artist/musician Steven L. Jobe will perform on two musical instruments of his own conception during Gallery Night this Thursday at The Rhode Island Foundation. The musical instruments are based upon those in the painting, "Garden of Earthly Delights," by Renaissance artist Hieronymous Bosch (a portion of the painting appears at left). The first instrument is a stringless harp, that stands approximately 12-feet tall. Jobe will perform on it by breaking beams of laser light he fashioned to extend across the harp's frame. The MIDI instrument and laser assembly was installed by media whiz Tom Sgouros, and the frame constructed by Jeremy Woodward. The second instrument is a gong drum that features a yard-long cylinder with 28" gongs installed at either end. The gong was built by Dennis Hlynsky. Both instruments were part of a Bosch extravaganza called Bosch's Garden, which was funded in part by the Rhode Island Foundation. Jobe will offer 15-minute performances this Thursday, August 21, at 6:30 PM and at 8 PM, and will repeat the performance schedule at Gallery Night on September 18.

I know all of these artists, and I assure you that their work is bound to be exciting! I've seen the harp before, but haven't yet seen the gong-drum.


Find out more about the Bosch's Garden project.

Find out more about the Rhode Island Foundation.

Find out more about Gallery Night

Find out more about Bosch's Painting The Garden of Earthly Delights

Capturing The Friedmans

See the Trailer



Capturing the Friedmans is one of the most riveting and startling movies I've seen in some time. I don't want to give too much away, but it's an astonishing documentary about a regular family who get torn apart by an awful crime that the father and one of the sons may or may not have committed. Throughout the movie I kept on yo-yoing back on forth--- did they do it? Didn't they do it? There's no way they could have done it! But then, why did they do that? But where's the physical evidence? And why didn't they get a better lawyer?


Part of the film are actual home movies from the family. It started out as a documentary about one of the brothers and his work as a clown (that's right, the oldest Friedman is a birthday party clown in NY. Actually, I should say he is THE birthday party clown in NY. I've seen him perform, I've talked to him, and he's very good! If an ambassador's kid is going to have a birthday party, you get this guy.) But the documentary changed focus when the film-maker discovered the skeleton in his family closet.


I highly recommend this movie (it's currently playing at the Avon Cinema in Providence.)


See the official website

See Jesse Friedman's website (the brother that was accused of the crimes)

Flea Circus on Coney Island -August 17!

SEE THE MOST MINISCULE SHOW ON EARTH! The flea circus is coming back to its roots! The first flea circus on Coney Island in over 40 years! One performance only at the Coney Island Circus Sideshow. August 17, 8 pm! Watch trained fleas perform spectacular circus stunts as seen before (and on top of) the Crowned Heads of Europe. These Educated and Industrious Insects will perform upon command! They pull chariots, walk a tightwire, and dance to the strains of actual music! The Finale is a death-defying spectacular of unbelievable proportions!

AS SEEN ON THE DISCOVERY CHANNEL, THE HISTORY CHANNEL, and THE CBC (CANADA) Be Amazed and Mystified by these Curious Natural Wonders. Discover the strange but true history of the Flea! Thrill to the astonishing Chariot Race! It's all live, It's all real, and it's all on the inside! THIS IS THE SAME SHOW THAT WAS FEATURED ON TIMES SQUARE IN 2002! So step right up, and see for yourself the show that Details magazine called "one of the top ten alternative circuses in the country." AUGUST 17 AT 8 PM $5 (free for members!) CONEY ISLAND CIRCUS SIDESHOW 1208 SURF AVENUE, BROOKLYN (F,Q, or W trains) CALL 718 372 5159 or visit http://www.coneyislandusa.com Here's what the press has said: "Too Ludicrous and Perversely Fascinating to Miss!" DIGITALCITY.COM "The appeal is irresistible. Professor Gertsacov, every bit the fantastical impresario, in his purple top hat and cash register voice, introduces us to... a high-spirited glance back at an entertainment form that had been dead as a door nail. Old Time Vaudeville is New Again!" NEW YORK TIMES "Gertsacov holds the audience (and the performers) in the palm of his hand." LOS ANGELES TIMES For more press quotes, visit http://www.trainedfleas.com/press/ For more information visit http://www.trainedfleas.com

Artist's Health Insurance Resource Center

A major concern for artists and small arts organizations is affordable health insurance. Because many artists do not receive health insurance through employment, and do not qualify for needs-based insurance, they frequently fall between the cracks.

In response to this crisis, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) convened a national forum in 1994. Participants urged the establishment of an Artists’ Health Insurance Resource Center (AHIRC) to assist the arts community nationwide in accessing information about health insurance options. The Actors’ Fund of America was selected as the NEA’s partner organization in implementing this program.

Through this initiative, The Actors’ Fund provides the arts community with information on a community and national basis to inform artists of their health insurance options. Information is provided through their website and a toll-free hotline. Information is available on a state-by-state basis.


See the Information for Rhode Island or call the toll-free hotline (For some reason the toll-free number is not listed on the website! When I find it out, I will post it here!)

FILM SERIES AT COLUMBUS THEATRE

PICTURE START FILM SERIES Picture Start is an annual summer festival of independent short films, animation, short features and documentaries. Started in 1999, their mission is to support the RI film community, by creating a forum for discussion for audiences and filmmakers. They focus on work that has limited commercial possibilities, like documentary, short films, animations, and experimental work. You'll be able to see films here that you'd be hard-pressed to find anywhere else! The festival runs every Wednesday from August 13 (that's today!) to September 17. Shows start at 8 pm at the Columbus Theatre, 270 Broadway in Providence. Tickets are $4.00 per evening, and a bargain at twice the price! For programming information visit the Picture Start Website NOTE: SADLY, YOU NEED FLASH 5 TO VIEW THE SITE. *

* I say sadly, because it is my opinion that Flash sites generally aren't efficient at getting information into the hands of consumers, and while they often look cool, they are not very user friendly. Picture Start's website isn't bad-- but nothing they do couldn't be done in HTML, and would take much less time to load, and be available on just about any computer without additional download. Just my opinion!

More Arts Meetings!

CITIZENS FOR THE ARTS There are three more public meetings of the Mayor's Arts, Culture and Tourism Steering Committee.  The committee, a group of arts, business and community leaders, was created to help develop the City's new Office of Arts, Culture and Tourism, and begin the work of creating a cultural plan for the City of Providence. Wednesday, August 13 , 4-6 pm Open meeting at the Elmwood Community Center - 155 Niagara Street 4-6 pm. Thursday, August 21, 5-7 pm - A meeting with the Film Community will be held at the Rhode Island Foundation, One Union Station, Downtown Providence. Thursday, August 27, 5 pm- A meeting for Individual Artists will be held at Monohasset Mills Project Gallery, 53 Kinsley Avenue, 2nd Floor. For more information, check the website of RI Citizens For the Arts

VICTORY DAY: RI'S UNIQUE HOLIDAY

Originally known as VJ day (Victory over Japan Day), this holiday started in 1948 to celebrate our World War II triumph. Other states also celebrated it as well. But over the years, other states cashiered the holiday, but we kept it going. And even though the word Japan has been stricken from the name of the day, that's as far as the General Assembly has been willing to go. There are perennial attempts to change the name to something like Remembrance Day, but they never get further than committee.


See an online exhibit about American War Posters

See some British World War II Posters

HELD OVER THROUGH AUGUST 17

Rose Weaver's Menopause Mama has been a HUGE success for the Perishable theatre. It's been playing all summer , and even now it's completely sold out (except for Saturday 8/9 and Saturday 8/17) If you haven't seen it, you better get your ticket right away! You get your tickets through ArtTix The tickets cost $25 each, but it's worth it! (And yes, they're air conditioned!)

Visit Perishable's website

Visit the Menopause Mama Webpage

Visit ArtTixRI online or call 401-621-6123 to charge by phone.

Rhode Island International Film Festival August 5-10

Now in its seventh year, the Rhode Island International Film Festival celebrates the independent spirit in film and has become a haven for independent filmmakers from throughout the world.


This year the Festival will present 25 World Premieres and 21 US Premieres. Films have been entered from 42 countries and 32 states. Attending the Festival will be filmmakers, producers, distributors, cast and crew. RIIFF is dedicated to the creation of opportunities for artistic interaction and exchange among independent filmmakers, directors, producers, distributors, backers, and the film-going community. Of special note is that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has elected to recognize the Rhode Island International Film Festival as a qualifying festival for the Short Films category for the Annual Academy Awards. With more than 1400 film festivals worldwide, only 47 have this recognition.

SPECIAL NOTE

A friend of mine is in a film in the festival (about clowns!), so go and see it! The film is Amores Payasos, a short film playing with "Schtickmen" ), my friend is Christine Duenas, and the show is on Sat, Aug 9th at 3:15 PM at the Columbus Cinemateque, 270 Broadway.


Find out more about the Festival


Call the festival at 861-4445 for showtimes, or see the calendar online

First Night May Ride Again!

As you may or may not now, First Night is currently in serious doubt of happening this year (due to budget shortfalls, a deficit, etc) I met today with a bunch of artists, as well as the organizers of First Night, to see if there's something that we can salvage, and perhaps continue the First Night Tradition. All of the artists were in agreement-- we wanted First Night to continue!


We are asking people to write letters to their elected officials to help the ball rolling-- this is the letter that I wrote-- feel free to send your own to the Mayor of Providence, to the Governor, and to anyone you think can help!


Find your elected officials

---

MY LETTER

Dear Mayor Cicciline:



My name is Adam Gertsacov, and I am an artist and performer living

in Providence  I am the author of the best-selling book Rhode

Island A to Z  I’m also a professional clown and performer.



I recently attended a meeting of artists to discuss the possibility of

 making First Night happen this year.  At this meeting the 25 artists

or so that attended the meeting were all in agreement: we want First

Night to happen.  It may not be as big as it was last year, but we all

are going to work together and revive First Night..



I urge you as both a citizen of Providence and as an artist to make it

happen.  Champion First Night to corporate sponsors, to your political

supporters,  and to the city council.   Give First Night  the funding

that it needs to hire a staff person and get the ball rolling.  Speak

with the Police and the Fire units to donate services  or give at cut

rates the necessary services to make First NIght possible.  Help First

Night organizers find venues which will make in kind donations.  

Make First Night happen!



This festival is part and parcel of the continued renaissance of

Providence as an artist’s city.  Withdrawing city support will cripple

the efforts of the arts community to revive the festival, and

irreparably damage the reputation that Providence has as an arts

friendly community.



I urge you to become a champion of the arts, and a champion of First

Night Providence.



Sincerely,





Your Name

Buddy Cianci The Musical

Brown University graduate Jonathan Van Gieson has written (and will produce) Buddy Cianci The Musical for the New York Fringe Festival. The show opens August 9 (and that show's been sold out!) and then runs 5 more times over the next couple of weeks. Here's the schedule: SATURDAY 8/9 @ 8:00pm SOLD OUT MONDAY 8/11 @ 3:00pm THURSDAY 8/14 @ 10:15pm FRIDAY 8/15 @ 5:15pm FRIDAY 8/22 @ 7:45pm SUNDAY 8/24 @ 1:30pm TICKETS: $15 by phone: (service charge additional) 212-279-4488 or 888 FringeNYC in person (no service charge) FringeCentral (177 MacDougal Street) Read the Production Blog See the Website Visit the NYC Fringe Festival

WILD DOG TRIATHLON

For those of you who don't believe in sedentary activity, there's a race this Sunday, if you'd like to try your hand. It's kind of a mini-triathlon.-- you swim 1/4 of a mile, bike 10 miles, and run 3 miles. Not too bad, if you like this kind of thing. Of course, it's relatively difficult (I think I could do everything except run the 3 miles-- don't press me about how long it would take!) Be warned, the swim is in the Ocean!

Date: Sunday Aug 3
Time: Registration: 6 am-7:50 am, race starts at 8 am.
Place: North Kingstown Town Beach, North Kingstown RI
Costs: $50-$59 )depending on Triathlon membership. Add $5 day of race.
Only 500 people are allowed to race, so if you are interested, check it out today!

For more information visit the organizer's website or download this PDF (Requires Acrobat Reader)

Bizarre Story in Westerly Sun!

This is where the Westerly Sun starts to look more like the Weekly World News. If you'd like to find out about improvised explosive devices, eggs being implanted into Natalie Portman, fighting evil demons by dodging BB pellets, and a plot to kill a stalked woman, well, Look No further!


Natalie Portman, full of eggs or not?