#Herring Barrel Revue

[travsd]

A Plug for Music Hall and Variety Day

We’ve marked Music Hall and Variety Day here in the past because we think it is a marvelous idea. Today, I hope you will forgive me if I hijack the occasion for my own nefarious variety purposes. I have just come from rehearsing for Marxfest’s Herring Barrel Revue, and want to give it a big plug! It’s a stand-alone Marx Brothers themed variety show open to Marxfest attendees and the general…

[decaysate]

from @ruinedheart​​,    for junna​.    (    10  /  01  /  2022:    happy birthday junna!    )    he felt pretty proud of himself.    it hadn’t been an easy thing to set up;    conflicting schedules were the biggest obstacle to overcome when it came to his line of work,    &..    even more so when it came to her availability.    originally,    the goal was to get the entire argentinian team alongside him──    imagine her surprise,    to see them all show up for the celebration!    but for as hard as it was to work with one schedule,    working with all of them?    he’s never attempted a more impossible feat!    so she would have to settle for tooru alone,    ticket in hand    &.    smile in place.    “    what?    i told you,    didn’t i?    i was going to be the first to watch your debut show!    ”

there is an adrenaline thrumming in her veins,    as thunderous as the streets of verona,    &.    junna is    /    not immune,    no,    she’s never been immune to the thrill of the stage.    her heart beats like she’s caught in a revue,    moving from backstage to the crisp winter air of new york;    the moment she seen it,    none of her usual rationality present in her mind.    if she were less self conscious,    perhaps she’d cheer into the night,    face tinged with red as she celebrates.    but she doesn’t,    because she──    has so much,    to do,    to improve──    &.    right now,    that’s not what’s important.    because right now,    she feels full of joy.

“    oikawa-san    ...    !    ”    she can’t help it,    nearly barreling into him as she hugs him;    caught in comfort    &..    enveloped in a warmth that she’s missed.    her heart is so,    incredibly full,    it scares her.    “    you really meant it!    ”    you really came to watch.    when she pulls back,    maybe her disbelief is clear.    maybe her──    not distrust in him,    but,    distrust in empty promises,    has kept her from hoping too much.    when she had sent him the link for the tickets,    she had been caught between hopefulness    &.    a resigned sort of neutrality──    but he’s really really here,    &.    she couldn’t ask for more.

“    i wish i could have gotten a bigger role,    just for you,    ”    she confesses,    straightening her glasses    &    fiddling with the edges of her costume.    “    but i──    i’ve never really liked    ‘  the two gentlemen of verona  ’    ,    so i was actually really relieved that i didn’t get a bigger role.    ”    performing as the first outlaw was enough for her,    thank you!    “    is it silly?    i feel like i should be upset at not being upset,    at not wanting a lead role,    but    ...    ”

(    there are still nights where she wakes in cold sweat,    trembling from the lethal reminder of a blade at her neck.    there are still night where she hunches over from her seat on the practice room floor,    out of breath    &    aching as each muscle protests from hours of work.    there are still nights where she struggles amidst a sea of brilliance,    desperately trying to stay afloat.

but tonight,    junna is content.    )

“    i’m just    ...    happy.    i’m really happy,    with what i’ve done,    how i’ve done it.    ”    maybe he was right.    no,    he was right,    because──    “    after all,    this was just a──    a transitional stage.    for me to practice on.    ”    it’s an echo of his words from a lifetime ago,    &.    she smiles,    something small.    what was it,    he said?    don’t you think it’s childish to think you’ll be able to flourish in every setting you find yourself in? 

“    it was just to prepare me for the next one.    &.    the next one,    &.    the next one,    until──    ”    some are born great.    some achieve greatness,    she had finished once,    sitting in an office at seisho.    of this stage,    i am the dazzling lead,    hoshimi junna!!!    she had screamed once,    shoulders straining from the strength of nana’s blows.    what is needed to ensure this uncertain future──    it’s the present!    she had declared once,    within the machinations of elle’s play.    “    ──    until you can watch me as the star,    standing center stage!    ” 

the declaration that would make her embarrassed only emboldens her.    her smile flourishes,    junna beams,    as bright as the stars she could only hope to chase,    that she has begun to keep pace with.    who does she have to thank but oikawa?    “    just you wait,    oikawa-san──    i’ll make it happen one day,    &.    i’ll have you bring the entire team to watch that show!    ”

“    to see that shining lead,    hoshimi junna!    ”

[city-of-ladies]

Rosanna Franceschetti-Serpentini and other Corsican heroines

In 1729, the island of Corsica was under the rule of the republic of Genoa, Italy. The local people rose against their overlords, which led to a conflict that lasted forty years before being fully resolved.

Many women distinguished themselves during this struggle. One of them was the daughter of the rebel leader Fabio Vinciguerra. Described as being of a warlike disposition, she swore revenge when her father was assassinated by the governor. Taking the head of his troops, she was known for the brutality with which she fought the Genoese soldiers. In 1739, the wife of Bartolo of Barbaggio acquired similar fame for her courage in battle.

In 1746, Faustina Gaffory, defended her home in Corte from the Genoese with a handful of companions. Seeing their energies falter, she showed her comrades a powder barrel and threatened to blow-up the house. The defenders thus kept fighting. 

In 1761, the women of Tenco defended their town. One of them, Josephine Jacobi armed herself and joined the fray. Other women imitated her and fought. Animated by their example, the defenders repelled the besiegers.

Several women fought at the battle of Borgo in 1769 on the side of the Corsican patriot and military leader Pasquale Paoli. Magistrate and memorialist Salvatore Viale described them as armed with rifle and knife, sharing the perils of war with their husbands. 

Among them was Rosanna Franschetti-Serpentini who fought alongside her husband, an officer. She was dressed in male attire and “always well armed”. She was nicknamed “the heroine” or “our captain”. Rosanna notably defeated a French officer in hand-to-hand combat (since French troops had landed in Corsica after Genoa sold the island to France). When she saw that her side had to retreat, she freed her captive and said: “Remember that a Corsican woman overcame you and gave you back your sword and freedom”.

Bibliography:

Aimé André, Histoire générale de la Corse depuis les premiers temps jusqu'a nos jours, vol.2

Albertini Jean-André, Orsatelli Andrée, Corté et la renaissance de l'université corse

Bessières Luc, Panthéon des martyrs de la liberté, ou histoire des révolutions politiques, et des personnages qui se sont dévoués pour le bien et la liberté des nations, etc.

Ettori Fernand, Mémorial des corses

Fillipi Antoine-Baptiste, La corse, terre de droit: Essai sur le libéralisme latin et la révolution philosophique corse (1729-1804)

Gio Pietro Vieusseux, Archivio storico italiano: ossia raccolta di opere e documenti finora inediti o divenuti rarissimi riguardanti la storia d'Italia, vol.14

Gregorovius Ferdinand, Corsica in Its Picturesque, Social, and Historical Aspects: The Record of a Tour in the Summer of 1852

Pomponi Francis, Émeutes populaires en Corse : aux origines de l'insurrection contre la domination génoise (Décembre 1729 - Juillet 1731) 

Renucci Francesco Ottaviano, Quattro storiche novelle

Malaspina Toussaint  M., “La Corse”, Revue politique et littéraire: revue bleue

[ducktracy]

57. i like mountain music (1933)

release date: june 10th, 1933

series: merrie melodies

director: rudolf ising

starring: sara berner (various), pinto colvig (yodeler/various), jack mercer (will rogers/various)

though the cartoon titles share the name of the songs they showcase, they can make for some pretty intriguing titles, like here. this is another installment of the books come to life series, pertaining to magazines instead.

open to a drugstore after closing. there are some wonderfully beautiful backgrounds as we view the interior, settling onto a magazine rack. all is quiet and peaceful... until a cowboy from a magazine titled “WESTERN THRILLER” tears a hole in the cover page with a spray of bullets.

he hops out of the book and motions for his dozing cowboy buddies to wake up, yelling “c’mon, fellers!” no further cue is necessary as they grab some instruments and launch into an instrumental solo of the titular song “i like mountain music”. an interesting array of gags: the double fisting gun slinging cowboy leaps onto a counter top and dances to the music, spinning around. his spurs cut a hole in the counter top and he plummets into the glass display case below, spraying himself with perfume. elsewhere, one of the cowboy musicians rides his accordion like a horse, making for some intriguing visuals. standard as these gags may be, the animation has come quite a ways since the beginning of our journey, and are thusly more enjoyable.

after receiving warm applause, the lead cowboy and some backup singers sing the vocals to the song. catchy and beautiful as always! a variety of spot gags accompany the song, such as polish pianist and prime minister ignacy paderewski playing the piano and singing along.

a caricature of eddie cantor (another looney tunes favorite, a whole cartoon dedicated to a chicken counterpart of himself with slap happy pappy) pops out of a magazine and pulls a violinists beard, shouting “look, jimmy! it’s rubinoff!” dave rubinoff was cantor’s violinist for one of his radio shows.

our saunters will rogers, actor slash vaudeville performer slash cowboy slash comedian. he makes his way towards a magazine covered in cobwebs dated october 1929, detailing the catastrophic stock market crash. he gingerly places a “NO SALE” sign by the magazine and says “well folks, all i know is what i read in the paper!” a group of babies from a baby magazine (mtself included) cheer him on and applaud.

some lovely animation as a figure skater from “dance magazine” leaps onto a mirror, tilting it horizontally beneath her weight and skating on it.

to top the gag off, a steady snowfall enhances her elegant routine... and it’s revealed to be a cowboy pouring talcum powder on her! highly predictable, but it got a good smile out of me regardless.

there are some babies waving jingle bells to the beat of the music... and members of an african tribe making clicking sounds to the music. not too fond of that one. otherwise a beautiful and amusing scene, but yeesh. as you can imagine, their depictions aren’t very savory.

the skater finishes her beautiful routine with a split, a group of toys applauding her (frequently reused from red-headed baby. i’ve noticed the amount of recycled animation has certainly dwindled within the past handful of shorts, which is always a refreshing sight to see!)

freshly picked from pagan moon, a hula girl dances to “it’s time to sing ‘sweet adeline’ again”, a chorus of steel guitar players backing her up in vocals. my affinity for steel guitars prevails, recycled as this scene may be.

a yodeler from travel magazine (who is actually pinto colvig! i’ll talk more about my thankfulness that this is the first merrie melody with some voice credits FINALLY at the end) yodels as he hops from cliff to cliff, mountain to mountain, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

the yodeling yokel sings “i like mountain music” from a woman sourced from the “college rumor” magazine. look at the difference in designs here! i know it falls under the category of “look at the sexy woman... and this man is ‘normal’ (not in this case but)”, but i can’t help but love the contrast in design anyways. very funny and intriguing. a caricature of ed wynn also lends his out of tune voice to the song as magazine creatures applaud the spectacle.

what’s a cartoon without a little nefarious doings, huh? a mobster ushers his cronies to follow him as he sneaks along the countertop. the screenshot doesn’t do it justice, but his toadies are actually walking at different intervals, but still synchronized! great animation as always. the musical synchronization is on par as always. sherlock and watson make an appearance, sherlock bending low and sniffing the ground like a dog for clues. words fail me in describing how much that amuses me.

the gangster’s plan becomes evident once he and his cronies make their way towards a cash register. the mobster pours some lighter fluid in a spray bottle, lighting it and using the makeshift blowtorch to weld a hole in the cashier and steal the contents inside.

edward robinson makes a cameo, grunting “they can dish it out, but they can’t take it” while the mobsters use a spoon to pour coins in a dish. good use of sound effects! robinson takes out a pair of guns and begins to shoot at the gangsters. one of the gangsters fires in retaliation, missing.

a phonograph from “RADIO magazine” calls out all the cop cars to stop the theft. even mussolini sends his italian policemen after the gangsters (ironic that even mussolini takes the role of one of the good guys, seeing the events of wwii, huh?).

a barrage of artillery is used against the thieves, such as gumball bullets and pins shot through a pencil sharpener (i love those pencil sharpener machine gun gags so much).

one of the gangsters (whose butt serves as a nice pin cushion) seeks refuge in a magazine with jean harlow on the front. quickly he learns to regret his decision, running from the pages as we get a ferocious shot of ping pong. not king kong, the star of the smash hit king kong released in march of 1933, heavens, no! ping pong!

ping pong barrels towards the camera and chases down the mobster. desperate for any source of shelter, the mobster dives into a glass. ping pong approaches a syrup tap and presses down on “razzberry”, the tap blowing an actual raspberry instead of any syrup. the gag is topped off as the mobster winced with each raspberry blown. the crowd celebrates his loss, and we get a rather interesting iris out—i’m not sure how to describe it. it’s like a double iris out. regardless, it’s pretty cool!

one of the more interesting merrie melodies for sure! i didn’t talk about the voice credits at the beginning—because i didn’t know they existed! halfway through this i consulted imdb for the soundtrack list, and saw that there were actually names available. sara berner would be one of the bigger voices behind looney tunes—almost like the female equivalent of mel blanc. bernice hansen would dominate the screen in the 30s with her wonderful baby voice (used to the best of its abilities in cartoons where she voices actual babies who turn out to be conniving little bastards, referring to porky’s naughty nephew and porky’s picnic. she’d also voice petunia, both tashlin’s “sexy” approach and clampett’s cute and childish approach!). pinto colvig is credited too, of course gaining notoriety for his role as the original goofy. jack mercer also voiced popeye and felix the cat. quite a list here!

anyway, enough about voices. this was a really entertaining cartoon! with the books come to life cartoons, you have a certain standard of what to expect (save for book revue LOL. that’s a trip and a half), so i was pleasantly surprised to see that this was about magazines instead. especially in a drugstore, there’s a lot more room to work with the setting. the animation was beautiful and the gags were on point, and the celebrity caricatures were drawn great. even if you don’t know who they are, you still get a good laugh. the only downfall would be the racist gag with the stereotypical african tribe members making clicking sounds... that speaks for itself. needs to be addressed (as all the blackface and stereotypical gags do), but doesn’t necessarily drain the short too much of its charm. overall, definitely worth a watch. paced nicely and very high energy and silly! just express caution at the clicking gag with the ice skating scene.

link!

[mockamoly]

🏴‍☠️Pirate the musical🏴‍☠️

This is the master post to introduce Korean two-hander musical <Pirate (해적, 2019)> and its female actor pair called “Challang ”*.

This is a typical pirate story

Young Louis, son of the pirate, lives with a parrot named Victoria 2nd beside the sea after his dad passed away. One day, Dad’s old colleague Captain Calico Jack visits him, turns out that dad’s old painting of rose was actually a treasure map that could lead to the treasure buried somewhere in the Rose Island. As they recruit new sailors and sails away, romanticism and tragedy wait for them….

And the story of people who erased

 While what makes this story special and have a soft spot in the heart is the way of description.

In this musical, pirates are a minority of societies, nonperson who can not have their own record and the voices that rarely heard.

Other than Jack and Louis, the main character is Anne and Mary, who based on the famous female pirate Anne Bonny and Mary Read, happen to love each other, get their own scenes and stories.

If you have some interests in this kind of story

 Fortunately, there are quite lots of videos of <Pirate> since actors change their curtain call repertory every day. That’s why I’m writing this post. For next days, I will update the summaries and Kor-Eng lyric translation posts. I wish this could bring joy to @mooncastle , as she introduced me the Revue few years ago.

*Challang

 Although this musical has a various hint to observes the life of minorities, it criticized for cast only 2 female actors among total 6 actors. Those are Rang Yeon and Im Chanmin. When they on the same stage, fandom calls it as Challang(찰랑), by combining their names-Cha from Im Chanmin, Lang from Rang Yeon. This is a quite enjoyable coincidence, as in Korean "찰랑" is the adverb that uses to describe the sound or the shape of the lapping water.

Rang Yeon - Jack / Mary / Caleb(father of the Louis)

Im Chanmin - Louis / Anne

Numbers and Summary

1. Golden Age of Piracy 해적의 황금시대 

2. Ghost Ship 유령선 ◆LYRICS◆ Louis recalls the memory of his father who was pirates

Captain Calico Jack, who insists he’s the friend of Louis’s father, suddenly knocked into Louis’s house. Jack told they stolen the great treasure but after that, he abandoned to a desert island by a revolt. After escaping the island by the help of sea turtles, Jack looked for his old colleagues but found everyone doesn’t come back-except only one person, Louis’s father: Caleb.

3. Most Handsome in My Village 우리 마을에서 가장 잘 생긴 사람 ◆LYRICS◆

Along with the keepsakes of Caleb, they find out the drawing that painted a rose, one point marked. Jack thinks that’s the map spotting treasure buried- The famous Rose Island, only well known by pirates.

4. Power of Cradle-Pirate 모태해적의 힘  ◆LYRICS◆ While Jack trying to snatch the map of Rose Island, Louis eagerly wants to join the journey with him.

Jack stole or, borrow the ship -at least Jack told so-, gathered new crews include old Howard who always complaining. They sail aboard and Louis writing their journal of the voyage.

5. Journal of the Voyage 항해일지

6. Pirates Labor Song 해적 노동요    Jack insists they need a gunman. Howard complaining of sharing treasures. But Jack makes them wordless by mentioning Jonathan Barnet the Pirate Hunter. If they captured by Barnet, they will all get hanged. So, they need combatant.

 While rearranging at the port, Jack gives rules. Don’t get drunken. Don’t get in gambling. Do not brag about the treasure isle! Don’t fall in love. Actually, there is also the rule all pirates should not run away while in combat. But Jack orders Louis to run away and hide if combat happens.

 However, Jack himself couldn’t save his mouth at all. Anne Bonney, the mistress of the bar, hears Jack’s story and demands him to take her as a gunman. Born as an illegitimate child, she could not get birth registration but learned how to shoot a gun with her legitimate brothers like aristocrat does.

7. Stella Maris 스텔라 마리스 Against the rule of “no woman on the ship”, Jack and Anne lay a bet of shooting match. Pirates Labor Song +  Stella Maris ◆LYRICS◆

Anne wins but called to law court as her former husband sues her for run away. Jack suggests paying bail for Anne, but Anne gets furious.

8. Be Envious 질투하라 ◆LYRICS◆  She curses a god of the church, declares her new era, jumps into a sea to disguise her death while promising meet Jack on his ship. On Jack’s ship, Anne disguised as a man and called as Anthony.

9. Just a Feeling 기분 탓이야  ◆LYRICS◆  Jack got a crush on Anne, trying to deny his feeling.

10. Couldn’t be Other Than 아닐 리 없다  ◆LYRICS◆ Jack and troupes getting in the ship battle with other pirates. Anne fights against the swordsman who uses two swords.

11. LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

12. I Won’t Let You Go 가만 안 둬 Anne defeats the swordsman, who introduce self as Marco. Marco would rather die than become prisoner. Eventually, they admit they fell in love, at first sight, Marco turns out to be a female who disguised as a male, as Anne did.

LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT +  I Won’t Let You Go  ◆LYRICS◆

13. Intermission Song 인터미션 ◆VIDEO◆ A Weird, cute metaphysical song sang by ~Victoria 2nd~ the parrot plush doll. It’s just for giving some break to actors to change their clothes because it’s a two-hander musical. woohoo! Anne demands Jack to accept Mary as her along. Jack complains as his love crush is hopeless, but accept anyway because Mary is so competent. 14. Ghost Ship rep. 유령선 rep. ◆LYRICS◆  While sailing, Louis and Mary build their friendship while exploring an unexpected ghost ship. They arrived in Rose Island but only found many skeletons and an empty box. Old Howard of the crew insists it would be Caleb, father of the Louis, who killed all colleagues and took treasures. Jack believes Caleb is not the kind of person. Howard revolts but defeated. They leave Howard alone in the Rose Island in traditional pirate way-only one bottle of water, one gun, one bullet. Howard trying to shoot Jack with it as last revenge- but he fails. Anne shoots him back. Howard’s corpse washed away into the sea of Rose Island. Louis read the diary of Caleb that he found at the island, refer to the Pirate Labor Song. It shows what happened after they discard Jack. Caleb and colleagues were planning to bury treasure in the Rose Island while they repair the ship. Caleb got left behind from the line because he was thinking of Jack, miss him. When Caleb back to his colleagues, they already ended up killing each other, only one left. Caleb survives from him. but threw away all the treasures in front of the sea at Rose Island in untold agony. Louis keeps the story as secret. 15. Rose Island 로우즈 아일랜드 ◆LYRICS◆ 16. Jolly Roger 졸리 로저 ◆VIDEO◆ Louis helps Jack macking new Jolly Roger.  

Jack tells the secret to Louis: he has no experience in killing people at all. He’s just good at image-making coward and hides in the wine barrel while the battle goes hard. That was the reason he discarded to a desert island. 17. Romantic Pirate 낭만해적  ◆VIDEO◆ Pirate Wedding 해적 결혼식 ◆LYRICS◆ *At the Special Performances Day, they are adding a special number: Mary and Anne getting married.

18. Golden Age of Piracy rep. 해적의 황금시대 rep. ◆LYRICS◆ Jack’s ship ends up to meet Jonathan Barnet the Pirate Hunter. Only Anne and Mary fought until the last. Anne shouts to Jack: "Had you fought like a pirate, you could die on the ship like a pirate." Every pirate sentenced to get hanging but only Louis could save his life as Jack insists Louis is just an errand boy, not pirate. Jack worries mockery more than the death itself. As pirates are ignorant, none of them could write their own story and people will make fun of them they get hanged. Jack believes only Louis could write their real story as it is.

19. Most Handsome in My Village rep.  우리 마을에서 가장 잘 생긴 사람 rep. Louis sings for Jack while he goes to execution. Maybe, the heaven on earth for pirates vanished with the death of Jack.

20. I Won’t Let You Go rep. 가만 안 둬 rep. Mary misses Anne and worries about her in a condemned cell.

At the moment, Anne visits Mary. Luckily, she could save her life as her father put up bail. However, Anne wants to reject it so she could die with Mary together. Anne doesn’t want to live without Mary.

21. A Dream That We Can’t Remember 우리 모두의, 기억나지 않는 꿈 

Mary convinces Anne to keep alive, even after she dies. 

I Won’t Let You Go rep. + A Dream That We Can’t Remember ◆LYRICS◆

22. Finale 피날레  Louis turns back home alone. The flag, Jolly Roger that drew on rainbow color, flaps above his house.

Louis starts to write the story, in memory of Jack, Anne, and Mary. Louis reminds the reason that Jack brings Old Howard on a journey: Howard was once an idolized pirate in Jack’s childhood, and Jack wished to thank him by taking him to the treasure.

*** I do not own any rights videos and contents that linked here. I just gathered curtain call videos that already uploaded on you-tube, add some notes and translated the lyrics. These are un-official English lyric translation, My first language is Korean but not for English so let me know if there is anything wrong as grammar or inappropriate.

Please respect the creators in general, if you have any more inquiries than I could reply- please contact to the musical production

[amemiyashion]

A Revue of Revenge

Funny story about this fic, it actually wiggled back-and-forth between being posted quite a few times. At first, it was going to be a normal smut fic, but then I gave it my own twist and held onto it instead. Then I wanted to post it as a christmas fic, so I reworked it and tried to post it, but I was a coward again. And THEN the Maya OVA came out and confirmed that she wasn’t too amazing at dealing with intense emotions, so it almost became too good to post. I decided against it again, but I remembered I have this blog, so I’ll post it here first for safe-keeping. Maybe I’ll put it on AO3 one day.

A Revue of Revenge

Words: 3247 (about)

Relationships: Mayakuro

By now, the year had taken a hungering bite into the winter months, leaving nothing behind but the fleeting, tiring days of the winter holidays, and the glittering bauble-esque reward of Christmas, at the end of it all. Saijou Claudine couldn't say she enjoyed those days; the ever-present chill made it difficult to practice, as the act of changing into your leotard became a momentary dip into icy water, and staying in it even worse. Naturally, the only ones who had the guts to bear the cold was her, Junna Hoshimi and of course, Tendou Maya. Junna, however, had made herself sick from spending too much time in the frigid practice hall, and was now spending more than enough time wrapped up in Nana's arms to speed up her recovery.

The latter, though - Tendou Maya, the maze of a Stage Girl who'd been Claudine's girlfriend for more than half a year, now - Usually joined her in practice, but today had been absent. Claudine had paid no mind to it, practicing alone despite the soft panging loneliness in her stomach. It was always healthy to take a break, after all. And so, she was especially looking forward to returning to the dorms at lunchtime to share an hour or so with her before returning.

Claudine hummed along in her head, thinking about what she'd like for lunch. Hopefully something warm - something she could wrap her hands around and relax as the feeling returned to her numbed fingers. Maybe Nana could make a nice soup. But then again, she'd probably end up making banana soup, and Claudine could only fear what that tasted like. Considering they were leaving the honour of making Christmas Dinner to Nana, the nine of them would probably be having banana turkey and banana Christmas pudding by the end of the week, and that was enough banana for a year, in Claudine’s books.

By the time she reached the dorms, she'd spent long enough in her thick woollen coat and gloves to have warmed enough to make lunch herself, and was no longer at the mercy of whatever Nana cooked up. Regardless of what she’d have, Claudine wanted to share it with Maya.

Sharing was one of the tenets they'd built their relationship on: sharing food, sharing secrets, sharing their time together, and every so often, sharing their bodies. They supported each other this way, still always competing, and still occasionally bickering. Maya sometimes complained that they shared a bit too much - particularly Claudine, and food – but every time she did, Claudine just shut her up by sharing even more.

Claudine made it back to the dorms in record time, hurried on by the fuzzy, dreamy romantic nothings spinning about in her half-numbed head. Managing to unlock the door despite dropping the key once or twice, Claudine barrelled inside and took a deep breath of the warm, almost humid, air of the dorms. Her body trembled as it warmed, and Claudine thankfully unbuttoned her jacket and hung it on the hook besides the door, ready for when she left for the school once again. After all, her duty to practice always calls – practice, and lunch.

 Claudine dizzied halfway through the living room, on the hunt for Tendou Maya, more in her own mind than the real world. She was pulled out of her musings by a worried cry however, and looked about for the source. Claudine had been convinced she’d been alone in the room – she’d only wear the innocent, lovey-dovey expression she had on if she were – so when she found three people on the couch across from her, she was frankly shocked considering the noise they were making.

"Karen...!" Junna and Hikari were leaning over what seemed to be an incapacitated Aijou Karen. Hikari was slowly fanning Karen, a concerned look on her face, whilst Junna inspected the -- the black mark on Karen’s face. "Oh, god..." Junna's voice wavered as she tried to apply some kind of ointment from a first-aid kit.

Claudine's brow twitched in confusion, and she approached the three hesitantly. "What-- What's going on here?" She was struck as Junna turned to her, almost accusatorily.

"Oh, Claudine." Junna's attention darted between Karen and Claudine, and she could've sworn she heard her murmur 'speak of the devil’ when her back was turned. "Karen has been, umm... struck." Junna shook her head and cleared her throat, figuring the truth was better after an uncomfortable moment. "Tendou hit her."

"What?!" Claudine couldn't believe her ears. Tendou Maya, who was usually so polite and graceful, had apparently lashed out at Karen. Claudine had been planning so spend her lunchtime with the girl, but those plans were feeling less realistic by the second. "Do you know why?" Claudine looked at Karen - still washed out on the sofa - and wondered if they'd managed to get anything out of her.

“Well, I saw it all.” Figuring she’d have to explain, Junna muttered to herself. "Karen was feeling cold - as we all are," She sniffed instinctively, still not over her cold. "So, she hugged Maya, as she does..." Junna hesitated again, stuttering and shifting about on her feet. "And she called her - and I quote - 'soft and cuddly'." With the words out in the open, Junna managed to regain her composure. "I think you can assume what happened next." It certainly wasn’t hard to imagine.

"Oh..." Claudine couldn't even laugh as the picture in her mind came into focus. "Is Karen okay?" Not wanting to have to face whatever Maya was doing right now, Claudine feigned interest in Karen. Her partner had always been a strong girl, and by the looks of it, Karen had been on the receiving end of quite the punch.

"She'll live." Junna rolled her eyes. "We've all seen her in worse." After watching Hikari try to shake Karen awake again, she turned back to Claudine. "I think the person who's really in trouble is you, Claudine." She laughed facetiously. "Maya's been stomping around the dorm for almost an hour now, and I think she might be looking for you."

"How- What makes you think I have anything do to with this?" Claudine stepped back, Junna's accusation hitting home. Claudine’s shock was obviously just lip-service, and the sudden shift in Junna's expression told her she wasn't interested in dancing around the truth.

"We all know, Claudine." Was Junna's stark answer. Watching Claudine splutter her way through another excuse wasn't in her interest, and she promptly turned to pay attention to the comatose Karen, who seemed to be coming back to life. Hikari shook her one last time, and Karen putted to life like a broken engine. "Karen?"

"Hikari...? Junna?" Karen groaned, rubbing her head to find it hurt more than it usually did. Claudine didn't have time to waste with this reunion. Apparently, Tendou Maya was hunting her down, and if Karen's state was anything to go by, she wasn't about to get off easily.

 "Futaba! Futaba, open up!" Claudine battered unforgivingly on the door to Kaoruko and Futaba's shared room, her head occasionally darting up and down the corridor to check for any sign of Maya. After a few moments, a bed-headed Futaba creaked the door open.

"Kuroko?" Futaba dithered as she tried to sort out her messy pinkish locks, forcing her eyes to stay open. "Before you say anything, it's a Sunday in the middle of winter. Don't judge me."

Ignoring Futaba's excuses for spending so long in bed, Claudine tried to barge her way into the dormitory. "You owe me a favour, Futaba. Let me in." With that, the door slid open and Claudine almost fell through. She'd expected a snide comment from Kaoruko, but the girl was still asleep, buried under layers of duvets.

Taking a sweet breath of relief as she took a seat on Futaba's bed, Claudine rolled her eyes at her own overreaction. She had really taken to hiding away in her friend's room to weather the storm of her girlfriend's anger.

"I hate to ask, Kuro, but... What are you doing in my room?" Futaba flopped down in her bed next to Claudine, curling the covers over her shoulders as she felt the chill air Claudine had brought in with her. "Something wrong?"

"No, of course not. I just--" Claudine quickly realised just how futile lying would be. "I think I made Maya mad, and I'm hiding." Swallowing her shame tasted like a mouthful of salt, as it also meant accepting the fact that she was most certainly the one in the wrong.

Futaba choked a laugh. "You made Maya mad? Usually it's the other way around." She stopped and looked and Claudine more seriously. "But an angry Maya does sound pretty terrifying, doesn't it? I'd want to hide, too."

"Exactly." Claudine nodded as Futaba was just as understanding as usual. "So, I think we should switch rooms for tonight. I'll stay in here, and--"

"Wow, now. I think that'll just get me killed in my sleep." Futaba shook her head. "Maybe we could just talk to her about it? I'm sure if it's you two it's something stupid." Claudine hadn't expected Futaba to be so level-headed about it, but she was probably just still tired from having woken up.

"Honestly! As if you and Kaoruko's problems aren't stupid, too!" Claudine bit back, sure of herself that Maya's problems were more than some trivial high-schooler tip.

Futaba was about to speak up - and surely agree, considering their last argument had been over the last cookie in the jar - a scream rang out through the halls. Both of the girls leapt, and even Kaoruko woke up. Kaoruko hadn't been the one to scream, however, and once the other two realised, Futaba hopped to her feet.

"You're not coming?" Futaba looked down at Claudine, who was still glued tightly to Futaba's bed. "Come on, Kuroko. It's not like you to mope. What if someone's hurt?"

Claudine looked as if she was about to shake her head, but groaned and jumped up, finding she was incapable of being so petty. Telling herself she wasn't afraid of Tendou Maya, no matter how riled up she was, Claudine followed Futaba out of the room.

 Claudine mused on just how similar the scene they found was to the one she'd seen only a few minutes earlier. The ominous feeling in her chest grew as she gradually began to feel like a hunted animal.

"Nana, are you okay?" Junna was kneeling over Nana, cradling her in her arms as if she was actually dying. "Claudine!" This time, however, there was no pity from Junna; as soon as she spied Claudine, she shot a painfully spiteful look in her direction. "If you can't control your girlfriend, I'll have to call faculty."

Claudine shuffled up to Nana, still feeling the daggers coming from Junna. Even more than when she’d attacked the puppy-like Karen, Claudine felt like Maya had committed some reprehensible crime by taking down Nana. Sure, the girl might not be quite as innocent as most would care to know, but her motherly instincts made up for it twice over.

"I--" Nana spoke up. "I just asked her if she wanted something for lunch." Junna's expression became even worse as the motive behind the horrific act became clear. Nana pulled herself closer to Claudine. "This is your fault."

"Nana, we both know whose fault this really is." Claudine bit back. Nana’s maternal habits had gone into overdrive over the winter months. And whilst Claudine might have appreciated having someone wait her on hand-and-foot, Maya surely didn’t.

Nana fainted, if only to escape the conversation.

"Claudine, really. You've got to sort this out." Junna pressed, still clinging to Nana, fully aware she was faking her unconsciousness. "It's only getting worse."

Futaba murmured an agreement from behind Claudine, but before she could think of a retort, yet another pitched yell broke the air. This time, it was Kaoruko's - only she was capable of such a squawking, outraged howl.

 The two - and Junna as well, once she'd carefully placed Nana on the sofa to rest - found Kaoruko splayed out on the floor of her room, with a satisfied, if bedraggled, look on her face. Only as satisfied as someone could look, trying to crawl back into bed after being throttled to the floor, though; that much was evident by her ruffled pyjamas and flustered red face.

"Kaoruko, what did you do...?" Futaba knelt down next to Kaoruko, not bothering to help her up.

Kaoruko cackled, as she was prone to do, and finished scraping herself back into bed, snuggling into it like a rodent into a hole. "She came looking for Claudine," she managed to grin despite her condition as she pulled the covers over her shoulders. "And I called her fat when she walked out." Kaoruko returned to her usual snickering self in record time - Claudine was frankly shocked she'd been the only one to completely survive Maya's wrath. "Apparently I'm not worth killing." The exasperation in the room was audible - perhaps it'd have been better if Maya really had finished Kaoruko off.

Junna and Futaba looked at each other suddenly, wordlessly conspiring. "Well, Claudine, I think we all know what needs to happen next." There was a direly ominous tone to Futaba’s voice, and she approached Claudine from behind as she rolled her shoulders.

Before Claudine could even take a guess at what Futaba had meant, both of her arms were sealed. She gawked, suddenly arriving at the conclusion that Futaba and Junna had a moment ago. She struggled, but found no purchase. Claudine had expected Futaba to be strong enough to hold her down, but Junna's sudden burst of strength seemed out of nowhere - no doubt Nana was spiritually lending her her strength. "Wh-What are you two doing?! Unhand me!"

"No can do, Kuroko." Futaba sighed. "I hate to do this, but it'll be one of us next." Junna nodded in agreement, and Claudine could feel her heart sink. "Hey, Maya!" Futaba called out, and the air went dead silent. "Come and get her!"

Claudine laughed dryly. "You're both acting like you're going to sacrifice me to her." She looked over her shoulder at Futaba, but found no mercy, as a violent stomping filled the air. And when she turned back, Maya was already there.

"Thank you, Isurugi, Hoshimi. I'll be taking her, now." Was the last thing Claudine heard before she was grabbed by the collar and dragged back to her room.

 Claudine hadn't expected to still be alive, but as Maya practically threw her onto her own bed, she didn't think she'd have to worry about that for much longer. Nothing came, though, and Claudine opened her eyes to find the girl simply looking down at her, rather irritatedly. "You're not going to kill me?" She asked facetiously, but not entirely believing Maya wouldn't.

"Why would I..." Recalling that she'd just left a bloody trail through the dormitory, Maya sighed and collapsed onto the bed. "I'll need to apologise for that."

"I think Kaoruko had it coming." Thinking she could distract Maya with intimacy, Claudine set her hands on Maya's shoulders and edged closer, beginning to play with the collar of her shirt, but she was shocked when her partner rejected her touch. Maya almost shrunk in on herself, her cheeks growing the mildest red.

"She wasn't wrong, though, was she?" Maya's voice was at once accusatory and embarrassed as the source of her anger finally showed itself. Both of the girls' faces went a flushed shade of red as the words tried to come out. "You... You've..." Maya squeaked, unable to even think it, despite it being painfully obvious to the both of them. Claudine had to admit, it was difficult watching Maya unable to say what was on her mind.

  "I've made you fat." Claudine was just as afraid of saying it as Maya, but at this point her dignity, and responsibility as her girlfriend, won out. Claudine's stomach lurched at her own bluntness, and she hurried to correct herself. "I mean, not fat-- just, softer." Fearing Maya's wrath, she echoed Karen's words from earlier.

True enough, Maya had become slightly plumper over the months she'd spent as Claudine's beloved - at first, the natural exercise she did at the school made it a neutral game, but once the walls in her and Claudine's relationship had broken down, spurring the blonde onto bigger things, she'd began to gradually put on weight. Claudine had noticed, of course; the amount of time they'd spent naked in each other's presence had given her a front-row seat to Maya's growth. She'd been pussyfooting around the topic for the past few months, as she secretly enjoyed the show. She would never tell Maya that, though - it'd just be an extra burden in their relationship. Realistically, it was only a few pounds, but even that made all the difference to a Stage Girl. And considering it was the Christmas season, that number was probably only going to get worse if Nana had anything to say about it.

"Precisely." Maya had regained her composure quickly, and was now glaring at Claudine with the same intensity she'd had earlier. "I think it would be best for the both of us - myself especially - if you let me go on a diet."

Claudine's head spun a little bit at the implication that she had full control over Maya's eating habits, and that if she said no now, it would mean no. She took a breath and composed herself, reminding herself what happened the last time she let her indulgences take centre stage. "Of course. But--" Claudine cut herself off, realising how selfish even a single 'but' would be, baiting Maya into a trap with the promise of freedom.

"But--?" Maya reacted, and Claudine already regretted it. The air in the room had relaxed after the matter of the hour was settled, but Claudine wasn't feeling it. "I'm sure watching me go on a diet will be absolute torture for you." The malice in Maya's eyes had already been replaced by a kindness - and, perhaps, there was just a sliver of eroticism behind them. As ever, the girl was so quick to forgive. "Perhaps I'll let you have one favour."

Claudine looked for an escape as she found herself trapped between her embarrassment and her more earthly desires. Of course, Maya had already recognised the blush splashing across Claudine's cheeks; she was only like this when she knew she was putting her girlfriend on the spot. "I--" Claudine choked up, unable to even voice her desires, having locked them away safely for both of their sakes.

"Don't be embarrassed, Claudine." Maya's eyes shifted between a kind glow and a teasing edge. "I don't think anything you say could shock me, anymore - you've had your way with me plenty of times before." Claudine could see Maya on the verge of laughter as she squeezed Claudine between her fingers.

"Gah!" Claudine decided she'd had enough of Maya teasing her. "If you're going to insist, then..." Swallowing her embarrassment, Claudine approached Maya again - apparently, she must have had quite the menacing look on her face, seeing as Maya practically backed off as she closed in. "Take off your jumper, and turn around." Claudine demanded, watching as apprehension flashed across Maya's face.

"You have a rather unpleasant look in your eyes, Claudine." Maya tutted and she gingerly turned, stripping off her jumper and shivering slightly against the cold as it bit through her thin undershirt. And as she peeled that away too below, the roll of soft flesh around Maya's middle was revealed - it sat lazily on the hem of her pants, hungrily devouring skin that was once muscular and taut and turning it into smooth, plushy curves. At first, Maya instinctively covered it, wrapping her arms around her hips, but taking care not to touch her soft skin as if she were afraid of her own stomach and the power it could hold over her. "I do hope you aren't planning anything untowards." Even like this, though, Maya was completely irresistible.

"Shut up." Claudine cleared her throat, looming over Maya as she tensed up. As always, Maya was a sensitive mess when it came to intimacy. Watching her squirm was something Claudine would never get tired of, even if it came at the price of having Maya watch her squirm with the same glee. As she pictured how red her partner’s face must be, Claudine began wrapping her arms around her middle, easing Maya's arms out of the way before resting her chin on her shoulder.

"...!" Flinching as Claudine's cold skin brushed against her own body, Maya wished that Claudine would get whatever she was planning over with.

And Claudine happily indulged her request; with a slow breath to calm her heart, she set her hands on Maya's exposed stomach, squeezing deep into the layer of flesh. Feeling Maya twitch as Claudine exploited her insecurity, her fingers dug even deeper, feeling out the very extremity of Maya's fluffiness. Just having her girlfriend's skin bulge between her probing fingers was heavenly enough, but Claudine wasn't done yet. "This is Tendou Maya." She whispered, twisting the Top Star of Seisho's signature line into a teasing torture.

 !!!

Claudine awoke a few hours later, groaning as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She took a wild guess at what had happened as she looked about, peering through the half-light of the late afternoon. She'd have laughed at Maya's touchiness if it hadn't been her on the receiving end, this time. Her eyes adjusted, and she spied a figure on her bed; Tendou Maya, her limbs splayed across the mattress, and a smattering of cookie crumbs across her cheek.

"God, she stuffs herself with cookies and falls asleep in the middle of the day. To think Tendou Maya could be such a slob..." After what the two of them privately referred to as 'The Incident', Claudine had sworn herself away from blackmail. She decided, however, as the shutter of her camera went off once, twice, and again, that having a bit of ammunition never hurt.

[neathnights]

The Singing Mandrake

If you want to become a sensation in Veilgarden, here's the place to start... 

→ Seduce a Struggling Artist Do you find him charming? Useful? Or both?

→ Seduce a Struggling Artist's Model Of the two of them, she might well be the more talented. Perhaps she enjoys playing the innocent.

→ Tell a risqué joke "After the opening of a popular revue, a bishop waits on one of the more vibrant actresses at the stage door. 'Madam,' he says..."

You store that one away for future use A gasp. A stifled scream. A round of applause! Three ladies and two gentlemen faint: even an eavesdropping rat drops out of the ceiling in a state of shock. You've made an impression, it seems.

→ Tell a politically dangerous joke "How does one distinguish a Master of the Bazaar from a barrel of sheep's urine?" Let's hope the audience here is sympathetic. You don't want another spell in New Newgate.

A roar of laughter! They'll remember that one. Let's hope the constables don't hear it from them. In the meantime, you're the centre of attention. Always a pleasant place to be. You leave the Mandrake with a bottle of good wine tucked under your arm.

→ Chat to a Tipsy Spy A spy? So rumour has it. If you can get her talking, you might learn something useful.

Wine and company loosen her tongue She's not indiscreet enough to say who she's spying for. A surface city? A tomb-colony? Hell? But she does pass on some rather startling information about city politics.

→ Mock an Insufferable Poseur This fellow is sitting at the back of the Singing Mandrake reciting – well, technically it's poetry. Each line is worse than the last. It's a public service. Anyway, he's in your favourite chair.

A surgical coup You meet each line of his faultlessly with a cough, an off-colour joke or badly timed applause. Soon enough he stumbles red-faced from the premises. A grateful crowd rewards you at the bar.

An unexpected sensation! "Could I do any better? Now that you mention it..."

In answer to his challenge, you meet each ghastly line with a perfectly improvised one of your own. Successive waves of applause and laughter rise around you. No one even notices the poor fellow as he slinks away. You'd feel guiltier, but you're busy fielding drinks and flirtatious winks in increasing numbers.

[evakuality]

It’s been a while, I’m sorry (blame work and random fic enthusiasm that had to be complied with).  I hope to get back to doing roughly 2 a week now, though.  The first meta in this series can be found here, with links following through from there.

Episode number and name: Two. Du er over 18, sant?

Clip number and name: Three.  Ikke vær frekk

My thoughts/analysis:  Isak approaching Vilde is one of the more adorable things I’ve seen.  It’s fairly clear that he’s not all that enamoured of her (just think about the way he says ‘Vilde’ in the kosegruppa clip; he’s exasperated by her), and that having to ask her for this is not his idea of a great time.  However, it’s also clear that Even and wanting to see more of him, is such a great drawcard that Isak will deal with the discomfort of Vilde’s enthusiasm.  For her part, it’s actually quite sad to see how eager she is that Isak is taking an interest.  Of course, she can’t know that he’s only interested because of the guy he met, and so her genuine delight is a little heartbreaking.  She tries so hard to be needed, and it’s a little sad to see her passion exploited in this way.  Not that I blame Isak at all; he has this one way in to seeing Even again and it’s very understandable that he would take advantage of that.  He has no way of knowing that Even is at least as desperate to see him, if not more so.  Of course, she’s not above using what she sees as his interest either: she needs someone to host her party and she leaps on this opportunity.  Isak, because again he is very good at reading situations and using them to his advantage, doesn’t commit one way or the other.  He knows this gathering is his likeliest chance to see Even again, so he doesn’t want to say no if it’s the only way for that to happen.  But on the other hand, the idea of being seen to be involved in an active and enthusiastic way with kosegruppa does not sit well with him either.  Being involved in that sort of thing is not going to help him with the facade he’s so desperately trying to wear, of the cool totally straight guy who likes ‘normal’ cool straight guy things.  So he hedges.  

Of course poor Vilde doesn’t pick on that: “why are you all laughing like that?  Do you think the revue is stupid?” -- honestly, this girl just really can’t see beyond her own PoV, which is that kosegruppa is her ticket to popularity and so others must see it that way as well.  Poor Isak, who doesn’t want to stand out for the wrong reasons within his group of friends, is then forced to endure Vilde’s over-excited babble that he is hosting and has absolutely agreed to it.  He looks so uncomfortable as the boys laugh and tease him.  This is a credit to the acting, of course; Isak’s inner turmoil is so clearly shown here as the conversations flows and he quickly slides into the same stance and attitude that the other guys have: closed off to Vilde and her ideas.  Shoulders hunched, arms crossed, neutral (almost disdainful) expression on his face.  Isak’s big problem, of course, is that he can’t shut Vilde down completely as she’s his way in to seeing Even again.  This is only made clearer when he spots Even across the yard.  The whole point of why Isak’s talking to Vilde is right there, and is hilariously distracting.  Isak literally tunes out the conversation as he sees Even and takes note.  He’s only called back to the present by the unwelcome addition of Emma, who literally gets in between him and Even here.  It’s interesting that she’s presented in this way because the implication is that she’s going to get between Isak and Even when in actual fact she really isn’t.  We don’t know it yet, but they are both on the same page and Emma, for all her attempts to get with Isak, is never really shown or seen as a threat to the relationship.  They may get together a little, but at no point are we ever intended to think that she’s a serious contender for Isak’s affections.  

Unfortunately for Isak, Emma is very attractive and very confident and so his attempts to put her off are thwarted by the boys.  You can see the real dilemma for him here; he needs to be seen as the player, as the guy who got a blow job from this girl earlier.  But he also doesn’t want anything to do with her.  He doesn’t want her to want him; his need is to get her off his back (of course, this changes later, but for now Isak wants her out of his life).  The fact that he has to play off both these needs with two different groups of people here is desperately uncomfortable for him and you can see the way it affects him when the boys call him ‘brain damaged’ and push aside his objections.  It’s not hard to understand why he’d blow them off from this party, since he never wanted to go in the first place.  Anyway, Isak is probably profoundly relieved when the boys’ interrogation is cut short by Vilde’s rant about first year girls.  First because it allows him to avoid the discomfort of explaining why he chose not to go with her in the first place, and second because Mahdi asked the supremely difficult question again: are you gay?  This is Isak’s worst nightmare: these boys, who are the ones he most wants to keep seeing him as straight, are starting to question his sexuality.  I bet he’s seriously regretting telling them that she’s the one attractive girl in all of first year.

Romeo and Juliet connections for clip:  Yes <3 This time there is one, and I adore it.  I have to say, the moment when Even strides across the courtyard to the music used to introduce Romeo in his movie and the camera follows him in the same way and he uses the same body language, moves his head in the same way, and it’s the most Baz Luhrmann-y thing ever -- that moment was the moment I fell in love with this show.  All over-excited shrieking from me aside, this is a really interesting shout out to the movie.  First, Isak hasn’t watched it yet and so he has no way of knowing what’s going on there.  From the next clip on out, we can assume Isak has at least some peripheral knowledge of Even’s dramatic Romeo and Juliet-related shenanigans, but at this point it’s all still unconscious on his part.  He knows that Even likes Luhrmann; he made that clear last clip, and so it’s obviously on Isak’s (and now the viewers’) radar.  This shot is clearly deliberate, a conscious choice to show us Even as Romeo, the misunderstood, angsty, dramatic, poetry-loving hero of the vibrant but tragic love story.  Once again, that puts Isak in the Juliet role; like her, he’s still bound by his circumstances and tied into a role/situation he’s not really keen on.  Like her, he is beginning to find this stranger appealing, finding someone who can help him open up and make the world new and exciting.  Interestingly, in the movie, this shot is from the audience’s PoV; it’s us who is being introduced to Romeo and it is almost the first shot we have of him (haha, who has watched this movie too many times?  That would be me), so we’re all meant to be seduced by his mystique, his coolness and the way he interacts with the world.  In this case, though, the PoV is explicitly Isak’s (and that’s fascinating because in the movie, Juliet isn’t even around to see this side of Romeo).  We see his attention drawn to Even, and we see this shot through his eyes.  This is probably a hint that, unlike Romeo, Even is not actually this mysterious, sexy, cool, dramatic dude Isak has him initially pegged as.  This is so loudly signalled as his PoV, much more so than usual, that it seems clear that there is something more to Even.  This obviously unfolds over the course of the season, but it’s interesting that it’s already signalled here.

I also think it’s very interesting that Even is again cast as Romeo because, as we will see later, Even himself sees himself as Juliet.  So the fact that they each see the other as the Romeo of their lives is just really lovely.  Of course, this allows us to have Paris (aka Emma) butting in in the same way as happens in the movie.  S/he unintentionally breaks into a moment the two are having (more explicitly in the movie than here; Even here, while definitely hyper aware of Isak, is acting casual and as if he isn’t laser focused on where Isak is and that he’s watching).  It’s interesting that Emma has a lot more agency than Paris; he is willing to go along with it all, but he’s pushed into the role of interloper by Juliet’s family.  Here, Emma makes all her own decisions and all her own moves.  They’re both clueless that the object of their affections isn’t interested and just barrel on with a wooing, but he at least has the excuse that he has the explicit approval of her family and assumes therefore that she’s down for it.  Emma has her own desires and her blindness to Isak’s real wishes so she comes across as a lot more clueless.

Associated extras:  an instagram picture, a chat with the boys and a really really awkward chat between Isak and Emma.  The picture seems again to highlight who the important people in Isak’s life are.  Many of his pictures, videos etc are of these three guys and so it really drives home the point that their good will is important to him.  The chat again highlights this with the added bonus that they are teasing Isak about tricking Emma with painkillers and hinting that he’ll enjoy seeing her again (they completely ignore his ‘psycho vibes’ issue with her, presumably because she’s attractive).  Then the chat with Emma.  It’s so painfully obvious that Isak is uninterested.  His one word answers are brimming with a sense of ‘get out of my face’ and yet she’s so flirty and excited.  It really highlights her obliviousness and lack of awareness.  She’s very young, and probably not all that used to guys not falling or her.  We’ve seen that Isak has an unconventional flirting technique (insult her and not be like the other guys who fall all over her), and so it’s not a surprise that as he keeps acting not-like the other guys that she keeps being charmed.  She has, as yet, no real reason to think he’s not into her other than his distance.  And that probably seems surmountable since he’s acted ‘weird’ before and still been presumably interested.  It doesn’t help that his only response to the ‘are you single’ an added babble is a short yes.  She will of course think he’s saying that about his relationship status and take it as a hint.

Overall impressions: I suspect it’s fairly obvious, but I love this one.  I will always have fond memories of it because of the Romeo and Juliet thing and how much it charmed me with just that one shot.  There’s not much going on in the clip, but the undercurrents between all the characters are so interesting.  It’s particularly interesting to know that Even was just as invested in this moment as Isak.  He looks so calm and in control and yet he’s probably bubbling inside.  The two of them are as ridiculous as each other and I love it.

Next one can be found here.

[larrytcamp]

40 things to do in Toronto this weekend

Weekend events in Toronto are ready to kick off some of the biggest events of the year as NXNE and Luminato fill the city with music and art. A new food festival is on at Ontario Place and Dundas West is going car-free for a massive street festival. Markets, parties and sportswatching are all on, too.

Top Picks

June 7

Raptors Tailgate Party

Fresh off their big Game 3 win against the Warriors, the Raps are going for another and it's all going down on the big screen in the Square.

Maple Leaf Square

June 7

Adam Sandler

Funnyman and Netflix regular Adam Sandler is dropping by to perform some comedy and song during the Toronto stop of his tour.

Budweiser Stage

June 7-9

Dundas West Fest

Part of Dundas West is going car-free for two days with a huge street festival that includes music, games, food, drinks, art and shopping.

Dundas Street West

June 7-9

Forks & Barrels

New this year is a food festival with a focus on good food, good vibes and sustainability with $2 drinks and $4 food samples.

Ontario Place

June 7-9

Drake General Store Warehouse Sale

The Drake General Store's famous warehouse sale is back with a huge selection of samples, overstock, antiques and more for cheap.

1082 Queen St. W

June 7-16

NXNE

Music, film and art are taking over the city from parking lots to parks as NXNE returns with performances and free concerts along Yonge St.

Multiple Venues

June 7-23

Luminato

A massive mirror maze is just one of the things happening at this year's Luminato festival with arts, performances and music happening all over the city.

Multiple Venues

Events you might want to check out

June 7

Toronto Harajuku Walk

Japanese street fashion will be out in full force at this annual Harajuku walk and picnic with food, drinks, games and more.

Trinity Bellwoods Park

June 8

Open Tuning

Seaton Village is ready to rock with a full day of local musicians performing everywhere from porches to parks, with everyone welcome to come listen.

Seaton Village

June 8

World Naked Bike Ride

Free yourself from the confines of clothes and take a ride through the city in the name of the environment as part of this international bike ride.

Coronation Park

June 8

Desifest

Desifest is back with a day of free concerts from over 300 artists from across Canada, the U.S., the U.K., India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, GOA and West Indies.

Yonge-Dundas Square

June 8

Roncy Rocks

Artists, vendors, performers and musicians are all coming out for this big street festival that showcases community spirit and local talent.

Roncesvalles Ave

June 8-9

Beaches Arts & Crafts Show

Over 150 artists and designers from all over Canada are showing off their works of photography, paint and sculpture at this huge arts and crafts festival.

Kew Gardens Park

Food & Drink

June 6-7

Leslieville Food & Drink Festival

Three nights of art, music, food and drinks are on as this neighbourhood festival kicks off with a food market, cocktail competition, workshops and more.

Streetcar Crowsnest

June 7

Free Krispy Kreme Doughnuts

National Donut Day is here and Krispy Kreme locations all over Toronto are giving away one free donut per person all day long.

Multiple Venues

June 7-9

Mac and Cheese Festival

Name a more iconic duo as this huge festival serves up gourmet mac and cheese with all the fixin's, courtesy of celeb chefs in the name of charity.

Roundhouse Park

June 8

Grilled Cheese Challenge

It's a grilled cheese throwdown for the ages as local shops duke it out to see who will reign supreme amongst a day of street festival fun.

Lake Shore Blvd

June 8

Royal Mountain Backyard BBQ

Royal Mountain Records is teaming up with NXNE for a day of barbecue and performances by Dizzy, Jayy Grams, Luna Li and more, with free admission.

Royal Mountain Records

June 8

Ontario Craft Beer Week Launch Party

Ontario Craft Beer Week kicks off at breweries across the province and it all starts with a huge party with over 20 local brewers dropping by for a night of fun.

Junction Craft Brewing

June 9

Taste Of Russia Festival

Traditional Russian food is just one part of this big cultural festival with a day of dance, music, performances and arts and shopping.

Mel Lastman Square

June 9

Toronto Taste

Toronto's top chefs are coming out for this annual fundraiser with gourmet goodies up for the tasting, all in support of Second Harvest.

Evergreen Brick Works

Film

June 6-8

Canadian Sport Film Festival

Highlighting athletic prowess and overcoming immense challenges, this film festival looks at Canadian sports and the stories behind them.

TIFF Bell Lightbox

June 6-27

Japanese Film Festival

North America's largest showcase of Japanese cinema is back with two weeks of special screenings and premieres, guests, talks and programming.

Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre

June 7-8

Breakthroughs Film Festival

Short films by women directors are the focus of this annual film festival, with works by local and international filmmakers, Q&As and more.

The Royal Cinema

June 8

Femme Fatale Film Festival

The work of young women filmmakers are showcased during this festival with a collection of shorts and special guest Sofia Bohdanowicz dropping by.

Revue Cinema

Music

June 6-8

Transmit Festival

Concert promoters Transmit are back with three nights of music featuring performances by FEELS FINE, Dilly Dally, Mother Tongues and lots more.

Multiple Venues

June 8

Ghostbusters in Concert

Who you gonna call? The classic 80s comedy is getting the orchestral treatment by conductor Peter Bernstein while the movie plays alongside.

Sony Centre for the Performing Arts

June 8

U.S. Girls

A very special Toronto export, Meghan Remy's sound project uses experimental sounds to mix multiple genres into her unique tunes.

Opera House

June 9

DJ Snake

DJ, producer and all-around hitmaker DJ Snake is arriving to spin the beats poolside at Cabana for an afternoon of fun in the sun.

Cabana Pool Bar

June 9

blackbear

You may know him from his soulful sound and collabs with rap star Gucci Mane, but now the singer is here with his Dead 2 the World tour.

Rebel

Parties

June 7

Friday Night Live

#FNL is back with a party in the museum and this week's theme centres around Indigenous talent with music and dance, plus food, drinks and more.

Royal Ontario Museum

June 8

Sunnyside 21

Sunnyside is back with a day of beachside beats featuring DJ Steve Lawler on deck alongside Arman & Beynon.

Sunnyside Pavilion Cafe

June 9

Promise Cherry Beach

Dance it out at Cherry Beach as Promise returns with local and international DJs spinning the sounds all afternoon long.

Cherry Beach

Markets and pop-ups

June 8

Danforth East Yard & Sidewalk Sale

Danforth Avenue East is having a huge annual sidewalk and yard sale throughout the neighbourhood, plus performances and activities.

Multiple Venues

June 8

Ian Drummond Collection Studio Sale

Vintage clothing lovers are going to want to check out this massive studio sale with tons of incredible finds from nearly every decade in fashion.

IAN DRUMMOND COLLECTION

June 8

The Summer Market

The Parkdale Flea and Toronto Designers Market are coming together for a new summer market with over 80 makers selling a ton of great goodies.

Northern Contemporary Gallery

June 8

Toronto Blogger Bazaar

Raid the closets of Toronto's fashion blogger community at this big clothing sale with lightly used goods for sale with almost nothing over $20.

MogoLounge

June 9

Queer Makers Market

The Gladstone Hotel and Yohomo are teaming for a day of arts and crafts by local queer makers, including clothing, gifts, home decor and more.

Gladstone Hotel

June 9 - October 6

Leslieville Flea

Take a stroll through the historic Distillery District as the Leslie Flea returns to fill the space with a curated selection of vintage and handmade crafts.

Ashbridge Estate

Ongoing events

February 28 - June 9

Ai Weiwei: Unbroken

It's the final weekend to check out artist Ai Weiwei's ceramic creations as Unbroken wraps up an exhibition of eye-opening works.

Gardiner Museum

The post “ 40 things to do in Toronto this weekend” was appeared first on blogTO by Lisa Power

Intravenous Hydration Clinic Toronto Ontario - Dr. Amauri Wellness Centre - Dr. Amauri Caversan

[broadwaybydesign]

Memories of You: Ann Roth’s Costuming of “Shuffle Along”

Welcome back, everyone! Today I’d like to take a look at Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. Try saying that title three times fast! As many of my readers know, I am a huge fan of diversity on Broadway, and so reviewing this musical alongside yesterday’s review of Allegiance is quite intentional. Both these shows are designed to highlight different eras of American history, focusing on different communities through the beauty of music, lyrics, and above all, costumes.

As always, a little background. Shuffle Along is another musical that did not enjoy a lengthy Broadway run despite critical acclaim, a host of Tony and Drama Desk nominations, and the combined star power of Brian Stokes Mitchell and the divine Audra McDonald. Set in the early 1920s, the musical focuses on a troupe of black vaudevillians as they attempt to stage a major hit against competition from the likes of the Ziegfeld Follies. While the troupe comes up with an opening night hit, and even has one of the songs enter the public consciousness, they struggle to replicate their success and fame and break apart following the premiere. Despite strongly hoping to be remembered, the musical ends on a melancholy note as the stars fade into obscurity, memorialized only by the most dedicated fans of the theatre.

The costumes for this dramatic musical were designed by Ann Roth, an Academy Award and Tony Award-winning costumer who also picked up the 2016 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design in a Musical for her work on Shuffle Along. Her style tends to be traditional (her Oscar was for the 1996 film The English Patient), but when she costumes a Broadway show she tends to be marked by her use of bold and vibrant colors. Little wonder, then, that she was chosen by the producers to costume this musical that is set in the golden age of vaudeville, with the color and vibrancy of that era one of its most important hallmarks. Let’s take a look at some of her designs:

I’ve started with this set of costumes for a reason. This is, in some ways, a meta-musical; that is to say that this is a musical about a musical. The troupe in this musical, led by Mr Stokes Mitchell and Ms McDonald, is attempting to stage a theatrical revue in competition to any number on Broadway in 1921. This presents some unique challenges to any costume designer. Instead of simply outfitting characters, you are instead faced with creating two sets of costumes: those for the main body of the musical, and those for the production the characters intend to stage. Little surprise, then, that designers who work on these types of musicals end up collecting awards and nominations by the barrel!

Here, we see the characters in full attire for their theatrical revue (also entitled Shuffle Along). Theatre of the early 1920s was known for being incredibly showy, with elaborate costuming and no expense being spared. Little surprise, perhaps, given it was one of the only forms of entertainment easily obtainable by the New York masses. These costumes are in white and primary colors, designed to stand out even from a distance, both in the context of the production-within-a-production and the 2016 musical itself. I want to take a closer look, however, at the dresses worn by the ensemble in the background of this still, though, because I think they are a perfect introduction to Ms Roth’s costuming style for this musical:

Frills abound in these costumes, both on the skirts and on the headdresses worn by the ensemble actresses. These are fun, flirty costumes designed to be seen more than anything else. I definitely see inspiration from the actual designs of the 1920s here, designs that are still maintained by many revues on Broadway today (think some performances of the Rockettes, for instance). The headdresses, while appearing substantial, are lightweight and designed to move along with the wearer while still maintaining their shape. There’s an almost crepe-like quality to both the skirts and the head pieces that’s visually appealing, and the use of white is interesting here.

I haven’t talked much about the interplay between costume design and lighting design because I am not a lighting person, but here I think it’s deserving of a little bit of commentary. When designing a costume for a Broadway production, you are not designing in a vacuum; rather, you have to incorporate and take into account a number of different elements. One of those is the lighting. When dealing with a stage production, you need to be sure that your costume designs can stand up to not only the heat and intensity of the lights, but the way in which they can change or alter color or add color of their own. Here, the lighting design is in purple and violet, which means that Ms Roth wanted to make sure that she was not using colors which would be washed out. Instead, she elected to go with a completely white design (minus some minor adornment) which would pick up the color of the lights, giving her designs color of their own.

This is not a mark of laziness on the part of a designer. Rather, using a neutral color like white in order to pick up on the light is a great way to have your costumes be noticed. The lighting of the stage can make all the difference in how your costumes are perceived by the audience, and by letting the lights do the color work for you, the cut and design of the costume can be better appreciated. Notice how the white fades to a soft pink or violet depending on where the actress is positioned in the chorus line; it accentuated the frills and cuts of the outfits and provides an altogether better effect for the audience and the viewer.

I noted at the beginning of this review that Shuffle Along is a production about a production, which means that there are a lot of scenes that do not take place in the context of a vaudeville show. Ms Roth’s designs for those scenes and characters are no less compelling, but they are compelling in a more traditional way. Take, for instance, the simpler designs seen in the scene below:

Everything about these costumes, in shades of brown, taupe, and white, positively shouts 1920s. On the left, there is a classic brown skirt in a sateen fabric that catches the light and adds a tiny note of shimmer. The blouse that covers it is sharp, with geometric lines and just a slight bit of fluting on the sleeves (that is to say that the sleeves flare out just a tiny bit). The costume is accentuated by a false shawl and scarf effect that hangs down just past the waist, allowing the eye to tie together the upper and lower portions of the outfit. The hat worn by the character matches the skirt in color and fabric, and completes the overall appearance quite nicely.

Ms McDonald’s outfit, on the other hand, is far more detailed but uniform in color. A beige or taupe color, the design work on this dress is spectacular. The skirt is fringed and beaded (a  common trope of the 1920s), while the upper portion of the dress is embroidered with a floral pattern that sticks out from the dress itself. This provides a dual effect; not only is the eye drawn to it, but it subtly changes the pattern of light and shadow that any costume will experience as a result of the stage lighting. The costume is completed with a simple chiffon belt and a bejeweled hair clip, giving an overall clean and classic look.

Other designs that Ms Roth put out in Shuffle Along are more colorful; remember that I said at the start that she enjoys using bold color in her Broadway productions. Let’s take a look at one example of that here, once again worn by leading lady Audra McDonald:

There is something about this dress that I absolutely adore. The fabric is beautiful, with an almost matte finish, and the cut is classic while still being rather interesting with the sleeves. Rather than a solid sleeve, there’s a slight cut in the cuff, which gives an almost draped effect. The color is stunning, a light violet that absolutely glows onstage. The fabric folds without bunching up, and the light and shadow help to deepen the purple in certain places, giving it a very sleek and stylish look.

The adornment on this outfit is relatively plain, but the few elements it possesses improve the overall appearance of the dress.The sleeves and bust have a simple triple line of gold and white embroidery, adding a little bit of extra elegance to the dress itself, and transforming it from a simple outfit to a more luxurious one. Typically, I’m a fan of stronger adornment, but in this case I think the overall effect is quite successful.

Ms Roth costumes Ms McDonald’s character in a couple of other bold colors, including this incredible blue number, seen at the far left of the frame:

The dress this time is in a velvety fabric, which helps to make it appear to comprise different shades of blue, from navy on the front to an almost electric blue on the hip. The fringing of the skirt is also classic 1920s; anyone familiar with the performances of Josephine Baker can attest. I love the way it helps to add a sense of movement and flair to every action taken by the actress, all the while retaining a sense of undeniable style. The choice of color is a nice contrast to the dark suits of the male characters onstage, as well as the more colorfully costumed members of the ensemble to the rear of the still.

One final costume deserves a little bit of attention, once again on Shuffle Along’s leading lady:

Similar in cut and style to the blue velvet number from before, this black velveteen number is sleek and sophisticated, with a hint of jeweled adornment, and straps that provide a note of delicacy to an otherwise quite solid-looking dress. Ms Roth generally does not rely on beadwork or jewel work, but I liked that the dress has three jeweled clasps, one on the bust and one on each of the shoulders. It breaks up the monotone of the costume and provides a set of focal points that make the costume pop just a little bit more. Working in black, against a dark background, is not easy, and you always want to find a subtle way for your costume to stand out; these tiny additions help to do just that.

Shuffle Along is a musical that deserved a far longer run than it got on Broadway, and the cast album is definitely worth a listen. But the visuals from this 1920s-set musical are really impressive and a joy to observe and contemplate. The color choices are bold, with purple predominating throughout the performance, and the cuts of the fabric are stylish and fit the era perfectly. Ann Roth even manages a great job of costuming the production-within-a-production, something that many costume designers would have struggled to do. It’s a fun, enjoyable production, and its costumes are beautiful. Definitely check it out!

That wraps up the review for Shuffle Along. I hope that you all have enjoyed this week’s reviews. This weekend, I’ll be sitting down to reorder a few of my upcoming productions and make some decisions about the order. As always, if my dear readers have suggestions or requests, please feel free to post them in the Ask box or send me a message here or on my main. 

Thanks for reading, and as always, stay tuned!

[hootenannyonhunter]

Get ready to DANCE Hunter St. PtboCanada Downtown Peterborough HOOTENANNY 2017! Saturday AUG. 12th. Noon. Free. w/ THE BIG SOUND. Toronto's Only 25+ Piece LIVE Revue Band. A DANCE Night in Celebration of the Golden Age of Classic Soul & Motown. #jamesbrown #shout #jackson5 #arethafranklin Along w/ Jonathan Toubin / New York Night Train SOUL CLAP & DANCE OFF! All AGES, Family Friendly $100 Everyone Welcome DANCE OFF! Local Metal GODS. Mokomokai w/ his very FINE Debut Album, Dylan Ireland. Newly REFROMED! RNR Party BAND, Tarantulla Jay Swinnerton >Rained out Hero's.... Diamond Dave Russell & The Smoke Eaters & The Bluegrass Menagerie. First Time HOOTERS, Sean Conway & Jordan Mack & Kicking off THIS years HOOT #tradition #ptbolove The Incredible Melissa Ann Payne. w/ Vinyl DJ's & Dance Selectors, Ottawas Alex Edwards (DJ Magnificent/double barrel) with his funky, soul REGGAE party & Toronto's Teresinha Costa (DJ NICO/With IT) with her 60's DANCE PARTY Swing & SHAKE! Bill Porter & his amazing crew on the SOUND SYSTEM & Stage & Lights. Thanks Terry Guiel, Ashburnham Realty & the Businesses of HUNTER STREET and many many more. #grassroots #streetfestival #community #onelove #downtown #arts #artists #players #local ‘Team Canada Dancers’ Representing PTBO in South Africa & Denmark. DJ Derek Brunelle (Bad NEWS TO/Rock’N’Soul Dance Party.  Finally MR. Mike Judson will be our MC for the days Bash! Book the date and grab the FAMILY! Sat. AUG> 12. 50+ Vendor Market open at 11am. xxx

[hope-louise-wright]

This will be the last post for tonight, as I continue the countdown. Now taking, center stag is a legendary soul singer, showstopper, and survivor, went from Ike's beleaguered 1960s partner to solo pop superstar by the '80s, at #5 Queen of Rock TINA TURNER! ~allmusic.com & Hope Elle💋~ Artist Biography by John Bush The most dynamic female soul singer in the history of the music, Tina Turner oozed sexuality from every pore in a performing career that began the moment she stepped on-stage as lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue in the late '50s. Her gritty and growling performances beat down doors everywhere, looking back to the double-barreled attack of gospel fervor and sexual abandon that had originally formed soul in the early '50s. Divorced from Ike in the mid-'70s, she recorded only occasionally later in the decade but resurfaced in the mid-'80s with a series of hit singles and movie appearances; her high-profile status was assured well into the '90s. Read more about Tina Turner @ www.allmusic.com #tinaturner #tina #rockqueen #awardwinning #certified #platinum #actress #soul #singer #legend #survivor #vintage #vinyl #rnbdiva #rnbmusic #musiclifestyle #musiclover #60s #70s #80s #90s #trend #influencer #simplythebest

[askdaizyduque]

Inside Out

It was sometime past midnight that humid Monday in Orlando the one place she vowed never to return. Eve Munro held the final pose. Steady and strong as a marble sculpture. Exactly as choreographed. Precisely on her mark. The International Dinner Experience wasn’t unlike the many theaters she performed in since she was five years old. Wooden floor, bulky forest green curtains, footlights, tree stands in the wings, scrims, spot lights in the balcony, one on either side of an impressively equipped sound and lighting board and the musicians’ loft. Ordinary, the theater watched scores of performers come and go over the years. It held secrets and dreams galore. The place seemed innocuous but soon and unplanned it would become a vehicle to the place of questions with no answers.

If Eve stood there much longer she would know exactly how many seats it held including dimensions. Christ almighty. She waited for the dance captain to speak up so she could relax her position for God’s sake. Her left foot hurt like a bitch and her back was angry from overuse. Not one to project less than iron like tenacity she slowly softened her diaphragm and took a deep breath. For fuck’s sake, she thought, what’s the deal?

Without moving and through her smile she asked, “Am I there? Can I?”

Luanne Brooks, the long time dance captain of the only dinner theatre in town, laughed, “Oh I’m sorry sweetie. Of course. Look at you. Gettin’ it on the first run.” She was a southern talking long legged brunette. Not much to look at but had the goods to sing and dance in the show as well as a daytime shows at a local theme park revue. “I was in a daze just fer a second. Yer really good.” Her genuine smile faded and she looked down and most crucial Eve saw.

“Shit. Seriously I’m not getting hired,” she thought. Eve was exhausted and had to pee like the time she drank four Budweisers in one hour. As she bent to unbuckle her shoe the awkward look on Luanne’s face made Eve feel anxious. The athletic, slender performer plopped and sat on her butt. Certain her voice sounded desperate she controlled the words, “Any notes? How was the section with the leaps?” She needed this gig. The move from Miami was one month ago exactly and so far she only taught some ballet classes plus the evil six o’clock in the morning aerobics classes and two more of those bastards a day five days a week. She freaking hated them putting on the happy you can do it face for the overweight, uncoordinated and sometimes lazy students who ran out of breath after five minutes, but hey money gets tight when the salary gap is widened and there was Dawson, her eight year old daughter, to care for. Eve had to work. She wiped the sweat from her chest onto the pullover wrapped at her waist. She cleansed her lungs and deliberately procrastinated what needed to be done next. Like hundreds of times before she pulled back the foot section of her tights and picked at moist medical tape. Her pinky toe was broken, again, the third time to be exact. Admittedly she was a klutz off stage because, as instructed for many years, she did not look down when walking. Seemed her last toe was always getting cracked against a piece of furniture or what not. Earlier before rehearsal she wrapped pinky and the next toe together for some stability. The tape rubbed the bare skin raw and blisters popped up. Blood on the bandage was no surprise. “Oh shit. Ow ow ow.” she did it quickly dragging some skin along with the tape. Her almond shaped blue eyes

focused on Luanne’s expression as she reached over for her dance bag in the wings.

Luanne looked at Eve and as habit she massaged the back of her neck and said, “It was great. Kurt wasn’t fibbin’ about you. Better than a rodeo horse riding queen’s barrel contest breakin’ a speed record.” She laughed but it sounded fake. “Hey how ‘bout a break? It’s gettin’ late. Want some water? Oh do ya’ have any questions?”

Eve used her bag’s shoulder strap to slide it across the stage closer to her. She felt around until she found the bottle. After a decent gulp she said, “Thanks but I brought my own water.” Damn. Loss of patience yielded sarcasm so she quickly softened her tone. “I do. But right now all I want is to know is if I’m getting cast in the show?”

“Oh golly. Silly me. Of course. Kurt told us how good ya’ are. Yer goin’ on the schedule for this weekend. I hope that’s okay sweetie. And we still have the costume fitting. It’s two shows a night. Seven thirty and nine forty-five.”

There was the neck rubbing again and repetitive knuckle cracking. Eve ignored that and clapped, “Thank you. Thank you.” A wave of relief and gratitude lightened any doubts allowing her body to relax a bit. “I can’t wait to tell Kurt. Yes. Yes. He’s going to be happy. You made my whole day. Maybe you can put in a good word for me where you and Kurt work. You’ve seen I learn choreography like that,” she snapped her fingers and showed her first genuine smile all evening. Eve’s at rest face made her look mean so she took care when meeting potential employers not to come off as a bitch. Either way she was beautiful with a pleasing heart shaped face and good skin which proved an asset in her career. Many friends confessed when they first met Eve they were standoffish but once they took the time to get to know her they found she was funny as hell and quick with comebacks. Even Kurt treaded lightly around Eve when they met seven years earlier.

Kurt Lansing was Eve’s husband. He too was a dancer but lacked the definitive drive for perfection Eve had. They loved their careers and each other. He was Eve’s knight in shining armor when he rescued her from the previous abusive husband. They were carefree show biz gypsies relocating every six months or so, depending on contracts. Eve loved Kurt with her whole being.

As Kurt would say, “We’ve got the perfect family.”

Three peas in a pod doing what they loved and making great friends along the way. Eve and Kurt were sometimes cast as partners. They practiced at home and rehearsed lifts in the pool with Dawson there enjoying the water show.

Eve did not dance only because she liked to. She danced to breath life into her soul. Or maybe visa versa but each time she made an entrance onstage she felt a vital energy surface. Sensual overflow. When partnering she fit with Kurt’s body perfectly and brought a vibrancy to the choreography. Rhythm, movement and two melting into one, was a turn on. Sometimes she felt guilty that she found the secret sensuality of dance because it happened with almost any partner. Once a show closed it’s run though any fantasies disappeared with it.

They projected the perfect ideation of family. Except for that one time. The time she learned about Kurt fucking her girlfriend, a chorus girl in the Freeport show. Tanya and Eve shared a spot in the dressing room, trading stories, applying show make-up and styling their wigs every night. Eve considered Tanya her best friend. Sadly, Tanya’s husband Miguel came along for that run and certainly was affected by their marital treason. Eve still struggled with the reality of the debacle. The worst of it for her besides the thoughts of her husband’s dick inside Tanya’s slut vagina or elsewhere was her naivety. Eve was not not a jealous woman. She genuinely trusted Kurt. Once out in the open though she was obviously the last to learn of the grand love affair. From time to time she’d torture herself with mental rewind of how many times she must’ve have been labeled as the ultimate jack ass. Fool. Court jester, dumb blonde. Tanya the cast and crew, everyone of them betrayed Eve. Maybe not with malice but then negligence. Someone could’ve warned her, left an anonymous note, anything. Eve came to find out those two had been with each other for months.

Confession night it was pitchblack. Eve remembers walking alone during a torrential June downpour with no destination in mind. How many movies showed similar cliche scenes? No matter. She never bought into the boo hoos or fear the characters were meant to portray. Too melodramatic. What was the purpose? She found out that night for herself at least. The affair made her feel dirty, used, trashy and stupid. At one point she cried so much there was no difference of tears and rain. Running didn’t make a difference. Her hopes the rain could wash away the truth and take with it the immoral filth she believed infected her. It felt like she had a contagion and no one would get close to her again. Eve stopped and raised her face to the sky mouth wide open. She kept on her journey to nowhere, staggering, stumbling on the uneven pavement. Then came the devil of insecurity. Which she, in a way, welcomed. It was better than the burning wound of emotional betrayal. What did she or didn’t she do to cause this? Silent promises bounced around inside her head. Vows she would fix it. She would fix herself and become the dream wife. Her mental list included cooking more often. No limitations on sex or anything Kurt desired in the bedroom. It was her goal to please Kurt at any cost. A new look. Makeup and hair styled on her one day off.

Sad. A lone figure in the dark. Soggy sagging sweatpants and a tank top heavy from the drenching hung from her frame, barefoot. She postured like a pathetic beaten dog. Eve pulled at her hair over and over. Somehow it felt good. At least it was tangible. Better than invisible emotional torture. What? No. The burning pain on her feet made her look them over and sure enough they were sliced in several places. A fallen tree filled in for a chair and she rested on it’s dried, rough bark, relieved the dramatics were easing. By now the rain was trickling and she had no more tears. Not even left- overs to bring out if necessary. The fog of irrational thoughts cleared as Eve played back some more tropical island happenings. Bad idea.

A good portion of the show’s cast lived in a cluster of rental homes on stilts next to a private lagoon. Eve and Kurt were in House 3. Directly across from them lived Tanya and Miguel. A large swimming pool sat smack in the middle of the circle of houses. There were numerous barbecues, parties and bonfire get togethers. Fun.

Infidelity is not stagnant therefore it’s roving energy finds unintended victims and witnesses. The truth is, infidelity doesn’t have to happen. Simple. Finish one project before taking on a new one. Sure there will be sadness. But sadness vs lies and betrayal, Eve would choose any day.

That was over with though. She told Kurt that was his one chance to be a piece of shit and if he ever did it again she was gone. She quickly dismissed the cheating and put it aside. Eve decided to just enjoy this good news.

The two dancers headed to the stairs. Luanne turned off the stage work lights. Immediate change of surroundings. Eve spent her life backstage yet was terrified of dark empty theaters. She glanced up at a spot light and with it’s canvas cover draped over, it resembled a ghostly figure from any one of the scary movies Eve loved. She swiveled to change the view and scared herself more with the myriad of shadows and set pieces lurking. Staring back she picked up her pace still wearing only one shoe.

Luanne led the way and not fast enough for Eve’s bladder. Midway up she stopped, turned and looked into Eve’s eyes. She let her dark brown hair down and shook her head. “You seem like a such... a nice such a nice person. Lordy we don’t know each other. But you deserve to hear the truth.” She struggled to form a sentence, “You, he oh golly damn. Kurt and Gwen are not only co-workers and they’re not friends. They’re havin’ an affair.”

Eve nearly fell backward down the stairs when Luanne hugged her close for an uncomfortable length of time. Eve felt paralyzed and empty. What should she say? Thank you? Are you sure? Does Gwen’s husband know? How about, can you please help me get this knife out of my heart, find a bucket for me to puke in, become steady legs instead of my shaking ones, and last can you glue my life back together and we’ll just leave the last part out?

Luanne’s face paled and a vertical worry line formed as her eyebrows grew taught. “Honey I gotta skedaddle. I’ll call ya’ with the schedule. Good job tonight. Drive safely.” She couldn’t get out the stage door fast enough.

Eve , twenty-seven years old a mother, a wife, an accomplished dancer, actor, model so many fucking things but what fucking good was she? The dance bag dropped with a thud. Eve sat and took off her other shoe dropped it as if it was too heavy and cradled herself. She put her head on her knees and slowly took her bandana from her short blonde hair. Several minutes passed only her breathing interrupted the silence.Without a sign of intention Eve ran to the stage hit the light switch, turned on the music and danced. Turning, kicking, swaying, writhing, slithering, jumping. Eve kept dancing. Her lungs begged for mercy but she didn’t offer any. When the music went silent her movements became peculiar for a classically trained ballerina. No coordination or technique as if against her will, controlled by an invisible force. Not dance. It was more like a desperate search. Up stage, down stage from one side to the other. Much like aged films of asylum patients searching halls for their minds. She finished front and dead center of the stage’s apron. Her lungs on fire for all she knew. The agony and anguish came from the inside out of Eve’s body.

Eve sensed a misalignment in the marriage lately. Probably stress from a new home and a new job. Kurt mentioned Gwen’s name at least three times last week. Pink flag, but it furled in the back of Eve’s mind. He insisted she and Gwen should become friends and p

Eve would really like her a lot. Red flag. Eve flat out dismissed common sense for fairy tales and ignored her intuition. Two nights ago she and Kurt went to a party where Eve talked with other singers and dancers, had a drink and mingled. She started to enjoy herself but it didn’t last long. She turned the corner into the kitchen where perfect timing made Eve watched Gwen bend over to open the oven door and Kurt smacked her on the ass, Their immature giggles proved that was not the first time they’d played together. Eve’s stomach did a somersault and the horrific feeling of humiliation, abandonment and betrayal endured from his last affair awoke from slumber. Eve found it impossible to rationalize the pain of love. Her thoughts were incoherent. Eve Munro had lived some life already, but her naive ego never expected adultery. It was more likely she’d grow a new pinky toe than be cheated on. Not in her plans. Foolish it never came to mind.

She stood center stage. The stage. The stage was a sacred place for Eve where she felt safe and wanted. Dancing for an audience was her high. She had dabbled with drugs but wasn’t for her. Nothing brought ecstasy to her core like dancing. She fell to her knees. The sounds she made were like hiccups but lower in her belly. Soon she was crying then dry heaving. Thoughts of Dawson filled her mind and she feared her reaction was a deadly seizure. She rolled onto her back, pounded her fists on the floor. She wanted out of her skin. Shed it all. Start new. Her grief backed off and gave in to sleep. When she woke the epiphany that true life held the real demons was clear. For the first time Eve welcomed the darkness and walked amongst the shadows with determination.

Eve understood what was ahead of her. She turned the lights off. Now nothing scared or hurt her as deeply as the ugly lies tossed her way from Kurt. Eve’s empty darkened heart erased the fears of dark theaters that ran wild in her imagination. Eve loved the stage more than yesterday because the stage loved her. The stage never betrayed but waited patiently for her next entrance.

[rieshon]

Summer 2018 Preview

I haven't been keeping up on anime news too well lately so I have almost no idea about anything that's airing next season. This might not be a very good preview.

1 Yama no Susume Third Season: Fuck yes. One of the best cute girls doing cute things series of the past decade is back and it's going to be amazing. I just hope the pattern holds and we get four cours worth.

2 Sunoharasou no Kanrininsan: Cute girl 4koma anime from Oonuma Shin? It's a masterpiece. Girls all look adorable and there's definitely something here for everyone, but holy shit Ayaneru as a lewd brown gyaru? Anime of the year right here.

3 Asobi Asobase: I read some of the manga of this when it was free on eBookJapan and let me tell you, you have no idea what you're getting into here. It's supposed to be about "cute girls playing cute games" but it's actually insane. This anime is going to be great.

4 Jashin-chan Dropkick: I've been hype for this one for a while. Cute monster girls get into shenanigans. The PV gives nothing away, but I've seen some of the original manga and it's pretty funny.

5 Chuukan Kanri Roku Tonegawa: Everyone's favorite middle manager is back! We may well never get a third season of Kaiji proper, but man, just seeing that Madhouse FKMT art style again is getting me misty-eyed. Don't know a whole lot about the manga but I'm sure it will be godlike.

6 Harukana Receive: I swear guys I only watch it for the volleyball... Another all girls sports anime, but this one looks like it's going all in on the lewd beach bods. It doesn't look it, but this is actually a Kirara anime (albeit one from Forward) so I'm definitely optimistic about it.

7 Yuragisou no Yuuna-san: If you know me you know how much I love cute ghost girls, so you should be able to guess how excited I am for this anime. I've actually read some of the manga (cause cute ghost girls) and it's a pretty good if standard lewd romantic comedy, with the added bonus of CUTE GHOST GIRL WOO WOO. She even has the head triangle which is the most important part.

8 Chio-chan no Tsuugakuro: Why do I get Hinamatsuri vibes from this? It's not just cause that one guy looks like Nitta either. I think I remember seeing the trailer for this a while back and it looks bonkers. This'll also be the first time in a long while I've heard Omigawa Chiaki in a major role... interested to see if she's improved in the intervening years.

9 Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight: It's like an idol anime but they're doing musicals instead. At least it's something different. If it's anything like all-female theater in real life it'll be gay as hell, and some of the girls look great.

10 Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu: The title is... what it is, but this actually looks like a pretty decent shinshi anime. Character designs are lewd, animation looks great... sign me the fuck up. Finally some good fucking Blade Dance anime.

11 ISLAND: This is animated by based feel so I'll definitely still watch it, but I'm super bitter about them removing Rieshon from the leading role because the director didn't get along with her. This would have been a great Rieshon girl goddamnit. Eroge adaptations are sadly vanishing from the Earth but this is coming out of Front Wing so hopefully it'll still have that same aesthetic.

12 Hataraku Saibou: So I can't watch the trailer for this because Youtube, but holy shit it's Japanese Osmosis Jones. Definitely a concept for an anime I haven't seen before (besides, you know, Osmosis Jones) so I'm looking forward to it for the novelty if nothing else. Red blood cell looks cute!! I bet this is going to be full of all kind of blood type bullshit though, because Japan.

13 HaneBad!: Badminton club with sometimes badminton? The girl with the glasses looks super cute. Not a whole lot else to say about a sports anime, I think we all know what we're getting into here.

14 Back Street Girls: Back street's back alright! Come on guys you can't just make an idol anime and call it this. Apparently this is about yakuza idols, which sounds like it could be amazing, but I guess it's more of a goofy thing than a scathing indictment of the corruption of the idol industry.

15 High Score Girl: It's funny to think that a couple years ago this series was on the verge of death because of unlicensed use of Sega trademarks in the manga, and now it's getting an anime full of actual game footage and shit. They even lampshade this in the trailer for it. The CG looks pretty garbo, but a lot of people like the manga so hopefully it'll be amusing.

16 Ongaku Shoujo: For a second I thought this was that light novel series where famous composers are cute little girls, but nope, just another generic-ass looking idol anime. If the character designs weren't so fucking amazing I would already have checked out, but damn, these grils.

17 Planet With: I can't tell if this is supposed to be a kid's anime of if it's just meant to look like one. Regardless, a kiddy robot anime might be fun, and it's got J.C. production values.

18 Aru Zombie Shoujo no Sainan: Can't believe they're making Zombiko into an anime. This honestly looks kind of terrible but Hayamin and Chanyui is a powerful combo so I guess. Just really not digging the character designs, and it looks like one of those anime that's too dark (tonally) for its own good.

19 Satsuriku no Tenshi: Be careful not to cut yourself on all the sharp edges on this one. It's got bloody lolis, maniacally laughing men who love murder, death games... This looks like one of those "drop halfway through the first episode" shows. The loli does look real cute though! Real good blondenblu.

20 Happy Sugar Life: With a title like this you would expect the cutest anime ever, so of course it's actually some edgy bullshit with girls with butcher's knives and tasers. Why you gotta do this to me anime? Is it so wrong to just want some cute girls cuting? I just wanna see cute Za-san girl adopt a cute loli damnit.

21 Tenrou Sirius the Jaeger: It looks like they're going really hard on trying to capture the Western audience with this one (the PV even has hilariously bad English subtitles) which immediately gives me pause, but the production values do look pretty high and there's a couple pretty hot girls in it. Not expecting to actually watch this one through though.

22 Lord of Vermillion Guren no Ou: I thought the title of this sounded familiar, and I guess it's based on a card game. I really like the look of that Ao-chan girl but that's pretty much the only thing here I like the look of. WIXOSS will always have the best cute girl card game anime.

23 Hyakuren no Haou to Seiyaku no Valkyrja: Boy that is a title. While our other LN adaptation with an embarassing title this season looks pretty good, this one definitely looks like a bottom-of-the-barrel reject. When the art in your key visual doesn't even really look good, you know you're gonna have problems.

24 Shichisei no Subaru: This looks extremely generic even by generic fantasy light novel standards... Not a single thing about it stands out, other than the fact that a couple of my favorite up-and-coming seiyuu are in it. I guess I'll watch an episode, maybe it'll surprise me.

25 Phantom in the Twilight: This is based on a game from Happy Elements, the same company behind Last Period, which immediately gives me expectations that are way too high, even if it's unfair. This one's not even a comedy and looks like some kind of edgy otome game. Actually I'm not even going to watch this, I just wanted to say how fucking good Last Period was.

[oselatra]

2017 Arkansas Times Whole Hog Roast preview

Al the pig meat you can eat.

It's fall, y'all. How do we know, besides, you know, the passing of the autumnal equinox last week? Because it's time again for the Arkansas Times' meatiest event of the year, the fifth annual Whole Hog Roast. So clear your calendar and make plans to attend the pork smorgasbord from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 1, at the Argenta Plaza in North Little Rock. The recipe remains similar to last year: Seven teams made up of chefs and seasoned pitmasters will roast 100-pound hogs from Farm Girl Meats in Perry County; and four amateur teams will smoke their best pork butt. Attendees get to eat their way through the competition, along with sides provided by presenting sponsor Ben E. Keith, for just $15 in advance at centralarkansastickets.com, or $20 at the door.

Event wrangler Brian Kearns, of Simply the Best Catering and the Canvas restaurant at the Arkansas Arts Center, encourages anyone who has ever wanted to smoke a pig to come watch the process. Teams will probably start setting up midday Saturday, get their fires going in the evening and put their hogs on to start cooking around midnight. Hog roasters can cook in any manner they like as long as it's done on-site. "There's a lot of different ways to do it, but the trickiest part is getting it to finish at the same time — how you build your fire, what temperature you keep," Kearns said. His preferred method is in a cinder block pit; many of the teams will have elaborate smoking rigs attached to trailers.

The hogs the pros are roasting aren't your run of the mill swine. These are Boston Mountain Hogs, a heritage-style breed Katie Short of Farm Girl Meats developed with growers in North and West Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. They're bred to be physically active, which means the fat is marbled throughout the meat, which gives it more flavor potential, Short said. Plus, Farm Girl's 130-acre farm provides plenty of room for the swine to run free, foraging on seeds, nuts, blackberry and greenbrier crowns and, if they're still hungry, a locally milled, specially balanced grain. All that natural food adds to the flavor, Short says.

The Argenta Plaza is at Sixth and Main streets in downtown North Little Rock. Doors open at 1 p.m. and food will be served at 2 p.m., rain or shine, and the party will continue on until 5 p.m. Flyway Brewing Co. will have its mega-popular Bluewing Berry Wheat, Early Bird IPA (especially good with spicy sauce, co-owner Jess McMullen says) and Free Range Brown Ale (the ultimate barbecue beer, McMullen says). It and wine will be for sale for $5. Local rockers Good Time Ramblers share a bill with the sweet-harmonizing Wildflower Revue.

Professional teams

@ the Corner

The ladies who own and run the downtown breakfast and lunch destination @ the Corner — sisters Helen Grace and Leila King and their sister-in-law, chef Kamiya Merrick — have stepped up their hog-roasting game since last year's event. Leila King says they had such a good time at the event last year, @ the Corner commissioned a custom-built smoker on a trailer for catering and cook-offs. This year's plan is to brine the hog for several days in Rock Town Distillery's bourbon, Rebel Kettle's Working Glass Hero beer and spices. Then they'll rub it down with their house rub mix and smoke it as long as possible, using hickory and a Rock Town bourbon barrel to make their fire. "We wanted to include as much local stuff as possible," Leila King said.

The Argenta Buttrubbers

Charlie Hart with the Argenta Buttrubbers team said he's the "builder," tasked with constructing and maintaining the cinderblock fire pit where the team will cook their hog for the event. Veterans of the amateur Boston butt-only class at previous Times hog roasts, the team — which is sponsored by the Memphis lunch spot Blink SCO — will be moving up to the whole pig this year, with most of the cooking handled by barbecue purists Ricky O'Rourke and Josh Wills. Cooking a whole hog requires a different technique, Hart said, including not allowing the hog to get so hot that it combusts, making sure it cooks evenly, and carefully tending the fire through the night. Hart said the team did a practice run earlier this year over pecan and cherry, cooking an "Asian fusion" style hog on a pit designed exactly like the one they plan to use for the Arkansas Times Hog Roast. They went through a whole rick of wood, Hart said, which they pre-burn over a specially prepared barrel in order to harvest the hot coals for their pit, lined with firebrick for reflective heat. The result was, he said, perfect.

Flyway/Count Porkula Before Flyway Brewing Co. unveiled its tasty menu full of the likes of smoked duck and wild boar brats and bacon-wrapped quail, the brewery hosted "guest pitmasters" from time to time. That's how co-owner Jess McMullen got to know Kelly Lovell of the local food trailer eatery and catering company Count Porkula. One of the best brewery kitchens in town teamed with the barbecue champs of the food truck scene? We're expecting big things.

Four Quarter Bar

Conan Robinson may be best known for managing Midtown for many years and owning new North Little Rock favorite Four Quarter, just down Main Street from the event (after party!). But those in the know recognize Robinson as a longtime purveyor of delicious grub: burgers (natch), but also delicious pulled pork sandwiches, a Cuban and pulled pork nachos. A perennial hog roast participant, Robinson plans to brine his hog, slather on his signature Four Quarter rub and cook it in a cinder block pit.

Grumpy's Too

While other teams will be using smoke, glazes and rubs to set their hog apart, Chris Finkbeiner with Grumpy's Too plans to differentiate theirs by the cooking method. After thoroughly injecting their hog with the Grumpy's house marinade, they'll be using what's known as a "China Box," aka a "Cajun Microwave," an enclosed roaster that cooks the hog top-down by piling hot coals on the metal top of the box. Finkbeiner said the technique will cook their hog in about half the time of other teams, leading to a savory Cuban-style pork that's roasted rather than smoked. Another secret weapon will be chef Josh Smith, who Finkbeiner called his team's culinary expert. Smith recently won the award for student chef of the year at the UA-Pulaski Tech Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute, and will serve as a co-captain of the Grumpy's Too five-person team.

Ristorante Capeo

Bryan Isaac of the Italian favorite Ristorante Capeo in Argenta was taciturn in his description of plans on how his team would prepare its whole hog. "We're just gonna cook a hog and have fun." How might they cook the hog? "Put it on some heat and then take it off some heat." But what about a touch of Capeo in the preparation and seasonings? "We don't serve whole hog at Capeo." So your guess is as good as ours.

Vault

Mike Easley (executive chef and visionary), formerly of Restaurant 1620 and Cache, and Cody Mayfield (sous chef) are busy putting together Vault, a new restaurant in the 1909 Citizens Building in Hot Springs, so it makes sense they'd want to keep it simple for the hog roast. But Easley says that's also so their Farm Girl Meats hog can speak for itself. They'll brine the hog with simple sugar and salt and use a cinder block rig. Easley said the Farm Girl owner Katie Short has done her part by raising the hogs in kindness; he'll respect the pig by doing as little as possible to the meat.

Easley has also worked with the James Beard Restaurant Rioja in Denver and trained under Jennifer Jasinski; he met Mayfield when he moved to Cache Restaurant in the River Market District.

Amateurs

Onebanc Roadsters also plan to participate, but weren't available before press time.

Smokin' Butz

Smokin' Butz team leader David Carpenter said his team's strategy is simple: Cook some great pulled pork. A veteran restaurateur who helped open several Central Arkansas institutions, including Sherwood's longstanding Zaffino's and Little Rock's new Main Street anchor Samantha's Tap Room & Wood Grill, Carpenter said his team plans to carefully select their Boston butt for a particular ratio of meat to fat, coat it down with a secret, homemade pork rub that is "a little unique," and then smoke it low and slow until it's done to perfection. Sides will be a little unique, too, including slow-roasted and smoked potatoes, along with breaded, deep-fried eggplant strips. As fitting with pulled pork, both sides will be decidedly Southern, Carpenter said, but with a twist.

Wilson's A1 BBQ

A veteran barbecue caterer, Alisha Pagan said that her secret weapon for the Arkansas Times Hog Roast will be her wood selection: a secret blend of carefully selected fruit and nut tree wood that allows for a strong smoke flavor while imparting a fruity sweetness to the meat. It's the same wood blend she uses when cooking pulled pork for her popular catering company, Wilson's A1 BBQ, which has been in business for two years. You can find them online at http://ift.tt/2fqOImx. Also distinctive will be Wilson's signature rub, a secret blend of spices that Pagan is keeping close to the vest, but which she hopes will help her pull off a win in the amateur category. Keeping things very down-home, Pagan said her team plans to dish up a side of greens with smoked meat along with her family recipe cornbread, and then lay on the sweetness with candied yams.

AHH Townley

A former Navy pilot who came home to Arkansas a few years back to run the family business, Townley Pools and Spas, David Townley will be using the hog roast to show off the versatility of an item he sells a lot of in his store: the Big Green Egg ceramic cooker. Townley Pools and Spas offers the whole line of Big Green Egg products, which burn wood charcoal and can be used to cook everything from ribs to pies thanks to their unique, insulated design. Townley plans to cook his team's sides and pork butt entirely on Mini Max Eggs, a tailgating-sized version that's the smallest member of the Big Green Egg family. Townley's team will be utilizing rubs created by the Georgia-based Lane's BBQ (another product sold through his store) to start, then will smoke over a mixture of apple and peach wood to give the pork a sweet flavor. For sides, Townley plans to make what he called "sorta-white coleslaw," a unique take on slaw that utilizes Lane's BBQ's Sorta-White barbecue sauce, along with a classic cornbread.

2017 Arkansas Times Whole Hog Roast preview

[spankys]

Get ready to DANCE Hunter St. PtboCanada Downtown Peterborough HOOTENANNY 2017! Saturday AUG. 12th. Noon. Free. w/ THE BIG SOUND. Toronto's Only 25+ Piece LIVE Revue Band. A DANCE Night in Celebration of the Golden Age of Classic Soul & Motown. #jamesbrown#shout #jackson5 #arethafranklin Along w/ Jonathan Toubin / New York Night Train SOUL CLAP & DANCE OFF! All AGES, Family Friendly $100 Everyone Welcome DANCE OFF! Local Metal GODS. Mokomokai w/ his very FINE Debut Album, Dylan Ireland. Newly REFROMED! RNR Party BAND, Tarantulla Jay Swinnerton >Rained out Hero's.... Diamond Dave Russell & The Smoke Eaters & The Bluegrass Menagerie. First Time HOOTERS, Sean Conway & Jordan Mack & Kicking off THIS years HOOT#tradition #ptbolove The Incredible Melissa Ann Payne. w/ Vinyl DJ's & Dance Selectors, Ottawas Alex Edwards (DJ Magnificent/double barrel) with his funky, soul REGGAE party & Toronto's Teresinha Costa (DJ NICO/With IT) with her 60's DANCE PARTY Swing & SHAKE! Bill Porter & his amazing crew on the SOUND SYSTEM & Stage & Lights. Thanks Terry Guiel, Ashburnham Realty & the Businesses of HUNTER STREET and many many more. #grassroots #streetfestival #community #onelove #downtown #arts#artists #players #local Finally MR. Mike Judson will be our MC for the days Bash! Book the date and grab the FAMILY! Sat. AUG> 12. 50+ Vendor Market open at 11am. xxx