thedzaatumd-blog

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Last week, I went to go see Clove. I thought it was really good. The set was really interesting with screens everywhere and seating kind of in the stage, so you would have to turn in order to see everything that was going on. I think the play did a really good job of developing the main character, Sam. We learn more and more about them as the play goes on that helps us understand what ultimately happens, which I don't want to spoil. I'm not sure if they'll ever show this again, but if they do, I would definitely recommend seeing it.

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Last weekend I went with some of my friends to the Hirshorn museum. They had some really cool pieces there. Last time I went, I saw the AI Wei Wei installation, but now in its place is Pop Art I think. It was really cool, and I especially liked the Reagan one. I think the orange and black kind of hypnotizes you. And the “he kills me” really stood out to me. Instead of using in the normal way, as if Reagan told a funny joke, it’s used literally. On the top floor was a piece that I was really excited to see, Pickett’s Charge by Mark Bradford. It used a depiction of Pickett’s Charge, one of the bloodiest battles of the civil war, as the background for the art. It’s a huge piece taking up the entire inner circle, and it’s fascinating. There’s lots of red paint on top of the depiction as well as bungee cords glued on top, and it’s cool when that clears to show part of the battle. It was a really fun weekend.

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Writing

Yesterday, I wrote a song. I should be writing these poems, but I’m glad that I’m writing something. I’m being creative more often, and that’s what I wanted to improve on. I’ve also written something here three days in a row, which is great. I think it’s good progress.

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Last week, I went to go see Eurydice at the Clarice. It was just the understudy run, but it was still really good. I hadn’t heard of Eurydice before, but I knew the myth of Orpheus that the play is based around. It was an interesting set, they projected the background onto a cloth for the first act, then at the end of the act it fell to reveal the real set which looked amazing. It was a very visceral play. Whenever the rocks shouted I felt upset, and I took that as a good thing because I’m pretty sure they weren’t supposed to be comforting. Over all I had a great time and would recommend people see it here.

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I went to see Phantom Thread last night at E St Cinema. It was a very intriguing movie. It was beautifully shot and the costumes where amazing. Daniel Day Lewis was incredible, as usual. And the plot was kind of all over the place, but in a good way. I think most people would see this movie as boring, which I can understand, but I think a better way of describing it is subtle. Overall, I'm glad I went and saw it.

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I got to see two bands perform last weekend. The first was Kayo Dot. They had this interesting experimental sound. There were a lot of droning notes and textured layers. Then there was Little Bird which was a kind of Neo Soul sounding band. The keyboard player had this interesting voice box thing. He would take a tube running from this box and put it in his mouth allowing him to get these cool wah sounds. I can't really describe it well, you just have to hear it. But, it was a fun event.

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I got to go to a Jimi Hendrix tribute concert. Fishbone and a bunch of other artists played all of the songs off of his first record, Are You Experienced? It is the 50th anniversary of the album and Jimi Hendrix would’ve been 75th birthday. It was a great show.

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I went to the Concert In Close Quarters this semester. It was Jaimeo Brown. He showed us his music video and we talked about what his music was trying to convey, especially in these post-Trump times. It was very interesting and I really liked his songs. I actually have them on my phone now.

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I went to see Eraserhead, a film by David Lynch, with some of my friends. It was visually stunning. So much was going on on the screen. The story was confusing and I think that’s part of why it’s so creepy. The fear of the unknown. It was a great movie.

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This past Friday, I went to see a bunch of short plays written by current UMD students. They ranged from deep and introspective to light and comical. They were all written and acted out very well. It was a fun experience

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I saw the new movie Sleight last night. It's about a guy who sells drugs in order to take care of his little sister while doing magic on the side. One of his tricks basically turns him into Magneto. I liked the camerawork and the director's style. And the climax was intense, by far best scene of the movie. Although it's not perfect, it's an interesting idea and I enjoyed it.

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I got to see the gamer symphony orchestra. I didn't know that this was a thing, but my friend Michael invited me, so I said yes. It was really cool, they played a lot of songs that I recognized and a few I didn't. It was nice to hear them in a live setting, it might even be better than hearing the songs in the video games. It also gave me a few games that I want to check out over the summer. What surprised me is that it was entirely student run and volunteer based. They were incredible.

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I went to see one of my favorite bands ever, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, at the Verizon Center. They were absolutely incredible. It was an amazing show, even the opening act,Babymetal, was great. Babymetal is a kinda weird Japanese female metal band, but I liked it and I'm glad that I got to see them.

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I went to see one of my favorite bands, Diet Cig, perform at the Rock and Roll Hotel. I had never seen them before, and I was not disappointed. Even though I showed up a little late, I was able to squeeze my way to the front of this tiny crowded venue. Then Diet Cig rocked my socks off.

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I went to see Brian and his improv group, Erasable Inc, in their last show of the year. It was a twenty four hour show, which was really impressive. Especially considering the fact that the weather was not cooperative at all. It was a great time and was very sentimental as the seniors gave their last performances, kissed the stage, and said goodbye.

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My family went to Miami over Spring Break and we visited the Wynwood Walls. It's a place where they have a bunch of art work by graffiti artists. It's really nice and it was interesting seeing all of the different styles of different artists on walls and in paintings

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I went to the concert in close quarters and the performance that Ahamefule put on. It was amazing. I had never experienced anything like it. At times it was hilarious and other times it was depressing, with music to accompany each of his stories. I enjoyed it so much that I bought a shirt and a cd.