Movin' On...

Well, after a long wait between the notice and the final hours (8 weeks, possibly a new record in the annals of resignation...), here it is in all its glory...

The subject of my last post has become even more poignant in that I'll be gainfully employed at Jones Hall less than 12 hours after my last duty has been discharged here at the Alley (notes session for the second preview of The Scene) loading in the Shaolin Warriors show at 8 AM tomorrow morning.

This is not meant to be an indictment of anyone (past or present) in the Alley Organization. It is merely an explanation (to myself as much as anyone else) of the reasoning behind what is the biggest decision so far of my Adult life. I spent about 16 months actively considering the reasons, pros and cons of making this decision.

Initially, my decision was based on the premise that the next two and a half to three years would be very intense and time consuming ones in terms of the operations of the theater and the production department (especially lighting and sound). It was looking like it would go something like this:

After Carol opens this year, the theater kicks into high gear for about five months, culminating with the second of two musicals (Paris) opening after two and a half weeks of tech and two weeks of previews. Instead of taking a week or two to recuperate, the lighting and sound departments will be called upon to pack up everything that they have in the 615 building not in use in Paris and ship it off to one of three locations:

cold storage with limited or no access for the season produced offsite,

easily accessible storage for instruments/speakers and other miscellaneous equipment,

whatever office space we would be using for the 08-09 season.

This would take a few weeks, followed by another frenzied period of packing up everything that was used in Paris and hauling it off to the appropriate location.

Once all of 615 is cleared out and the building is ready to undergo its magical transformation, the grind of the offsite season will be upon us. I don't care how close the venue is or what type of reduced season we produce, it is still going to be a grueling experience, mainly because it is going to involve producing theater in a completely new and foreign manner. We're pretty spoiled here at the Alley in several ways. The facility is ours, and we can do whatever we want, whenever we want and answer to no one but ourselves. Not so wherever we end up. We are self encapsulated in our little universe on the 600 block of Texas Avenue. Whenever we need something, need to build something, it's right there where we can get at it in 5 minutes or less. At an offsite venue it may take someone five minutes or more to get to their vehicle and get on the road to storage or the shop or wherever they need to go.

In addition to that every member of the shop head staff as well as the production office will also be vetting and checking in on the work occurring back at 615 Texas. Clint and I will spend the most time over there, but Jason and Nancy would probably need to take some time away from the shop to make sure things in their world were going according to plan down there as well.

After a season on the road, the summer would (ideally) be spent by everyone moving everything back into 615, feeling out the new amenities, and figuring out exactly how we're going to initially approach producing theater in a totally new environment. This would be followed by the start of a full slate of high profile titles designed to celebrate the return of the Alley Theater company to it's renovated home. As new discoveries are made and new methods of doing things developed the additional layer of stress will no doubt make what would have been a challenging season in the old facility all the more daunting.

By the following May, several shop heads and staff members could conceivably be coming off 30 months of intense production and work without a significant break. Even if a break or two were secured for everyone, the things that potentially slipped through the cracks during those breaks and having to deal with them when they returned would offset any relief provided by the time off. And all the problems probably won't be discovered and solved by the end of that first season back in 615. I can confidently say that we weren't in a comfortable place in terms of producing in the Neuhaus until after about four seasons, and there are still discoveries that are being made.

I didn't want to pass the "point of no return", as I saw the opening of Carol this season, and get sucked into the maelstrom that would be the next two and a half years of my life essentially devoted in some form or another to the Alley Theatre. And once the renovation got pushed back a year, that maelstrom went from being 2-1/2 years to 3-1/2 years (potentially 4-1/2 with the postponement of all of the previously documented activity), essentially putting me in my early to mid 40's before I could look around and even think about doing something like what I've decided to do now.

Twelve years of regional theater at the Alley, and another four before that of freelancing between Philadelphia and New England have taken a bit of a toll as well. The schedule for me as the head of the sound department essentially was a flexible one that altered between a traditional five day nineish to fiveish week format during the period of time when a show or shows are in performance (after they have opened and are being presented for paying audiences) and a six day a week 14-16 hour day format during the period of time we called tech, but which is also known as production, where we are in the space with the actors and all the technical elements coordinating everything before an audience gets to see it.

This fluctuation made it hard to have any kind of stable consistent life outside the theater unless it was with someone from the theater (and even then it wasn't always guaranteed success, especially if the other person wasn't from the production/performance area), and we all know the saying about mixing personal relationships with the workplace. But it went beyond the ability on my part to maintain a romantic relationship while working in the production department of a major regional theater. There have been countless times over the past nine years since I became the department head where I've heard about something happening that I'd really like to attend but had to say "I'm in tech", or I heard about something that had passed (either in a 'that was really great' vein or a 'where were you?' vein, always having to answer, "I was in tech" with a resigned sigh. I'm kinda over that and want to be able to be a part of my friends' lives on a more consistent basis.

Another large part of this decision has been the direction that the theater has taken in the past few years, mainly artistically but also operationally. The artistic mission statement of the theater outlines commitments to "interpret existing dramatic works boldly and with insight," to "bring forth new writers and plays destined to be the classics of tomorrow", and also to be "the collaborator of choice for artists and arts organizations, learning from these exchanges and exporting our work to the nation and the world." While these are inspiring sounding and commendable aspirations, the Alley is still in Houston, which is far off the beaten path of the 'traditional' theater circuit. We haven't had a corps of resident designers since Greg Boyd took over as Artistic Director nearly 20 years ago, and the lofty goal of expanding the resident acting company to 24 members has proven to be a difficult one at best. Much of this can be attributed to the high and stringent standards and demands of Greg (rarely, if ever, is local acting talent tapped for roles larger than that of the 'spearcarrier' category and the decisions of what shows are slotted where in the season are largely dependent on the availability of well established and acredited designers, most of whom are based out of New York where they do the majority of their work), but making the commitment to base oneself in Southeast Texas has an effect on the type of work and the amount of commitments in the rest of the country that one can reasonably expect to secure in a calendar year.

Part of why the renovation has been put off so many times is that there has never been a physical plan in place that satisfies the needs dictated by this mission statement. The consistent philosophy exhibited by all the versions of the physical renovation of the 615 facility essentially state that the Alley aspires to be a self producing theatre with a resident acting company in a facility that can be utilized as a roadhouse, so as to be able to easily bring productions in from other theaters and to send original productions on to other theaters. Unfortunately, Nina Vance didn't have this in mind back in the late 1960's. This was quite on purpose. She had been producing theater in two locations previous to the 615 Texas building for almost 20 years and liked the kind of theater that was coming out of the restrictive atmosphere the Alley company found itself in from 1947- until 1966, when the 615 building was designed. She even went so far as to specify that the size and configuration of the Neuhaus Arena Theater replicate the Berry Street location, which it pretty much did, the exception being that the Neuhaus (pre 2001 Tropical Storm Allison and the havoc that she wrought) had on additional row of seats. Being that the 615 building is about as far from being a traditional roadhouse as you can possibly get (no fly loft, tension mesh grid, modified thrust stage, unconventional seating configuration in a rapidly widening arc that plays hell with sightlines) it does not lend itself to this model of theater outlined in the mission statement. It also does not lend itself to change very well, mainly due to the fact that the whole thing (with the exception of the roof) is poured concrete. Plan after plan has been proposed, drafted, vetted by the production and artistic staff, redrafted, and then shelved or shitcanned. One of the most frustrating aspects of the current plan and its one year postponement is the fact that the new management team is in the latter stages of learning this painful truth about the building as it exists now, which is, in its most basic form:

However the facility is renovated and/or refit, it will never be the ideal facility for the production model outlined in the mission statement. Nothing short of building a new facility in a second location or razing the current one and starting anew will achieve this goal.

No one likes to think about this option for a variety of reasons, all of them valid:

The building is architecturally unique, and while it is relatively young, historic preservation has caught on here in Houston and the proposed demolition of it would result in community heritage organizations protesting vehemently. This has been a concern even when considering actions such as changing the roof line to accommodate a fly loft as part of a renovation.

The construction of any new facility brings up the ugly possibility of a season or seasons when the theater would not be producing. This has been determined to be unacceptable due to the loss of staff over the period of non production and the loss of patronage and community exposure over the same period of time.

The fundamental identity of the Alley would be inexorably altered by the implementation of a new facility, be it a replacement or a second space.

The addition of another facility for production would alter the nature of the mission statement in that it would call for additional programming to justify its creation and existence. The space at the top of the Prairie parking garage was originally slated to be a third performance space. It was re-conceived as a new home for the administrative offices and shops after it was determined that the programming schedule was not going to be expanded to justify the existence of a third performance space in the foreseeable future.

My interpretation of the Alley's intentions as far as the programming choices are concerned has always been that, while they need to be accessible enough to generate significant revenue, they also are relevant to the current social, political, and cultural climate in the world. As recently as two years ago, this was occurring at the theater, with productions of works such as the World War I era anti war play Jouney's End, and the very poignant Pillowman, which highlights the direction that our society finds itself being nudged more and more every day towards a totalitarian police state. The past few years have seen the theater take steps toward more Vanilla, mass appealing, revenue generating programming when there are daily events in the world that require highlighting due to the fact that everywhere else (mass media, political parties) there seems to be an elaborate shell game being performed to keep the general population's attention off what is really going on and where we are headed as a country, a society, and a race.

I don't know if I'm over theater as a whole, but I like Houston and Texas, I have a lot of friends that I care about here, and the Alley is the only real regional theater that I can do what I do at the Alley in Texas.

I feel that there is more that I can be doing as a member of the Human Race in the face of the decidedly un-human practices being inflicted by a very small percentage of the world population on a much greater percentage for the sake of power and monetary profit, no matter what the cost in human life and the health of the planet's fragile ecosystem in it's current state (which is the only reason that we have been able to survive and evolve into the world presence that we are).

One thing I plan on doing is to start working with the Pacifica Radio station that is here in Houston, KPFT. I've been listening to it for years and am a firm believer in what the station is primarily about in the form of a mission to serve the community. I don't necessarily believe in the messages and causes advanced by all of the programming, but that is patently impossible, and it is also a primary tenet of the Pacifica format as a listener sponsored and programmed non commercial radio station. I have a fairly unique skill set that can provide me with a steady living here in town but should also be useful in helping out at the station. I'm not expecting to be slotted in right away as an engineer on some of the higher profile shows and will do whatever they need, but I imagine that once I get an opportunity to exhibit my proficiency in audio that they'll be plenty for me to do.

In demand...

Evidently this change in work situations is going to work out okay. I'm not even out the door at the Alley and am already being secured for gigs through the IATSE local here in town. The Assistant Business Manager just called me a little while ago with something for me this Friday which, regrettably, I had to turn down since it is my last day at the theater. However, he also told me to block out several days starting next Friday for an event at the hotel over by the convention center. I think I'm all set in terms of all the requisite clothing items and tools for any sort of scenario, but I'm sure that there will be the occasional episodes of 'nope, don't have that, but will be sure to get it for next time' biting me in the ass over the next few weeks.

Very exciting...

Sing it, Huey!

It's never worked and never will...

The 'Ultimate Horror' of strategic bombing was realized in Spain during the Spanish Civil War and Poland at the outset of World War II. "Strategic" is a term that has never really applied since the unfortunate law of gravity rules above anything else and the bomb will fall where they will.

It's never worked in the manner in which it was designed to (except when it was designed to do what it does naturally--terrorize and decimate the entire population of its target area) ever since, be it in Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Serbia, and countless other places, including the current targets in Iraq and Afghanistan and potential targets in Iran and Pakistan.

Chris Floyd over at Salon:

Monday, the Pentagon acknowledged a long-unspoken truth: that the bombardment of civilian neighborhoods in Iraq is an integral part of the vaunted "counterinsurgency" doctrine of Gen. David Petraeus. The number of airstrikes in the conquered land has risen fivefold since George W. Bush escalated the war in January, as USA Today reports:

"Coalition forces launched 1,140 airstrikes in the first nine months of this year compared with 229 in all of last year, according to military statistics ... In Iraq, the temporary increase of 30,000 U.S. troops ordered by President Bush in January has led to the increase in bombing missions. The U.S. command has moved forces off large bases and into neighborhoods and has launched several large offensives aimed at al-Qaeda ... 'You end up having that many more opportunities for close air support,' said Air Force Brig. Gen. Stephen Mueller, director of the Combined Air Operations Center in Doha, Qatar."

"'This could have been done through the infantry,' said Ibrahim al-Khamas, a Samarra city council member. 'But the American Army prefers the easiest solution, which is the air bombardment ... This airstrike was excessive, as usual, which led to the fall of civilians. People here are now carrying great hatred against the Americans after the raid. This airstrike turned their Eid to grief' ...

The New Tin Soldiers

NY Times:

BAGHDAD, Sept. 27 — Participants in a contentious Baghdad security operation this month have told American investigators that during the operation at least one guard continued firing on civilians while colleagues urgently called for a cease-fire. At least one guard apparently also drew a weapon on a fellow guard who did not stop shooting, an American official said.

CBS:

BAGHDAD, Oct. 12, 2007

The first U.S. soldiers to arrive on the scene after Blackwater USA guards shot and killed 17 Iraqi civilians at a Baghdad intersection on Sept. 16, found no evidence that the Iraqis fired any weapons at the guards, the Washington Post reported Friday.

A report compiled by the soldiers concluded that there was "no enemy activity involved" and called the incident a "criminal event," the Post reports.

"It appeared to me they were fleeing the scene when they were engaged," said Lt. Col. Mike Tarsa, whose soldiers arrived at the scene 20 to 25 minutes after the shootings ended. "It had every indication of an excessive shooting."

CNN:

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraq's prime minister wants private military contractor Blackwater out of his country after an Iraqi probe found Blackwater guards randomly shot civilians without provocation in a Baghdad square last month, an aide said Tuesday.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and most Iraqi officials are "completely satisfied" with the findings and are "insisting" that Blackwater leave the country, al-Maliki adviser Sami al-Askari told CNN.

Not withstanding my previous post about this happening when the Chicago Cubs make it to and win the World Series (not happening this year), if and when this happens the primary concerns that every freedom valuing American citizen should keep in mind are a: where are they going to go when they leave (they're going to be coming back here to the States to begin with) and b: what will they be doing there (your guess is as good as mine, but if the indications based on the duties secured by Blackwater in New Orleans after Katrina flushed out the majority of the more disadvantaged portion of the city's population (keeping them out of the public housing units that they still are rightfully entitled to) are anything to go by it can't be anything in the best interests of the average American).

The current administration and the support structure that keeps it in power know that the next election is a potential pivotal event. The results of said election must go in a certain direction in order for the benefactors of the current administration's policies (minimal to nonexistent tax rates for their main source of income, foreign policies that maximize profit for certain industries that they are deeply invested in (military-industrial, fossil fuel development, distribution and sale). In order for this to be achieved, the masses must remain pacified by (relatively) stable economic conditions and a seemingly calm domestic state of affairs, which means minimal public dissent and protest and NO BAD NEWS FROM THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA ABOUT ANYTHING EXCEPT HOW WE ARE IN DANGER FROM THREATS FROM TERRORISTS WHO ARE EVERYWHERE.

Pacifying and marginalizing civil dissent that goes beyond an acceptable level of intensity (read: when it starts to attract the attention of enough people to be a concern to the ruling class) usually falls to a police or military organization. But, if the local and state police are so overworked and underequipped to deal with it then a national force is usually called upon to quell the uprising, unless, the national force normally called upon to do so has already been called upon to fight in an overseas conflict and has been compromised to the point of near decimation. Then what do you do to quell the potentially polarizing protests of the administration and its policies? Why, you contract a private, corporate security force that is not answerable to any laws in the country that they're working in, even if it happens to be the country that they are indigenous to!

Peaceful Protest: What? A group of more than ten people are gathered to protest the administration's foreign policies?

CIVIL UNREST!!!

MUST BE QUELLED!!!

(SHOOT TO KILL!!!)

General Election: What? You've come to vote and you're not going to choose the ruling party on your ballot?

CIVIL UNREST!!!

MUST BE QUELLED!!!

(WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE!!!)

All I can say is that I'm glad I live in Texas, because I think they'll think twice before coming down here and doing any sort of messing with anything or anyone given the fact that everyone down here owns at least one firearm. I'm just as nonviolent as the next person and am in total agreement with Arthur and Chris in their view of physical violence as a non option in that it always sends the wrong message and sets the wrong precident, BUT, it seems to be the only language that these folks understand AND I'm not a big fan of rolling over for the trigger happy muscle of an illegitimate administration of outlaws who have no regard for the inherent rights of human beings, be they citizens of the U. S. or any other country in the world.

Tin soldiers and Nixon's comin'.
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drummin'.
Four dead in Ohio.

Gotta get down to it.
Soldiers are gunning us down.
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her and
Found her dead on the ground?
How can you run when you know?

--Neil Young

My Rikki Tikki Tavi Impersonation, or: Staring COBRA Square in the Eye

With my departure from the Alley rapidly approaching, the time has come to begin taking the many steps that cement the reality of it into place more and more with each one. Over the course of this week I've been gradually removing the vestiges and signs of my occupation of the sound office and recording/editing suite through the collection of wall and bulletin board decorations, desk clutter, personal tools and other items. It's getting to the point where the next few things to come down (my license plate collection that has been in residence for almost ten years, a huge Marillion poster) will hammer home the fact that I will be part of the elapsed history of the Alley in a little over seven days.

Another step which I just took was the meeting I just had to secure continued benefits coverage during the period that I will be accruing the necessary amount of contributed funds in the Flex Account administered by the stagehands' union here in Houston to allow me to enroll in the benefits plans that they offer to their members and employees (I guess that's what they call folks that work off the referral list but don't have cards) via COBRA. Always an eye opening experience, finding out exactly how much that stuff costs and how much employers pay out of the monthly premiums. I'm amazed that employers haven't gotten together and stood up to the health care industry about the ridiculousness of the rates that they are charging to essentially shuffle paper and work as hard as they can to deny benefits and coverage.

Somebody somewhere is making a shitload of money, it seems. Enough to bribe and cajole U.S. Congress members to vote against funding a government run independently taxed health care program for children. Enough, even, to kill for, I guess.

We'll see how long this lasts...

Inspired by a one time mentor from my first few years at The Alley Theatre, Joe Pino, I've started an online comic with Strip Generator, a clever template for such endeavors.

We'll see how clever I can really be and how well I keep it updated.

This may actually happen...

If the Chicago Cubs win the World Series:

Guardian UK:

BAGHDAD (AP) - The official Iraqi investigation into last month's Blackwater shooting has been submitted to the government and recommends the security guards face trial in Iraqi courts, and that the company pay compensation to the victims, an Iraqi government minister told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The minister said the report was issued under the signatures of al-Obeidi, Maj. Gen. Tariq al-Baldawi, the deputy minister of national security; and Maj. Gen. Hussein Ali Kamal, the deputy interior minister for intelligence and security affairs.

These are officials of the Iraqi government that the U.S. forces purportedly invaded the country and deposed Saddam Hussein to allow to come to power and govern Iraq as a sovereign nation. They are now exercising their right as an elected government in the investigation of the killing of a number of their citizens by agents of a foreign occupying power.

The cabinet minister said the report determined that 13 Iraqi civilians - not 11 as originally reported - were killed when Blackwater USA guards sprayed western Baghdad's Nisoor Square with gunfire Sept. 16.

GO-OOOOOO CUBBIES!!!!!

The Power of One

Minneapolis, 2007:

1st Lt. Jon Anderson said he never expected to come home to this: A government refusing to pay education benefits he says he should have earned under the GI bill.

"It's pretty much a slap in the face," Anderson said. "I think it was a scheme to save money, personally. I think it was a leadership failure by the senior Washington leadership... once again failing the soldiers."

Anderson's orders, and the orders of 1,161 other Minnesota guard members, were written for 729 days.

Had they been written for 730 days, just one day more, the soldiers would receive those benefits to pay for school.

"Which would be allowing the soldiers an extra $500 to $800 a month," Anderson said.

That money would help him pay for his master's degree in public administration. It would help Anderson's fellow platoon leader, John Hobot, pay for a degree in law enforcement.


Chicago, 1919:

Eddie Cicotte: You said if I won 30 games this year there'd be a $10,000 bonus.

Charles Comiskey: So?

Cicotte: I think you owe it to me.

Comiskey: Harry, how many games did Mr. Cicotte win for us this year?

Harry: 29, sir.

Cicotte: You had [Sox manager] Kid [Gleason] bench me for two whole weeks in August. I missed five starts.

Comiskey: We had to rest your arm for the [World] Series.

Cicotte: I would have won at least two of those games -- and you knew that.

Comiskey: I have to keep the best interests of the club in mind, Eddie.

Cicotte: I think you owe me that bonus.

Comiskey: 29 is not 30, Eddie. You will get only the money you deserve. (Pause) Anything else?

Cicotte: No, Mr. Comiskey. That's it.

-Eight Men Out, 1988

It doesn't matter how you sell it...

It's still preemptive war on a sovereign nation, and it's just as illegal as the one we started in Iraq four and a half years ago...

Sy Hersh:

In a series of public statements in recent months, President Bush and members of his Administration have redefined the war in Iraq, to an increasing degree, as a strategic battle between the United States and Iran.

This summer, the White House, pushed by the office of Vice-President Dick Cheney, requested that the Joint Chiefs of Staff redraw long-standing plans for a possible attack on Iran, according to former officials and government consultants. The focus of the plans had been a broad bombing attack, with targets including Iran’s known and suspected nuclear facilities and other military and infrastructure sites. Now the emphasis is on “surgical” strikes on Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities in Tehran and elsewhere, which, the Administration claims, have been the source of attacks on Americans in Iraq. What had been presented primarily as a counter-proliferation mission has been reconceived as counterterrorism.

And it will still yield nothing but more misery for millions in the region as well as inflaming an already volatile situation and risking the spread of it across seas and oceans:

A senior European diplomat, who works closely with American intelligence, told me that there is evidence that Iran has been making extensive preparation for an American bombing attack. “We know that the Iranians are strengthening their air-defense capabilities,” he said, “and we believe they will react asymmetrically—hitting targets in Europe and in Latin America.”

All of this is not based on hard intelligence, but, like the hollow bellowings of 2002 about WMDs in Iraq and the empty trumpeting about an Iranian Nuclear weapons program in the past few years (in the face of the results of repeated arduous IAEA inspections pointing to exactly the opposite conclusion), the illusion of intelligence, broadcast with such volume and in such panic stricken tones to the general populace (by willing allies in the media and the administration) that the average citizen who is accustomed to being spoon fed anything and everything that they conceivably would need to think about or pretend to have thought about and developed an opinion on until the masses are squarely behind action. Never mind what the action is, or who the action is focussed on, or what the secondary and long term results of the action may be, action must be taken immediately.

Scott Ritter:

65% of the American public aren’t antiwar. They’re just anti-losing. You see, if we were winning the war in Iraq, they’d all be for it. If we had brought democracy, they’d be cheering the President. It wouldn’t matter that we violated international law. It wouldn’t even matter that we lied about weapons of mass destruction. We’d be winning. God bless America. Ain’t we good? USA, USA! But we’re losing, so they’re against Iraq.

But what happens when you get your butt kicked in one game? You’re looking for the next game, where you can win. And right now, we’re looking for Iran for a victory.

This is exactly the wrong path for us to even contemplate going down, and the scary thing is that we've already started down it:

Ritter again, in conversation with Amy Goodman:

Look, we’re already overflying Iran with unmanned aerial vehicles, pilotless drones. On the ground, the CIA is recruiting Mojahedin-e-Khalq, recruiting Kurds, recruiting Azeris, who are operating inside Iran on behalf of the United States of America. And there is reason to believe that we’ve actually put uniformed members of the United States Armed Forces and American citizens operating as CIA paramilitaries inside Iranian territory to gather intelligence.

Now, when you violate the borders and the airspace of a sovereign nation with paramilitary and military forces, that’s an act of war. That’s an act of war. So, when Americans say, “Ah, there’s not going to be a war in Iran,” there's already a war in Iran. We’re at war with Iran. We’re just not in the declared conventional stage of the war.


If the U.S. goes into Iran in an obvious and invasive manner any shred of political, and moral capital that may exist for it with the rest of the world will disappear like a snowball melting on a hot stove.

The best way for us to protect our troops is to bring them home and end our criminal occupation of a land that was a sovereign nation until we invaded it and destroyed any semblance of government and civil institution in the name of regime change and imperialism, not by illegally invading another nation on the potentially most convincing and polarizing pretext of the week.