Dissertation Writing Theme Song

Best song I know of to get in productivity mode.

Flying Dutchman

 

Last weekend we went to our third opera of the 2012-2013 season, The Flying Dutchman.  We began our evening with an exquisite dinner at Affare, a contemporary German restaurant in the Crossroads. From the delectable cocktails to the perfectly crafted small plates, this restaurant was truly fabulous. We had much to celebrate- my dissertation proposal was approved by the faculty, Joe had a few successes at work, and the snow left us with high spirits. 

The opera itself was intense- Wagner isn't my favorite, as the constant drama is hard to keep up with, but the performances were definitely amazing. I love the story of the Dutchman who leads a cursed ghost ship, and the captain's daughter who is destined to fall in love with the Dutchman- it's very romantic and the basis in folklore and the high seas lends the story a dark feel. The best part of the Lyric's production was the set and costume design. The beginning scene on the sea was created with digital projection, which was seamlessly integrated with the large-scale ship on the stage. It was really interesting to see a classic opera updated with digital technology. The costumes were created locally, and were gorgeous; together, the set and costumes really lent to the feel of a northern European fishing village, and made the performance rich and engaging. All in all, a fantastic night in Kansas City.

 

Energized

 

Today was one of those days that I just wanted to work from home in a hoodie. 

On days when I'm just not feeling like standing in front of students for a few hours, I often give myself a fashion energy boost (and a mocha-flavored one as well). Lucky for me, I had already gone with a red manicure, so it was an easy choice to wear a hounds-tooth dress and my favorite bright red heels. Plus, my Mod-Cloth camera ring always gives me a bit of a kick-butt attitude. These combined with a new Pandora Bollywood station had me inspired for afternoon lectures. Hoodie be gone!

 

Il Trovatore

When it rains, it pours.

The last few weeks were filled with much work and much play. The work part has left blogging to the back burner, the play part has left much to catch up on. Halloween, a birthday, museums, I hope to get caught up on all of it in the coming days.

For now I'll write about the opera Il Trovatore that we saw on my birthday weekend. For as minimal and singular Madama Butterfly was (and I mean that in a positive way), Il Trovatore was full and plural. A huge cast, a bountiful drama, dark passion, gypsies, castles, this is what one thinks of as opera in the fullest sense of the term. Verdi's score is brooding and heavy in the best 19th century way (the anvil chorus is part of Il Trovatore), and the dark visuals of the Lyric's performance contributed to the intensity of the opera.

I'm still an opera newbie, so before we go I like to read various blogs and summaries so I better understand what we're about to see. In the case of Il Trovatore, I was definitely glad that I did so. Some of the summaries left me confused and wondering if I'd be able to follow the plot on stage over the course of three hours, but the stage direction and dialogue left no confusion (the Italian is translated into English subtitles on discreet little digital screens in front of each seat). My snazzy new opera glasses (above photo!), which were my birthday gift from Joe, also helped in keeping track of the performers and stage action.

Overall, I'm finding that as we attend more opera I'm learning to better distinguish my appreciation for the score, the performers, and the stage direction each time. I think Il Trovatore is high on my list of operas, and the performers were fantastic, but I'd like to see a different stage and art direction on this ambitious drama before passing judgement on the sparse, eerie direction we saw at the Kauffman Center.

Madama Butterfly

Last spring we went to the brand new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts here in KC to see the Barber of Seville. It was so fantastic that we decided to become season ticket holders to the Lyric Opera.

The first performance of the season was last weekend, Madama Butterfly. I didn't know what to expect, as this was an opera I didn't know much about, but I knew it was a tragedy of lost international love set in early twentieth century Japan. I was worried that it might be Orientalist in nature, or that the tragedy would center around the character as an innocent, but in fact it was not. The opera really focused on the tragedy of the main chracter, Cio-cio-san and her desire to escape her troubled past. The performance was stunningly beautiful, and the performers phenomenal. It was truly transporting, and held one's attention completely for the entirety of the three hours. Most amazing was Elizabeth Caballero as Cio-cio-san; her voice was stunning, and as the majority of the performance centered on her character, she was fantastic at keeping her energy and intensity up for the duration of the opera.

Of course, attending the opera is also about dressing up and drinking wine at intermission, which is when I took the above photo. The Kauffman Center is an amazing building- the acoustics are some of the best anywhere in the world, and the immense view of the city through the glass front of the building, which sits atop a hill, is breathtaking.

Now I just need to get a pair of opera glasses.....

Antennas Up @ the Nerman

Another free Friday concert at the Nerman, this time Antennas Up.

Bela Fleck and the Original Flecktones

Friday night at the Crossroads, Bela Fleck and the Original Flecktones!!

Hearts of Darkness

Friday the 8th of July brought beautiful weather to KC, as well as a free show by the fantastic Afrofunk band Hearts of Darnkess on the lawn of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, out in the suburbs. We enjoyed a Thai take-out picnic, and had a great time lounging on the lawn, but perhaps the best part was when little man was dancing and then received a spontaneous hug from another dancing toddler. Too funny!

Holiday weekend continued...

On July 3rd, we enjoyed so many things, it was hard to select a single photo. We ventured to Mitsuwa, the huge Japanese market in the Chicago suburbs, where we picked up some hard to find Japanese groceries and had lunch, we had a fabulous afternoon garden party with friends and family, some of whom we hadn't seen in years, and we saw Mark Farina (with a few other great djs) late night in the city (below). A perfect day! :)

Old Crow Medicine Show

A Wednesday night show with the fantastic bluegrass band Old Crow Medicine Show at one of the best outdoor venues anywhere, the Crossroads.

Memphis

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We began Memorial Day at the former site of Stax Records, now the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. This was a great museum and a pilgrimage site for Joe. The museum included lots of neat exhibits on the evolution of soul music and Stax, as well as some crazy objects; one of the best was Issac Hays' Cadillac from the post-Shaft era, all the parts that would have been chrome were 24-carat gold, it had a fridge in the back and a t.v. in the front, and the floor was covered in white shag. To top it off, the car rotated beneath a disco ball. For musicians like Joe the re-created recording space was more of a draw, but for visual people like me, the costumes and objects were amazing.
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We continued our day by heading downtown for lunch at the Flying Fish, a great place to indulge in Southern-style (read: fried) food. They even had fried chocolate pie, which I have to admit, was pretty tasty.
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Lunch time. The Flying Fish also had a wall of Billy Bass plaques. Interesting.
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After lunch we walked over to Beale Street, where we saw some live blues on the street and enjoyed some people watching.
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The last stop of the day was Graceland.
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While we found the ticket prices quite expensive, the mansion was well preserved, and the audio tour had interesting insights into life at Graceland.
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Kitsch? Yes! The media room in the basement and the exhibition of costumes was fascinating, as was the narrative presented in the audio tour.
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Elvis's grave, at Graceland.
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One last meal of Southern food, at Soul Fish in Midtown, before heading back to the hotel for some swimming.
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Symphonic Quixotic

After a long day of writing and editing, Joe and I, together with our friend Emily, enjoyed a fantastic Saturday evening starting at Westside Local for a relaxing dinner. It was then on to the Lyric Theater for Symphonic Quixotic, a collaborative performance between the Kansas City Symphony and Quixotic Fusion, a KC-based performance group that blends dance and a variety of music styles. Not only was the music wonderful, but Quixotic was amazing, incorporating a variety of acrobatic tricks and visual illusions into their performance, and blending their electronic sound with that of the orchestra.

Diz @ Czar Bar

Old school Chicago House on a Friday night with DJ Diz at Czar Bar in KC!

Tiesto

Thursday brought Tiesto to the Uptown in Kansas City. You can barely see him at the center of the photo, but I love the multitude of cell phone cameras in the audience.

Music and Mexican Food

On Friday night we decided to try Chelly's Cafe, a local Mexican restaurant. Tasty margaritas and live music made for a great meal that exceeded our expectations.

Mark Farina

Friday night brought Mark Farina, one of our favorite djs, to the Czar Bar in Kansas City. For whatever reason, the promoters selected this space, which has a capacity of 125 people. Generally, MF plays at much larger venues, so it was a treat to see him in such an intimate space. The set was fantastic and the crowd was friendly, dancing until all hours of the night.

Hiroshima 広島

Yay! A weekend trip to Hiroshima!


















We had a three day weekend, so we traveled to Hiroshima via train and shinkansen, getting there in only two hours time. Nice! Above is our short shinkansen ride, below is Aioi Road at night.

















We arrived in time for dinner, so we headed out in search of Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki, and found Chinchikurin, a happening restaurant near the Hon-dori Shopping Arcade.

















Above is the chef making our dinner, below is the okonomiyaki. Hiroshima-style consists of a thin crepe-like pancake, noodles, cabbage, and a scrambled egg topped with okonomiyaki sauce and nori (toasted seaweed), and usually with pork (but not for us).

















The weather was particularly fine, so we took a walk over to the A-bomb dome to view it at night.

















For me, the eerie nighttime lighting of the structure makes it loom larger, and creates a more powerful image than viewing it during the day.

















On Friday we headed out to Miyajima.






















The island is famous for oysters, so we tried some for lunch. Above is one of the many stalls selling oysters, below is our oyster rice bowl lunch.

















On the central street on the island...

















We ate some Momiji Manju, little cakes filled with chocolate, custard, or red bean paste. Yum!

















Joe with one of the many deer that inhabit the island.






















The Seto Inland Sea....






















The famous tori at Itsukushima Shrine.

















Joe and I in front of the tori. When I went to Itsukushima in 2007, we visited at low tide, so the tori was surrounded by sand and mud. This time, we made sure to check the tide charts.















Scenery from inside the shrine.

A woman praying at the shrine.

The tori as viewed from inside the Honden, or main hall, of the shrine.

More views from the shrine.

The shrine itself is placed on the tidal flat (not sunk down to the bedrock). This is a view from the central pier. I love the reflection of the tori on the water.

What lovely hair....

Joe inside the shrine.

A cool portrait sculpture at the temple next to the shrine.

We walked to the top of the hill to see the pagoda up close.

Along the shore after touring the temple.

Looking back at the island from the ferry.

Back at the ferry station, Samurai Joe.

Riding the lovely Hiroshima streetcars.

For dinner we found the awesome Vegan Cafe, housed inside a yoga studio. We had Mushroom Pasta and Black Sesame Rissotto. Yummy!!

Joe inside the cafe.

At night we hit up the club Jamaica, which had house djs spinning.

At the club. It appears as if nobody is there, but it became quite packed at about midnight.

On Saturday we had a leisurely coffee shop and people watching breakfast in central Hiroshima before heading to the Hiroshima Museum of Contemporary Art to see Dorodoro doron: The Uncanny World in Folk and Contemporary Art in Asia.

After leaving the museum, we walked through the surrounding park, checking out some early spring blossoms.

We walked down to the Peace Park area and had lunch at the fantastic outdoor Cafe Ponte.

After lunch we toured the Peace Memorial Museum.

The exhibits inside the museum cover the history of the events surrounding the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima, the effects of radiation, and issues related to nuclear arms. It is a powerful place, to say the least.

After touring the museum we walked around the Peace Memorial Park. Inside the cenotaph the names of the bombing victims are listed, currently the number is over 220,000. The a-bomb dome is visible in the distance.

Hoping for peace....

A few of the thousands of paper cranes left at the Peace Park by schoolchildren and other groups.

At the end of a fantastic weekend.

Our last stop in Hiroshima was for ice cream. Yay!

Boarding the streetcar to go back to the station.

Hiroshima is one of my favorite cities in Japan. The people are super friendly and the city is vibrant and full of life. Despite the horrors of the past, Hiroshima has a great vitality and is an inspiring place.