Obama keeps the beat

This from actor John Taflan who plays Allen Ginsberg in The Beats among others.

"Thanks for the inspiring words, Ann.

A quick bit for you:

I was moved to tears this morning by President Obama's speech in Arizona.

View speech here.

Not only because of the maddening brutality of the event which necessitated it, but because of just how BEAT the speech was.

Listening to him you could hear Corso, LeRoi, Kerouac, Ginsberg; all of them. A chorus of love flowing from the pedestal.

At the end of the speech, in reference to Christina Green--the youngest victim of that terrible day--he says (and I paraphrase, slightly)

'May we be forever worthy of her gentle spirit'

Holy the supernatural extra brilliant intelligent kindness of the soul."

-John Taflan
Photo by the great Anthony Aicardi

It's all about the words

Words I shared with the cast on opening day of The Beats yesterday:

"The day a show starts performances I love to go back to the first idea and the first intention with the work.

And as I look back way way off in the distance..... ha ha.... over 3 weeks ago way WAY back to, uh

Dec 20

I remember thinking and maybe saying:

"it's all about the words
we discover them at the same time as the audience
we do not set the vibe and then say the words. the words carry us to the vibe."

or some words like that

of course this is theater and we have craft and magic and theatrics on stage and cues and transitions and we have worked all that out and made it precise and swell and fade and pop and all those things that give us structure and magic moments

and now we step back from craft and manipulation because that was what rehearsal was for

and let the words carry us where they will

as poet Jim Carroll said, and I paraphrase:

'With performing poetry you just open the door and turn on the light.
No need to tell us what all is in the room.
No need to point to the chair telling us this is the chair, that is the rug.
Just open the door and turn on the light'

Holy holy holy

It's all about the words"

Ann Filmer