Random Musings and Responses

Going through a ton of old links that I wanted to highlight and comments on.

A few weeks ago at Matt Freeman's blog, he linked to the typically indescipherable scribblings of a certain blogger who thinks he has any standing in the world of criticism. (This is not a slight to Matt, who of course can link to anyone he wants for any reason.) Anyway, the question was what would happen if there was a moratorium on print criticism for a year. Well, for one thing, there would be more Web criticism, wouldn't there?

Meantime, my friend and colleague Tom Garvey in Boston writes a well-considered post about Beantime theatre critic Carolyn Clay. Would that people in Gotham wrote with such insight -- and without such invective and misguided hyperintellectualism.

Am I missing something, or should we in the theatrosphere/blogosphere be making much more out of the "censorship" incident in Denver at the National Performing Arts Convention? When I was in DC two weeks ago, the subject came up over dinner with a number of well known and all rather high powered DC theatre folk, and when they alluded to the incident, I asked for more information. You'd have thought I was asking for blueprints to a nuke. When I finally pried out of them what had happened, I asked if they weren't concerned/startled/outraged, and it was again as if I was speaking Greek. Huh? Isn't this a First Amendment matter? Why are artists afraid of ruffling each other's feathers?

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Shout Out to The Mirror Up to Nature

A big shout-out to The Mirror Up to Nature for taking notice of my recent post on Louise Kennedy's story on American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Mass.

Also a big shout-out to Tom Garvey, who commented as well. I have never met Tom, but he welcomed me to the blogosphere via his Hub Review very warmly when I started this blog in earnest 11 months ago, and while he and I don't necessarily agree vis a vis Kennedy, I do read his blog and very deeply respect his opinion.

Thank you both!

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Browsing

So I've been working on how to come up with little categories for the things I do with this site. Lacking focus groups and the ability to test-market, I won't be able to research whether visitors to The Clyde Fitch Report identify and engage more positively with a category labelled "Rant" or "Arrrggggggggggggghhhhh" -- or whether "Arrrggggggggggggghhhhh" would be somewhat more pleasing to experience if it had one fewer g.

But, for example, I get emails for benefits all the time and unless I'm asked to go or there's some compelling reason for me to pay and go, I tend to skip them. I mean, they're benefits: giving me a ticket means, in theory, that it's one ticket they're not selling. I think people asking for comps when they're not reporting are mooching. So I really want to be able to do something with these press releases, so I post "Benefit Watch" or "Benefit Alert" as the name of the post. Seems easy and it's free advertising, I guess, and doing a good deed. In case you're wondering, I have not decided on "Benefit Watch" or "Benefit Alert" yet. Lacking focus groups and the ability to test-market...

Anyway, I'm creating one called Browsing." Little things I find amusing or want to respond to.

To wit:

1) An unexpected and warm tribute to me, of all people, at the distinguished Rat Sass. I had lunch with Nick almost two weeks ago and I've been very remiss about reporting about it. I'm weird, when I meet someone new that I particularly like, as I liked Nick, it's more fun to sort of not blog about it. But let's just say that he's very smart, very opinionated, has led what I'd call a very cool bohemian life (and who uses that phrase nowadays?) and I'd definitely hang with him again.

Oh, one thing Nick: It's Jacobs, not Jacob. Although supposedly the original name in Dutch, in Amsterdam some 200 years ago, was de Groot.

2) Theatreforte has an excellent bit about that awful David Mamet acting book. I reviewed it 10 years ago and hated it then and hate it now.

3) My friend Jon Stancato (of the much-touted Stolen Chair Theatre Company) is so f***in funny.

4) And now I want to meet Tom Garvey: his comment about the photo of the new a.d. of North Shore Music Theatre was very funny. I mean, nothing personal, it was just funny.

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Shout Out to Tom Garvey, Prince of Boston Theatre Blogging

I'm giving a shout-out to Tom Garvey, who I have dubbed the prince of Boston theatre blogging. Actually, I'm returning the shout-out because he gave me a shout-out in response to the email shout-out I gave him earlier this week.

You know, the world would be a better place with a little more shouting out and a little less acting out, wouldn't you say?

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