Meg's Life

If you haven't seen this yet, I present "Avenue Jew."

Sun, 22 Mar 2009 19:46:59 GMT

"Avenue Q" and "Fiddler on the Roof" equals "Avenue Jew." (I know it's old- I first saw it three years ago, but it's still awesome!)

Mark your Calendars

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:19:13 GMT

I'm singing the National Anthem for the Sacramento Rivercats (our baseball team) on Wednesday, June 24.

Cold.

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 23:52:47 GMT

I melted my jacket trying to keep warm at work.

The Room

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 12:18:22 GMT

If you have not seen it, find it and watch "The Room."

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368226/

I have now seen Mr. Tommy Wiseau's cinematic tour-de-force, `The Room' three times. With each viewing, `The Room' becomes more complexly entangled in and inseparable from my own life. I no longer know where The Room ends and I begin.

It is, without question, the worst film ever made. Including movies made on beta max video cameras in special education high school classes. But this comment is in no way meant to be discouraging. Because while The Room is the worst movie ever made it is also the greatest way to spend a blisteringly fast 100 minutes in the dark. Simply put, `The Room' will change your life.

It's not just the dreadful acting or the sub-normal screenplay or the bewildering direction or the musical score so soaked in melodrama that you will throw up on yourself or the lunatic-making cinematography; no, there is something so magically wrong with this movie that it can only be the product of divine intervention. If you took the greatest filmmakers in history and gave them all the task of purposefully creating a film as spectacularly horrible as this not one of them, with all their knowledge and skill, could make anything that could even be considered as a contender. Not one line or scene would rival any moment in The Room.

The centerpiece of this filmic holocaust is Mr. Tommy Wiseau himself. Without him, it would still be the worst movie ever made, but with him it is the greatest worst movie ever made. Tommy has been described as a Cajun, a Croatian cyborg, possibly from Belgium, clearly a product of Denmark, or maybe even not from this world or dimension. All of these things are true at any one moment. He is a tantalizing mystery stuffed inside an enigma wrapped in bacon and smothered in cheese. You will fall in love with this man even as you are repelled by him from the first moment he steps onto screen with his long Louis the Fourteenth style black locks and thick triangular shoulders packed into an oddly fitting suit, and his metallic steroid destroyed skin. Tommy looks out of place, out of time and out of this world. There has never been anything else like him. Nor will there ever be.

The Room begins with `Johnny' (Tommy Wiseau) and his incomprehensibly evil fiancée `Lisa' (played by a woman with incongruously colored eyebrows and a propensity for removing her shirt) engaging in some light frottage, joined by, Denny, (played with a deft sense of the absurd by Phillip Haldiman), their sexually confused teenage neighbor who is clearly suffering from a form of aged decrepitude. When Denny, who looks like the human version of Gleek the monkey from Superfriends, says, in a slightly creepy yet playful tone of voice, `I like to watch!' as Johnny and Lisa roll around the bed in a pre-intercourse ritual revolving around rose petals, you know you are in for a very special movie.

After a lengthy lovemaking scene (not to worry if you miss it the first time, they show it again in its entirety later in the movie) in which Tommy's bizarre scaly torso and over-anatomized rear-end are lovingly depicted over and over again as he appears to hump Lisa's hip, we discover that Lisa, for no particular reason, has become bored with Tommy's incessant lovemaking and decides to leave him.

Just when you think the movie might lapse into an ordinary, pedestrian sort of badness, Johnny's best friend Mark, a man who's job seems to be to wear James Brolin's beard from Amityville Horror, shows up and electrifies the screen with a performance so wooden that it belongs in the lumber section of Home Depot. Incidentally, Mark is played by Greg Sestero, who, in addition to being described as a department store mannequin, was also the line producer on `The Room' and one of Tommy Wiseau's five (5!!!!!) assistants on the movie. Lisa forces Mark, amid his paltry, unconvincing protests, to have an affair with her on their uncomfortable circular stairs. For no apparent reason Lisa decides that she is made of pure evil and wants to torture her angelic and insanely devoted fiancé, Johnny.

Lisa receives pointed advice from her mother who casually announces that she is dying of breast cancer and then never mentions it again. But Lisa is determined to make Johnny's life a living hell, in spite of the fact that she, according to her mother, "cannot survive on her own in the cutthroat 'computer business'". But not before they recycle the sex scene from earlier in the movie where we get another bird's eye view of Johnny's ludicrous naked body. Denny gets into trouble with a drug dealer. Mark shaves his beard. Tommy gets drunk on an unusual cocktail made from mixing whiskey and vodka. Lisa lies and tells everyone that Tommy hit her in a drunken rage.

A balding psychologist appears out of nowhere, offers some advice, then apparently dies while softly falling on the ground in an attempt to catch a football thrown by Mark.

All of these seemingly disparate events build up to two cathartic moments. The first is when Tommy expressively yells at Lisa with the line `You are tearing me apart Lisa!'. You will cheer at this line as you realize that the film has been tearing you apart the whole time. And the second is at Tommy's birthday party where the worst actor that has ever been born plays a unidentified man wearing a silk shirt who utters a phrase that perfectly describes the experience of watching The Room,

`It feels like I'm sitting on atom bomb that is going to explode!'

The shocking ending will leave you pleading for some kind of sequel.

See this film at all costs. See it twice. Or three times. Or as one kid that I met from Woodland Hills has, 12 times! See it until you can recite every precious line of dialogue this movie has to offer. Let The Room become your new religion and Tommy Wiseau your prophet preaching the gospel according to Johnny.

My dream is to someday buy a theater and run The Room 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until the print disintegrates. I hope it becomes your dream as well.

Crazy Arty Crafty Thing

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:38:41 GMT

Hey everyone!

One of my friends is having a birthday on Saturday, and I made her a paper crown that amuses me. It's more for display than practical use (which I should have thought of and will elaborate on in a moment), and it is silly and fun.

If I make another one: I will think about the fact that it is mainly for display and therefore make sure that the bottom edge is even. This one is curved, which is why I stuck it in the Christmas Tree to take photos (it wouldn't sit straight on the table). I'm a little afraid to try and fix it since I like the way it came out, and don't really want to screw it up.

Photos are here

Front View

Side View

Back View

I think I'm going to go out tomorrow and get red and green paper and make Christmas ones for my family. I was able to turn this one out in a few hours, so there's enough time for me to do them. And I might make a couple and see if the local paper store wants to buy them (they used to have some that were made by an artist who just had a baby and quit making them). If not, I'll try to sell them on Etsy, I think.

If you have comments or reccommendations, please leave them here!

December 1

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:33:43 GMT

Someone I know is spearheading this, and it's catching on in Sacramento as far as I know. Thought I'd spread the word.

Hello friends,

The people of California have voted for an amendment that adds bigotry to our constitution. Clearly the citizens of this state do not see gay and lesbian citizens as deserving of the same basic rights to which the heterosexual community have an automatic entitlement. We are not important to California.

In order to show the state that gays and lesbians are a vital part of society, and to show our displeasure at this horrific turn in the history of California, I am calling for Monday, December 1, 2008 to be “Calling in Gay” day. On this day, I implore all gay and lesbian members of California to call in sick to their places of employment. If we are not important enough to California to have the same rights as others, then surely we will not be missed for one day.

I am also asking that on December 1, 2008, all gay and lesbian citizens of California not spend their hard earned money anywhere in the state. Again, if our lives have such little importance not to warrant the same basic freedoms as others, then one day without our cash flow will be of little consequence to California.

Spend the day at home with loved ones and friends and enjoy the day knowing that California is doing just fine without us!

This will only get our message across if a) we all commit to taking a stand, and b) we send this to as many people across California as we can.
Do not let this chance to express our displeasure pass us by!

Let’s make our voices, and our displeasure, heard.

Thank you.

Beautiful

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 17:05:17 GMT

Happy Halloween!

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:57:17 GMT

Yay Halloween!

And best wishes to cuddlycthulu and chelleann!

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 06:39:33 GMT

I love my work!!!

There will be more soon, but now it's time for bed.

I Want This (Again)

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 19:58:11 GMT

While I'm on the subject of fabulous dresses, I found a large stash of amazing things that I must share. I'm stuffing them behind a cut so I don't wreck your friends page.

These are at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and I desperately want to go see them in person.

Pretty!

I want my next ball gown to look like this.

I love the colors on this.

This looks so elegant.

I guess I just like the black and white stuff. (See the first "I want this" post)

If I have to wear a bustle dress in a show again, I'm going to show this to the designer and say "I want this."

Now we're getting into the things that are so ridiculous that you simply must love them! I wish they'd had an image of the front of this one.

And I can't help but laugh at this.

Here's the side view of the one above.

I Want This.

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 05:15:17 GMT

Instruments for Sale Part II

Thu, 22 May 2008 01:15:45 GMT

I sold my trombone- thank you to those who expressed interest.

For Sale!

Sun, 04 May 2008 16:44:35 GMT

Hey everyone!

Going through my closet, I found two dust-covered instruments that I want to sell. I thought I'd give my friends a shot at them before random strangers.

I have a beautiful antique silver Conn Baritone/Euphonium (it's really a euphonium, but the difference between the two is negligable) and a professional-grade Trombone with an F attachment. It's a Bach Stradivarius 42B Open Wrap.

Both are high-quality instruments, and I'm selling them for very reasonable prices.

If you or anyone else you know is interested, please send me an email at: thecalligrapher at gmail dot com and I'll happily provide more in-depth information.

Thanks!

This one is Awesome!

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 03:46:29 GMT

I was visiting from Washington, D.C., and was blown away by the performance. The lead singer belongs on Broadway. I bought the sheet music and have been playing it at home.
- Michael Doan

This means you should come see my show.

There are more reviews at http://www.seeaplay.com/productionsReviewsLittle.htm

One Weekend left!

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 04:17:20 GMT

If you're planning on seeing my show- this is it! One weekend left- that's three performances.

Friday, April 4- 8:00.
Saturday, April 5- 4:00.
Sunday, April 6- 2:30.

The box office number is 530.642.0404.

Call and reserve your seats. We are hoping to sell out.

If you're coming, let me know (otherwise I'll sneak out of the back door, and I won't say hi to you).

Tickets are $16 for adults, $9 for 18 and under, $13 for seniors (though I don't think that anyone who reads this would qualify for that).

The theater is at 100 Placerville Dr, Placerville, CA.

It's totally worth it the trip! I love my show, and so has everyone else who has seen it. We want to sell the shows out, but we're not there yet. Particularly on Friday night. As of yesterday, we'd only sold about 40 seats (we seat 185- and can add up to 15 more seats). I'd love it if we had to add seats.

I'm trying not to get all wrapped up in the fact that it's the end of our run. I'm going to miss this show so terribly. We had our cast party, and the DVDs got passed out (they are pretty much as bad as I thought they would be- and I might devote an entry to that subject. It is very interesting to watch the recording before the end of the run).

Anyhow- I've got to quit writing about the end of the show before I get all depressed and weepy.

Please come see me!

I like this one.

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 01:34:18 GMT

"The tale was captivating and the music was evoking. The actors seemed very comfortable in their roles and acted very naturally. Jo was firey and driven, and had a beautiful singing voice. I was very pleased with this show and highly reccomend it to everyone. :) "

www.seeaplay.com

Stolen from Cuddlycthulhu and Chelleann77 who stole it from someone else...

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 04:26:31 GMT

Everyone has things they blog about. Everyone has things they don't blog about. Challenge me out of my comfort zone by telling me something I don't blog about, but you'd like to hear about, and I'll write a post about it. Ask for anything: latest movie watched, last book read, political leanings, thoughts on religion, favorite type of underwear, random techniques, etc. Repost in your own journal so that we can all learn more about each other!

Or alternatively you can ask me a question, and I will answer it.

I like this one!

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 04:23:02 GMT

This show is a must see! Possibly one of the best shows this theater has produced! (and I've been to many of IT's shows). The casting is excellent and each and every actor is talented and perfect for their role. The lead Jo is enthusiastic, touching and funny, and what a voice! The mix of the live band, singing, and characters are kismet! DON'T MISS THIS SHOW! It's a little slice of Broadway in the foothills! from www.seeaplay.com

Hell yes! That's what I like to hear.

Snoopy came to see it- he said "Since when has your voice been able to blow down barn doors?"

Anyone else coming? We've got four more weekends. As this person said- Don't miss this show!

Student Night tomorrow

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 01:59:30 GMT

Tomorrow, we have our "Student Night." It should be interesting. There's a Q&A session after the show. But I'm terrified that the questions will be lame.

So- here's your project: if you have any questions that you think could lead to interesting theater-based discussion, I would love for you to leave them here. It'll give me good ideas for tomorrow, and gives you an opportunity to ask away.

Thank you for your help!

Audience Reviews!

Sun, 02 Mar 2008 17:04:47 GMT

http://www.seeaplay.com/productionsReviewsLittle.htm

Read them!

And if you've seen it, write one of your own!

We have Opened!

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:49:13 GMT

YAY!

Will write more when I regain consciousness.

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:07:42 GMT

We open today!!!

READ THIS

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 07:32:54 GMT

Thank you all for the sore-throat reccommendations. Hot tea with honey and lemon did the trick! I kicked ass at rehearsal tonight.

BUT- I got some unnerving news. There are some performances that have no tickets pre-sold. If we don't get people to buy tickets to those shows in advance, they will be cancelled.

So- if you're considering coming to see me, pick a date and reserve your tickets NOW. You don't want to risk driving all the way to Placerville just to find out that the show was cancelled, now do you?

The box office number is 530.642.0404. Tickets are $9 students and $16 adults. The dates and times are listed on http://megmasterson.net. Go to the "Performances" section.

CALL. NOW.

Please.

I promise, the show is good! I wouldn't tell you to waste your time and money on a bad show.

So not funny.

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:13:47 GMT

I made it through the worst part of the winter without incident. When EVERYONE around me was sick, I hung in there.

We Preview Tmorrow. Our final rehearsal is tonight.

My voice is starting to go.

This is not amusing.

I'm doing everything that I can to preserve/fix/help my voice. If anyone has any super-secret amazing remedy, Please let me know. Unfortunately, I'm at work and don't have a lot of opportunity to get supplies, and I'm headed straight to the theater afterward, but there's just enough time for me to stop in at the market if necessary.

Enlighten me, friends, I need your help: how do I fix my voice?

NEWS

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 01:46:59 GMT

Little Women is in the Paper!

Here's a link: http://www.mtdemocrat.com/digital_media.php?month=02&day=22&year=2008&submit=t&page=0

I'm in the upper left corner of the front page, the front page of the Entertainment section (B), and the article on B-1 continues on B-5.

The first hunk of the article is all about Louisa May Alcott, but we get down to stuff about our show after "It's the Music" which is at the bottom of the middle column on B-1.

Read it.

And what Peter says about me made me cry.

We open in a week! My God, this is so cool. It's so hard to describe. Maybe I'll try to do that later.

Until then, I'll spread the word that I'm in the paper!