Re-Choired Element Chamber Choir

The name of the Chamber Choir is the Re-Choired Element Chamber Choir, per James Reddan, choir director.  This group will be traveling across the pond to London, UK to sing in an international mass choir and give a separate solo concert as part of the 2012 Olympic Games.

In addition to singing as part of the Olympics’ festivities, there will be a solo performance in another venue, in addition to singing some of the Olympic features at the Olympic stadium.

The members of the choir will be viewing some of the history of the U. K. in London to the Tower of London for the changing of the guards.  Reddan has promised that a schedule of the performances at the Olympics will be made available so that we can root for our choir as soon as he can.

The Re-Choired Element is currently rehearsing normally and on Saturdays until they depart for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  They are working on pieces including Orff’s Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, You are the Light, Call of the Champions, Bernstein’s Olympic Hymn and others including 12 additional pieces for their solo concert.

 

Serena Lodes said, “this trip is an amazing opportunity to witness cultural differences between the U. S. and other countries, both in music and otherwise.  It’s really a chance to experience performing on a world stage.”  Lodes said she is very excited to take part in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

When asked about working with James Reddan, Laura Blackwell responded that “ choir is so much fun!  James knows what he is doing and he has already taught me so much.”

This is the entire choir practicing with James.

Albany Sings, a yearly event, will be at West Albany High School, where all choirs will perform two pieces and then all choirs will do one combined performance.  There will be about 350 choir members joining together in May 24 at 7 p. m.  Admission is free!!!

At a Glance:

Events to finance the Chamber Choir’s trip to the Olympics

Pizza night at Papa’s Pizza, May 16-a flyer is required, which will give 50% of funds to choir

1030 SW 3^rd St

Corvallis, Ore.

541-757-2727

Lebanon Bowling Alley-

2250 S. Main St.

541-451-3900

Lebanon, Ore.

May 19 from 4-6 p.m.

Tickets- $15, shoes and all the games you can bowl in 2 hrs.

Day of Silence

Dan Stone watches over his production of this week, A Day of Silence, from the sidelines with Tina Marie Ivey his wife.

Dan Stone put on a silent demonstration of the compartmentalizing of groups in society by the political forces, represented by the actors.  Lia G. stopped to take pictures of the actors, Mark Ingle, Kassandra Morris, Cory Warren, Lucia Rookwood, and T.J. Hagey. 

Patti Ball-What's happening at Russell Tripp?

Patti Ball is the go to woman for what performances are happening on campus at the theater.

Patti Ball makes Tripp Theater function so successfully.

Add caption

Do you want to know what is happening in The Russell Tripp Theatre with the Music or Theater departments?  Just ask Patti.  Always with a smile on her face, she is never too busy to help get any information needed or direct you to the correct people to contact about any productions being put on in Takena Hall.  As you can see below Patti is a very busy and productive part of the theater and music department.

 Patti Ball has worked at LBCC since 1984 and has worked as a Clerical Specialist 2,Admissions, Records and Registration and Secretary 2 in Financial Aid.  Ball  is now the go to person for the Russell Tripp Performance Center Box Office as the Production Coordinator.

Some of her duties include:

Updating the RTPC calendar of events

Updating the RTPC webpage and facebook page

Coordinating the production and printing of all advertising materials (posters, postcards, etc.)

Compiling and updating mailing lists for advertising purposes

Selling tickets

House Manager

Keeping reports of expenditures and revenue

Depositing funds

Ball helped to organize Breast Cancer Awareness Day of wearing pink on campus this year and, also, did a display of soy candles at the Relay for Life table at the LBCC Sustainability Fair in April 2012.

LBCC is lucky to have Patti Ball here to help organize all facets of productions at the theater from auditions, performances, and staff for the theater.

Upcoming events at Tripp Center:

The Play  Epic Agamemnon - 5 Greek Tragedies-combined by Dan Stone

Performances and prices:

(Russell Tripp Theater in Takena Hall)

May 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 & 19, 2012

7:30 pm

Thursday, May 13 2 p.m.

and

Albany Sings, a yearly event, will be at West Albany High School, where all choirs will perform two pieces and then all choirs will do one combined performance.  There will be about 350 choir members joining together in May 24 at 7 p. m.  Admission is free!!!

B’aktun 13-A Review

Daniel Malan is the co-founder of Miracle Theatre Group.

B’aktun 13 is about the end of the Mayan long count calendar and the significance of December 21, 2012. In the popular imagination on that date Ixchel, the goddess of water and the moon, and Ah Puch, the Mayan god of death (using very colorful masks), will bring calamity and death according to prophecies.

The play was performed in Takena Hall at Russell Tripp Theater, Thursday, April 26 at 7 p. m. in front of about 50 people with the majority Spanish-speaking.

In this bi-lingual production, Sal, played by Ajai Terrazas-Tripathi, Rio, played by Daniel Moreno, and Luz, played by Tricia Castaneda-Gonzales are deported to Mexico, because they do not have papers to stay in the United States. 

Drums pounding, the actors in black enter through a traditional colorful Mayan backdrop and have to decide what they need to do about their deportation and how to survive in Mexico.  Living in Woodburn, Oregon most of their lives, none of them have been to Mexico in years and Sal does not even speak Spanish.

This scenery is the backdrop for B'aktun 13, the play.

They must learn to work together to survive B’aktun, Ixchel and Ah Puch, played by Daniel Malan, co-founder of Miracle Theatre Group with her husband Jose Eduardo Gonzalez. 

Luz, an orphan, is a street smart, savvy woman, who has survived in America any way she can from pushing drugs to selling herself. 

Sal is a paper pusher in America, who hates being a Mexican and wants to believe he can trust the police and make everything alright through the American justice system.  Thinking that he should have all the rights of any other citizen of American, Sal has totally deluded himself into thinking he is truly an American and should be treated that way.

Rio, a flamboyant homosexual, wears large native earrings with turquoise eye makeup and fingernail/toenail.  Playing the shell and whistles from Mexico, Rio proves that you cannot judge a book by its cover with his insightful intelligence and insight into both characters, holding the group together.

Realizing they are the faceless and nameless, living underground, in America, now that they are in Mexico, they find the strength to survive death together.  Covering issues from prejudices, citizenship, friendship, and death, the trio come to an understanding on all the issues in under an hour.  

Teatro Milagro Artistic Director, Daniel Malan, took some time to pose for photos and explain the use of the masks in the play and how they love to travel around doing the play, especially at colleges. In the Gazette Times of, Malan said "the play overall, especially with its inclusion of immigration issues, is intended to push on hot button topics." “We want to generate a conversation — the big conversations people are having.”



Two other masks are used to portray characters in B'aktun 13.



The rendering from English to Spanish flowed professionally, with no hesitation or mishaps.  Understanding the Spanish rendition was easy, since the players spoke clearly with clarity and excellent diction but, if you did not understand Spanish, following the play was still done with great skill.

The audience was a mixture both English and Spanish cultures and, by the applause, enjoyed the performance.  Talking with friends after the performance, they had no problem understanding the play, even though they did not speak spanish.



This is one of the masks used in the play, B'aktun 13.



At a Glance:

B'aktun 13

Thursday, April 26 7 p. m.

Russell Tripp Theatre

Matthew B. Zrebski, director, has mounted over 40 world premieres and has had many of his own plays produced, including the planet ME, Neck, A Place Called Timothy, Parts, After the Zipper, Darkstep and Dawning, The Vespiary, Ablaze, Hunter in the Corner, The Aquavarian, Handprint Alley, and Rubber 'n' Glue.

Danel Malan as Ixchel & Ah Puch

Sal as Ajai Terrazas-Tripathi

Rio as  Daniel Moreno

Luz as Tricia Castaneda-Gonzales

Countdown: Top 10 reasons we love Dick Clark

Dick Clark reigns supreme at 82

Dick Clark -- famed TV producer and "New Year's Rockin' Eve" host -- died from a massive heart attack this morning ... TMZ has learned.

To see the other reasons we love Dick Clark:http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/20/showbiz/dick-clark-countdown/index.html

This is part of the article which shows one of the reasons I loved Dick Clark and looked up to him.

9. "He broke color barriers"

Maxine Porter, the legal steward for the late Bill Pinkney of the R&B/soul group, the Drifters, put it this way: "What artist of color didn't have some association with Dick Clark over the years?"

Clark is widely credited with integrating his audience on "American Bandstand" and, according to Porter, Pinkney was one of those musical artists of color who credited Clark with their start.

"The first comment I heard him make about Dick Clark was, 'You know, we were one of the first black acts, if not the first, on his show in Philadelphia before he went national," she said.

"As a little girl, watching television in Mississippi, I was not exposed to blacks in any positions of power or affluence," said iReporter Elnora Fondren Palmtag of Clarksdale, Mississippi.

"Dick Clark was an inspiration when he fought for the integration of his show, first for the performers on his show and later adding dancers of different races. I know he helped to launch the careers of some great black performers, but you may not see the impact he had on the poor underprivileged children of the ghettos around the country who did not know that they could be more than what they could see around them."

What I’ve learned about being a reporter from Edna Buchanan

Edna Buchanan is not what she appears to be, shy and demure. “Edna is known for being fiercely proprietary about stories she considers hers—any number of Herald reporters, running into her at the scene of some multiple murder or major disaster, have been greeted with an icy "What are you doing here?"[1]

Writing the story right is Edna’s forte.  Buchanan asks the questions that no one thinks to ask, such as asking how many children John Wooden had and finding out he had 31 children, which you can almost hear Edna say, "That's interesting as heck."

Persistence is one of Edna’s virtues, knock on the door and it gets slammed in your face, go back in a few minutes and explain that there was a problem and the door was accidentally shut in your face and knock again.  Per Edna, “don’t take no for an answer,” because someone will want to give the victim a send-off.

Always be willing to go where the story is and don’t delay.  When two bodies washed up on shore and no one wanted to cover it, Edna yelled, “I’ll do it, I’ll do it,” and she did.

Another rule worth trying to use as a reporter is to become “a piece of furniture” so that people will talk around you and not to you.  This rule is virtually impossible for television reporters, as they are usually well-known and talkative, vibrant personalities, and is the main reason Edna did not take a lucrative job with a television station in Miami.

Although she was not college educated, Edna Buchanan demonstrates what a reporter can do if they apply their skill at writing with the tenacity to grab the reader's attention with such headlines as "Gary Robinson died hungry."

---

[1] Read more http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1986/02/17/1986_02_17_039_TNY_CARDS_000342687#ixzz1t24ZuZ7m

Fundraiser for Keegan Burnett

The River of Life Fellowship in Sweet Home hosted the fundraiser for Keegan Burnett, who was in a serious skiing accident on January 28, 2012.  Having no medical insurance, the community came from all over the area from Philomath, Corvallis, Albany, Tangent, Salem, and Eugene.

Jennifer Kennedy was at the door of the Church, welcoming everyone with a big smile as shown below.

There were 2 dining rooms, upstairs and the basement, which were fully occupied and as each table was empty, someone else would take their place, demonstrating the power of community spirit to help.  The areas do not look like a church but a fine eating establishment.
There were about 250 present during the evening helping the family financially.

Keegan was present with his family, as shown in the photo below.

The delicious meal consisted of spaghetti, salad and a variety of drinks and desserts.  The servers ( Some of the servers shown below  were Nettie May, Tom M., Mike B., Dale M., and Keegan's grandma, Jessie B.) were giving extraordinary service, like a 5-Star restaurant.  After being seated ( Gary H. is shown seating a family), the staff worked with alacrity to make sure everyone was comfortable and well taken care of.

The atmosphere was professional, the staff friendly, the food great and the time well-spent.

Thank you, River of Life Fellowship and Pam Miner, organizer,  for performing this act of kindness and giving.

Writing about Home from 3 perspectives

Lucette Wood introduced writers George Estreich, Marjorie Sandor and Charles Goodrich, who gave presentations from their books with three different perspectives about their lives (Charles Goodrich, starting a new life after divorce, Marjorie Sandor, moving into a new home with new partner, and George Estreich, struggling with disabled child and new position in the home) which is entitled Visions of Home to an audience of about 100.

Robin Havenick, Linda Spain & Paul Hawkwood enjoy home perspectives.

The Valley Writer's Series, coordinated by Jane White and Lucette Wood, set up the meeting in the Fireside Room in the Calapooia Center on Wednesday, April 18 from noon to 2 p.m.

Charles Goodrich reads from The Practice of Home.

Charles Goodrich  bibliography states that he "has worked for twenty-five years as a professional gardener and has also worked as a correctional work crew supervisor, a short-order cook, and a carpenter, and now serves as Program Director for the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature, and the Written Word at Oregon State University."

  Reading excerpts from his book, The Practice of Home, Goodrich told about his adventure in building a new home for his new hermit solitary lifestyle but neighbors came to see what the racket is about and to talk to him.  Goodrich, finally, accepted that he could not be alone.

Kathleen Dean Moore, author of The Pine Island Paradox said, “Charles Goodrich brings his poet's sense of rejoicing and his gardener's sense of hope to a patch of thistle-infested land. Gently, brilliantly, he showed us that home is a way of life. Anyone who has searched to find a place on earth--which is to say, everyone--will find comfort and laughter in this book, and new understanding of what it means to be a human being.”

"Marjorie Sandor is the author of four books, including the forthcoming memoir, The Late Interiors: A Life Under Construction, and the 2004 Winner of the National Jewish Book Award in Fiction, Portrait of my Mother, Who Posed Nude in Wartime: Stories. Her earlier book of personal essays, The Night Gardener: A Search for Home, won the 2000 Oregon Book Award for Literary Nonfiction.

In her new book, Sandor moved into a new home, a new marriage, and found that urban development was threatening her own backyard.  While her lover was in the hospital, having double bypass surgery, Sandor puttered around in her garden and in her writing she said “I putter, make little gestures in a disorganized way, … and eventually … something appears.”

Marjorie Sandor and George Estreich listen to Charles Goodrich, along with Lucette Wood.

George Estreich gave up a teaching career to stay homes and take care of his two children, Ellie and Laura, as his wife, Theresa Filtz, is an associate professor in the College of Pharmacy at Oregon State University.  Laura has down syndrome and Estreich has written not only about the joy, trial, and tribulations of raising a child with down's syndrome, but Estreich says, "it touches on many other things, including fly-fishing, heart surgery, family, the history and meaning of “Mongolian idiocy,” genetic engineering, prenatal diagnosis, what it’s like to be stared at, feeding a child with a tube, made-up signs for French fries."

"Estreich is raw and honest and draws us each into a new view of what it means to be 'human’ and what it means to be ‘different," said Timothy P. Shriver, Ph.D., Chairman & CEO of Special Olympics.

Listening to the evocative readings was enjoyed by all, if the effusive laughter and applause of the audience is any indication. 

At A Glance:

Charles Goodrich introduced his book, The Practice of Home, which tells about his adventure in building a new home for his new hermit solitary lifestyle .

Marjorie Sandor read from her new book, The Late Interiors, about her move into a new home, a new marriage, and finds that urban development is threatening her own backyard.

and
George Estreich talked about the joy, trial, and tribulations of raising a child with down's syndrome, and  fly-fishing, heart surgery, family, the history and meaning of “Mongolian idiocy.

                   

BAKTUN 13

A Milagro Theater Bilingual Touring Production

On Thursday, April 26, ““B’aktun 13”, a bilingual Miracle Theatre production written by Portland playwright Dañel Malán, explores the prediction that a drastic world shift will take place when the Mayan long count calendar comes to an end on Dec. 21, 2012” will be performed at Russell Tripp Performance Center at 7 p.m. 

The play, B’aktun 13, was a participating production of the 2012 FertileGround festival of new works. 

The premise of the play shows the spiritual side of the ancient prophecy but also ties in “the contemporary issues of immigration, assimilation and identity that hit even more powerfully and poignantly than the thought of a world that may be no more” said Emilee Booher of the Willamette Week.  The three main characters, after being deported from the U. S. to Mexico, unfold to remedy the impending doomsday through themes of acceptance and unification.

B’aktun 13 was written by Danel Malan, who co-founded the Miracle Theatre Group with her husband Jose Eduardo Gonzalez and in 1989 she created the touring program, Teatro Milagro, which has provided opportunities for many ethnic artists for over 20 years.

 

The play is directed by Matthew B. Zrebski, who teaches playwriting through the Literary Arts WITS program as well as for Visions and Voices at Portland Center Stage.  Zrebski  “has mounted over 40 world premieres and has had many of his own plays produced, including the planet ME, Neck, A Place Called Timothy, Parts, After the Zipper, Darkstep and Dawning, The Vespiary, Ablaze, Hunter in the Corner, The Aquavarian, Handprint Alley, and Rubber 'n' Glue” and “is also an occasional guest professor at Pacific University. “  

Unidad workshop will be available at 4 p.m. For information, call 541-917-4554.

At a Glance

Baktun 13

April 26, 2012 7 p.m.

$9 Adults, $7 Seniors (60 and over) and Students (with student ID), $5 under 18 (with adult or groups of 15 or more

Box office information: 

Online: www.linnbenton.edu/go/tickets

At the door: beginning 2 hours prior to performance at the Russell Tripp Performance CenterBox Office Hours: Tues-Thur, 8:00 - 10:00am, 2:00 - 4:00pm & 2 hours prior to curtain

We accept cash, check, Mastercard, Visa or Discover.

Keegan Burnett Fundraiser

Keegan Burnett, 28, former LBCC student and son of Alice Burnett, who works LBCC Sweet Home Center, was in a serious skiing accident on January 28, 2012.

” Nearly five years after suffering a major head injury while pole vaulting, former Sweet Home athlete Keegan Burnett is in a hospital bed once again, this time with a crushed spine .. that doctors say will likely leave him paralyzed for life.”  

Getting out of the hospital this Friday, Keegan will be continuing his recovery at his parent’s home.    As you can imagine this has been a life-changing experience for Keegan and for his parents as well. Picture from Keegan's facebook account.

 “Keegan Burnett graduated in 2008 from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in human physiology and had applied to master’s degree programs in that field at both Oregon and Oregon State University before his most recent accident occurred.”   

Keegan had just landed a new job at Entek in Lebanon and does not have medical insurance, which presents many challenges for the family.

There will be a fundraiser at the Sweet Home River of Live Church next Friday, April 20.  A free dinner will be served beginning at 5:30 p. m. and then the movie “Courageous” will be shown at 7 p. m.  Donations of money and desserts will be gladly accepted.

If you cannot come to the event and would like to help out, you can send money donations to Karri Byram at the Lebanon Center and she will make sure the church gets it.  However, if you would like to donate a dessert, you can drop it off at the church as 1658 Long Street, Tuesday- until 1 p. m. on Friday.

Thank you for any donations given to help this former LBCC student.

At a Glance:

Keegan Burnett Fundraiser  

Sweet Home River of Life Church (info@sweethomeriverofflife.org)

541-367-6855

1658 Long Street

Sweet Home, Oregon 97386

Flags at LBCC before storm

Flags at LBCC before storm, a photo by palmtbill@yahoo.com on Flickr.

Lance grabbing a bite

Lance grabbing a bite, a photo by palmtbill@yahoo.com on Flickr.

Dale Hummel taking pictures

Dale Hummel taking pictures, a photo by palmtbill@yahoo.com on Flickr.

Stina in Living Color

Stina walks during a math assignment, just being Stina.

Stina takes a break with friends.

Stina Altheide is a very colorful, funny,  and interesting person , which can be seen from these shots.  Wearing colors, not usually associated with a red head, Altheide makes it all work for her.

Besides being a full time student and a married mother of 2 children, 5 & 3, Altheide has a goat, 3 chickens and a duck that thinks he is a chicken.

Working for 15 years as a CNA, Altheide spent 13 of those years working in hospice.

Altheide is going for a psychology major but has not decided what kind of a therapist she wants to be.

When not at school or doing homework, her favorite thing to do is to play with her children in the yard in the dirt with the animals and forget that she is an adult, who has to be responsible for others.

Stina Altheide relaxes in the courtyard during math assignment.

Work it, woman!!!

Another Stone Wonder

FREE TICKETS TO SPRING PLAY-read below to find out how to win!!!!

Dan Stone, LBCC theater director, is doing it again.
Stone always takes an ordinary story and never does what is expected.

Sitting in his office with soft lighting, Dan Stone talks about  his new stage production, Agamemnon.  If you do not know of the reputation of this great director, Stone is known for putting an interesting spin on a story with innovative styles and different twists, which only enhance the experience.

With A Christmas Carol, Stone used human puppets to portray the Christmas Ghosts, with Wiley and the Hairy Man, Stone implemented hand and live puppets in a new and original fashion, which was far from the norm and with his latest Day of Silence, in the Courtyard, Stone used masks on mime performers to convey the message of tolerance.

This time Stone is “attempting to tell five stories” about Hecuba, Iphigenia, Agamemnon, Trojan Women and Electra-5 Greek tragedies, and has adapted them into a two-hour production in the future.
The 5 tragedies are two hours each when performed separately and it will be one of the highlights of the year to see this accomplishment.

Although Stone said he has a cast of 33, but there are always more people in the background who help to make each production, wardrobe, lighting, design and technical to name a few.

Stone explained that he has set up a “giant ritual” that the audience and the actors will participate in.
The story will be set 60 years in the post-apocalyptic future, in a society that needs rebuilding, said Stone. Stone says in this “retelling of the Trojan War and the tragedies of war, reverting to old ways and religion,  he is trying to produce Greek theater like it was in ancient times but with relevance to today’s audience.

Murder and mayhem are abundant in Agamemnon.

Paris, son of Priam and Hecuba, King and Queen of Troy, is chosen to be the judge of a beauty contest between the goddesses Aphrodite, Athena and Hera, Zeus’s wife. Paris declares Aphrodite the winner and, as a reward, she promises him that Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, will be his wife even though she is already married to Menelaus, younger brother of Agamemnon.

Helen of Troy is kidnapped, while a guest in the home of Paris, son of Priam and Hecuba, King and Queen of Troy.   Menelaus asks his brother Agamemnon to help rescue his wife,Helen, starting the Trojan War. Agamemnon sacrifices his eldest daughter, Iphigenia, to the goddess Artemis, to assure good winds for sailing, enraging his wife, Clytaemnestra, and she is determined that he will die for this.

Electra and her brother Orestes get revenge on their mother and their stepfather Aegisthus, for killing their father.

Hecuba is the wife of Priam who goes mad when she sees the bodies of her children who are murdered by Polymestor, whom she blinds and kills two of his children.

Stone has been directing for 20 years.  When asked who influenced him, Stone said at 10, his parents took him to Universal Studios where he saw Conan the Barbarian. Stone stated it was not the best production but at 10, “it was the coolest thing he had ever seen.”   He remembered getting upset that he could not stay at that moment and watch the production over and over. With the sword fights, spectacles and showmanship, he remembered seeing it many times later that day and he was hooked.

"Dan's training includes work with the American International School of Commedia dell'Arte based in Philadelphia and the International School of the Comic Actor in Reggio Emilia; he is also personally trained by world renowned Italian artist, Maestro Antonio Fava. Also, Dan's work in experimental theatre and developing original plays was fostered by Dr. Ron Argelander, former chair of the Experimental Theatre Wing at New York University."
Although supported by his parent in his endeavors, Stone suspects he got the artistic bug from his maternal grandfather, Russell Goodwin, a sculptor and painter from Dallas, Texas.

Stone is still working out details like a working title, procuring original songs written, and getting the production in the bag for the opening on May 10, 2012.

Please go to the Student Life and Leadership, right next to the clock in the courtyard, and fill out an entry to win 2 Free sets of 2 tickets to the play for the weekend of May 10-13, 2012.  The drawing will be open for these tickets until the end of April. Two tickets will be held at will call in Takena Hall in your name for the date and time you choose.

To see more about Dan Stone or these tragedies, see http://www.ancient-mythology.com/greek and npalmtag.blogspot.com/ Greek Tragedies through Dan's Eyes.

More to come…..

At A Glance:

The Play (Epic Agamemnon)-5 Greek Tragedies by Dan Stone

Performances and prices:
(Russell Tripp Theater in Takena Hall)

May 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 & 19, 2012

7:30 pm

Thursday, May 13 2 p.m.

$9 Adults, $7 Seniors (60 and over) and Students (with student ID), $5 under 18 (with adult
Box office information: 


Online, in connection with Box Office Avenue No fee! By phone: 917-4531
At the door: beginning 2 hours prior to performance at the Russell Tripp Performance CenterBox Office Hours: Tues-Thur, 8:00 - 10:00am, 2:00 - 4:00pm & 2 hours prior to curtain
We accept cash, check, Mastercard, Visa or Discover.

Greek Tragedies through Dan's Eyes

Below is the breakdown of 5 Greek tragedies which Dan Stone is adapting into a two hour play to be put on in May, 2012.

It will be based set “60 years in the post-apocalyptic future, in a society that needs rebuilding.”  In this “retelling of the Trojan War and the tragedies of war, reverting to old ways and religion,” Stone is “trying to produce Greek theater like it was in ancient times but with relevance to today’s audience.”

This Greek tragedy is a real whodunit, with a lot of whys and a large host of characters.

This family was full of treachery and murder.  

Tantalus started the family curse by cooking his father Pelops and serving him to the gods.  But Zeus resurrected Pelops, who then fathered Atreus and Thyestes.  However, the Furies, goddesses, who are older than the Olympian gods, led by Zeus, punish the sin of shedding kindred blood.  The offender will be tormented until he is himself killed.

Atreus, father of Agamemnon and Menelaus, fought with his brother because Thyestes had made love to Arteus’ wife.  Arteus then cooked Thyestes’ children and served them to him at a banquet.  Finally, Arteus exiled Thyestes from Argos for the rest of life.

The family curse continues……

Paris, son of Priam and Hecuba, King and Queen of Troy,  was chosen to be the judge of a beauty contest between the goddesses Aphrodite, Athena and Hera, Zeus’s wife.  Paris declares Aphrodite the winner and, as a reward, she promised him that Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, would be his wife even though she was already married to Menelaus, younger brother of Agamemnon.

Helen of Troy was kidnapped, while a guest in Paris’s home, Menelaus asked his brother Agamemnon to help rescue his wife, starting the Trojan War.   Agamemnon  sacrificed his eldest daughter, Iphigenia, to the goddess Artemis, enraging his wife, Clytaemnestra, and she was determined that he would die for this.

Calchas, Prophet of Apollo, was a messenger for the Gods and tells Agamemnon that he must sacrifice his daughter, because a rabbit, a pet, loved by Artemis, Greek goddess of hunting, was slain by the Greeks.  Agamemnon tricked his wife and daughter to come to the temple by saying their daughter would be marrying Achilles, a Greek warrior so that he would be granted good sailing winds.

While Agamemnon and Menelaus were off fighting the Trojan War, Clytaemnestra had ruled the land like a man and had taken a lover, Aegisthus, with whom she plots to kill her husband.  Aegisthus, son of Thyestes, wanted to avenge the exile of his father and the death of his siblings.  Clytaemnestra exiled her son so that she could rule until her husband returned.

Agamemnon returned with a lover, Cassandra, who had been granted the power of prophesy by the God Apollo, whom Cassandra had spurned.  So Apollo let her have the powers of prophesy but declared that no one would believe her.

When Agamemnon returned home alone, having lost his brother at sea, Clytaemnestra insisted he walk on this beautiful red carpet, like a god, to show that he had been victorious.  This act caused Agamemnon to lose the god’s protection and his wife was able to carry off her revenge.
"The major women involved in the stories about the Trojan War were Helen of Troy, who started it all, Iphigenia, who was sacrificed, Cassandra, who was not believed, Clytemnestra, who was betrayed, Andromache, widowed by the major Trojan hero, Hecuba, who gave birth to Paris, Briseis, who created tension in the Greek ranks, and Polyxena, who may have revealed Achilles' heel." (http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/troyilium/tp/TrojanWarWomen.htm)

Throughout this tragedy, there is a chorus of elders, who are passive observers, refusing to help.  Their role was one of complaints about everything and doing nothing about anything.  Cassandra tried to get the chorus to help Agamemnon and herself but they did not listen to her.  The chorus complained and called Helen disgusting names for causing the death of so many men.

"Electra is the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, the king and queen of Mycenae. She is absent from Homer's epics, but appears in theOresteia and in later Athenian plays.

In Electra by Euripides, she is depicted as more jealous and hateful (as are most of Euripides' female characters) and actually helps Orestes kill their mother."(http://www.ancient-mythology.com/greek/electra.php)

My first photo attempts on campus

Rob Priewe does what he is great at, teaching.



Birds escapes before storm descends on campus.

Clouds roll in to clean up campus again.





Get Paid to Lose Weight

One of the most watched television programs about weight loss is The Biggest Loser. The premise of the program is that contestants are rewarded monetarily for losing the most Body Mass Index (BMI), the percentage of body fat proportionate to weight/height of a person.

There are many programs on-line which are offering payment if the most weight is lost according to your starting BMI. When looking at the different sites, one stood out with great reviews and the less criticism, HealthyWage.

“HealthyWage designs and organizes weight loss challenges and contests in which participants can win money for losing weight.”

The challenge seems to be consistent in its goals and prizes. “HealthyWage, which makes money through advertising and sponsorships, claims it can save the health care system $1,150 in obesity-related costs for each person who slims down to a healthy BMI."

There are different challenges the client can sign up for:

“The Ten Percent Challenge allows you to put some pressure on yourself and double-down on your weight loss! It's simple way to make losing weight more fun and effective. You pay a $100 fee to participate. If you lose 10% of your body weight over six months, you win $200.

The BMI Challenge pays up to $1000 to users who move from an obese BMI (greater than 30) to a normal BMI (less than 25) over six months.

In the Matchup, teams of five lose weight and try to win the $10,000 first prize. Most contests are open to anyone, but employees of corporate clients get reduced rates, motivation and lots of special attention.”

Join a team of 5, pay an entry fee of $60 (less if your employer sponsors you), with $10,000, second place is $5,000 and third place is $3,000. This seems to be the most effective because “The Matchup is based on team support and motivation, which provides accountability and success. To make it lots of fun, each week, we provide you with tips and tricks to help you and your team stay on track. We also have a weekly challenge with prizes for the winning teams!”

“So now in HealthyWage’s most effective program, people form groups of five. Each person pays $60 to enter the team in a three-month weight loss contest. Any loss greater than 1.5 percent of body weight per week isn’t counted, to discourage rapid weight loss that is so often not sustained."

In 2010 HealthyWage concluded its first year “with program participants collectively losing more than 880,000 pounds, for their weight-loss achievements, HealthyWage collectively paid dieters over $450,000 cash."

There are many cites starting up to take money from people. So the public needs to be careful and check out and make sure it is legitimate business and not a scam. Some of the rules are set so that the client will fail to get any payback. When trying to do a contrast with another site, Cash4Goals, its rules were very complicated and convoluted, with a similarity with the stock market and pyramid schemes. (http://www.cash4goals.com) In order to succeed with this program, the participant needs to be almost a lawyer to understand all the restrictions and rules, with time limits and goals preset.

Be careful which program you decide to join.

For more information on obesity in America, check out http://www.downtoearth.org/health/nutrition/obesity-america.