Alas, I’m not going to be around (and my limited discretionary funds for concert-going was already spent on R.E.M. tickets), but if you live in NYC and you’re looking to wash the taste of Masked and Anonymous out of your mouth, Dylan’s playing the Hammerstein Ballroom August 12-14. Should be grand.
Category: North America
Indy Carnies (Carny Indies?)
This Modern Age plays Hipster Bingo at the Siren Music Festival on Coney Island. (Via Listen Missy.) I was there on Saturday too, and was kicking myself for not printing out a card. (I must say I also quite relished being at a beach and being well within the skin tone median – usually I’m the whitest guy for miles, but with indy rockers galore about I felt certifiably tan.) At any rate, the only acts I caught were Hot Hot Heat (interesting), The Datsuns (bleah), and Modest Mouse (ho hum) – I spent most of the time enjoying ancient amusement park technology and eating carny food. All in all, it was a beautiful day to enjoy a quintessential NYC summer attraction.
The signs of war advance.
No king of England if not of France. Alas, the NY Times didn’t think much of Henry V in the park. I caught it a few weeks ago and enjoyed it better than this reviewer, for sure. Given recent events, I do wish they’d turned up the satire a notch (“We doubt not of a fair and lucky war,” as the posters proclaim) and Bronson Pinchot’s Balki-esque schtick as Pistol seemed wildly out of place. But all in all, I thought the show made for a lively summer evening. And as a fan of the McKellen Richard III, I enjoyed the WWI motif Liev Schreiber & co. were aiming for.
Packing Heat.
Via my friend Mark, Orrin Hatch is trying to lift the handgun ban in DC. Aren’t Republicans supposed to be for home rule? “District officials, including Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D), Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Council Chairman Linda W. Cropp (D) and police chief Charles H. Ramsey opposed the legislation.” If you want to kowtow to campaign-contributing gun nuts, Senator, then hand out free semis to Salt Lake City residents or something…don’t take out your frustrations on the District.
Ding Dong.
Well, it finally happened – Strom Thurmond died. I’m reminded of Hunter Thompson’s Nixon post-mortem. Never has a man more undeserving held sway over a state so long. Lest anyone forget what Strom stood for in these days of eulogy, the guy was a racist through and through – he still holds the filibuster record for his attempt to prevent civil rights. With his shadow finally gone, South Carolina can name a road or two after him and then embrace the future.
Poisoning Heaven until the 28th.
I didn’t mention this before, but my sister Gillian and her boyfriend Ethan were spectacular last Saturday evening as the leads in Don Quixote. I’m going back to the Met this evening to catch the two in Swan Lake. If you haven’t yet seen ABT this summer, New Yorkers, you’re running out of time…
No, not yet.
The State gets caught with an extended Strom Thurmond obit on their servers. You gotta wonder how long they’ve a Thurmond obit in the can…I wouldn’t be surprised if somebody wrote one before the days of the web.
Summer of the Swan.
My sister‘s summer season at the Met has now begun, and is running through June 28th. (Go here for tickets.) If you’re looking for an evening’s entertainment in NYC this summer, it’s hard to do better than American Ballet Theatre.
Palmetto Progressivism.
The first Democratic debate is set for tonight at 9pm (although you probably have a better chance of catching it on C-Span tomorrow.) And, if nothing else, the 90-minute forum will offer long-suffering South Carolina progressives (or, at least, those of us not in exile) a chance to influence the Democratic primary as never before. Should be fun.
Return I will, to old Brazil.
Two links stolen from Genehack to give you a creepy feeling in the pit of your stomach: 1) Dubya declared yesterday “Loyalty Day.” 2) The State Department thinks Canada cares too much about civil liberties. A connection, perhaps?