Two Minute Thank You-Mikaela Gatewood

Tayler let me play with her American Girl doll. George gave me a picture album- full of pictures of himself. My grandma baked me cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Zoe said "I like your stickers." Maddy complimented my bow. Kristina said "I'm going to miss you. Starbursts will never be the same." Samantha said my hair was pretty and that she liked my music. Catherine told me, "I like your boots." Jordan said "You have potential." Sierra straightened my hair. Emma sat with me in my room when I was sick. Mark told me, "It tells a story." Andrew said "You're the best girl I know."

Sonnet Emmet

Sonnet ["If I were fire, I'd burn the world away"] by Paul Violi
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/249368

This poem follows the Petrarchan  standard for sonnets. The first two quatrains, which constitute the octave, is typically meant to contain the argument of the poem. In Violi's work, however, the argument is intentionally avoided. The entire poem consists of conditional, hypothetical observations that describe the writer's would-be willingness to wreck havoc.
There is no defined volta for this same reason. Despite the formal alignment with Petrarchan poetry, he never offers a conclusion or a reason--he only provides statements of fact. I read this as meaning that, if he were in any of the various positions of power specified by the poem, he would abuse his power. Those who can, do.
The rhyme scheme alternates throughout, as all it does is add musicality and intermittent emphasis, there is no consistent pattern.
The lack of conclusion makes the author's point more clearly, as he cannot give any reason for the actions. He does not claim that abuse of power is legitimate, only that it is a matter of fact. For that reason, the modification regarding the volta strengthens his message.

Performance Review - Charlie Grimes

Daisy Helmuth, The Rells, & Johnny Conqueroo at Chuck’s Music (Dec. 5, 2015) – Performance Review

Charlie Grimes

AP Literature & Composition

Ms. Whitman

Johnny Conqueroo is a local “swampy blues-rock” band consisting entirely of high schoolers, but do not be fooled by their age -- lead vocalist and guitarist Grant Curless, drummer Wils Quinn, and bassist Shawn Reynolds have been making waves in the Lexington music scene. Whether it’s scoring gigs at local joints such as Willie’s Locally Known and Morris Book Shop, getting major play time on local radio stations, or selling surprisingly high amounts of their debut CD’s, Conqueroo’s striking talent has not gone unnoticed.

I had the privilege of getting to see Johnny Conqueroo play at Chuck’s Music on Southland Dr. this past Saturday, December 5, with their opening acts, Daisy Helmuth and The Rells, beginning at 7:00PM. The experience was truly a treat. Immediately upon entering the upstairs mini-concert hall (we’ll call it a corridor) of Chuck’s, I was struck by the sheer number of people crammed together, eagerly awaiting the performance. When it began, any semblance of order almost immediately vanished, and the band’s energy filled the room. I found myself; however, very intrigued by the powerful stage presence that Conqueroo retained throughout the entire show.

The band played a full hour-long set containing a variety of original songs, such as “Night in Jail” and “Summer Blues,” as well as some mesmerizingly energetic and creative takes on classic blues tunes. In general, the band’s instrumental talent, especially Curless’ guitar, is beyond what one would imagine most teenagers could do. His electric guitar cries, soars, and dives wildly, but I will focus instead on the beautiful, simple poetry of his lyrics.

Conqueroo’s original song lyrics often concern love and turbulent relationships. Curless has a knack for songwriting that harkens back to Mississippi delta blues, with musicians of the likes of Robert Johnson and Howlin’ Wolf. “Well I’m feelin’ so dead now, but she’s doing so well now,” lamented on “Night in Jail,” a song about the consequences of an abusive relationship. “You took my heart. I gave my love to you, and you ripped it apart!” Curless sung over a moody guitar riff on “Took My Heart”. While Conqueroo’s lyrics are not overly complex, they are delivered with great emotional heft, giving them significantly more power when experienced rather than read. It is, once again, hard to believe at times that such a performance is coming from a group as young as Conqueroo is. The subject matter of their songs is often mature and they were performed with incredible focus and intensity at this venue. “Baby baby, where were you at, now? I knew you were screwing behind my back now,” Curless shouted over only the sound of Wils Quinn’s pulsing kick drum.

What blew me away most, however, were Conqueroo’s heavy, energetic covers of classic blues songs. Most notably, Son House’s “Grinnnin’ in Your Face,” a highly influential blues tune from the early 1930’s. “Don’t you mind, people grinnin’ in your face? You know they’ll jump you up and down, they’ll carry you all 'round and 'round, but just as soon as your back is turned, they’ll be tryin’ to crush you down.” Conqueroo delivered these lyrics with such real anger and enthusiasm, with everyone in the crowd watching and listening in amazement. The group also performed “Smokestack Lightning,” another classic blues song by a legendary artist, Howlin’ Wolf, and a nice acknowledge of the deep influence of African-American blues on rock and roll. Occasionally the group toned down the energy, especially on their performance of the song “Salad Days,” which contains the memorable lyrics “As I'm getting older, chip up on my shoulder / Rolling through life, to roll over and die.”

Ultimately, the energy, lyrical delivery, and stage presence that Johnny Conqueroo has made for a highly entertaining performance that left everyone in the audience, including myself, in awe. Conqueroo’s very own bluesy song lyrics, amazingly, stack up nicely against the lyrics of their legendary influences, and the emotional depth with which they are delivered makes for a sonically diverse and mature performance that far surpassed my expectations.

Rating: 4/5

Performance Review- Walt Finch

The Importance of Being Earnest, as performed by the UK Department of Theater and Dance

Walt Finch

     It is easy for us to get caught up in the petty drama of our day to day lives.  When we are active in it we think that it is very important.  We think these things really matter, and see our actions as right, or noble.  Last Sunday, October 11^th, I saw a matinée performance of The Importance of Being Earnest, a play by Oscar Wilde.  This is a play that challenges that view of our petty drama being important, and pokes fun at it.  The play was very well done, particularly considering it was an amateur performance.  The play was put on by the University of Kentucky Department of Theatre and Dance, directed by Christina Ritter and Russell Henderson.  As I said before, the play pokes fun at the petty drama and lifestyles of the upper class aristocracy in late 19^th century England, by following the lives of Algernon and Jack; two upper class males who lives separate lives in the city and the country, and their fiancés do not know the real them. 

     This makes for quite the funny show.  Algernon was played by Peter Laprade, and he did an excellent job.  My favorite part was by far when Mr. Laprade was bantering with Jack while eating cucumber sandwiches, and also when he entered the room playing a violin after Jack had talked to Gwendolen.  The way he carried himself contributed very much to the play.  It brought a feeling of self-absorption, and childishness that made it so obviously satirical, and entertaining.  The thrust stage used also helped to create this air.  It really allowed you to be close to the actors, and feel the air and attitude they created with their body language.  It helped to make the play more engaging.  In normal stages, it is easy to think of yourself as just watching a play, with this performance I really felt like I was right there, involved in the action.  This was also helped by the use of a light up backdrop, which was a different color based upon the setting. 

      For example when they are at Jack’s house in the countryside, the backdrop was a light blue.  Having it split along 3 tall panels, with significant black space in between each helped to make it feel light and airy.  It felt almost as if we were outside, really on the porch listening to Cecily, Jack’s ward and Algernon’s soon to be fiancé, go through her lessons.   All of this really helped to make the play quite enjoyable, but at times the dialogue could get quite long.  The actors did a magnificent job of standing up and moving around to keep the audience’s attention, but at times I could help but get a little bored and begin to doze off.  Due to these few disengaging moments, I feel compelled to give this play a 4/5, although it was still great and I would definitely recommend to a friend if they perform it again.

Performance Review- Caroline Totty

Caroline Totty

December 7, 2015

Whitman

Performance Review

            On December 6, 2015 I went to Lafayette High School to watch the 2:00 performance of SCAPA’s The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. The Importance of Being Earnest is a trivial piece of satire based in the late Victorian England. Its outrageous plot portrays the absurdity of upper class in England at the time and will no doubt make any viewer laugh.

            This performance, directed by Paul Thomas, was overall a well-performed and entertaining take on the play. Algernon was played by Scott DiMeo, Jack by Shelby Nance, Lady Bracknell by James Carter, Gwendolen by Sarah Morgan, Cecily by Abigail Tick, Miss Prism by Bennett Creech, Rev. Chasuble by Cooper Fitch, Lane by Joshua Dhir, and Merriman by Jared Sayers. The two lead rolls, Algernon and Jack, were both acted with a wonderful mix of enthusiasm, drama, and seriousness causing the play to appear very professional. The two boys knew when to over dramatize their lines and facial features to evoke laughter from the crowd and they knew when to draw it in and act more serious. There was never once a hesitation to remember lines or a stutter in the fast paced speaking. Although, sometimes I struggled to understand what was being said because of the heavy British accents the actors adopted and how quickly they were speaking at times. Luckily, I just read this play for English and am familiar with the plot or else I fear I might’ve been a bit lost in the beginning especially when it was the scene between just Jack and Algernon. They were oftentimes speaking rapidly and facing each other so much that their voices were not projecting to the crowd and their dialogue was getting lost. However, as the play continued it improved and the issues vanished.

            While the two lead roles were what seemed to be the backbone of this performance, Lady Bracknell is who really stole the show in my opinion. Played by a boy, this woman’s role was fulfilled beyond my wildest expectations. James Carter fully embraced the part of a middle-aged woman whose face was caked in makeup and undoubtedly made the whole performance ten times funnier. His accent he used was so humorous the audience couldn’t help but laugh at every word and grand gesture that was made.

            The biggest critique I would have of this performance was the chemistry between Abigail Tick who played Cecily and Scott DiMeo who played Algernon. Yes, they are engaged in the play and meant to act in love, but what was happening between them was to the point where I felt uncomfortable. While the other actors and actresses were several feet apart from each others faces while staring into their partner’s eyes, these two were not even an inch from each other. They had their noses touching and were kissing throughout the whole last half of the play. While I understand they were suppose to be in love it just made me very uncomfortable to have to sit there and watch that for so long.

            Besides that the play was fantastic. The costumes were just as I imagine people of the Victorian Era would have dressed. The set was nothing eccentric, but it got the job done. Overall I would rate this performance somewhere around an 8 out of 10.

Performance Review Emmet Allen

Music allows for a much deeper level of communication than many other art forms simply because it incorporates such complexity that the specification of expression (often times emotional expression) can be nuances and accentuated more than merely written verse. Last Thursday, I attended a show played by Lexington band Alcatraz Shakedown, led by frontman Eric Bolander (Vocals, Guitar). The venue was the Manchester Music Hall, and the crowd had drawn a number of Lexington's elite, including the infamous "LogDog" of Henry Clay High School.
The band played a timeless blues-rock style that appeals to a wide audience--nearly anyone who listens to music. However, it was not the band's choice of genre that made them such a success on that cold December night. Bolander uses his songs as an outlet for highly descriptive, sometime repetitive analyses of what the audience can only assume were real events. The lyrical formulation of the songs alone was enough to draw listeners in. For example, the opening line of the song "One Shot, One Chaser" drew us in from the start, beginning the tale that constituted the bulk of the piece with a vivid description of the chronologically primary factual observation "saw her walk through the door in the bar with the dress down to the floor."
Now, if the band's intention were merely to craft passable poetry with enough artistic mechanization to withstand scrutiny, they would have achieved their goal. However, as a rock band, they were able to do much more in order to engage their audience as best they could.
First, the mere tonality and volume of Bolander's voice gave an impressive level of emotional connection and presentness to all who were in attendance. Secondly, the rhythm of the set was adjusted in order to best convey the message of each song (or song section) as it came along.
Much like the Shakespearean use of rhyme and meter to control the reader's speed and understanding of emphasis, Alcatraz Shakedown switched during sections of extreme commotion and activity to cut time, essentially allowing the drummer to take control of the music and the retain the melody and rhyme scheme while still increasing the "feel" of the song and thus creating a more stressed, anxious sound.
It was the combination of all of these outstanding literary choices that led to the success of the Manchester Hall gig. Alcatraz Shakedown earns a resounding 5/5.

performance review - Emily Cashman

To Kill A Mockingbird Performance Review

On Friday night, in a very hot room at the Downtown Arts Center, I watched the AthensWest Theatre Company put on To Kill A Mockingbird. The stage was intimate, with the audience taking up two walls and the stage taking up the two walls in the other corner. Because there were only a few rows of chairs, most of the audience was up-close and personal with the performers.

As the play opened on the porches of a few modest houses in Maycomb County, Alabama, Scout (played by 7^th grader Emily Reed) ran on stage. I found the kids’ performances to be particularly convincing especially considering their inexperience compared to their adult counterparts.  8^th grader Galen Arnett played Jem, and 6^th grader Nate Krohmer took on the role of Dill. Only once during the show did I notice a flaw with one of the kid’s performances, and this was during a somewhat serious moment towards the end of the play.  Krohmer was trying with all his might to conceal a smile, but wasn’t entirely successful. I don’t think it detracted from the overall play in the slightest, but only gave the audience a reminder that he is in fact just a kid.

Atticus Finch and Mayella, played respectively by Kevin Crowley and Gabrielle Miller, were, in my opinion, the best actors in the entire production. I thought Crowley effectively and gracefully brought Harper Lee’s complex character to life. Miller had an emotional scene during the courtroom section of the play where she was brought to tears when describing her version of what happened with Tom Robinson on that fateful night, and her ability to cry and give off such a visibly shaken demeanor was great.

My favorite part of the play had to be when Scout and Jem were walking home in the dark holding hands. I liked this scene not for it’s importance in regards to the play, but because Reed and Arnett had to hold hands. I remember middle school vividly, and holding hands was always awkward. As an audience member, I couldn’t tell that they felt awkward, but as someone who has been through those middle school years, I know they did. That was all I could think about during that scene, and even though I know I should be focusing on the play itself, I felt it was necessary to mention that part.

Overall, I enjoyed AthensWest’s rendition of To Kill A Mockingbird. The costumes were accurate, and the actors, under the guidance of director Jeff Day, did a good job of effectively communication the story to the audience.