...and you even get free music...

10/13/14

Jeremy G and Rishika stop in before their open choir to talk a bit about Marissa’s memorial. Rishika had a perspective I had not thought about. Marissa’s death was a tragic event for their small community. They took on the role of organizing and producing the time of grieving and remembrance for what turned out to be a very large group of people. Who needed to be together. Nevertheless, in some ways, it prevented the community from dealing with its own grief. Rishika’s own needs were  subsumed in the needs of the larger group. So there remains work to be done. Jeremy is still somewhat amazed at how this all came together and is sorting out its meaning. I look forward to talking with the Seed Group and processing this more. Questions for building a community.

The Session meets to review the latest news which seems to throw all the puzzle pieces into the air again. We need to keep in front of us all the work that is moving forward, the reconstruction ready to begin. Need to keep our eyes on possibility.

Upstairs in the Papp (balcony) theatre, Jessica’s production of Brian Friel’s Lovers has its opening night.

10/14/14

Stephanie J is a friend of Jeremy M. She’s looking for some space to hold some small choir rehearsals for a new project she’s working on. Turns out she has had some Grotowski theatre training as well. During Occupy, she collaborated with Jeremy trying to create chants and songs that could unite people while in the midst of demos and marches. She’s working on song as a force to unite people in work for social change. Creating then new world we are working on creating. Or at least new reality. She spent most of last year doing a series of house concert/conversation events across the country around issues of lgbtq inclusion. Her partner has moved on so the next step is still coming into view. (You can check out her work here: http://www.stephaniejohnstone.com/) I take the time to give her the full West-Park tour because I want her to understand what this place is and has been. And that what she is working on s very much at the center of what we are working for. So we’re talking about a trade of rehearsal space and time for sharing her work in worship and/or in other ways. I feel like this is a beginning of a conversation. Or another part of the conversation.

Karen is back from Hawaii. We haven’t seem her in awhile. She’s in the sanctuary,playing music. As she plays a piece from the classical piano canon, I say to Charles, …and you even get free music..He and Leila are hard at work on getting a grant proposal done.

Pat O is in and there is a lot of clean up work to be done in the wake of a city decision. Carefully. Very carefully.

Jessica stops in. The first night of Lovers went very well. She’s heard that the theatre she’s working in was created by Joseph Papp and is blown away to learn that it’s true. I share with her the whole story of Papp’s Shakespeare Center. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shakespeare_Center) Pieces of the Helen Hayes Theatre and the set of the Royal Shakespeaere Company’s Nicholas Nickleby went into building this theatre, later excavated and resurrected byteh Frog&Peach Theatre Company. (http://frogandpeachtheatre.org/) I look forward to seeing her production.