Mc Alpin Hall in the reviews...

Mentions of Mc Alpin Hall in reviews for Animals out of Paper 

Animals out of paper....

http://www.thepublicreviews.com/animals-out-of-paper-mcalpin-hall-at-the-west-park-church-new-york/

Furthermore, Ran Xia’s set complements this show well. Xia has built a littered, scrappy place into what looks to be an abandoned hall of an old church. The audience hears lines about “counting blessings” while seated on folding chairs level with the actors in the remains of a hollowed-out church banquet room. The juxtaposition presented through this assists the play’s message that words don’t always reflect reality. The real origami that punctuates this set creates the one, small, good thing about the “paper zoo” in which these characters are held captive.

http://nytheaternow.com/Content/Article/2015-2-17-animals-out-of-paper

Director Merri Milwe stages the play skillfully in the rec room of West Park Church. The drab and drafty space was a fitting place for the story.  The creaky floorboards and overhead lighting from old chandeliers really set the scene for me. There stage is filled with some extraordinary origami sculptures courtesy of Sok Song and Lorne Dannenbaum (and a long list of other artists).  The giant hawk, the human heart and hissing cockroach were among the most remarkable.

http://www.broadwayworld.com/off-broadway/article/BWW-Reviews-ANIMALS-OUT-OF-PAPER-Poignantly-Examines-the-Folds-of-Our-Lives-20150216

While Ran Xia's art studio set is rather sparse, the space becomes one with the small room at West Park Church where "Animals Out of Paper" is staged. Though the fourth wall is not broken here, audiences are pulled into the world of Ilana's studio, which feels real and really, really cluttered. The vast parade of origami animals adds dynamic value. The glow-in-the-dark, color-changing origami that appears during scene changes is also a nice touch.

http://thefrontrowcenter.com/2015/02/animals-out-of-paper/

The space is challenging, as the old church hall still has the dust of bingo parlor about it.  Set designer Ran Xia swings for the fences using every inch to advantage.  This may be the only play ever to list an Origami Consultant in the CREDITS.  So, Talo Kawasaki, well done!

enLIGHTen 3: All things to all people

2/8

Animals out of Paper

This week we start precisely at 11. Regardless….

It’s the third Sunday in bringing the light by being the light…..And today we’re looking  at Paul’s comments about being all things to all people…In 1 Corinthians 9: 16-23:

 ⁶If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel! ¹⁷For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. ¹⁸What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel.

¹⁹For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. ²⁰To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. ²¹To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. ²²To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. ²³I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.

Last night I saw the play currently running in Mc Alpin Hall, Animals out of Paper…(https://www.facebook.com/events/1532910106970706/) It’s a play about origami…..a subject I knew little about. It’s intelligent and well done and through a taking us deeply into a trio of characters who live intensely in the world or origami illustrates that what opens the doors to one world, opens doors to all worlds. It also has a great signature quote: So much of what I am is what I've lost...Like we used to say when I was in  college, anyone who’s into anything is into the same thing…

Then there’s the story of the Hot Metal Bridge Church in Pittsburgh (http://www.hotmetalbridge.com/) that began as a Bible Study in a tattoo parlor…then moved into a bar, then bought the bar….then....

In some ways , this is a continuation of last week’s conversation….everything permitted, not everything is wise, …and making good use of that freedom…When I was in Tulsa, single, young, free,  I went everywhere…sports, music, theatre, community events…every night of the week. I was in a large church…over 5000 ,members. So everywhere I went, I ran into church members. When they would see me at their event, the members felt, wow, he shares my interest, he understands me…

It seems we have all kinds of group ….jocks for Jesus, hikers for Jesus, bikers for Jesus…

The point is, we’re each made different and special…..with  different gifts, skills, talents, interests, passions…all of which are gifts of God and reflections of God, part of God’s light….that is where we find the light, our light today.

On Fridays we have an Open Mic here….it is accepting of all…each performer welcomed, supported, encouraged, given the room to grow, to  improve,  get better, move closer to the dream of what they want to be…that’s what we should be doing in the church as well…helping each other to see the light that it is in us and helping us to shine brighter, sharing that light with each other….

We sing our songs, finish with Shine on me one more time…and the service is over….and as soon as we are finished, the In2 Korean church is on its way in, ready for their service.