not that you know live art.

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”

Cool things are all around you. You just have to open your eyes and sometimes search. I went to the University of Michigan production of the Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice on Friday 12-5-2008 8 PM. These kids put their heart into it (kids is used here as metaphor for life). I could go on and compare it to the classical format or be critical of the acting in some way but that would be the farthest from the truth. Director Timothy Douglas used a 60’s interpretation that was complete with musical injections and some costumes of the same time made for a nice twist which played subtle mind games transposing the known “readerly text/novel” into a “writerly text” via the credibility of the cast and the production and use of the 60’s theme. The comedy found in the performance was detailed by the actors again spreading laughter almost homogenously throughout the crowd on command. My favorite was the use of music by Nina Simone.

You could feel the energy of the actors. There were like carbon nanotubes in strength. They were pleasantly relentless in their performance. I get high on that sort of thing. That is where I find the true essence of life. As if you did not know or perhaps you don’t. I get high on bikes. We all have to find our own beauty in life. There are but a handful of things that you can find such beauty in nowadays. Live art. Bike rides. I am sure there is more but try just these two to start. I had the honor of meeting Dylan Saunders and Darren Criss who were in this production; we had some pizza by chance after the show. Look for them in years to come, flat out cool dudes. And Kaylin Tavolacci signed, sealed and delivered in full the character Elizabeth Bennet. Oh. Essence. How about a top notch Dura-Ace brake from 1973 on a bike in Paris. All that training for a race. All that training for a performance. All just to get a high. Live art. Nostalgic photos. Bike rides. And Laughter. Now you have four things of essence. It seems an injustice to do it just for four days. Go to the theater solo, with your significant other or in a whole group, it is like a bike, once you learn to appreciate it you will never forget. Live. Art. Ride. Free.