From 'Macbeth' Act V
By William Shakespeare
My way of life
Is fall'n into the sere, the yellow leaf;
And that which should accompany old age,
As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends,
I must not look to have; but in their stead
Curses, not loud but deep, mouth-honour, breath,
Which the poor heart would fain deny, and dare not.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more; it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
--------
I'm alongside the Blue Ridge mountains in beautiful Staunton, Virginia, where we have just come from a performance of Macbeth at the American Shakespeare Center's Blackfriars Playhouse -- the only reproduction in the world, apparently, of the enclosed theater where Shakespeare's plays were performed. (It cracks me up that it was American investors who insisted on building the Globe in London and that the Folger, Blackfriars, etc. are here instead of in the UK or even Stratford, Ontario, where we have seen superb Shakespeare in years past.) The lights never dim in this theater, sets are minimal, audience members sit on the stage so it's more like watching a show on a thrust stage than a proscenium and there's a lot of direct audience interaction. They also perform music between the acts -- nearly every cast member plays an instrument -- and for Macbeth they did Sheryl Crow's "Strong Enough" (with the actress who played Lady Macbeth singing) and Steely Dan's "Dirty Work" (with the assassins and courtiers singing). The actor playing Macbeth wasn't particularly impressive compared to other Macbeths I've seen, but Lady Macbeth, Banquo and the Macduffs were superb. And although they did not have hazelnuts, they had fabulous roasted peanuts.
...and the outside of the theater! We are going on a tour of the theater Saturday, when hopefully we will be able to take photos of the stage, balconies, etc.
My morning was crazy since I had to have everything ready to go so we could get up here, get settled and have dinner before the play. I did manage to crank out several paragraphs on "Spock's Brain" with a long discussion on the slashiness and have not as of yet gotten a single piece of hate mail. It was the kids' last day of camp and we picked them up early so we could go, but I didn't get any mail answered or most comments and I didn't read the news, which was so pleasant that I am considering making that a regular practice.
1. When is the last time your phone rang in the middle of the night? I don't remember, but whenever we have been away on vacation, my father always calls at 8 a.m. the morning we get back no matter what time we got home.
2. Who makes you yell? My kids when they must be stopped from doing something NOW!
3. What do you do for fun? Masturbate? Um, read, watch movies, talk to friends, write porn.
4. What hours do you work/go to school? I have delightfully flexible hours, which is the major advantage of freelancing. The major disadvantage is never having money, ever.
5. Who is number one in your life? My family (which includes me, lest I should sound like one of those "Oh, I sacrifice everything for my husband and children" kind of women!)
1. How much time do you spend on the Internet daily? My computer is on from around 8 a.m. to midnight, though I turn it off when I'm out for more than an hour, when I can use my MDA in case I need to be on the internet. (Yes, total addict, I was hysterical earlier when the wireless card was not working.) I am only actually sitting in front of it for a couple of hours in the morning and a couple of hours at night, and the rest of the time I'm up and down and in and out!
2. What are your favorite 3 websites? I use the IMDb, Google and Wikipedia an unholy amount. I also love the Academy of American Poets, Bartleby, Project Gutenberg and Aeclectic Tarot. And for fic research, the HP Lexicon.
3. Do you eat at your computer? Not meals. I often drink at my computer and I have been known to have a cookie or something.
4. Pick one and why - Reading the news online or in a newspaper? Online. We get The Washington Post delivered because everyone else reads it that way but I more often pick through the headlines online. My parents get The New York Times delivered, and it costs a lot down here, and I don't get that because you can read it every day online.
5. How many people are on your instant messenger buddy list? Now that Blogger has added everyone I know on LJ, a ridiculous number -- like 700. I think there are maybe 10 on the Yahoo list I load semi-regularly and maybe 30 on the AIM list, but I've been a chat slacker all summer because I've not been around and so I haven't signed in much to anything!
I'm going to bed early so we can get up early, go on the theater tour and then go hike along Skyline Drive where it is at least ten degrees cooler than at home, so goodnight!
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