2012... a brand new year

A brand new year brings with it a whole lot of new challenges, hurdles obstacles, but also opportunities, friends, adventures, experiences and everything that incorporates the wide variety of life.

After quite a restful break I've hit the ground running, with a new found energy and enthusiasm that I'm hoping will last a little while.

The year is shaping up to be a surprisingly good one. I'm not going to go on about everything that brought me to where I am. It's a long arduous story that's even more boring to tell than it would be to read about. The end result of it all is that The Owl and the Pussycat gallery is no longer a gallery at all, but a theatre, straight up.

Yeah I'm upset to loose the gallery, but now that I have gotten used to the idea I think it is going to be a good thing. It will help me to concentrate, give everything to the one space- well two including the bar, it will help me to focus in and make it as good as it can be. Already it's finding it's feet, and of course there are some things to work out, but that will come over time, its a new space and that also has it's advantages. It's fresh and that positive energy is not only not gone, but I think is starting to increase with my new found enthusiasm. The space feels lighter. There is laughter and music and people hanging around having fun. Lot's of smiles and jokes.

It is as it should be, as it has been, and as it will be from until... whenever it all ends, as everything does some day.

I really can't wait to get my teeth stuck into this year, I think its going to be a good one. Good times ahead... I'm bringing the fun back into the space, it was all starting to get a bit morbid around here, but the suits have gone, the t's have been crossed the i's dotted, the permits signed the bank account drained (gulp) and the sun is shinning over the horizon.

Every show I have booked in this year I feel great about. I know there will be hurdles... there already has been... but what can I say? I'm feeling limber :)

Now excuse me I have to go and help tech for Loving Arthur at Downstairs at Alma's which opens tonight.

Oh but before I go if you have a show that you are wanting to put on this year, now is the time to step forward. I am looking to book the year out over the next month... if I can.

If you build it... don't be rude.

Comfort is a highly under rated commodity I feel. So often is it given a back seat to excitement, wonder, exhilaration, thrill, enchantment, wonder, illusion, and blah blah, you get the point... I know I myself have often talked about how boring and easy it is, but now I think of it as a reward.

I dream of one day living in a normal house that has carpet, a television, a laundry... Oh to be able to come home and lie on a couch, it to me, seems like heaven... not to rubbish my life at all, I love it, but the glitter is starting to loose it's gleam a little. Later this year I shall hoepfully be rewarded for all this work with a comfortable house (rented not owned, dream big, just not too big).

So we have a bar opening up soon, I have just submitted the planning application to Yarra city council.. It fucking begins, my favourite thing in the world- dealing with council. I equate it to trying to chew on my own eyebrows. In fact I came up with an idea for a website once that you send people send emails to, and then the site auto-responds by sending back to that person exactly the same thing as what they sent. Designed purely to be annoying and pointless - something that local council seems to achieve with far more flare.

I'd be slightly concerned about throwing that out on the interwebs if I had a slightly larger readership than 2, but as that is not the case if this where to get back to council I pretty much know who to blame... me.

So I am going to talk briefly about a show I saw last night but mostly so that I can relate it back to my favourite subject... me.

*This is not a review

I saw Christina by Attic Erratic... This group of very lovely young people have been getting more and more attention, I think because they are fun and lovely and talented and just generally nice to deal with. There is also a whole bunch of them. I saw there short and sweet piece last year, a more bizarre theatrical experience I'd not had in a while and man I laughed my arse off, sometimes at the show itself and sometimes by watching other audience members expressions as they watched it for the first time (I saw it a few times)

Christina was in the Collingwood Underground car-park, a great venue! I'd never been there before, pretty much it is my venues antithesis, large concrete, cold and just generally expansive. I have a black box theatre, the back wall at this place is so far away it disappears into the black. So any play that goes on there had better be engaging lest they be swallowed up into the abyss.

Now I was not expecting to run into many people that I knew, or any, I hadn't really thought about it... So I rocked up stuffing my face with some chips that I bought down the road and with a veggie burger in my side pocket. As I lined up to get tickets my friend (in fact my first ever girlfriend, now good friend) turned around... surprise! No big deal, then she introduces me to her friend, a stunningly attractive girl, whom I can only assume is some sort of model... anyway I wish I didn't have a handfull of chips hanging out of my mouth at that point. Then I ran into someone from the Fringe Festival office and we got talking about registrations and shows, after another conversation I had just had with someone from A E about a show they have coming up and another person about a potential show they have coming up, both at my venue... then I saw another venue owner I know and say hello, she happens to be talking to someone else who is looking for an actor who can do an English accent, to which I say I lived in England for 2 years and as I look at him he is insanely familiar, then we get told to take our seats so I get a drink and head in, and on the way realise that that guy was an old teacher of mine from Uni, one that I really enjoyed, so that revolution kind of knocked me back as the Venue owner I mentioned was now telling me how she'll put me forward for the roll and how it is a feature film that shows a lot of promise, and then I'm in my seat and the girl is there and she moves over for me, and then I shake hands with my old lecturer, and Fringe guy sits next to me and starts giving me a bit of history on the Collingwood Underground Carpark as we remark on the set which literally was remarkable, then lights out and show starts..

To say that I was having trouble concentrating at that point doesn't quite do it, I was so far from concentrating that it took a good 20 minutes for me to even consider trying to pay attention to what was happening in front of me.

That's when I started thinking about Miss Julie and my opening nights experience... I really thought people would be totally blown away by it, and whilst the reactions have been quite good, indeed glowing reports from some people, it hasn't had the response I thought it would- and what last nights experience reminded me was that, you can put all the detail you want into a performance, but only people who are actually watching will see it. But what you have to think about is how many people in the audience are thinking about their dinner, or their work, or the person sitting next to them, or the burger in their pocket or their arse falling asleep, or anything other than the show in front of them.

Then I started thinking about if there is anything that can be done about that. There could definitely have been more variation in the way this guy in the show spoke- it was a one person show and it was well delivered but it went on too long and he didn't vary his delivery all that much. I found that my attention was grabbed when he stopped talking, or pretty much any time there was a variation... so I don't know where to sit on this, was it their fault or mine? Perhaps a bit of both.

Even watching Miss Julie there is a noticeable difference for me when the actors are fully engaged to when they are going through the motions- I think that is the difference between a good and a great performance, and people that come for a good performance would never notice, they'd say, yeah- that was good, I enjoyed it, perhaps if they where really engaged as an audience member of their own volition they may get just as much out of it, but I think when the actor is engaged, and delivering, fully committed and making it new every night- those are the performances that really make people stand up and shout. I'm not sure that is what I saw last night. But it's not fare of me to say that makes Christina bad, it wasn't it was really good. Perhaps Tom was just having an off night, perhaps he wasn't.. who knows.

That's what some people have gone away from Miss Julie with, and it's a shame cause when it's hot, people rave, when it's not they say, yeah... that was good, I enjoyed it.

I'm going to continue to think on this. Is craft enough to create a memorable performance, many theatre people claim it is... I'm not convinced.

I got the part by the by. It was for a reading of a film script, not the actual film... but who knows what the future will bring :)

Going to temple

If my body where a temple it would probably be a book store like black books. I've only seen one episode of that show but I think I got the gist of it... or perhaps a bar... but no it would probably be a pub.

I don't say that in a bad way, I think that a pub is the best kind of temple that there is. You get a good cross section of the community in there, you get a good sense of the society, it has it's rules and it's morals are a little more relaxed than say perhaps- an actual temple.

My body is a temple.

Why should I care about that? 'That' being my body.... it's not important, with the whole world falling down around us, why is my body a temple? It's not, it's a vessel, a vessel for my mind. My mind is my temple, and I refuse to inflict it with the petty concerns of my own existence. As long as I continue to exist, my mind can keep operating, and then there is no problem.

I've been a bad blogger, I apologise... I have not been writing because I've not felt like it, that's really what it comes down to, yes I've been busy but how the hell do I make sense of what's been happening?

I have a new gallery manager- Matto Lucas. He is doing a wonderful job, better than he knows. Much better than I could do.

He says I scare him, this is a reoccurring theme lately, people have been scared by me. The other day my day time job - 'Man with a Van' I got a fine for running a red light in the van. It took some time to figure out who it was that got the fine- they thought it was someone else and they told them and then that person came back and said it wasn't him, then they took another look and then figured out that it was me, and on discovering that, the first reaction was from the manager and he said- "shotgun not telling him"... meaning me.

When they did tell me, my boss- the manager and owner- came out (with the paperwork) and said "Jason, we have something to tell you... you got a fine". He proceeded to tell me all the details.

I didn't smash things up, I thought it was bullshit and I'll fight it, but I didn't go all Hulk on them. Afterwards I found out how reluctant they where to tell me about it, ad we all had a laugh.

I find it funny how I am perceived... there was a time at drama school whereby someone told me that it was not possible for me to walk into a room without everyone knowing that I'd come in. I hated that because I'm a quiet, private person at heart and I think it's important to be able to blend in. I can do that, think I can, it is happening here now- at The Owl and the Pussycat. Last week Matto had his first opening as gallery manager...

He was also the curator, but it was the first opening which he managed and it went brilliantly. Couldn't have hoped for better and it was indicative of what's going on here at the moment. The place, the house, the business, the idea... whatever it is... it has taken on a life of it's own. It's no longer about me. It was great... at the same time it was a little bit weird. I felt like a mother seeing her child make friends for the first time - interacting with people and creating relationships that have nothing to do with me.

It's what I've dreamed of and hoped for, but now that it's here... what do I do? I booked a ticket for the Whitsunday's... cause I've not had a holiday for the last 2 and a half years.

So now it feels even weirder doing this blog, cause this place is not about me anymore. I made it, created it... but every day people come in and make it there own. It's wonderful, and amazing and weird. But now what do I blog about?

Just the same old shit, whatever happens to occur to me. I am looking forward to seeing the show that's on this week- Blakes on a Plane. I'll be watching on Thursday. It sounds good, the response tonight was good- from the audience...

I don't know... my body is a temple... I think that's just a narcissistic way of looking at the world. The Owl and the Pussycat is a temple- a temple of fringe art, an I feel privileged to be a part of it.

I've got a show opening at the Workers arms for the comedy festival- it's called 'The Gift'. I made one of my actors cry tonight. Comedy!

The other night I was up three stories on a ladder wearing tights and recovering a fake human skull off the roof. I found myself in the middle of doing this thinking- I love my life.

What an amazing ride.

If I had the chance, I'd probably do it all again.

Speak soon

x

You shot who in the what now?

Last Friday night myself and my housemate Matty walked down the street armed with three lengths of wood and a camera. We then approached the late night revellers (or as I call them the zombie parade due to the staggering and murmuring and incoherent garble... and the drooling and vomiting... zombies vomit right?) and we asked if we could take there photos armed with a piece of our wood (come on now get your mind out of the gutter). One of the lengths was about right for a rifle, one was a shotty and the other a handgun.

Perhaps it would be more fun to not explain this at all, but then I really used that as a launching pad into something else, which doesn't really work unless I explain myself.

So yeah It was for use by me as source photographs for the next series of paintings that I am making, and shall start paintings very soon.

The reason I am able to do this- hello apex of my launch- is that with the new volunteers I have just taken on at the Owl I suddenly find myself with a little bit of time to spare... and by spare I don't mean spare at all I just mean I can now start attending to all the things I haven't been able to attend to previously. Such as painting, washing, going to the dentist (eep), I fell like obtaining a semblance of a social life should be in there also although I don't wish to talk about that. And more over I've been told not to... By me. Jesus I can be a controlling fucker sometimes.

At any rate- yeah, I'm gettin my paint on. So so excited about that, I'm even considering turning my phone and computer off for a day. ooooh, I got a shudder just thinking about it... no, best not go nuts.

Meanwhile lots of exciting stuff coming up- art shows, theatre shows, madly renovating the theatre to get it ready for use in a couple of days. Finished revamping the stage tonight- it looks spiffo.

...spiffo?

anyway, good is what I mean... like Brady Bunch good - SPIFFO!

We have 2 shows on Saturday night- an art show in the gallery and a reading in the theatre. Looking forward to both, hope it goes well. None of the artists have actually been into the space before, they will be coming in tomorrow for the first time- hope they like it :) I'm sure they will, what's not to like- it's great!

I'm going to go now, my besty has just jumped onto skype so gonna go chat. He gets home from living overseas for a couple of years on Saturday too... I don't forsee me having an early night on Saturday. Must remember to cancel work on Sunday. Also cause I have rehearsals.

...mental note- stop double booking myself. a couple weeks ago I made plans with someone in Melbourne, whilst I knew I had tickets to Sydney- how did I think that was going to work?

best not think about it too hard... I know I didn't

Adios.

The plague

I have just removed about 15 locusts from my room.

There where about 50 of them lying dead at my door this morning.

And there are god knows how many others crawling through the house.

I'm no catholic but I am fairly sure that the bible mentions something about this and on the eve of a show opening tomorrow night called- "Never Forget you are Going to Die"... if I where a superstitious man (which I am) i might think this where a bad omen (which I don't) and I would cancel the show (Which I'm not).

*just removed another locust*

Has god sent me a plague in order that I see the light? I find that unlikely. I find it more likely that he/she/it sent me a plague to annoy me, which if that's the case he/she/they/it is starting to succeed, however I find that scenario even more unlikely.

Much more likely is that he/she/it/they/I had nothing to do with the plague of locusts descending on my house and skipping about my studio running into every surface they can find. It does of course leave me with the question... what the hell are they doing here?

I did read something about locusts descending on Melbourne, but I don't recall them mentioning that they where going to have a sleep over at my house. Had someone mentioned that to me I might have made some Queenslander-esk preparations. Perhaps I would have set up a room under the stairs, made a few little levels in there, set out some beds... or perhaps I could have made some tea, in tiny little cups. We could have all sat around and chatted about... oh I don't know... how long they plan to stay..? But no, no one warned me, everyone is all distracted by the catastrophically big cyclones and floods and such to worry about my insect infestation.

And in fact with all the stuff going on here and all the work I have to do i am finding it hard to worry about it too, it is still at the right level to be amusing... I wonder how many days it will be before it stops being amusing and I just want those stupid fucking insects out of my house. The really worrying thing is that they seem to have gotten into the walls... what if they start breading in there?

So in any rate I have a show opening tomorrow night in the gallery. First one of the year. It's called 'Never Forget you are Going to Die'... you should come down and see it. Especially if you like insects.

I don't have a beef. I'm vegetarian.

Well yesterday turned out to be a fucking great day and I had such small expectations for it. I had to work at my other job- Man With a Van, on a 40 degree day... not fun. But there was a very pretty girl who had her flirt and was not afraid to use it, then i found a new housemate... in fact 3... a french girl who is just staying for a couple of weeks, then a young couple- the girl from Oklahoma and the boy from France... so anyway, I can pay my rent... hazzah!

To celebrate I took myself out to dinner at a fancy/cheap restaurant on Victoria street and I accidently stumbled across a vegan restaurant that I have been looking for for ages... not sure if I could find it again but thoroughly enjoyed it while I was there. In fact I had a very lovely night out with myself, I talked about nothing much, ate a lovely meal whilst playing scrabble on my Iphone and then went to see Black Swan. My god that is psychotic, it's great. I think that girl needs to have a slice of cake, and maybe chill the fuck out a little bit.

I should introduce her to my theory of 80%

I have conflicting thoughts about this whole smoking crack down... yes I think that the big tobacco companies are a little evil, and I understand that it is bad for me, but once you have made me aware of that, I think that everyone else should just mind their own fucking business. We have to now order cigarettes without being able to see what we are buying? What the fuck? That is just cruel and unusual punishment. I see the next step in this campaign as being any number of the following:

1. We now have to walk blindfolded to an undisclosed location whereby a series of tobacco related products are placed in our hand and we have to grab hold when we feel like we have the one we want.

2. We must host a series of lectures on the dangers of smoking tobacco culminating in a presentation to a panel of judges who will score the accuracy and authenticity of your lecture and assign you an amount of cigarettes you may then buy from them at an inflated price (on top of their appearance fee of course) based on your overall score.

3. You may only buy cigarettes from an aboriginal child who is riding horseback naked on a Friday.

4. We have to recite the warning label on the product which we can't se before ordering the said product- "Smoking whilst pregnant may harm your baby, I'll have a packet of golden virginia please". Then if we guessed the correct label we obtain the privilege of buying said product, if not, we must leave the store for no less than one hour.

5. You may no longer exchange money for cigarettes but instead barter for them with your presmoked organs.

...okay so as I type this I have just been invaded by a swarm of small bugs that have obviously been attracted by the light on in my room... and I had the window open being that it was so hot... closed the window now and there has to be at least 200 of them crawling on the glass, trying to get in... that doesn't freak me out at all... no, not at all. Dare I succumb to the lure of the can of morteen sitting in my bedroom? I could so easily kill you all you little fuckers... but no... live and let live, I'll just turn my fan on.

So we had our first meeting for 5pound theatre tonight. We have a very very full year ahead, having our launch mid April... lots of work to do before then, I have to design costumes, shoot video's audition acrobats... what a weird and wonderful life I have.

goodbye chickens... speak soon.

5.

3.

Standing at the gate

Well, after reading my first blog, written nearly a year ago, I have 2 thoughts:

1. I didn't really make this blogging thing into the regular practice that I had intended.
2. Perhaps it was a wee bit personal. And perhaps a little bit depressing. Poor poor me- what a hard life I live :P

Meh, perhaps, perhaps... it also however got me thinking about all the stuff that has happened between then and now. So many great things, and crap things.

My wallet got stolen last week, that is a crap thing, but I now have my own theatre, we'll call that a good thing, and yeah- not exactly on the same level.

I can't help remember - and by remember I mean remind myself- when I get into my bitter little headfucking spins (much like the one I was in the throws of last time I blogged) that I really live a bloody good existance, and standing in the shoes of my younger self, when asked what type of life I would like when I grew up, living above my own theatre and gallery and bar and soon cinema... well it wouldn't be too far from what I dreamed... and at the time it would have seemed like a childhood dream kind of akin to "when I grow up I want to be a firetruck!"

I do still kind of have an inexplicable urge to take the firemans test.

But firefighting aside this is not such a bad life really - I never have 2 dollars to rub together, and my private life... well yeah, we won't talk about that... but art sprouts life all around me and the many and varied people that have come into my life, some just passing through, some on extended vacation and others taking residence... you can never know what life would be like if you made a different decission somewhere along the way, but it is even harder for me to imagine that anything I did- 2 years ago, homeless, penniless, depressed, and directionless... that any decision I made could have led to a better life than this.

So that's me... how about the gallery?

Truth is I get so sick of talking about it it's really hard to blog about. I'm in love with the Runcible Spoon, I stand in there sometimes and play with the lights, and I really think it's one of the loveliest theatres I've ever been in... but then I am biased.

The new bar area... it's coming along, I've been building the bar this week and it's going well, part of the bar is actually being turned into an artist shop which I am quite excited about.

At the front of one of the bars I am building a giant ant farm, actually scratch that, I have built it already, and bought the sand- I think the sand would be so much more awesome if it was green. Surprisingly Bunnings don't stock green sand. Weird. I think I might try food dye.

Then there is the problem of finding enough ants to inhabit it. Apparently they all need to be from the same colony- anyone have an ant infestation? They are one of the few critters we've never actually seen around the gallery.

Matto's show will be kicking off the new year and I love it, and I'm not just saying that cause there is a high likelihood that he will read this, I hope it goes well.

And I am going to end it there for now.

But I will, I will update this blog on a more regular basis... and once I have achieved that I can spend less time playing catch up and swimming in vagueties of general howsitgoing, and I can spend more time talking about the here and now, day to day. To delve into the emotion and the trials and tribulations and... whatnots of running the Owl.

That's it. All done.
Over and out for now.