Wednesday, May 22, 2019

Ragtime Through the Lens of Vaudeville

Ragtime, The Musical is—as creatively as ever—being present by Serenbe Playhouse through the lens of Vaudeville and it's magnificent! See it under their big top tent now through Sunday, June 9.


Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse
Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse  |  Photo: BreeAnne Clowdus


Ragtime opens with a number called "Ragtime" with the entire company on stage. 

This opening number introduces a story of changing times through the lives of three groups of people in early 20th century New York City. This is a story of trials and tribulations, heartaches and triumphs, of family, ambition, prejudice and compassion.

The three groups are African Americans—you'll meet Coalhouse Walker Jr., a Harlem musician; Eastern European immigrants—you'll meet Tatah, a Jewish immigrant from Latvia; and the white upper-class—you'll meet Mother, the matriarch of a NY family. None of the characters in the upper-class family have names; they're known only as Mother, Father, Little Boy, Younger Brother, and Grandfather.



Ragtime, The Musical is a musical with a book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen FlahertyRagtime is based on the 1975 book by E.L. Doctorow, which was on the New York Times Best Sellers List for more than three months that year!

Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse
Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse  |  Photo: BreeAnne Clowdus

It's difficult to have a single favorite actor from such a large cast, but I was moved by Jacob S. Louchheim's performance as Tatah, a Jewish immigrant and loving father who recently lost his wife and made his way to the U.S. from Latvia. 

You feel great empathy for Tatah's journey, past and present...it's an emotional roller coaster! His is a life of love and loss, rags-to-riches, profound fatherly love for his daughter (who is absolutely adorable!) and your heart is with him every step and song along the way.


Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse
Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse  |  Photo: BreeAnne Clowdus

Woven into the story are a number of historical figures including Harry Houdini, played brilliantly by Ethan Hall (Don't miss his steamy, theatrical entrance!), and Evelyn Nesbit beautifully portrayed by Niki Badua who won a Best Actress Suzi Bass Award for Serenbe Playhouse's Miss Saigon, and yes, she is "the most beautiful woman in the world". JP Morgan was performed wonderfully by Aaron Schilling who recently gained numerous credits in Serenbe Playhouse shows, including the phenomenal Titanic

You'll also see Booker T. Washington, Henry Ford and many more. The character list in Ragtime is not happenstance. In fact, each of the historical figures in the show had a role in shaping 20th century America.


Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse
Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse  |  Photo: BreeAnne Clowdus

With the backdrop of a fantastic set, superb lighting, brilliant costuming and amazing music, the cast of Ragtime spectacularly tells a mesmerizing, epic story of surprising interconnections of the human heart, discovering the American Dream, and the heartbreak when dreams are unjustly denied. You're going to see an amazing show!


Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse
Ragtime, The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse  |  Photo: BreeAnne Clowdus

Our group, pictured below, had the wonderful opportunity to meet and chat with Marcus Terrell Smith (Coalhouse Walker Jr.). He's a tower of talent, charm, humor, humility and his performance in Ragtime is beyond magnificent! This was his Serenbe Playhouse debut and even though he's not Atlanta-based, I do hope we get to see more of him.


Our Gang at "Ragtime" at Serenbe Playhouse
Our Gang at "Ragtime, The Musical" at Serenbe Playhouse | Photo: Jennifer

In our group of eight some had never seen Ragtime and for some this was their first Serenbe Playhouse show and some of us have been coming for years. The thread that ties us all together—some were even meeting for the first time—each and every one of us is a huge theatre enthusiast. I think I can speak for the group and highly recommend that you come to Serenbe Playhouse to see this magnificent production of Ragtime, The Musical.

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

"Big Bugs" is Brilliant!

David Harry Grodzinsky-Rogers' first all-natural materials sculptures were dinosaurs, so it's doubly befitting that the Fernbank Museum of Natural History hosts a "David Rogers' Big Bugs" exhibition!

Big Bugs will be on display in WildWoods at Fernbank through July 21, 2019, and is free with admission...and they're great FUN!


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

"It was in the fall of 1990, while staying on a cousin’s farm in Vermont’s Green Mountains that I encountered a maple sapling bent over from a previous winter’s ice storm. There was something about the curvature and posture of this particularly ravaged tree – a backbone to a large beast, perhaps that suggested a new life for the tree. Using dried branches and different varieties of tree saplings a 'dinosaur' sculpture emerged in twelve inspired days,"
David Rogers

David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

As soon as you walk into WildWoods—the 75-acre "backyard" at Fernbank—you see the first of the 10 really, really big bugs in the exhibition! 

Some of these bugs are rarely seen, so they're excellent for teaching kids about their important roles in nature and how many of them are "friends" to humans. Seriously! Did you know that dragonflies eat mosquitoes? I call that friendly! 


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

I would venture to guess that most of us know that a mating female Praying Mantis sometimes eats—as in consumes—her mate after mating. A regular practice in the mantid world, it doesn't deter male mantids from wanting to mate. 

The actual size of a Praying Mantis ranges from half an inch to six inches long! This one is massive and the welcoming sculpture in the exhibition.


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

When I was a kid, we used to play with Granddaddy Long Legs spiders! That must have been before seeing the classic 1977 William Shatner horror flick Kingdom of the Spiders! But then reading The Amazing Spider-Man comic books made spiders okay again, but we didn't play with them anymore. 

According to Guinness World Records, the largest spider in the world has a body that's a foot long! The one that set the record was discovered in 1965, so it's long gone. We just won't talk about what's still out there today, okay?

The spiders in the David Rogers' Big Bugs exhibition are anything but menacing, though. They're practically jovial! 


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

I mean, look at that face...it's adorable! It's Pixar-esque, right?


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

It's awesome that we get to see 10 "Big Bugs"! But, did you know that it's estimated that there are approximately 10,000,000,000,000,000,000 insects alive at any given moment? The idea of that is like imagining just how BIG the universe is! AND, insects very likely have the largest biomass of terrestrial animals. Bugs are totally fascinating, that's what I'm trying to say.


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Ladybugs are thought to bring good luck, so just imagine the LUCK a 7-foot long ladybug would bring a person! Then again, ladybugs are attracted to light colored houses, especially ones with a clear southwestern sun exposure. I wouldn't call an infestation of 7-foot ladybugs good luck, but you can't help but love just this one, right?

When I was a kid we had a collie named "Ladybug". We loved that dog sooooo much! Did you know that Lassie has her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? So does Bugs Bunny! Just sayin'.


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

I don't know what kind of spider this one is or if it's a general representation, but it made me think of the myths of "writing spiders" that I heard as a kid. I couldn't find any citations of these myths except for chat rooms where others recalled the same myths. What, if anything, did you hear about writing spiders when you were a kid?

The spider above is a fun one and the web...the web is fantastic! Of all the Big Bugs, this one is the one that you get to get the closest to, but remember, no touching! 

Speaking of touching, in my senior year of high school, a friend named Dreama had a pet tarantula. She bought it to school one day and the brave lad (read not-so-bright) that I was wanted to "hold" the spider. I let it crawl on my arm and within seconds of it climbing onto my arm the lights went out!!! I totally freaked for a second, but didn't move, during which time the lights came back on. That was an experience I'll never forget!


David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor
David Rogers' Big Bugs | Fernbank Museum of Natural History | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

This dragonfly is at the lower level of WildWoods, near the creek. Did you know that dragonflies begin their lives in water? Did you know that dragonflies have been around for 300 million years? Some fossil dragonflies have a wingspan of TWO FEET! This one is even bigger than its ancient ancestors!

Although their size may make them a bit underappreciated, insects, spiders and bugs act as many things from decomposers to pollinators, and even help with insect control...this outdoor installation offers an exciting new perspective on these creatures,” said Fernbank's Vice President of Programming, Bobbi Hohmann.

This is a must-see exhibition, not only for entomologists, but for nature-lovers, art-lovers, kids, kids-at-heart, and anyone with a spirit for fun. Go see the "David Rogers' Big Bugs" exhibition at Fernbank Museum of Natural History now through July 21!