The meaning of Thanksgiving is often lost, buried beneath a pile of potatoes, drowned out by a chorus of football cheers on television, and, of course, family squabbles at the dining table. This is my favorite holiday. It is secular, involves no gift giving, and asks us only to be grateful for the bounty on our plates and in our lives. Indeed, we have much to be thankful for.
In a meditative vein, take a moment to pause on Thanksgiving and consider what you’re grateful for, and how you can be generous to others.
An interesting point was raised by Ron Van Lieu in class yesterday at The Actors Center. After offering some notes on a scene from “A Doll House,” the work started up again. After the second go around, Ron noted that the actress had taken his notes and veered straight into “character,” nearly forsaking the content of the “scene.” What she did was certainly entertaining, but it neglected something fundamental. Read more…
My latest Visions and Revisions blog post for IDP, “Gertrude Stein and Jay Z Votan Aqui,” is now online. Enjoy!
About this time last year I began my descent into a massive burnout. I had been energized by all the changes in my life – moving back to NYC, getting my career back on track, trying to make up for years in the matter of months – but in the process I overwhelmed myself, and by spring I was a weakened, babbling fool. Even now, when I think back at that period, though I’m stunned by everything that took place, it seems like madness to have attempted so much. Read more…
