Its official: YURI'S NIGHT 2009 @ WAREHOUSE DC!!!!

That's right, you heard it here first. Yuri's Night 2009 got the official green light for April 11 @ the Warehouse Arts Complex. So polish up that space suit, cuz we are going to start the countdown clock RIGHT NOW:

64 days Until Yuri's Night 2009!!!

Over the next few weeks I will start putting promotion into high gear...and sending out a call to artists...and getting the burlesque acts together...and update/improve the website...and the bands...and the DJs...and the vodka sponsorships...and the decor....and....and...(just drop me a line if you would like to get involved in any way...)

Now on to the recent past. As promised, below are some photos from the DC Mardi Gras debutante pushing madness!

Mike, Jared, Matt and Scott...did you know we all had the same tailor?

You can see the fear in my eyes!

Psst...Scott must be drinking...he's seeing elephants!

So, there are a number of other photos posted on Facebook (which more prominently feature my lovely wife, Kirstra and Rob) but I don't want to be redundant with the ole bandwidth...lets just say that there's lots of photos of when we were waiting to go push...but precious few of the actual madness in the ballroom, because, well, we were pretty focused on staying alive AND pushing...

The other big accomplishment this week can be filed under: "ask and ye shall receive". You see, I was working on the design for Follies, and I realized that what I really needed for Act II was a large group of cherubs. But it would be a giant pain in the butt making a multitude of heavenly host in the shop. I remembered that Pentagon City Mall uses cherubs for their Christmas decor...one volley of emails and phone calls later, and they are asking me to haul away all of their cherubs, because they were throwing them away...

Six large, and four small gold cupids on the scene shop floor

Here I am demonstrating how they are going to be suspended at the theater (and demonstrating relative scale...the big ones are about 3 1/2 foot tall!)

Needless to say, I am incorporating them into the second rounds of design for follies:

Follies Act I second sketch
Pencil and Photoshop, 1/8"=1'

Follies Floorplan
Vectorworks, 1/8"=1'

Follies Act II second sketch
Pencil and Photoshop, 1/8"=1'

This next week I am going to "come to Jesus" on the final designs for follies...paint 90% of MUMBO...and have first production meetings for Yuri's Night and WALMARTOPIA...

Mumbo Second Draft

Ive accomplished a lot this week, even though I only have one picture to show for it. In fact, this may not seem like much, but getting the second sketch done for Mumbo has really propelled that project into the "Oh Crap that's really happening" category...

MUMBO Second Sketch
Watercolor and Photoshop 3/8"=1'

So, what happened was that all movement on Mumbo ground to a halt because funding on both ends had failed to materialize. I didn't want to commit to ordering lots of scenery equipment (pipe and drape, paint and whatnot) without a solid commitment that it would be paid back, (not to insinuate that they aren't good for it, but its theater...) So, I basically couldn't start working on it. Additionally, they were hoping to "workshop" the show in Vermont in the three weeks before it opens in Baltimore. So, that means I needed to have the whole shebang complete by Valentines Day...

What approval of this design does is enable me to use the black velour that I have been using for Diamond Dead, Dutch Oven, Spooktacular, etc. Which is great, because I have it in hand, it costs me very little in up front costs (although the stuff is valuable in and of itself, so its not "free") and it enables me to paint in a "black velvet" sort of way, which is what I have been doing thematically for a while now...in short, a win win.

I will start working on that this week, and hopefully have some photos to share in the next, er, two weeks.

I have also been plugging away at Follies. The director basically re-assessed the direction that the set was going in during my first drafts, and has pushed me in the direction of a more "unit" set. Which is actually a relief, because there were a great number of unknowns in the first incarnation. I don't have much to show at this point, because I have been refining the design mostly on paper, and don't want to scan stuff just for the sake of scanning...so you will just have to wait until next week.

I am looking forward to this weekend, where its that time of year again, time to push debutantes! You can go here to get a small sampling of the craziness that is the indoor DC Mardi Gras. As a bonus, I have roped KT and several other friends of mine into the pushing this time! I will definitely take photos this year!

OBAMA INAUGURATION BLOW BY BLOW...WITH PICTURES!

Please enjoy this summary of our inauguration experience...

It was a pretty exciting and frustrating day for us. We got up at 7am and KT, Jaya, Molly (Jaya's friend) James (an Olney intern) and I piled into the Echo and headed downtown.

Jaya, Kate, Molly and James...note the soon to be ill-fated coffee...

We got as far as Florida and Georgia and had to park the car because of National Guard troops blocking 7th.

National Guard @ 7th and Rhode Island Ave.

It was cold at 8:30 AM that morning:

Nineteen Degrees in Chinatown, 8:30am

We walked the rest of the way to the 7th street entry point (the intersection that Woolly Mammoth Theater and the Bead Museum are at) and hit a large crush of people trying to get into the gate.

This is 7th St looking North. The photo was taken by a guy on a light pole I handed my camera to

We stayed there, squished together in an "almost deadly crushing situation"for about an hour when we were told that the generator that powers the 4(!) metal detectors was broken and that they weren't letting anyone in.

This is 7th street looking south at the gate and the generator that was supposedly broken...just barely visible in this photo are the policemen in the windows of the second floor of the building with the blue awnings. They had Krispy Kreme donuts and were apathetically looking down at the situation below. 9:15am

Since that situation was about to become ugly, we backed out and went to 10th and E St. and got into the same sort of crush.

10th and E St. Looking North. 9:30am

We got to 10 & E at 9:30...we didn't get through the "line" until 2:30 (!!!!)...there wasn't a single moment where I had enough personal space to lift my arms above my head (but the body heat was keeping us warm) and there was some pushing that had me scared for a moment or two...(one of the craziest things about this was that there were children and infants in the crush!)

10th and E St. Looking South towards the gate that we would pass through, over the course of the next five hours.

We heard the inauguration speech from Jaya's cell phone because there were no speakers set up to broadcast anything.

Jaya's cell phone, showing the inaugural speech...complete with faint, delayed and sporadic audio...(don't get me wrong, this is a friggin' miracle of modern science and technology...and makes me proud to be alive at this moment in history...) (shortly after noon)

Jared being optimistic about the future, and genuinely proud to be an American...

In fact, information was so scarce, that we had people standing on barricades trying to relay what was happening at the front of the line to the thousands crowded all the way up to F St, because the policeman who (rarely) came out with a bullhorn would only admonish us "not to push" (and he couldn't even be heard anyway) It seems that they were only letting 20 people in every five or ten minutes...you do the math...

Spirits still run high in the crowd

After being separated in the crowd a few times, we surged into the single door that got us into the tent with the x-ray machines. We turned on our electronic devices to prove that they weren't bombs (I guess) and we were finally in! (the first thing Molly did was pee, because she had been holding her 8:30 coffee for six hours!...the rest of us had to go too...but we were too resolved to get into the bleachers before they closed them when the parade started)

Our tickets for the bleachers for the parade said "White-B" as our section. and they also said to use the 10th and E entrance. But when we got in, we couldn't find the "White B" section, and every person that we asked (mostly police and the volunteers with the red hats) either didn't know, or sent us in the opposite direction. So eventually we talked out way into the "Grey-A" bleachers.

"I know my ticket says that I am in the wrong bleachers, but I'm just too sexy to be denied..."

The view of Pennsylvania Ave. from our adopted section of bleachers (3:00pm)

The parade started late because of the Kennedy situation, and it went by slowly once it started:

The Motorcycle color guard...

...The Drum and Fife Corps (?)

Jared Loves his now frozen wife...

Finally, at long last, we got to see Obama walking outside his car, and I got some blurry photos.

Believe it or not, this is the best photo I got of the new president and his wife...

This photo wins for "most in focus"

but it was so cold that we left after Biden went by...as did most of the crowd.

Joe and Jill...

But when we tried to exit, there was another crush to get out at the same entrance!

Eventually we got out of the secure zone, and made our way back to our car, all the while being diverted away from the convention center (our car was on the other side of it) taking us about 10 blocks out of our way...

Ive always wanted to take a picture of this sign, but never had an occasion until today! (5:30pm)

We went to the looking glass lounge to eat (because we hadn't eaten a "proper" meal since 7am) and had some of the worst service ever. When we got home, we decided that we were so tuckered out that the prospect of going to the "art of change ball" (to which we had tickets)
at the warehouse (inside the closed off street zone that we had crossed a few hours before) was just not in the cards for us.

Partygoers danced at the Art of Change Artists Ball at Warehouse Theater. (photo by Valerie Paschall) NOTE Jared's scenery in the background!

so we laid in bed for about 10 minutes before we were asleep with thoughts of Obama dancing in our heads...

However, aside for some ugly moments in the crowd (most of which are better suited for the retelling in person) everyone was pleasant, excited and patient. The one thing I will remember about this historical moment was that I have rarely been as close to my fellow Americans as I was while being crushed in the line...

This time next week, we'll be History!

Well, It was a quiet week in Lake Woebegone....

Actually, the pace has picked up considerably lately, largely due to the impending inauguration...I was able to build, paint and install the Obama Wonderama scenery (again, its actually going to be used all weekend, for four different events at the Warehouse...Saturday-Washington Film Institutes's Pre-Inaugural Ball...Sunday-Obama Wonderama...Monday-Private Event...Tuesday-Art of Change) But unfortunately for you loyal BTT readers, all I have to show you is a crappy cell phone photo of the results:

Obama Wonderama Scenery @ Warehouse Theater

This photo doesn't do the stuff justice...so you'll just have to see for yourselves (and I trust that someone will take a good picture over the course of the weekend, right?)
The much more cute crappy camera-phone photo is the one of my poor Isuzu, trying really hard to get into the spirit of its adopted homeland:


The other progress report this week is for Follies. I started to put the ideas down onto paper, and had a "first draft meeting" with the director. He was receptive to most of my ideas, and had plenty of constructive ideas on how to make the whole thing flow a lot better.

Follies "Act I" First Sketch
Pencil and Photoshop 1/8"=1'

Follies "Act II" First Sketch
Pencil and Photoshop 1/8"=1'

This show is going to be a colossal undertaking for TAP...and it still wont get me a WATCH Award nomination!

Musical Of Musicals the Musical OpensTONIGHT!

Musical of Musicals the Musical opens Friday. For those of you not familiar with the show, here is a brief outline taken from the Dominion Stage website:

Step 1: Take a plot straight from old melodrama.
Step 2: Take the same plot and concoct five spooofs in the styles of Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, Jerry Herman, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Kander and Ebb.
Step 3: Cast four dynamic and entertaining performers and one dazzling pianist!
Step 4: Shake it all up and serve one funny and entertaining show!

Ive seen some dress rehearsals, and its pretty funny...but the scenery is a bit difficult to capture on film:
Above is the Dear Abby! sequence of Musical of Musicals the Musical

And the finale, where all of the show titles are revealed...

This is my best attempt at making a "minimal" set...So I primarily used stock scenery, which was necessary because I had a budget of less than $300...

I am also working on the set design for Obama Wonderama at the Warehouse theater (actually, the scenery is going to be up for the whole weekend, spanning four events, so I needed to make it a bit more neutral than I normally do for a burlesque show...)

Obama Wonderama Scenery Sketch
Pencil and Photoshop

You can get your tickets here.
Speaking of L'il Dutch, I am going to be at the Dutch Oven tonight at the Palace of Wonders, they are having a Sci Fi themed show, where I will be giving away some Yuri's Night prizes! See you tonight!

YMIR!!!

Okay, so staying with the monster theme, I am starting another painting. This one is of the defeated Giant Ymir from the Sci Fi classic Twenty Million Miles To Earth. Considered one of Ray Harryhausen's masterpieces, it tells the story of a crash landed spacecraft returning from Venus that deposits a tiny monster into the Italian countryside. It grows exponentially, and eventually rampages in greater Rome before being killed by a wall collapse at the Colosseum. This sketch is based off of a still I found on the Internet, but I am trying to reimagine the scene a bit, so as not to literally transcribe the scene from the movie. I like to think that this is another Ymir that has been defeated by a new secret weapon that the military has been keeping for just such an occasion (hence the tank with the strange weaponry) but, in true X-Files fashion, there are some pitchfork wielding eye witnesses peering over the edge of the crater as well...

Defeated Ymir sketch
Watercolor on Paper 9"x12"

I've started the final painting this week, but will be interrupted by the impending holiday travel itinerary...I don't think I will get much done between now and the new year, so this may be farewell for a couple of weeks... When I return, I will probably have pictures of the dress rehearsals for Musical of Musicals the Musical!

Merry X-Mass and Happy New Year!

LEECH!

I have pulled out of the slump, and have started working again. I have thrown caution to the wind and started just painting whatever strikes me...so, without further adieu, I present a painting of a giant leech!

LEECH!
Acrylic on Board, 16"x20"

I have a few more sci-fi paintings brewing in me (just in time for the holidays) which is good because I will have plenty of work to display at Yuri's Night 2009!

Pulling out of the the three week funk

Yeah yeah, you've heard it all before, I have apologized for not blogging at the beginning of so many postings that its become a cliche...perhaps we can get past that by agreeing on a word that would substitute for the apology...like, say "Slogging" (combining Sloth and Blogging)...or perhaps an acronym like: NETBA, (Nothing Entertaining To Blog About) or NMGO (Not Much Going On) or AFCBL (Artistic Funk Check Back Later)...Suggestions?

Now that we have that out of the way, I will recap what has happened in the last few weeks: Not much. Well, not much by the standards here at BTT. Kyle Jarrow did stay with us when he saw President Harding is a Rock Star. He seemed impressed by the show (which I think he considers a callow work from his youth) and he was also impressed with KT's prowess on the Miss Pac Man machine at Chief Ike's...

Harding has closed, but fear not, a remount of A Very Merry Children's Scientology Pageant will soon be reopening in its place. If you didn't get a chance to see it last year, this will be your last best chance (see it this time around, before all of the kids voices change)


Thanksgiving came and went without too much hullabaloo...with the notable exception of my cat's colon troubles (He was literally saved from death row over the holiday...thank you Miralax!)

The day after Thanksgiving KT and I went to the They Might Be Giants concert at the 9:30 Club...they played all of the album Flood. It was a really great show that brought back all sorts of awkward memories of my misspent youth (sigh)

I did get some work done on the set for Musical of Musicals the Musical. I even made a model:

White Model for Musical of Musicals the Musical
Paper, Foamcore, Plastic Figures 1/4"=1'

Dominion is very excited about the show, and it has started building in the shop. They even made a Musical of Musicals the Musical promo video

If you are in Detroit on the 13th, go check out some of my velvet paintings at Chin's annual holiday show. You can go to the Cats Meow for more deets
And Lastly, just to prove that I have not been a total slacker, I have scanned some of my sketchbook pages from the past couple of weeks. As you can see, I have been "doodle until you get inspired mode"...I promise to keep you posted on how that strategy turns out...

Bouncing back....slowly

I have been taking it a bit easy since the Spooktacular, gradually getting myself together for the next set of projects (its interesting to note that last years post had a similar theme... as well as 2006's second November posting...)

Aside from a minor artistic crisis: "oh god, I don't have a show next week to paint pictures for, what will I do with myself?" I have started working on the set designs for Dominion Stage's Musical of Musicals the Musical.

First Sketch for Musical of Musicals the Musical
Pencil and Photoshop, 1/4"=1'

I've already had a discussion with the director, who correctly points out that I have forgotten about the piano player. I neglected to design a space for him because I just plain forgot that he was to be onstage at all times. So this is by no means going to be the final version. One of the elements that will stay in future incarnations is the "light box" effect I have pictured above. You see, each of the boxes with the name of the show on it (there are five shows within this show) is actually a back-painted muslin flat. When lit from behind, the name of the show (for example "Corn!") will appear as if by magic...or at least that's the idea...

Harding and Halloween Scenery Photos

This past week has really been a blur... the historic election of Barack Obama has kinda eclipsed everything that happened just a few days before. But just for the record, I have compiled some photos of the scenery for Spooktacular IX and President Harding is a Rock Star. (you can find lots of the drunken photos of the Halloween Party here)

View of the backyard just moments before the party started

"Kong" Photo Op
Painted Luan and reed fence, 9'x10'

Karaoke Hell backdrop
Acrylic on Black Velour, 12'x8'

The photos of Harding are not the end all be all, because they were hastily taken during the first dress rehearsal. But they do help give a sense of the flow of the show...

Harding and Flossy

Harding, just before "death" scene

Oval office fight scene (my favorite part of the show)

So, it looks like I will be hosting Kyle Jarrow, the author of President Harding is a Rock Star (and A Very Merry Children's Scientology Pageant) at my house next week when he comes into town to see the Landless Production. (so book your tickets for the 15th if you want to see the author's world ROCKED!)

I have some news that I am kinda proud of...but I don't want to tell you for at least 8 weeks...when its official...stay tuned...

This upcoming week I am going to working hard on the preliminary designs for Musical of Musicals the Musical for Dominion Stage. I will also be working on Follies and Mumbo off and on in addition to starting to get back into the swing of that whole velvet paintin' thang...