Day 393 Pittsburgh Playhouse, Men on Boats- A Historic Comical Expedition: An Adventurous Spirit is Inclusive

 

Point Park Conservatory Theater recently brought Men on Boats, a tale of John Westly Powell's 1869 river exploration of the Grand Canyon, to the Pittsburgh Playhouse.  This play inspired by Powell’s actual travel logs intertwines history and humor.  It uses an all-female cast as male explores. This twist  celebrates the adventurous spirit in all of us.   

Refection

Powell (Haley Holme), a one armed Civil War veteran and a motley crew of 10, navigate 4 boats through sharp turns, rapids, whirlpools and waterfalls to map out this unknow territory.  There are many punches of humor such as hysteria ensuing when snakes are discovered in a boat and  Powell climbing  to safety with one arm.  

The company’s physicality is impressive as they row, swim when capsized, and kick through the water lined perimeter of the unique set. The occasional crew's rhythmic chants and percussion accompaniment emulates the monotony of a three month river ride. Their body language, like a pantomime, immerses the audience in the adventure.

Similar to the musical “Hamilton,” this play fueled my further investigation of the 1869 expedition. Fact cards about the original journey in the Playhouse lobby heightened the historic experience. 

Powell’s trip was the first recorded passage of  white men entering the Grand Canyon.  Men on Boats, gives us the first women.

It is a fresh perspective to see someone, who looked like me, conquer nature, even if that part is a fiction. What is not a fiction, are the numerous adventurous women that I have met and who’s stories are yet to be told. Men On Boats reminds us that the spirit of adventure and exploration is all inclusive.

(Pittsburgh Playhouse 22-23 season brings a variety of music, dance and drama to downtown Pittsburgh.  The Point Park Conservatory 22-23 season ends with  Sense and Sensibility -  go to  Pittsburgh Playhouse for tickets )

Spiritual Reflection

There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ. (Galatians 3:28)

 Other Sources

 https://playhouse.pointpark.edu/index

https://playhouse.pointpark.edu/shows-events/conservatoryTheatre/sense-and-sensibility

https://playhouse.pointpark.edu/shows-events/index

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/canyon-john-wesley-powells-first-expedition/

 

 

Day 392 Le Patin Libre-Pittsburgh Dance Council-Contemporary Dance on Ice- Not Disney on Ice

 

Pittsburgh Dance Council, a programing division of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust brought a unique outdoor dance experience to PPG Plaza on a chilly night with Le Patin Libre from Montreal. Since 2005, this group has reached the pinnacle of inventiveness by developing their own art form - contemporary skating.  They combine modern dance with the ability to glide which brings a new kind of visual experience that sure is not Disney on Ice.

 Reflection

Pittsburgh Dance Council brings new dance experiences to Pittsburgh (see Day 263  and Day 352 ). A cold Pittsburgh night could not keep many adventurous patrons way from  this dance on ice. These six skaters, or should I say dancers, transformed PPG Plaza into a magical world of storytelling by combining  movement, music and skating.  Their name, Le Patin Libre (French for “Free Skate”) is fitting. They were  not confined to any particular style of skating. They moved with intense speed, slow grace  and enough control to be motionless. 

tap skating 

The skates were fitted with microphones to amplify the sounds during “tap skating.”  The added clapping on the ice and from the  audience heightened the beat.

They called the second part of the show “pure glide.” The motion was freeing like watching the murmuration of birds in the sky with coordinated patterns or the changing configurations of a school of fish in the ocean.  At other times it was eerie  when the music clamored and creaked  like a sinking ship as they moved forward and back resembling a wave. 

motion resembling a wave

Le Patin Libre pushes the limits of dance with contemporary skating.  The excitement in seeing something so different yet so beautiful made this "not Disney on Ice experience" super cool on a cold night (pun intended). 

Braving the cold for Le Patin Libre

( For more information on upcoming events from the Pittsburgh Dance Counsel go to trustarts.org  or here. The next show is Alvin Ailey on May 9, 2023, see Day 376.)

Other Sources 

https://trustarts.org/production/81904/le-patin-libre

https://www.lepatinlibre.com/

https://trustarts.org/pct_home/events/series/pittsburgh-dance-council

 

Day 391- My First Celebration of International Women's Day revisited: Celebrate the special women in your life in March

 

 March 8th, International Women’s Day, is a day worth embracing.  It is a celebration with a political history but it is also a day to appreciate women.  In psychologist  Maslow's principle, the human need for  love and belonging  is third on  his  list to reaching our best self or self-actualization. This need can be  expressed in deep friendships  so I was excited when my friend invited me to my first celebration of La Festa Della Donna  (Italian International Women's day) in 2016.  Since then, throughout the month of March I  try to find creative ways to reach out and  celebrate the special women in my life.