"it's a town full of losers / i'm pulling out of here to win"
1. House is on hiatus for three weeks, and yet you guys get a post anyway!! Ahahaha, apparently I have things to ramble about. I promise to catch up on my flist - I'm days as opposed to weeks behind, so I'm optimistic I can do it this time!
2. The gif that follows is always relevant (LuPwning is ALWAYS relevant), especially since I'm currently reading Patti's memoir and totally having a ball doing so.
HBIC, yo.
However much gloss and shine and rose-tinted happy is painted over real-life events and trauma (and to Patti's credit, she talks quite frankly about her "moments" with Valium and booze), I love reading memoirs and getting stories and context for movies or musicals or shows I adore. Like, reading about the entire debacle that was The Baker's Wife and its troubled progress towards Broadway = awesome. I'm currently in the Les Miz section, and already I don't want it to end.
Favourite quotes from her memoir so far:
This was getting ridiculous. I had done almost a dozen plays since Evita and none had been hits. Or even semi-hits. And all my reviews stank. And I still didn’t have a boyfriend. I’ve gotta get out of this chapter quick. It’s depressing me.
HA.
The barricade scene is the only scene the actress playing Fantine is in [as part of the ensemble], and only because Sally Mates called me out, the raving bitch, as I stared at the rehearsal onstage too jet-lagged to react with my usual lightning speed. I never forgave Sally. She laughed her head off at me every night in the scene.
Theatre history in the making, PLUS Patti being a sassy divatastic bitch goddess? A+++
And this Advocate article just popped up on my Tumblr feed:
Q: Are there any young performers on Broadway who remind you of yourself?
A: No, they broke the mold when they made me. [Laughs]
OMG she's awesome.
3. So yeah, I'm totally in the mood for reading the memoirs of theatre folk right now. After Patti, I'm gonna hit up Cheno's book, and then Dame Julie Andrews' - yes, I've owned both books for yonks but have just never had the time to get down to reading them. And here's a related question: which celebrity's memoirs would you most love to get the chance to read? I've decided over the past day that my top two picks right now are Hugh Laurie and Alice Ripley. He'd write a fabulously quirky, deeply British tome full of self-deprecation and wit... and well, I pretty much want to read anything Alice will have to say about show business!
4. Speaking of Hugh Laurie: I am SO EXCITED for his blues album SDKLHGSDFHDFLSHDFLS. It's going to be released next spring, and the behind-the-scenes pics released yesterday pretty much KILLED ME DEAD FOREVER. I MEAN, SERIOUSLY, HOW SEXY IS THIS:
HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG, HUGH AND A GUITAR
5. In other tv-watching news! CASTLE.
It's gonna take me a while to muster up quite the same level of fandorky flail for Castle as I have for House - in fact, I think I'm gonna put my flail muscles into cold storage and rest up for House's return in a couple more weeks. ;) BUT OMG CASTLE. THIS EPISODE. THIS SEASON. SLDKFHSDHFSLDFHDSLFSD IT'S SO DAMN GOOD THIS SEASON, I can't even. I mean - really. Castle's been disposable entertainment for me all along, since I caught up on the first two seasons over the summer. I ship Castle and Beckett, of course, and have an outsized crush on Richard Castle/Nathan Fillion. But omg THIS SEASON. SO EPIC IN SO MANY WAYS. Those final scenes in 3x06 were BEAUTIFUL. Kind of outlandish and a bit loosely plotted - as Castle tends to be - but I ADORED that moment when Beckett found Castle tied up and told him she was glad he was okay. And when she put her hand on his thigh and he took it and squeezed? LIKE SO:
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG (source)
SDHFLSDHFLSDKFHLSDFHDFHSL SO AMAZING THIS MOMENT. I like it as much for that bond between them - when she says she knows how he feels and he acknowledges that - as for the fact that we're getting to see Castle deal with a dose of angst and maybe, just maybe, have to grow up a little bit. Of course I adore everything about Castle and what he chooses to be (PERFECT MAN, I WILL BROOK NO ARGUMENT ON THIS), but I'm also a sucker for angsty awesome (Exhibit A: my enduring obsession with MiseryGuts!House and his miseryguts psyche). I think this is what's going to take Castle from disposable entertainment to full-out fandom - when the storylines and characters deepen and expand and grow richer. It's the exact reason that my favourite Castle episodes thus far - beyond this season's steampunk club episode - were the double whammy guest-starring Dana Delany. Because, oof, angst. I liked that the show turned expectations on its head and didn't make Beckett the victim/damsel in distress again - I had QUITE ENOUGH of Scully being constantly kidnapped and attacked and back-raped by giant alien slugs, thank you very much. Give Castle a burning obsession too, a sobering one that will remind him that he's not just playing with death, that his partnership with Beckett isn't just an adventure or a caper with no implications or consequences.
Otherwise, I loved the little moments of levity - as usual - throughout the episode. JELLY. AND CASTLE CORRECTING BECKETT'S HANDWRITING. AHAHAHAHA. Beckett calling Castle for counsel... except he was fresh out! And it seemed a bit far-fetched to me that 3XK didn't kill Castle, but I guess then you wouldn't have a new Uber-Villain. I DID like the fact that Martha figured out something was wrong the moment Castle told her that he loved her though. HA.
6. I am watching ENTIRELY too much tv this season - but isn't The Good Wife AMAZING this year?! I can't wait for Michael J Fox's guest appearance!! And I'm now also hooked on the adorably quirky, horrifically awesome Raising Hope. I figured that so many people whose taste I trust were enamoured of the show, so I gave it a shot and I'm SO GLAD I DID. I love the feel of the show - how it switches from hilarious to horrifying to deeply affecting and sweet in a matter of heartbeats. AND MARTHA PLIMPTON. OMG MARTHA PLIMPTON. I'm SO GLAD she's getting a show that allows her to be gloriously sassy (and weird as heck) every week. SHE'S PERFECT. AND I WANT HER TO WIN AN EMMY NEXT YEAR. Plus she needs to sing on Raising Hope. Like, every episode.
I HAVE BEEN BASICALLY LISTENING TO THIS ALL NIGHT: Martha singing the Boss' Thunder Road.
YOU'RE WELCOME. ISN'T SHE AMAZING. ASDKLHSDLFHSDLFHSDFLS I've been listening to Alice's version for the last week or so - yes, having a Ripley moment still - and Martha's is gorgeous too. I've been listening to it ALL NIGHT.
I love how flail goes around and around and then comes around again - see this post, specifically point 6(c). I certainly didn't go to see Pal Joey for Martha - I went for Stockard, thanks very much - and I thought Martha was absolutely kickass fabulous in her role. Now I want to go look for my (untracked) audio from years (22 months!!) ago and track it so I can listen to Martha kick butt on Zip.
7. And HOW is it that I've been typing up this post for hours?! Urgh, I was supposed to sleep at a bit more of a respectable time today, since this week really is a complete killer for me work-wise. I have so much JUNK to do, and so many things to (re-)write and urgh DO NOT WANT ANY OF IT. Bedtime now, really. Sigh.
2. The gif that follows is always relevant (LuPwning is ALWAYS relevant), especially since I'm currently reading Patti's memoir and totally having a ball doing so.
HBIC, yo.
However much gloss and shine and rose-tinted happy is painted over real-life events and trauma (and to Patti's credit, she talks quite frankly about her "moments" with Valium and booze), I love reading memoirs and getting stories and context for movies or musicals or shows I adore. Like, reading about the entire debacle that was The Baker's Wife and its troubled progress towards Broadway = awesome. I'm currently in the Les Miz section, and already I don't want it to end.
Favourite quotes from her memoir so far:
This was getting ridiculous. I had done almost a dozen plays since Evita and none had been hits. Or even semi-hits. And all my reviews stank. And I still didn’t have a boyfriend. I’ve gotta get out of this chapter quick. It’s depressing me.
HA.
The barricade scene is the only scene the actress playing Fantine is in [as part of the ensemble], and only because Sally Mates called me out, the raving bitch, as I stared at the rehearsal onstage too jet-lagged to react with my usual lightning speed. I never forgave Sally. She laughed her head off at me every night in the scene.
Theatre history in the making, PLUS Patti being a sassy divatastic bitch goddess? A+++
And this Advocate article just popped up on my Tumblr feed:
Q: Are there any young performers on Broadway who remind you of yourself?
A: No, they broke the mold when they made me. [Laughs]
OMG she's awesome.
3. So yeah, I'm totally in the mood for reading the memoirs of theatre folk right now. After Patti, I'm gonna hit up Cheno's book, and then Dame Julie Andrews' - yes, I've owned both books for yonks but have just never had the time to get down to reading them. And here's a related question: which celebrity's memoirs would you most love to get the chance to read? I've decided over the past day that my top two picks right now are Hugh Laurie and Alice Ripley. He'd write a fabulously quirky, deeply British tome full of self-deprecation and wit... and well, I pretty much want to read anything Alice will have to say about show business!
4. Speaking of Hugh Laurie: I am SO EXCITED for his blues album SDKLHGSDFHDFLSHDFLS. It's going to be released next spring, and the behind-the-scenes pics released yesterday pretty much KILLED ME DEAD FOREVER. I MEAN, SERIOUSLY, HOW SEXY IS THIS:
HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG, HUGH AND A GUITAR
5. In other tv-watching news! CASTLE.
It's gonna take me a while to muster up quite the same level of fandorky flail for Castle as I have for House - in fact, I think I'm gonna put my flail muscles into cold storage and rest up for House's return in a couple more weeks. ;) BUT OMG CASTLE. THIS EPISODE. THIS SEASON. SLDKFHSDHFSLDFHDSLFSD IT'S SO DAMN GOOD THIS SEASON, I can't even. I mean - really. Castle's been disposable entertainment for me all along, since I caught up on the first two seasons over the summer. I ship Castle and Beckett, of course, and have an outsized crush on Richard Castle/Nathan Fillion. But omg THIS SEASON. SO EPIC IN SO MANY WAYS. Those final scenes in 3x06 were BEAUTIFUL. Kind of outlandish and a bit loosely plotted - as Castle tends to be - but I ADORED that moment when Beckett found Castle tied up and told him she was glad he was okay. And when she put her hand on his thigh and he took it and squeezed? LIKE SO:
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG (source)
SDHFLSDHFLSDKFHLSDFHDFHSL SO AMAZING THIS MOMENT. I like it as much for that bond between them - when she says she knows how he feels and he acknowledges that - as for the fact that we're getting to see Castle deal with a dose of angst and maybe, just maybe, have to grow up a little bit. Of course I adore everything about Castle and what he chooses to be (PERFECT MAN, I WILL BROOK NO ARGUMENT ON THIS), but I'm also a sucker for angsty awesome (Exhibit A: my enduring obsession with MiseryGuts!House and his miseryguts psyche). I think this is what's going to take Castle from disposable entertainment to full-out fandom - when the storylines and characters deepen and expand and grow richer. It's the exact reason that my favourite Castle episodes thus far - beyond this season's steampunk club episode - were the double whammy guest-starring Dana Delany. Because, oof, angst. I liked that the show turned expectations on its head and didn't make Beckett the victim/damsel in distress again - I had QUITE ENOUGH of Scully being constantly kidnapped and attacked and back-raped by giant alien slugs, thank you very much. Give Castle a burning obsession too, a sobering one that will remind him that he's not just playing with death, that his partnership with Beckett isn't just an adventure or a caper with no implications or consequences.
Otherwise, I loved the little moments of levity - as usual - throughout the episode. JELLY. AND CASTLE CORRECTING BECKETT'S HANDWRITING. AHAHAHAHA. Beckett calling Castle for counsel... except he was fresh out! And it seemed a bit far-fetched to me that 3XK didn't kill Castle, but I guess then you wouldn't have a new Uber-Villain. I DID like the fact that Martha figured out something was wrong the moment Castle told her that he loved her though. HA.
6. I am watching ENTIRELY too much tv this season - but isn't The Good Wife AMAZING this year?! I can't wait for Michael J Fox's guest appearance!! And I'm now also hooked on the adorably quirky, horrifically awesome Raising Hope. I figured that so many people whose taste I trust were enamoured of the show, so I gave it a shot and I'm SO GLAD I DID. I love the feel of the show - how it switches from hilarious to horrifying to deeply affecting and sweet in a matter of heartbeats. AND MARTHA PLIMPTON. OMG MARTHA PLIMPTON. I'm SO GLAD she's getting a show that allows her to be gloriously sassy (and weird as heck) every week. SHE'S PERFECT. AND I WANT HER TO WIN AN EMMY NEXT YEAR. Plus she needs to sing on Raising Hope. Like, every episode.
I HAVE BEEN BASICALLY LISTENING TO THIS ALL NIGHT: Martha singing the Boss' Thunder Road.
Click to viewYOU'RE WELCOME. ISN'T SHE AMAZING. ASDKLHSDLFHSDLFHSDFLS I've been listening to Alice's version for the last week or so - yes, having a Ripley moment still - and Martha's is gorgeous too. I've been listening to it ALL NIGHT.
I love how flail goes around and around and then comes around again - see this post, specifically point 6(c). I certainly didn't go to see Pal Joey for Martha - I went for Stockard, thanks very much - and I thought Martha was absolutely kickass fabulous in her role. Now I want to go look for my (untracked) audio from years (22 months!!) ago and track it so I can listen to Martha kick butt on Zip.
7. And HOW is it that I've been typing up this post for hours?! Urgh, I was supposed to sleep at a bit more of a respectable time today, since this week really is a complete killer for me work-wise. I have so much JUNK to do, and so many things to (re-)write and urgh DO NOT WANT ANY OF IT. Bedtime now, really. Sigh.