Pretty in Pictures
Originally published at The Off-Center. Please leave any comments there.
After I interviewed at the New School, I became obsessed with the idea of finding non-writing-related hobbies. During said interview, I was asked, “So, what do you do outside of writing?” I stared, blinking, at my interviewer and wracked my brain for what felt like a small stretch of fucking forever before I stammered, “Uh - Friends. I have friends that I… see and, you know, go out with and… we do stuff.” I was on their list of top 20 prospective students, however I was not accepted into their 12-writer program. I think it’s because of how extraordinarily I bombed that interview. Whatever, I go to Columbia.
However, since then, I have developed a number of new hobbies. The only one I picked up that hasn’t stuck is knitting - I don’t seem to have the patience. But I love my yoga, I dig the light gaming I do, I’ve even picked up my guitar from time to time (til the strings snapped a few weeks ago; must replace). But I think what I enjoy the most is my graphic design. It’s so good to have photoshop again! Instead of working on a scene that I need to finish by the end of today to send to the people putting together the show that goes up on Wednesday… I have created 3 new header images for the NEW & IMPROVED off-center. I also rethought the whole idea of this blog, so if you see a change in tone, my new about section will explain why. In any case, when you visit this site - or when you press the refresh button - you will see one of four new header images, three of which are Jenny Originals! One is a super-awesome image that I could not bring myself to alter in any way (”What You Once Knew Is Gone”), so we can all enjoy that as it is. But take a look - pictures are fun! And have nothing to do with the act of writing!
Aside from the fact that I broke my toe (how fucking stupid is that?) and my laptop battery has fizzled out and died completely, things have turned around. Hormonally, I am leveling out, which has given me a clarity that has allowed the creative juices to start a-flowin’. And just in time, too. As I said, I am wasting time here when I should be writing a scene for a show that goes up in less than a week (WOO!), but I am so thrilled to have had a viable idea for one of the two (!!!) shows I have going up in the spring. I can fix it! I will fix it! As it turns out in this particular instance, drugs were, in fact, the answer. Who’d'a thought?
On Wednesday, I was back in the rehearsal room with an amazing director, dramaturge and cast of actors working on a short play [©2009] we workshopped with Anne Bogart in our collaboration class. Unfortunately, one of our actors sprained his ankle, which makes our intensely physical blocking and dance sequence a mite challenging. But this group is so awesome, we put him in a wheel chair and somehow managed to make it funnier than it had been in the workshop. The script is good, it’s a solid backbone, but it’s not even a third as funny as the actors and the director have made it. That’s the thrill of working with truly talented people. Individually, you’re good, you’re solid. But together, you’re unstoppable.
That’s why I’m particularly excited about the group-created piece I’m doing with another one of the lovely SoA directors this fall, all based on the work of Kafka. Any particular favorites of his work that you might have, please send it my way.
Anyway, I should be working. Classes haven’t even started, and already I’m procrastinating. Great way to start things off, Jenny. Get to work.