Comedy/Tragedy Face: Actors Theater Late Seating

Today's blog about Actors Theater's April Late Seating is brought to you by the Comedy/Tragedy face. 


This Friday (April 15) is Late Seating at Actors.  Doors open at 10p. The show begins at 10:30p.  And get your tickets in advance because these shows often sell out.  (And this one likely will.)  Performers include music from Adventure, performances by Le Petomane and Johnny Dobring, and an audience-generated art project.  There will also be give-aways, a cash bar, and all kinds of other fun.  That's the happy, Comedy face part.


I've only made it to one Late Seating-- the one on the rooftop of the garage with the Pass back in Fall 2010, and it was one of my favorite nights in Louisville. I've also tried to go to two more, but they sold out.  I promised myself after the last sold-out show I missed that I would try to get to as many Late Seatings as possible...


So now the sad news (Tragedy face) from Actors' press release:  


For over 5 years and 20 successful performances, the Late Seating has showcased more than 80 local artists and entertained more than 3600 patrons. April's lineup marks the Late Seating's final program of the season and with this Actors Theatre today announced that the Late Seating Co-producers: Mike Brookes, Cathy Colliver, Matt Dobson, Paul Doyle and Emily Ruddock, will retire as creative and logistical curators of the series.... Late Seating will now enter a hiatus following the April 15^th performance. Actors will reconsider the series upon the arrival of its soon to be appointed Artistic Director. (emphasis mine)


Here's hoping Actors brings back Late Seating quick and in a hurry.  We wish Brookes, Colliver, Dobson, Doyle, and Ruddock the best and thank them for a great series.  And get those tickets early, kids.  Once word gets out that this could be the last Late Seating in a while, it's sure to sell out.

Change Your (writing) Life in Ten Days

I've written about Writers Retreat Workshop before. The last time, it was a bit more nuts and bolts. (Click on the link in the first sentence for that entry) But I'm going to pitch it again because it's such a huge, important part of my life.

Eight years ago (almost), I attended my first WRW. I won the Robin Hardy New Student Scholarship (PDF application) and got to go for free. But even when I found out that I had won free tuition, I was super skeptical. I think I was having a Woody Allen moment: Did I really want to be part of a club that wanted me as a member? But I got over my insecurities, in no small part due to some long and involved email correspondences with one of the staff members: a very patient, very persuasive man who will henceforth be known as "Roommate."

Yes, that Roommate.

WRW is a ten-day, very intensive (think "boot camp") residential program for aspiring novel writers. But in the past eight years, I've seen memoir writers and screenplay writers and short stories writers go through the program and benefit as much as I did.

For the past blue million years (well, ok, the program was founded in 1987, so that's hyperbole), WRW has been held at the Marydale Retreat Center in Erlanger, KY. And honestly, even back in 2002 when I first attended WRW, if you'd asked me what I thought about WRW, I would have said that I had had ten of the most perfect days of my life... except that the facilities were kind of shabby.

So this year, WRW has BIG news. The program is relocating to the Saint Joseph's Retreat Center in Owensboro, KY. And holy cow, this place looks GORGEOUS. And, best of all, Louisvillagers, it's still basically in our back yard!

Listen, WRW changed my life in so many ways. I know I've taken some time off from "serious" writing lately for any number of reasons, not the least of which has been the after-effects of chemo. So I may not strike you as a "serious" writer. But I used to be. Pre-cancer, fiction writing was part of my daily life. And I hold out so much hope that this summer I'll be able to be a "real" writer once again. But before WRW, my writing was a hobby. Like scrapbooking or collecting troll dolls. After I went to one WRW, I felt legit. I felt validated. I felt like I knew so much more about not only the craft of writing but the business of writing. And don't kid yourself, kids, writing is very much a business.

But no smoke and mirrors here: WRW gave me so much more than that. WRW gave me Roommate, my very best friend and partner in crime since 2002. A couple years after I first attended, the founder retired and handed the reins over to Roommate, and he has run it ever since. And I have to admit, when I see Roommate teach the new student classes, I get chills.

WRW also gave me a new family of all of the attendees since 2002 and the core staff. It gave me a built-in cheerleading section for all of my successes since 2002, and a source of support for all of my trials since then.

And, frankly, I think you'd be hard pressed to find an attendee who didn't feel exactly the same way.

Do you need a "name" to attract you to program? How about this one: Michael Palmer. Palmer is the author of 14 medical thriller novels, some of which have ended up on the NYTimes bestsellers list. Palmer and his son, Daniel, a debut novelist, will be there teaching classes. In past years, the program has featured teachers/guests (both in person and via teleconference) such as Dean Koontz, Ayelet Waldman, Nancy Picard, Gregory McDonald, and Trish McGregor.

Folks who have been through the program and gone on to success include: Janet Chapman, Christine Goff, Jack Getze, Kimberly Frost... and many more.

You fancy yourself a writer? A fiction writer? A novelist? Gosh darn, kids... I promise you, you won't regret attending the Writers Retreat Workshop. You just won't. Expert advice. Thoughtful guidance. Good damn people. Always.

You want to know more? Email me at lou (at) loueyville.com. I will answer your questions and give you more personal testimony.

In the meantime: This year's WRW is June 10-19 in Owensboro, KY. I'm 99.9% sure that the new student scholarship is still accepting applications. Pass this along to your writer friends. I would sure love to welcome them into MY WRW family.

Visit the website at: Writers Retreat Workshop

The CJ gets all Artsy

I haven’t had a chance to pick up today’s copy of the Courier Journal, but apparently it’s quite the big deal. It is, literally, a work of art.

Just yesterday, the folks on NPR were talking about the possible demise of the Boston Globe. The BOSTON FRAKING GLOBE!?!! Amazing. And today our CJ, rarely a paper to admire, does something remarkable. Check it out. Save it. It’s bound to be a collectable.

Here’s the article about the new artwithoutwalls public art initiative.

Today the CJ also gave some love to the InKY folks who are celebrating National Poetry Month with a “Poem in your Pocket” event tonight at 7pm at the Rud. (btw: the “official” Poem in Your Pocket Day is 4/30—I’ll share more on that later).

Happy Friday!!

I barely know what I'm doing tomorrow: Actors' 2009-10 Season Sneak Peek

How'd this fly under my radar? Actors has already revealed a sneak peek at its upcoming season, and it looks like good stuff. I'm just going to list the titles and give you the links so you can check out the descriptions yourselves.

• Lookingglass Alice adapted from Lewis Carroll
• Midsummers Night's Dream by Uncle Will
• A Christmas Story based on the movie by Jean "You'll Shoot Your Eye Out" Shepherd
• Crime & Punishment based on Dostoevsky
• Ella about Ella Fitzgerald
• The Cherry Sisters
• And of course the Humana Festival, Dracula, and A Christmas Carol.
  

A little light on the “new,” IMHO, but I guess Humana makes up for that. The Cherry Sisters sounds great. And I’m always up for some Shakey-baby and anything Alice in Wonderland.

Here’s the link to the sneak peek page: http://www.actorstheatre.org/seasonpreview.htm
Best thing about this announcement: You can purchase a 2009-10 membership at your CURRENT membership rate.

Tori Murden McClure and Bob Edwards at the Kentucky Center 4/14

In 1999, Tori Murden McClure rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean, starting in the Canary Islands and ending in Guadeloupe. 81 days. 2,962 miles (so sez the Wikipedians). McClure, who is a vice president at Spalding University, is also the first woman to ski over land to the South Pole. Now this Loueyvillager has published a memoir called: "A Pearl in the Storm: How I Found My Heart in the Middle of the Ocean."

Personally, Lou hates being wet and hates being cold, so I waffle between being very, very impressed and thinking "this chick is nuts." But that's just me.

On April 14, McClure will be discussing her book with Bob Edwards, one of my all time favorite Loueyvillagers (and Facebook friend-- I LOVE his updates. Was so sad when his status went from "In a Relationship" to "It's Complicated"). The event is being held at the Bomhard Theater at the Kentucky Center for the Arts.

6pm Pre-sale of the books (sponsored by Carmichael's)
7pm Interview with Bob
8pm Book signing

$15

I'm so excited to see Bob. Maybe I can help uncomplicate his relationship. Sigh. (Yes, Mama has weird crushes... but that voice... hubba hubba)

Authors at Carmichael's on Frankfort Tonight 7:30p

(cross-posted from Lou Reads)

Jason Sanderson is a very sad man. He has a sad job (repo man). His family life is sad-- first wife and only child are both dead. His current home life is sad-- he's married to a woman who neither understands him (keeps dragging him to new age-y couples groups) nor his loss (stages a horribly gauche and insensitive sort of grief intervention on the 10th anniversary of the death of the son-- perhaps the most brilliantly written and upsetting scene in the book).

Lory Llewellyn is a very sad woman. She has a sad job (accountant for her skeezy step dad's eponymous hotel). Her family life is sad-- mom ran away and stepdad is, as I said, skeezy, and an alcoholic. Her current home life is sad-- almost ten years ago her lover died in a helicopter crash and she's never recovered. She's a cutter. She's reclusive.

The parallel stories of these two depressed and depressing folk who share their love and loss of Sam Sanderson, Jason's son and Lory's lover, run in elegant and poetic prose until they converge (perhaps inevitably, but somehow the convenience is tempered by how poetic the whole book is). Infused with and often critical of both quack spirituality and the "real" deal, MOTEL OF THE MYSTERIES is an exploration of grief, of family, of dependancy.

This is a sad book. It will make you hurt. But the writing is so extraordinarily good that you'll enjoy that pain. This is McElmurray's second novel. The first, STRANGE BIRDS IN THE TREE OF HEAVEN, was also a gorgeously crafted book, but it was a little harder to follow, a little more abstract. MOTEL has been very well received. One blogger named it her novel of the year.

McElmurray was born and raised in Kentucky. Her book is published by the local Sarabande Books as part of the Linda Bruckheimer (who I keep confusing with Linda Wurthhiemer) Series in KY Literature (click here) -- which I'd never heard of until I came across this book.

And she's reading tonight (with Sean Hill and Elizabeth Bradfield) at 7:30pm at the Frankfort Avenue Carmichael's. Check it out and pick up the book.

Who didn't feel like Angela Chase?

[Cue voiceover: a stilted, moody, somewhat melodramatic teen girl. One gets the sense she'd make a good Juliet some day.]

You know how sometimes... it's the little things that make you proud of a place? Like when the weather's been bad? And you're not really sure what you're doing here? And you miss all the people you left behind when you came here? And then something really small makes you suddenly feel like you... belong? Like you need to be here. Like things are happening, and maybe you want to be part of this place that's changing?

Things like IdeaFestival and Waterfront Wednesday do that for me. Forecastle Fest and Good Folk Fest. Stuff like that. Places you can go and feel like this city is full of really amazing people thinking and doing and creating really amazing things. And it's like you're not in Kentucky after all, not the Kentucky that you've been warned about. It's like you're someplace... else. Someplace better.

So tonight? Tonight I went to see My So-Called So-Called Life at the Kentucky Center and it was like that. I'm not really even sure I liked it or understood it, but I was, like, wow. This is dark; this is surreal. There are real-live teenagers on that stage, like, grappling with some seriously twisted and difficult stuff. There are, like, real-live teen girls on that stage... making out! And nobody's walking out. Nobody's flinching. More importantly, there had to be tons of real-live adults behind that production who decided that it was okay, that this is theater, that this is art. And that in the real world, real-live teenagers grapple with their identities and with all kinds of pain every single day.

And it, like, made me proud, you know? It made me proud to know that there's a place in this city like Walden Theater where they're not afraid to tackle these sort of issues. And where they, you know, honor the humanity of teenagers.

It's weird. It's like you go to the theater to be entertained, and you come away... struck.

My apologies to Angela Chase...

There's only two more shows of My So-Called So-Called Life. And, you know, I'm not sure I really liked it. It was dark; it was weird. Some of it felt vaguely awkward. But, man, you can't help but be thrilled for them: for Walden, for the parents, for everyone behind that production. Because if nothing else, it pushed....

If you've been weighing whether or not to go, I implore you to go see it. Not because it's great theater-- although the young woman who played Pearl was stunning-- but because the house was less than half full tonight. And it would be really nice to send a message to Walden.

And that message would be: Thanks. Thanks for crossing some pretty forcefully defended teen theater lines. Those kids who grapple, who are grappling... I'm sure they're wicked grateful. And so are the adults who support them.

Bluegrass Hotel Project

When I first found out I was moving to Kentucky (I make it sound like it came as a surprise, but it was me who made the decision to move), the first thing I thought of was how happy I was to be moving to the "bluegrass" state. Back when Roommate and I were an item, and he lived in Tennessee and I lived in NOLA, my favorite parts of visiting him were getting to see great bluegrass music live.

I naturally assumed that my new life in Loueyville would be chock-full of hot, sexy, live bluegrass. But... not so much. I take some of the blame. I haven't been very good about tracking down the good stuff. But I find it funny that when I mention loving bluegrass music to my students, they react like I'd just declared my love for polka.

Anyway, the Bluegrass Hotel Project was announced today at the Jockey Silks Bar at the Galt House. It seems like it should be a bigger deal than the few paragraphs the CJ devoted to it.

Named after the Bluegrass Hotel, a Victorian mansion in Cherokee Park where
many of the musicians used to stay, the project will highlight a time and place
when musicians from around the country flocked to Louisville to play bluegrass.

The project will include a two-hour television documentary to be broadcast
this time next year, a CD, DVD and a book. It is being produced by former
Bluegrass Alliance member Bill Millet.

Sam Bush, one of the musicians on hand today, said he had his own place to
stay when he moved to Louisville from Bowling Green at the age of 18, but he
stayed some nights at the Bluegrass Hotel. He said he and the others were
at the press conference “because we all had a great experience when many of us
moved to Louisville in the early ’70s.”

Sam Bush was/is in town? Hopefully he'll be back on March 6 when the Galt House will be hosting a festival/concert to celebrate the project.

$20 Art Show @ Mellwood Center Tonight

I remember the good ol' days when I used to buy my "art" at mall kiosks and from sidewalk vendors, when my "fancy" art was the poster that was--gasp-- nicely framed. Simpler times, my friends, simpler times.

While my taste has improved, my income... well, not appreciably. And that's why I love me some $20 Art Show goodness.

Last Downtown Trolley Hop, U of L hosted one such show in the Noir et Rouge Gallery at 333 E Market. I scored a gorgeous, framed oil painting by one Matthew Wallace, and I can't wait til I'm back in my house to put it on my wall. (And Matthew, honey, you hurry up and become a big and important star in the art world so I can hock that puppy on Ebay and retire early, ok?)

Tonight there's another such show at the Mellwood Art Center from 6p-9p. I learned my lesson at the U of L show; I went around an hour into the show and 75% of the stuff was sold. (Matthew, honey, I'm not saying that yours wouldn't have been my first choice anyway. It probably would have.)

Go early. Buy art. Feel festive.

BTW, as Michelle noted earlier on Consuming Louisville, there's a new-ish letter press in town, housed at the Mellwood. They were out at BBC during the Trolley Hop, giving away free coasters with Hunter S. quotes on them. Hound Dog Press will also be at the $20 art fair. All Mama wants for Christmas is funky letterpress Loueyville.com business cards from Hound Dog Press. It's only $95 for 100 cards. Sniff. I've been a good girl all year long. Please.

Maybe if she bats her long lashes at the very cute boys who own the joint, she'll get a discount. Or one of the cute boys! Either one would do!

Good Folk Fest-- the more things change, the more they stay the same

There aren't many events in Loueyville that I attend every year, but the Good Folk Fest at the Mellwood Center has become one of them. I went last year and the year before; last year it was later, after Thanksgiving. For me, the calendar move was a good one; I wasn't blindly focused on buying Christmas presents for friends and fam, and that freed me up to buy a beautiful bluebird blue clay pendant (unfortunately from an artist whose name I didn't catch) for myself.

The musical headliner for this year's GFF was Daniel Johnston, the famously offbeat songwriter and artist. Kind of a big deal concert for such a low key venue, in my humble opinion. Johnston, a relatively iconic figure and subject of the 2006 documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston, is just back from a European tour and "headlined" the event at 2pm today. I made the mistake of getting lost (lost! I know! silly!) and didn't get there until 210p or so, and it was impossible to get close enough to hear more than just snippets here and there, but he seemed in good form and the crowd enjoyed the show.

I did stick around to see the one-man-band who followed Johnston, and although the accoustics were such that I couldn't understand a damned word he said, I seriously dug J. Marinelli. All by his little lonesome up there he was conjuring up the sound of my youth, bands like Dinosaur Jr and Pixies and Sonic Youth. Marinelli said he just moved to Lexington, KY, so we can expect to see more of him soon. I certainly hope so. Marinelli (pictured above) was one of four one-man-bands to perform at the Good Folk Fest this year.

As tradition seems to dictate, every time I go to the Good Folk Fest, I have to stop at the art supply store on the way out to feed my own inner folk artist. No more Hobby Lobby for me. Artist & Craftsman Supply seems to have better prices than the big boxy crafty stores. And they're much more convenient!

Good times.

BTW: I've stayed true to my word and stayed local (to downtown) with my eating and drinking since Melillo's closed, but you won't see me reviewing Bistro 301 or Blue Mountain Coffee any time soon, my friends. Mama's hanging up that hat for now.

And FYI, Melillo's is closing but the Bodega is not! That's marvelous news! And based on the flow of traffic in and out of there this morning (and the yummy breakfast smells coming from their kitchen), they're doing ok. The Bodega is a good Saturday breakfast alternative to the hour waits at Toast, perhaps?

Original Highlands Art & Music Festival, Sept 13

I keep waiting for the Original Highlands Art and Music Festival to expand to two days. Each year, they secure a line-up of music that could easily be a bit diluted and spread out-- this year includes Peter Searcy, Love Jones, Leigh Ann Yost, John Gage, Brigid Kaelin, and the Louisville School of Rock Band.

And, hands down, the OHNA always chooses one of the nicest weekends of the year.

This year's festival is part of the Ryder's Cup Festival and includes an even larger number of artists and previous vendors.

Pet Peeve: as an "art" festival, can't they come up with a poster that doesn't look like an ad for happy hour at Phoenix Hill? This summer, I visited my aunt on Martha's Vineyard and admired her more than 30 posters from as many years of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Fair, each one more charming than the next. I wouldn't spend $6 at Hobby Lobby for a cheapo frame for this poster.

Note too-- as I mentioned before (just weeks before I was diagnosed and suddenly became elligable for membership)-- some of the proceeds for the event will help support Gilda's Club.

Loueyville About to Be A Little Less Weird

Speaking of local celebrities, a source in the know told Lou that "the pink and black attack," Louisville's own "dating Goth" celebrities, Kynt and Vyxsin, have packed their patent leather bags for a move to LA. (In fact, their MySpace page lists LA as home.)

"There are only so many gay pride events in Louisville," says the source. "Every time they travel, they're booked solid for events."

Kynt and Vyxsin have parlayed their Amazing Race fame into appearences on two of Rosie's family cruises, modeling gigs for Hot Topics stores, and a profile in this month's Gothic Beauty magazine.

Also, it's "their" episode of Amazing Race that's been nominated for six emmys this year. (The episode, titled "Honestly, They Have Witch Powers or Something" is the one where they're elminated in India).

I'm sorry to see them go. I never met them, but I liked having them around. Unlike Tracee Dore, who seems to have dropped off the face of the earth-- a google search yielding articles in local newspapers all lead to dead ends-- Kynt and Vyxsin did their hometown superproud.

(Gasp! While digging around for stuff on Dore, I discovered oodles online that Mikey V., the cop from Miami, was suspended from the Miami PD over allegations that he appeared in a gay bondage adult film called Rope Rituals, 1996!! And that he's not only gay but very out and for some oddball reason HGTV sat on that fact, despite being so very gay friendly. Weird.)

Mapother in the CJ

Mama isn't big on celebrity crushes (although she has been secretly married to Bono since she was a teenager), but there's something about this William Mapother guy that makes her all googly inside.

Starting this week, Mapother stars in Actors' production of Glengarry Glen Ross, the first play of a packed season. According to his website, Mapother threw out the first pitch for a Bats game while Lou was cavorting around New England. That right there is a double-header of goodness in Lou's world-- Mapother + baseball = sigh.

Today's C-J features an article about the actor and the play. More of Lou's crush here and here.

NYT: Louisville (Kansas?) Sling

Today the New York Times published a recipe for a "Louisville Sling." I caught the mention on the 'Ville Voice this morning and figured I would send the recipe over to Roommate who is currently vacationing in Australia for a month and a half. Thought he might wanna introduce a little Louisville Love to the bartenders Down Under, a number of which I'm sure he already knows by name, personal history, and drink preference by now.

My poor brain sizzled as I read the recipe over and over, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. Surely I was overlooking the mention of a jigger of Maker's Mark or a couple of shots of Woodford, right? Had the Gray Lady issued a misprint?

No! In fact, the Louisville Sling is a non-alcoholic beverage. Well, sort of. While the recipe is billed as a "No-Alcohol Refresher," it does include bitters "for serving." Bitters, of course, being a(sometimes potently) alcoholic beverage. Precious.

Anyway, the absence of significant alcohol -- especially bourbon-- in the Louisville Sling indicates to me that the eponymous Louisville being slung is not our fair city, but rather Louisville, KS, population 209.

Design Star Fades

Sorry to those of you who've Tivoed but not watched yet...

A belated "buh-bye" to Ms. Tracee Dore. Seven hours shopping? Seriously? Girlfriend punched her own ticket with that move.

(A couple weeks ago, Roomie and I had lunch at Jennica's-- big yum!-- and I nearly tinkled myself when I saw that her store is RIGHT NEXT DOOR! Weenie that I am, I didn't pop in or anything. But still-- fun! I'm such a dork.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HUNTER S. THOMPSON!!!

He would have been 71.

Also, in Hunter S. news: Gonzo opens today at the Baxter. Unfortunately with The Dark Knight and Mama Mia also opening, well... I'm thinking that's where people's theater dollars will be spent this weekend.

Hey... on that poster, Hunter S. kinda looks like Lou!

Reality (TV) Hits Home Again

Tracee Dore is no Kynt & Vyxsin.

Ms. Dore, interior designer and Louisvillager, may have exquisite design sense as showcased by her design company's beautiful website, but girlfriend is pitching some shocking fits and is in the process of alienating all of her fellow reality show castmates on Season 3 of HGTV's Design Star.

While Kynt and Vyxsin charmed on The Amazing Race, Tracee (at least in the first two episodes) is being set up as the resident bitch in the Nashville-based show. New shows air each Sunday on HGTV. I feel terrible, but I am rooting for her to be voted off ASAP just so she stops making Louisvillagers look bad. (I have no doubt that once the season-- or her season-- is over, we'll be treated to an in depth article about how she's really a sweetheart and that the bitch was all in the editing... but still).

Speaking of K&V, the duo was given the honor of becoming Kentucky Colonels this weekend! Well deserved!!

(BTW: this is Lou's new goal... Now that Lou got her t-shirt, her next goal is to be a Colonel!)

Louisville Slugfest and summer preview

It's an utter travesty that I have lived in Louisville for almost two years and have never set foot in the Louisville Slugger Museum (unless you count the gift shop). Tonight I had a work related shin-fest at the Museum and enjoyed my tour immensely. In fact, it seemed like, in my tour group, I was the only person truly transfixed by every aspect of the factory.

Sure I've been to Fenway a few times, but where else can you plant a "good luck" smooch on Manny Ramirez's actual bat???? My heart was a-flutter, lemme tell you. I did get some strange looks when we exited the tour to a room featuring a HUGE portrait of David Ortiz and I said, "Big Papi! My boyfriend!!" Lou has no boyfriend, per se, but lots o' "boyfriends," including half the Boston Red Sox (special love to Lowell, Papi, Manny, and Lester), Bono (my original boyfriend), Glen "Big Baby" Davis of the Celtics, John Edwards, and countless others...

Last weekend, I went to a function downtown and left to go to my car and saw that the BIG Louisville Slugger Bat outside the museum was lit up in pink light to honor the MLB's pink bat, breast cancer fundraiser. I had to pause a moment because I was so choked up. But I did manage to get a picture of it.

Um, yeah, y'all don't need a map to point you into the direction that Mama Lou's health crisis has taken her.

That being said, contrary to most summers of her teaching career, Lou will be right here at home for the bulk of the summer. So while there may be some dead time, (ew, blech, bad, bad, bad slip o' the tongue) I should be able to report on all the summer goings-on.

Bonnaroo may be a no-go for me. But we still have the AAA All-Star Game and the Ryders Cup and For'castle Fest to look forward to... Stay tuned Louisvillagers. Lou will be just fine.

LOST Louisvillager-- who knew?

Not me, obviously.

Last night, Roommate and I attempted to see Actors Theatre's production of Doubt. I say "attempted" because about twenty minutes into the show (twenty minutes of mostly good), the whirly stage ground to a halt and stopped whirling. The voice of God came over the loudspeaker and informed us that, as it was probably going to take around "10 hours" to fix the stage, it was probably best if we didn't stick around. We re-ticketed for next Tuesday.

In the meantime, we had a chance to check out the 2008-09 season for Actors, which was just recently announced. We're of different minds about the line-up. Roommate said he thought it was as good or better than this past season; I looked through the list and had a resounding "meh" reaction.

What did interest me, however (because I am a serious geek) was the fact that Glengarry Glen Ross was listed as "starring TV's LOST's William Mapother."

I told Roommate that while the name looked familiar, I didn't recognize the name as one who plays any of the major LOST characters. (so obviously, I may be a serious geek, but not a very good one) Roommate convinced me that Mapother must play Bernard. Who I love. So I was happy.

But today-- thanks Google and imdb.com-- I discovered that William Mapother is/was (so hard to say with LOST's malliable timeline) Ethan AND a Louisvillager! (This, however, does not explain why, when you Google "William Mapother" it gives you a link to his homepage, but the description of the homepage is: "Consultant to the consumer credit industry on bankruptcy." Dual life??)

Apologies that this is probably not new news to most Louisvillagers, but remember this Lou was a New Orleanian when Mapother first appeared on LOST.

Mapother has also recently done a stint on the now cancelled K-Ville. Shame, that-- the cancellation not the appearance. Mapother graduated from St. X in 1983 (and is a fellow English Major). He's also appeared in several indie films. And he just had a birthday. Happy birthday!

The reason the name sounded familiar is that William is a Mapother of the Tom Cruise Mapother IV Mapothers and their shared great-great grandfather emigrated from Wales to Louisville in 1850.

And because this Lou can find any reason to waste tons of time online, I've since discovered that he's a very funny guy, has good taste in tv and music, has a uncannily large fan base online (a couple of his fan sites have been around for years), and is called in several places "the nicest guy you'd hope to meet."

Mapother will be appearing at Actors in August and September. Looking forward to it.

Here are links to some of his fan sites: william mapother.net and a blog.

Last year he attended the Taste of Oaks Celebrity Party. Wonder if he'll be in town this year? (okay, Mama may be crushing a little here.)

Something Else to Look Forward To

Lou will once again be attending Bonnaroo this year.

How could she not with a line up that includes: Willie Nelson, Pearl Jam, Robert Plant & Allison Kraus, BB King, Sigur Ros, Ben Folds, Drive-by Truckers... and so on? You can see the full line-up at www.bonnaroo.com.

You can check out Lou's coverage of Bonnaroo 2007 here.