That Jolie Girl

Meeting of the Guilds

This past weekend, I went to the annual showcase of many of Oregon's creative guilds.  I love this show.  I try to go every year.  It's held in the Oregon Convention Center and it's a great way to see lots of art under one roof.  It's a great time to get presents and also to be inspired by so much creativity.  Going to this show year after year, I've started to recognize many of the artists and their work.  I also see several folks I've taken classes from over the years.  It's a great way to feel connected to the art scene in Portland.

Here are all the associations that were present this past weekend.

• Oregon Potter's Association
  
• Creative Metal Arts Guild
• Guild of Oregon Woodworkers 
• Oregon Glass Guild  
• Association of Northwest Weavers' Guild
• Portland Bead Society

I also got the chance to catch up with some old friends.  Vince and Sabrina do amazing things with clay.  They are such wonderful people.  My husband and I sort of believe that they are the ultra hip versions of ourselves.  You can find Sabrina's work here and Vince's work here.

I bought this necklace for myself and these earrings, but the glaze was the same as the necklace.  I can't wait to show off my new beautiful jewelry!

Grease is the Word

Grease was the last play in this year's Broadway Series.   I saw the play on Saturday and apart from a few production errors, it was really great.  I was born and raised on the movie, so it was nice to finally see where the movie originated from. 

I have to admit, I do like the movie better.   But the play was great fun and it was great to sing familiar songs (like Summer Nights pictured above). 

I also got to see Taylor Hicks from American Idol fame come out of a floating ice cream cone and sing Beauty School Drop Out.  Wild.

Oh and let's go to Washougal, I hear it's legal there.

Crazy Enough

My husband and I received tickets for Storm Large's Crazy Enough play for  Christmas.  We went to the show on Sunday with our good friends.  We are all very big (large?) Storm fans and loved seeing her in Cabaret.   I also survived the Arctic Blast 2008 to see her Christmas Ball at the Wonder Ballroom with my cousin. 

We all know that Storm can perform, but a play about her life?  I must admit I was intrigued and skeptical at the same time.   The second she took the stage, all skepticism was gone.  From note one, I knew I was in for a treat.  Her story is one to definitely drive a person crazy.  Her survival shows how incredibly strong she truly is.  She had me laughing and in tears.  The songs were great and we bought the CD at intermission. 

 

Here is a review of her play from OregonLive.  The play was in the Ellen Bye Studio at the Portland Center Stage.  The intimate venue was great and the sound was perfect. 

Four years!

Today is my 4 year blog anniversary.  I know that my blogging has been sporadic at best in the past 6 months or so, but that's alright.  My cousin wisely told me that my blog will be here when I need it.  That is very true.  I looked through my archives yesterday.  I love having this blog to go back and see what I was doing last year or four years ago.  It's truly a gift.  Soon, I will be back to regular blogging, but for now it's enough to know that it is here waiting for me when I need it. 

Into the Dark Unknown

Yesterday, I saw the very last performance of "Into the Dark Unknown" with Holcombe Waller and The Healers.  I've been a fan of Holcombe since I saw him in Wade McCollum's play 'One'.   I've enjoyed Holcombe in concert too, but his performance yesterday was just amazing.  Into the Dark Unknown was a mixage of performance art and an intimate concert. 

This top video was my favorite piece he did yesterday.  I just love everything about it.  The bottom video shows his incredible voice.  I will continue to seek out his projects because his talent is immense.  Luckily he now calls Portland home, so hopefully it won't be too long before he performs again.