Monday, July 23

Movie Plots as Limericks

I saw a site that rewrote famous poems as limericks.

I thought it'd be fun to do the same with films.

Here's two to start with:

Psycho

A woman steals money at lunch hour
Gets surprisingly killed in the shower.
Balsam investigates
And meets Mother Bates.
Poor Norman ends up in Nut Tower.


Saving Private Ryan

Starts and ends with guns and bombs flyin'
In between is the search for bro Ryan.
Tom Hanks wonders why
He needs to die for this guy.
Old Ryan remembers, starts cryin'.

It's A Wonderful Life

There once was a man named George Bailey
Who tried to leave town almost daily.
"End my life!" he insisted.
Saw his life not-existed.
His friends rallied round, all sang gaily.





Wanna play along?  Add your own movie limericks in the comments. 

Challenge:  Be the first to turn the entire LotR trilogy into a single limerick.




Movie Plots as Limericks

I saw a site that rewrote famous poems as limericks.

I thought it'd be fun to do the same with films.

Here's two to start with:

Psycho

A woman steals money at lunch hour
Gets surprisingly killed in the shower.
Balsam investigates
And meets Mother Bates.
Poor Norman ends up in Nut Tower.


Saving Private Ryan

Starts and ends with guns and bombs flyin'
In between is the search for bro Ryan.
Tom Hanks wonders why
He needs to die for this guy.
Old Ryan remembers, starts cryin'.

It's A Wonderful Life

There once was a man named George Bailey
Who tried to leave town almost daily.
"End my life!" he insisted.
Saw his life not-existed.
His friends rallied round, all sang gaily.





Wanna play along?  Add your own movie limericks in the comments. 

Challenge:  Be the first to turn the entire LotR trilogy into a single limerick.




Friday, July 20

Sketch22 - Now With More Penis

So, last night Jason Rogerson, the extraordinary producer/writer of Sketch22, subbed on stage for Harmony, who is away this weekend learning about positive energy and such.
A big crowd showed up to see Jason's return to the Sketch22 stage (he was also on stage for our Christmas show), and it was a great night.  Lots of fun, some honest screwups by pretty much everyone, and perhaps the biggest corpsing I've suffered on stage for a number of years (let's just say that in that super-tight "Journey" costume, there was little doubt at one point that Jason is indeed a man.  A circumsized man by the look of it).

Anyway, Jason returns to the stage tonight before things return to normal next weekend.  Check it out if you have the opportunity.



Sketch22 - Now With More Penis

So, last night Jason Rogerson, the extraordinary producer/writer of Sketch22, subbed on stage for Harmony, who is away this weekend learning about positive energy and such.
A big crowd showed up to see Jason's return to the Sketch22 stage (he was also on stage for our Christmas show), and it was a great night.  Lots of fun, some honest screwups by pretty much everyone, and perhaps the biggest corpsing I've suffered on stage for a number of years (let's just say that in that super-tight "Journey" costume, there was little doubt at one point that Jason is indeed a man.  A circumsized man by the look of it).

Anyway, Jason returns to the stage tonight before things return to normal next weekend.  Check it out if you have the opportunity.



Tuesday, July 17

Two Very Special Episodes of Sketch22

This Thursday and Friday, Sketch22 deals with the very serious topic.  Mrs. Douglas comes home early from PTA and catches the kids smoking marijuana in the basement.  Lessons are learned.

Really, Harmony is away this weekend, doing special Harmony things, and what's a sketch group to do?  Well, they get their producer, Jason Rogerson to wiggle into Harmony's costumes and play her roles himself.

SEE!  J-Ro in the super tight Miss Eyesore Journey Uniform!!
SEE! Jason in the virginal-white-but-slutty-in-all-other-respects short short nurse's outfit!
SEE!  Mr. Rogerson!!  On Stage!!  Without a Bass!!

It's going to be two unique shows, to be sure.  Thursday's show will be as if Jason and the Rest of the Cast are nervous teenage lovers, excitedly grabbing at each other's private parts in the backseat of Jason's parent's car.  Friday's performance will resemble the night after the wedding night of our blessed union: after the fumblings of the night before, each will be eager to tease and please the other.

Yeah, okay, enough with the teenage lover metaphor.

Come check it out.  It's going to be a fun couple of shows.

Thursday & Friday, 8pm, The Guild, Charlottetown.
Tickets $20 - but bring an extra fifty cents per ticket because The Guild is inexplicably demanding a $0.50 surcharge on each ticket.

Reserve your tickets by calling 620-3333






Two Very Special Episodes of Sketch22

This Thursday and Friday, Sketch22 deals with the very serious topic.  Mrs. Douglas comes home early from PTA and catches the kids smoking marijuana in the basement.  Lessons are learned.

Really, Harmony is away this weekend, doing special Harmony things, and what's a sketch group to do?  Well, they get their producer, Jason Rogerson to wiggle into Harmony's costumes and play her roles himself.

SEE!  J-Ro in the super tight Miss Eyesore Journey Uniform!!
SEE! Jason in the virginal-white-but-slutty-in-all-other-respects short short nurse's outfit!
SEE!  Mr. Rogerson!!  On Stage!!  Without a Bass!!

It's going to be two unique shows, to be sure.  Thursday's show will be as if Jason and the Rest of the Cast are nervous teenage lovers, excitedly grabbing at each other's private parts in the backseat of Jason's parent's car.  Friday's performance will resemble the night after the wedding night of our blessed union: after the fumblings of the night before, each will be eager to tease and please the other.

Yeah, okay, enough with the teenage lover metaphor.

Come check it out.  It's going to be a fun couple of shows.

Thursday & Friday, 8pm, The Guild, Charlottetown.
Tickets $20 - but bring an extra fifty cents per ticket because The Guild is inexplicably demanding a $0.50 surcharge on each ticket.

Reserve your tickets by calling 620-3333






Saturday, July 14

I Made A Boy Cry Today

I was at the Superstore, trying to find corn chowder in the soup aisle.  In the middle of the aisle was a mother, a probably 11 year old boy, and two younger sisters.  The mother was exasperated.  When I came upon the scene, the boy was holding a cellphone out, baiting the mother.  She was obviously fed up, and asking the boy to give her the phone.
"What are you gonna do?  Gonna phone Dad?  No you're not!", the boy taunted, not giving up the phone.  He kept saying this whole bit over and over again, each time more and more petulant.  The mother tried her best to keep her patience, but was on the verge of a blowup.
This cellphone fish-and-bait went on for about a minute.  I remember thinking how this kid is just 10 years old or so and already pretty much in control of his mother.  That made me mad at him.  Also mad at her, as I really wanted her to declare her parental power over him.  Then I started daydreaming about how this woman likely has very little power in her household and suffers her lot in life.
I'm not sure how the cellphone incident was resolved because I turned my attention to corn chowder.  Before I could choose any, though, the boy started running around their cart, punching the back of one of the girls, knocking groceries in the cart all over the place.  The girl starts crying, the mother yells at him ineffectually, and he swears at her and calls her demeaning words.  The mother is thisclose to freaking out and crying, but focuses all those emotions into reorganizing the grocery cart and stating the usual "wait 'til your father gets here" and "this is the last time I take you grocery shopping" desperate lies.
There's the family:  Mom fuming into her groceries, older daughter crying, younger daughter helpless, and little tough-guy kid strutting around like the king of the world.
There's nobody else in the aisle but us.  They're still in the middle of the aisle and I'm near the end of the aisle, as he begins to expand his domain of power.  He walks up towards where I am.
"Hey, kid," I say, using my stern adult father voice. "Don't be an asshole.  Treat your mother with some respect.  She doesn't deserve to be treated that way."
At this moment this thought ran through my head:  "how do I know what kind of a mom she is, maybe she does deserve this heap of abuse" but I was pretty sure she was the victim here.
The kid looks at me and I can tell he's a bit shaken by being talked to by a stranger.  He retreats to the safety of his domain, around his family.  As he's walking back though, in reply to my "she doesn't deserve to be treated that way" he says "Yes she does.  She's an {expletive I couldn't quite make out}.
Back in his power-zone, he looks back at me.  The mother, I can tell, has heard our little exchange, but I can't tell if she's appreciative of my effort or not.  She's pretty tight-faced at this point.  He's looking at me, and I give him a ridiculous evil-eye stare.  A really long, intense evil-eye stare.  A threatening, really long, intense evil-eye stare.  I imagine I looked like I was ready to rumble with him.
It's affecting him, I can tell.  I can practically see the tough-guy fizzle out of his demeanor.
To reclaim his power over his family, he tries to sit in the cart, but his mother tells him not to.  He then tries to pull the cart past me, even though his mother is still trying to sort the groceries he knocked over earlier.  As he passes me, he lets go of the cart.
I quietly yell (yes, it's possible) "HEY! Smarten the fuck up, kid.  Asshole kids grow up to be asshole men.  And nobody likes asshole men."
By the time I finish my sentence, he's walked past me, out of the aisle.  After vacantly looking at the chowders, I walk my cart out a moment later and see him leaning against the end of the aisle.  He's silently crying.

I made a boy cry. I didn't know how to feel.  Even though he was a total hellian asshole kid, I didn't know how to feel.

And, I didn't get any corn chowder.



I Made A Boy Cry Today

I was at the Superstore, trying to find corn chowder in the soup aisle.  In the middle of the aisle was a mother, a probably 11 year old boy, and two younger sisters.  The mother was exasperated.  When I came upon the scene, the boy was holding a cellphone out, baiting the mother.  She was obviously fed up, and asking the boy to give her the phone.
"What are you gonna do?  Gonna phone Dad?  No you're not!", the boy taunted, not giving up the phone.  He kept saying this whole bit over and over again, each time more and more petulant.  The mother tried her best to keep her patience, but was on the verge of a blowup.
This cellphone fish-and-bait went on for about a minute.  I remember thinking how this kid is just 10 years old or so and already pretty much in control of his mother.  That made me mad at him.  Also mad at her, as I really wanted her to declare her parental power over him.  Then I started daydreaming about how this woman likely has very little power in her household and suffers her lot in life.
I'm not sure how the cellphone incident was resolved because I turned my attention to corn chowder.  Before I could choose any, though, the boy started running around their cart, punching the back of one of the girls, knocking groceries in the cart all over the place.  The girl starts crying, the mother yells at him ineffectually, and he swears at her and calls her demeaning words.  The mother is thisclose to freaking out and crying, but focuses all those emotions into reorganizing the grocery cart and stating the usual "wait 'til your father gets here" and "this is the last time I take you grocery shopping" desperate lies.
There's the family:  Mom fuming into her groceries, older daughter crying, younger daughter helpless, and little tough-guy kid strutting around like the king of the world.
There's nobody else in the aisle but us.  They're still in the middle of the aisle and I'm near the end of the aisle, as he begins to expand his domain of power.  He walks up towards where I am.
"Hey, kid," I say, using my stern adult father voice. "Don't be an asshole.  Treat your mother with some respect.  She doesn't deserve to be treated that way."
At this moment this thought ran through my head:  "how do I know what kind of a mom she is, maybe she does deserve this heap of abuse" but I was pretty sure she was the victim here.
The kid looks at me and I can tell he's a bit shaken by being talked to by a stranger.  He retreats to the safety of his domain, around his family.  As he's walking back though, in reply to my "she doesn't deserve to be treated that way" he says "Yes she does.  She's an {expletive I couldn't quite make out}.
Back in his power-zone, he looks back at me.  The mother, I can tell, has heard our little exchange, but I can't tell if she's appreciative of my effort or not.  She's pretty tight-faced at this point.  He's looking at me, and I give him a ridiculous evil-eye stare.  A really long, intense evil-eye stare.  A threatening, really long, intense evil-eye stare.  I imagine I looked like I was ready to rumble with him.
It's affecting him, I can tell.  I can practically see the tough-guy fizzle out of his demeanor.
To reclaim his power over his family, he tries to sit in the cart, but his mother tells him not to.  He then tries to pull the cart past me, even though his mother is still trying to sort the groceries he knocked over earlier.  As he passes me, he lets go of the cart.
I quietly yell (yes, it's possible) "HEY! Smarten the fuck up, kid.  Asshole kids grow up to be asshole men.  And nobody likes asshole men."
By the time I finish my sentence, he's walked past me, out of the aisle.  After vacantly looking at the chowders, I walk my cart out a moment later and see him leaning against the end of the aisle.  He's silently crying.

I made a boy cry. I didn't know how to feel.  Even though he was a total hellian asshole kid, I didn't know how to feel.

And, I didn't get any corn chowder.



Thursday, July 12

A Personal Confession

Maybe it was two years ago, but it may also have happened last summer.  Ever since it happened, though, it's been weighing on my mind.  Now I need the truth to come out so that, hopefully, I can have some sore of forgiveness of sin.

It happened before or after a Sketch22 show, I don't remember.  Some of the cast and crew were sitting around the theatre, talking.  Lorrie J, our marvelous front of house volunteer, was wearing a T-Shirt that said "Cougar In Training".  At that time, I didn't know what a cougar was, at least in reference to the quote.  I assumed it meant a hottie or some other such-implied definition. 

So, in trying to be honest, and complimentary, I said, sincerely, to Lorrie "As far as I'm concerned, you already are a cougar" or something similar. 

She had an oh-so-ever-slight moment of pause, and then responded in some sort of non-committal way.  Then the conversation went elsewhere.  Only afterwards did I learn what a cougar is, and how, basically, I was telling her that I thought she was middle-aged.  I was telling her she was old.

I felt bad about that. 

So, if any harm.. any emotional distress was caused by this, I sincerely apologize.



A Personal Confession

Maybe it was two years ago, but it may also have happened last summer.  Ever since it happened, though, it's been weighing on my mind.  Now I need the truth to come out so that, hopefully, I can have some sore of forgiveness of sin.

It happened before or after a Sketch22 show, I don't remember.  Some of the cast and crew were sitting around the theatre, talking.  Lorrie J, our marvelous front of house volunteer, was wearing a T-Shirt that said "Cougar In Training".  At that time, I didn't know what a cougar was, at least in reference to the quote.  I assumed it meant a hottie or some other such-implied definition. 

So, in trying to be honest, and complimentary, I said, sincerely, to Lorrie "As far as I'm concerned, you already are a cougar" or something similar. 

She had an oh-so-ever-slight moment of pause, and then responded in some sort of non-committal way.  Then the conversation went elsewhere.  Only afterwards did I learn what a cougar is, and how, basically, I was telling her that I thought she was middle-aged.  I was telling her she was old.

I felt bad about that. 

So, if any harm.. any emotional distress was caused by this, I sincerely apologize.



Monday, July 9

Vote For Your Least Un-Favourite!!















22 Second Video Challenge Submissions Now Online!
7/8/2007

Entries to the 22 Second Video Challenge can now be viewed on the Sketch22 Media page. Just scroll to the bottom to see the submissions. They are:

"Two Of Us" by Sherri Smith
"NotE-Snuff" by Adam Perry
"The Belly Button" by Eric Grimstead and Simon Wright
"Nature Nut" by Sherri Smith

They
are all very different, wacky, and weird. In other words, any of them
would be perfect to screen before a Sketch22 show. But only one video
can have that glory! To cast your vote on which one you think should be
screened before Sketch-22 this summer, go to the Contact Us
page and use the form at the top of the page to send us your pick. Just
enter the name of the video in the comments field. Voting is limited to
one vote per person and will close at midnight on Thursday, July 12.
The video that receives the most votes will be screened at Sketch22 on
Friday, July 13. Get voting people!







Technorati Tags: , ,

Vote For Your Least Un-Favourite!!















22 Second Video Challenge Submissions Now Online!
7/8/2007

Entries to the 22 Second Video Challenge can now be viewed on the Sketch22 Media page. Just scroll to the bottom to see the submissions. They are:

"Two Of Us" by Sherri Smith
"NotE-Snuff" by Adam Perry
"The Belly Button" by Eric Grimstead and Simon Wright
"Nature Nut" by Sherri Smith

They
are all very different, wacky, and weird. In other words, any of them
would be perfect to screen before a Sketch22 show. But only one video
can have that glory! To cast your vote on which one you think should be
screened before Sketch-22 this summer, go to the Contact Us
page and use the form at the top of the page to send us your pick. Just
enter the name of the video in the comments field. Voting is limited to
one vote per person and will close at midnight on Thursday, July 12.
The video that receives the most votes will be screened at Sketch22 on
Friday, July 13. Get voting people!







Technorati Tags: , ,

Saturday, July 7

Week One of Sketch22 In The Books!

We did it!  We opened another season of Sketch22, complete with all-new material.  Two shows into the run, and I'm pretty pumped about the show.
Thursday's premiere performance was very well attended by many super-friends, super-family, and super-fans of Sketch.  Not sure of an exact number, but I'd guess about 110 people?  It was a very supportive, friendly audience.  The kind of familiar audience that applauds our efforts even when the lights come down to begin the show.  Lots of big laughs, lots of big love from the audience all night long ensured that our very first public performance of the new show was totally positive and wonderful.
That first show was pretty darn smooth, especially compared to the dress rehearsal the night before.  A couple of the sketches were a bit raw, and our nerves sometimes got in our way, but overall, I'd have to call our opening show a resounding success.  I'm always suspicious of standing ovations, but appreciated the one we got opening night.
Friday night, we were all concerned about the Second Show Letdown.  It seems for every production, the second show is usually a less than remarkable show.  That's because the cast and crew, after a relatively successful opening night, now know the show "works" and it's natural to relax a bit.  Energy can drag a bit and the show can be a bit lazy.  Plus, our second night crowd was (expectedly) smaller than first night, coming in at about 60 people perhaps?  A different energy from this crowd, too.  Not nearly as familiar to us as the opening night crowd, and we had the feeling we'd really have to earn any laughs we got on this night.  We started the show pretty strong, and the audience was with us.  The latter half of the first act started to dip a bit, energy-wise, but the second act seemed pretty strong. 
Friday night had lots of huge laughs, lots of "oh my god, I can't believe what I'm seeing/hearing" laughter, plus a couple of sketches that bewildered a bit more than brought out laughter.

I think my favourite sketch to perform is going to be Tammies Come Home, which features Dennis Trainor and me playing "Tammies" coming home after a night on the town. Whether for good or bad, it was the sketch we had rehearsed the least, because of many reasons.  So, really, opening night was the first time we performed it with any sort of conviction.  It was also the first time we were able to perform it using a prop which is integral to how the sketch ends, and as such, caused a bit of "in the moment" improvising from us as we learned how to deal with this prop.  The result was pretty fun.

Anyway, hearing lots of great things about the show from people who've seen it. Haven't heard any criticisms from people, but there are undoubtedly lots of those out there too.  Like previous seasons, I think we have a number of sketches that will be both loved and hated by people in the audience.  And, like last year, we have enough variety in sketches that everyone who comes will have a number of sketches that they'll really enjoy.

Apparently on Friday night we had an elderly couple walk out on the show.  Whether they left because of content and had had enough, or because they just had to leave, I don't know.  But, with their exit, I guess Sketch22 Season 4 became official.

Wonder what next week will bring?



Week One of Sketch22 In The Books!

We did it!  We opened another season of Sketch22, complete with all-new material.  Two shows into the run, and I'm pretty pumped about the show.
Thursday's premiere performance was very well attended by many super-friends, super-family, and super-fans of Sketch.  Not sure of an exact number, but I'd guess about 110 people?  It was a very supportive, friendly audience.  The kind of familiar audience that applauds our efforts even when the lights come down to begin the show.  Lots of big laughs, lots of big love from the audience all night long ensured that our very first public performance of the new show was totally positive and wonderful.
That first show was pretty darn smooth, especially compared to the dress rehearsal the night before.  A couple of the sketches were a bit raw, and our nerves sometimes got in our way, but overall, I'd have to call our opening show a resounding success.  I'm always suspicious of standing ovations, but appreciated the one we got opening night.
Friday night, we were all concerned about the Second Show Letdown.  It seems for every production, the second show is usually a less than remarkable show.  That's because the cast and crew, after a relatively successful opening night, now know the show "works" and it's natural to relax a bit.  Energy can drag a bit and the show can be a bit lazy.  Plus, our second night crowd was (expectedly) smaller than first night, coming in at about 60 people perhaps?  A different energy from this crowd, too.  Not nearly as familiar to us as the opening night crowd, and we had the feeling we'd really have to earn any laughs we got on this night.  We started the show pretty strong, and the audience was with us.  The latter half of the first act started to dip a bit, energy-wise, but the second act seemed pretty strong. 
Friday night had lots of huge laughs, lots of "oh my god, I can't believe what I'm seeing/hearing" laughter, plus a couple of sketches that bewildered a bit more than brought out laughter.

I think my favourite sketch to perform is going to be Tammies Come Home, which features Dennis Trainor and me playing "Tammies" coming home after a night on the town. Whether for good or bad, it was the sketch we had rehearsed the least, because of many reasons.  So, really, opening night was the first time we performed it with any sort of conviction.  It was also the first time we were able to perform it using a prop which is integral to how the sketch ends, and as such, caused a bit of "in the moment" improvising from us as we learned how to deal with this prop.  The result was pretty fun.

Anyway, hearing lots of great things about the show from people who've seen it. Haven't heard any criticisms from people, but there are undoubtedly lots of those out there too.  Like previous seasons, I think we have a number of sketches that will be both loved and hated by people in the audience.  And, like last year, we have enough variety in sketches that everyone who comes will have a number of sketches that they'll really enjoy.

Apparently on Friday night we had an elderly couple walk out on the show.  Whether they left because of content and had had enough, or because they just had to leave, I don't know.  But, with their exit, I guess Sketch22 Season 4 became official.

Wonder what next week will bring?



Thursday, July 5

0 Days

For the past 9 months or so, I've had a widget on my iGoogle homepage that counts down the days until Season 4 of Sketch22 begins.

Today, it reads:  0 Days until Sketch22 Season 4

Last night we had an okay dress and tech rehearsal.  What kept it from being better than just okay is that we had to wait quite some time before we began, due to mechanical difficulties beyond our control regarding our ability to play video easily.  We tried to rectify the issue, but ultimately couldn't and then we were left to improvise a less than ideal way to run the show anyway.

The run-through had the usual little hiccups that we're pretty confident will be cleared up for tonight's premiere performance.  But it was valuable, because it was really the first time we ran the show completely without stopping, and as such, was the first time we got a sense of how the show works.  I'm happy to report that I think the show is going to be great.  Lots of big laughs, lots of strangeness, lots of entertainment.

Like every show past, I can't wait for people to see what we've come up with.  Only a few hours left now.

Butterflies!



0 Days

For the past 9 months or so, I've had a widget on my iGoogle homepage that counts down the days until Season 4 of Sketch22 begins.

Today, it reads:  0 Days until Sketch22 Season 4

Last night we had an okay dress and tech rehearsal.  What kept it from being better than just okay is that we had to wait quite some time before we began, due to mechanical difficulties beyond our control regarding our ability to play video easily.  We tried to rectify the issue, but ultimately couldn't and then we were left to improvise a less than ideal way to run the show anyway.

The run-through had the usual little hiccups that we're pretty confident will be cleared up for tonight's premiere performance.  But it was valuable, because it was really the first time we ran the show completely without stopping, and as such, was the first time we got a sense of how the show works.  I'm happy to report that I think the show is going to be great.  Lots of big laughs, lots of strangeness, lots of entertainment.

Like every show past, I can't wait for people to see what we've come up with.  Only a few hours left now.

Butterflies!



Wednesday, July 4

Sketch22 Season 4 - Opens Tomorrow

Our new show opens Thursday.  That's tomorrow, for those not keeping track.
Tickets are $20, show starts at 8pm at The Guild in Charlottetown.  Come out tomorrow and be on hand for the World Premiere of a bunch of new sketches, new characters and new laughs.  Be among the first to see the new show!

If you can't make it Thursday, well, there's also Friday night's show.  And if you can't make it this week, well, there are 9 more weeks to catch it.



Sketch22 Season 4 - Opens Tomorrow

Our new show opens Thursday.  That's tomorrow, for those not keeping track.
Tickets are $20, show starts at 8pm at The Guild in Charlottetown.  Come out tomorrow and be on hand for the World Premiere of a bunch of new sketches, new characters and new laughs.  Be among the first to see the new show!

If you can't make it Thursday, well, there's also Friday night's show.  And if you can't make it this week, well, there are 9 more weeks to catch it.