November 27/08 Café

November Café: wow. Menz was packed, some curious newcomers and some glowing familiar faces. Mark Wolf joined us as a performer (with his FaceBook Song hit) making our 4th Mt. A alumnus with Nathan, Kristi and GaRRy rounding out the Mt. A quartet. Plus: Steven, Eric and Kim. Amanda Jernigan's "Mad Tea-Party" and Matthew Trafford's "The People and the Stones", both created for DaPoPo's 2006 show "13 Ways of Looking at a Madman" by Allisonian graduates, were performed this Café. Depicted below: 1) a packed Menz Bar on Café Thursday during a scene from "Rhinoceros"; 2) GaRRy and Kristi rehearsing; and 3) Eric, Nathan, Kristi, GaRRy and Shtev rehearsing a scene from "R.U.R."

Oct. 30/08: Café

yay! a café that felt like home. veteran café cast members (garry, eric, sher, amy, nathan, bonnie et moi) that had rehearsed together consistently. menz completely tricked out for h'ween so the atmosphere was so appropo. even the tv got turned off (and those of you who know, know 'zackly what i mean). cozy, candle-lit tables peppering the dance floor. patrons of the fan, friend, family and unfamiliar forms. thank you so much to all. so appreciative of having an audience.
k

special notes... jenny m. and mary v. who dropped in to finally check out this café-thing during our "happy hour." igor who got our café card during one of our nocturne bus performances and actually bothered to make his way to gottingen street. he got a special four-part harmonic rendition of auld lang syne - on the house - when we discovered he was scottish. raymond who brought a friend who found inspiration for a documentary in one of the rants. amy macA who fought the call of her bed to come and see what the café was all about... subsequently inspiring the idea to have a mt. a reunion at a café!

k

performances... so many things to talk about! amazing eerie rendition of garry's arrangment of "full fathom five" with an impromptu 'father' finger puppet drowning and drifting in the waves of light from an upturned flashlight. taking one for the team in a dead-fall gone-wrong from a stool when a shoe heel caught on the rung. incubating 'erl king' with vocal vs. instrumental accompaniament. spontaneous laughter and clapping with the emergence of each "man" for the big ensemble number "menz" - biggest laugh for eric's literal interpretation of the line "who always tops the list to us."

k

darrell having a busy busy (read: great) night serving at the bar. keeping focus at the table in a quiet, dramatic, real monologue despite nearby showtune belting. rants about mice, herpes and halloween. keelin already busting a gut on the first line of daBig ensemble scene. running out of time with orders left to fill for latercomers, the dj graciously waiting to set up for his dance party. a new patron drinking it all in and reflecting that sometimes he couldn't tell who was acting and who wasn't - in a good way.

an eclectic, eccentric, exceptional experience for one and all.