don't you just love a good before & after?
last week, huntsville was lucky enough to be one of the stops of the american shakespeare center's stark raving sane tour. they did 3 performances: comedy of errors on wednesday, hamlet on thursday, and rosencrantz and guildenstern are dead on friday. stef and i went to hamlet thursday night, and gosh, do i wish i had gone to all 3 nights. it was amazing!
a couple of notes about how american shakespeare center (asc) plays are performed...they try to make the experience as accurate as possible. first, the lights remain on through the entire performance which means the actors can see the audience and interact with them (there wasn't any electricity when shakespeare was alive...duh). also, they utilize doubling. a shakespeare play could as many as 40 characters, but the traveling troupe of the period wouldn't have had more than 15 actors. so, the actors of the asc play multiple roles.
the performance thursday night began with a funny song involving all the cast members that recapped the story of hamlet,the prince of denmark, so the audience would know the basic story of the play. then they began the play, and simply put, it was excellent. it was so well acted. i put myself in the mindset of someone in the audience of the globe theater when the play was performed for the first time.. watching hamlet try to uncover the source of the stench in his country of denmark while contemplating life's big questions. i was carried away by the terrible feeling of loss and betrayel, the hilarity of the jokes and jabs, the fear caused by ghostly visitors, the intrigue, and the end-of-your-seat suspense of the last scene.
now, i'm obsessed. i'm dying to read hamlet & i want to watch all of kenneth branagh's shakespeare movies. i'm making plans to visit the alabama shakespeare festival in mobile to try to satisfy my shakespeare craving, and i hope that the performances live up to the standards set by the asc. if you hear that the asc is coming to a city near you, make the time to go out and see at least one of their performances. you won't regret it.
(did i mention that hamlet was super cute? that was an added benefit :)
believe it or not, the husband and and i have been married for 5 months as of last week. we're going to hit that 1 year mark before we know it! the past 5 months has been a lot of fun and pretty busy. we traveled to san francisco in november, we spent thanksgiving in ohio with family, we spent christmas with family in cookeville, we had dozens of people (literally) come stay with us over new years, and we've had some friends and family come visit us in between. also, we acquired a house guest in november, and while i'm more than happy to give him a place to stay for a while (not forever), it's quite an adjustment to share our house with someone else. even if he's not actively hanging out with us, he's still in the house, so it's like danny and i are never alone.
it has begun to feel like danny and i hadn't been alone in weeks, so we decided we should get away for a weekend, just us and soon. we decided on getting a cabin in a state park somewhere and to do some hiking (use some of the cool stuff we bought over valentine's day weekend). lucky for us cheaha state park had a cancellation for the last weekend in february, and we snatched it up! the cabins are just one room, but they look nice and woodsy.
i'm so looking forward to the trip. fingers crossed for nice weather!
hope everyone had a lovely hearts and kisses day. danny surprised me with my first real biking jersey, & i got him a piece of art for his office. 
the words are actually the words of our wedding ceremony put into a word cloud using wordle. i love it. so much, in fact, that i made one for myself. :) then, being the hardcore romantics that we are, danny and i spent the day spending all our money on hiking gear (we got new boots!) & ordered take-out for dinner.
the v-day events continued on into last night when we went to see the vagina monologues at vanderbilt med school in nashville. all of the performers were either med students or doctors. one woman was actually a dean.
the vagina monologues are amazing. every year around valentine's day, groups throughout the country put on performances of the monologues & raise money to help women. if you've never seen it, look for a production near you & definitely go see it. it shouldn't be missed.
but, this wasn't just some random production. this production was directed by my best friend, yamini! not only did she dream up the idea to do a med school production on her own, organize it from start to finish, cast it, and direct it, she also performed a monologue (all while being a 2nd year med student). she did such an amazing job! she couldn't see my face during the performance, but i was beaming the whole time. i am so proud of her and the work she did. yay, yamu!
here are the rules: bold the things you’ve done, add one more, and then post on your blog.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band (does Rock Band count?)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo...um, yeah, all the time
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch...i have to constantly reteach myself how to knit
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train...iowa to cali
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied...is this possible? ;)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke...proud to say my friends i were told we were the worst ever heard
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia...how about visited a russian?
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt (helped)
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (does leasing count?)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Married your best friend
111. Walked among the ruins of the Roman Forum
i tag jeri & my sister.
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