The Lion King

Tonight we went to see Lion King. It was pretty good. There were incredible moments and there were some, "eh" moments. Among the incredible were the set, the puppetry (Robin and Terry will be proud), the movement (again Robin and Terry), the costumes, and all the main plot points- Mufasa's death, Simba's coronation, Mufasa's divine intervention, and Can You Feel the Love Tonight. In Can You Feel the Love Tonight, there were two lead dancers on the floor (with amazing costumes) and two pairs of dancers on cables in the air. It was awesome. And the singing was amazing pretty much across the board.

Scar was a little lacking, as it was low in his range. Also, Simba's speaking voice was kinda whiny and he had funny inflections (I think he was African, so there was an accent). But Simba's singing made up for it, because I'm certain it's a long search before you find a singer like that.

Overall it was a good night. It was a little frustrating at times because there were a lot of High Schools there, so there were violations of theatre etiquette. A lot. But the show was amazing, and even the kids appreciated it.

Nollendorfplatz

I spent most of day 3 walking around the city with Kurt. Everyone else went to the flea market, but Kurt and I wanted to explore a little more. We hit up some of the major sites and got a bunch of pictures.

Checkpoint Charlie (a checkpoint between 2 districts):

We actually passed through Nollendorfplatz, so we stopped to get a picture. To those who are not familiar with Cabaret, the main character, Cliff, lives in Nollendorfplatz and a large chunk of the action happens there (and several of the main characters live there).
Tilt your head to the right. That is what Kurt and I had for lunch. Mine was Rostbratwurst. How can you go to Germany and not eat bratwurst?
This was actually a tower that was part of a church. The church was bombed away during the war, but the tower still stands.
Tilt your head to the left. This is the world's first stoplight (the lights are horizontally aligned above the glass panel above the clock)

And that's it. My Berlin trip. I probably missed a few things, but I hit all the main points.

New Post

Just to let everyone know, Berlin Day 2 is posted, but it's not at the top because I started it a few days ago.

Troilus and Cressida

Tonight we went to see Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida. It was really well done. First of all, the show is really good. We read it in class last week. But there was a slightly modern take on the costumes. All of the language, setting, and even weaponry were set in Troy, but the costumes were slightly more modern and interpretive. The stage was set up as a sort of runway that ran between two sections of audience seating. It was pretty cool. The actors all did very well, with the exception of one or two. I think what made the show awesome was first reading it and then comparing it to the interpretation we saw. Also, watching it made certain parts more clear. Overall an excellent production.

Phantom of the Opera

Wow. That's all I have to say. This was my third time seeing Phantom of the Opera (fourth if you count the movie) and it was different than every other production. The staging may have been the same, the special effects may have been the same, but the production was different. I really enjoyed the uniqueness every character gave to the show. Some people who stood out:

Ramin Karimloo- Phantom. No vocal training. Who knew? Originally from Toronto he was in rock bands for awhile. Pretty sweet. He's genuinely a good guy. I talked to him after the show and he's very supportive and encouraging. This was a dream role of his, and he thinks that if he can do it, than anyone can do it. He worked at it is all. And it showed onstage. I liked the rock/pop style he brought to the role, as it was not overdone and actually gave it a more powerful feel. His range was flawless and his connection to his fellow actors was solid. What also impressed me was how far he went with his character- he gave it his all, and at the end had me completely wrapped in what the Phantom was experiencing.

Leila Benn Harris- Christine. Whenever I initially hear Christine come in during "Think of Me" I'm always a little hesitant. I like Carlotta and the operatic style of singing, so when the little chorus girl comes in with her weak voice, it's a little disheartening. But it was acting, because she certainly didn't have a weak voice. Also adding more of a modern twist on a classical vocal style, Leila was not only an amazing singer, but also an amazing actress. She was always engaged, even when the focus wasn't on her.

Alex Rathgeber- Raoul. Definately how I see Raoul, but not the same as I've seen it done. Up to this point, the movie version of Raoul is the one I've liked best. Not anymore- Alex did a phenominal job in making Raoul not seem like a wuss, but still loving Christine. Brilliant.

Wendy Ferguson- Carlotta. I loved her. She was perfect. Her expressions, her timing, and above all her singing were amazing. Truly spectacular.

Heather Jackson- Madame Giry. I liked how Heather played a stronger, more commanding Madame Giry. Whenever she was onstage, I couldn't take my eyes off of her. Even when she was in the middle of the entire ensemble. She gave her part everything and I liked it. She didn't play a frail old woman and she could actually sing the part. And the dynamics she gave her character were incredible.

These are just some of the performers that stood out. It was really a good show. I know it's a little more in depth than my previous show posts, but I've seen Phantom a few times and could actually think about how the actors were doing (though the show was still incredibly engaging. I was moved to tears on occasion.) I had a seat 4 rows back on the end, so I was close enough to actually experience everything (and occasionally see how some of the tricks were done. But don't ask- cause I won't tell).

I think that if anyone ever gets a chance to see this show, they should take it- regardless of who's performing it where. And if you don't get the opportunity, create the opportunity.

IM GEDENKEN AN 6 MILLIONEN ERMORDETE JUDEN.

"Remember the 6 Million Murdered Jews"

Day 2 in Berlin:

We went to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (the picture above). On the way we stopped at the Bradenburg Gate (actually, we went through it). You can kinda see how big the memorial is. You can't really tell from that picture, but the ground in between the blocks is uneven. This is how deep it gets toward the middle:

It represents the confusion and disorientation of the Jews during the Holocaust. Underneath the memorial is an exhibit. It starts with an account of the history, from approximately 1931 through the end of the war. At that point, you walk into a room that is completely dark except for large rectangular tiles on the floor that emit light. The tiles have letters from holocaust victims to their loved ones. They also have the German and English translations. Here's one:

Translated:

My Dear, don't seperate from Michael. Don't let yourself be taken to the children's home. Write to Papa, maybe he can help you, and write to Paulette. Ask the furrier across the way for his advice. Maybe God will pity you. We are leaving tomorrow, for who knows where. I'm hugging you, in tears. I would so much have loved to hold you in my arms again, my poor children, I will never see you again.

The next rooms contain stories of individual families. It is sad when most of the time it lists the survivors instead of those killed, because it is a shorter list.

We then went to the Reichstag. It was awesome. It's a giant building with a huge roof and a glass dome. We went up on the roof and then to the top of the dome. You can see a large amount of Berlin from the roof. It was amazing.

On the Roof (Notice the trees behind Mal and Me):
The Giant dome:

That evening we all went to a Photo Gallery where a friend of Greta's was displaying his photography. It was pretty cool. Unfortunately, we had Mexican for dinner, but it was what we all needed. One of the waitresses spoke only Spanish and the other only Spanish and German. So between Trevor's little bit of Spanish and Michael's German, we were good. We then went back to the bar and hung out. Exhausted, we crashed back at our beautiful hotel.

Labels

So I just learned how to use labels and they're pretty sweet. At the bottom of every post are all of the labels that the post falls under. They're like categories. If you click on one of them, you will be redirected to a page with all of the posts that have that label. For example, if you're reading my post on Avenue Q and you decide you want to see all of my posts pertaining to shows, click on the "Theatre" label and it will open just the theatre posts. Pretty sweet, huh?

Bleibe, reste, stay...

First I'd like to take a moment to push Jonathan's Video Blog on YouTube- check it out (link to the right). He's in Alaska (9 hours different from me). It's almost like seeing both ends of the world at the same time....woah...

Anyway, and now for Berlin... (*really dramatic music and cool flashy lights*)

(The Berlin Cathedral)

So we got up at some awful hour that may go by 3:30am. Ew. We then proceeded to take a cab, a bus, and a plane to Germany. We went to the wrong statin- our bus would still pick us up there, but we were supposed to use the other station it stopped at. Oh well. Anyway, we did make it. Our tour guide's name was Gareth. He was born in Ireland, but has Ireland/British Isles dual citizenship. Two pastports. And he speaks with an Irish/English dialect. Pretty sweet.

Anyway, we get to Berlin. There's a 3 hour bus tour around the city. Not exactly what we all wanted to be doing, as we were tired, but it was fun and worth it.

We started out by visiting the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. It was built for the 1936 Olympics. It is one of the few remaining complete Nazi Structures in Germany.

It's amazing how we as Americans think of WWII as a thing of the past. Very few people alive remember it, and it was fought in a distant land. In Germany it is still very real. They are still rebuilding (They estimated it was 90% destroyed in the war). The Iron Curtain was only torn down in the last few years, and buildings are still being put up where it stood. They are still working on unifying the airport in Berlin (because there were 4 before, one in each sector- French, British, American, Soviet). Only in the last 10 years have they erected a memorial to the Jews. I was talking to Gareth about it, and part of the reason Germany is so against the Iraqi war is the fact that they haven't been to war since 1945. It's a touchy subject. Even the fact that they focus so much on the Environment is because they cannot dedicate their passions to nationalism. When Germans do something, they do it all out

The following is a picture of what's left of the Berlin wall:
Yeah, that brick line in the sidewalk represents where it used to be. It zig-zags through the city. I have better pictures of it, but this particular site is where the first boy was shot after the installment of the wall. And he was left to die- the Soviets wouldn't rescue him, for fear of the Allies. And the Allies wouldn't rescue him for fear of the Soviets.

This is a place where the wall is still standing. One of the few where it's fully intact- most places is crumbled and partially destroyed.

So one of the most amazing things about Berlin is the RIDICULOUS amount of greenery. It's a forest. There are more trees in Berlin than in my back lawn. And that's not really much of an exagguration. Like I mentioned earlier- they are very environmentally conscious (at least in some areas). Like, bottle deposits are 25 euro cents. Not 5- 25.

We spent probably an hour figuring out the public transportation system. The map was a little confusing. And the tickets are all done on an honor basis- they don't ask for them or automate them. You buy the ticket you need to use then you use it. And if they catch you misusing the system it's a 60 euro fine.

After a little while we split up. Emily Noelle and Mallory went shopping while Kurt, Greta, Jared, Trevor and I went around the city. We were actually heading to the Reichstag (big building- I'll explain later) when we stopped in the lawn in front of the Berlin Cathedral. Kurt decided to keep going, but the four of us sat in the lawn watching 5 people playing a game called Kubb. Now I don't want to explain the whole game, but it's a lawn game with techniques not to different from horseshoes. Basically you have to knock all the wooden cubes down on the other side of the field with the wooden dowels before the other team knocks the cubes on your side down. If you knock down a cube it switches ends. That's the basic gist. It's really cool, and we're going to have a bonfire and play it when I get home. We'll make our own set, but for more info- http://www.kubb.co.uk/ Anyway, it was really cool because two of the guys were German and 3 of them from Norway.

At that point, we all met up again to go out to a bar. We had invited Gareth, so he joined us too. It was at this point that we first noticed the prostitutes on the street- yes, even before it was dark. How do you know? They're the ones in corsets just kinda standing around... Yeah. Anyway, after dodging the occasional, erm, businesswoman, we made our way to the bar. What it was was an old factory that instead of tearing down, someone rented it out (real cheap) and put bars and artwork in it. Some artists of some sort took pictures and did junk sculptures and creations and put them on display/sold them. It was sweet. The bar was on the 5th floor and the wall was completely knocked out (not on purpose. Probably a bomb)- so it was a giant balcony (they installed a railing). It was sweet. And at the back of the building, on the ground was a kind of beach bar. They had laid sand down and set up a few bars and cheap furniture around. It was awesome.

The wall of the stairway leading up to the bar:

I went to bed exhausted, too late, and actually fell asleep trying to write in my journal. It was a good day.

So, if I journal my entire trip in one post it would be ridiculous. Installment #2 comes tomorrow.