Crazytown

SCREAMING IMELDA

Traveling the world for the greatest of Imelda Staunton does not disappointment.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

I am a proud Imelda Staunton groupie. She is the best. If you've never seen her on stage, you must. At any opportunity and at any cost. Imelda Staunton is everything.  Imelda first came to my attention as an actress of incredible talent in the 2004 feature film Vera Drake for which she was nominated for and Oscar as Best Actress (she lost to Hlilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby!). If you are not familiar film, you are forgiven. It's one of those British films that you know is REALLY good because it made approximately ZERO dollars in the US and still support was so strong in the industry to nominate her for an Oscar.  Most people know her from her star turn as Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in 2007 and Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 in 2010. She brings to life one of the series' greatest villains. But her acting career in film TV and theater goes back decades. Exploring her theater work and accolades you get a better sense of her incredible range as a performer.

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You may be surprised to learn that Imelda is an accomplished musical theater performance who has appeared in many shows on the West End, and who has won three of her four Olivier Awards in the Best Actress category - as The Baker's Wife in Into The Woods, Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd and Mama Rose in Gypsy. She's earned 11 Olivier nominations throughout her career. I saw her performance in 2015 in Gypsy and it melted my brain. What makes her such an incredible performer is her understanding of dynamics. She can go big. She can go small. But what sets her apart from other actors is her ability to navigate everything in between. She can give you fortissimo, but she can also give you mezzo forte. She paints with all the colors. She breathes so much life and fresh perspective into these iconic characters. Even if you've been a fan of a show for years, Imelda Staunton will show you things about them that you never realized you were missing.

LA LA BASURA?

When a theatre filled with movie stars turns to television to honor cinema sometimes crazy things happen.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

Oh the 89th Academy Awards. You would not be denied your place in Oscar History. Sure, maybe some folks at the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences were thinking, let's just put up a pleasant endless evening of televised awards with not too many theatrics and bells and whistles and save the big fireworks for when we hit the big 9-0 next year. But, oh no. You would not be denied. Instead, you gave us some true triumphs and a shocking reversal of fortune at the finish line that left jaws dropped. Love it or loathe it, the 89th Oscars will be remembered. Good luck topping this insanity, #90.

On my way to watch the Oscars, I passed this Anti-Ll La Land sign outside a bar. I really enjoyed La La Land. I thought it was good. I didn't really think it was the best film I ever saw, or the best film I saw all year, but there was a lot to recommend about it. Definitely a lot I truly enjoyed about it. But as it won more and more awards throughout the season, the hype around it made it harder for me to just enjoy it and instead I started focusing on its faults. Was it really a better than Hidden Figures or Moonlight just to name two other high quality films released this year? Was it worthy of a record-tying 14 Oscar nominations. I became more and more skeptical. I don't think it's basura, or that LA is basura, but I went in to the Oscar telecast rooting for the underdogs in every category and certainly didn't want to see a sweep. Outside of that I wasn't sure what the telecast itself would bring. 

At the end of it all, I liked the Oscars this year. If the 2009 (Kanye-v-Taylor Swift) VMA's had a love child with 2015 Miss Universe Pageant (Steve Harvey Announces the wrong winner, it would grow up to be the 2017 Academy Awards. Wrong winner announced? Check! Awards speech interrupted? Check! Living people included in the In Memoriam? New! And also: check! Plus Junior Mints, Cookies and Donuts were parachuted into the auditorium Hunger Games-style. If this had all happened in 30 minutes instead on over 3.5 hours, it would have been the most excited show of the year. As it was, there was a lot stuff to sit through, but let's focus on the positive!

PORTRAIT OF A RUNNER AS A CRAZY MAN

Running for 26.2 miles when you've already run out of style.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

 

A little over a month ago, I ran my third Disney World Marathon. I love this event. It's about the joy of the race with very little pressure to run a personal best time. I'm sure some people go in with that goal, but the race has so many character photo op spots built into the race that it's more about enjoying yourself as you run than it is about getting through it as fast as possible. 

I finally looked at my race pictures and I think they're hilarious. I basically look more like Little Edie strolling through the most magical place on Earth, waving at strangers and eating crunchy M&M's, than I do someone whose on mile 23 of a 26.2 mile run. Let's dissect my outfit and I'll explain what went into these strong fashion choices. But before I start, I have to say it was hella cold in Orlando the day of the marathon. The rest of the week was pretty nice, there were even several undeniably warm days. But there was awful weather the day before (lightning canceled the half-marathon that was supposed to take place Saturday morning) and then the temperature PLUNGED. When we started the race on Sunday morning it was not even 40 degrees outside. The irony here was that even though it was winter in NYC I had waited to do all my long training runs on days where the temperature spiked above 50 degrees in NYC. So here I was in what was supposed to be sunny and warm Florida and I would be running in weather that was significantly colder than what I was used to and what I planned to wear would simply not be sufficient to keep me warm for a 5 hour run. I foolishly didn't even pack a warmer option with me, so I had to improvise.

SUPER BOLD MVP

On a weekend full of sports ball heroics, the ballsiest performance still belongs to a woman.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

I like the Patriots. I like that they always win. I like going into work after any given Sunday during football season with the likelihood that my team of choice has done better than my coworkers who favor the Giants or the Jets. I don't like the politics of their owner, their coach or their star quarterback Tom Brady. I don't like the fact that they consistently season after season run into big problems with bending the rules in their favor. Anyone who's not a fan of the team, believes they are the world's biggest cheaters and those who are fans would counter that they're simply the best cheaters. And don't I deserve the best?

Everyone who hated the Patriots wanted them to lose badly to Falcons. For 3 quarters, it looked like they were going to get their wish. The trailed 28-3 in the third, and no team had ever come back in a Super Bowl by more than 10 points. And the lopsided nature of the first three quarters made the game pretty boring. Tom Brady was way off. It wasn't like his receivers were dropping the ball, he was overthrowing and under-throwing. They had no success running the ball. They were completely out of rhythm for most of the game. But just when it looked like the Falcons were going to put the final nail in the coffin in the 4th quarter, their fortunes totally reversed. A holding penalty on the Falcons offense and a tremendous sack by the Patriots defense, knocked the Falcons out of field goal range and from that point on it was all Patriots. That launched the most improbable comeback in Super Bowl history, scoring 25 unanswered points, forcing the game into a first-ever overtime and snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. The ending couldn't have been more dramatic. People are calling it the best Super Bowl ever. It might be the most surprising, but I feel like I've seen better back and forth matches that were more exciting to watch from beginning to end. Still a win is a win, and the Patriots are the champs again!

THE HAPPY SLAM

The 2017 Australian Open was a thrilling start to the tennis season, as newcomers and veterans thrilled crowds with excellent play and four of the greatest players of all time made their way back to the finals once again.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

It's been a rough 2 weeks, y'all. Things in the United States? They ain't good. It seems almost every day came a new horrifying executive order from the President. It's been a lot to deal with. People are upset. People are scared. People are protesting. The anxiety is practically inescapable. But during these past two weeks, a shining beacon of welcome relief was being transmitted into our TVs each night. When the sun went down, the Australian Open was waiting for us shining brightly with tomorrow's sun. With progressive round of play, it became clear that this was one of the best tennis tournaments I have ever seen.

Going into this Major tournament, no one really knew what to expect. Federer and Nadal had take most of the last year off to heal lingering injuries. Their absence meant that their ranking would drop them both out of the top 8 for the first time in over a decade. This meant that they wouldn't get an automatic slot in the 8 corners of the 4 quarters of the draw and could wind up pretty much anywhere. Also, who knew how they were going to play when they showed up? Beyond Rafa and Roger, could Andy Murray maintain his dominance as the new #1? Would Novak Djokovic bounce back after a disappointing second half of 2016? So much drama to unfold!

On the women's side, several big names were not present and several question marks surround the health of Serena and Venus Williams. Serena missed the WTA Finals in 2016 with a shoulder injury. She relinquished her spot at the top of the WTA rankings. Would the Aussie Open be a chance for her to reclaim #1 and give her a 23rd career championship trophy? So much at stake!

Every day of the tournament featured incredible matches with unbelievable outcomes. And the level of play was SO HIGH. In the second round, No. 117 Denis Istomin became just the 2nd player outside the top 100 to defeat Djokovic in the last seven years. The shock wasn't that Novak played badly, but how Istomin played the match of his life beating Novak in 5 sets that lasted just under 5 hours. Istomin went two more rounds deeper in the draw after that as well. In the 4th Round, Murray met another shocking fate when he was handily beaten by #50 Misha Zverev. 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4. Again all credit to Zverev who played such an intense and unusual attacking style that left Murray completely confused. It was incredible! Through it all, the two veteran champions Federer and Nadal kept winning. No matter the challenge, no matter how many times a match went the distance to 5 sets, they kept finding solutions. Pretty soon tournament directors, commentators and spectators dared to dream - could we see another Rafa and Roger Grand Slam final?

On the women's side, Serena and Venus tore through their draws in remarkable fashion. But there were other amazing stories as well. The US Women went deep into the draw. Unseeded Coco Vandeweghe almost got bounced in the third round, but hung tough. Then she dialed in to her power game, knocking off No. 1 and reigning Aussie Champ Angelique Kerber in the Round of 16 and reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza to face Venus in the semis. Again we all dared to dream - Could we see an another All-Williams Grand Slam final? On Serena's side of the draw we had the improbable run of Mirjana Lučić-Baroni. I'm not sure if there was a more emotional story in the tournament than hers. A teenage phenom, Lucic-Baroni had very difficult years to get through getting away from her controlling abusive father. She did not make an appearance at a Major tournament for more than seven years from 2003 to 2010. Here she was at 34 ranked #79, kicking ass and making her way through the draw like she'd never been gone. She delighted in every moment.  After reaching the quarterfinals in her on court post-match interview she said, “I’m a tough little cookie, and really, really stubborn. When I want something, I will work really hard and I will do whatever it takes to get it. It’s not a guarantee, by any means, that you’re gonna get there, but, man, what a satisfaction I feel right now. Incredible. And I will tell it to anybody struggling out there. 'F-' everything and everybody who ever tells you you can’t do it. Just show up and do it with your heart.” How can you not love this woman? She couldn't beat Serena in the semis, but her performance for the whole tournament was nothing short of inspiring.

A NECESSARY CONSEQUENCE OF DOING SOMETHING NEW

Feeling inspired after the Women's March? Creativity Inc might help keep those ideas flowing.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

Continuing on the path in reading more in 2017, this week I am reporting back on Creativity, Inc.Ed Catmull with Amy Wallace. Catmull is the President of Pixar and Disney Animation Studios and boy does he have a story to tell! A good friend of mine gifted this book to me and my sweet boy Josh last year. Knowing how much we liked Disney and were creative folks in our own right, she thought it'd be the perfect match. And it should've been! Except... except...

Several times I planned to pick it up last year, but honestly I was scared. I felt like here would be this incredibly successful innovator telling me his story and making a pretty clear case as to why I'm not doing enough with my life. And I already feel like I'm not doing enough, you know? Like I'm doing okay, but am I doing my best? Am I doing the right things? What if there are all these other steps that I'm supposed to be doing instead, and I'm not doing them, and changing from what I am doing now is too haaaaaard? What then?

Obviously, while my fears of not wanting to find out I'm doing the wrong thing is natural, it's also a bunch of bullshit. Bullshit is natural, y'all. The book was actually very affirming. Of course it was the EXACT book I needed to read. Catmull talks about the need for candor in a creative environment and a business environment and ultimately that's what this book is: a candid look at the journey of the people who created Pixar and how they worked with diligence to maintain an environment for creativity, innovation and artistry to flourish. The subtitle of the book is "Overcoming the unseen forces that stand in the way of true inspiration." And there are always unseen forces. The book explores how to create an environment to root out the sources and make changes to address them. It's a great read.

Her Again (Again)

2017 starts off with a resolution to read more books, starting with those books we didn't finish in 2016. 
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

Ah, a new year! The promise of adopting new habits, setting new goals and achieving new achievements. To be honest, I wasn't sure if I was going to continue blogging this year. In the face of this incoming administration, I wasn't sure what I wanted to say about the world we're living in and what's to come. I find it all very stressful and couldn't see myself staying sane if I was going to jump into writing politically-minded posts. That's not to say I won't be involved or stay aware of what's happening in this country, but I just didn't want to feel like I had to comment on it as it was happening. So I was thinking I wouldn't actually blog for the winter, but then I never got around to actually telling anyone at Crazytown that was my plan, and suddenly it was time to start up again! So rather than leave people in a lurch, here I am!

2016 had been a very full and artistically satisfying year for me, but one thing that was missing was books. I haven''t make time in my day for books. I've felt their absence in my life. Having time to read has been an issue ever since I moved from Astoria into Hell's Kitchen over two years ago. I used to read on the train and now that commute has been considerably shortened. What I was spending a lot of my time on was web-browsing and reading online. I consider web-browsing the empty calories of reading. It occupies your mind until you're full, but it doesn't really provide you the nutrients you need. I felt if I could cut an hour of web-browsing out of my day and use that time for book-reading I'd be much better off.

Several friends have also chosen to recommit to reading this year and are doing Reading List programs to diversify the kind of books they're reading. I'm working off of BookRiot.com's list and also this other list that friend's have sent me - I'm unaware of the original source.

I decided to put my hour of reading time at the start of my day, since my sweet dog Lucy wakes me up for her morning walk LOOONG before I actually need to get up to start my work day. So now after we get up and go for her walk and giver her breakfast, I keep my computer closed and leave my phone out of reach and read for an hour in the quiet and stillness of my living room. I'm hoping to get through 3 books a month this way, but maybe I can stretch it to four. I enjoy taking my time with books, so we'll see how it goes. We're halfway through January and I'm 2/3 the way through book #2. (My sweet boy Josh is also doing the reading challenge, but reads much faster than I do and I expect by December he'll be through double the amount of books.)

The first book I choose for 2017 was Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep, by Michael Schulman. This checks the box for both "A Book You Previously Abandoned" and "A Biography." Michael and I go a long way back. In the mid-2000's I was dating his roommate and we spent a lot of time together at their apartment. In the early morning hours of one memorable night, I came down with a violent 24-hour bug. I tried to make my way to the one bathroom in the apartment before throwing up, but I did not make it in time. Instead, I threw up on the floor of the living room, slipped in my own vomit, had both of my legs flip out from under me, landed flat on my back and then proceeded to throw up all over myself as I lie there. I can see it all happening again as I write this and I laugh at the absurd sight it must've been, but at the time it was just really gross. I remember thinking - as I dragged myself to the bathroom so I could continue to throw up into the toilet like a respectable human being - about how badly I left about throwing up on Michael Schulman's floor. Michael and I shared better moments than this one. We also performed in a Muppet Cabaret at Don't Tell Mama and that was a total delight. Evidence of me singing "Piggy's Fantasy" can be found here.

WITH 2017 ON OUR DOORSTEP

A conversation with the New Year before it officially arrives to sublet this time of our lives.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

Hey 2017, Nice to meet you. Come in! Take your coat off and stay a while. You can just kick off your shoes in the front hall. I appreciate you coming to meet with me several days before your scheduled arrival. 

I know you're hoping to crash on my couch for the next 365 days and that's cool. We'll make it work. I know you spoke to 2016 about how things go around here. We actually got along pretty well, all things considered, but I'm making a few changes when 2016 vacates for good, and that will affect how you and I are going to get along together. I learned some important things about myself while 2016 was staying with me. And while I know with you being here it's a fresh start, I can promise you that 2016 is planning to leave enough of its baggage and dirty laundry scattered around my living room to be an issue we'll have to address. We're going to have to do a bit of clean up together. 

2016 was kind of a noisy house guest. Very opinionated. A bit of a sensationalist. Lots of drama. I'm looking for noise-reduction when it comes to our time together, 2017. I could've talked about a lot of important issues with 2016, but there was too much bullshit all the time. It became exhausting.2016 was always reacting immediately to every story that shows up in its social media feeds regardless of the source or the date on the article. It would fixate on fake news or get angry about things that happened years ago and were already resolved and it was very hard to reason with 2016. I'm going to be taking a step back from that. Don't look for me to be a constant sparring partner, 2017. I'm sure we'll have A LOT to talk about. There are important issues on the table - women's rights, LGBT rights, racial inequality and injustice, Islamophobia, environmental issues that need to be championed. I will not be silent about these things. But I'm going to need more quiet time, 2017. More time for reading and writing. There are only so many hours in a day. Let's make more of them count.

O IS FOR ORNAMENTS

For every year this Christmas tree, brings to us such joy and glee.
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

It's the most wonderful time of the year - Christmas Tree time! Decorating the tree has always been my favorite annual holiday tradition. I've never thought of it as a religious symbol. It's connected to a religious holiday, sure, but the tree itself isn't about celebrating the birth of Jesus. Christmas tress are just FUN. They hold a special place in my heart. As a kid, each December I got to take a rare trip up the very unstable ladder that led to our attic in order to drag down the fake tree we always used (and stored with exceptional care in three large trash bags) plus all the ornaments, and my grandpa's handmade nativity scene. I loved dusting it all off, putting it back together and making it shine. Now as an adult, I look forward to the time about two weeks before Christmas, where I go get a real tree of the sidewalk stands in NYC, carrying it to the apartment and making it a part of our home through the end of the year. I like to name the tree each year. This year's tree is named Tamatoa after the giant shiny crab from Moana, and Heihei the Rooster is our tree topper. Once you know what you like, well there you are. 

PRETTY GOOD YEAR?

Even if 2016 wasn't the most awesome year on record, are we actually looking forward to 2017?
By Owen Panettieri (playwright, lyricist)

I've heard a lot of people complaining recently about 2016 and how overall it was an awful year that they can't wait to see in the rear view mirror. I don't share that opinion. I'm not looking for the year to be over. Personally, 2016 was pretty good to me. I did what I resolved to do back in January. I lost roughly 30 lbs, I traveled to places in Europe I'd always dreamed of visiting and I had a production of my latest play A Burial Place play in NYC that was as artistically enriching as anything I've ever done. I was seated in front of Anna Wintour at not one but TWO fancy events. I got to go on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride again - several times. I was surrounded by the love of family and friends. I ate good food. I slept comfortably in a nice home, I took lots of cute pictures of my dog sleeping ridiculously on our couch. I consider myself very fortunate, In a lot of ways, 2016 and I are cool with each other.

But I'll share with you one personal story that kinda sums up 2016's big problem. As I mentioned earlier, Josh and I went on a trip to Europe in July. It was a fantastic experience through Paris, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich and London. However, every single day we'd wake up to some sort of horrible international incident having happened either back home or nearby. There was the terrorist attack in Nice, the failed coup in Turkey, train attacks in Germany, mass shootings, police shootings, the creepy awfulness of the whole Republican convention. Very heavy shit happened every day and we felt it. It finally caught up with us head on in Munich, when there was a mass shooting not far from the Olympia shopping mall. Ten people, including the shooter, were killed and dozens were injured. The city went into lockdown during dinnertime. There was no public transportation. We were held inside our restaurant and under the impression there were as many as three active shooters still unaccounted for in the area. It was under those conditions we had to walk around the locked down area for an hour to get back to our hotel. The truth of the situation was that the lone shooter was dead and the threat was over, but we had to walk home believing that maybe we could be shot to death at anytime. It was scary. And it was very sad.