Giselle in 3D at the Mariinsky

So an email came through my indox the other day.  I read it.  Read it again.  laughed.  Then I read it a third time to make sure I was reading it correctly.  I sent it to my dear friend Samantha who laughed and confirmed.  This is not a joke.  But too too funny and I think the whole 3-D craze may have just jumped the shark.

So here is the basic content of said email:

Approaching two centuries old, Giselle is a Romantic ballet whose beauty has proven ageless, and its evolution continues this summer. NCM Fathom and More2Screen will bring Giselle in 3D to movie theater audiences nationwide from the historic Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The exclusive event is the world’s first ballet shown in 3D. On July 12 at12:00pm or 7:30pm (local time), attendees can experience the tale of love and heartbreak in a way the art form has never before been shared.

Giselle is the story of a prince, played by Leonis Sarafanov, who disguises himself as a peasant, gaining the love of a simple village girl, played by Natalia Osipova. What first appears as granite love eventually morphs into betrayal and Giselle joins the vengeful Wilis to bring revenge upon her beloved prince. Through each graceful step, however, love transcends even death and forgiveness is granted.

We are asking you to support the in-theater ballet by sharing information about Giselle in 3D with your readers. We hope it will inspire group outings to watch the graceful cast—as though you’re right in front of the stage.

For more information about Giselle in 3D, visit www.fathomevents.com. There you can also find participating theaters and purchase tickets.

I am a full on supporter of the arts, all arts.  Gotta support your kind, you know?  Dance, despite horrible shows like SYTYCD and America's best dance crew and whatever else is being shoved down our throats, can be amazing!  There are some truly brilliant companies and dancers here in the city that I've grown to love and learn from.  While watching a ballet from the Majiinsky would be fairly entertaining and a beautiful experiences, 3-D? Really?  Are they going to toss the dancers at the camera so we have to duck? Arms and legs swinging wildly into our field of vision? Pies flying at us?

Do we really need everything in 3-D now?

If you are interested in at least seeing this productions here is some more info :Ticket and Theater Info but remember it's all gimmicky and pointlessly being presented in 3-D

Video Woes

So I just have to share with this most recent interweb drama.

I have a youtube account, who doesn't really?  I use mine mainly for hosting videos of my work thus far in order to to have them embedded into my website.  Makes sense i think.  Its an easy site to navigate and it lumps similar videos together.

Well the problem I've been having is that a piece that I have posted is a section of a longer piece called Eye Candy.  It was performed at the NY Fringe Festival in 2007.  A big success for us as a company as well as us as artists.  We all had a hand in creating this piece along with our choreographer.  Its my favorite piece so far entitled "At Last."  The music used in this piece is Etta Jame's At last.  

Now you see where the name came from.

Anyway, It's a video of a performance.  And for the performance we had all the legal rights to the songs.  So it makes sense that everything is ok to post a video of a performance.  I'm sure I'm wrong because youtube muted my video.  Sucks Sucks Sucks.  Yes Muted my video because we use Etta James in the piece.  

So this is the video with no sound and it's sad and pathetic.  It's still online but you lose so much without the sound.  I have managed to find a way around this for now and lets hope this works.  I've got it, for now, hosted on photobucket.  So now I have it live on my site again with sound as it was meant to be, but now all my videos don't have a uniform look.

I guess we do whatever we can tog et around things, huh?

All this because of copyright issues.  How are artists supposed to express themselves?  get their ideas across?  If we're being muted.  I am in NO WAY using At Last as a way to make money.  I'm just showing my art.  In a way, isn't this infringing on my right as an artist to bring my thoughts to the world?  Who is the law protecting here.  And where is the leeway?  Shouldn't there be something that allows us to express ourselves more freely?  And lastly for youtube, what about those people that put music on their home family videos.  Can't use it now?  How is that infringing on copyright laws?

Logos for me, Logos for you

Ladies and gentlemen I have, if you haven't seen already, officialy adopted a logo for this here little blog. Apparently to some it looks like a smiling cloud. But i swear its almost the spitting image of me. Or something like that. I figure why not, who doesn't need a logo, right?

So behold, the official Starving Logo:

Please let me know what you think

And even more exciting is the logo for the WILD WILD WOMEN of WAKKY NUNU:

Rehearsals are going very well for this insane little comedy. As we get closer to opening night i'll send out an official description and show information. For now I can tell you that it runs from May 11-June 3 at the Red Room in Manhattan. But what i can tell you is that this is a wonderful cast of beautiful yet somewhat crazy characters who of course through amazing circumstances are somehow stuck together for approximately 2 hours of exausting laughs and pratfalls.

If only Groucho could see me now. I'll do my best to update this with some rehearsal anecdotes tonight or tomorrow. With rehearsals going to 11 and being the non-stop physical workout that they are, i'm understandable asleep before i even get off the subway.

And now I'm off to memorize.

See folks, its not all glitz and glamour, i have book work to do.

Wakky Audition and Eye Candy Rehearsal

The Wild Wild Women of Wakky NuNu.

Last Sunday I sat in on auditions for the remaining ensemble members of the cast of this upsoming comedy extravaganza. We are almost fully cast and beginning rehearsals this Tuesday. I don't have much info to give you just yet, its all very hush hush, but I can tell you it runs for a month at the Red Room from May 11th to June 3rd.

(Director: Frank Cwiklik and Choreographer: Sarah Jacobs)

Of course I'll post more info as we go and about our adventures in rehearsals. Until then we're in the hands of these two capable people. They look harmless, right? I hope...



and moving on....


Today found me back in the rehearsal studio for yet another project. This time we were way down town in the meat-packing district at Nancy Meehan studios. This is the downtown facing view from the space. (Its more impressive in person)

(a view from the rehersal studio)

So we are back in rehearsals for EYE CANDY, with MariaColacoDance. This is the same piece i helped create and perform in as part of the NYC fringe fest. of 2006. Its still got a hearbeat and is in the process of coming back better and stronger cause, you know, we have the technology and all that. The biggest news is that P.S. 122 is heavily looking at producing the show, so here we are relearning and brushing up on sections and getting ready to go back into the studio full force.

(patrick pizzolorusso)

The section we were working on today is a duet between myself and partner Carrie Malernee. This section is performed to At last, by Ella Fitzgerald. Its a charming tale of a first date. Gorgeous girl, dorky boy. Hilarity ensues. Now we haven't touched this piece since 8/06 and after reviewing the dvd of the performance it came right back. Muscle memory is an amazing thing.

So one rehearsal this evening and we're in a pretty good place, memory wise. Now its just a matter of tightening a few things up and working on the lifts. First time back we opted to not get too crazy with all the lifting. Coming up on 2/22 we have an open rehearsal for a small group of invited guests and this section will be one of the pieces we 'work' for the spectators and possible funders. And then after that, well, we're on the way.

(maria colaco, patrick pizzolorusso, carrie malernee)

One of the great things about being an actor in this city is the ability to see so much of it that most people don't see. The building we rehearsed in is currently an artists residency. (Gotta figure out how to get in there) But at one time it was part of Edison's main building here in NY. In fact, the infamous high line subway line used to run through the building about 2 stories up. You can still see where the tracks are and were cut when the line became defunct.

Who esle gets to look out over the Hudson and the lower part of the West Side Highway while rehearsing a piece that is on its way to being produced?

EYE CANDY Video, Red Fern, Capes...

Well, it has been a while sice I posted. Not because I have been slacking in my auditions, mainly because I just have no time to sit down and write. Part of my resolution is to write more, so here I go.

The past several months have seen me cranking up the auditioning volume on my life.

The last 2 months of 2006 i was in an amazing class at Capes Coaching. The class is designed to help you set goals and find ways to follow through and achieve those goals. (writing being a means to an end, or more possibilities I hope) I would highly recommend these amazing people to anyone. I feel so empowered and confident in the direction my career is going. I can only thank these women for pushing me and opening my eyes.

I have been auditioning non-stop these past few months. And happily all this hard work has paid off. I have just been cast in a production of The Long Christmas Ride Home by Paula Vogel with the Red Fern Theatre Company. I'll post more info about the production and the company as soon as I get some.


And for all you Eye Candy fans, I have found a posting on YouTube of a section of the show from the original production in the fall of 2005. The clip below is of Billy Keiffer and Maria Colaco. Watch and Enjoy.


And..Look for a Patrick and Pam production coming to a computer near you soon.....