The Sanji Blog

Speech

2008-12-11T04:56:00.000-08:00

As President of the Salem Arts Association, I was asked to give a speech to the inductees of the Salem High School National Arts Honor Society. Here's what I had to say to them...

Willa Cather, the American writer who penned My Antonia and Oh, Pioneer, is quoted as saying “there is no God, but one God, and art is his revealer”.

When I first heard this quote I stopped in my tracks for it was the definition of art that I had been waiting for. It succinctly brought into one statement all the bits and pieces of a definition of art that I had been gathering over the years.

“There is no God, but one God, and art is his (or her) revealer.”

I believe that all living creatures are tiny little pieces of a larger whole, and the arts are what help us to define - to reveal to ourselves - exactly who we are.

And as we are all different, and we all contain different parts of that larger whole, we respond individually and very differently to works of artistic creation. So don’t get discouraged. Your work will eventually reveal itself to those who need it.

I once walked into a gallery and stood in the middle of five paintings and wept. The artist, Bo Bartlett, had so completely helped me to define a part of myself that I was overcome with emotion.

I saw a play called “A Madhouse in Goa” by Martin Sherman that totally changed my life and taught me a very vital lesson.

Martin Sherman and Bo Bartlett will never know the effect they had on me. And what’s even more fascinating, is that Martin Sherman and Bo Bartlett may not have intended for me to have the experience I had.

They created as they were called to do and then gave it up for me to decide what it would do for me. If anything.

That is what is so darn cool about art.

Artists are important. Artists are important because as Ms. Cather’s quote suggests to me, we are part minister, part counselor, part healer, part philosopher, and part teacher.

So I, for one, thank you for wanting to minister, counsel, heal, philosophize and teach.

And I congratulate you on this milestone in your young career.

And I asked some of my association members what they thought would be important to tell you on this occasion, and here is what some of them said….

Stay alert. Inspiration comes from the darndest places. From tire tracks left in the snow, from the clacking of a radiator, in a plastic grocery bag caught in a whirlwind, in the texture of a dog’s fur. Note it, record it, respond to it.

If you are not involved in a collaborative art like theatre, occasionally work on a collaborative project with other artists.

Have fun. Don’t take yourself too seriously.

Don’t under-price your work.

Don’t overprice your work.

And finally, GET INVOLVED with your local community of artists. Support them in their endeavors, take the opportunity to learn from those both more and less experienced than yourself, and put yourself in the middle of a an opportunity to reveal to your local community who they are collectively.

Thank you, and again - congratulations!

Now GO MAKE SOME ART

Salem Theatre Company presents A Child's Christmas in Wales this weekend

2008-12-01T04:25:00.000-08:00

The Salem Theatre Company (STC) will present Dylan Thomas's A Child's Christmas in Wales,337 Essex Street in Salem, MA. Tickets are $20 for adults and $12 for children 13 and under. Tickets for seniors and students are $17. as part of their evening of theatre, live music, song and dance on Friday, December 5 at 8 p.m., Saturday, December 6 at 5 p.m. and Sunday, December 7 at 5 p.m. at the Salem Athenaeum, 337 Essex Street in Salem, MA. Tickets are $20 for adults and $12 for children 13 and under. Tickets for seniors and students are $17.

Wanda Strukus directs this evening of childhood memories and Christmas traditions that will include performances by local actors, Morris dancing and fiddle-playing from the Newtown Morris Men, and caroling by members of area choirs. Refreshments will be served.

“The concept for 2008,” says Strukus “is a turn of the century holiday house party. We are inviting the community to celebrate with us, and the combination of great storytellers, featured dancers, and live music promises a delightful start to the holiday season.

A Child's Christmas in Wales, by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas is told through the eyes of nostalgic adults. As they weave their stories of magical snowfalls, Christmas pranks, eccentric relatives, and the ghostly Christmas carolers in their seaside town, we are once again filled with child-like anticipation and wonder as the world is transformed by the spirit of the Christmas holidays.

Featured actors in this year’s production are Stephen A. Turner (Rowley), Sarah Carlin (Danvers), Julie Korzenik (Marblehead), Callie Mescher (Allston), Benjamin Roberts and Nat Roberts (Swampscott).

In addition, Morris dancers and fiddlers Nathaniel Diamond-Jones, Jeremy Van Cleave, and Chris Murray from the Newtowne Morris Men will be featured at each performance.

For more information, visit www.salemtheatre.com or call 978.790.8546.

2008-11-30T18:25:00.000-08:00

How can someone go from being a shopaholic to someone who detests shopping? Within a span of less than 20 years.

Sox. That's all I really needed. Sox. I was down to three pair.

Craig was tired of me "borrowing" his so he actually gave me $100 to go out and buy sox. The five 20 dollar bills sat on the kitchen counter for a week before I said to myself, "take the damn money and go buy some damn sox."

I first checked the circulars to find the best deal. Kohl's was having a 30% off sale on Gold Toes. Not good enough and Craig wears Gold Toes, so I couldn't buy those as there's no way to tell which are mine and which are his. (One of the few dilemmas of a gay household.) JC Penney was having a 50% off sale on their Stafford (store) brand of sox. That sounded good. So I loaded my pockets with the five 20's and headed to the mall.

It was remarkably empty for the Saturday night after Thanksgiving and I found a parking space less than 25 paces from the back entrance by Joe's American Bar and Grill. I trekked over to Penney's stopping first in Pottery Barn cause I love their concrete floor. (Yes, I'm a freak.)

As it turns out, Stafford was not on sale for 50% - but a measly 30% and I spent a good 20 minutes searching around the Men's Department for the special area that they must have set aside for this promotion. Didn't find it.

I decided that maybe being a bit more upscale (a return to my old ways) might be in order so I headed down to Macy's. Maybe their Alfani brand of sox will be on sale. Well - they don't make Alfani sox.

Guess where I ended up? And this is quite embarrassing for someone who in his 20's and 30's only shopped at I. Magnum, Marshall Fields, and Nieman Marcus.

Sears. I bought my sox at Sears.

God, I'm old.

So now I am the happy owner of ten pairs of new sox and three pairs of old sox. I got my concrete floor fix and I learned that Macy's doesn't make Alfani sox.

And I only spent $32.

Don't tell Craig.

2008-11-30T18:05:00.001-08:00