Beta Stuff and Other Stuff
Dec. 5th, 2010 01:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amberfocusOkay, I beta'd Wings of Gold and I beta'd No Cure, but I swear there was a third fic I was supposed to beta and I can't find it. Worse yet, I can't even remember who it was by. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Kept my food down today, so that's progress. I think the worst of this "flu" is over. Just wish I didn't feel quite so much like drowned cat.
Took the kids to see the musical GREASE tonight.
Rose's school was performing it. It was...decent. One of the really, really difficult things about having perfect pitch is listening to people who don't. And a couple of the kids couldn't sing at all. I sort of thought they'd be cast for both singing and acting ability, not just acting ability, it being a musical and all. The dancing was excellent. The acting was really good for the most part. The girl playing Sandy seemed to be phoning it in, but the girl playing Rizzo was awesome and totally stole the show. Plus she could really sing. Went off pitch a couple of times, but compared to everyone else that was nothing. Unfortunately the (live) music was often louder than the singing and the chorus or backup singers were often louder than the soloists. Still, I enjoyed it and so did the kids.
I was kind of surprised at the swearing. I mean, they left out a few bits that were obviously not going to be performed in a high school, like talking about "rubbers" by name and the scene where Rizzo and Kinecke decide to do it without one (which is stupid considering they left in the whole pregnancy storyline, we're supposed to think she's like that through magic or something?), so I figured they'd leave out the swearing, too. No. I guess I shouldn't be all that shocked. Rose says her teachers swear in class.
I was also kind of surprised that they let them play act smoking and drinking. I guess times have really, really changed since I was in high school. I mean it is a big part of the play and I get that, I'm not upset about it, I just was a little shocked, considering the schools no tolerance drinking, smoking and drugs policy.
They also left out some of the connecting bits, like they were trying to get all the songs in, so the actual play part didn't matter as much, which at times made it a little difficult to follow for the kids who have never seen the play or movie before. I think I'll get the movie from netflix so they can see how it's supposed to be done.
I don't think it ever really occurred to me before how sexist Grease is. I've always just sort of enjoyed it, you know? But tonight it just really got to me how Sandy changed herself, who she was, to get a boy. I know in the movie that Danny changes himself, too, so it's a bit more equal there, but in this version of the play Danny tried but when it got too hard he quit. I don't know, I just really don't like the idea that she decides who she is isn't good enough, that she thinks she has to give up her innocence and sex herself up. It just sends a really wrong message. Plus there was this line in the song Beauty School Drop Out where the angel basically says that Frenchie isn't the sort to be able to hold a job. Excuse me? I mean it's basically go back to high school and find yourself a nice boy to take care of you because you aren't capable. That...really pissed me off.
Damn, why did these thinky thoughts have to come along and ruin a perfectly good play?
Kept my food down today, so that's progress. I think the worst of this "flu" is over. Just wish I didn't feel quite so much like drowned cat.
Took the kids to see the musical GREASE tonight.
Rose's school was performing it. It was...decent. One of the really, really difficult things about having perfect pitch is listening to people who don't. And a couple of the kids couldn't sing at all. I sort of thought they'd be cast for both singing and acting ability, not just acting ability, it being a musical and all. The dancing was excellent. The acting was really good for the most part. The girl playing Sandy seemed to be phoning it in, but the girl playing Rizzo was awesome and totally stole the show. Plus she could really sing. Went off pitch a couple of times, but compared to everyone else that was nothing. Unfortunately the (live) music was often louder than the singing and the chorus or backup singers were often louder than the soloists. Still, I enjoyed it and so did the kids.
I was kind of surprised at the swearing. I mean, they left out a few bits that were obviously not going to be performed in a high school, like talking about "rubbers" by name and the scene where Rizzo and Kinecke decide to do it without one (which is stupid considering they left in the whole pregnancy storyline, we're supposed to think she's like that through magic or something?), so I figured they'd leave out the swearing, too. No. I guess I shouldn't be all that shocked. Rose says her teachers swear in class.
I was also kind of surprised that they let them play act smoking and drinking. I guess times have really, really changed since I was in high school. I mean it is a big part of the play and I get that, I'm not upset about it, I just was a little shocked, considering the schools no tolerance drinking, smoking and drugs policy.
They also left out some of the connecting bits, like they were trying to get all the songs in, so the actual play part didn't matter as much, which at times made it a little difficult to follow for the kids who have never seen the play or movie before. I think I'll get the movie from netflix so they can see how it's supposed to be done.
I don't think it ever really occurred to me before how sexist Grease is. I've always just sort of enjoyed it, you know? But tonight it just really got to me how Sandy changed herself, who she was, to get a boy. I know in the movie that Danny changes himself, too, so it's a bit more equal there, but in this version of the play Danny tried but when it got too hard he quit. I don't know, I just really don't like the idea that she decides who she is isn't good enough, that she thinks she has to give up her innocence and sex herself up. It just sends a really wrong message. Plus there was this line in the song Beauty School Drop Out where the angel basically says that Frenchie isn't the sort to be able to hold a job. Excuse me? I mean it's basically go back to high school and find yourself a nice boy to take care of you because you aren't capable. That...really pissed me off.
Damn, why did these thinky thoughts have to come along and ruin a perfectly good play?
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Date: 2010-12-06 01:06 am (UTC)My kids were in a theater camp this summer and put on The Music Man, and while I don't have perfect pitch, I've got a decent ear and I was literally cringing into my seat a lot of the time. But the kids worked really hard and had a terrific time, which really was the important thing (and Eric and the girl who played his girlfriend in the musical staged a very loud, public and hilarious "breakup" at the cast party after the show!)
Again, though, the message is an issue. I mean, a lot of musicals really do seem to be rather sexist in nature, and not great messages to send. It's also true of kids' shows. There was an episode of iCarly (my kids LOVE that show - heaven only knows why) in which Sam announces on the air that Freddie has never been kissed. He gets teased a lot, and eventually Sam admits she's not kissed anyone either and they decide to kiss each other for their first kiss just to get it over with. So basically they are saying that it's okay to kiss someone just to keep from being teased. SO not a good message. My kids and I had a serious chat after that episode. *sigh*