Let’s Talk About Theatre Etiquette

Tags

cora vasseur, coughing, health, medicine, the vermeer, theatre etiquette

I feel like a bit of a snob writing this. I mean, I spell theatre with an “re”. Going to the theatre is a treat, something special to be enjoyed. I look forward to every time I get to sit in the audience and see someone put themselves out there to entertain us and improve our lives. The last few times I’ve attended shows, certain things have been happening more frequently. First I thought it was a one time thing. Okay. Then it kept happening and with greater panache.

I know it’s flu and cold season again because Mother Earth is manic and can’t decide what season to settle us in. When you’re not feeling 100%, I’m all for sucking it up and going forward. But if you know you’re sick, buy these things called cough drops and eat them like they’re candy and healthy for you. There are also sprays that shut you up. Wheel in your IV filled with cough syrup. I would rather see the stage through your draining bag than hear you hack throughout the performance.

Because if you thought yawns were contagious, be on the look out for coughs. At one point, I thought the right side of the audience was trying to cough harder and louder than the left and the left wasn’t going down without a fight. After the first few rounds ended in a draw, they’d pop up like bubbles in a soda–everywhere. At least time your coughs with the music. Either suffocate yourself, writhe in agony as you hold in that dusty tickle at the back of your throat until between movements or any interval. Time it to accent the music, like a cow bell or the canons like the 1812 Overture.

I missed some of The Vermeer’s last performance because I had to cough. I had seen them ever since I was a little girl. I went with my grandparents, my parents, and I was ready to close the book with them. Half way through, I felt it. This tickle climbing up my throat fast like it was an adventurer trying to escape a fire shooting up from my diaphragm. It was going to be loud, proud, and call a halt to the music so I took off up the aisle (also rude, but considering the alternative to being “that girl”…). I just made it to the lobby before I hacked. Soon as the doors shut and my lungs tried to expel from my body, the music started. I hung out in the vacant lobby during that piece, barely hearing through the door. When there was applause, I snuck back in.

Point is, I don’t mind you attending under the weather. Infect us all. Just take precautions–if you know you’re going to be coughing, do something about it.

Have you either been the cougher or experienced coughers at the theatre? Let me know by leaving a comment below.

A Song for 12 and 27 Year Old Me

Tags

Alanis Morissette, change, cora coco, entertainment, Head Over Feet, music, song

 

Alanis Morissette’s “Head Over Feet”. I haven’t heard it since a dance in the 7th grade. In 6th grade, Jagged Little Pill was the first cd I owned (I don’t remember if I had bought it or if it was bought for me). I remember listening to it and being aware of change. It was such different music than I was used to listening to. I mean, I got the cd because I heard her on the radio and in my 6th grade brilliance of trying to be cool, this in a hurry to grow up creature, because apparently that’s a good thing, I wanted her cd in order to be a teenager. I felt guilty and scared of this change, going from little girl to unknown territory.

I heard “Head Over Feet” on the radio the other day for the first time in my 20′s (honestly, I really think the first time since 7th grade). It was as if I was hearing the lyrics for the first time and it really resonated with me. Really portrayed my experiences and I could completely empathize with Alanis.

Being treated well by a man, a person outside of the family, someone more than a friend. Not used to it and it feels weird, undeserving, or leaves me wondering what they want in return. Just to show you where I am at the moment… so not a whole lot older than 12-year-old me.

But it was interesting how it was like the first time I had ever heard that song even though it was one of my favorites when I first heard the album. When I was 12, I knew it was a romantic song or at least a song about romance and it going well and feeling her joy. Now it’s like a Taylor Swift moment, a you’re- not- alone.

Have you had an experience like this with a song? Leave a comment below. Thanks!

Can I Be Honest?

Tags

creating, debut novel, embarrassment, samantha bennett, writing

I haven’t been writing a whole lot in the new year. It hurts me to admit because it’s kind of like dying. But end of last year into this one, I started writing things I was embarrassed to be writing. Not like “going there”, really opening up or pushing myself, nothing pornographic or illicit (sorry to disappoint some).

I’ve been writing about subjects that embarrass me. I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve been writing about them, spending my precious time on drivel, stuff I’m so embarrassed probably will never publish, which will be really funny if they’re  the ones that launch me or hit my fiction home run. I’m embarrassed because I feel I should be writing about more important topics like, oh I don’t know, human rights, identities, world peace.

Samantha Bennett said something a while ago that resonated with me. To paraphrase, she said when she published, it was no surprise to the people around her, her friends and family. They were like, “Of course you published; you’re the writer. we’re just surprised it took you this long.” My friends and family have known for a long time I’m a writer. I write. So I’m adding pressure to myself as I’m writing thinking, “You’re 27, about to turn 28, really committing to your dream of publishing and this is what we’ve got? This is going to be your debut novel, this is going to the breakout novel?” I see friends and family picking it up and reading it (partially out of obligation, partially because when I publish it’s going to be everyone’s holiday gift, birthday gift, bridal and baby shower gift–it’s a game of numbers) I see me getting the pity reads or “Cora finally published! This is going to be great,” and them setting off and being like, “What?” I see faces falling, freezing, melting like snow thrown against a wall. “This is what she thinks about in her spare time? Cora? Little Cora?”

Just putting together the logline, my stomach heaves. Good-ness girl! Can you believe you just said that? Yes, I can because I’ve met me.

I read amazing writers. I read writers that are discussed in college and teach at colleges. Ones I read and got a visceral reaction, a “Wow, I wish I wrote that” or “That was so good. I’ve been looking for that and this feeling.” Books that have changed laws, lives, and worlds. And I’m spinning cotton candy with my pen. I literally feel like a closeted teeny bopper, with sweaty clenched fists, wide- eyed gushing about her latest obsession. I read Atwood, Zadie Smith, Julian Barnes and this is what I got?

I am being hard on myself and comparing myself to others. It’s my inner mean girl flaring up to protect me. Part of this post is to get the fear out in the open so I can see it. I like the idea of being transparent with people, especially since I have a challenge of doing that face to face. I want other writers and other people to know fear revs up in all of us. Creating can be hard. I some times try to comfort myself by remembering JK Rowling at one point had to look people in the eye and say, “I’m writing about a teenage wizard who goes to wizard school.”That’s cool, but I still imagine she got some wide eyes and slow nods.

Part of any challenge is having faith in yourself and your abilities. Pure trust and faith you can pull this off, you can do it, and you’re not crazy. It’s scary but you’ll be that much better for doing it. I’ve grown because it no longer feels like believing in Santa… Someone posted a quote yesterday that writers have an important job; they allow people to dream. So maybe that’s what I’m doing–dreaming so I can allow someone else to dream.

Just like you can’t help who you fall in love with, just like you can’t choose your family, sometimes you really can’t help what you write. sometimes you just have to get it out. Maybe you’re not crazy. Maybe it’s what someone else has always wanted to read.

Gilda’s Club Removing Gilda’s Name

Tags

chicago, gilda radner, gilda's club, role model

This isn’t what I wanted my first post back to be about but on the day I’m having with everything going on in my life, this isn’t what I wanted to read. Gilda’s Club created by Gilda Radner is removing the comedienne’s name from the title because people don’t know who she is. The Madison, WI location (Madison, WI–they really should open their mouthes with all they’ve been doing) explained, “‘[W]e are seeing younger and younger adults who are dealing with cancer diagnosis’ for whom the name Gilda Radner bears no significance.” Then educate them.

Just because people don’t know about something doesn’t mean you slap the founder in the face. Sorry, this new generation doesn’t know who you are so we’re just going to remove your name. Thanks for founding it and providing a place for these people to go though.

If anyone needs to know who that woman was it is the people coming to Gilda’s Club. In times of pain and challenge she chose to laugh. She chose to be strong and persevere. She created the club so people who were going through this painfully tough time had somewhere to go and have support. She said there was no place for the living to go, no place for the families to go.

Changing the name is snuffing out a beacon of hope. As one commenter on their Facebook page said, “Not many people know who Betty Ford is but they’re checking into her clinic.” Many people of my generation don’t know who she is and I think that is a shame. Many women could use a role model like her. Any one who follows Tina Fey, Kristen Wiig, or any female comedienne really should know who she is. Any one who has chosen to fight instead of curl up and die should know who she is.

One location is not changing their name and I’m so grateful they are not: Chicago. I’m glad we’re able to put our feet down on something important. Knowing some of the women on the board, I wouldn’t want to cross them either.

Let Your Body Dance

Tags

belly dance, body image, christine arylo, cora vasseur, dance, lingerie loves your curves

One of my biggest regrets is not loving myself and not loving my body while I was a dancer. I wasted a lot of time and prevented myself from making great memories because I told myself a story about how I wasn’t good enough. It wasn’t until I returned to dance I realized what I had.

I didn’t have any concept of size when I was a little girl.There was no doubt in my mind I could keep up with Baryshnikov and I looked liked his lithe partner. I could do the moves therefore I was a dancer. As I got older I started to realize I didn’t look like the other dancers. By the time I got to high school I was embarrassed to say I was a dancer. I loved to dance but when you say “dancer” that conjures up a certain body type and I could feel the listener’s eyes rolling up and down me. “Sure. A dancer. That’s nice.”

I’m not a huge girl. I’m not a tiny girl. When I’m with slim, trim girls, I look athletic. When I’m with larger girls, I can look right up there. I’m a size 10. A “10″ in anything else would mean “perfect”. But when you’re ordering dance camp clothes and everyone’s ordering smalls and mediums and you need to order a large to be safe…makes you feel awesome.

I’m making myself sound like a weeble-wobble out there. I was very good. I made sure I was very good. If you were looking at me because I was the biggest one out there, you were going to look at one of the best dancers out there. I was evil to my body. Nothing was good enough. My balance should have been better. My flexibility should have been greater. Everything would have been perfect if I was smaller.

But I loved to dance. As much of an evil bully I was to myself, all the critics would vanish when I started to dance. I loved the way dance felt. I loved the way it felt to move, to have control. I loved when choreography was organic, one move bleed into another. I never was a character when I danced, I never became someone else. It was always an extension of me, a liberation of me because I was shy in high school. During halftime I could smile, even flirt with people (boys). I was Cora, the dancer.

Love wasn’t enough. There was a lot going on when I turned 18. One of the things was, in spite of recovering from a traumatic brain injury, I was invited to teach at the dance camp my dance team had attended the last four years. I had looked up to the instructors; I thought they were the coolest girls. There was a lot going on in my life, but I said no because I didn’t want to be the fat girl. I then found out about an audition for a dance company in Chicago. I said no to dance camp, I didn’t even consider the audition. That was a pipe dream. I was self-taught and a big girl? I’d take up space at the cattle call. That was pretty much the last time I danced.

After college, after hearing it several ways from several people, I had a revelation. I should appreciate my body for all it does for me. Whenever I start criticizing my looks, I remind myself of all my body does. When I was late for class, my body worked harder, moved my feet that much faster so I’d get there on time. When it had the option to recover/heal or stay near a vegetative state after my brain injury, it chose to heal. It didn’t have to. It didn’t have to re-learn how to walk and it certainly didn’t have to let me dance my Senior year in high school.

My body works very hard for me and it rarely complains. It attempts everything I ask it to do. I’m not naturally flexible, but it allowed me to stretch it, to hold stretches longer, and gradually improve. When I have one more set of reps and I’m tired, it always gives it it’s best shot. My body loves to dance so last year I returned to dance…a little different.

I tried belly dancing last year and found a new love. It was one of the first times I really got to dance in front of a mirror so I got to observe my body. And I got to be honest. Yeah I’m not a stick figure, but I’m not dumpy. My body does a great job. It loved all the new movements it learned. It was relaxing and a lot more like playing. My instructor asked why I decided to try belly dancing. I joked I have hips, I might as well use them. They’re also a pretty good metronome and usually find the beat before the rest of me does.

I’m happy to say after a lot of work I’m much better friends with my body. I respect it more than I did. It sometimes can get a little challenging (like when I’m jean shopping) but I return to love and remind myself all my body does and chooses to do for me.

This summer I happened to see a clip from the Chicago company I could have auditioned for. There were big girls up there. Not- your-average-dancer size, like me size. And they were jumping and they were doing lifts. I told my mom and she wasn’t surprised. it was never my size that kept me from auditioning. It was my mind and the story I was telling myself.

You are the author of the story you’re telling yourself. You are the authority. If you don’t like the story, change it.

I wrote this blog because I was inspired by the Lingerie Love Your Curves- Size Acceptance Charity Drive. I found out about it through Christine Arylo.

http://info.aboutcurves.com/llyc-blogathon/

 

Prepping for Tea in the TARDIS

Tags

chicks dig time lords, cora vasseur, daleks, doctor who, lynne m. thomas, sontarans, TARDIS, tea in the tardis

 

A paper TARDIS I made for a window display.

We’re having “Tea in the TARDIS” on Sunday, featuring Lynne M. Thomas, editor of the book Chicks Dig Time Lords. We’re excited. We wanted it to be a fun event and so far it’s turning out to be.

I’ve enjoyed all the people calling in to place their reservation. “Hi I like to make a reservation for Tea in the TARDIS.” I half expect them to say “And I’d like to be seated by the heart of the TARDIS not the center console.” It’s such a happy tone to their voice, tickled they’re going to have tea and get to talk Doctor Who with people who want to and get to meet a sought after speaker/writer.

From the tea bar, I watch people double take our newsletter in the window. It’s that severe whiplash you give yourself when you see something you know and love but no one else has heard of it. Pictures have been taken of the newsletter and the message/calendar board we have in the front window. “Today’s Tea: Persian Lime 10/21 Tea in the TARDIS 10/27 Who Gathering”.

I’ve had great fun decorating and getting the shop organized. I turned our center window display into a Doctor Who Blue window. All things blue or clear were placed on a small pyramid display. I put “Allons-y!” at the top of the pyramid then “To Tea!” across the base, a nod to the 10th Doctor. French Club and many of the professors who teach French visit regularly so I hope they enjoy it too.

I made a paper TARDIS for our two by four unit. That’s going to be the Dalek Display. It’s a little darker lighting and the little

My Dalek in progress, made out of half a tea ball and a paper container.

seem right for the Doctor’s nemesis. I started making Daleks our of stuff around the shop, one so far out of a broken tea ball and paper container. I’m revealing my piece de resistance on Sunday (I’m really proud of him).

I started finding ways to make everything a Dalek. Bamboo tea strainer? That could be a Dalek. Ice Tea Jug? That could be a Dalek. Tupperware cracker jar? Emperor Dalek.
I looked forward to updating my status: “What’d you do today? Oh just made my Dalek army. Nothing much.”

I’m also in the process of making a Sontaran. Hope people get it. I hope people enjoy them as much as I enjoyed making them.

Argo

Tags

alan arkin, argo, ben affleck, comic relief, cora vasseur, entertainment, iranian hostage crisis, john goodman, youth block

I saw “Argo” last night. I’ve wanted to see it ever since I saw the trailer in theatres when I saw “The Campaign”. It’s based on a true story and looked awesome in general. Films make their money their first weekends so I wanted to support it.

So I arrive. I am the youth block. Everyone else lived through the original ordeal. There are discussion groups going on. What were they doing when they first heard about the hostages? What did they do? Each question went around the circle they created over a couple of rows. Each person gave a nice, detailed answer of where they were, how they felt, and what they did.

I sat in the next section, listening to their stories.

“I bet she’s here for Ben Affleck,” an old man said. A couple of them laughed. They were talking about me. Thank you so much. Because a young woman could not possibly be interested in a movie about international relations or politics unless there’s a hot guy involved. (I was not going to admit for a second even if they used the torture techniques we were about to see that I had never seen Ben Affleck so delicious, because I came to hear the story. I couldn’t believe ( I could) someone created a fake movie to rescue people.

The awesome-ness of the movie softened the insult. It really makes you feel and think. Alan Arkin and John Goodman were the perfect comic relief. Sometimes I feel incredibly uneducated; I didn’t know anything really about the Iranian Hostage Crisis. I’m sure most other people my age know, but I didn’t. I’m pretty sure I was the only one in the theatre dying because I didn’t know how it ended. Everyone else is seeing how the movie retelling goes.

The end of the night was cool. After the last image, that darkness before the credits roll, someone started to clap. So we applauded the film. I haven’t clapped for a film in a theatre like that in a long time. Film festival, yes. Friday night, no.

If you’re going to see “Argo”, stay for the credits. They’re cool. Only spoiler I’ll give.

How Pinterest Can Help Writers

Tags

comedy, cora vasseur, literature, social media, writing

Pinterest can be a time warp and a life saver. One time I set a timer for 5 minutes so I didn’t spend a lot of time on there. Looked up, three hours had gone by. When I find myself rolling around in the doldrums, a couple of ”minutes” in the Humor section can make me feel all better. Then I realized Pinterest could help you see what you want and where you’d like to go with your writing career. It can help you see a through line or similarities in all the works you like so you can see the style in your work.

I have an Influences board on Pinterest. I’ve put pictures up there of my favorite writers, directors, movies, and other things I find funny. When I looked at all the pictures I realized they all had a similar tone to the writing and delivery style to the acting. They were all pretty dry, a lot of satirical or situational humor.

I was able to see the similarities better on the board than in lists I’ve made. Maybe it’s because I’m visual, but lists are names, they don’t have the same feel. I like Peter Cook, Stephen Fry, Catherine Tate… Seeing them put what they do in a different perspective and I was able to identify much faster what I like about it and how  I’ve applied it to my work.

Many of the people I admire started getting momentum on stage. Many of them perform their own work and that is one of their great strengths. They can do other people’s and be very good, but no one can catch them when they perform their own work.

It’s just fun collecting all your favorite things in one place. I felt very strong and well- rounded as a writer. I had my influences, my influences-influences, and their influences on there. It felt like I was trimming away the fat and really identifying this is what I like and why, validating, I guess, what I find funny and how I like to write.

What do you think of Pinterest? Are you on there? If so, please find me and I’ll follow you back.

 

The Type of Math I Can Do…

Tags

breaking down goals into steps, cora vasseur, goals, kelly james enger, little game, math, money, smaller steps

I like money. I like the idea of making money, especially for writing because it’s something I do. When I think about my freelance work, I like to play this little game. I like figuring out how much I want to make and work my way backwards.

I set the goal a little high, $15,000 a year seems a little steep. Then I work in ball park figures backward. By December next year I’ll have made $15,000 freelancing. $15,000** divided by 12 is $1,250. I divide 1,250 by 4 because there are usually 4 weeks in a month. That’s 312.50 a week, so I round-up to 313.

Many of the freelancing assignments I’m looking at are $250 an assignment. 4 times 250 is 1,000 which is 250 short my monthly goal, so I can do one of two things. I can do another assignment a month, making that 5 assignments a month instead of 4, or negotiate for more money per assignment.

Five assignments a month is a lot. I don’t know if I can do that. It requires a lot of organization. One assignment takes energy and commitment, times that by 5? Once I get more assignments under my belt, I will feel more comfortable negotiating for more, nothing outrageous, but enough to bump me to my goal. (There are other ways to supplement this income but I’m focusing on freelancing for this discussion). (“This discussion?” Who writes like that?)

Again these are ball park figures. I’m not taking into consideration taxes. Kelly James Enger has a cool system for working out how much you’re worth an hour, your hourly rate. Then you can weigh assignments that way. Do I want to take an assignment I can bang out in a couple of hours or couple weeks? There are other things to consider, like who you’re writing for and where your name will be published.

I’ll take another look at her system, especially since I get to submit an invoice for a current assignment I’m working on. This is just a game I like to play. Math is not my area of expertise, but I like dividing things down. Goals are much more attainable when you break them down into smaller steps. 15,000 sounds really high but when you break it down by month, by week, and by assignment you see how it can be reached. It’s a fun way to get your spirits up and pretend, “What if?”

**I know you shouldn’t start sentences with numerals. Mea Culpa. I apologize. As an English major, I’d be twitching if I was reading someone else’s post and be concerned they wanted to make money writing, but were failing to adhere to basic grammar rules.

Audiobooks: How to Read When You Can’t

Tags

audiobooks, books on tape, cora coco, cora vasseur, good writing, how to improve your writing, literature, old radio shows, writing

One of the best ways to improve your writing is by reading. I was at my strongest when I was in school because you had to read many different people a week. I didn’t even have to do the “read as a writer” trick: you’re reading as a reader enjoying the story, but also to see how they do things, how they make you feel this way, how they get their point across without being on a soapbox. I was immersed in good writing.

But how do you read when you can’t physically read? My will is there, but my eyes are like ticking clocks, “You have 5 minutes before I’m shutting off.”

Audiobooks are the answer. I rediscovered them while recovering from eye surgery. I didn’t want to be lying there idle so I got several books on tape. They are great fun. You’re still being exposed to great writing; you still get a feel for the words; you can still see how things work, but you can do it with your eyes closed. (Sounds really impressive, like you’re showing off, “I can improve my writing with my eyes. Yeah I blasted through a 16 disc book, no problem. It’s nice to have more novels under your belt.

There is a downside to audiobooks. Only so many books are audiobooks and I prefer getting them from the library (because they’re free). iTunes does have many classics for free, which are great. At the library there are some I do not want to listen to or some of the books I’d like to read are not audiobooks, but there are plenty of books I can listen to. There are short story compilations which I think are a great way to get to know a writer. For comedy, there are old radio shows or recordings of live acts.

I’m getting better at listening to them as I drive. I used to not be able to focus on the road and listen to what was being said. I’d get caught up in the story and forget there were people in front of me. I also have a Sirius XM contract I paid for and want to listen to that until it runs out.

What do you think of books on tape?