The Mystery of the Coochi Snorcher and how you can support its cause

by Jenni Morin

The Vagina Monologues is and isn’t exactly what you think it is. Eve Ensler’s collection of monologues gives a voice to a woman’s most sacred and sexual body part. Through past shames and discoveries, each actress represents the myriad of ways women view their vaginas. Each vignette offers a sexual rebirth and empowerment, but they also share hurt and vulnerability.

For three nights only, Woodlawn Theatre is hosting V-Day 2013 with The Rape Crisis Center, The P.E.A.C.E. Initiative and Family Violence Prevention Services. At 7 p.m. at the Woodlawn on February 25, 26 and 27, The Vagina Monologues will be performed to help bring awareness to domestic and sexual violence. The performance on Tuesday, Feb. 26 will be entirely in Spanish. V-Day 2013 in San Antonio is part of an international global action to end violence against women and girls founded by award-winning playwright Eve Ensler.

A sexual assault occurs every two minutes in the U.S. according to the U.S. Department of Justice's National Crime Victimization Survey. Rape is not a purely male on female crime with nine percept of rape victims being men. While it comes in many different forms, from domestic abuse to date rape, sexual assault carries with it a stigma for the victim. In 29 percent of rapes, neither the victim or perpetrator had been drinking with about 10 percent of rapes occurring in homes shared by the victim and perpetrator.

The Vagina Monologues is not just for women. There are plenty of laughs to be had at the expense of awkward, and sometimes very graphic, experiences. While the subject matter may seem private, it is the uninhibited humility with which it is presented that makes it approachable. Perhaps if our society wasn’t so afraid of sex and the physiology that drives it, there would be less an inclination to violently conquer it.

The performance is a short hour and a half and a small, but significant, way to show support for organizations like The Rape Crisis Center, The P.E.A.C.E. Initiative and Family Violence Prevention Services that provide counseling and support to victims while educating the community to promote awareness and prevention.


The Vagina Monologues continues on Tuesday, Feb. 26 in Spanish and Wednesday, Feb. 27 in English at 7 p.m. at Woodlawn Theatre.
For more information about The Vagina Monologues at Woodlawn Theatre and to purchase tickets, visit woodlawntheatre.com or www.rapecrisis.com.

Playhouse presents Roads Courageous world premiere musical

by Jenni Morin

Dr. John R. Brinkley may not be a household name today, but less than a century ago this goateed “goat gland” doctor was an international superstar of controversial medicine and radio broadcasting. The Playhouse’s world premiere musical production of Roads Courageous chronicles the doctor’s rise to fame and his ultimate demise through a whirlwind circus of fraud and flamboyance.

Johnny Boy played by Karl Roach-Compton and Trey Hoadley.

As a “barefoot Appalachian boy” who grew up to be a doctor, Brinkley was the epitome of the Depression era American dream for the poor common man—a community which he exploited by promising a cure to nearly every ailment, but mostly impotence and virility. After witnessing the amazing stamina of goats at the Swift meatpacking company in Kansas where he worked as a house doctor, Brinkley wryly suggested to one of his first patients at his Milford, Kansas practice he started in 1917 to allow him to implant goat glands to help the man’s libido. After his patent’s wife gave birth to son, Brinkley’s popularity boomed, bringing him inordinate wealth.

The first act of Thomas Nyman (book and lyrics) and Kevin Parman’s (music and lyrics) Roads Courageous engulfs audiences in the chaotic carnival of Brinkley’s rise to fame. Narrated by Brinkley’s grown son Johnny Boy—portrayed by Trey Hoadley who gave a much-needed grounded performance as a sort of ringmaster—the production quickly focuses on the boy’s admiration of his father and the prolific family lies his parents ferociously protect to keep the good doctor on a pedestal. With a classic 1950s musical feel, the first act offers well-choreographed traditional dance numbers, complete with dancing goat boys, backed up by a nice melding of voices from the ensemble.

Roy Bumgarner as Dr. Brinkley puts on a show.

The bombastic performance of Roy Bumgarner as Dr. Brinkley is complimented by the elegant solos of Sherry Gibbs Houston as Minnie Brinkley. Numbers from Anna Gangai as Rose Dawn and Jason Mosher as Koran help to round out the production with a taste of unrequited yet convenient love reminiscent of Oklahoma. Chris Berry’s Roy Faulkner Lonesome Cowboy country interludes were welcome additions to the score even without the expected over the top twang. Adam Fellers' Wolfman Jack character provides a bridge from the doctor’s medical practice to radio prowess when he takes an interest in Brinkley’s Mexico border blaster radio transmitter.

The unveiling of the “million watt” transmitter is a spectacle, along with the overall set and costume design. Archival imagery and artifacts from the Del Rio Brinkley mansion are a reminder that this episode in quackery and charlatanism, as the medical board referred to Brinkley’s career when revoking his license, is a true story.

Brinkley’s fame and subsequent loss of his medical license—spearheaded by the American Medical Association representative Morris Fishbein, played by Byrd Bonner, who was hell-bent on exposing Brinkley’s medical frauds—prompted him to run for governor of Kansas as a write-in candidate in 1930. After receiving nearly 30 percent of the votes, he ran again in 1932 to no avail.

Sherry Gibbs Houston as Minnie Brinkley.

In the second act, the circus winds down and Brinkley’s fall from grace mirrors the modern musical but with a distinct melancholy evocative of Carousel. The doctor suffers multiple heart attacks and has his leg amputated, but even on his deathbed still plans to swindle the common folk as a preacher. A pivotal scene in the second act allows the grown Johnny Boy to confront his father about the truth wherein his father rebuts asking his son to believe. At the expense of protecting his lies, the doctor loses what he once most treasured, his son’s faith in him as a good man.

Roads Courageous tells the story of one of the most successful surgeons and radio personalities of the 20th century with a lasting impression of what happens when that success blinds its victims with a road paved with glimmering lies. These stories of how the mighty have fallen due to deception and greed are now an all too familiar occurrence—perhaps Brinkley can even be credited as the forefather of the modern American dream to get rich quick and stay on top by any means necessary. According to Brinkley, that’s just what happens when failed circus clowns go into politics. In the end, the story revolves around the worth of a son, an heir to fame and fortune but not the guile that got his father there, and his heartbreaking journey from the Big Top to an abandoned sideshow.


Roads Courageous plays through March 17 at the Russell Hill Rogers Theatre at The Playhouse with performances at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. on Sundays. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.theplayhousesa.org.
Photos by Siggi Ragnar.

Sans Souci Festival of Dance and Cinema

By: Shannon Ivey 

Beginning tonight, a very unique 3-day festival is taking place at the Riverside Park at Pearl in San Antonio called, Sans Souci Festival of Dance Cinema. We recently caught up with Rick Frederick, Interim Managing Director of Attic Rep, to ask him a few question about the "Festival Without Concern."

What inspired this festival?

This is our third year of hosting Sans Souci in San Antonio. Susanna Morrow is a professor at TU who we have worked with on several projects.  She recognized our interest in cross discipline exploration and introduced Roberto to Ana Baer, one of the curators of Sans Souci. Mostly, the work is stunning and we wanted to be sure San Antonio audiences had the opportunity to see it. And for us, the festival fits into our mission of provoking dialogue, so it seemed a perfect fit. This particular conversation moves outside of social/political issues and is centered on form and bending our perceptions in order to discover new possibilities. Our practice is similarly based. We have been working with visual artists and film makers for years now. We do it because their approach to art making is different from theatre making. That difference challenges our thinking and opens us to new possibilities and forms. It also ensures that we never get stale as we are required to meet these artists in the middle. Sans Souci is a wonderful addition to our dialogue of what theatre can be.

What does the name Sans Souci mean and why did you choose it?

Sans Souci means "without concern" and was conceived in 2003 when Michelle Ellsworth and Brandi Mathis sat on the porch of a 1967 Marlette Mobile home in the Sans Souci Trailer Park in Boulder Colorado musing about the pleasures of viewing and creating dances for the screen. Quickly BMoCA and The University of Colorado as well as artists Ana Baer and Hamel Bloom added their support to transform mere musing into a Festival of Dance Cinema. What was first envisioned in '03 as an informal gathering of local dance video artists screening their works on a white wall in a trailer is now an international festival housed at BMoCA with submissions from all over the world.
 
I watched the sample reel (below) and it's stunning, how do you hope this work will inspire the SA community?

This partnership brings international short films to San Antonio, pairing local live video performance with work by artists from around the world, exposing our audiences to a variety of film, video, and performance possibilities. This year we wanted to be sure to reach a broader audience and also reach folks who might not come to a black box theatre on the second floor of a university building. So we are taking it outside to the Park at Pearl where we can enjoy a picnic, the river and dancing under the stars. And it's free.

New work, that is good, is always inspiring. Being exposed to new work excites us. And hopefully it will do the same for our audience. From the beginning of our relationship with Sans Souci, Roberto has felt it necessary and important to have an open call for San Antonio artists to be included in our version of the festival. San Antonio needs to know that the work that is made here is on par with the world.

SANS SOUCI FESTIVAL OF DANCE CINEMA

When:  February 22, 23, 24, 2013 

Time:  6:30PM 
Where:  Riverside Park at Pearl

Cost:  FREE!

**Bring a Picnic!**

Strike, Dance, Rise!

Vagina Monologues Performances

Monday, February 25th, 2013 - Wednesday, February 27th, 2013

VDay 2013 in San Antonio will present a three-night only benefit reading of Eve Ensler's award-wining play The Vagina Monologues at The Woodlawn Theatre. The three-day performance, comprised of local community actresses, will benefit The Rape Crisis Center, Family Violence Prevention Services (The Battered Women's Shelter), and the P.E.A.C.E. Initiative.

The Vagina Monologues, which was first performed off-Broadway by Ms. Ensler, dives into the mystery, humor, pain, power, wisdom, outrage and excitement buried in women's experiences.

The performance Tuesday, February 26th will be presented entirely in Spanish.

Location:	The Woodlawn Theater 1920 Fredericksburg Rd, San Antonio 78201
Time:	7:00 pm
Ticket Cost:	$15 Each -or- $25 for 2
Get Your Tickets:	Advance Tickets here at Eventbrite OR Pick yours up at the door of the event

The Magik is in the HEART, not the HAIR

Renaissance Guild sets shining example with A Raisin in the Sun

by Jenni Morin

The Renaissance Guild embodies the exact kind of theatre San Antonio should strive to produce. Their current production of A Raisin in the Sun brought together a community in the same way play's Younger family bands together to stand up to a world unwilling to accept them. After 12 years in San Antonio, The Renaissance Guild has remained true to its mission and delivers some of the most genuine authentic theatre that reaches past the stage to connect with audiences’ social consciences on a personal level.

The plot follows Walter Lee Younger as he tries to convince his family to invest the insurance money from his father’s death in a business that will finally raise them out of oppressive poverty. After alienating his wife over his obsession with wealth, he betrays his family’s trust and loses the money. He eventually regains his manhood by making a stand for his family and his race.

The play, and this particular production, reaches past the struggles of a black working class family living in Chicago in the early 1950s. Themes of greed coupled with the desperation it brings, as well as pride in culture and fierce loyalty to family, challenge audiences to dig deep to find what drives them. Momma, ardently played by Michelle Burnett, reminds us that with culture comes family and one cannot exist without the other—we must embrace both to find pride, tolerance and even love. In a city so enveloped in culture as San Antonio, A Raisin in the Sun evokes empowerment in that culture as well as fulfillment for preserving it.

Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun boasts accolades notable in the civil rights battles for both African-Americans and women with the first play written by an African-American woman to be produced on Broadway and the youngest American playwright and fifth woman to receive the Critics Circle Award for Best Play. Hansberry’s play is written about her family’s experience fighting for their right to move into a Chicago neighborhood they were barred from as African-Americans.

The production quality goes beyond great dramatic scenes from Mark Anthony Hall as Walter, Tori Foutz as Ruth, Michelle Burnett as Momma, Dan Walker III as Joseph Asagai and more, as well as effective comedic relief from Mrs. Johnson played by Danielle King. The set is wonderfully designed with great angles echoing the tension in the home and dressed with era-appropriate furnishings, all of which was complimented by spot-on costuming. A great soundtrack with atmospheric incidentals and unintrusive subtle lighting even made some long scene changes bearable.

The Renaissance Guild’s production of A Raisin in the Sun delivers all the spice and sass expected from a well-crafted script delivered by a talented ensemble of performers. With its plethora of important everyday themes, A Raisin in the Sun has the potential to lose the potency of its social significance, but in the capable hands of this company, each moment of struggle and success can be shared and carried long after the final curtain.


A Raisin in the Sun plays through Feb. 24 at the Carver Community Cultural Center Jo Long Theatre with performances at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, visit www.therenaissanceguild.org.

Speak up. Reach out.

By: Gypsy Pantoja

A couple of weeks ago in Seguin, the cold crisp air held the spirit of hope and love; it held the spirit of Matthew Shepard. 

Outside, the Texas Lutheran University campus was peacefully quiet.

Inside, Jackson Auditorium was abuzz with energy as living spirits arrived to attend a very special event.

Judy Shepard, mother, wife, educator, advocate and ally was invited by the Brown Endowment to speak about her son Matthew, the impact of his death, and her reluctant yet eventual role as champion for gay and civil rights.  She was inspiring, funny, direct and emotional as she laid bare her heart before a full house.

Carlos Pantoja

Her presence was at once passionate and powerful.  As she shared the victim’s impact statement she read at the sentencing of the young men who had pleaded guilty to murdering her son. She recalled the moment Matthew died, she thought; Matthew is no longer in pain. I recalled having the same thought when my brother Carlos passed away in 1996 from complications due to HIV-AIDS.

Their deaths, although distinct, share a common thread.  Matthew and Carlos were gay. Their lives were difficult, hiding their sexuality and living a lie, as Mrs. Shepard reiterated throughout her speech. Not so much living a lie, I thought, as much as living in fear, fear of rejection, fear of abandonment, fear of persecution, and the ever-present disregard for their basic humanity.  Judy Shepard touched upon these fears; and like my own mother, revealed that she always knew her son was gay. It is a “mom thing…” she said. At 18, Matthew admitted he was gay, and she asked, “What took you so long to tell me?” Then the composed mother revealed her heartache; an unrelenting question loomed, “Didn’t he trust us enough to tell us?” I suspect he did, but I also suspect the answer was… Fear. Rejection. Abandonment. Persecution. The outright disregard for his basic humanity.  Having witnessed others rejected, abandoned and persecuted by a vicious and raging society and still others by their own families and friends, why would gay men and women feel safe to acknowledge their sexuality? Would you?

I speak from an outsider’s point of view; I am straight. But I can only imagine the courage it takes to acknowledge your sexuality and then the courage to live with the outcome whether good or bad.

Like Judy Shepard, the looming question in my mind; how do we, advocates and allies, embolden the LGBT community to trust us enough to safely acknowledge their sexuality without the fear of rejection, abandonment and persecution? Perhaps our own fears prevent us from having the courage to speak up and reach out to the LGBT community; to reassure them they are safe to reach out to us and can trust us to speak up for them when no one else will.

Gay and civil rights are human rights. Speak up. Reach out.

   …and then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”

                           -Pastor Martin Niemöller