Kowabunga

A Klingon Christmas Carol, produced by the Comedia Beauregard, with support from several members of the IKV Rakehell (Klingon Assault Group), was an adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic into Klingon, and told from the Klingon point of view.

SQuja' (Scrooge), is a conniving money lender who has a bodyguard/strongman, QachIt (Bob Crachit) who collects his money and does his fighting for him. SQuja' has told many stories (lies) about his past deeds of glory to his nephew, vreD (Fred) who has yet to find anyone who was, or even knows anyone who was, there when SQuja' supposedly performed his great deeds of honor. vreD invites Squja' to join his annual celebration and tournament.

SQuja' is visited by the ghost of his dead partner, marlI', who is doomed to forever battle and yet never win his fights. He warns SQuja' that a similar fate awaits him, but there is still a chance that SQuja' might redeem himself, and will be visited by three spirits.

The spirits are, of course, the Ghost of Kahless Past, the Ghost of Kahless Present, and the Ghost of Kahless Yet to Come. They guide him through his past, where SQuja' is forced to revisit his youth where the seeds of his cowardice planted. In the present, he sees that the warriors use his name as a pejorative meaning "coward." He is beginning to see the error of his way and though the entire process learns to deal with the fact that he has been a craven coward and still a child.

He makes amends by ordering his assitant, QachIt, to spend more time with his crippled son, Tim-Hom (Tiny Tim) to prepare him for the Right of Ascension, which SQuja' vows to walk with Tim-Hom.

The play is a mix of serious dramatics and humor, narrated by a straight-faced Vulcan from the Vulcan Institute of Anthropology. It was the brain-child of Chris Kidder and Sasha Wallach of the Comdia Beauregard, and supported by Laura Thurston and Bill Hedrick of the IKV Rakehell.

Chris played QachIt, Bill and Laura both had several roles in the show that was directed by Sasha Wallach. Michael Ooms, who played SQuja', put on a marvelous and convincing performance of the main character. I got the feeling that they all had a blast putting on this show, and their hard work payed of. Did I mention that it was performed in the original Klingon?

The show only played for one night only, for an audience of a couple of hundred. Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll put it on again next year.

Tags:

Klingon Christmas Carol Comedia Beauregard Scrooge KAG IKV Rakehell

Posted by Sqotty at 10:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
View blog reactions

Rhythm of Honor is a compilation CD produced by Janet Fisher of Goodnight Kiss. It is a tribute to the men and women of the American Armed Forces. Many of the songs were written and performed by men and women who have served, or have some other close affiliation with the Armed Forces.

The first track, "Ain't Nobody To Dance With," by Rod Henderson (Vietnam Veteran), opens with a few bars from the "Star Spangled Banner," then transitions to a few bars from "When Johnny Comes Marching Home," before it makes the final transition to a Motown rock song. It is a tribute to the troops serving in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Another favorite track is "My Kind of Man" by Courtney Leigh Heins & Bryan Dobbs, which has a bit of a country feel to it as it rock's out. Entertaining lyrics and excellent vocal deliveries as she sings about what is her kind of man.

"A Ballad of Junior" by Alton Rex is the heartfelt ballad that tells the true story of one man who returned from war, in this case World War 2, and how it changed him forever. It is a sad, but very moving song about Rex's uncle. Rex served in the Navy before turning to songwriting. He regularly performs free concerts for veterans at VA hospitals.

The eleven songs that make up Rhythm of Honor are a worthy tribute to all who serve their country.

Goodnight Kiss is donating 50 cents from the sale of every CD to the Wounded Warriors Hospital Fund, which provides support to the families of soldiers wounded or killed in combat operations.

Tags:

Rhythm of Honor

Posted by Sqotty at 8:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
View blog reactions

On the way home from work tonight I stopped and picked up William Shatner's new album, Has Been. Now before anyone says, "oh no, not another Shatner album," remembering his first such forays into the realm of music during his run as Captain Kirk in the '60s, you should check it out first. This album is a brilliant departure from the first album.

The album features Shatner performing spoken word to a mix of pop, R and B, not to mention Rock and Roll. Although it lacks the brilliant Julius Caesar Rap that he recorded for the film Free Enterprise, the pieces cover a full range of styles and emotion.

I found the songs "That's Me Trying" and "What Have You Done" to be full of emotion. I could tell that Shatner poured his heart and soul into these two poems set to music.

"That's Me Trying" is a song about a father wanting to reunite with his estranged daughter, just to meet, get acquainted and do what a parent/child should do.

In "What Have You Done," Shatner talks about the loss of his wife when she drowned in their pool several years ago, and one can definitely feel how much he aches for her loss.

The title song, "Has Been," has a distinct Johnny Cash feel to it, definitely country western, and not at all what I expected on an otherwise pop/rock/rap album.

Whether Shatner is on a serious note, or touching on his humorous side in tracks like "You'll Have Time" and "I Can't Get Behind That," Has Been is a brilliant album.

The spoken word to music is certainly a medium that Shatner is suited for, and succeeds at it beyond expectations.

Many of the songs were co-written by Shatner with Ben Folds (who plays piano throughout the album).

Posted by Sqotty at 8:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
View blog reactions