Stomp!

I saw Stomp last week. It was nifty.

Wah, non-adequate description. I'm not actually quite sure how to describe it if you haven't seen the ads for it -- it's not so much a musical so much as people making rhythms and beats out of really random objects. There's no dialogue or real story. I suspect it's a bit like Blue Man Group, from what I've heard? The basic stage set-up looked like some sort of run-down street with garbage cans everywhere, and the show starts with some guys in messy clothing walking out with brooms and sweeping the streets. More people come out, and soon, you've got about ten people up on stage sweeping. The bristles all make different noises, and all the people have tap shoes on (I think), and everyone is doing different little rhythms by banging the brooms on the floor every so often or making short sweeps or other things. It sounds rather small, but the overall effect was really cool.

My favorite segment was when a group of people were sitting around reading newspapers and started making their own noises by flapping the papers or crumpling them or fanning them out or something, including the one crazy guy eating it. Hee!

Anyhow, I suspect I am making this sound incredibly boring, but it was just really, really cool watching people all start out by making ordinary, boring noises and eventually making them into music by doing them in rhythm and by making them into dance as well.

When I left the theater, I was making all sorts of random outdoor noises into music in my head.

It just made me think, what is music anyway, except a whole bunch of random sounds strung together in a not-so-random fashion? I just liked that they had me looking at everyday objects in an entirely different way -- everything, including the kitchen sink (literally!), was used, and this one nifty bit had people just flicking lighters on and off, and another had these people just sitting around and rummaging in a garbage bag looking for things to make noise with. It actually reminded me a bit of those old Pringles commercials, where everyone would drum around on the Pringles cans, or The Triplets of Belleville, which had the eponymous triplets (haha! I use giant SAT word totally gratuitously!) playing music on their old refrigerator and vacuum cleaner and things.

I liked how they made random noise into music just by paying attention to things, and I liked how it seemed to be a music of people, not necessarily sophisticated music that required years of training. Of course, this is probably one of those handwavy stage magic things, because to move like that and know beats like that probably requires lots of time and training. It just seemed like the show was fueled by the POV that anything can be art and that art can be found anywhere; you just have to know how to listen, how to look, and how to shape your world.

Foodage!

I am embarrassed. I have lived here for over two years now, and today was the first time I managed to venture down to the local farmers' market. And now that I have experienced its wonders, I realize that I've missed months and months of good foodage! The tragedy!

Oh well, must remedy by going weekly now.

I am very, very happy. So many fruits and vegetables! So many stone fruits! I bought white peaches and pluots and blackberries and even more peaches and nectarines, and I feel like I should remember the varieties and all, but I don't. It's ok! I got to sample everything, and mmmmmmm. I need to look up recipes next time, because there were heirloom tomatoes, and I keep feeling like I should try them. I think I've only had supermarket tomatoes before, and everyone keeps saying that they really don't compare. Or maybe I'll just get some heirlooms and some mozarella and basil and have them raw.

And new potatoes! I want to get all the cute new potatoes and broil them with rosemary! And oh, I didn't even get a close look at all the greens, because I still am not quite sure what to do with them, but they just look so good. I was getting so weighed down with all the fruits that I didn't even manage to get corn (I saw white corn and bicolored corn, which I must try next time), and I didn't even begin to look at the flowers and the already-made things like preserves and jams and bread. Although I did get two strawberry-rhubarb pies, yay! Next time I must go and get those people's meat and potato pasties as well for lunches! And I saw these plum-prune things, which were so good, but I passed.

And! The best thing of all, I got English peas! I don't even know if they are in season or not, but they were fresh peas, still in the pod! I think I have only had fresh peas once in my life, and they are a completely different specimen from the soggy frozen peas, fresh and sweet and firm, and I'm dying to try them again. Alton Brown says that they start converting the sugar to starch within a day, so I shall try making do and sweating them or something, even though I don't have any onion or shallots or whatnot to go with them, le sigh. I am so hoping that they even somewhat live up to the peas in my memory.

Also, sophia_helix, thanks for the tip on holding the melon syrup in green tea frappucinos! Now they taste proper and green-tea-like instead of too sweet.

( Yesterday's fancy restaurant foodage )

Addendum to foodage

Peas are good. Fresh peas shelled after being bought a few hours ago and sweated with a little oil, salt, pepper and dried parsley (I sadly lack fresh) are really good. They are slightly sweet and crunchy and taste green and fresh, and it seems a dreadful shame that I used to associate peas with the thawed frozen ones, which are small and mushy and don't taste anything like this.

Next time I must get me some shallots with the peas and sweat them together. And fresh parsley.

Mmmmmm.

Fullmetal Alchemist, ep. 24-25

( Both eps )