Comments on: Live n’ Learn http://www.indyish.com/live-n-learn/ You might be awesome, but we are the Indyish! Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:40:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Risa Dickens http://www.indyish.com/live-n-learn/#comment-8742 Risa Dickens Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:22:22 +0000 http://www.indyish.com/live-n-learn/#comment-8742 so i pose questions, and wonder about what's going on behind the scenes, and try to poke at communications problems to see if i can figure out what went wrong for next time. i tend to wait a while before unleashing something like this, only after repeated different stories does it start to seem something worth publicly considering. though writing while in the midst of stress can create emotional distortions (heads up ok?) it can also spew truths we won't approach when heads are calmer, out of a sense of delicacy or let's-not-rock-the-boat. so take blogs with a grain of salt, but also remember they exist to help (or this one does anyway). We think critique and question asking is crucial to personal, artistic and political progress. I could write another thesis about this, but instead I try to find reviewers who feel the same way, and try to force myself to be honest about what i'm going through as an organizer so folks (including myself) can learn about that too. I have more blog posts coming soon. The sound board thing seems to have been another misunderstanding, and i got an explanation and apology from Lita, who has been working hard to pull together the show. Here's what she had to say: "Wanted to say a couple of things about this morning's incident...for what it's worth...as you may imagine...there was yet another mix up...this time my bad....that left me believeing I could bring in a union sound person to do my show, only to find out when Tristan had told me that was OK, he meant with his sound crew present....ayayay (as we say in CR)...I have spoken with everyone and all is been sorted...just wanted to to let you know." She wasn't delighted about this blog post, or about the questions I raised, and she explained to me how different her expectations and assumptions about the fringe were from what has turned out to be the reality. Assumptions seem to be at the root of every communications failure. My english teacher in grade 7 wasn't my favorite, but she did drill a truth into my head that I still struggle to put into practice (we all do I think) "to assume makes and Ass of U and Me." Thanks msZannis. you ole battleaxe. I think given the gaps in understanding here at the fringe, between some very different crowds, folks have managed to accomodate eachother relatively well. And LIta was gracious enough to thank me for my work right alongside her expression of dismay at my bloggin. That's a cool gesture. I still have faith and hope that the production she's giving us today will be cool, both acting-wise and fashion-wise, and will justify the stress i've been carrying between these 2 arts orgs learning to work together for the very first time over the past weeks. I have definitely played my part in some of the miscommunications, and I apologized to the people I owed it to yesterday, and am glad they understood. I don't think i'll be so willing to put myself as a coordinator between groups for no money again. live and learn dickens! as of right now, this comment is turning into a monster that should be a post, the rain clouds are clearing and things may be looking up. We've certainly seen some bad theatre at the fringe and at the outdoors site this year, right alongside the great stuff, so all our expectations are wide open and the boat is rocking. drink a cheers and send us good vibes wherever you are on this sunday, last day of the montreal fringe, ok? now i'm off for one last day- featuring art markets, Seditionaire's much anticipated production, and a record launch for the wicked FM Hi Low at the green room.. then sleeeepppppp. =) so i pose questions, and wonder about what’s going on behind the scenes, and try to poke at communications problems to see if i can figure out what went wrong for next time. i tend to wait a while before unleashing something like this, only after repeated different stories does it start to seem something worth publicly considering. though writing while in the midst of stress can create emotional distortions (heads up ok?) it can also spew truths we won’t approach when heads are calmer, out of a sense of delicacy or let’s-not-rock-the-boat. so take blogs with a grain of salt, but also remember they exist to help (or this one does anyway). We think critique and question asking is crucial to personal, artistic and political progress. I could write another thesis about this, but instead I try to find reviewers who feel the same way, and try to force myself to be honest about what i’m going through as an organizer so folks (including myself) can learn about that too. I have more blog posts coming soon.

The sound board thing seems to have been another misunderstanding, and i got an explanation and apology from Lita, who has been working hard to pull together the show. Here’s what she had to say:

“Wanted to say a couple of things about this morning’s incident…for what it’s worth…as you may imagine…there was yet another mix up…this time my bad….that left me believeing I could bring in a union sound person to do my show, only to find out when Tristan had told me that was OK, he meant with his sound crew present….ayayay (as we say in CR)…I have spoken with everyone and all is been sorted…just wanted to to let you know.”

She wasn’t delighted about this blog post, or about the questions I raised, and she explained to me how different her expectations and assumptions about the fringe were from what has turned out to be the reality. Assumptions seem to be at the root of every communications failure. My english teacher in grade 7 wasn’t my favorite, but she did drill a truth into my head that I still struggle to put into practice (we all do I think) “to assume makes and Ass of U and Me.” Thanks msZannis. you ole battleaxe.

I think given the gaps in understanding here at the fringe, between some very different crowds, folks have managed to accomodate eachother relatively well. And LIta was gracious enough to thank me for my work right alongside her expression of dismay at my bloggin. That’s a cool gesture.

I still have faith and hope that the production she’s giving us today will be cool, both acting-wise and fashion-wise, and will justify the stress i’ve been carrying between these 2 arts orgs learning to work together for the very first time over the past weeks. I have definitely played my part in some of the miscommunications, and I apologized to the people I owed it to yesterday, and am glad they understood. I don’t think i’ll be so willing to put myself as a coordinator between groups for no money again. live and learn dickens!

as of right now, this comment is turning into a monster that should be a post, the rain clouds are clearing and things may be looking up. We’ve certainly seen some bad theatre at the fringe and at the outdoors site this year, right alongside the great stuff, so all our expectations are wide open and the boat is rocking. drink a cheers and send us good vibes wherever you are on this sunday, last day of the montreal fringe, ok?

now i’m off for one last day- featuring art markets, Seditionaire’s much anticipated production, and a record launch for the wicked FM Hi Low at the green room.. then sleeeepppppp. =)

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