Lots of cultural activities occurred in the Durham-Chapel Hill area this weekend. On Thursday, I attended a concert of the Duke University Wind Symphony. The theme was “Stars” so they played different melodies such as Stars and Stripes forever by John Philip Sousa and, of course, the soundtrack of Star Wars (the conductor wore Darth Vader’s cloak especially for it.)
I was invited to this event by one of my students, Melissa, who happens to be both the Trumpet Section Leader and the President of the Symphony!
Last night, some friends and I attended an Improv spectacle in Carrboro to support our friend Teresa, who did an amazing job in the several roles she played! It was the first time I attended this type of performance and since Teresa was part of it, I had a great time laughing with her puns and jokes.
Finally, today I saw Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya at Duke. Vanya is perhaps one of my top 3 plays; I liked the stage a lot although it was a bit too experimental for me (in some cases, two actors played the same role which was a bit distracting at some point, and the difference between actor A and actor B was quite noticeable in a couple of cases.) Also, I think the stage could have highlighted the tension melancholy (past) / hope (future) the play is principally based on a little bit more (which did occur in the more traditional stage I saw in Lima some years ago.) Nevertheless, another friend of mine played a role in it (she was Yelena in Acts II and IV) and she did a fantastic job! (Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a picture of Jay in contrast with Melissa and Teresa)
Not only was I able to attend diverse cultural activities this weekend but I was able to support my artistic friends as well. And that made me quite happy!…
Astrov.- Those who come a hundred or two hundred years after us will despise us for having lived our lives so stupidly and tastelessly. Perhaps they’ll find a means to be happy…
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