Futurelawyer

Use Your Lunch Hour Wisely...Get Marquee TV

Marquee TV. For less money than I spent to see a live performance of the Bolshoi Ballet at my local movie theater pre Covid 19, I now have access to hundreds of the best live performances in every genre of performance art from around the world for two whole years. $4.99 a month buys access to more theater than you could watch in a lifetime. Yesterday, at work, I spent my lunch hour watching Act I of the Royal Shakespeare Company's "Julius Caesar". For aging ears, the subtitles made the performance even better than being there live. Don't tell Marquee; but, this service is worth a lot more money. Shakespeare paints Caesar as a Stoic, and the play has more memorable quotes than any other:

Cowards die many times before their deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear;
Seeing that death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come.”
― William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar

If death be my necessary end, I choose to spend some of my time with Shakespeare on Marquee TV.

 

So Much Shakespeare...So Little Time

Marquee TV. Yesterday, I posted about the access to Royal Shakespeare Company plays on Marquee TV. This is the company that was putting live performances on the big screen of your local theater. We saw the Bolshoi that way last year. But, when our trip to the U.K. got cancelled by Covid-19, I had despaired of ever getting back to Stratford on Avon to see Shakespeare in the Globe. Through the magic of the Internet, however, I now have access to every performance of the RSC on my home screens. I started Lear last night, and I was blown away by the immediacy of the filming. The next best thing to being there. For a measly $4.95 a month, I not only have access to Shakespeare live; but, many other performances of just about every category of entertainment filmed live around the world.

Royal Shakespeare Company Comes To You

Royal Shakespeare Company. I was looking forward to seeing a Shakespeare play this Fall at the RSC in Stratford on Avon. The plane reservations for Paris were made. The car reservation for the drive to England was complete. Seeing a Shakespeare play there is a special experience. But, fate intervenes. If I want to see a Shakespeare play, I will have to settle for a TV or computer screen. But, the RSC has a solution. We have seen some pretty special live performances in our local theater. The Bolshoi Ballet, for example. But, now, Marquee TV has an online subscription alternative that is amazing. For $8.99 a month, I have access to theater performances, filmed live on location, including 18 performances by the RSC. Ballet, Musicals, and just about every performance art genre you can think of. It looks like we get to see a lot of Shakespeare this Fall. Where are you traveling to this Fall?

Ennio Morricone - RIP

The composer of some of the best music I ever heard has died. Morricone composed the scores of classic movies and also classical music. I am spending some time today with his greatest work, IMHO, Ecstasy of Gold, for the greatest movie of all time, "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly".

 

Hamilton Coming To Disney Plus.

Hamilton Disney Plus Trailer In case you needed a reason to subscribe to Disney Plus, a video of the original stage play, with the original cast from 2016, will be available on Disney Plus July 3d. History buffs, fans of the Federalist Papers, lovers of musicals, and those who couldn't get a ticket to the hottest musical in recent memory, can spend a few dollars on a subscription and spend the holiday with Alexander Hamilton and friends. No social distancing necessary.

If It's Tuesday, You Must Watch A Film About Ansel Adams

I am a serious amateur photographer. The highlight of my photography life was visiting the Ansel Adams gallery in Yosemite National Park. I own an original Adams print of Half Dome, printed by his staff from the original negative. If you want some beauty in your life right now (and who doesn't?) watch this documentary. Spend an hour with beauty and greatness.

 

Having Trouble Dealing With The Pandemic? Listen To Eric Idle

Everyone has a different ring tone on their phones these days. This is mine:

 

Galaxy Quest - Never Give Up. Never Surrender

Galaxy Quest If ever there was a time when every American needed to see Galaxy Quest, this is it. Never Give Up. Never Surrender.

 

In Times Like These, We Need Inspiration And A Call To Arms

One of the great speeches. In these times, we are all a "band of brothers". 

 

The Analog Revolution - Back To Our Roots?

Film Photography Comeback? I love my vinyl record collection. I have two turntables in the office, and I love the slow pace of going through the records, choosing one, taking it out of the sleeve, using a dust brush, carefully placing it on the turntable, and turning on the imperfect, but authentic, sound. When the first side concludes, I am forced to get out of my chair, walk to the turntable, turn the record over, and begin again. OK, Millennial. I get it. Why waste all that time, when I can just click an icon on my computer or smartphone, and listen to pure, digital music? Hey, I get it. I am the FutureLawyer, remember? But, there is something primal about OLD tech, and music isn't the only game in town. I used to spend hours in a darkroom, winding 35 mm color slide film, developing it in plastic tanks, trimming and mounting the slides, and then putting them in an enlarger and making Cibachrome prints on paper. I would develop them in big plastic drums, and the magic of seeing beautiful color prints come out of the drums was palpable. I still have all of my darkroom equipment in my den, and occasionally threaten to get back to it. Anybody else out there have a bunch of old camera bodies and lenses that need dusting off?