Friday, March 30, 2012

The Bricklayer at Houston Grand Opera

As part of HGOco's cross-cultural East + West initiative, Houston Grand Opera had commissioned a new chamber opera called THE BRICKLAYER. The Bricklayer is Houston Grand Opera’s 46the World Premiere. The piece focuses on Houston's vibrant Persian community, with a libretto by Iranian-American writer Farnoosh Moshiri and music by composer Gregory Spears. The opera was premiered on March 15, 2012 in the Cullen Theater (Wortham Center) with three additional performances throughout Houston.

Listen to an interview with  Farnoosh Moshiri, Gregory Spears, David Hanlon and cast members: Eve Gigliotti, soprano (Mrs. Parvin); Jon Kolbet, tenor (Mr. Parvin); and Bray Wilkins, tenor (The Bricklayer).

Watch an excerpt by soprano Eve Gigliotti.

Women Say No to Iran War

 Women Say No to Iran War
 American women rise up for diplomacy not war! Will you join Iranian, Israeli and Palestinian women to oppose war on Iran? Join Alice Walker, Eve Ensler, and Gloria Steinem. 
Watch  Gloria Steinem in Q

Daii jan Napoleon's House!

 Don't let the historical architectural building, a part of Iranian memory ruins! Support  Daii jan Napoleon's House!

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Adrienne Rich, the profound poet of our time

Adrienne Rich, a fiercely gifted, award-winning poet whose socially conscious verse influenced a generation of feminist, gay rights and anti-war activists, has died. She was 82.

“She was very courageous and very outspoken and very clear,” said her longtime friend W.S. Merwin, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet. “She was a real original, and whatever she said came straight out of herself.”
As Merwin noted, Rich was a hard poet to define because she went through so many phases. Or, as Rich wrote in “Delta,” ‘’If you think you can grasp me, think again.”

In those years
 
In those years people will say, we lost track
of the meaning of we, of you
We found ourselves
reduced to I
and the whole thing became
silly, ironic, terrible:
we were trying to live a personal life
and yes, that was the only life
we could bear witness to

But the great dark birds of history screamed and plunged
into our personal weather
They were headed somewhere else but their beaks and pinions drove
along the shore, through the rags of fog
where we stood, saying I.


Tuesday, March 27, 2012

World Theatre Day 2012 Message

A message by John Malkovich in World Theatre Day 2012
Watch John Malkovich in Les Misérables
Part 2

Thanks to Mahasti for sending me the links to Les Misérables.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

It's Spring



It's Spring
Hugo Wolf (1860 - 1903)
Tenor Werner Güra
Piano Jan Schultsz

Cherry flowers smell of cherries - one of life's little miracles...
Ja, du bist's!

Spring lets its blue ribbon
flutter again in the breeze;
a sweet, familiar scent
sweeps ominously through the land.
Violets are already dreaming,
and will soon arrive.
Hark! In the distance - a soft harp tone!
Spring, yes it is you!
I have heard you!

In Sring...
In Spring Diana Damrau

Birds Songs


Birds Songs
The Sounds of Spring.

As I Lay Dying

An excerpt of As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. Listen to his voice reading from his novel.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Spring


Watch this beautiful video.

Spring song


Listen to Spring song by Felix Mendelssohn.
Happy Nowruz...Happy spring!

Friday, March 16, 2012

My flower



“If some one loves a flower of which just one example exists among all the millions and millions of stars, that’s enough to make him happy when he looks at the stars. He tells himself, “My flower’s up there somewhere…”

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Truth and Joy of Friendship

“The stupid believe that to be truthful is easy; only the artist, the great artist, knows how difficult it is.”

"Only solitary man knew the full joy of friendship. Others have their family; but to a solitary and an exile, his friends are everything."

Willa Sibert Cather

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Love triumphs over war


Not Gone with the Wind
By Mahasti Shahrokhi
“Any Iranian woman who overlooks the importance of solidarity among women, needs to read this poem several times and become aware of the thousands of elements that bring us women together.”
Azadeh Azad
اگر ویلیام بتواند روی صفحات سپید کاغذ
و در سالن تئاتر، برای یک شب،
رومئو را به وصال ژولیت برساند
اگر فقط یک شب،
روی صفحات کاغذ،
عشق بر جنگ پیروز شود
پس نوشتن هرگز بیهوده نبوده است"
"If William were capable to wed Romeo with Juliet
Only for one night, on a blank page,
Or on the stage
If only for one night
Love triumphs over war,
On a blank page of our notebook,
Then, writing has never been in vain."

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Not Gone with the Wind


A few months ago, I lost a stack of my original writing at Red Line train in Chicago. The grief of losing years of hard work inspired my friend Mahasti Shahrokhi, the author and poet living in Paris, to write a poem (Not Gone with the Wind) about our long journey we had to go through as Iranians, since 1979.

She dedicated the poem to me and all the years of my dedication to writing. Thank you Mahasti for your gift.

Read the whole poem in Gooya News

مهستی شاهرخی: بر باد نرفته، برای عزت گوشه‌گیر و روزانه نگاری غربت اش

........

اولیس نبودم تا اودیسه ای بنویسم،

زن بودم، پنه لوپه بودم من،

سفرم، گشتن به دور دنیا نبود

آلیس بودم من

سیاحتم رفتن به آن سوی آینه بود

و سفرنامه ام شد نوشتن فانتزی هایم

آلیسم من، در ذهن سفر می‌کنم بی وقفه

چون درختی در انتهای کویر

شاخه هایم در باد است

رویاهایم پر از هجرت و سفر

از برهوت نمی نویسم

حسرت ها و حرمان ها را به باد می‌سپارم

از کشف قاره جدیدم می‌نویسم

نوشتن برای آفریدن قاره جدیدی برای بشر،

قاره ای بدون اعدام،

قاره ای بدون شکنجه،

قاره ای بدون زور،

قاره ای که انسان، هم فرمانروا و هم فرمانبر انسان است

قاره ای متعلق به ژان وال ژان،

نان و مسکن و آزادی برای همه،

این را با جان خود نوشتم

و مانند گیسوانم

رها کردمش به دست باد

به دست قطار زمان

به دست امواج کلمات

با هر موج

متولد خواهم شد

با هر بار خوانش تو،

هر بار که ژان وال ژان، شمعدانهای نقره اسقف را از کلیسا بردارد

هر بار قرص نانی بدزدد تا شکم کودک گرسنه‌ای را سیر کند

هر بار از فاضلاب شهر، دانشجوی مجروحی را نجات بدهد

زنده می‌شوم من

من نمرده ام

جایی در میان «منسفیلد پارک»،

جای کوچکی کنار کوزت و فانتین، همدم خانواده «بنت»ام،

با هم از تونل زمان گذشته ایم و

همراه ژولیت، عشق را در ایتالیای قرون وسطا فریاد کرده‌ایم

بیهوده نبوده است اگر،

اگر ویلیام بتواند روی صفحات سپید کاغذ

و در سالن تئاتر، برای یک شب،

رومئو را به وصال ژولیت برساند

اگر فقط یک شب،

روی صفحات کاغذ،

عشق بر جنگ پیروز شود

پس نوشتن هرگز بیهوده نبوده است

..........

Where in the World

Listen to Katherine Sogolow, ending her short play LIZ'S-STRATAGEM-- a compact version of Aristophanes' anti-war play-- with a song Where in the World.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Fish


It was wonderful to attend AWP in Chicago this year!
The poem "Fish" by C.K.Williams is still resonating in my mind!