Category: Uncategorized

In this day and age where our lives are often ruled by
iPhones/androids/smartphone/cellphones- or basically anything that is digital and connected to the
internet- we often don’t have a bird’s eye view of who all of these forms of communication fully affect
human relationships. We live by these vessels of technology but we don’t see ourselves living in the
midst of such technology. Well, that is until now. This movie also manages to interweave several
storylines of people in a town, the struggles and triumphs of their existences, as well as how their lives
interact with each other. If you are looking for a story about the ups and downs of human life, and how
our iPhones and Smartphones affect the ride called life, then this is the movie for you.

Let’s address What We Notice First: This is Reese Witherspoon like you have never seen before
So in the first minutes of the film, you see Reese Witherspoon dressed in not so glamorous clothing, taking off her boot, and revealing a bloodied and blackened toe! The boot falls off the cliff, and she sends the other shoe over the cliff as well. Then you hear her saying, “You f—ing b—ch.”
And then you think about Legally Blonde and you do a double take. This is the same actress?
True Reese has done meaty film roles when she acted in for instance, Vanity Fair and Walk the Line. But, she hasn’t acted in anything so gritty, and unglamorous as Wild. It is a vision to see her in this light.
This film is a feminist film at its height
Perhaps my favorite aspect of this film is that it is a film which showcases feminism at its best. It does show a woman all by herself going cross country to redeem herself after years of spiraling downwards into drug addicted behavior, cheating on her husband a countless number of times, and at one point even becoming pregnant with one of her adulterer’s children. Traditionally women have often been designated to be with someone- a husband, a father, or even among the company of other women. But women, haven’t traditionally been recommended by society to be alone. You are told that you need a man for money, a house, and for protection. What Cheryl does- going out in the wilderness by herself is unheard of.
And there are definitely times, when the filmmakers make sure that people get this message. First, it is when Cheryl goes to check-in at the motel and the motel clerk (For the record, it’s Carolyn from Mad Men- Roger’s secretary) says that you have to list an emergency contact, and Cheryl says that she is here by herself and the clerk, says no you cannot be. You have to have an emergency contact. This back- and forth exchange goes on for a while, until Cheryl finally lists her ex-husband as her contact. But, this exchange showcases to viewers, how society is telling a woman that she must have somebody— how she be totally without somebody? How can she truly be by herself as Cheryl says she is.
Another instance, this film test’s society’s (and possibly viewer’s assumptions) is when Cheryl is picked up by the farmworker and taken to his house for dinner. His wife has made a lot of food, and as the three of them sit down for dinner, Cheryl tells them of her solo journey. The wife says, “Oh my husband would never let me do that.” And the husband chimes in, “You are right, I wouldn’t.” I think the message the filmmakers want us to walk away with are that women still need men’s permission when it is time for them to do something different than ‘wifely’ tasks like cooking.
Perhaps this is the cornerstone of the feminist elements of this film is when Cheryl runs into a man who is a reporter and who works for a paper called The Hobo Times. He says that he would like to interview a female hobo for the paper. And every time Cheryl says, I am not a hobo, he asks her another question about being a female hobo. It’s pretty hilarious! Eventually this conversation prompts Cheryl to say that when can a women ever leave? We are either somebody’s wife or somebody’s mother. The reporter then asks/tells her that she sounds like a feminist. And her response of course is, Yes, I am.
Chery’s story is truly unprecedented. Here is a woman, who fends for herself, makes her own food, and travels in the elements- without much help from others. If this film cannot convince a sexist, that women need men like a bicycle needs a fish- then I don’t know what can.
This film really plays with sexuality
From the orgasmic breathing as Reese hikes to the top of the cliff in the beginning of the film, to when a fellow hiker questions her 12 condoms in her backpack, to the men who eye her ravenously on the trail ( and later even show up unannounced)—this film has a sexual feel to it. Sometimes the sexual feeling which permeates this film- has a predator and prey pull to it.
Disappointments in the movie
I remember reading up on the movie before seeing it on the big screen. I also remember Reese Witherspoon discussing how Cheryl Strayed had sexual experiences with different men and how she (Reese) found this empowering. In fact, Reese went onto explain how these stories’ from Cheryl’s life helped Reese have conversations with her daughter about female sexuality; and how sometimes as a girl/woman growing up, “.. you just need to be with those guys ( sexually). We all have different needs and sometimes you need to sleep with those men at that point in your life. “
But honestly, I didn’t see Cheryl have a lot of “free healthy sex” relationships with many men outside the confines of marriage. Don’t misunderstand me, sex within the confines of marriage is absolutely fine, and with such a caring husband like Cheryl’s that’s even better! But, since sex outside of marriage has been traditionally looked down upon for women, and this film has been hailed as a feminist film—so I guess I wanted to see more of that.
Perhaps, the only twice I saw her have healthy free sex, was towards the end of the movie when she is done with the trail and she has sex with a guy she meets at a concert. And he graciously accepts her physical scars and seems caring.
The other times she had sex, were times in my mind when she shouldn’t have sex. This is because they all seemed to be from times when she cheated on her husband. Her husband in my eyes, was a saint. He stayed with Cheryl for many years despite the fact that she cheated on him; when she was high out of her mind on the street, he picked her up, he dealt with her shouts, and when they were no longer together he was her emergency contact, and even mailed her packages at different rest stops along the Pacific crest trail.
When she worked as a waitress a few times it looked like she took some customers to the back of the alley and had sex with them. And it really bothered me to see this because first of all, we as the audience didn’t know if these men were married or not. So by sleeping with her they could be committing adultery.
Furthermore, WE as the audience know that she is married, so it is really hard to see her committing adultery. But these relationships seemed like snippets of the film. You don’t see her engaging in too many physical relationships, and furthermore relationships which as Reese Witherspoon said, “ Sometimes you just need to sleep with those boys.” Where was that?
Yes, it is a great feminist (and human) journey to take such a bold, unique, and incredibly hard journey through nature’s elements by yourself. At the same time, it would have been nice to see her show snippets of healthy female sexuality-especially when sexual elements like the orgasmic breathing intro or the men who watch her like prey on the trail- make the film a bit sexually charged. To have the environment be sexually charged and not see much actual sex scene tidbits, well makes parts of the film a bit of sexual tease.
Family and Redemption
The fourth and in my opinion, sweetest aspect of this film is family. Cheryl is really close with her mother Bobbie and while she was a child, her brother. Cheryl’s mother is a woman in an abusive relationship while Cheryl was growing up. In fact, from time to time there are flashbacks of Cheryl running into a drug store and running out with cotton pads and rubbing alcohol to wipe away her mother’s wounds. This sad family backdrop probably helped shape Cheryl into the feminist she became. But, it probably made all three of them very tight-knit because that is all they had. Her mother Bobbi (so brilliantly and lovingly played by Laura Dern) maintains her happiness despite what little material possessions and dilapidated house they have. At times, Cheryl resents her mother’s upbeat cheerfulness and questions on her how she can be so happy. Cheryl even challenges her mother’s ideas about the books they both have to read for a class. Cheryl’s source of annoyance at her mother isn’t always clear- but there is a feeling that it could stem from the age old saying which says, “We hurt the ones we love the most.” And it is clear that Cheryl deeply loves her mom. When her mother unexpectedly dies, Cheryl cries as if she is being burnt at the stake.
And at the end of the day, Cheryl feels that she lost her way in life because of the loss of her mother, and says, “I am going to walk back to the woman my mother was proud of.” Her redemptive journey is rooted in the reason of family.
Cheryl also seems to have found a family with her former husband. Even though they decide not to be together anymore, they decide to get tattoos which will connect them permanently in a way. While she is on the road, her only emergency contact and somebody who sends her care packages. He is the only family she has at times.
And at the end of the movie. Cheryl even mentions how after her journey is over that she ends up marrying somebody a few years later and has a son and then a daughter. So, her redemptive journey eventually led her to the reason why she did this on foot journey in the first place: family.

All My Sons by Arthur Miller was premiered in 1947 and became an overnight success after his previous show, The Man Who Had All the Luck failed after disastrous reviews and only four performances. All My Sons revolves around the successful Keller family and Kate Keller’s (Regan Moro) refusal to believe that her son Larry who went MIA in WWII is dead. Her husband, Joe (Benjamin David Reitemeier) and son Chris (Ryan Rosenheim) have accepted that Larry will never come home but have played along with her interpretation of reality in order to keep the peace. However, Chris has invited their former neighbor and Larry’s former girlfriend Annie (Madeline Rouverol) to the Keller family home in order to propose to his long time pen pal and friend. Yet, it is not just Annie and Larry’s past relationship that stands in his way, Annie’s father once was Joe’s business partner – a failed partnership which ended with defective parts being sent to US Army, 21 pilots dead, Annie’s father in jail and Joe surrounded by murderous suspicion.

As a special production for the 100^th Birthday of Arthur Miller and 100^th anniversary of the School of Theatre and Drama at the University of Michigan, this production was designed to impress alumni and the community at large – a feat which it easily accomplished. Since the Arthur Miller Theatre has a thrust stage, I have never seen a traditional curtain used in this venue causing the set to be immediately exposed the second you walk into the theater. This provides the audience with a tremendous amount of time to view the set and cast judgments about each piece present on the stage, presenting a huge amount of pressure on the Scenic Designer to create the “perfect” set. Caleb Levengood (’03) did a tremendous job with set. The stage was framed by white lattice woodwork which was filled with items that appeared to be from Larry’s childhood. While the actors never interacted with any of these objects or acknowledge their existence, they framed the story as a constant reminder that while Larry himself might not be present, his absence was always something to be noted. On the stage itself, a porch jetting out from the façade of an incomplete house subtly suggested  that there are parts missing from more than just the house.

The principle actors did a tremendous job with creating believable and complex characters on stage, while the featured actors fulfilled their purpose as plot devices but were otherwise not of note. Regan Moro as Kate Ketter was especially powerful in her presentation of a woman trapped in a world of delusion but desperately clinging to reality. The wringing of her hands was never overdone, she was not the stereotype of a woman who has lost or the false two dimensional character you too often see but rather a powerful, commanding presence determined to hide the disintegration of her world from those closest to her.

Arthur Miller’s All My Sons is not an uplifting piece but much like Death of a Salesmen Miller forces the audience to look at themselves before casting judgment on the choices of his characters. Here he questions the audience: how much would you compromise?

All My Sons by Arthur Miller will be presented by the University of Michigan’s Department of Theatre & Drama this weekend in the Arthur Miller Theatre on North Campus. Arthur Miller was a prominent figure in twentieth-century American Theatre writing numerous plays including Death of a Salesman, The Crucible and A View from the Bridge.

All My Sons was inspired by true events and follows the story of Joe Keller, a businessman who sold defective airplane parts to the government during World War Two. As a result of these defective parts, 21 American pilots lost their lives and Joe’s neighbor/business partner was sent to jail while Joe was exonerated for the crime. This scandal is a common topic of neighborhood gossip, but Chris, Joe’s youngest son, is determined to move on with his life by marrying Annie. Yet, Chris’ mother Kate cannot let go of the past – defiantly believing that her eldest son Larry, a solider MIA presumed dead  and Annie’s sweetheart before his disappearance, is alive.

Remaining Performances: October 16, 17 at 8pm, October 18 at 2pm

General Admission by Floor $28 • Students $12 with ID

As I sat in the audience of the Power Center Thursday night, I heard high pitched chatter all around me, anticipation crawling up my spine. My last Starkid show had been in 2012, and this felt even more special for some reason. This time, Starkid was in their home turf. But then again – this time was different. I wasn’t just watching and enjoying this show. Notebook and pen in hand, I sat poised over my notebook.

My first two notes?

“The lights dim and I flinch.”

Why did I flinch?

“Screaming. All Screaming.”

The audience erupts into a dull roar as Darren Criss sits in the darkness, waiting for his cue to grace us with his beautiful voice.

This, my friends, is a Starkid show.

I’ve been a Starkid fan since at least 2009, my freshman year of high school. I thought I was clever making jokes about how that movie sucked royal hippogriff, and how when I went to college I’d be transferred to Pigfarts. I’m no ameteur. But even with all that preparation, I didn’t know what to expect for their reunion.

Of course, Darren opened with a much more polished rendition of “Goin’ Back to Hogwarts,” and I wondered vaguely how much rehearsal he really needed. Did he remember all of the words, or was relearning them like riding a bike; one shove and he was gone?

I continued wondering about the nostalgia, especially as the screams grew quieter during the second half of the concert. What did it feel like for Joe Walker and Brian Rosenthal to be bound together again in that damn turban? What was Jaime’s view from the stage, as she led the cast of Me and My Dick? Did Joey care that his vocals are being overpowered simply by the sheer will of screams?

Throughout the concert, performance, variety, whatever you may call it, I tuned out the screams and really tried to focus my critical eye on this phenomenon I loved. But there’s nothing to criticize. I could tell that these weren’t kids singing in the Walgreen Drama Center any more – all the vocals were polished, vowels open and consonants crisp. These were now seasoned professionals. I personally loved Brant Cox’s solo, when they performed “Beauty” from their 2011 musical Starship, and the subtle tweaks to writing, where Darren went off about there being another Spider Man and Meredith Stepien pointed out that Red Vines are disgusting (because they are), were nothing short of ingenious. No, the show wasn’t perfect, but since when has a Starkid show ever run smoothly?

Despite all the screaming and frustration at not picking my favorite songs (where was Granger Danger?!?!?), I remembered why I fell in love with Starkid. It wasn’t the jokes, it wasn’t the Harry Potter, it wasn’t even the perfection of Lauren Lopez. It was the honesty of all their performances, and how they made you feel like you could jump on stage and join them. And that’s how they took the stage at the Power Center, filled with joy, a bit of quirkiness, and hope.

It was clear Starkid wasn’t just reliving their old memories by recreating their favorite musical numbers from all their shows. Even through Brian Holden’s self-deprecating humor, it was clear Starkid was emphasizing that no, they hadn’t forgotten about where they came from. Even Darren in all his glory loved to come back hoMe.

“Michigan was our Hogwarts” they proclaimed, instantly making everyone in the audience who wasn’t a Wolverine immediately decide to apply to Michigan. I can’t lie, though, because despite its cheesiness, as a senior I felt their words ring true.

At the end of the night, I looked to the front of the audience, where Nick Lang, director, writer, actor, everyman sat watching his creation, pulled together in the span of mere days, a little over 12 hours rehearsal and prep put into making this show. He erupted in cheers, pulled onto stage by his castmates, his Starkids, his very best friends. As I watched, I thought I may feel just a tiny bit of what he felt: pride in what this group of quirky kids became, all because of one idea and the determination to see it through.

 

STARKID IS BACK! And you should definitely be excited. After five years away from the University of Michigan campus, Team Starkid is back in town for a much needed reunion. Don’t know who Starkid is? Blasphemy! Team Starkid is a theatre group formed by then-students-now-graduates of the University of Michigan, made famous when they uploaded their musical-parody A Very Potter Musical  to YouTube and became insta-famous. Besides making fun of beloved childhood books, Starkid produces hilarious original musicals (I recommend Starship) and dabbles in a bit of everything (comedy, stand-up, silliness..etc.). Although I’m not quite sure what to expect, bring your wands and pink sunglasses, because we’re going back to Starkid. Proceeds from ticket sales of A Very Starkid Reunion will go to a scholarship in honor of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance’s 100 year anniversary.

Where: Power Center for the Performing Arts
When: Thursday, October 8th, 7:30pm
Tickets: $35/$25*

*Note – this show is almost sold out – I stress almost.