Don’t miss the amazingly talented Yuja Wang and Leonidas Kavakos playing at the Power Center this afternoon! Widely recognized as one of the most important pianists of her generation, Yuja is frequently praised for her ability to execute the most complicated technique of her repertoire, the depth of her musical insight, and her charisma on stage. Joining Yuja, violinist Leonidas Kavakos is internationally renowned for his virtuosity, superb musicianship, and integrity. Combining the mind-blowing talent of these superb musicians will undoubtedly make for a fantastic performance. Check out a recap of the details below.
The story begins in ancient Japan, during a time of warring villages and samurai and monsters. Prince Ashitaka of the Emishi people is defending his village from a demon boar when he becomes cursed by the demon, and as a result he is given super-human strength while also that same power threatens to kill him from the inside. In an effort to find the source of the curse, Ashitaka follows the cause of the demon’s suffering, a ball of iron, to a mining town that is using the iron to build weapons. Traveling far to the west, he meets the Princess Mononoke in the forests, riding on the back of a large white wolf. In this time period, gods still exist amongst animals, they are larger than life forms of the animals we know today, and are intelligent and able to talk with humans. But something in the world is changing this. More and more animals are born unable to speak and the cause of this seems to lie with the humans.
Ashitaka takes up residence in the town that is creating the iron, but he is unable to convince them to stop their mining and manufacturing. The manufacturing force is comprised largely of former prostitutes and men and women ostracized from society by diseases such as leprosy. They have come to this town and found a better lifestyle which they are prepared to defend. Their mining efforts continue and Ashitaka leaves the town to see if he can find the Princess Mononoke again.
There is a theme of growth and change in the movie, not just in the changing of the humans relationship between themselves and the environment, but also the change from a feudal society to one that is contemplating contemporary problems in an ancient civilization. Though the town is creating problem with its iron production, it is also making significant changes in societal norms. Women and men’s roles are divided such that men do the fighting and women stay home and make the iron. The disabled are in charge of design and innovation of new technologies, and each person contributes equally to the society so no one group is considered higher above the other.
As the human society seems to be propelling towards the future that we know today, the animals and the spirits of the natural world are heading towards their respective future in contemporary society. As mining destroys mountain homes and humans support deforestation, the animals are being pushed further and further away from their homes and from their roles as intelligent beings. The role of animal gods and forest spirits is changing from one that exists in parallel to the human world to one that will only belong in fables and story-telling. The wolf goddess, the mother to the wolf-girl Princess Mononoke, knows that the world is growing larger than the animals, and that the existence of spirits will soon become a memory to the humans. But Princess Mononoke, who sees herself as a wolf born in the body of a human, chooses to fight for her place in the world. She does not fit with the humans, but through the fighting she learns that she does not fit completely in the world of the animals either. Prince Ashitaka inevitably falls in love with the Princess, for he dreams of a society where humans and animals live in harmony, or the embodiment of what the Princess represents. He and the princess work together to stop the humans and animals from fighting, but the war culminates in the death of two great animal gods, as well as the cutting off of the head of the forest spirit. There is death on both sides, as it goes with war. The humans, now displaced and their iron works destroyed, have a post-apocalypse hopefulness and plan to move on and build a better town founded on better values. The forest spirit no longer takes the physical form it used to, but Ashitaka emphasizes at the end that the forest spirit is not dead, he exists instead in a form invisible to humans.
A few years ago I was involved with an organization on campus called Students for Choice. It is an organization which promotes access to contraception and the right to abortion. One day we went to Lansing for a special “lobby your state-senator for planned parenthood-day.”
When we arrived we saw a whole bunch of people ( mainly men) who were part of the unions and worked in plants/factories, out there protesting against the governor. I asked my colleagues if they were also there to support Planned Parenthood. One of the girls laughed and said, “ Haha, a bunch of union guys supporting planned parenthood??!!” I guess my naive self never thought about that before. I didn’t see why it would be weird for a whole bunch of men to support something related to contraception. I just thought that if somebody supported a cause, then they could fight for it. Little did I know that people had images of what types of people fought for certain types causes.
But seeing this movie, helped me reaffirm the truth to my naivete. And for that I am grateful.
I am grateful because this movie shows that we as people can truly get together and support others no matter what makes us different from one another.
The leader of Gays and Lesbians Support the Miners, Mark Ashton tells the head of the miners union in Onllwyn that he noticed in a lot of Gay and Lesbian groups just mingle with ONLY those in the LGBT community. He felt that forming a LGBT Pride group wanted to make him connect with others- which is what this movie is after all about.
That said, I cannot believe the arc of this story and how amazing it was. An LGBT group sets out to help support the miners who are on strike and out of work and pay. The national labor unions reject their offers of support, and so Gays and Lesbians support the miners decide to help out at the miners in the village of Onllwyn. At first, they are met with some cold shoulders by some in the community. At the first speech given by Mark Ashton- some miners walk out. One woman in the welcoming board refuses to greet them/serve them. Later, with time as things thaw out many people (especially the women) decide to mingle with the LGBT members. Eventually some straight men even befriend them- so that they can learn how to dance and score women. Lol indeed! But the film has a lot of twists and a negative backdrop at times. The miners at one point were not taking baths because resources were so tight; those in the LGBT movement were dealing with the reality of AIDS; the LGBT members also faced some harassment; but eventually the movie has a happy ending. Some of the real facts in epilogue were jaw-dropping–but you should see the movie to find out!
As political and sociological this movie is- it doesn’t uncompromise it’s artistic quality. The film does a great balancing act between drama and comedy- and truly does dramedy at it’s best. In one scene when one of the main characters unknownst to the audience deals with the harsh reality of a HIV diagnosis- another scene’s comedy isn’t diminished when an elderly townswoman rushes out to see her Lesbian friends saying, “ Oh, my lesbians!” This movie was full of other very funny lines and at other times, poignant lines.
I love the costumes and art direction and lighting in some of the scenes. There were scenes during the holiday season where I truly felt I was in a 1980s small Welsh town with that sentimental/at times saccharine decor ( which by the way I love). The wallpaper was a little to colorful and cutesy full of acorns, holly, and green stripes. The collars were a little too rufflely on the ladies; the hair couldn’t be more flouncier and bigger; the lighting couldn’t be more orange glowing cutesey.
Perhaps, the best product of the sharp witted humor and cutesy-kitsch-norman rockwelly scenes is when a lot of the women spend the night at Jonathon’s house and they find some sex toys ( and in particular a hot pink vibrator) and see “Buns magazine” lying around! AND they hold up the vibrator and wonder the different ways it can.. em.. enter. In doing so, they laugh, laugh, laugh their heads off so much that Jonathon and his partner in the floor below cannot sleep! What I find even more ironic is that all of this happens in one of the homiest of rooms- not necessarily one where people think to find sex toys!
In closing, I would like to address a few other things. One is that, this movie should get the Best Oscar picture award. I say this because many Best Oscar flics are an union of well critically received and audience loved ( think, Walk the Line from 2005). In addition this movie, is relevant, or should I say very relevant to what is going on in our world. The LGBT movement is in high swing, and a lot of traction with that movement is going on. I have seen Milk, Brokeback Mountain— but this is by far my favorite film that deals with the LGBT movement. I say this because there is something very humbling about the movie and has the ability to touch many. And another thing that this film could do if nominated for Best Picture Oscar is to inspire perhaps, what actually happened in this movie. In other words, Where are the Gays and Lesbians support the miners or miners support Gays and Lesbians of 2014? You think 30 years later those in the liberal movement would get out of their boxes and mingle a bit more. But sadly, that seems to not be a reality. This movie happened because reality imitated art. But in order for the story behind the film to go full circle, we need a little more of art imitating life.
You could see it from the way he enters the room, lightening up the cold weather mood with a smile. From his first “Aloha Ann Arbor.” From the way he collapsed his inner fingers in and stuck out his pinky and thumb to create the “hang loose” sign. From the way he bowed to the audience. From the way he fist-bumped his bass player after every song, as if it was the best time he’s ever played each song – consistently. You could see that Jake Shimabukuro is one of the nicest performers around, and has a unique talent.
When I entered Hill Auditorium, my eyes were filled with a startling haze that replicated what one might see at a rock concert or a smog-filled arena. On stage were four stalks of concert lights. I was wondering how Jake was going to fill the stage. Would he sit on a stool, Nirvana-esque, and we would listen? Would he be leaping about like Lindsey Stirling? The audience surrounding me had a good mixture of young children and families, college students, and surprisingly, a large community of white-haired folks. Could one musician cater to all people in this broad spectrum of ages?
And then Jake came on the stage, and the lights flared with vibrant colors, bouncing shadows off the walls. While his bass-player appropriately took the simple accompaniment lines and stayed stone still, Jake made up for his stillness by strumming right into an uplifting, high-energy ditty. It must be difficult to create kinetic intrigue, especially when holding such a small instrument as the ukulele. But Jake’s stage presence (although one in his position may feel awkward by the way he bopped his head and bent his knees in rhythm) became larger than himself and was quite necessary for the enjoyment of the show.
If happy had a sound, it would be the ukulele.
Jake is most well known for his covers of classic rock songs such as “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” which resonated with the older generation in the audience. While he played these two, as well as Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” (*sobbing*) and Ave Maria, he also played quite a few original pieces, which were terrific! He has a unique talent in that he is not solidified in one genre. He is a master of many styles, including flamenco, bluegrass, rock, Hawaiian, and Japanese folk songs! Although he has the skill and control over his flying fingers, his instrument is able to achieve different tones through the use of several effect pedals, as well as one which he can create a sound sample and then loop it and play with it in the background. He told us that many of his pieces are influenced directly from experiences in his own life, as art usually is. Past travels to Japan led him to write a piece called “Ichigo Ichie” which translates to “the once-in-a-lifetime crossing of paths with a person who you may never meet again.” His own childhood in Hawaii inspired a Hawaiian-style folk song. He told a tender story about his friend’s grandmother who, while in the hospital, hallucinated that blue roses were on the ceiling and were dropping their petals on her – a powerful image. This story inspired his elegiac song entitled “Blue Roses Falling.”
The show would have suffered, I think, without Jake’s conversational interlude. He brought us closer, knitted a connection between him and the audience in this moment of ichigo ichie. We were able to listen and appreciate his music in a different way, because we understood how his head worked. We could empathize with the way he felt when he was composing the piece. He probably paid homage to the wonderful venue of Hill Auditorium five times during the night, revealing that he was awe-inspired by the beautiful structure we walk past every day (this parallels how amazed we are by the instrument that he plays daily). Jake is a performer who not only wants to entertain, he wants to inspire, he wants to uplift, and bring good cheer to the world. He gave a quick fatherly preach to the younger generation in the audience : “to choose whatever they’re passionate about and go out into the world and do it.” He followed up with “And you don’t need drugs. I’ve been drug free my whole life. You don’t need them.” Although perhaps a little overdone, I know that he meant well. He believes in “music education,” which got the entire auditorium applauding. After a little research on him, I am pleased to find out that the 38-year-old has created his own music education non-profit organization called “The Four Strings Foundation,” proof that he does not just talk, but follows his own advice.
Aloha Jake. We hope you come back to Ann Arbor and bring your sound of happy with you.
Penny Stamps Speaker series presents: Françoise Mouly
In Love with Art …and Comics
Who: Françoise Mouly, art director for the New Yorker since 1993, will be giving a talk as a part of the Stamps speaker series
What: Come listen to someone speak about comics and art and the intersection they played in her life as well as the role they play in her current occupation.
Men’s Glee Club will be presenting their 155th Annual Fall Hill Concert this weekend, which features three premieres among many other works for male chorus. Works presented surround the theme of the Heartland, in light of their upcoming tour in the heartland of the United States in the summer of 2015. This Saturday, come check out one of the most prestigious male choral ensembles of the United States!
When: Saturday, November 22 — 8pm
Where: Hill Auditorium
Tickets: $5 and up; purchase online or at the Michigan League Ticket Office
