Tune in Tuesday: Heathers the Musical

Last month Jon and I went to New York for a few days. The impetus for the trip was the impeding end of the Colbert Report, for which Jon secured tickets after news broke that Stephen Colbert would be taking over for Letterman. In addition to that taping, I talked him into seeing Heathers: The Musical. I first heard about this potential disaster over a year ago, and I did not have high hopes. If you haven't seen the movie from the 80's, check it out on YouTube. It's one of my favorite black comedies and an inspiration for other films, such as Mean Girls and Jawbreaker.

The musical is nothing short of brilliant. I didn't have high expectations going in (especially given how cheap tickets turned out to be), but both Jon and I were completely blown away by the cast and the songs. I'm still singing them now, weeks later, and we've even ordered the soundtrack. (Fair warning: this musical is VERY MUCH NSFW.)

Here's a medley of a few songs being performed on stage (so you can get an idea of the set and costumes):


This is "Candy Store," one of Jon's favorites:


And "Dead Girl Walking" (my favorite):


If you have a chance to see this musical, DO IT!

Music Munday: Welcome to Night Vale Live!

Yep, it's the triumphant (?) return of Music Munday. And what better way to celebrate than a post that's only tangentially related to music? :P

This past Friday, Batman and I saw a live show of one of my favorite podcasts, Welcome to Night Vale! It was actually my Valentine's Day present, and I was beyond excited. If you're unfamiliar with the show, the conceit is this: WtNV is a community radio show, hosted by the amazing Cecil. Every week, he delivers news about the desert town of Night Vale (usually involving the mysterious and supernatural) and the people who live there. My favorite recurring characters are the Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your House and Tameka Flynn (a middle schooler who battles the town's dangerous and carnivorous librarians). Here's the first episode:



Awesome, right? I discovered it thanks to my friend Shivana, who cosplayed as Tameka at DragonCon last year (complete with decapitated librarian head!) and was hooked immediately. It's the perfect blend of unsettling, zany, and hilarious.

You might be wondering where the "music" comes in for this Music Munday post. About three-quarters of the way through every broadcast, Cecil brings listeners "the weather" in the form of a song from an obscure (at least to me) artist. It's pretty hit-or-miss in my opinion, but every once in a while there's an interesting band or really great song. Usually I just want to skip through them, though. Luckily, the musical guests chosen for Friday night's show, Danny Schmidt and Carrie Elkin, were pretty good! Carrie reminded me of Jennifer Nettles back when she used to do solo shows. They performed this song together and I really liked it, but couldn't find a video of them together:



So here's a bonus video of Carrie covering Bob Dylan:



It was definitely an experience to watch a podcast (especially when I'm used to just hearing it!) being made. If you get the chance, check it out! It was a fun night.

The cast of Welcome to Night Vale

Well, if she can't be Veronica Mars...

at least Kristen Bell can be A Veronica: she's currently reading the lead in a new musical based on awesome 80's movie Heathers. And Christian Campbell is reading J.D! There's no guarantee that the same actors doing the reading will tour with the musical (if it happens), but it would be so boss if they did. This musical has the potential to be completely amazing. From the article:

The film offered many over-top-moments as well as choice lines, something Fickman is eager to bring out musically.

" 'I love my dead gay son," Fickman quoted. "If you can get that into a song, then that is just perfect."

Indeed. Other quotes from the movie I'd love to hear set to music:
"Well, f*ck me gently with a chainsaw. Do I look like Mother Theresa? "
"Did you have a brain tumor for breakfast?"
"Es-ki-mo..."

Man, now I really want to watch it. Time to go dig through the VHS pile...

Wow, that was fast!

Guess what came in the mail today....


My Coraline prize pack! I got:

* a t-shirt
* the Coraline movie tie-in video game for Wii (which I'll be playing this weekend, AFTER I finish all my grading)
* a pack of the 26 alphabet cards
* a set of 4 buttons (the kind you wear, not the kind you sew on your eyes)
* a copy of the Coraline: The Movie Collector's Edition (my 3rd version of the book)
* a bookmark featuring Coraline and the Other Mother
* a pen featuring the ghost girls
and my personal favorite...


* a key! No, seriously, after I started reading about these keys being found in big cities like Chicago, NYC, and San Fransisco, I became obsessed with finding one myself. Unfortunately, they never showed up in Atlanta. I know. I checked. A lot. And now I have my own!

Thanks to Back Seat Producers for this amazing giveaway!

Best. Ornament. EVER!

I have this tradition with some of my friends from the MAT program I completed this summer. There are six of us who managed to get teaching jobs near Milledgeville, where we went to grad school, and every week we get together for dinner and tales of teaching (the good, the bad, and the ugly). A few weeks ago, we decided to do a Secret Santa gift exchange, rather than having everyone worrying about getting a gift for everyone else in the group. I unhelpfully listed "books" as my desired gift, because I'm a voracious reader and really not that picky. Lo and behold, my friend Annie pulled my name out of the hat (literally!) and pretty much picked out the perfect gift:


The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (which I've been wanting to read anyway) as a GRAPHIC NOVEL. It's too awesome, and I'm insanely pleased by it.

"But wait," you say. "What's that small green folded thing in the bottom right-hand corner?"

That, my blog-pals, is the second-awesomest thing I got tonight. See, every week, we pick a different restaurant. This week, someone suggested Chinese. Not my favorite, but lord knows I talk them into eating Mexican enough, so whatever. I actually really enjoyed my Spicy Bean Curd, and I have enough leftovers for the next 2-3 days. We were leaving to pay, and I noticed that there was a Christmas tree near the cash register decorated with origami ornaments. On closer inspection, I realized quite a few of them were Yoda! I asked the guy at the register if I could buy one, and he told me to take one off the tree gratis, provided I come back to eat again. How great is that?

A closer look:



And just cause that guy was so nice: if you're ever in Milledgeville, Georgia, and looking for a place to eat, I highly recommend Lieu's Peking Restaurant. Maybe next time I'll talk him into teaching me how to make one of these myself.

Poor repressed Edward

My BFF sent me this link, and it's too good not to share. Ever wonder what Edward was doing while Emmet, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice, Carlise, and Esme were - ahem - "busy"? Here's your answer:

NO ONE UNDERSTANDS MEEE HE WOULD SEETHE AS HE PRESSED HIS WILDFLOWERS

AND, there's a sequel, wherein Edward watches porn for the first time:

I DO NOT BELIEVE A LADY COP WOULD DRESS IN SUCH A MANNER

Quidditch World Cup

Turns out, there's a group of college students who actually get together to play Quidditch. Just...wow. I wonder if this would catch on at the high school?

More "Thriller"!

Wouldn't you know, after I posted last night's ode to the greatest Halloween song ever, this showed up in my Google Reader:

(via I Am Bored by way of mental_floss)

And here's a "Thriller" wedding dance, courtesy of Fyrefly:


Maybe next year I should do a "Thriller" Halloween countdown or something...
FYI: More book-related posts coming soon. I just started Paper Towns a few days ago and am getting through it pretty quickly. Because it's so awesome!

Thriller

I love Halloween. One of the best parts? All the "Thriller" covers and remakes that start popping up this time of year.

Exhibit A: This guy recorded 64 different voice tracks to create a completely A Capella version. It's amazing, to say the least.
François Macré - Thriller (reprise A'cappella 64 pistes)

(via Neatorama)

Exhibit B: A group of French students filmed this lip dub at their community college. What is it with the French and "Thriller"?

Lip Dub IUT SRC Rouen 2008
by arcanes-prod

(via Videogum)

Exhibit C: Well, I couldn't find the EXACT video I wanted for this one. See, at last week's football game, the opposing team's marching band played "Thriller" during their halftime performance, which was awesome enough.* But then, the entire band put down their instruments and did the zombie dance! Ashley and I were in heaven, and I actually stood up and cheered when they finished. Probably a no-no, given that they were, you know, the opposing team, but it was so incredible I couldn't resist. I couldn't find a video of that exact performance, but this one is pretty similar.


* Full disclosure: when we first saw the color guard, they were wearing black velvet cloaks with the hoods pulled up. I turned to Ashley and said (way too excitedly), "Do you think they're doing a Harry Potter-themed show?" To which she replied, "I was thinking Twilight." We are dorks. Dorks who enjoy marching band performances much more than football games.

Camp Jane and other bookish awesomeness

Jane in June is a camp that teaches middle school girls about what life was like in the 1800s:

Lauren Dalme walked about the Kent Plantation House.
She peeked in at farm tools of the 19th century and a blacksmith stable.
The 11-year-old Pineville girl was whisked back to the age when a family lived at Kent House and of the era of Jane Austen.
But she hadn't completely gone back in time.
Lauren quickly snapped photos with her camera phone as she and the other 18 "Jane in June" campers toured the Alexandria plantation home Tuesday.
"I know they didn't have these, but they didn't have a lot of things like air conditioning and toilets," she said. "I couldn't imagine."

They also learn how to sew, garden, play various card games, keep a daily journal, and have daily tea parties! I'm going to mention this at our next Girl Scout leader meeting, because I think the girls would get a kick out of it. Found via Austen Blog.

This book is so going on my wishlist. Geek pride! Discovered through BoingBoing (they also have a link to an interview with the author).

The Times Online had critics chose their most loathed books. What would make your list? Mine would probably include Wuthering Heights, Pamela, and Heart of Darkness; I'm sure there are several more I'm forgetting. Found via bookshelves of doom.

This is why I'll be linking books on this blog to BookCrossing, BookMooch, Library Thing, Powell's Books, or my own review from now on.

There's a new book coming out claiming that Michelangelo hid secret Jewish codes in the Sistine Chapel. Anyone else having DaVinci Code flashbacks?

Amanda Grange is currently working on Henry Tilney's Diary (JOY!) and is blogging about the process (DOUBLE JOY!). Another one from Austen Blog.

Are you ready to celebrate?

I don't know what's more awesome: the fact that the Phoenix rover found water ice on Mars, or that it has its own Twitter page to keep those of us stuck on Earth up-to-date.

Of course, naming a trench "Dodo-Goldilocks" is pretty cool, too.

The most awesome thing I saw on TV last week

Actually, it was probably closer to two weeks ago, but whatever. There's this reality/dating show on MTV called "Room Raiders," and it has the silliest premise for choosing a date ever: three girls are kidnapped, and forced to watch as a random guy searches their rooms and picks one to go on a date with based on what he finds. I was flipping channels and happened on a "special" episode, in which the girls were kidnapped by the female rock group The Donnas. That in and of itself was awesome, because I couldn't believe The Donnas would do something like that. But they did. The second awesome thing about this particular episode was that it took place at UGA, which is about an hour from my house. It's also where Chris goes to Law School and where I spend roughly half of my weekends. I missed the first half of the episode, but I tuned in just in time to hear the guy talking about the fact that he was a virgin, but that he wouldn't mind giving it up on the silk sheets he found in bedroom #2. Klassy! He also found a butcher knife (she claimed it was for protection) in the nightstand. Ooookay. Bedroom #3 was the most interesting, I think. The chick had a compost bin by her bed (?!) because she was, in her own words, "a hippie." The guy opened it up and took a bite out of a half-eaten apple that was inside. Gross. Then he went over to the computer desk and found a pack of cigars. Because I know SOOOO many hippies that smoke cigars. Cloves, maybe; weed, definitely. Cigars? Not so much. But anyway...

So at the end of the episode, the girls go into the guy's room to snoop. He "catches" them, and eliminates them one by one. The first one to go was #3, the "hippie," because of the compost bin thing. Which, granted, was pretty weird. I mean, if you're gonna do that, at least keep it in the kitchen, you know? But the best part was that hippie chick went psycho! She started swearing and stomped out of the room. On her way out, she grabbed an Uga bobble-head doll off the dresser, broke it, and threw it on the floor! The other chicks were like, WTF?! It was awesome. Then the guy eliminated bedroom #1. She was just like, "Ok, whatever," and left. Boring. So he ended up going on a date with girl #2, with the satin sheets and butcher knife by the bed. During the credits, they were doing wrap-up interviews. Psycho tried to explain her craziness, #1 just kinda blew the guy off, and the "winner" said: "I don't like taking things from people, so I don't think I'm going to take his virginity." I almost fell off the bed when she said that, I was laughing so hard.

Then this past weekend, when I was visiting Chris at UGA, I mentioned the show to him. Turns out, the guy works at a gas station just down the street from Chris's apartment, and girls are constantly coming in and asking about him. Hee.