The Polk Theater is a treasure built in 1928 with a sparkling panorama of stars on the ceiling and organ concerts before every screening.
The big surprise in the audience at my screening was the high percentage of Arab Americans. They said if they had known of the event earlier the cavernous space would have been filled to the tiers with members of their community. My sister attended and she was struck by the sense of gratitude emminating from this audience. I think she begins to understand how difficult it must be to be a live as part of such a misunderstood ethnic heritage.
We stayed in the Terrace Hotel, built in 1924 on the beautiful Lake Mirror. The appointments, rooms, staff and restaurant were all excellent.
The city is chock full of exotic water birds. One traffic light had a swan nesting next to it. I spotted a member of a fussy variety of the cormorant that dries its wings after swimming. At first I thought it was some bizarre decoy of a bird about to take flight. It is an Anhinga or snake bird.
Showing posts with label Jean Marie Offenbacher. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jean Marie Offenbacher. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
A night in Columbus
On the morning of my Columbus screening I awoke early to do an interview with Seth Mela of WLKF in Lakeland, FL - the next stop on my tour. As I was on hold with the station waiting to be introduced, I heard a reference to Sean Hannity and realized that I was probably on an extremist program - the sort that does not let facts get in the way of their political message and have no respect for the place that truth in journalism plays in our democracy. Seth was friendly enough at first, but did not allow me to answer his question about my use of the term "axis of evil" in the film's title. Instead of allowing me to respond, ("'tea' represents the sharing of ideas in a genial atmosphere, while 'axis of evil' is a close-minded and demeaning term, which represents a refusal to engage in diplomacy and motivated me to take patriotic action and seek truth in Syria myself") Seth Mela bloviated a lie about having seen footage of Bashar Assad saying that Israel should be pushed into the sea. Meanwhile the station turned off my microphone so no one in the audience could hear me explain my refutation of his ridiculous claim and my questions about what language was Assad supposedly speaking in in the fictitious video.
It was an interesting experience to be inside of one of those lie machines that do such great disservice to our country by propagating divisive lies. Seth Mela and his ilk would love us the be the D.S.A. (Divided States of America). The Polk Theater staffer who had arranged the interview apologized and explained that the interviewer has a nasty habit of turning microphones off and yelling.
After the delightful interview, I partook of the Gates House signature french toast and fresh fruit breakfast and took a walk along the riverbank. There is a beautiful old railway bridge that links Columbus GA to Phoenix City AL, which was known as sin city in the past. Up the river is a dam that is scheduled for removal so the river can be converted to a recreational area in the next year.
Before my screening I stopped at Country's BBQ for a a fried pickle and goober pie. As usual, I was served a straw with my water. If people really cared about the environment and reducing oil dependency straws, balloons and chewing gum would be outlawed.
At the River Center for the Performing Arts, Darlene Kitrell delivered a wonderfully thoughtful introduction to the film. I wish she could come to every screening...she made me want to see TEA again and reminded me why I made it.
There were some officers from Fort Benning in the audience and I had a discussion with one of them during the Q&A about the military's altered mission in Iraq and the potential for TEA to be used as a training tool. After the screening I sold 5 copies of TEA to two of the officers. They thought the film and my lecture could be particularly useful in intelligence and leadership curriculum on certain bases. I was so happy at the thought of contributing to a deeper, happier understanding of Arab culture in the armed forces, that I forgot to write down all of their nice leads.
It was an interesting experience to be inside of one of those lie machines that do such great disservice to our country by propagating divisive lies. Seth Mela and his ilk would love us the be the D.S.A. (Divided States of America). The Polk Theater staffer who had arranged the interview apologized and explained that the interviewer has a nasty habit of turning microphones off and yelling.
After the delightful interview, I partook of the Gates House signature french toast and fresh fruit breakfast and took a walk along the riverbank. There is a beautiful old railway bridge that links Columbus GA to Phoenix City AL, which was known as sin city in the past. Up the river is a dam that is scheduled for removal so the river can be converted to a recreational area in the next year.
Before my screening I stopped at Country's BBQ for a a fried pickle and goober pie. As usual, I was served a straw with my water. If people really cared about the environment and reducing oil dependency straws, balloons and chewing gum would be outlawed.
At the River Center for the Performing Arts, Darlene Kitrell delivered a wonderfully thoughtful introduction to the film. I wish she could come to every screening...she made me want to see TEA again and reminded me why I made it.
There were some officers from Fort Benning in the audience and I had a discussion with one of them during the Q&A about the military's altered mission in Iraq and the potential for TEA to be used as a training tool. After the screening I sold 5 copies of TEA to two of the officers. They thought the film and my lecture could be particularly useful in intelligence and leadership curriculum on certain bases. I was so happy at the thought of contributing to a deeper, happier understanding of Arab culture in the armed forces, that I forgot to write down all of their nice leads.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Madison to Columbus
Last night the screening of TEA in Madison drew an international and well traveled audience. Many had been to the middle east at some point in their lives. One woman had vacationed in Syria in 1961. The women who run the Madison Morgan Cultural Centre are all richly drawn Southern characters.
I invited several black students to attend, but they did not show up. Apparently the center has made an enormous effort to develop an integrated audience, but cannot attract a wide demographic.
I was thrilled to see Hank, the town oracle, approaching the theater. He is man with many good tales and he knows how to tell them. It was an honor that he made the big effort and attended my film.
Bill, a Mark Twain look-alike, brought me a box of handmade chocolates...the first gift I have received from an audience member. The chocolates were very tasty so I ate them all. Pralines and truffles should always be taken while fresh.
I left for dinner while the film played. The projector was composite so the picture was very compressed and weird - staggered motion and the metallic skin tones. As I returned to the performance hall, a young woman was leaving. She explained that she liked the film but that it was giving her motion sickness.
Later, at the reception a man was told me that the film a good man on the street piece but neglected politics, so I pointed out that the film subtly addresses many political issues, but is politically overt in a couple of scenes. As I recounted the obvious scenes, he turned to his wife and asked if she remembered one of them. She replied, "I must have missed that part when I was sleeping." (As they have two sons, she is only getting 3 to 4 hours of sleep each night.)
The post screening reception was delightful, but I never made it into the reception room as I spun from one conversation to the next in the doorway. A journalist asked me to come in for a photograph several times, but finally gave up and shot me in the doorway. She is writing an article about the film this week. A young Brit who has an investigative journalist program on local television bought a copy of the film.
On my way back to the excellent Brady Inn, I heard a strange rustling-clicking noise at my feet. It was herds of enormous Palmetto insects scurrying out of the way of my footsteps on the sidewalk.
I passed by Dog Eared Books on my way out of town for one last moment in its magic walls. It occupies an entire house. John moved into this space recently with the help of several hundred town residents, who formed a bucket line and passed books from the old to new store for 3 hours. Wish I had been there to make a short film of that long line.
I got off to my long drive a bit late after spending the morning and lunch time exploring Madison with Bill (Mark Twain). We visited the cemetery that was all dressed in little confederate flags and flowers. A Baptist funeral was underway. Instead of discussing the life of the deceased, this sect uses the occasion of the funeral to put the fear of death into their flock.
The ride to Columbus was all rolling dairy and horse farms and small towns with big Confederate monuments. Outside of Madison there is an art gallery set amid cattle ranches - Steffan Thomas Museum.
Georgia is a wet state. I have probably driven over 65 creeks, rivers and past 107 ponds - many of them have trees growing out of the water.
As I was settling in to my home in Columbus GA, Gates house, I met the woman in the room next door and we decided to go out to dinner. She is originally from China, but studied in Tokyo for 7 years and moved to the U.S. ten years ago. We went to a Korean BBQ. When the owner/cook realized that she had forgotten to prepare our second course, she pulled out her guitar, sat next to our table and performed a traditional Korean song in which an abused woman curses her ex-husband. She looked happy and serene during the performance as her husband, a veteran of 30 years service in the army, busily tidied the empty restaurant.
Jing had a hard time parallel parking when we returned home to our very lovely B&B, so I took over. I am unaccustomed to the driving mechanisms in a Prius, so she was switching the gears for me as I maneuvered the car into the space. I forgot to photograph the beautifully parked vehicle.
We decided to go back out and bar hop with TEA posters. A young man who deploys to Afghanistan on Friday will come and invite his friends who are scheduled to deploy to Iraq. He seems like a gentle and thoughtful fellow, so It is heartbreaking to know that he will soon be placed in harm's way. His friend, a young woman who lived in Greenpoint Brooklyn until 4 years ago, gave me pointers on accessing Fort Benning.
The Riverbank Performance Center agreed to grant free admission to members of the armed forces.
The Riverbank Center is new and extensive. They have a fancy digital marquee. Jing and I sat in the middle of the street waiting for TEA ON THE AXIS OF EVIL to pop up in large red lights...big fun in Columbus.
When I returned to the Gates House, I opened my email and found that I am supposed to do a radio show in Florida tomorrow morning - via telephone.
I invited several black students to attend, but they did not show up. Apparently the center has made an enormous effort to develop an integrated audience, but cannot attract a wide demographic.
I was thrilled to see Hank, the town oracle, approaching the theater. He is man with many good tales and he knows how to tell them. It was an honor that he made the big effort and attended my film.
Bill, a Mark Twain look-alike, brought me a box of handmade chocolates...the first gift I have received from an audience member. The chocolates were very tasty so I ate them all. Pralines and truffles should always be taken while fresh.
I left for dinner while the film played. The projector was composite so the picture was very compressed and weird - staggered motion and the metallic skin tones. As I returned to the performance hall, a young woman was leaving. She explained that she liked the film but that it was giving her motion sickness.
Later, at the reception a man was told me that the film a good man on the street piece but neglected politics, so I pointed out that the film subtly addresses many political issues, but is politically overt in a couple of scenes. As I recounted the obvious scenes, he turned to his wife and asked if she remembered one of them. She replied, "I must have missed that part when I was sleeping." (As they have two sons, she is only getting 3 to 4 hours of sleep each night.)
The post screening reception was delightful, but I never made it into the reception room as I spun from one conversation to the next in the doorway. A journalist asked me to come in for a photograph several times, but finally gave up and shot me in the doorway. She is writing an article about the film this week. A young Brit who has an investigative journalist program on local television bought a copy of the film.
On my way back to the excellent Brady Inn, I heard a strange rustling-clicking noise at my feet. It was herds of enormous Palmetto insects scurrying out of the way of my footsteps on the sidewalk.
I passed by Dog Eared Books on my way out of town for one last moment in its magic walls. It occupies an entire house. John moved into this space recently with the help of several hundred town residents, who formed a bucket line and passed books from the old to new store for 3 hours. Wish I had been there to make a short film of that long line.
I got off to my long drive a bit late after spending the morning and lunch time exploring Madison with Bill (Mark Twain). We visited the cemetery that was all dressed in little confederate flags and flowers. A Baptist funeral was underway. Instead of discussing the life of the deceased, this sect uses the occasion of the funeral to put the fear of death into their flock.
The ride to Columbus was all rolling dairy and horse farms and small towns with big Confederate monuments. Outside of Madison there is an art gallery set amid cattle ranches - Steffan Thomas Museum.
Georgia is a wet state. I have probably driven over 65 creeks, rivers and past 107 ponds - many of them have trees growing out of the water.
As I was settling in to my home in Columbus GA, Gates house, I met the woman in the room next door and we decided to go out to dinner. She is originally from China, but studied in Tokyo for 7 years and moved to the U.S. ten years ago. We went to a Korean BBQ. When the owner/cook realized that she had forgotten to prepare our second course, she pulled out her guitar, sat next to our table and performed a traditional Korean song in which an abused woman curses her ex-husband. She looked happy and serene during the performance as her husband, a veteran of 30 years service in the army, busily tidied the empty restaurant.
Jing had a hard time parallel parking when we returned home to our very lovely B&B, so I took over. I am unaccustomed to the driving mechanisms in a Prius, so she was switching the gears for me as I maneuvered the car into the space. I forgot to photograph the beautifully parked vehicle.
We decided to go back out and bar hop with TEA posters. A young man who deploys to Afghanistan on Friday will come and invite his friends who are scheduled to deploy to Iraq. He seems like a gentle and thoughtful fellow, so It is heartbreaking to know that he will soon be placed in harm's way. His friend, a young woman who lived in Greenpoint Brooklyn until 4 years ago, gave me pointers on accessing Fort Benning.
The Riverbank Performance Center agreed to grant free admission to members of the armed forces.
The Riverbank Center is new and extensive. They have a fancy digital marquee. Jing and I sat in the middle of the street waiting for TEA ON THE AXIS OF EVIL to pop up in large red lights...big fun in Columbus.
When I returned to the Gates House, I opened my email and found that I am supposed to do a radio show in Florida tomorrow morning - via telephone.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
PASTORAL HYDRANTS
Four people from Fitzgerald showed up for my film: the director of the theatre, one of the proprietors of my B&B, a lady I accosted at breakfast and her friend. Despite the modest turnout, I mustered the energy for a Q&A of about 20 minutes.
The screening was in the afternoon. Afterward I drove around and took photos of the depressing town and its environs. In the poorest section of town, I encountered a man on a horse. He was riding western style and offered to let me ride, but as I was wearing a dress and he was a stranger in a strange town, I deferred. I suspect the horse was retired from a trotter farm. Any horse from a racing background is lucky to be retired to any life.
I stopped for a snack at a small diner Jon had recommended. Catfish was on the menu, so after ascertaining that it was local (Mississippi), I ordered a sandwich. It arrived looking like a cartoon meal. The head and tail were still on the fish, which had been dipped whole into a deep fat fryer then placed with the head and tail sticking out from either side of a seeded hamburger bun.
Last night I went to sleep to the chorus of the insect and amphibian ensemble and woke up pre-dawn to a dramatic concert of thunder and lightening - very lovely, especially on the tin roof.
On the drive to Madison I took photos of curious and atmospheric moments. I passed through one town that had hydrants every couple of hundred feet. As it was a very rural town, most of the hydrants were in fields of grass.
That town reminded me of a trip my friend, Theo and I took to Nara, Japan. We were in a rural area, all rice paddies, narrow dirt tracks and vending machines. There was no obvious means by which the auto-serve boxes were powered. On the bus out of Nara we met a fellow, who had recently returned from his first trip to the U.S. He was amazed that we live with so few vending machines.
As Madison drew nearer, my mood lifted, the sun was brighter, and soon I beheld cafes.
After checking into the lovely Brady Inn B&B, I went out to stroll and offer posters and postcards of TEA to unsuspecting local denizens, but instead spent most of the day in an antique center, where I bought an old brass easel that hopefully will be allowed on the planes. I set up the easel all over town and took pictures of it.
I have my eye on an alligator claw bag complete with long nails.
At dinner an elderly gentleman invited me to join his wife and their 2 friends and a son for dinner. I was just finishing my meal, but it was a friendly gesture worthy of Syria and the gracious south. Madison is the Gracious South. Hope to have a southern accent by tomorrow evening and a crowd to drawl to.
The screening was in the afternoon. Afterward I drove around and took photos of the depressing town and its environs. In the poorest section of town, I encountered a man on a horse. He was riding western style and offered to let me ride, but as I was wearing a dress and he was a stranger in a strange town, I deferred. I suspect the horse was retired from a trotter farm. Any horse from a racing background is lucky to be retired to any life.
I stopped for a snack at a small diner Jon had recommended. Catfish was on the menu, so after ascertaining that it was local (Mississippi), I ordered a sandwich. It arrived looking like a cartoon meal. The head and tail were still on the fish, which had been dipped whole into a deep fat fryer then placed with the head and tail sticking out from either side of a seeded hamburger bun.
Last night I went to sleep to the chorus of the insect and amphibian ensemble and woke up pre-dawn to a dramatic concert of thunder and lightening - very lovely, especially on the tin roof.
On the drive to Madison I took photos of curious and atmospheric moments. I passed through one town that had hydrants every couple of hundred feet. As it was a very rural town, most of the hydrants were in fields of grass.
That town reminded me of a trip my friend, Theo and I took to Nara, Japan. We were in a rural area, all rice paddies, narrow dirt tracks and vending machines. There was no obvious means by which the auto-serve boxes were powered. On the bus out of Nara we met a fellow, who had recently returned from his first trip to the U.S. He was amazed that we live with so few vending machines.
As Madison drew nearer, my mood lifted, the sun was brighter, and soon I beheld cafes.
After checking into the lovely Brady Inn B&B, I went out to stroll and offer posters and postcards of TEA to unsuspecting local denizens, but instead spent most of the day in an antique center, where I bought an old brass easel that hopefully will be allowed on the planes. I set up the easel all over town and took pictures of it.
I have my eye on an alligator claw bag complete with long nails.
At dinner an elderly gentleman invited me to join his wife and their 2 friends and a son for dinner. I was just finishing my meal, but it was a friendly gesture worthy of Syria and the gracious south. Madison is the Gracious South. Hope to have a southern accent by tomorrow evening and a crowd to drawl to.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Internet Under the Trellis
Last night was lovely, falling asleep to the sound of the mating calls of a myriad of small night creatures and the whistle and clatter of freight trains every 20 minutes. The sound of a train is wonderfully soothing. I wish the subway could sound more like a train.
This morning was raining, so the sky is a wash of grey, blue and white that makes for crisp photography...less good for biking.
My photographs are sharper than my mind for now. I have been unable to locate a cup of hot tea. At Tom's Country Buffet, they had large glasses of iced tea, but as tea goes stale so quickly, they do not even stock tea for the annual or biannual customer request for that beverage. The buffet was a marvel from my favorite end - collards, brussels, lima beans, black-eyed peas, squash casserole, biscuits, cornbread, to the center - fried meats, to the end - desserts including jellos, fruit salad and peach cobbler. I recommend Tom's as a destination restaurant for its ambiance perfectly reflects life in the town of Fitzgerald.
The town is home to many wild chickens. In the 1960s the Georgian government decided the state needed a new game bird, so they introduced the Burmese chicken to excite local sport hunters. The flightless birds found the rest of the state inhospitable, but they flourished in the vicinity of Fitgerald. The many cocks are now the visual and aural pride of the town.
I am currently back at my post under the trellis, across from the Grand Theatre. If this were the west a tumbleweed would roll through about now.
This morning was raining, so the sky is a wash of grey, blue and white that makes for crisp photography...less good for biking.
My photographs are sharper than my mind for now. I have been unable to locate a cup of hot tea. At Tom's Country Buffet, they had large glasses of iced tea, but as tea goes stale so quickly, they do not even stock tea for the annual or biannual customer request for that beverage. The buffet was a marvel from my favorite end - collards, brussels, lima beans, black-eyed peas, squash casserole, biscuits, cornbread, to the center - fried meats, to the end - desserts including jellos, fruit salad and peach cobbler. I recommend Tom's as a destination restaurant for its ambiance perfectly reflects life in the town of Fitzgerald.
The town is home to many wild chickens. In the 1960s the Georgian government decided the state needed a new game bird, so they introduced the Burmese chicken to excite local sport hunters. The flightless birds found the rest of the state inhospitable, but they flourished in the vicinity of Fitgerald. The many cocks are now the visual and aural pride of the town.
I am currently back at my post under the trellis, across from the Grand Theatre. If this were the west a tumbleweed would roll through about now.
Friday, April 23, 2010
THE ROAD TO FITZGERALD
As I pulled out of Spartanburg, I passed a Cadillac decorated in Coca Cola logos.
The main drink of the South is iced tea - real ice tea, not the nasty stuff with long shelf life that one may purchase in delis and groceries.
On the highways I spotted a giant yellow lights on black sign (Jenny Holtzer style) that spanned over the highway and read:
"Highway worker safety week April 19 to 23 drive carefully." I crossed over the Seneca river, the Tucaloo, and the Tyger river twice. Hope this all spells good luck for the screening. For entertainment I was playing the one CD I have with me, fortunately, it is Guy Lesser songs, which I can listen to over and over as the music is beautiful and the lyrics super smart. I took some breaks to hear local radio and become as one with the road. After 6 hours driving I am now in Fitzgerald, GA. The Southern accents are more pronounced. “Tea on the Axis of Evil” is listed on the marquee in the town square – under “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”. The cinema was built in 1936 and seats 600 comfortably. They are in the process of restoring an organ to replace one that was in the former theater on this spot, which burnt down in 1932. The organ they are restoring is from Illinois and was donated by a fellow who convinced his family to buy it for him from a theater was supposed to be demolished when he was 13 years old. Now he is in his 60s and a musicologist professor whose house cannot house the organ. The manager of the theater, Jon, seems to love his job, so he is a font of local information. After dinner I decided to personally invite everyone in the restaurant to attend my film. As I went from table to table my confidence flagged. Some of the residents have been taking their propaganda raw. When one of them blasted the word "terrorist" at me. He seemed to think that I was a potential suicide bomber. I felt a bit jumpy as I walked home to my empty antebellum-style b&b (the Dorminy - Massee House is antebellum to WWII but is built in the neoclassical style one associates with pre-civil war). For tonight I am alone in the house, my phone cannot find a signal, and to get internet I had to wander into the town square, where I am now sitting in the half moon and village lights in a trellised area across from the Grand Theater, which has an open internet connection. When I went home to get my computer, the place was lit up like a nativity set at Xmas. I had to pull the shades in my room to miss being pierced by the vanity light from the lawn - a pleasing effect from the outside. In the morning I will go to the public library to round up audience, then borrow Jon's bike to find vegetables and movie enthusiasts. Hope to have a crowd for the film tomorrow.
"Highway worker safety week April 19 to 23 drive carefully." I crossed over the Seneca river, the Tucaloo, and the Tyger river twice. Hope this all spells good luck for the screening. For entertainment I was playing the one CD I have with me, fortunately, it is Guy Lesser songs, which I can listen to over and over as the music is beautiful and the lyrics super smart. I took some breaks to hear local radio and become as one with the road. After 6 hours driving I am now in Fitzgerald, GA. The Southern accents are more pronounced. “Tea on the Axis of Evil” is listed on the marquee in the town square – under “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”. The cinema was built in 1936 and seats 600 comfortably. They are in the process of restoring an organ to replace one that was in the former theater on this spot, which burnt down in 1932. The organ they are restoring is from Illinois and was donated by a fellow who convinced his family to buy it for him from a theater was supposed to be demolished when he was 13 years old. Now he is in his 60s and a musicologist professor whose house cannot house the organ. The manager of the theater, Jon, seems to love his job, so he is a font of local information. After dinner I decided to personally invite everyone in the restaurant to attend my film. As I went from table to table my confidence flagged. Some of the residents have been taking their propaganda raw. When one of them blasted the word "terrorist" at me. He seemed to think that I was a potential suicide bomber. I felt a bit jumpy as I walked home to my empty antebellum-style b&b (the Dorminy - Massee House is antebellum to WWII but is built in the neoclassical style one associates with pre-civil war). For tonight I am alone in the house, my phone cannot find a signal, and to get internet I had to wander into the town square, where I am now sitting in the half moon and village lights in a trellised area across from the Grand Theater, which has an open internet connection. When I went home to get my computer, the place was lit up like a nativity set at Xmas. I had to pull the shades in my room to miss being pierced by the vanity light from the lawn - a pleasing effect from the outside. In the morning I will go to the public library to round up audience, then borrow Jon's bike to find vegetables and movie enthusiasts. Hope to have a crowd for the film tomorrow.
Spartanburg
My tour of Southern towns is off to a fine start. The trees are of green tones that makes them appear as thought they are just waking up from a black and white to color picture.
Outdoors the weather is perfect. Indoors it is on the frosty side. An inverse ratio between air-conditioning indoors and heat outside pervades hot and humid climates. Glad my tour is in the mild spring...for I would surely freeze here in July.
Outdoors the weather is perfect. Indoors it is on the frosty side. An inverse ratio between airconditioning indoors and heat outside pervades hot and humid climates. Glad my tour is in the mild spring...for I would surely freeze here in July.
Getting accustomed to having wheels. My amateur driving status was on display earlier on when I failed to notice an unfortunately placed sidewalk as I entered my first hotel of the tour, the Marriott Renaissance in Spartanburg (despite its name, the staff is only in uniform, not costume).
The Chapman Cultural Center is lovely. It opened in 2007, but has a long-established feeling. The theater that "Tea on the Axis of Evil" played in seats 500. It is a lovely, classically designed room with a balcony.
The publicity director of the Chapman Cultural Centre, Steve Wong, took me to a delicious dinner of shrimp and grits, setting the culinary bar high on my first tasty outing.
Later, he told me that my screening drew the largest and most engaged audience of the series.
There were at least 9 people in the audience who had been to Syria. Some very elegantly attired elderly couples reminded me of what people in these parts of the Gracious South should look like. Some of the questions were more personal: one linguist instructor inquired about my accent. I explained that I have an empathetic ear that knows no borders.
The Southern accents here are less pronounced. I suspect by Sunday, my accent will be infused with a sweet sound of Georgia.
It was a wonderful crowd with intelligent and fun questions, which affirmed once again that Americans are curious and do want to know about real life in the Middle East. Several people commented that they thought it was important that TEA reach a wide audience.
Hope to come back to Spartanburg to speak at local colleges, with the help of two sociology professors who attended the screening.
Had a huge Southern breakfast with a nice, storytelling couple from Maine.
I am off to see te 70' tower that some years ago was moved from near old church to mark a new center of the town of Spartanburg. Wish I had been here to see the move.
Next stop is Fitzgerald GA - a mere 6 hours by car.
It is a little sad to leave so soon. Perry, Steve and Steve were kind hosts to TEA.
Outdoors the weather is perfect. Indoors it is on the frosty side. An inverse ratio between airconditioning indoors and heat outside pervades hot and humid climates. Glad my tour is in the mild spring...for I would surely freeze here in July.
Getting accustomed to having wheels. My amateur driving status was on display earlier on when I failed to notice an unfortunately placed sidewalk as I entered my first hotel of the tour, the Marriott Renaissance in Spartanburg (despite its name, the staff is only in uniform, not costume).
The Chapman Cultural Center is lovely. It opened in 2007, but has a long-established feeling. The theater that "Tea on the Axis of Evil" played in seats 500. It is a lovely, classically designed room with a balcony.
The publicity director of the Chapman Cultural Centre, Steve Wong, took me to a delicious dinner of shrimp and grits, setting the culinary bar high on my first tasty outing.
Later, he told me that my screening drew the largest and most engaged audience of the series.
There were at least 9 people in the audience who had been to Syria. Some very elegantly attired elderly couples reminded me of what people in these parts of the Gracious South should look like. Some of the questions were more personal: one linguist instructor inquired about my accent. I explained that I have an empathetic ear that knows no borders.
The Southern accents here are less pronounced. I suspect by Sunday, my accent will be infused with a sweet sound of Georgia.
It was a wonderful crowd with intelligent and fun questions, which affirmed once again that Americans are curious and do want to know about real life in the Middle East. Several people commented that they thought it was important that TEA reach a wide audience.
Hope to come back to Spartanburg to speak at local colleges, with the help of two sociology professors who attended the screening.
Had a huge Southern breakfast with a nice, storytelling couple from Maine.
I am off to see te 70' tower that some years ago was moved from near old church to mark a new center of the town of Spartanburg. Wish I had been here to see the move.
Next stop is Fitzgerald GA - a mere 6 hours by car.
It is a little sad to leave so soon. Perry, Steve and Steve were kind hosts to TEA.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Southern Circuit Welcomes Jean Marie Offenbacher and "Tea on the Axis of Evil"
South Arts welcomes Producer/Director Jean Marie Offenbacher with her feature documentary film "Tea on the Axis of Evil." Jean Marie will be on the 2009-2010 Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers beginning Thursday, April 22, at The Arts Partnership of Greater Spartanburg in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and concluding on Friday, April 30, at the Historic Polk Theatre in Lakeland, FL. Along the way, the film will also screen at The Grand Theatre in Fitzgerald, GA; the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center in Madison, GA; and the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts in Columbus, GA.More about Jean Marie Offenbacher, "Tea on the Axis of Evial," and the tour schedule
Web site for "Tea on the Axis of Evil"
Audio interview with Jean Marie Offenbacher
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