NYC and Other Past Events 2013-2014

Hey Y'all,
There has been a good chunk of my blog that has been dormant. It's due to a sports injury. I was diagnosed as having a herniated disc located in my spine. Because it is in the neck area it has created discomfort throughout my right arm (BLAH!!! Right?).
Doctor's orders are to limit my physical activities, undergo physical therapy and acupuncture to see if we can fix this situation I have.
I did however attend a few outings and events but because I wasn't fully able to participate I didn't post any of them.
Here's a short recap:

My Yearly New Year's Eve Run. My injury wasn't severe yet. I did have a great time in cold NY weather. I never get tired of Central Park's fireworks, it's a celebration for every runner.

Start the New Year Polar Bear Swim. I dressed up this year but arrived a bit tardy for the party, I was in the second to last wave in the frigid waters. It's always a great time and so soothing to my body muscles after my run hours prior. The cold water helps to bring down the swelling.

GOT premiere. Need I say more? I miss hating Joffrey ( Jack Gleeson you are an amazing actor)

Gaga closes Roseland Ballroom. I grew up in the neighborhood and have walked past this place for years. My first concert at Roseland was Stone Temple Pilots. This 1919 NYC venue used to be a segregated dance hall (Can you believe it?). It was so sad walking in and out of this place that final night but seeing Lady G there was a crazy experience. Even though I'm not one for selfies in bathrooms, that's exactly what I did in there! XOXO Rose!!

Holi Hai! is a celebration of equality and to welcome Spring. Participants wear white to bring out the color powders in this festival. It was my first time participating and the day was amazing. Everyone was so nice and pleasant to be around (no rowdy people). They had music, performances, food and most of all unity with everyone. People threw colorful powders all over each other's faces and clothing. Dancing together and creating an amazing energy between us is something I have never experienced before. This is a must next year!

Fox Upfronts 2014

Hey Y'all,
This year's Fox fall lineup will have a diverse selection for everyone to chose from.
New show's include "Empire" starring Taraji P. Henson, Terence Howard and Malik Yoba to name a few. The show's premise is based on an individual who takes his company public in the hip hop industry. This should be a nice change from the latest hip hop reality shows that are out now.
Red Band Society is an episodic based on teenagers living in a hospital, I wonder how this one will do?
"Gotham" is about Commissioner James Gordon's life in Gotham City; pre-Batman era.
Some of our favorites returning to TV are Brooklyn 99,The Mindy Project and New Girl (Did you notice how the comedy shows don't stop? I think it's something we really need nowadays).
As you can see Fox has quite a selection for viewers to get into.

The Walking Dead Tokyo Prank

Hey Y'all,
I am a huge "Walking Dead" fan so I was dying on the floor when Nick Santonastasso pranked Norman Reedus. Just who is Nick Santonastasso? He's a 17-year old who was born with a rare syndrome called Hanhart and has only one arm and no legs.  His determination and infectious zest for life have enabled him to overcome countless obstacles and he has now become an inspiration for many kids and adults. Because of his outspoken love for “The Walking Dead,” Nick was the perfect fan to launch the “#getFOXed” campaign.

“The Walking Dead” fan and Vine “Zombie Prankster” Nick Santonastasso, who has more than 534,000 followers, was flown to Tokyo, Japan where he was transformed into a walker by the show’s Special Effects guru, Greg Nicotero. Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes), Nick’s co-conspirator, manned the control room giving the final go ahead, while hidden cameras captured every angle of Nick’s big scare on Norman Reedus (Daryl). Nick’s prank was a follow up to his existing 2-part viral “Zombie Prank” Vine series:

https://vine.co/v/hUtKn1i3FEW

https://vine.co/v/hQWjqnpwA7Z

Don’t miss the global return of “The Walking Dead” across FOX channels outside of the USA on February 10^th. Check local listings for exact times. 

Follow at:

GetFOX’d: #getFOXed

Youtube User: pranxtrr

Nick Santonastasso Twitter: @nicksanto534

Nick Santonastasso Vine: @nicksanto534

Norman Reedus Twitter: @wwwbigbaldhead  

                     

                                                      Photo & Video Copyright: © FOX International Channels. 2014

                                                                                            Credited MPRM Communications. 

SPOTLIGHT on BROADWAY

     

 Spotlight on Broadway launches new website—Spotlightonbroadway.com—featuring videos about broadway’s 40 theaters and interviews
with 100 storytellers who made their mark on the great white way

Videos Celebrate the Unique Legacy of Broadway with Interviews Including Alan Cumming, Tony Kushner, Nathan Lane, Angela Lansbury, Chita Rivera and More

Permanent In-ground Map Featuring All 40 Theaters to be Installed in Times Square

Spotlight on Broadway—an interactive website and multi-media project featuring the history of Broadway—has officially launched with 40 videos that chart the evolution of Broadway’s 40 official theaters and honor the thousands of men and women who have worked on Broadway. Developed by the City of New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, in partnership with The Broadway League, each video was filmed inside one of the Broadway theaters and features insightful interviews with some of Broadway’s most legendary performers and creative professionals.

“New York City’s Broadway theater district is unlike anywhere else in the world, and Spotlight on Broadway brings its unique history together in a fun, new way,” said Commissioner Katherine Oliver, Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. “Broadway is an important part of our City, contributing $11 billion to the local economy and attracting visitors from around the world. Spotlight on Broadway is a veritable who’s who of Broadway legends, and we’re grateful to everyone who took the time to share their experiences. Spotlight also pays tribute to those individuals whose names may never have appeared on a marquee, but whose contributions to Broadway are just as significant.”

“Spotlight on Broadway is a way to preserve the history of Broadway in a modern way that will surely engage all audiences,” said Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League. “The interactive media component is a treat for all who love the magic that happens inside a Broadway theatre, and the map installation will lead the way. This worthwhile and impressive project reflects the iconic collaboration between Broadway and New York City: past, present, and future.”

“Broadway is the most influential of all live entertainment mediums in our national culture, and Spotlight on Broadway is another way to delight the millions of fans who will be entering the doors of our theatres,” said Nick Scandalios, Chairman of The Broadway League, Executive Vice President of the Nederlander Organization and Chairman of the Spotlight on Broadway advisory board. “The photo galleries showcasing architectural details and the insights into careers in the theater are just some of the unique features on the website of this tremendous and exciting project. The in-ground map installation in Duffy Square will honor New York City and our 40 Broadway theaters, while helpfully showing the way.”

Over 100 storytellers share their experiences of Broadway—from renovating and designing the theaters, to constructing sets and choreographing legendary numbers or unlocking the key to a successful performance. Performers featured in Spotlight include: Matthew Broderick, Zoe Caldwell, Kristin Chenoweth, Glenn Close, Alan Cumming, Arlene Dahl, Harvey Fierstein, Sutton Foster, Victor Garber, Whoopi Goldberg, Angela Lansbury, Nathan Lane, Laura Linney, Joel Grey, David Hyde Pierce, Jeremy Irons, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Cynthia Nixon, Mary-Louise Parker, Adam Pascal, Chita Rivera, Tommy Tune and Ben Vereen, among others. Many of the interviews take place on stage or in the seats of the theater they’re discussing.

Playwrights, composers, directors and choreographers, including Tom Kitt, Tony Kushner, Kathleen Marshall, Alan Menken, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Diane Paulus, Bartlett Sher, Charles Strouse, Julie Taymor and George C. Wolfe, are also interviewed, along with creative professionals like scenic designer Eugene Lee, lighting designer Natasha Katz, costume designer William Ivey Long and many others. The videos are narrated by Eric Bogosian, David Hyde Pierce, Audra McDonald and Brian Stokes Mitchell.

Another feature of the website is ‘Spotlight on Professions,’ which takes a look at the different careers in theater through interviews and conversations with various union and guild members who offer insights into jobs like composer, stage manager and sound mixer. SpotlightonBroadway.com also includes photo galleries showcasing architectural details of the individual theaters that most theatergoers never get to see, like the view of the audience from the actor’s point of view on stage. A mobile version of the site is also available designed to help people discover the history of the theater district during their visits to the area. Half hour editions of Spotlight on Broadway, introduced by actor Victor Garber, are scheduled to air on NYC life (Channel 25), the official network of the City of New York, later this month, beginning Sunday, October 27 at 9pm. NYC life is available in the New York tri-state area on broadcast, cable and satellite channels.

Later this year, an in-ground map made out of steel and granite will be installed in Duffy Square, the triangle bound by Broadway and 7^th Ave between W. 46^th and W. 47^th Streets in Times Square. The large-scale map provides a fun way for visitors to visualize the density of the world’s largest theater district while standing in the center of Times Square. Approximately 63 percent of Broadway audiences are tourists; in 2012, New York City welcomed 52 million visitors.

Spotlight on Broadway originally grew out of an idea from actress Arlene Dahl who wanted to commemorate the achievements of those who spent their careers on Broadway. Dahl was honored with a Spotlight on Broadway Award last fall and appears in the video about the Palace Theatre: “My dream was always to play the Palace. Like the song goes, unless you played the Palace you were nowhere. I thought this is where I was meant to be.”



Spotlight on Broadway is a project of the City of New York Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment with support from The Broadway League. Additional support has been provided by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Sony Masterworks Broadway, Jujamcyn Theaters, Nederlander Organization, Shubert Organization, the American Theater Wing, Company 3, Deluxe, Museum of the City of New York, New York Public Library, New 42nd Street Studios, Panavision, Playbill, Post Factory, Sardi’s, the Shubert Archive, the Theater Subdistrict Council, and labor unions and guilds.

The Spotlight on Broadway videos were produced, directed and written by Bobbie Birleffi, Beverly Kopf and TVGals Media in association with Ileen Gallagher, ISG Productions and Next Millennium Productions. The website was designed and built by Local Projects; the on-site installation was designed by Doyle Partners and Local Projects in partnership with Snøhetta.

    Article courtesy of the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!!!

Hey Y'all,
I attended the Tomato Battle at Brooklyn's Floyd Bennett Field. New York City has copied the yearly tradition called La Tomatina from Bunol, Spain where people gather and have a tomato fight.
Organizers of La Tomatina gather spoiled rotten tomatoes and crush them. They bring them in on a dump truck where they pour them out on the town making distribution easy. Participants come from all over the world to get drenched in tomato sauce and have a huge food fight.
Brooklyn's event was good but it wasn't great. They piled the (whole) tomatoes in the middle of the field and had both sides of the field filled with hungry eager individuals. Once the battle began people went crazy so much so that they knocked down a fence and had people falling over each other. As you can imagine people were pitching those whole tomatoes like baseballs. I got caught three times between my face, rib and leg; it was like getting pelted by paint balls (only bigger). Both me and my combat buddy picked up the tomatoes and crushed them with our hands before tossing them at people (the proper thing to do). Thank goodness no one got hurt. Now, one thing people have to remember is that this event uses spoiled rotten tomatoes which after the event becomes compost (I don't think people would intentionally waste food).
After fifteen minutes the fruit started to melt and and become more of a soupy paste; making it a lot more bearable. People were scooping up the sauce to pour onto others, we stomped the juice on the ground to spray others. It was a good experience, I only hope they make the necessary changes for next year.

http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/185854/tomato-battle-takes-flight-at-floyd-bennett-field