Friday, October 31, 2008

"Anne Rice's New Book And Life"

Many periodicals pull Anne Rice out of their resource files for Halloween because of the horror/vampire genre that she is known best for, but this Halloween there is current literary news to report on her: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081030/ap_en_ot/books_anne_rice

Rice has written a book about her return to her Catholic beliefs, that many of her fans are curious about since she has moved on from writing vampire books to stories about the life of Jesus. Her first two books on this subject, "Out of Egypt" and "The Road To Cana" (the series is entitled "Christ The Lord"), are now accompanied by her latest release covering her life and return to her faith. The two "Christ The Lord" books resulted from her extensive study of Biblical and secular history during and after the re-igniting of her faith. This book seems to be about that search, as well as how she fell away from her faith in the first place. As a fellow child of the 1950s/60s, I can relate.

I haven't read the "Christ The Lord" books yet, as I am a cheap-skate and almost always wait until books like that (non-art books) are printed in paperback, but I plan to soon. I may not wait for the paperback version to read her spiritual biography though, as I'm very curious and anxious to read about her personal journey -- I have a feeling that there are many similarities between hers and mine. More can be learned at her website: http://www.annerice.com/

Sunday, October 19, 2008

"Dr. Atomic Opera Live At The Movies"

Coming to a theater near you, "The Met Live In HD"! The next Met opera to play at some theaters in the new genre of taking opera to the masses, is "Dr. Atomic" (about the development of the atomic bomb) on Nov 8, which I am totally going to see. I have never heard of it before, but since I'm fascinated by the topic of early atomic science, I'm looking forward to trying it out. I'm always up for expanding my horizons with the operatic experience. The admission is pretty steep for these Live Met shows (last year was $18.00), so let's hope that it doesn't disappoint. It's close enough to my birthday that I'll make a little mini-celebration out of it for me, myself, and I. Maybe sneak some chocolate cake in with me for a snack! :-)

The official website of the production is very impressive, and they have done extensive research to make the experience authentic to history, and gone to great lengths it appears to get the atomic props and material exactly correct. For those interested in the backstage details, there are many categories to browse including sets, costumes, information on the libreto, and historical links on the official website.

Here's the production's site: http://www.doctor-atomic.com/
To find a theater near you: http://www.fathomevents.com/