Embodying the Olympic Spirit (in the face of disqualification) … Steve Hooker

While I don’t usually make a song and dance about Gold medalists (It’s brilliant that they won, but all Olympians work damn hard to even get selected for a team, regardless of where they place on the day), I am going to say that you should remember this face.

Who is he?  If you don’t know already (although I’d be surprised if you don’t, as this man’s performance in the Men’s Pole Vault at the Beijing Games was one of the major highlights), his name is Steve Hooker and he is now the current Olympic Champion and Olympic Record Holder in the Men’s Pole Vault.

My mother (a 1956 Olympian in Shot Put) knows his mother, Erica Hooker (a 1972 Olympian in Long Jump), which meant that I actually watched his final with more interest than I’d watched most of the Games coverage.  And I’ll admit to jumping off the couch in glee (along with my mother) when he cleared that final height and won the medal.  And he’s Australian and from Melbourne - which makes him local to us - and being a Melbournian means that he’s got to be great!

But seriously, neither Steve Hooker’s performance at the Olympics and his achievement of the Gold Medal and Olympic Record in his event, or the fact that my mother knows his mother, are actually the reason why I’m featuring him.  Yes, his results are amazing achievements, and all of Australia is very proud of him, and I suppose I have a personal tie to him (in a “six degrees of separation” kind of way).

But the reason I’m featuring him here is due to one act of sportsmanship and fair play - two things we highly prize here in Oz - that hasn’t been widely reported in the news, but I think is definitely worth a mention and should be applauded.

As reported on The Herald Sun website, Steve was nearly disqualified during his event at Beijing, not for anything he’d done wrong, but because he’d warned his American competitor, Derek Miles, that the wind was proving a bit difficult for jumping - thereby helping the American to get a better result in the early rounds.

“I had an argument with an official over that, but that is just what we do.” he is quoted as saying.

“The wind was quite tricky at the start of the competition so it helps if someone tells you what it’s like at the other end of the runway.”

This may seem unusual to those who have nothing to do with the Olympics (other than as spectators).  Most of us would presume that you’re out there to win no matter what.  But speak to any Olympian and they’ll tell you that it’s about fair play and fair competition - at least that’s what the Olympians I speak to are very quick to tell me.  Apart from anything else, no matter how much you want to win, you also don’t want to see a fellow athlete injure themselves when competing (which could happen in an event like the Pole Vault if you don’t know about the wind conditions).  And you’d expect that other athletes would do the same thing for you.

Steve’s actions in the early rounds of the Men’s Pole Vault at Beijing are a true example of the Olympic Spirit.  It is about the pursuit of excellence, the comradeship of athletes and the celebration of sport.

Congratulations Steve, not only for achieving your goals and winning the gold, but for embodying the true Olympic Spirit.  Everyone in this household is even more proud of you for that.

Steve’s winning jump, courtesy of YouTube:

And another video from YouTube of Steve’s record-breaking jump filmed from the stands:

Description of the video from the author: “It was already past 11pm that night in Beijing but people hung on to witness the Olympic Record breaker by Steve Hooker from Australia as he cleared 5.96m as he won the Gold Medal in the Pole Vault.”

Beijing Olympics Closing Ceremony … and Jackie Chan

Watching the Beijing Olympics Closing Ceremony last night (which I won’t review because plenty of people online already have - I’ll just say that it was impressive, but seemed to lack heart and that I enjoyed Rick Birch’s commentary, which was hilarious at times), I was a little horrified to realize that towards the end of the broadcast, when all the various performers from the night were up on the “tower” base, singing their hearts out in either Cantonese or Mandarin (I have no idea which, as I don’t speak any Chinese language), our fearless commentators completely failed to recognize kung fu film legend, Jackie Chan - singing with microphone in hand in a spotlight amongst the crowd and dressed in a Beijing Olympic Volunteers uniform (as he is in the photo above - back row on the left) - despite one of the cameramen obviously recognizing him and giving him several closeups during that part of the show.

Instead, they commented on how great it was to see that some of the volunteers were getting into the party spirit.

Oh come on people!!  You didn’t recognize one of the most famous Chinese movie stars … worldwide!?!  Apart from anything else, it’s not like he hasn’t been closely associated with the Beijing Olympics - everyone here in Australia has probably seen his VISA ad for the Beijing Games at least a million times over the past six months, and he’s had a very high profile in Beijing in relation to the Olympics as one of the strongest promoters for Olympic volunteerism amongst the Chinese population - hence why he was in a Volunteers’ uniform in the Closing Ceremony.

So really, it shouldn’t have been a surprise that he was up there performing - and I’m shocked that his name wasn’t included on a brief for all the international commentators.  I’d also like to know how they thought a mere volunteer had got hold of a microphone, but … whatever.

I was also surprised because he had lived in Australia with his parents (who emigrated over here in the 1960’s) for a few years, which technically means that he’s at least an honorary Aussie as well - and the way Channel 7 was presenting the “beer and skittles” side of China to all during their broadcast of the Games, I would have expected the commentators to immediately claim Jackie as one of our own.  But obviously not.  Especially as they didn’t even know who he was.

To quote one of our well-known broadcasters over here: “Shame, shame, shame”.

Michael Phelps, Tamsyn Lewis and Bigfoot

Just a quick news roundup today …

Firstly, the Bigfoot discovery reported on Thursday last week is now (unsurprisingly) being called a hoax by just about everyone.  Particularly those who attended the much-hyped press conference in California on Friday.  No body was produced and the only DNA evidence came from an email from a scientist at the University of Minnesota who said of the three samples supplied to him: “one came back inconclusive, one contained traces of human DNA and one had traces of opossum DNA” (Sydney Morning Herald).

The “hunters” have claimed that an autopsy will be conducted by two Russian and one US scientist in the coming days and the only journalist who will be allowed to see the body will be from the Fox network sometime this week (no surprises there either).

Onto other news …

Unless you’ve been living under a rock (and I suspect you would have heard this news even if you are), you’ll know that Michael Phelps has achieved what the US media hoped he would - eight gold medals in the one Olympic meet.  Of course two of those were gained through the additional work of his relay colleagues, so let’s not forget he didn’t do this all by himself (which, to his credit, he does point out as well).  But, needless to say, the media are only focusing on him and he can now expect to write his own ticket to endorsements and appearances for a very long time to come.  Good on him, but I do suggest that he choose his appearances carefully.  There’s only so much of the “appeal to the popular masses” type work that one person can do before their credibility begins to suffer  (as the above photo proves).

In Australian Olympic news, our boys and girls have done us proud in the pool (they have all swum brilliantly and we congratulate them for their swag of gold, silver and bronze).  We’re also making strides on the track (deliberate pun), although not all of them have lived up to the hype.

Tamsyn Lewis gave a sobbing apology to official Australian Olympic Network, Channel 7 (the only media interview she did after the race), for coming in last in the semi-final of the 800m - her pet event.  I’m sorry, but I have no sympathy.  It’s terrible for her, but she put a lot of the pressure on herself (which included running the 400m almost immediately before the 800m, but that’s another story).  Yes, every Olympic athlete I speak to talks (in private) about their concerns about doping, but they don’t come out and say before their race that they suspect all their competitors are drugged to the eyeballs (not a direct quote from Tamsyn, but the essence of what she has said - regularly - to anyone who will listen, particularly the media).

Whether her statement turned out to be true or not, I’m not going to give her any more coverage - just to say that yes doping is a problem.  And yes, the IOC is doing the best it can to deal with it.  All the athletes can do is get on with the job they’re there to do and not let themselves be distracted by becoming media commentators.  They’re there to compete and that’s where their focus should be.

Interestingly, Jana Rawlinson (our World 400m hurdles champion) who had to withdraw from these current games due to injury, has come to Tamsyn’s defence (Yahoo 7 article here).  This is noteworthy, due to a period of time not that long ago when we had to endure Tamsyn’s constant personal criticism and negative attitude towards Jana - particularly (again) when she spoke to the media.

Jana - top points for showing so much class and empathy.  And get better soon.

And finally, speaking of our official coverage by Channel 7 and Yahoo 7 for the Games - showing that you cannot always believe the media, Yahoo 7 wrote an article about our greatest hope in the Women’s 100m hurdles, Sally McLean.  While I would love to have the honor of sharing a name with an Olympic athlete, there’s a slight problem, in that her name is actually Sally McLellan. (read her profile here).

The original article now seems to have disappeared from the site, but I thank Rebecca for drawing it to my attention.  Really folks, I know there are a lot of athletes to cover, but you could at least get their names correct!

I’m now off to prepare for my presenting duties for the “Hellboy 2:  The Golden Army” advance screening for Popcorn Taxi tonight (which is now sold out!).  So, for those attending - I’ll see you there.  For everyone else, undoubtedly speak again soon …

Invisibility cloaks and Bigfoot found? WTF??

For those of you who are still glued to the television, devouring the hype and “isn’t it lovely, despite what’s actually going on in China” fest that is the Olympics, here are a couple of news items that may have escaped your attention.

From the land of the sometimes downright odd, otherwise known as the US of A, two interesting reports have surfaced in the past couple of days.

Firstly, the “greatest discovery of the millennium” (according to those who made the discovery … uh, right), has appeared in the shape of an alleged corpse belonging to that elusive and somewhat tricky to document group of creatures, known as “Bigfoot”. (See Times Online article here)

Supposedly the creature’s body was found in the forests of Georgia (USA) by two “Bigfoot hunters” (one of whom is currently on leave from police work after accidentally shooting himself while chasing a robbery suspect … okaaay) at a time that has not been specified (but we presume was fairly recently).  The photo that has emerged online is somewhat questionable, with many likening it to a moth-eaten “Halloween costume” adorned with “some animal entrails”.  Having seen the photo, I have to say the skeptics have a point.

Not that I don’t necessarily believe that ol’ Sasquatch is out there.  My mother has a rice paper painting from a Native Canadian Elder that depicts Bigfoot, which she helpfully hung just near by bedroom door when I was a kid - and then wondered why I was scared of the dark and didn’t like going to bed - so I know that those native to North America certainly believe that he is real.

I’m just not sure that this particular discovery is legit, particularly when you take into account that someone who is widely regarded as a known hoaxer in the Bigfoot world has taken up the cause and is now running the show.

Anyway, we’ll find out one way or the other within the next 12 hours, when they hold their official press conference in Palo Alto, California (why there specifically one wonders?), where they say they will provide DNA evidence that the find is real.

Although, as one astute commentator pointed out - what are they going to match the DNA evidence to?

Amazingly, far more viable is the news that scientists at the University of California think they’ve found a way to master the art of invisibility.  The research has been funded by the Pentagon (of course it has - and if they thought that Bigfoot could help them dominate on the battlefield, they’d be funding the Bigfoot searches as well), and articles about this more legitimate discovery will be published in various science journals this week.

This breakthrough doesn’t originate in America, however.  Sir John Pendry, Professor of Theoretical Physics at Imperial College, London was the first scientist to propose this technology (it involves metamaterials, and lots of other sciency things that I don’t understand because I gave up studying science as soon as I could at high school), which the US then picked up and developed further.

I imagine that celebrities everywhere are rejoicing.  Just think what Lindsay Lohan could do with an invisibility cloak?  Angelina Jolie?  Paris Hilton?  Oh, wait, not Paris - what was I thinking?  Like she’d ever embrace anonymity.  But you get my point.

Of course, it’s unlikely that this technology will be on offer to the general public.  I suspect the idea of the general populace having access to a way to make themselves disappear would not sit comfortably with any government.  That said, if the US Government think they can make money out of it, you could see Harry Potter-style invisibility cloaks available at your nearest Walmart very soon …

Melbourne International Film Festival Round Up

Okay.  I’m misleading you a bit.  While there is a MIFF Round Up that I’d like to share - I didn’t write it.  I am dreadfully ashamed to say that I didn’t even make it to one session of MIFF this year.  Yes, I am a BAD Melbourne film industry member.  I’m slapping my wrist on your behalf as I type this.

However, thankfully for all, a friend of mine did go to MIFF this year.  In fact, he went to 58 SESSIONS of MIFF this year.  Which means he sat through 54 feature films and 4 short film programs!!!  Which, when you factor in that MIFF ran for 16 days, works out to average 3.6 films A DAY!!  That’s insane!!!  (Sorry, just got a bit overwhelmed with the idea of watching that much celluloid in just over a fortnight).

Anyway, he is now beginning to blog about his MIFF experience.  As he knows more about film and filmmakers than I’ll ever learn in a lifetime and writes in such a way that I continually laugh out loud when reading his work (and the fact that he actually went to MIFF this year and I didn’t, which is kinda important when reviewing the line up on offer), I will now share his experience with you, via his blog.

Click here to read “Thoroughly Miffed”, the epic MIFF posts from the blog Pulp Friction, written by The Slightly Illuminated Knight (love that name), which begins with “Prologue: There and back again …”

Enjoy!

Miranda Barber nominated in Top 10 for upcoming ASA Awards

This week has certainly been a good news one.  And, for once, I’m not actually talking just about me.

One of my friends from early theatre days, the gorgeous and talented Miranda Barber (pictured above), left Australian shores for London (as many of us have done) to follow her dreams of working as an actor and singer.  Last year, she entered a singer-songwriter online showcase called Slice The Pie.  In September 2007 the public voted her as the winner of the showcase and Miranda received 15,000 pounds sterling to make her first album.

In June this year, her debut album, Lips’ Decision was launched in the UK to rave reviews, which was so very exciting.  But, the latest news is that Miranda has just been nominated by the Australian Songwriter’s Association in the Top 10 Best Songs for 2008 in their Folk/Acoustic category - for not just one song, but TWO!!

Tracks Sweetheart’s Embrace and Too Damn Hard (which I LOVE - such a great song) are the two that have been nominated from the album, and the winners of the awards will be announced at the ASA National Awards Night in Sydney on August 28.

I can’t say how thrilled I am for her.  She’s such an amazing talent and deserves all the accolades and attention.

I’m even more excited for her because when she and I were spending time treading the boards together, singing and acting our little hearts out, she was diagnosed with a paralyzed vocal chord and told she would never sing again.  I remember all of us going into shock (as I know she did) and not quite believing the news.  She was a serious star on the rise and that news was, well, unreal.

But, she didn’t accept what the doctors told her and she persevered and rehabilitated her voice and … well, the rest is history - the chord recovered and look at her now!!

Haven’t experienced Miranda’s amazing voice and beautiful songwriting skills yet?  Shame on you.  Get over to her official site here.  And listen to samples of her work here.  And buy her album (or an earlier EP) while you’re there.

Need more convincing?  Here’s a sample of what people who don’t know her personally are saying:

“Barber plays the audience & piano like a Broadway nightclub hostess in a Sinatra film. The rich, cigarettes-&-whisky harmonics in her voice give her songs a seductive mix of the vampish & innocent. She has the rare gift of projecting intimacy whilst opening up a peephole into her personal world.” - Smallfish

“Originally from Melbourne but based in London, Miranda Barber specialises in torch songs powered by energy-saving light bulbs … all the heady mournful balladry of Bessie Smith or Billie Holiday, but it’s all executed with the sparse efficiency of Joni Mitchell or Damien Rice.” - Overplay

Couldn’t have put it better myself.  ‘Nuff said.

Hellboy 2 - advance Popcorn Taxi Melbourne screening

Now, this is something I’m looking forward to - the advance Melbourne screening of the new Guillermo Del Toro (PAN’S LABYRINTH, HELLBOY) film, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, which takes place on Monday, August 18, 2008 at Cinema Nova as part of Popcorn Taxi Melbourne.

Yes, I have a vested interest - I’ll be hosting the event in Melbourne - but I am genuinely interested in seeing this latest installment in the Hellboy series - due totally to it’s director.

The man is a genius.  His films are so multi-layered, visually stunning and awesome (in the true sense of the word) in their execution.  And he really does manage to take you to another world - it’s the ultimate in escapism.

And, I’ll confess that I’m a bit of a comic book movie junkie - which means that I’m also pretty hard on the various adaptations out there (I have to admit the news that Hollywood is adapting Captain Marvel has me a little worried - wasn’t he supposed to be a generic version of DC’s Superman done by another company?  (We all know how well the last Superman movie did)  And isn’t his “normal” alter-ego a 12 year old boy?  (Shades of Harry Potter, perhaps?  Perhaps not).  And, if memory serves, DC included a character in their Superman series called “Captain Thunder” as a parody of Captain Marvel, who rubbed his belt to activate his powers yelling “Thunder!” (snicker, snicker).  I have to say that watching a character on screen that has to yell “Shazam!” - which is also the title of the upcoming film - to activate his superhero-ness could have me stifling the odd giggle.  Doesn’t bode well.  That said, William Goldman is on the writing team, so there is some hope … But I digress), but just from watching the trailer of Hellboy II, I’ll admit to being a little bit excited about this one.

So, I’m also very excited that we’re also going to be hosting a phone hook up with Guillermo Del Toro to undertake a Q & A after the screening - live from Berlin!

Oscar Hillerstrom from the Sci-Fi Channel will be conducting the interview in front of a live Sydney audience at Greater Union Bondi (who will watch the movie simultaneously with the Melbourne audience) asking Guillermo questions from both Sydney and Melbourne, which we’re coordinating via the wonder of modern technology - and it promises be a fascinating and insightful evening for all those who are a fan of Guillermo’s work.

Apart from anything else, it’s a chance to see the movie a full 10 days before it’s official Australian release on August 28 - and everyone likes to be ahead of the crowd.  Well, I know I do, anyway!

For full information about the screening, get along to the Popcorn Taxi website - and I’ll see you there!

I’ve just been to the dentist aka “There is no way to escape the Olympics”

You may have gathered that I’ve just been to the dentist.  Which I have.  And got a filling.  Which is by itself not newsworthy (although those dear readers who have been keeping up with this blog will know all about my wisdom teeth drama almost exactly a year ago, which is why it is most definitely not on my list of favourite things to do).

But no, that is not really the main subject of this post.  Although it is the catalyst that caused this post to be written.  And the event that caused this post to be written was the realization that right now, there is no way to escape the Olympics.  Not for me, at least.

I get in the car - and am regaled by commentary of (I think) the Women’s Water Polo match on the radio.  I go to the dentist - the Women’s Gymnastics are on the television in the waiting area.  I get into the chair and am almost grateful that I’m there, because it means I don’t have to hear or see anything remotely to do with Medal Tallies or how our swimmers are doing in the pool or hear rude remarks about Togo winning a Bronze medal and “does anyone even know where that country is?” (It’s in Africa, you smarmy, condescending idiots!) or inane comments about how all our gold medallists are such “normal girls/boys from ‘insert name of any small Australian town here’” and how great it is that they’re setting such an inspirational example for the youth of our nation.  (Yeah, they are, but they’re not normal - not just anyone becomes an Olympian - it takes years of hard work and commitment to get there in the first place - and that goes for ANY Olympian, not just the medallists).

It might seem strange for the daughter of an Olympian to be spouting these thoughts.

Lollapalooza - final thoughts and future plans …

I just had to share this.  In my recent post about Lollapalooza, I mentioned that Perry Farrell and Slash got up and performed on the Kidzapalooza stage together on the Sunday and I hoped that someone had a camera trained on the stage and that I’d get to see the footage.  Well, someone did and I have.  And here’s a sample for those of you who may not have seen it yet:

Yep, that’s Slash and Perry performing “Superstition”.  Classic.  Unfortunately the person filming didn’t get Perry’s introduction to the song which reportedly (according to the Time Out Blog) went something like this:

“This first song is about superstition, and how you maybe shouldn’t be afraid to check out creepy things like voodoo.”

Just classic.  I’m not sure how parents in the audience felt about their kids being encouraged to engage in an exploration of religions that involve, well, unusual practices, but I had to laugh.  There were a lot more comments along those lines from Perry as they went onto play “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and the Jane’s Addiction classic “Jane Says”.  They also played “Mountain Song”, but I haven’t been able to find a video of that yet.

Entertainment Weekly wrote a hilarious article about the set, which I’ll link to when I find it again.

Jeff Tweedy’s appearance (from the band Wilco) at Kidzapalooza on the Friday was another major highlight for both the grown ups and the kids.  Here’s a video of him performing “Hummingbird”:

I love the beginning when he says “hell” and corrects himself with “H-E-double toothpicks”, with the sudden realization that he’s in front of a bunch of children.  LOL.  From what I’ve heard from those who were there, it was an absolute blast and a great weekend.

So, the decision has been made - I’m going to Lollapalooza next year.  I’ve already officially arranged it and so will be in Chicago in August in 2009 at one of the biggest music festivals on the planet.

As a result, I’m now open to offers from any music mags in Australia - if you want to hire my services, I’ll be happy to write for you while I’m there (see an example of my previous life as a music reviewer/interviewer here).  Up-to-the-minute articles written on site at the the world-famous Lollapalooza music festival?  Too good to pass up.  I’m also taking a digital camera and a DV camera with me, and used to be a radio and TV presenter, so any radio or TV offers will be considered as well.  Drop me a line if you’re interested in having someone on the scene who not only loves music (and is a trained musician), but also has a background in journalism. And yes, that would be me.

For a full round up of Kidzapalooza this year, including a large collection of videos, you’ll find everything you could ever want to know at the official website.  I’m now off to watch Perry and Slash perform “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”, courtesy of YouTube.  You’ve gotta love the ‘Net …

Introducing the new Mrs McLean …

Well.  All my grizzling about outdoor weddings in August were unneccesary.  Well, as far as it raining during the ceremony went.  It was still cold, but the rain held off while we were in the rotunda for the actual ceremony.  It rained instead when we were standing out in the open in the park having photos taken.

Okay, so it didn’t rain heavily at that point - just drizzled.  It poured once the bulk of the photos were taken, but by then I was in a warm car with my mother, looking up a map to work out the quickest route to the reception.  That said, I still got wet, and today have the ‘flu from HELL as a result (not happy about that, as I had things I was supposed to do today that I had to cancel because I’ve lost my voice and feel like death … okay, okay, this post isn’t supposed to be about me, I know …)

Back to the wedding.  It was actually quite lovely.  Christie (the new Mrs McLean) looked radiant in her dress, my nieces looked cute in their pink fairy dresses and James (my brother) was one of the happiest men on the planet and couldn’t stop beaming, so, all in all (’flu notwithstanding) it turned out to be a very good day.

Firstly, I want to share my favourite photo of the day:

That’s my eldest niece, Taylah (on the left) and my youngest niece, Jordyn (on the right, laughing and barefoot, which is typical).  I just love that moment.  I’m so glad I caught it on camera.

There are more photos after the jump.  (For my aunts and uncles reading this, that means click on the link that says “Continue reading …” )

Random Aries thoughts and weddings

Nothing really to say today - just ramblings.  You’ve been warned.

I’m feeling like a bit of a twit right now.  Sometimes I’m convinced that one day I’m going to get caught out by my peers and they’ll realize that I’m not really a grown up, but actually a kid who’s sitting at the grown up’s table just pretending to be an adult.  A bit like when I was six and used to put on my mother’s high heels and jewelry and prance around the house announcing I was a “lady”.  But I was really a six year old slapping around in shoes about five sizes too big for her wearing costume jewelry.  And, for that matter, I don’t think I ever became a “lady”.

But I digress …

I just found out from a mutual acquaintance that a friend of mine is currently on vacation (as they say in the US).  Which would explain why he hasn’t really responded to my barrage of emails about a website I’m maintaining for him as well as the odd missive that is just blather.  (Okay, not “barrage” exactly, more like five).  That’s not why I feel like a twit, as such.  I feel like a twit because he told me he was taking vacation about now and I promptly forgot about it.  And bombarded him with emails.  When I know he needs this vacation desperately and the last thing he needs is a twit of an Aussie sending rambling messages that I’m sure he really doesn’t remotely care about right now (as he shouldn’t, because I know I wouldn’t in his position).

Come sell with me - advice for Affiliates

Keeping in the theme of articles written a while ago, but still relevant, here’s another one from my time at the Multimedia Internet Network.

Come Sell With Me - Advice for Affiliates
The Multimedia Internet Network (min)
November 2001
by Sally McLean

You’ve been looking around the Internet and you’ve decided to open an affiliate store. You’ve seen plenty of other sites doing it, and they seem to be doing okay. So, you stock your store with every affiliate program you’ve ever come across on the Net, have all the flashing banners, ads and specials displayed proudly for all to see and now all you have to do is throw open your virtual doors for the flood of customers that will now rush in to buy these products from you. Right?

Well … not exactly. In the case of affiliate programs, as with many other things in life, it’s a case of planning, strategy, savvy and an emphasis on quality, not quantity.

Lollapalooza is somewhere I want to go

I never thought I’d say it, but I think I’m prepared to travel to another country just to be part of a music festival.  Those who know me know that I’m more likely to spend an evening in a piano bar or enjoy watching an intimate performance in a small club or seeing an independent band in a pub, than attend a full-blown rock concert.  In fact, despite loving music and seeing bands live, the only major rock concert I’ve attended was Pink Floyd (I was 17) and the only music festival I’ve attended was The Big Day Out (and I was a member of the press for that one, so I don’t even know if that counts).

But there’s just something about Lollapalooza.

It could be that as I’m the designer for Kidzapalooza (the kids stage at Lollapalooza), I’ve been living, sleeping and breathing the festival for the past three days (well, as much as one can via the internet from a country on the other side of the world from where the action is happening) and, as a result working on Chicago time for the most part.  I’ve watched more bands (via live feeds and uploaded YouTube vids) in the past 72 hours than I have for the whole year, read more music reviews and articles than I care to admit to and looked at galleries of photos.  And it just seems like it’s far to much fun to not be a part of.

Here’s an example.  It’s now 6am over here.  I haven’t been to bed yet, as I’ve been updating the Kidzapalooza site with the latest press, reviews, etc and keeping tabs on their blog.  An hour ago I got an email from Tor (the Kidza organizer) to say that he was currently on stage (he’s also a musician) and that Perry Farrell (Lollapalooza founder) would be appearing on the Kidzapalooza stage with Slash (yes, THAT Slash) at 3.15pm Chicago time.

How mad is that?!  Now, THAT’S something I’d like to see.  I just hope someone’s got a video camera trained on the stage right now.  And that I get to see the footage.

With eight stages showcasing 130 performers over three days - it’s one major music event.  Radiohead closed Day 1 (Friday) and Rage Against The Machine closed out Day 2 (with a bit of a riot from what I’ve read in the various papers and blogs).  Tonight it’s Nine Inch Nails who could be causing a ruckus at Grant Park.  Not that I want to get caught up in all that craziness, but I just keep feeling like I’m missing out on something.

Apart from anything else, I’m hearing such good feedback about Kidzapalooza, I reckon I could spend the whole festival there and still get great value for money.  While the line up is predominately kid-friendly performers, headline acts have a habit of turning up for impromptu sets - just to be part of the great vibe at the Kidza stage.

So, if I’m not in Melbourne in August next year, it will be because I decided that the lure of Lolla is just too strong and I have packed my bags and departed for Chicago.

I think I’ll book my tickets now.

Latest web design update

The Incognita machine continues on it’s merry way with the lastest client to enter our stable - Jambo - real roots music for kids (this makes web client No. 45!)

Who are Jambo?  Jambo is a musical journey that transports you though the roots of American music. One part Mississippi Delta, one part New Orleans street corner, and one part Chicago juke joint, JAMBO is all parts fun. The songs speak to children’s imaginations. They are about growing up, sharing, and the inclusion of all children. They promote self-esteem, independence, and celebrateindividuality. And, of course, some are just about dancing and having fun.

Based in Los Angeles, USA, Jambo consists of “Blues Head” frontman, Steve Pierson (Vocals, Guitar, Slide Guitar), Melinda Leigh (Vocals and Assorted Knick Knacks), Steve “Big Daddy Blue” Gregan (Guitar and Vocals), Mike the Murph (Keyboards), Philip Bynoe (Bass Guitar), Gary Mallaber (Drums) and David Leach (Percussion).

Audition Survival Guide

This article comes from my collection on Acting - there are a few of these, written from 2005 to 2007.  Enjoy.

Audition Survival Guide
Dateline: January 2007
by Sally McLean.

Auditions. Interviews. Public speaking. Anything that involves putting yourself on the line, usually creates a sense of mild (if not extreme) panic and anxiety.

Here are some suggestions to make the audition process a little less nerve-wracking, with a view to you presenting yourself in the best light possible.

AS SOON AS YOU KNOW YOU HAVE AN AUDITION BOOKED:

Prepare, prepare, prepare!!! Research, research, research!!!

Learn your piece by heart. Do your characterization work. If you can choose your own piece, make sure you know it inside out. The one thing a director is bound to do, is ask you to do it several different ways, and you won’t help yourself if you are struggling to remember the lines. Also you don’t want to go forgetting lines in the middle of it.

If it’s a piece set by the director, make sure you get a copy of it ASAP and learn it by heart - for the same reasons outlined above.

Even if you are requested to not learn the piece beforehand (this does happen), at least be EXTREMELY familiar with it and still do your research.  The reason they’re asking you to not learn it is that they’re looking for spontaneity in your performance and how well your instincts work as an actor.  This doesn’t always work (and in my case, with a photographic memory, can prove to be a challenge as I only have to read a scene a few times to have it memorized), and usually if they truly want spontaneity and see your instinct at work they will ask you to do a cold read on the day.