Body Matters: A Bow
“It’s nice to see you outside,” the woman’s voice said. I looked at her. She didn’t seem familiar. And what did she mean … how could she not have been seeing me outside? I was a little thrown, “I’m sorry. I don’t recognize you with your sunglasses on…” “Oh,” she chirped, “You don’t recognize me [...]
...read moreWeapons Scientists and Surgically Altered Actresses
You’d think they had nothing in common, right? You’d be wrong about that. But perhaps the only way to discover the connection is, as I did, to become an American citizen. Dressed appropriately, the Wizard, a couple of friends and I shot off to an older, but nicely renovated small town theater to be naturalized [...]
...read moreJust Who You Callin’ White
I’m still processing this one — so there’s not much in the way of analysis here. It has always been fun for me to experience the myriad ways disability “whitens” me as I go about life in the mainstream (i.e., white, non-disabled) world. Essentially, the way this works is that the cultural perception that disabled [...]
...read moreTotally Cringe-worthy Dance
After many of our performances, the dancers of our company come back on stage for a Q and A or talkback or something. It’s my least favourite part of the job. I like the protection of the stage and the lights. I will do anything on stage because the firm line of the proscenium protects [...]
...read moreOn The Cover
Do you remember the picture in National Geographic of the so-called Afghan girl? The photograph, taken by Steve McCurry, was of Sharbat Gula; her image adorned the cover of a 1985 issue of National Geographic (The link is to National Geographic’s discussion and review of the story almost 20 years later). I was barely aware [...]
...read moreLife Isn’t A Rehearsal: Introduction/Prologue
“Life isn’t a rehearsal” is one of my father’s favourite sayings — that and “better than a poke in the eye with a burnt stick.” (No, I don’t know what it means.) At every significant point in my life, I have received a phone call, voicemail, unsigned note, or email: “life isn’t a rehearsal.” In [...]
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