Empty Space, Empty Pockets

best defintion of comedy versus tragedy comes via Mel Brooks:

"Tragedy is when I get a splinter in my finger.

Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die."

I don't know if I give a good goddamn about theatre/theater, but I do think we're putting needless stress on people with dyslexia by not choosing one or the other.

But then I'm also perturbed by "forgo" in place of "forego." Even the New Yorker is doing it. The word "fore" does not mean "for," just like "care" does not mean "car." That's weird to me.

I think it's sort of funny that a theater person would describe "losing serious theater companies" as a tragedy. Isn't a tragedy more like killing your father and sleeping with your mother, or committing suicide while your lover sleeps or whatever?

Ouch. Yeah, everything that was said prior to the announcement of the Empty Space closure does seem to be trivial bullshit.

But that's sort of a given for Seattle media.

While this town has been losing all of its serious theatre companies, institutions, and artists in the past decade, the local media has been either trivial or unfocused. It's a tragedy but one that this town may deserve.

Dan and the rest of the Stranger staff seem to have an extraordinary interest in me, considering that I quit the staff of the Seattle Weekly back in 2001 (Five YEARS ago, people). But this is still as much a large town and a small city, and it's hard to keep things interesting when you're always striving to be the current provocateur.

And to all of you who really give a good goddamn as to the spelling of "theatre" or "theater?" Get a life.

Oh, that's right, the "Theatre Is Not Virtuous" post did kick things off! And then Charles Mudede posted an mp3 of himself reading Longenbaugh's comments with a plummy, classicist's diction, and wait, weren't there spitballs?

I do agree that theatre doesn't need to be "your vegetables." If later someone comes to feel that theatre has been a valuable resource (lots of fiber) in their life, that's their call. But, to belabor the food metaphor mercilessly, it had better appeal to your particular tastebuds first.

But then I also dislike spelling it theatre.

Actually, Dan and Mr. Longenwhateverthefuck started their mutual bitch slapping on an earlier thread about theater: http://www.thestranger.com/blog/2006/10/re_theater_is_not_vi.php

It was a shame really, because I liked the original idea of the post (it reminds me of Nick Hornsby's principle that reading "the great works" of fiction will not make your life any better or worse, really, so just read what you like) and those two babies turned it into a MeMeMe! festival that the rest of us could have done without.

Honestly, if this were the seventh grade (and they are both acting like it is), I'd say they're hot for each other.