Pia Quarterly

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-25T09:49:00.001-05:00

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T09:36:00.000-05:00

Today is Thanksgiving! I have a lot of things for which I am grateful. Family, friends, my fabulous theater life ... all of that and more equals celebration. Even though I miss my parents on this day -- God bless their souls as they dance -- I love Thanksgiving as a kickoff to the holiday season.

Working at an anti-poverty non-profit as well, I know that there are many out there who don't have enough to eat -- not just during the holiday season but every day. I am mindful of this, an encourage you to be mindful as well. Give to your local foodbank as much as you can throughout the year. You can also make a donation to www.hungerthon.org right now to help the less fortunate.

I also like to be mindful that not all Americans celebrate on Thanksgiving. For many Native Americans, Thanksgiving is the National Day of Mourning.

So for my ancestors who were Native Americans, I hold a moment of silence for you. For my other family who celebrates with the best cornbread dressing and collard greens this (and that) side of the Mississippi, I shake a tail feather (you know, dance)!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Never Disconnected

2009-10-15T15:08:00.002-04:00

So, I'm having a show with on Sunday with five of my fellow Emerging Writers Group members. It's called Never Disconnected, and it's going to be a great evening! A little comedy, a little drama, we've got it all.

Never Disconnected
Sunday, October 18th, 7:00-8:30pm
Nuyorican Poets Cafe

Never Disconnected is a 90-minute event, featuring short plays from six members of the inaugural Emerging Writers Group at The Public Theater. The plays all fall under the theme, "Never Disconnected." The theme speaks to the state of our world on many levels: in the electronic age, we're always connected by our gadgets; our families; our nationalities connect us; our ethnicities; our arguments; our agreements; our spirituality; our humanity. Playwrights: Akin Salawu, Aladdin Ullah, Chris Cragin, Christina Gorman, Don Nguyen, and Pia Wilson.

Tickets $10/7 students/seniors/advance. For more information or advance purchase visit the Nuyorican website.

Nuyorican Poets Cafe | 236 East 3rd Street Between Ave B & C

Tod's Driving Me Mad!

2009-09-15T09:40:00.001-04:00

If only I had $500 to spend on these shoes ...

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Electric Literature's Single Sentence Animation Series

2009-09-10T15:41:00.004-04:00

From Electric Literature (the literary magazine for which I read)! This is the first installment in the Electric Literature Single Sentence Animation series. SSAs are a creative collaboration between writers published in Electric Literature and contemporary visual artists. The writer selects a single sentence from their work and the animator shapes a short film in response.

Here we'll see the animation of a single sentence from Lydia Millet’s “Sir Henry.” The sentence: “Sometimes he wished he could gather all the dogs he loved most and walk off the end of the world with them.”

Luca Dipierro’s film is superb and haunting.

Streets of Fire!!

2009-08-25T13:24:00.001-04:00

Why someone hasn't made this into a musical already, I don't know. This last number is made for Broadway!! P.S. Diane Lane, you're gorgeous! Then and now!

A Message from Color of Change

2009-08-06T07:47:00.000-04:00

It's working.

Last week, after we told you about Glenn Beck calling the president a racist(1), more than 40,000 ColorOfChange members called on advertisers to drop their support for the show, and the advertisers are listening.

Lawyers.com was the first to drop their support for the show. Procter & Gamble and Progressive Insurance said their ads ran during Beck's show without their authorization and that they'll ensure that the same mistake does not happen again. And we're in conversations with others.

But we still need your voice. Some advertisers are refusing to budge. If we can show that more than 50,000 are standing strong, we believe more advertisers will see the writing on the wall. Can you lend your voice now?

http://www.colorofchange.org/beck/?id=1870-530374

We can stop Beck. If we can take away Beck's ad income, we can take away his platform to promote racial fear and division. The leadership that Lawyers.com, Procter and Gamble and Progressive Insurance displayed makes it easier to pressure other advertisers to follow suit.

Not everyone has been so willing to do the right thing, but we believe that 10,000 more of you speaking out would send corporations an even stronger message that Black Americans and our allies mean business. Please take a moment to sign on, and then ask your friends and family to do the same:

http://www.colorofchange.org/beck/?=1870-530374

Folks like Glenn Beck, Lou Dobbs,(2) and Rush Limbaugh(3) are increasingly exploiting racism and race-based fear to achieve their cynical political goals, but the dangers of these tactics are real. The Department of Homeland Security recently reported that right-wing extremists are becoming more likely to resort to violence to achieve their aims.(4) At the same time, President Obama receives an unprecedented 30 death threats a day, there's been a drastic rise in the number of hate groups, and Black folks and immigrants are increasingly the victims of violent crimes and threats.(5,6,7)

FOX has had a long history of race-baiting and racism on its shows, and we've run campaigns calling them out.(8,9) But Glenn Beck appears to be taking the network to an even lower standard. He's trying to divide and distract America when we should be coming together and talking about issues that really matter--like health care and the economy.

The good news is that we have the power to stop this. All major media is funded by advertising. And advertisers, more than anything, care what consumers think. If we want to put an end to folks like Glenn Beck having a platform, we can.

It's up to us, and it can start now. Please join us:

http://www.colorofchange.org/beck/?=1870-530374

Thanks and Peace,

-- James, Gabriel, William, Dani and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
August 6th, 2009

Help support our work. ColorOfChange.org is powered by YOU -- your energy and dollars. We take no money from lobbyists or large corporations that don't share our values, and our tiny staff ensures your contributions go a long way. You can contribute here:

https://secure.colorofchange.org/contribute/?=1870-530374

References:

1. "Beck: Obama has 'exposed himself as a guy' with 'a deep seated hatred for white people'" Media Matters, 7-28-09
http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/200907280008

2. "On Television and Radio, Talk of Obama's Citizenship," The New York Times, 7-24-09
http://tinyurl.com/mb467j

3. "Rush and reparations," The Nation, 5-12-2009
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/notion/435392/rush_and_reparations

4. "Homeland Security report warns of rising right-wing extremism, Huffington Post, 4-14-2009
http://tinyurl.com/cpgx6q

5. "Barack Obama faces 30 death threats a day, stretching US Secret Service," The Telegraph, 8-3-2009
http://tinyurl.com/nzt95p

6. "Growing hate groups blame Obama, economy," CNN, 2-26-2009
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/26/hate.groups.report/

7. "Election of Obama provokes rise in U.S. hate crimes," Reuters, 11-24-2008
http://tinyurl.com/nxfdpy

8. ColorOfChange.org email on Fox's attacks on the Obamas
http://www.colorofchange.org/foxobama/message.html

9. "An overview: Fox News and its problem with African-Americans," ColorOfChange.org
http://colorofchange.org/fox/summary.html

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Electric Literature Gets Animated!

2009-07-30T15:11:00.002-04:00

So, I'm a reader for this terrific new literary magazine, Electric Literature. Check out this very cool trailer EL came up with to promote one of the stories in its premiere issue. EL teamed up with animator Jonathan Ashley and musician Nick DeWitt to produce this animated trailer for Jim Shepard's "Your Fate Hurtles Down at You."

Electric Literature presents Jim Shepard's "Your Fate Hurtles Down at You" (trailer) from Editors Electric Literature on Vimeo.

Thank you, Mr. Jackson

2009-07-07T13:07:00.000-04:00

I knew of Michael Jackson from the crib. Back then, when he was introduced to me, by way of my parents, he was little Michael Jackson of The Jackson 5. It was the '70s. There was the cartoon too ... And the variety shows. There was always Michael's voice, distinguishable from the other harmonies, lent to my ears, lent to everyone's ears, and then gone out into the universe.

The '80s descended upon us. I was in grade school. I adored my teachers, all of them, but especially the pretty ones, like Mrs. White, the art teacher. I wanted to grow up and be pretty like she was. Michael was there too, standing there with his smile, beaming from the Off The Wall poster tacked to the door. Little Michael Jackson was grown up and out on his own.

Thriller! Getting the Thriller album, in all it's waxen glory was an obsession of mine. My family didn't have cable, so I used to go across the street to my neighbor's home and watch MTV in the basement. MTV was new, and they actually played music videos back then. Michael Jackson was there with Beat It and Billie Jean. We couldn't get enough. Then there was the Thriller video itself. When I tell you that this was an event of epic proportions, I mean it. We watched with greedy eyes, enthralled and sometimes scared. He was the king of my world. I got my own poster.

I also got the album, and how I got it has become one of my favorite memories in life. I was dick with the chicken pox and sullen about it's effects on my looks. My mom came home with the Thriller album in tow, out of the blue. I was so happy that I forgot every problem I thought I had. And I had the best mom in the world -- at that moment. Now that she's passed on, I still remember that gift of Michael Jackson.

In seventh grade, my town was desegregated by the Supreme Court. My brother and I had to go to a new school. We were not happy. We were not excited. Especially after a summer of watching White parents complain about us Black kids being thrust upon their precious children. I didn't know how it was possibly going to work.

I started to make friends slowly in the new school; friends who didn't look like me. And one day I hesitantly went over a new friend's house. Michael was there, staring out seriously and reassuringly from the Thriller poster on my friend's wall. I remember asking, "You like Michael Jackson?" When she said yes, I felt everything was going to be alright.

Fast forward through the years, Michael Jackson has been woven into the tapestry of my life, as he was in the lives of millions of others. Now that he is gone, I was bereaved for a short period of time. Then I realized that his music will continue to play in the soundtrack of my life. He gave me the gift of assurance when I needed it, and for that, I'll always be grateful.

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

New iPhone Software

2009-06-18T19:32:00.000-04:00

This is by no means a review! I'm only interested in saying how much the new iPhone software rocks. It simply does.

I've been waiting for cut and paste capabilities since I first purchased my iPod Touch. The day I dreamed of has finally arrived! Now, I don't have to type the same information over and over, or I can clip something from an email and paste it into my Twitter client. Oh, the freedom!

Another useful tool: the search function. Spotlight enables me to search my entire iPod! And! And, I can now search within email accounts. Glorious!

So, thank you, Apple Inc. this was the best ten bucks I have ever spent!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Boo on Hotels Charging for Wi-Fi!

2009-06-09T16:22:00.000-04:00

Hey you! Mr. Hotel Manager! Why are you charging me for wi-fi during an economic crisis? Shouldn't that be one of the amenities you're using to lure me into your lair? Ten buck? Really? You need that ten bucks that badly?

Because, you know, next time I'm looking for a place to stay in the city, I'm going to look for a new place that doesn't charge me for the wi-fi. Yes, I hold grudges! Ask Delta. Ask T-Mobile.

Grrrrr! And boo on you!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

RED ROOSTER

2009-06-05T22:38:00.000-04:00

My play, RED ROOSTER, had a great reading on Monday! We had a wonderful cast, and Liesl Tommy was terrific and insightful.

Can't wait to see where this play will land!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

EWG Spotlight Series Readings

2009-05-24T19:00:00.000-04:00

The Emerging Writers Group readings at The Public have been fabulous so far! They've even exceeded my already high expectations. Each voice so distinct and so good. Now, it's my turn!

I'm thrilled; I'm nervous! I can't wait. I'll update with casting info, as soon as I receive any.

My play is about Joyce, a Hurticane Katrina refugee from New Orleans' ninth ward. She is living in New Jersey with an elderly man named George. Joyce and George have an agreement: she'll take care of him, and he'll eventually sign his home over to her as payment. All is going well for George and Joyce, until George's son comes home and wants the house.

Find all you need to know below!

Play: RED ROOSTER
Written by Pia Wilson
Directed by Liesl Tommy
Date: Monday, June 1
Time: 3pm and 7pm
Cost: Free!
How to reserve a ticket: Call 212-967-7555 (not available online)

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Autopsy: Grey's Anatomy (Season Five)

2009-05-15T09:26:00.000-04:00

If you're looking for spoilers about last night's season finale of Grey's Anatomy, you've come to the wrong place. Boot up the DVR or wait for the eppy to repeat some time close to the debut of the new season.

I have to say I have become less and less interested in Grey's as the seasons have passed. I missed the first season altogether. Seasons two and three were really great. Season four ... was ... well ... a little bit Grey-ting. Season four turned up the volume on the operatic undertones present in Season three. Season five had the noise on full blast, and the delicate melodies built so carefully in earlier seasons were all but muted.

Things that stuck in my mind this season:

• I like Owen, but I still miss Burke. I wouldn't really compare the two, except that the show has inserted Owen firmly in Burke's shoes. Of course, there's the obvious: Owen is dating Christina. While I liked their relationship ... until he, you know, choked her ... I found her relationship with Burke to be much more nuanced. When they got rid of the character of Burke, due to problems with the actor, I felt like their break-up hit all the right notes. It was really character driven. Owen and Christina have been one big Grrrrrrrrrrr with extra exclamation points!!!! And teary-eyes syndrome has been nipping at their heels the whole way. And, and! in the back of my mind, I've been wondering where's the growth been for Christina in this relationship?

But back to Owen being in Burke's shoes. Not only did he replace Burke in Christina's bed but also as George's guy or rather, George being his guy. Either way, Burke and George were just better, again more nuanced. And no one could ever make me believe that last night's finale wouldn't have been more poignant had Burke been standing where Owen was.

I'm just grateful they dropped the Owen-Derrick rivalry early on, as then it would have been too much.

• One of the bright spots for me this season has been the budding relationship between little Grey and McSteamy. I think their relationship has taken nice, small turns ... Probably because the writing staff hasn't been paying much attention to them yet. Hopefully, the writing staff won't be force-feeding these two ham sandwiches any time soon.

• Also loved the continuing friendship between Callie and Mark (McSteamy). Nicely done and genuine. They both have grown over the past few seasons. I also happen to believe that these two have the best sexual chemistry of ANY couple past or present on this show ... except for Derrick and Addison.

• Yes, I'm a card-carrying Mer-Der hater. I think paste is more interesting than this couple. And that has never been more evident than in this season. They are so much better apart, but the pairing has such rabid fans, who actually get in the way of the story. Mer-Der fans want it to be sunshine and rainbows for this couple so badly - and they get so angry when it's not all peachy keen between the two - that they've hemmed up the writers. If everything's always, "I love you. You're brilliant!" how can you root for them?

The most interesting point in the season as far as Derrick was concerned was when Addison came back when her brother needed brain surgery. I didn't realize how much I had missed her in the hallowed halls of Seattle Grace. She and Derrick had much more crackle and pop in those crossover episodes than he and Meredith ever had. For me, it's because Addison meets him on a professional level and isn't sitting at his feet, awed by him. They both respect each other, and their emotional history is rich, though their happy life was never seen on-screen. They are titans of character. I don't think Mer-Der serves either character - least of all, Meredith.

• Meredith this season didn't do too much for me, though I loved her little arc with the Chief as a father figure.

• Izzie and the brain tumor ... yawn. Everyone thinks this is Emmy material? Loved seeing Denny again though. Don't think they ever should have gotten rid of him in the first place. I liked Izzie's story this season, right up until she started having hallucinations. She was growing into a true mentor. Too bad.

• Alex as supportive lover ... we've seen this, no? With crazy girl, yes? Where's the growth?

• Miranda Bailey ... Awesome. She grew all over the place and didn't lose herself in the shuffle. And her choice between her professional life and her private life really resonated. She proves that even as a character can become well-known by the audiences, small changes in ambitions can turn their whole story around in a gripping way.

If I've forgotten anyone, it's because ... well ... their story was forgettable this season. I hope next season will shutter the opera and go back to the finer melodies.

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T09:04:00.000-04:00

To all the mothers out there. Happy Mother's Day!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Bones

2009-05-06T18:05:00.000-04:00

I flirt with this show, Bones. Maybe you know it. It's on Fox on a weeknight (I can't remember which one. That's what ye olde DVR is for.). Anywho, it stars David Boreanz of Angel fame and Emily Deschanel.

The show has got a great feel for a procedural. Ridiculous science, of course, but a sweet admiration for scientists. Strong characterizations, which may be due to the television series being based on a series of novels. The television series also has a sarcastic sense of humor without being nasty about it. The writers seem to actually like their audience, as opposed talking down to them.

So, why am I only flirting with Bones? Why not commit? Well, Bones is like that guy that both you and your parents want you to settle down with. It's great at first: he picks up the check at brunch; he buys you flower just because. But then, over the next few weeks you realize that's it. He doesn't get anymore interesting than this. He buys you flowers, but it's always the same set of flowers. He always orders the same thing at brunch.

Bones is like that guy. I'm not foreseeing any big surprises. But I keep hoping, and that's why I'll keep tuning in.

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Oh, St. Dymphna's

2009-05-06T07:22:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to make it into St. Dymphna's since, oh, I don't know, the '90s. I was in my twenties, and I thought it would just be the coolest spot on the planet. And I was right, sorta.

By "right," I mean that I'm glad to be here in my thirties -- a time in my life when I can appreciate a small, straight-up bar, where the vinito verde is pretty darn tasty. Loved the people there too -- staff and patrons.

My only wish/hope/dream is that they spread a little of the wifi around.

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

An Ode to My Cartier Perfume

2009-04-28T23:56:00.000-04:00

Oh, Eau de Cartier,
How lovely you are!
An air as mysterious
and dangerous
as The Orient Express.
Transport me,
you gorgeous scent,
to exotic memories
I've never had.

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

Achtung! Self-Promotion!

2009-04-23T09:26:00.000-04:00

This Monday, April 27th, at 7pm, The Drafts of Horse Trade Theater Group will perform a staged reading of my play, The River Pure For Healing. Heidi Grumelot is directing the free reading at the theater, Under St. Marks, at 94 St. Marks Place, between 1st Ave and Avenue A.

The reading is free! And it should be a great time. This play was last seen on the West Coast at the 2008 Resilience of the Spirit Play festival.

The River Pure For Healing, with its overall theme of questioning truth, is about a letter exchange program between political prisoners who are tortured during their incarcenations. The woman who runs the program is accused of falsifying letters that were published in a newspaper article praising the program. One of the prisoners who participated in the program arrives at the nonprofit's offices to expose the fraud. The prisoner's grasp on reality begins to unravel, and his subsequent breakdown has tragic consequences for all.

Hope you can make it!

-- Posted From My iPod Touch

What A Day!

2009-04-16T12:25:00.000-04:00

Spring has finally sprung! It's time for some outdoors fun.

-- Post From My iPod Touch

Life On Mars

2009-04-03T19:36:00.000-04:00

Where to begin ... Where to begin. I don't know. But I have a feeling
about how not to end ... your series ... producers of Life On Mars.

You don't actually go to Mars. That's not funny. That's not cute.

And I know most people loved Sam and Annie, but at the end, couldn't
us Maya (Mya) fans rate a little closure too? Why did he create her?
Come on. I realize I'm in the minority, as I'm one of the rare people
who hates the Meredith and Derrick relationship on Gray's Anatomy.

All that said, I thought the series could have pulled itself up in the
second season. For shame, ABC.

Posted from my iPod
www.piawilson.com
www.piaquarterly.com
www.twitter.com/Pia_Quarterly

A PQ Poll: The New MacGyver Movie

2009-03-16T13:26:00.000-04:00

Mr. Gandy, You're Welcome to Work at PQ!

2009-03-10T14:15:00.005-04:00

Word on the street — and by street, we mean Internet ... Fashionista on the Internet, that is — is that everyone's favorite male model, David Gandy, has a new backup career for when his pecks aren't as perky: editor!

The face and lovely body of Dolce & Gabbana fame is currently working as the editor of a new magazine, based in London, about fashion and politics called Fashist. Too bad it's not in New York — especially since we've heard NYC is cheaper than London now.

A PQ Invitation: Project Footlight.

2009-03-09T13:54:00.000-04:00

A PQ Poll: Flirting

2009-03-03T15:29:00.003-05:00