Milwaukee’s Live Theater

Last week, I received a book that I had pre-ordered back in January. It’s called Milwaukee’s Live Theater and it is by local author, Jonathan West. The book is a photo compilation and is part of the Images of America series. Jonathan is a local actor, director, author, and now the Managing Director of Sunset Playhouse. I was first introduced to Jonathan’s writing via his blogging for MKE magazine almost two years ago. When that magazine went out of business, he moved his blog to its own site, Artsy Schmartsy. Jonathan is a vocal proponent of the arts in Milwaukee. So, it was no surprise when he was chosen to head up the compilation of photographs that describe the history of live theatre in Milwaukee.

I haven’t completely finished the book yet but I love what I have read so far. I am learning so much about the history of theatre in our area. While I enjoy looking at all of the pictures, the narrative that accompanies the photos is very well done and informative. I have to admit, the first thing I did after getting the book was to page through it to see if it contained pictures of anyone I knew personally. I was pleasantly surprised that I could identify at least two people that I have worked with in a show. If you are a live theatre enthusiast in the Milwaukee area, you should pick up a copy.

We Finished Harry Potter

On Thursday night, A.J. and I finished the last three chapters and the epilogue of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I was actually misting up during certain parts of those chapters and through a lot of the epilogue. I don’t know why but the names mentioned in the epilogue made me almost tear up. I’m such a wuss. It took us just under a month to finish the book. We would read one or two chapters before bed on the nights when I wasn’t at rehearsal.

This was, by far, my favorite Harry Potter book. There was action and excitement in almost every chapter. I enjoyed the first three books. They were excellent kids’ books. The next three book hovered somewhere between kids’ book and adult book. But they weren’t really that good as either. I think this last book is an excellent adult book.

On the whole, I have enjoyed the entire series. J. K. Rowling really developed the characters well throughout the series. That is probably why the end of the last book affected me the way that it did. I am almost a sad that the series is over. I want to read about more adventures Harry, Ron, and Hermione along with Neville, Luna, and Ginny. I want to see the relationship between Harry and Ginny grow. I want to know what job Harry gets. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to use my imagination.

The Deathly Hallows

A.J. and I started to read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on Saturday. Back in 2002, when Kristi and I would still read to A.J. before bed, I started reading the Harry Potter series to him before bed. Even though he could probably chew through this book in about a day and half by himself, he still lets me read each new book of the series to him in the evenings after work. Because of that, we end up only getting through a chapter or two each day. So far, we have made to chapter 6 or 7. At this rate, it will take about 2 to 3 weeks to complete.

I have to say this book is phenomenal so far. I was a really big fan of the first three books. After that, the writing style changed. In books 4 thru 6, things that used to be describe in a sentence or two took several paragraphs to cover. It was like reading a screenplay. This last book is very detailed too but everything so exciting that you don’t notice. When I used to read to A.J., I would make sure each character’s voice sounded different and I tried to read dramatically. This book has me on the edge of my seat. I am tending to read it really fast and sometimes I stutter through lines. I am not doing a very good job with voices at all. A.J. is so engrossed in the book that he doesn’t mind that I am messing up. I can only assume that the book will continue excite right through to the end.