Questing Parson

The Parson's Son's Dance Company Nominated for a Grammy

Well, they didn't win, but my son's dance company, Pilobolus, with the band, OK Go, was nominated for a Grammy  at last night's awards. The nomination was in the category of Best Short Music Video. Here it is:

My Son and His Dance Company, Pilobolus, On German TV

My little boy is in the red shirt.

 

What Happens When OK Go and My Son's Dance Company, Pilobolus, Get Together?

Dizzy Dean Said "If it's true it's ain't bragging."

My son's dance company and his dance creation, "Shadowland" made the front page of Germany's largest newspaper. For a preview of this unique art form go HERE. (It's best viewed using the full screen option.)

 

My Kid at Work

My son, Matt, is Creative Director of the Pilobolus Dance Theater. He was key in the development of that company's "Shadowland" dances.  Here's an example from a German TV program on which they recently appeared. [Thanks Em]

My Son and Renee Jaworski Talk The Premier of Their Dance Creation at The American Dance Festival

Sometimes It's Depressing

Whew! It’s over! Holy Week does not always seem so holy for we preacher types. There are so many additional services, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunrise, and then the regular Easter service where those folks you vaguely remember show up along with a passel of visitors. You’d think it would lead this poor parson into a sense of euphoria, of satisfaction in getting through it.

Well, it does. But, truth be told, the euphoria lasts only a day, maybe two. And then reality sets in. The reality is this: The Sunday after Easter and the Sunday after Christmas are the least attended days in the Christian religion. The up of Easter’s attendance will soon be met by the poor  attendance next Sunday. Frankly, it’s depressing. Next Sunday I’ll be preaching to more wooden pew backs than people.

But, hey, I’ve been depressed before.

My first really personal encounter with depression was the result of being in love with Carole Memory. We were in high school. We loved each other. We planned all our activities so we maximized the time we had together. We were young so we had lots of time to spend together, to stare into each other’s eyes, and , well, okay I’ll confess it, to swap some spit. My life revolved around Carole. She was truly my all-in-all. Carole’s family moved to Florida and since she was only fifteen they required she move with them. That was depressing. That was horribly depressing.

There was that time my Daddy put me on restriction and denied me the car for a month. I was innocent. I was totally innocent. But the one man jury that ruled my life declared this innocent one guilty. Guilty of an offense I did not commit. My Daddy convicted me of drinking with my buddies in the car, and maybe, he suggested, driving while doing so. I have to admit the evidence against me was overwhelming. The stink of it was overwhelming. The car did smell like someone had heaved. The sickening odor was really horrible. It was so bad Daddy couldn’t drive it. That didn’t help my case. It smelled like someone had regurgitated all over that car. But I was innocent I was as innocent at the new fallen snow. It was depressing. It was horribly depressing.

Those were depressing times. But there were more to come. I became a father, a father of three. Prior to becoming a father I was an expert on child rearing. With the birth of the first I began to have doubts. With the birth of the second I began to question myself. Then, with the third, I realized how seriously limited I am.  It’s depressing.

All this is to say I am well acquainted with the depressing aspects of life. If it doesn’t convince you consider this: My kids now feel free to tell me anytime they want, “Dad, you can’t do that.” Or consider the fact that the smell in my Dad’s car was finally discovered to be the pulp from the fresh lemonade he spilled and which flowed under the driver’s seat to rot. Or even more depressing is this: Remember Carole Memory. After she moved to Florida she told me she wanted to explore her options. I learned later her option was named Ralph.  Now that was really depressing!

Maybe, in the scheme of things the low attendance this Sunday will not be all that depressing.

Plugging the Kid, Again

OK - I know I plugged him only a few days ago. But my son, a Creative Director of the Pilobolus Dance Theater, is readying himself for the premier of his new creation, Shadowland. It’s part dance part shadow act, part circus, and part concert. Shadowland is a surreal story of a young girl’s sensational world as she comes of age, created in collaboration with lead writer of SpongeBobSquarePants, Steven Banks, and the American musician, producer, and film composer, David Poe, whose poetic work for Shadowland ranges from ballads to hard-driving rock numbers that lift the audience out of its seats!  The lead dancer is Molly Gawler

Send some good thoughts toward my really nervous son.

Here’s the trailer for the Premier in Madrid, Spain, this coming Saturday. 

My Son the Dancer

My son, Matt, for a decade was the Dance Captain of the Pilobolus Dance Theater, performing on almost every continent .... well, you get the picture. The boy inherited his dad's genes.

Recently Matt has become a Creative Director of Pilobolus, as well as the Pickle Shoes Dance Company, a company that makes dance a shared experience with children.

His newest creation is working in the realm of "Shadowland". The piece is almost two hours and is absolutely amazing. In the piece Molly Gawler, the female lead dancer, is stunning as she moves in and out of Shadowland during her dream which is the dance titled "Dog-id". Here's a three minute excerpt of his creation that will premier in Madrid, Spain, on September 15th.