week 14 storytime video: The teeny, weenie ... true king

The Teeny, Weenie True King... from Jonathan Michael on Vimeo.

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visit the The Jesus Storybook Bible site to learn more
buy the book: here
download audio on  or amazon

War Horse

This Christmas I was lucky enough to see the award-winning smash hit War Horse at the New London Theater. Based on the children's novel by Michael Morpurgo, it's a play about a plough horse commandeered by the cavalry and sent to the front in the First World War. It's a story of loyalty, bravery, and the extraordinary bond between a young recruit and his horse.

What is most incredible about this production though is the astonishing way they conjure a horse on stage: so life-like, so convincing, so minutely observed, that you totally forget it's a puppet and believe instead that what you're seeing on stage in front of you is an actual living breathing horse.

And it's not because you can't see the puppeteers. That's the odd thing. You can see them clearly at all times. And there is no effort to hide them. Each seven foot tall horse puppet is manipulated by a team of three actors: one for the back legs and tail; another for the front and neck; and another to guide the model. (In the photo above, for instance, the three on the left are the puppeteers for the young foal Joey.) But because of the realism of the movements (even down to the movement of the horses' ears) and the mastery of the puppeteers your brain simply blanks them out leaving only the horse.

It's astonishing. And magical. And powerfully moving. And of course impossible to describe--you need to see it for yourself. So take a look at this to get an idea and go if you possibly can. (If you can't make it to London, the production apparently will be in NYC sometime in 2011.)

Britain lost close to a million horses in the First World War. This play is a tribute to them. And through that lens, it also gets you to see the tragic human loss of the Great War. And feel it afresh.

(Adapted by Nick Stafford from a novel by Michael Morpurgo. The puppets were designed by the Handspring Puppet Company of South Africa. Directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris, War Horse opened at the National Theater in 2007 and transferred to the West End’s New London Theatre in the spring.)

prize winning cringe-worthiness

so awful it's painful. However the great thing is: no matter how awful your day, at least you're not them ...

week 13 storytime video: The warrior leader

The Warrior Leader from Jonathan Michael on Vimeo.

(no need to add a code, just hit ENTER and it'll play)

visit the The Jesus Storybook Bible site to learn more
buy the book: here
download audio on  or amazon

what books to weed

Did you read this cool NYT article from various writers, etc. on which books they plan to weed this year? If not you can read more here.

One thing everyone seems to agree on: to weed books, you must be honest and ruthless. Am I keeping this book on my shelves so everyone will think how learned and interesting I am? Will I ever really open this book again? If not out it goes...

Anyway so here's what I plan to weed:
--atlases that are out of date
--anything about How To ... write or be more efficient or effective or better at anything (they just give me anxiety disorders and stop me from doing anything at all let alone anything more efficiently)
--books that make me feel guilty (I haven't read, don't want to read but keep them because they tell me to) (They just give me headaches)
--anything with spiral bindings
--anything that's more than 2 inches thick
--anything to do with accounting or business courses or SEPS or 401Ks

What about you? What can you live without?

open every door

"not knowing when the dawn will come I open every door"
emily dickinson

h  a  p  p  y     n  e  w     y  e  a  r    2  0  1  0  !

week 12 storytime video: Ten ways to be perfect

Ten ways to be perfect from Jonathan Michael on Vimeo.

(no need to add a code, just hit ENTER and it'll play)

visit the The Jesus Storybook Bible site to learn more
buy the book: here
download audio on  or amazon

nyc doorway

(photo by Paul Canetti)