Bearly Dressed: Photo of Bear Embracing Woman Illustrates Misogyny in Photography

Today I came across this picture, by Olga Barantseva, as I was scrolling through my Facebook feed.

It’s a beautiful, captivating picture. For a moment, all I saw was how great it was to show a woman and a bear being friends, the bear protecting her rather than being shown as aggressive and dangerous. The bear is in the classic position that, in this type of photo, a man would usually be in. The bear is standing over and behind the woman, its arm around her protectively. The photo looks like the cover of a romance novel, the woman seductively in a state of semi-undress and the man holding her in his arms, except here the man is a bear. I love the idea of showing humans and animals interacting as equals.

Then I realized that the bear and the woman are not equals in this photo.

Yes, they are positioned exactly the way a man and woman would typically be position in a photo like this, but that doesn’t mean they are equals. Rather, it means that the woman is in some way submissive.

Continue reading “Bearly Dressed: Photo of Bear Embracing Woman Illustrates Misogyny in Photography”

A Pentatonix A Capella Christmas 2016 (VIDEO)

The a capella group Pentatonix had a Christmas special on NBC last week, but so far I haven’t been able to find the full show posted anywhere. They also released their third Christmas album this year, which they’ve been heavily promoting. So, there are a lot of videos of them making promotional appearances singing Christmas carols, along with the official music videos from the album. That all adds up to too many to post here, but, in lieu of the special, I’m posting some of my favorites. Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice, Happy New Year, Happy Everything!

More under the cut, including a Pentatonix yule log video. (They have a collection, if yule logs are your thing.)

Continue reading “A Pentatonix A Capella Christmas 2016 (VIDEO)”

Who Wore It Better: Darren, Lena, or Euan? Hedwig Transformation Poll

All three of the actors who have had regular gigs playing Hedwig in the national tour of Hedwig and the Angry Inch have given us photos or videos of themselves in the middle of their preshow preparations. (Darren took his during his Broadway run.) Which national tour Hedwig wore the makeup-only look best?

Click on each photo to see it full size.

Vote for your favorite after the cut!

Continue reading “Who Wore It Better: Darren, Lena, or Euan? Hedwig Transformation Poll”

CNN Commentator Receives Trump-Style Pat Down by TSA

She’s Not the First, She Won’t Be the Last.

Metamaiden:

I wouldn’t be surprised if this happens to me at some point. TSA sometimes decides it’s “policy” to pat me down and search all my stuff because I ask them to hand check my external electronic medical devices, so they don’t get ruined by the x-rays. I still walk through the metal detector, and the rest of my stuff goes through the x-rays. They don’t consistently pat me down, it depends on the airport and who’s working that day. Sometimes they argue with me about whether the devices need to be hand checked at all, instead, which is my right according to their own policies.* They’ve spent 10-15 minutes trying to force me out of an inspection that takes them 2 minutes. TSA basically likes to go on power trips, as far as I can tell. This is a perfect example of that. This poor woman.

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For Your Viewing Pleasure: Avengers Fireside Holiday “Yule Log” Videos

 

From Marvel and Coca-Cola, a peak inside the Avengers’ apartments during the holidays as we hang out by their fireplaces.

These Marvel Fireside Heroes videos are like a Yule log video, but instead we’re sitting in Steve Rogers’ apartment, listening to swing jazz versions of Christmas carols for an hour as we watch his fire, or on the Guardians of the Galaxy’s spaceship watching Baby Groot dance next to the fire. They’re filled with tiny details, like the pictures of Bucky, Peggy and his mom that Steve has next to the fire, and his original USO tour shield hung over the mantel. One chair leg is held up by a stack of books, because Steve is still a thrifty Depression era guy at heart. The apartment furnishings look like they could be straight from the forties, just like Steve himself. It’s a lonely looking place, from a lonely time in his life, but we could totally join him and make it better, right?

Captain America’s Brooklyn Apartment Fireside video. The close up version is above:

Under the cut: Thor, Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, the Guardians & Deadpool

Continue reading “For Your Viewing Pleasure: Avengers Fireside Holiday “Yule Log” Videos”

The 100 Season 4 Trailer: Holy Radiation Poisoning, That Was A Lot (VIDEO)

OKAY I have a lot of feelings so here we go:

  • Toxic rain and incinerated pyramids. YAAAS.
  • Clarke’s speech. ❤️ I feel like it’s been a while since we had her standing in front of a bunch of people inspiring them and leading them. She was so broken throughout season 3. It was painful. But it looks like she’s getting her hope back, settling back into being the inspiring leader she naturally is. She seems a little brighter than she was last season.
  • WHY ARE THERE RADIATION BURNS ON CLARKE’S FACE. I’m gonna assume this is a dream or a hallucination or something of the sort.
  • ECHO. ECHO MY LOVE. I am SO excited to have her back. The actress who plays Echo, Tasya Teles (awesome name), is so charismatic and so good. I’ve been sad that we didn’t get more of her for a long time.

Continue reading “The 100 Season 4 Trailer: Holy Radiation Poisoning, That Was A Lot (VIDEO)”

See Euan Morton Transform Into Hedwig (Through Time-Lapse Video)

 

Hannah Corneau Slips in for a Quick Hello, Too

Thanks to the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, where Euan played Hedwig last week, we can watch Euan’s full transformation, from eyebrows to wig, in a little over a minute.

This week, the tour has moved on to Seattle, Washington. Next week, they’ll be in Salt Lake City, Utah. For more information, visit HedwigBroadway.com.

Under the cut, a short video interview with Euan and Hannah, also in Denver.

Continue reading “See Euan Morton Transform Into Hedwig (Through Time-Lapse Video)”

42 Hairspray Live! GIFs to Brighten Up Your Day

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Courtesy of the Folks at BroadwayWorld.com

Who were apparently goofing off and making gifs while they were supposed to be covering the event. (Just kidding, they made the gifs to insert into their live tweets of the broadcast.) The gifs include the entire cast, and moments from the length of the show, from opening to closing credits. Here are a few to get you started.

Continue reading “42 Hairspray Live! GIFs to Brighten Up Your Day”

Watch Full Recording of the Bright Star Reunion Concert On Demand Now [Updated with Video]

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Youtube Has Posted the Full Concert Recording on Livestream.com with Steve Martin, Edie Brickell, and the Original Broadway Cast

Post Concert Update: The concert was amazing, and the creative team shared a few juicy tidbits during the Q&A. A tour is being planned for 2018, starting in Salt Lake City. They’ve also been getting requests for regional licenses. (Like I thought, this show just needs time to grow its audience slowly and organically.) There are no current plans to make the show into a movie, but Steve said he tends to end up turning everything he writes into one, eventually. The entire cast and creative team were clearly excited about the Grammy nomination and the chance to perform the show again. Everyone looked to be enjoying themselves. They were all in good voice, and backed by a full bluegrass band. Steve and Edie performed at the top of each act. At one point during the Q&A, Steve took someone’s phone from the audience so that he could playback the question he’d just been asked (he said he’d already forgotten it), then took a selfie.

Watch the Entire Bright Star Reunion Concert Here

2021 Update: Oops, the original Theatermania link is broken, but have a lovely Youtube of the event instead! I finally saw the full version of Bright Star myself at the Lyric Theatre in Oklahoma City in April, 2019. It was a wonderful production. I wished that I’d arranged to stay a couple of days to see the show a few more times!

Steve Martin and Edie Brickell Host Bright Star Reunion Tonight: Concert Will Be Livestreamed

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The Original Broadway Cast Returns to Celebrate the OBC Soundtrack Album Receiving a Grammy Nomination

As we reported last week, Steve Martin and Edie Brickell will host a Bright Star concert tonight (Monday, 12/12) at the Town Hall venue featuring Carmen Cusack, Paul Alexander Nolan, and many others from the original cast. The concert is sold out, but you can still watch it! Theatermania.com is livestreaming the concert at 7:30 PM ET. There still aren’t any more details on the livestream, but I will update with a link and any other info I find it before the concert tonight.

More from the Bright Star Facebook page:

Join us online for a live stream of Monday night’s sold-out Bright Star reunion concert at Town Hall in NYC, exclusively on TheaterMania.com. Co-creators Steve Martin and Edie Brickell will join as both hosts and guest-performers for the evening. Immediately following the concert, the legendary Peter Asher will moderate a Q&A with Martin, Brickell, and other members of the creative team.

The livestream will begin at 7:30pm EST and can be viewed by visiting TheaterMania.com.

Since its release this past spring, the original cast recording of Bright Star has enjoyed the rare distinction of having charted on five different Billboard lists. The cast album hit #1 on the Top Current Blue Grass Albums chart, #2 on the Top Broadway chart, and #5 on the Americana/Folk Albums chart. It also made the Top 100 on the Billboard Top Albums chart and Top 200 on the Overall Digital Albums chart. The album is produced by the legendary, multi-Grammy Award-winning producer, manager, and musician Peter Asher. It is one of the top selling cast recordings of the year, and is now nominated for a 2017 Grammy Award. For more info & to buy it: https://www.sh-k-boom.com/bright-star-original-broadway-cast-recording