Lakewood's Macbeth

before the play

GeneralsMacBeth (L) and Banquo (R) before entrance

Assassins attack Fleance and Banquo

Macbeth sees Banquo's ghost at supper

MacBeth sees Duncan's ghost

Apparition of future king over invisible cauldron, and two witches

Lady MacBeth washing blood off hands in sleep

Gentle woman in waiting and a Doctor of physic

Macduff runs MacBeth through

23° Ohio Volunteer Infantry

Historical re-enactors of the Union Army of several regiments marching to commemorate the 152nd anniversary of the dedication of the monument of the war dead of the 23° Ohio Volunteer Infantry at Woodland Cemetery Cleveland Ohio. The monument was set in Cuyahoga County, because that county had the most members of any county in the state.

 

 sheet music is, Come dearest the daylight is gone

 

 notice the pattern within the stars

 

 One of the two cannon of the day fired off this charge

 Taps

 "The 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry monument at Woodland Cemetery is considered the First Regimental Civil War Monument erected in the United States." It was an idea of the soldiers, and paid for by the soldiers in the regiment. Here is the official unveiling of the state historical marker.

 73° Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment Band

Light artillerymen

casket crusade

 

Some people driving along East 55th in Cleveland saw these caskets, including a child's one in front of East Technical High School.

Over the last year, local television has covered extensively the opiod addiction problem in Ohio. They have 'whitewashed' it. A lot of manufactured belief has been that street drugs were a problem of the urban ghettos of non-white people. Such people were considered criminals, now it is being presented that people of the current drug problems are victims. Rob Portman used this to gain votes to retain his Senate seat.

Here in northeast Ohio is an honest presentation by the Word Church. The community is being attacked, and not just drugs, but violence of all kinds. People are dying, families are grieving, and suffering. Some people believe that showing concrete symbols might shake people into action. People must realise the damage done. We are mostly, at least nominally, a Christian community; with Jesus as a focus, and a carrier of burdens, we may survive. Christian witness has an obligation to help.

 "The Word Church present The Casket Crusades, where the goal is to shed light on the alarming number of people dying in our communities due to drug abuse and violence. We’ll march through some of the hardest hit areas with men carrying caskets on their shoulders, to symbolize the burden we all share when a life is taken."

To-day, they will march from East Tech High on 55th to Public Square. The last two Saturdays they were in Akron, and East Cleveland. Around noon, three hours before the march, they set up a cook out and socialised.

Men need to be visible. Men have to make their voices and presence known.

Mayfield's MacBeth

Mayfield Village has a park complex with an amphitheatre, they are adding resources to it. This summer it has a new roof, it looks good, and its shape helps project the sound. We came Saturday, to hear Blue Water String Ensemble, Sunday for MacBeth. Our view was occluded by a couple with lawn chairs a little too high and wide, they were comfortable. The site is better for listening to music than to watch acting. The play started an half hour later, and light was diminished at the end, but we got there early and caught the sun high, before it settled behind the trees, and the roof over the stage. So there were few fotos that came out well. Cleveland's Shakespeare Company plays several venues, some are better than others. Mayfield got a very good crowd, for one of Shakespeare's better known plays. When you hear the play, you will recognise sentences used as comments in everyday speech. People quote Shakespeare without knowing. We might see Saturday's performance in Lakewood, a better spot for watching.

Director Tyson Rand with a battle behind him

King Duncan and his sons Malcolm  and Donalbain

Actors changing costumes beyond the audience, photographer walking

One of the soldiers of Birnam Wood approaching Dunsinane

Fleance, son of Banquo, and mythical forebear of the Stuarts (Kings of Scotland, and later the Sassenachs [England]

2017 Miscellany #6 — near west side

off of W. 25th

Trinity Lutheran

In Lakewood for the solar green moment

 At Lakewood High, Johnny Appleseed's facelift is still not done.

 A purple martin takes off at lakewood Park

 Gray squirrel in an oak tree in early evening light

 not from this angle, but at the photographer's, she is holding the sun in her hand

 the setting sun is sliced by a cloud

At the solstice steps watching to see the sun fall into the water, and within the last second of partial disc visibility, it turned green. That is the first time i have seen that, and it came in an eyeblink. Missed the foto, it was a goodly sized crowd, they applauded the sunset, i do not know if many noticed the green moment.

A little political theatre to-day, noon...

Well, the local newscast yesterday were all talking about all the things happening downtown this weekend. No one mentioned that there are national protests against Trump and his fascist regime, including one in Cleveland, the place he was officially announced as the Republican candidate. One station did have a story about that convention, figures should have been released on its economic impact on the city. It has not.

In the top left of the foto, supra, is a street sign reading: E. 9th Street/Rock & Roll Blvd. The building in the background is Cleveland City Hall. In the middleground is Claes Oldenburg's Free Stamp sculpture. In the center foreground is the event's main banner with their message, The Trump/Pence Regime Must Go! In The Name of Humanity, We REFUSE to Accept a Fascist America. Locally, the event was sponsored by Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus. In the left foreground is retired US Army Captain Lou Pumphrey, Viet Nam service. He used to work at the Universe Bulletin. He believes in peace, and often comes to parades and such events. Captain Lou is of very calm demeanor, and is not fond of bullhorn speeches. Across the street, to the left, is a 30+ storey Federal Building with a view of the whole spectacle.

Cleveland Police had bicyclists across the street to the northeast, and police alongside City Hall and elsewhere. I only stayed a few minutes, and they had very little to do.

Foto supra, there are two people left of center are observer lawyers, they have small back packs and have a piece of clothing in high visibility yellow-green. Out of the picture, beyond left are people watching with disapproval of the event in front of them.

What is Fascism? sign

Anti-demonstration observers, pro-fascist, pro-Trump/Pence regime supporters armed on the sidewalk in front of the Free Stamp. Pony tail guy gave me several looks of annoyance/displeasure/suspicion. Woman is wearing one of those bolshevik red MAGArac caps.

 In some countries, this would look quite menacing.

trochaic tetrameter with rhymed couplets

 Having fun with Shakespeare

foto supra:  Cleveland Natural History Museum, Poison exhibit 2016

Act IV scene i.  A cavern. In the middle, a boiling cauldron. Thunder. Enter the three Witches.

Cleveland's outdoor Shakespeare troupe will be performing MacBeth.  A lot of play with this part. Even a scarce budget, and minimalist props should have a cauldron. Depending on the edition, they are the Weyward, or Weird Sisters, or Witches. That hellish stew they are cooking with fearsome children story verse is in trochaic tetrameter with rhymed couplets. The ingredient list can be done with delicious taste of ham. A combination of fear and comedy, but did we not watch "the Munsters", and "the Addams Family" in the turbulent sixties in joy?

    Double, double toil and trouble;
    Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.

I compare this with the old "Stone Soup" story, where three hungry Napoleonic soldiers con a village with three stones to make a huge, tasty soup. They just kept on asking for ingredients to throw into the burrowed cauldron.

There is a lot of dark humour in Shakespeare. Life under the Elizabethan police state was endangered, and people were gambling whether the Scot Stuart would better be.

Unfortunately my memory has faded, but my senior English class went to see a few plays at the four theatres of the Cleveland Play House. I do believe, "MacBeth" was one. I remember, Eric Bentley's play“Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been,, was one. It was about the HUAC witch hunt of the late forties, and into the fifties.

Getting back to Will. I hear a cable teevee series is about to start on him.

One of those clever moments is Othello. Othello is a Moor. The patron saint of Spain is James the Moorslayer. Iago is a Spanish variant of James. Before the play starts, you have to know Iago is going to do in Othello.

sprucing up Lincoln Park

Lincoln Park is between W.11th and 14th, in what is now called Tremont. Previously it was University Heights, before Lincoln became president, and the South Side later. The city is spending resources to nicen it up.

A new gazebo replaced the previous one in the center of Lincoln Park, and it was ready for use by the local outdoor Shakespeare company for shrew taming on July 2nd. [i have been trying to find a foto of the old one]

and a little humour

Don't know who placed the Vatican City flag by this little evergreen. Cleveland has a place in Christmas tree history. It was not the first one in America, but the first one that got in trouble. They may not count, but the Hessian soldiers during the War of Independence celebrated Christmas, and with Christmas trees. Later, other Germans would do so in Pennsylvania, and New York. In 1851, Heinrich Christian Schwan and his wife had one in their Zion Lutheran church. Cleveland was a Yankee controlled town then, and it attacked Schwan and his people in the papers. The year after several people had Christmas trees. For years there has been a ceremony at Schwan's grave at Lake View Cemetery in December.

 Across the 14th side, St Augustine is having their windows repaired.

Across the 11th street side, Our Lady of Mercy's campus has been turned into apartments. This was the rectory.