Category: librivox Page 3 of 4

Oh, the Horror!

On Monday, 17 August, 2009

In audiobooks, librivox, public domain, theatre

I have a couple of minutes before my meeting begins, so this seems as good a time as any to update here.

I’ve been working on Little Shop of Horrors for the past few weeks in the ensemble. We open a week from Friday. It’s been interesting… we rented a set of puppets from somewhere or other, but when they showed up, they were in pretty bad condition. The director ended up going to Louisiana to rent another set, only he didn’t have room in his vehicle for the largest, so we’re still having to fix up the largest of the other set (and try to make it look sort of like the other set). Other than that, it’s been quite fun. It’s a small cast, fifteen people, and the youngest person is 19 (a great relief after the huge number of teenagers in Brigadoon); everyone sings well, can do harmony, acts decently. All in all, a really nice group, and at least half are new to the theatre, which is always fun too.

Finished the two Montfort books for Catholic Audio Company, and am close to finishing Death of a Pope for Ignatius, and not too far off on the two for iPublish. Have been neglecting Secret Garden dreadfully, but after next week, I’ll have my evenings free again and will be able to record more.

I’ve also been working on a sound booth, because since the weather got hot, I’ve pretty much been limited to recording first thing in the morning, because the crickets and cicadas are so loud. I build a cage out of half inch pvc pipe. It’s tall enough in the centre that I can stand up straight. I bought a set of sound absorption sheets from Audimute to cover it with. I’ve attached two lengthwise along the sides with gromets and one inch binder rings. I’ve started attaching a third sheet to the top. I had originally planned to just hang the fourth sheet over the front opening, but quickly decided that wasn’t going to be effective, so I’ve decided to build a door and attach the fourth sheet to it with the gromets and book rings like the rest of it. That leaves a section on the back wall between the roof and the top of the other sheets. I’m planning on attaching a couple of acoustic tiles that I had for the portable sound booth to a piece of muslin and hanging that over that hole. Once it’s complete, I’m going to move the mic in there, along with a secondary monitor, keyboard and mouse so that I can continue to read off the screen, but without having to worry about laptop fan noise (and without having to move the laptop back and forth, which gets pretty old when you have as many things plugged into it as I do). I forgot to take pics of the work in progress, but I’m planning on taking some as I build the door, and then of the completed booth.

Betty Buckley is coming to the Hip this Saturday, and I’ve bought two tickets to the show. I’ve invited Regan to go with me, since she’s a big fan of the Mystery of Edwin Drood in which BB played the title role. It’s my birthday present to myself, and I had to do some wangling to be excused from rehearsal the Saturday before opening night (but I made sure to wangle before buying the tickets, just in case).

Separation

By kruthie73

On Monday, 18 May, 2009

In audiobooks, librivox, public domain, tv

I originally had this in my last post, but I decided to separate it out and leave the Star Trek review in its own spoilery post.

I managed to record eight chapters for my Clara Vaughan project this weekend (it had been on hold for a while while I finished the Interior Castle, did Brigadoon, and then bought and set up a new laptop after my old one died). I’ll be working more steadily on this one as it’s due mid-June and I’m not quite half-way yet. I may be doing another project for Catholic Audio Company (the people I did Interior Castle for), a two parter by St Louis de Montford, True Devotion to Mary and the Secret of the Rosary. I haven’t signed a contract for this one yet. My three LibriVox projects have been sorely neglected for the past few weeks.

I’ve been watching Rosemary and Thyme via Netflix. I’ve been a fan of Felicity Kendall’s since I came across her as Viola/Cesario in the BBC’s Twelfth Night back when I was an undergrad, and after she appeared on an episode of Doctor Who, I saw that she’d done this murder mystery series a few years ago and decided to check it out. I’ve also been meaning to watch the Good Life (aka Good Neighbors in the US) because although it comes on PBS every so often, it’s quite sporadic, and I’ve never figured out the schedule.

Pandas and Trains

By kruthie73

On Monday, 7 July, 2008

In friends, knitting, librivox, pics, public domain, theatre

I’ve started working on baby projects for T. I’ve already made a little panda hat. I still need to buy eyes for it, but otherwise it’s finished.

The other project is going to be a pullover with a train on it. I found a pattern, and I’m going to change up the colours to make it look like the Hogwarts Express. I had ordered the pattern a couple of weeks ago, but they had run out, and I had to wait for their new stock to come in. It finally arrived at the end of last week. Now I just need some yarn – I have some in my stash that I want to use, in red, black, white, and yellow, but I also need some grey, blue and green.

The melodrama goes up in less than two weeks. I’m not particularly excited at this point, but then, I hadn’t wanted to direct to begin with. I wanted to be nice and rested when auditions for Children of Eden came along. Ah, well. We do get to use the theatre space as of tonight, which is a week earlier than we’d expected, so that’s nice. Even though we don’t get to do any set building as yet (the Children’s Theatre are still officially in the space), at least the actors will get a feel for the dimensions and the acoustics.

I went downtown to watch the fireworks last Friday for the first time since coming to live in Waco. The closest I’d come to this before was hanging out with friends in one of the Baylor parking lots when I was an undergrad and setting off some of our own little ground based fireworks and then watching the big display from a distance. It was quite fun. I hung out with Beth and the 92.9 tent; and Eileen came and hung out with us too.

I’ve just started working on Anne of the Island for LibriVox. I had been working on Mr Hogarth’s Will and Angelina, but I just couldn’t get into them and I kept procrastinating and not doing any recording at all. I’ve turned Mr Hogarth’s Will into a collaborative, and started up Anne as my new English solo. I feel sort of guilty abandoning Hogarth, especially because no one has shown any interest in it in the nearly two weeks since I turned it collaborative. But I’ve also started recording more often now that I’m working on a project that interests me. If no one picks up any of the chapters, I’ll probably do one here and there just to keep it alive. Oh, and for the first time since, I think, my second project, someone beat Ans to signing up to PL one of my English solo projects!

I’m still working on Angelina too (more enthusiastically since I started Anne). Spanish is so under-represented in the catalog, that I feel it’s my duty to contribute as much as possible, both in solos and collaboratives. I’ve currently got three collaborative projects going – part 6 of Aesop’s Fables, Jose MartÃ‘s La Edad de Oro, and I took over part 2 of Don Quijote from Gesine when she needed some time off. Angelina is only the third solo Spanish work in the catalog, and one of the other two is mine as well.

Habit humour

By admin

On Thursday, 3 April, 2008

In librivox, public domain, theatre

I spent some time last night playing with the veil and wimple from my costume, trying to get the “habit humour” scene down. I’m doing alright with Pocahontas, Heidi, Pippi and Attila, because, well, they’re simple, and even if they weren’t, the actress does these on the dvd. Katherine Hepburn is a problem, not because I don’t know what I’m doing, but because the veil’s too long, and the little tail that’s supposed to kind of stick up droops down to my chin. Easy to fix, fortunately; just a bit of cutting and hemming. My biggest problem is Princess Leia, because she doesn’t do that one on the dvd (she does Twisted Sister instead), and I have no idea how to get the coils to stay (or maybe I’m just supposed to hold them??). I also need to alter the wimple so that it doesn’t move around on my head, because that just ruins the picture. I’m thinking of replacing the strips of ribbon that tie at the back with elastic, but I have to make sure it’s ok with the director first.

I’ve kind of been going into LV withdrawal lately because I just haven’t had time to record. I can only manage a chapter or two a week right now. I did manage to finish The Elusive Pimpernel and Anne of Avonlea before the new show started. I’ve got two new projects going now, Angelina by Manuel Delgado (in Spanish) and Mr Hogarth’s Will by Catherine Helen Spence. I’d never heard of either of these before I came across them while browsing gutenberg, but the title’s sounded interesting. I was most interested in Angelina because it’s by a Mexican author.

Much of a sameness…

By admin

On Wednesday, 30 January, 2008

In audiobooks, librivox, public domain, theatre

So, not much new going on. I had fun at that workshop in Austin. Our meeting room was a computer lab, so there was plenty of hands-on time. We were at UT, and the Bullock Texas State History Museum was right across the street, so I went there one night. Other than that, I didn’t get out much. I asked Darryl when I got back what we actually use XSLT for here, and he could only think of one example off the top of his head, and that project’s done (though it may need tweaking at some point). So, though I was glad to learn the stuff, I don’t know when I’ll get to use it.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is just over a week away from opening (a week from tomorrow’s our preview performance) and it’s coming along nicely. Yesterday was the first night the actors weren’t allowed to call for lines (except for Big Mama, who only started about a week ago, due to an injury to the original Big Mama) and they did pretty well… except they were concentrating so hard on lines that they tended to lose energy. Tennessee Williams is a depressing enough playwright when the energy is up, so last night’s run-through just dragged in places.

I got a bunch of recording done this weekend. I had the time on Sunday, and I was in the right mood, so I just went for it. I got all my collaborative chapters done (a couple of the Arabian Nights [in French] and a few chapters from Kilmeny of the Orchard [which the BC asked me if I’d be willing to do]), and a monologue for the latest Shakespeare Collection, plus several chapters from my solos. I may get some more done tomorrow morning. I’m taking half a day off from work to get new tires for my car, so I may have some time before they open to get some chapters done. That’s one thing about doing shows, my evenings are pretty much gone. I have time between work and rehearsal to get a bite to eat or take a little nap (not both), but that’s about it. So I usually only get to record on the weekends.

Starting off the year

By admin

On Monday, 7 January, 2008

In family, friends, librivox, movies, public domain, work

Well, I survived the week in CA, but I was glad I was only there for a week. The place was hectic. Ten people and two dogs, and then the last couple of days, one additional person. Two people had colds when I arrived, and by the time I left, they’d traded them with two others – myself and my mother. So, I was glad I’d asked for the rest of last week off. It gave me time to get better before having to come back to work. With so many of us sick, it was interesting to see how each of us reacted to the same virus – one had really bad chest congestion; another had horrible post-nasal drip and cough; mine was all in the sinuses; mum’s had just started when I left, so I don’t know what hers was like.

I got a great new lap quilt from mum for Christmas. I’d told her how cold it gets in my office, so she made me one that folds up into a pillow to keep at work. I’d been a bit worried about the gift I got for Andy – a physics kit (like a chemistry set but with gears and wires and things), but apparently his parents found him playing with it when they went to bed Christmas Eve (an hour or so after he’d said he was going to sleep). 🙂

MB and Sherry and I got to have a couple of SKVE meetings while Sherry was here for her holiday. We went to see P.S. I Love You one day and met for coffee another day. I’m not a great fan of Hillary Swank, but I enjoyed the movie ok. Sherry hadn’t heard anything about it before going, so she was disappointed that Gerard Butler dies; but then relieved that he comes back in flash-backs and hallucinations. She just likes to look at him. I made them each a short scarf with a slit in one end that you can tuck the other end into. MB opened hers while Sherry and I were waiting for our coffees, and we watched her trying to figure it out. She kept looking at the length of it, then opening the slit, then folding it back up. When she heard us giggling at her she asked me what it was, “It’s too short to be a scarf, and it has this opening thing only on one end…” Once she figured it out, she liked it. Sherry, having spent some time in a colder climate now, knew exactly what it was and how to use it. 🙂

I’m off to my first programming conference this week. It’s a three day conference on XSLT. It’s the first conference I’ve gone to for Baylor. I need to do a bit of research on Austin (which is where it’s going to be), so I can visit stuff after hours.

I’ve started a new project on LibriVox to work on in conjunction with The Elusive Pimpernel. I started Anne of Avonlea last night. I had a sudden craving for some more Anne. I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to get done on these two projects this coming month (while Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is in rehearsals), but I’ll always have weekends.

Christmas is coming, the geese are getting fat…

By admin

On Wednesday, 19 December, 2007

In audiobooks, family, knitting, librivox, public domain, theatre

The Man Who Came to Dinner has finished. I got lots of compliments on my character, and lots of “it took me a second to realize that was you when you came on stage” type comments. During the course of MWCtD my friend Tredessa applied for and got the directorship of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which is the next show coming up. I hadn’t been particularly interested in auditioning for that show (I find Tennessee Williams terribly depressing), but I enjoy working with T, so I checked to see if they had a stage manager for it yet. They didn’t, so I signed up for the job. We’ve had auditions, but rehearsals don’t really get started until the New Year, so there’ll be a bit of a break. As much as I enjoy doing stuff at the Civic, it’s nice to know that, for this gig, I actually do get paid a small stipend (yay, crew!).

I’m heading off to CA on Friday to spend Christmas with mum and Paul’s family. I just learned that Alondra’s sister and her two sons will also be there during that time. That is going to be one crowded house. I think I may be asking to go to work with mum more often than I would otherwise have done. I know she wants me to play Santa to all her friends one day at least.

I’ve been knitting frantically for the past few of weeks to finish Christmas presents. I’ve made a purse for my sister-in-law. I finished the actual knitting a couple of weeks ago, but it wasn’t until this past weekend that I got around to sewing up the seams and putting in the lining (which I think I made a little too big, but by the time I figured it out, I was so far into it that I couldn’t bear the thought of starting over (again – the first try was too small)). My other project was a scarf for mum’s friend Natalie, which I also finished last weekend. I took both patterns from my “knitting pattern a day ” calendar. I’ve been pulling out the patterns I like and storing them in one of my notebooks. I was pleased to be able to use a couple of them. I’d post pictures of them, only I haven’t been able to find my camera for several weeks now.

I’ve finished both the projects I was working on for LibriVox. I finished Pride and Prejudice over Thanksgiving weekend, and Novelas Cortas the following week. Now I’m working on another of the Scarlet Pimpernel books, The Elusive Pimpernel. At this rate, I may end up doing all of them (that are on gutenberg, anyway). I got the new MCC continuing ed schedule in the mail last week, and I saw that one of the seminars they’re offering is about doing voice over work. I’m seriously considering signing up for it.

I went to see August Rush and Enchanted around Thanksgiving. I really liked them both. I’ve gotten to the point where I usually just wait for a movie to come out on dvd before watching it, but there are a few that intrigue me enough that I’m willing to shell out five bucks for a matinee.

Bombshell? Me?? OK.

By admin

On Monday, 12 November, 2007

In audiobooks, friends, librivox, public domain, theatre

I’m in the middle of rehearsals for The Man Who Came to Dinner at the WCT. I got cast as Lorraine Sheldon, bombshell. The thought still makes me giggle, because I so don’t think of myself as the bombshell type. I wasn’t actually up for the part originally. The director only had one person read for it the night that I auditioned; but when she got up there and started to read (in the same normal voice she had used for all her other readings), I happened to glance at the director and saw her shuffling her papers, shaking her head and muttering to herself in reaction. Well, based on the description she’d given us of the character and the fact that her first word in that scene was “Darling” I had a decent idea of what she was looking for, in the voice, at least. So at the end of the night, when she asked if anyone had wanted to read for a part and hadn’t gotten to, I raised my hand and asked to read for Lorraine. The producer told me later that the director cast me in the part as soon as I started reading. It’s been a fun show, quite apart from playing a vamp, because Tredessa’s in it too (as the female romantic lead), and it’s always fun to play with her! Plus in this show we play rivals, so even more fun.

I’m working on two projects at LibriVox right now; I’m still working on Pride and Prejudice (on the sly, so to speak). I’m more than two thirds of the way through it. And for my “public” project I finally decided on a compilation of short stories by Pedro Antonio de AlarcÃ³n. I have one left to go, and it’s the longest in the bunch, so I’ve broken it into three sections, to keep the file sizes manageable. I’m thinking of going back for more Scarlet Pimpernel after this; specifically, the Elusive Pimpernel, which is the book that comes between the two I’ve already done. My output has dropped lately, though, as I’m spending my evenings at the theatre and can only record on the weekends.

I went out to CHS with MB last Saturday to see Mandy’s production of Seussical. It was fun to compare similarities and differences in the costumes, because Mandy costumed the production we did at the WCT a few years ago. It was lots of fun, anyway. And Mandy played Mayzie; I’d always wondered how she would have played the part if she’d auditioned for our production (because I’m pretty darned sure she’d have gotten that part), and it was fun getting to see.

New project…

By admin

On Monday, 1 October, 2007

In audiobooks, friends, knitting, librivox, public domain

Since I still haven’t gotten back my knitting patterns book from Meredith, I’ve decided to start a project of my choice for Asa. I figure if I don’t start it soon, I may as well give it to him for his high school graduation. So, I found this pattern for a stuffed elephant that looked really cute, and I decided to do that for now. I’ll probably still do the other when/if I get the book back from her.

Cute, isn’t he? I’m making two of them, one in a darkish blue-grey for Asa, and one in yellow for Jana, since I don’t yet know what her baby will be. I’m about two thirds of the way through the first one and I only started Friday night, so it’s knitting up really quickly. I’ll post photos of my two versions when I get them finished (this photo is one of the ones on the pattern).

I did finish A Little Princess last weekend, but I didn’t get around to finishing cataloguing until the end of the week. I decided to do a collection of AlarcÃ³n short stories for my next official project. Ans is proofing both that and P & P for me, because I was starting to run out of room on my laptop with all the audacity files for P & P that I’d been saving up. She can’t understand a word of what I’m reading for the short stories, so she’s reading along and just comparing sounds. 🙂

No more Armand!

By admin

On Friday, 21 September, 2007

In audiobooks, knitting, librivox, public domain

I finished El Dorado yesterday! Woohoo! No more wanting to smack Armand! 🙂

It really did end up being a very good book, once I got past those beginning chapters where he was being such a goose, and once the action moved onto the other characters. I’ve decided that one reason I was so annoyed with Armand was that Orczy changed him so much from the first book to this one. In that, he was the responsible elder brother, who had looked after his little sister from the time their parents died, and was completely devoted to the Scarlet Pimpernel’s cause. In this book she made him younger than Marguerite and completely reckless and foolish.

And I have two chapters left of A Little Princess, so I should be done with that this weekend. Now I need to find something new to read. I am still working on Pride and Prejudice, but when I started it, I didn’t realize there was another solo version in progress. It had been semi-abandoned, but it started back up this week. As it’s a newer reader, I don’t want them to feel like I’m infringing on their territory, so I’d rather not take P&P public just now. My plan is to keep working on it, but I need something else for my public project. I’m thinking of, perhaps, some more Nesbit, another Anne book, or maybe the first Katy Did book. But I haven’t decided yet.

I finally got my invite to Ravelry yesterday. I spent part of today adding completed projects to my page. I don’t know how much I’ll use it for organization, but it’s a great place to get new ideas!