The Official Raúl E. Esparza "Spread the Love" Thread- Page 44

[insomniak]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:10pm

*hugs Elphie*

Glad you're ok. This makes me want to brush up on my knowledge of how to handle choking.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:12pm

*hugs*

I'm lifeguard/firstaid/cpr certified, but if I had to save a conscious choking victim, I would probably freak out. It's so horrifying. I've gotten more scared since I got certified, which is NOT a good thing.

[insomniak]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:19pm

That's... not reassuring.

On a lighter note-

Today I walked into history class and a guy goes, "Just so you know, there's a praying mantis on the ceiling." I said, "Well, that's good to know," figuring that this was just one of those stupid inside jokes that people make. So I turned around and lo and behold, there it is. A giangantic, cute green insect clinging for dear life to the cheap paneling. No one knows how it could have gotten up to the second floor and to the opposite side of the room from the windows, not to mention the ceiling. But it did make for an interesting start to the class. Getting it down was a bit of a hassle.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:26pm

Praying mantises are really cool! At least it wasn't a cockroach, or a fly, or a bee, or...yeah. I don't really like bugs.

I guess I'm making my skills sound a lot worse than they are. This summer I had to jump in THREE times in ONE day at Barnard, twice for the same girl! They were "active drowning" victims, so it wasn't a huge serious thing, but I did it, and I was really proud of myself. I didn't even think, just jumped in. Your instincts just take over. I didn't really hold the tube properly, but it was fine. I fell like the same thing would happen in any other situation. Your brain just takes hold of you. The only problem was that I was traumatized and during free swim every week I was SO tense, even when I wasn't guarding, and even though I had had to jump in during classes, not free swim. My brain didn't trust anyone else to guard, which was silly. But nothing happened after that. I guess I just got lucky that day.

[greatdct]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:27pm

Those things are so weird looking. Almost as weird as walking sticks. Have you seen those? Eek. I hate insects.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:31pm

eeeeew bugs.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:33pm

I sense a trend...

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 10:39pm

Ahhhh, you guys, I just started filling out my first college application!
I'm scared.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:16pm

I'm thinking you guys have probably read this before, but I just found a very interesting article about Raul/Taboo.
http://daily.nysun.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib%3AArticleToMail&Type=text/html&Path=NYS/2004/01/21&ID=Ar01800

There were a lot of things I hadn't heard before.

[insomniak]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:22pm

Oh, I haven't seen that... thanks.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:23pm

I haven't either - thanks.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:25pm

God, the more I read, the more in love I fall.

[greatdct]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:26pm

Me either. Yay!

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:28pm

I feel the same way, Emcee. Who'da thunk it?

I just read the Playbill interview, too. He really does interview well. Now I just need to listen to the audio ones.

[greatdct]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:32pm

Good heavens, the thing about him that aboslutely astounds me is the depth and thought and time and energy that he puts into every detail of his performances. It's scary and unusual but that only makes me like it more.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:35pm

*reads TheatreMania interview*
hmmm, I wonder what kind of lawyer he would have made. I bet he would have been a fantastic one, given how dedicated and detailed he seems to be about everything.

I'm glad Broadway has him, though!

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:42pm

"Drag queens terrified me at 15. I was going to a Jesuit school, and the concept of drag queens just didn't exist for me. I thought, "What is this!"

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:47pm

That's what I love, greatdct. THAT is an actor.

Look how far he's come, Elphie! He makes a lovely drag queen.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:49pm

He HAS come quite far.
I find that quote HIGHLY amusing for some reason. It's making me laugh.

[greatdct]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:53pm

I also love how in tune he is with his audiences. To me, that is important. The audience should participate and add to the experience. That's what makes theatre different from watching TV.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 11:56pm

^^Agreed.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/9/05 at 1:00am

That's like what I had posted while I was chatting with Glebb yesterday - about a page back - about the emotional immediacy of the theatre, etc, etc.

I love that he's so responsive to his audiences. It makes experiencing him very unique, and just brings the theatre to an even more personal level than it's already at - because there's a person there who's not just performing for you, but with whom you, as his audience, are forming a relationship. He said something about The Normal Heart once, about doing a play that was being watched by the people for whom it was written, and he could feel that sense of "yes, let's do this," and all feeling it together at once. He put it really beautifully, and just hit the nail on the head, as he always does.

Updated On: 9/9/05 at 01:00 AM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/9/05 at 1:08am

Beyond abundant acting chops, I’d venture it has something to do with his green eyes: They hold your attention onstage, even when he doesn’t say a word.

Those eyes steal my heart. They really are unbelievable; that he can use something so... small to have so much power.

By the way, I love this quote:

He was particularly excited to describe acting opposite Jeffrey Carlson, likening their scenes to “a volleyball match.”

heee. Quite the pair - I loved the part in Everything Taboo where they stalked each other about the stage.

The show is like a conversation.

The whole... responsiveness thing. I love that he thinks that way - I think it's so important that they're not just there to put on a show.

Updated On: 9/9/05 at 01:08 AM

[greatdct]

Posted: 9/9/05 at 4:07am

I definitely agree with you. It's such a treat to see a performance of his because you can tell that he is 100% in the moment.

The eyes don't hurt, either!

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 9/9/05 at 11:07am

I could stare into them forever and probably never get bored.

I think that's why I couldn't ever say that he "wasn't good" in Chitty; because he wasn't BAD at all, per se, but even though he was having trouble earlier on, he was just working so hard. So the fish fell out of the water for a little while. I knew he'd get back in.