Monday, October 3, 2011

Safari #39: The Paramount Theatre

When was the last time you saw something so inspiring that it made your creative spirit glow?

Laurie Anderson's performance, Delusional, was unlike any other performance I've ever seen.  For those of you not in the know (and I wasn't until the show), Anderson is considered to be one of the greatest American performance artists.  Her performance was an extrasensory, multimedia experience full of amazing music and visualizations. She is multitalented (musician, artist, poet) and uses multimedia to tell you a story.  Delusional posed multiple questions, and some of the answers I've found are still resonating with me tonight.  Because of her, I'm embracing my peripheral vision.

Anderson's performance was held at Paramount Theatre - another first for me.  The Paramount was opened in 1932, named for the Paramount Pictures films it showed.  The theatre closed in 1976, but after much effort to revitalize the Downtown Crossing area, it reopened in 2010 with funding  from Emerson College.  The rehabilitated art deco interior made my jaw drop.  It was a pleasure to sit quietly a few moments before the show started to simply stare at the ceiling.

Many thanks to @EvolvingCritic for the special invite!

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