Fall Finally Arrives

      This has been an excellent fall here in Durham.  For the most part, warm temps and clear blue skies.  I haven't had to bundle-up for a soccer game yet.  The leaves started to change toward the end of October, but there's been very little frost on the pumpkins.  We've had a busy theater/concert few weeks.
      We went down to Memorial Hall on the campus of that other institution of higher learning eight miles down the road to see Mary Chapin Carpenter.  It's a little bit eerie when you visit Memorial Hall to see all the plaques on the wall commemorating the deaths of Confederate soldiers    It's actually the same feeling I get when I think about Duke being founded on tobacco money.  Anyway, the concert was great.  Although, as it was the last stop on her current tour, she had to work hard to cover the higher notes at the the top of her register. I'm always amazed by the number of extremely talented musicians there are.  Her back-up group was made up of a lot of her regulars, including John Jennings, who I believe has been playing with her for most of her career - very nice sound.
      Another trip was made to Chapel Hill to see a new play at Playmakers.  The Parchman Hour is a play with music which purports to be the "songs and stories of the '61 freedom riders".  It is set in the Mississippi prison where some of the freedom riders were sent after being arrested.  Great material with fine acting, but as a whole it came up short.  The play originated in the Duke documentary studies department, and frankly I think it would have worked better in a movie format. Maybe then I could have followed the storyline better.  Flashbacks work better on film than on stage, especially where actors are playing multiple roles and there are multiple settings.  The use of color and gender- blind casting was interesting and sent as clear social message, but I'm not sure it helped tell the story.  Despite its short-comings, it was good to see someone tackle this difficult period in our nations history.
      The Mississippi River flooding of 1927 was the topic of an interesting presentation which was part of the Duke Performances series on the Duke campus.  Documentary film maker Bill Morrison put together a view of these floods by using archival footage to portray the impact that this disaster had on portions of the Mississippi river corridor.  It is estimated that 27,000 square miles were covered with water as a result of this flood and that it was the impetus for a mass migration of displaced sharecroppers to the north.  There was no commentary during the 80 minute film, just a live musical underscore which featured guitarist and composer Bill Frisell and his four piece combo.  It was an interesting concept, but again it didn't quite work.  I found myself closing my eyes to listen to the music, which was well done particularly the haunting sound of the cornet played by Ron Miles.  I mean how much rushing water and submerged houses can you see. (I should note that it was particularly painful to watch in light of the actual damage I saw when visiting the Schoharie Valley in September.)