This morning Ash, Emma, Megan, Cassie, Lizzie and I went to the Lincoln Centre and four of us got tickets to New York City Ballet’s The Nutcracker. I also booked tickets for some of us to see Alvin Ailey’s dance company perform next Saturday. Really looking forward to it.
Ash has been planning to get her inner lip pierced and so we found a tattoo parlour (Red Rocket) on W 36th St. It was clean and she was able to get in straight away. The guy kept saying that it wouldn’t hurt and Ash said afterwards that it didn’t. I took a lot of photos for her, figuring she would want them. I’m usually such an awful tourist; I don’t take my camera anywhere! But this trip I have been very good. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I’m travelling “alone”. After the tattoo (which read “I (heart) NY” we headed back to Century 21 on 66th St. We got there in a roundabout way, but I really enjoy the little side trips that I have been taking. I find out more of the city and it’s personality that way.
I’m finding myself in a bit of a dilemma. Do I get a I heart NY shirt or not? The reason for getting one is because “it’s what you do”, the reason for not getting one is because “that’s what tourists do” and I sometimes rebel against conformity. As most artists do. But I also appreciate the enormity of what that t-shirt encompasses; the whole history of the island of Manhattan, the tourist Mecca of Manhattan and the powerful marketing machine of Manhattan. You have to give the city some credit; it’s an incredibly dominant force in finance, politics, fashion, art, sport and “culture” in general. I think the “I heart NY” shirt says this. My last thought it, I would probably only wear it to bed...
Anyhow, when we arrived at Century 21 I immediately turned into Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City and became lost in the world of consumerism. I can critically analyse it most of them time, but put me in a room with inexpensive Calvin Klein and Dolce and Gabbana...and that rational person is gone! I got myself some clothes and a pair of shoes, I also got something for my dad and partner. The staff at the store are interesting to watch. They are very friendly most of the time, but I feel a certain level of passive aggressiveness that stems from their overt security. They check and double check everything, I felt more scrutinised in Century 21 than I did coming through customs! However, with all this said...Lizzie managed to “steal” a jumper from there!!! She thought she had paid for it, but when she left and started wearing it around the beepers in all the shops she went into went off because the security tag hadn’t been removed. When she returned to the store to have it removed with receipt in hand and an innocent face, the staff were suspicious. Why would someone go and ask to have it removed with the receipt if guilty?! Eventually she paid for it and all was well in the world at Century 21 again.
I lost Ash in the four floors of the store. After a good solid 5 looks over the whole shop I called it quits and figured she had done the same. Needless, to say I was relieved to see her sitting on the bunk when I got back to the room and that I hadn’t just ditched her!
The four of us going to The Nutcracker got ready and headed out. The show was spectacular. I took a little while to get over my vertigo because of how high we were, but once the show started I relaxed bit and could concentrate on the talented dancers, expensive costumes and sets, and the phenomenal music! I had forgotten how much music I knew from the show. Sitting up high is quite good in dace because you can see the floor patterns and choreography better then when you sit in the Orchestra section. I was really moved by the beauty and felt very light after watching the dancers flit across the stage. I only wish I could move that gracefully. There was a real mix of audience. The regular season ticket holders, the ‘go when we can’s’ and the tourists and new comers. I was glad to pay the $57 for the ticket when I feel so full after watching such a show. That really is the feeling too...full. Completely satisfied. The feeling the music gave me was similar to that of the sound room at MoMA PS1 yesterday. That is an experience I will never forget. The power of sound. Actually, the two shows that have had the most power over me have been the two with the most reliance on sound or lighting. Yesterday’s soundscape and Yoko Ono’s door work.
The same group of four African American gentlemen have been catching our subway line (1) since I’ve been here, busking. They sing acapella and are incredible. It astounds me that people with such talent are singing or playing instruments on the subway lines. The overflowing arts culture and competition here must be difficult. There are a lot of big fish in this lake, there’s something to be said for being a medium sized fish in a small pond. I just feel so rich to be allowed to meet people, talk to people, watch people and, just be, here.
I’m seeing Anton Chekov’s realist play The Cherry Orchard tomorrow. Starring Diane Wiest and John Turturro. VERY excited! Bring on tomorrow! It was also be the end of my first full week here. It feels like longer.
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