Last night I had a theatre experience I won’t soon forget. The Kavinoky Theatre’s production of 1984 is a disturbing and imaginatively staged vision of a future in which truth is relative and ever changing, depending on the needs of the “elite” which is control of, well, reality itself. Big Brother is always watching but a man called Winston dares to dream that perhaps he has escaped observation in small stolen moments with Julia, the woman he has the audacity to love. The audience is pulled in to believing that maybe, just maybe this couple will find freedom: Freedom to think, freedom to feel, freedom from observation, freedom to have real chocolate..

Aleks Malejs gives depth to what could have been a one dimensional character–Julia– a woman who may (or may not) be just who she says she is. Chris Avery’s portrayal of Winston is something I can’t even describe–but I’ll try. Gut wrenching comes close, but other than that words fail me.

There is one heart stopping moment in that play that occurs between Winston and the audience, and it is shocking, disturbing, paralyzing and is reason alone to see the show. It’s a moment that will stay with me for a very long time.

At the opposite end of the seriousness spectrum, Inclusive Theatre of WNY’s A Festival of Shorts opens on Friday April 5th at 7:30 pm and runs until Sunday April 7th at 2pm at The Foundry, 298 Northampton Street, Buffalo. Tickets are available through paypal here.

So. Here’s my recommendation for a perfect weekend: Catch one of the final performances of 1984 at The Kavinoky Theatre at D’Youville on Porter Rd in Buffalo, and then head over to The Foundry for a little comic relief!

Here are pictures from today’s rehearsal of A Festival of Shorts.

Hot off the presses… ITOWNY’s Winter Edition 2018-2019

I know a woman who begins her presentations with “Today is the best day of my life”.  As she continues you discover why: Because today is the only day we have! Yesterday is gone and tomorrow isn’t here! The only moment we have is this moment, right now. It is the only moment in which we live fully. The only moment in which we are fully alive. To appreciate this you need to become aware. First, that you’re not living fully in the moment. Then, by developing a practice that helps you develop greater awareness of the present moment. 

You can accomplish this simply by tuning into all or some of  your five senses.

Whatever you’re doing, whether it’s making a plan, reading, studying, creating a vision board at a free VISION BOARD PARTY (more info here), or meditating, bring your full awareness to your senses.

If you’re doing this during meditation, for instance, start by focusing on your breath.. If you start to relax and suddenly you hear someone hammering outside your window. Don’t resist it! FOCUS ON IT! You’re tuning in with your sense of hearing… Observe your annoyance: You’re tuning in to your body–your pulse rate usually goes up a bit when you’re annoyed, right?  Are you outside? Do you feel a breeze against your skin?

Continue to move about your environment mindfully, fully experiencing everything through your senses.

Your senses are what connects you with this moment. You become more aware. With greater awareness comes greater intuition and clarity of thought. And with that comes the ability to choose more wisely from a greater number of possibilities.

You can start a mindfulness practice right this minute. You don’t need to go to a class, or spend any money. Connect yourself to this moment by feeling the air against your skin, your back against the chair, your feet on the floor. Do you feel or hear your heartbeat?  Are you calm or anxious?

Whatever works for you. Become the observer. Sit quietly and observe and feel everything. If your mind wanders, observe that. Then bring it back to your breath, your posture, the sounds of birds, anything you can observe with your senses. That is mindfulness.

Do this for a few minutes every hour, or several times a day. I used to have a mindful clock on my computer; something I downloaded from the internet. It sounded like Big Ben. I could set it to ring at regular intervals, or randomly. When it gonged, I’d sit for a few moments and tune in to the present moment, then go back to work. I started this practice as a way of healing from medical trauma. My therapist was an expert in trauma and had done considerable research into the practice of mindfulness as a treatment for PTSD. It works.

Try it. What do you have to lose, except anxiety, stress, pain, high blood pressure–the list goes on. If you’d like to learn more about mindfulness I highly recommend books by Jon Kabat-Zinn, or his website which you can access here.