Program Big, Program Often

Shirley here. Firstly, I think an apology is in order. We let the blog sit unattended for a full month. That’s a pretty big breach on our side of the blogger bargain.

As you see from our last few entries–we’re getting our interns into the game, and glad to have their fresh and vital reflections to share.

We’ve got updates on conferences, convenings, and collaborations to come–but in the meantime I was too excited about our upcoming panel discussions not to share. We’ve had several great discussions involving art, story-telling, and comic books already–which we’ll be reporting on–but do take note of the following Sunday panel discussions!

This Sunday, June 24 at 5:15pm we’ll be hosting the discussion Being Superman: A Psychological and Legal Look in partnership with the Washington Psychoanalytic Society. Moderated by Marc S. Levine, M.D. the chat will feature Mark S. Zaid, Esquire, otherwise known as”The Comic Book Lawyer”. You can read about Mark here; and about his “Superheroes in Court” exhibit here. We’re so pleased to have both Marc/k’s as our special guests.

On Sunday, July 1 at 5:15pm we’ll present Why Comics Matter: The Social Relevance of Comic Books. Getting a “Yes! I’d love to join your panel!” response is one of the little joys in my day, and the last couple of days have been filled with many of these joys as we’ve assembled a varied and diverse panel of folks to whom comics matter. I’ve never been to Geppi’s Entertainment Museum, but after watching this video–I think it’s high time for a visit. What a cool field trip that would have been for the cast and crew of INVULNERABILITY. Instead–I say: visit the museum, come see the show, and then stay for the discussion afterwards. And now…Go!

Glad also to have the inimitable Big Planet Comics represented.

In pulling one-line bios for guests today I came across this awesome blog post from artist Mark Burrier about creating a comic for a Big Planet Shop ad. Not only is the final product charming and effective–but the step-by-step through the process is a great pre-show primer for the play. Just think, at the very start Joe Shuster was doing the drawing, lettering, inking and coloring on his own (no photoshop either). It’s clear why, as demand quickly increased, Shuster turned inking and detail work over to a crew of assistants.

What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, And The American Way?

by Stephen Spotswood (Dramaturg on THE HISTORY OF INVULNERABILITY; playwright, journalist, and member of Bright Alchemy Theatre Company)

Old fashioned. Lame. The Big Blue Boy Scout. All words that have been, and still are, used to describe Superman—the most classic of comic book superheroes. For comic book readers (guilty!), it’s an inevitable discussion: What’s the appeal of a nigh-invulnerable superhero whose moral compass was created, and is still mostly fixed, in the 1940s? Where’s the danger? Where’s the risk?

It even came up in rehearsal for History of Invulnerability. Is Superman anyone’s favorite superhero? Why read about the adventures of Superman when you’ve got heroes who have much more human frailties (the Hulk and his rage, Iron Man and his ego, Spider-Man and his everyman problems)? At least Batman is all dark and Kevlar-clad and, to paraphrase Jack Nicholson, he has all those wonderful toys.

But what does Superman have to offer except a spit-curl and his underwear on the outside (not anymore thanks to a recent reboot/fashion redesign)?

Some readers see Superman as a sort of messiah figure. A demigod whose purpose is to save humanity from itself (and the occasional alien invasion). Others have called Superman the pinnacle of humanity—something we can all strive to become.

Grant Morrison, who has written a number of modern Superman tales, including the most recent issues of Action Comics, said, “Since we live by imitation, does it not make sense that we might choose to imitate the angels, the gods, the very highest form of being that we can imagine? Instead of indulging the most brutish, vicious, greedy and ignorant aspects of the human experience, we can, with a little applied effort, elevate the better part of our natures and work to express those elements through our behavior. To do so would probably make us all feel a whole lot better too.”