The House of Ash

when i look around, i think this: this is good enough
and i try to laugh/at whatever life brings
cuz when i look down, i just miss all the good stuff
and when i look up, i just trip over things

“People who do not believe at all in a happy end impede changing the world almost as much as the sweet swindlers, the marriage-swindlers, the charlatans of apotheosis. Unconditional pessimism therefore promotes the business of reaction not much less than artificially conditioned optimism; the latter is nevertheless not so stupid that it does not believe in anything at all. It does not immortalize the trudging of the little life, does not give humanity the face of a chloroformed gravestone. It does not give the world the deathly sad background in front of which it is not worth doing anything at all. In contrast to pessimism which itself belongs to rottenness and may serve it, a tested optimism, when the scales fall from its eyes, does not deny the goal-belief in general; on the contrary, what matters now is to find the right one and to prove it. For this reason there is more possible pleasure in the idea of a converted Nazi than from all the cynics and nihilists. That is why the most dogged enemy of socialism is not only, as is understandable, great capital, but equally the load of indifference and hopelessness; otherwise great capital would stand alone.” – Ernst Bloch, The Principle of Hope

Check out more incredible political and social insight: http://www.walkingbutterfly.com/2010/12/22/albert-to-win-our-new-world/

Be with the Revolution - كن مع الثورة

I was interviewed on Liz Funk's blog called "Coming of Age in a Crap Economy". Check it out here:

http://www.comingofageinacrapeconomy.com/1/post/2011/01/20something-spotlight-ashley-marinaccio.html

Porch Light Production's Beyond Therapy opens this week! It's going to be super fun, zany and a (very short) break from the super heavy material I usually work on. I would love to see you there! I'm playing Charlotte Wallace, psychoanalyst extraordinaire. Need therapy? Charlotte's your girl! Need good therapy? Charlotte may not be your girl... In any case, she will warm your heart and make you smile.

2011 is off to a busy start. Next week I'll be filming the first episode of a paranormal television pilot called Beyond Haunted, which is being pitched to several cable networks. I'll be one of the paranormal investigators (think Ghost Hunters). It's a dream gig, as deep down ya'all know I've always wanted to be Fox Mulder (from the X-Files)... j/k. Also, last week I was interviewed on author Liz Funk's blog for her new project "Coming of Age in a Crap Economy". It's short and fun. Would love for you to check it out.

Finally, I'll be back to political theatre at the end of the month. Co-Op Theatre East is producing Trojan Women Redux, opening January 28th at the Looking Glass Theater in midtown. COTE's Literary Director, Casey Cleverly has adapted and directed this unbelievable piece which raises consciousness on the current sex and human trafficking crisis happening throughout the globe. We are collaborating with several non-profits working on this issue to encourage audiences to take a stand and become active in ending sexual violence and human trafficking.

I have also just started rehearsals for several upcoming projects that I'm directing with my youth performance company, Project Girl Performance Collective. Our 2011 season includes performances at the United Nations, NJ State Theater, Richmond Virginia Holocaust Museum and various schools, Universities throughout the tri-state area, plus the development of a new piece with young men and women called "10 Years Later: Voices from the Post 9/11 Generation Speak" in which we're exploring the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks and this idea of a "post 9/11 generation". I can't begin to express my excitement over this project. We have kids coming from as far as West Virginia and Maryland each week to be part of this and it's going to be something really special.

Both Project Girl Performance Collective and Co-Op Theatre East have completely taken off in 2010 and it's because of the support from audiences and YOU! Right now the sky's the limit for both of these companies and we're ecstatic about our 2011 season and looking ahead!

***

I was researching at the library today for the TV pilot I'm starting to film next week and came across this question in one of the books. It's one of the most provocative questions I've thought about in awhile and I have a few thoughts but first I want to hear what other people's answers are. Here we go:

Imagine that before you entered this life you went through training with a teacher who was the best of the best of the best at a particular focus, and who lived you like a son or daughter. This teacher taught you everything about this focus, reminding you, "you won't remember a thing consciously, but it will all be there in your subconscious, waiting to be reawakened, once you get to Earth and your nature is stimulated to grow." What did this teacher train you to cultivate and grow? Do you remember the part of the training that reiterated: Try and fail a hundred times, rather than playing to small, repeating what you have already perfectly mastered?

So, I'm curious. What was your training?