Sunday, November 2, 2014

And yet more news from afar

For various reasons, we've been having a little trouble getting a quorum together here at the Santa Cruz Wakers over the last month, but this is down to scheduling problems, not lack of enthusiasm. As if in compensation, there's been quite a lot of news from outside sources and so I thought I'd assemble another links post.


First off, our Austin correspondent PQ has announced the completion of his four part series on John Bishop's Joyce's Book of the Dark. If you're reading anywhere near the time I'm writing this, you can probably see the fourth part posted in the sidebar. In any case, PQ has posted links to all four parts over on his other website, A Building Roam. It's quite an ambitious project. I bought a copy of this book at the beginning of the year and have recently been thinking about finally digging in. Obviously this whets my appetite.


Next, we had an email from the folks at Waywards and Meansigns , announcing their project of recording the Wake in its entirety. Seventeen parts, done by seventeen different groups or individuals. Sounds fascinating. They are asking for participants, so check out their website and get involved.


And finally, in talking with a fellow Waker about the dance project on Finnegans Wake that Joseph Campbell's wife, the dancer Jean Erdman, did, which I mentioned in my last post , I learned of another dance/multimedia project that just happened in San Francisco. It's over, unfortunately, but there's an extensive description at SF Arts. It's a piece by Jenny McAllister, who founded the 13th Floor Dance Theatre, and is called "A Wake". Which you know Joyce would have liked.


As a sort of postscript, Kathleen Kirk, who originally clued me in to it, suggested contacting the Jean Erdman Dance website to see if there was any film record of Erdman's Wake-inspired  "The Coach With Six Insides". I haven't gotten around to that yet, but don't let that stop you from inquiring if you're interested.