a real fortune bottle cap?

while i was enjoying my sushi dinner on saturday, a few friends and i broke into a case of magic hat. as i popped open my second beer of the night, i checked under the bottle cap for a random piece of wisdom (note: if you do not read your bottle caps when drinking magic hat, you are missing out) and there it was staring right at me:

Find Salvation through acts of Creation

i know, i know. this can't be real. but it is! magic hat brewery must be a follower of my blog! ok seriously, how cool is this? my beer was actually telling me to discover meaning through creating something! so i started thinking... what have i actually created recently?

i am currently working as a freelance sound designer in philadelphia and have opened two shows in the past month. i acted as an assistant designer for a show at a bigger company and then designed another show for a smaller production. i think one of the reasons i found sound design so gratifying is because it is (in my opinion) the most versatile design in a theatrical production. people always assume there will be a set. costumes and props are integral but often overlooked. without lights, you would not be able to see what is going on. but sound, sound is something that is never anticipated by the audience. furthermore, sound is one of the elements of a show that can be incredibly influential in the overall experience. it is hard to make it look like it is raining onstage, but if you have a really great sound cue that places you in the middle of a thunderstorm, then it establishes setting more than anything else.

perhaps this explains why i have a hunger to sound design difficult projects. when scripts dictate sound design to me, i find it boring and unfulfilling. but when i read a script and hear something in my head and just know it has to be right... well, that is what i am inspired by. you can allude to the fact that you are in a swamp in a play, but what if you are surrounded by bugs buzzing and birds chirping and water splashing? then you know it! in my own little way, then, maybe i do find some salvation through creating sound effects. i'm sure that i will write many more postings about theatre; even right now, i'm immersed in assisting with a student production at my alma mater.

there is something truly magnificent about bringing a stage play to life and sometimes it is easy to forget that. so thank you, magic hat, for pointing out the poignancy of theatre.