Mom and Mubarak

My mother, who died two and a half years ago, probably would have had some sympathy for Hosni Mubarak this week, for no other reason than that she once shook his hand.

Egypt has always been special to my family. While in the Navy in the 1950s, my dad was sent to Cairo to help set up a medical lab as part of Eisenhower's Atoms for Peace program. His pregnant wife and toddler son, Mike, went along; before long, my second brother, Tom, was born there.

Mom spent most of her time dealing with sick babies and mastering the art of haggling in the markets. She also did the tourist thing with her little box camera. And shortly before the young American family finally left Cairo, they learned that a little daughter and sister would be on the way.

After returning home, Mom would often show her Egypt slides, accompanied by histories and creative stories, as our evening entertainment. She honed the narrative to such a perfection that she was often asked to give her Egypt slides at PTA meetings and other public gatherings.

In 1994, Mike, my oldest brother--a Navy man like Dad--was stationed in the Middle East and invited Mom to meet him in Cairo for a special nostalgic trip to her favorite sites, like the temples of Karnac and Luxor. There was also a very splashy (and very cold) outdoor production of Aida, the first grand opera for both Mom and Mike.

It was on the way back from one of these excursions that Mom met Mubarak. From her diary:

We were resting near King Tut's tomb when a motorcade suddenly appeared--out jumped security guards--young, lean, in dark suits with white shirts and ties. In moments they were positioned all round--and President Maburak [sic] appeared. I asked the guard in front of me if I could take pictures--at first he said 'no'--but then the President gave different orders. Before I quite realized what was happening, I was shaking his hand and chatting with him about the opera and my appreciation of all that had been done for that event--and my enjoyment of Egypt. When we got back to the hotel, I discovered that I was an instant (though temporary) celebrity. I was on the 6 o'clock TV news and people started recognizing me everywhere.

Few things pleased my mother as much as being the center of attention; being singled out by the President of Egypt meant a great deal to her. And I'm certain that her unsolicited statements on national television reassuring the president of how safe she, as an American lady, felt in Egypt (at a time when violence against Western tourists was a growing problem) also meant a great deal to Mubarak--or at least to his public image.

Mom was far more interested in the history of Egypt, its ancient beauties and mysteries, than the turmoil of contemporary geopolitics. Shaking the man's hand was enough to charm her. Politics isn't just local; it's personal.

I think about Mom and Mubarak when I look back on how differently I feel about people after I have met them. I was as charmed by Newt Gingrich as by Al Gore when I met them at World Future Society conferences.

But of course I would not want either gentleman running my country for 30 years.

Please click here to read this blog at the World Future Society.

Carpetbagger's Triptych

Back from The Carpetbagger's Children at Ford's Theatre, a Texas based 1930s memory piece by Horton Foote.

Ford's brings back special memories for me and an anniversary of sorts (though not the day exactly). It was a bright, crisp Sunday afternoon in a February far far away that brought me the bright, crisp off-key dancing and braying laugh of Edward Duke in Jeeves Takes Charge, the "one-man, two-act, 12-character, award-winning comedy tour de force," if he does say so himself.

So sitting in the balcony before the beginning of a play I knew nothing about, I was re-imagining my Edward and his many voices and faces, merry costumes and clever scene changes and all, enchanting me for a couple of hours and embodying the storytelling genius of Wodehouse.

So why did the format of Carpetbagger make me so impatient? The scene was static, with three actresses portraying sisters, each in her own panel of the triptych of a Texas cotton farm homestead, each taking a turn telling the story of their family to the audience but almost never interacting with each other. Yet each took on the voice and personality of the characters whose stories they were telling.

Storytelling with impersonations is exactly what Edward did for Jeeves; it is not a particularly original format. But with the Carpetbagger's girls, I was having a few of those "Why are you telling me all this?" moments and shifting in my seat a bit waiting for the plot to begin.

When I relaxed into the format a bit (thanks for reminding me, Edward), I let the power of the personalities on stage persuade me their story was worth the telling, even if I didn't get it at first.

One sister was constantly pressed to sing "The Clanging Bell of Time," or whatever the dashed name of the song was, which became an anthem for the passage of the family members' lives.

And, like Charming Billy over at Round House, the play seemed to say we are surrounded by our memories as we live through them, even if we cannot directly interact with the actors in our dramas.

love, hosaa
Story listening

Staging Billy

It's hard to be a liar and a believer at the same time.

Back from Round House Theatre's production of Charming Billy, adapted and directed by RHT's producing artistic director, Blake Robison, from Alice McDermott's novel. A gathering of family and friends pieces together the life and heartbreak of Billy Lynch (portrayed by David Whalen) during a post-funeral gathering at a New York-Irish bar.

The conversation opens on one end of the long banquet table, the side away from the grieving widow, focusing on how long Billy had been known to drink, each recollection taking us back farther into Billy's life and to the key episode where he first met "the Irish girl."

The flashback scenes glided in from the wings onto the front of the stage, upstaging the party scene but leaving them visible to represent the present. Another flashback begins at the bar behind the party table. In this way, memory surrounds the present, asserting its legitimate place at the table.

Billy was a drunk; should we have helped him? Could we have helped him? Was it a disease, or was he at fault? The answers aren't really there, though I kept hoping for them. It wasn't about Billy, but about our own heartbreaks and guilts.

And so I turn these questions inward. Throughout the play I thought about my charming mother and her battles with depression and alcohol. Unlike Billy, she died sober, because she'd been in rehab those last several months. In the end, she still wanted to die--she'd outlived her life--but at least she no longer wanted to kill herself. At least I don't think so.

Not much of a review, but that's my approach to art. I let it surround me and assert its legitimate place at my table.

Love, hosaa
charmed, but a little haunted

Bright Foolery

As I predicted, today's trip down to the Kennedy Center was quite a bit less adventurous than Thursday.

Today was to see American Ballet Theatre's matinee of The Bright Stream, a comic ballet set on a Russian collective farm. A troupe of dancers and musicians visits the collective, husbands flirt with ladies they're not supposed to, and revenge and tomfoolery ensue.

The tricks are the classic comic fodder you find in Shakespeare, with cross-dressing, mistaken identities, and a bit with a dog.

I don't mean to dismiss the production at all. It was utterly charming. But I really just wanted to watch Daniil Simkin dance! I had thought he was originally rehearsing to perform as the Accordionist, so I'm glad he was recast. The Accordionist is the one who dresses as a dog in Act 2. Instead, Daniil performed as the visiting Ballet Dancer. Good casting! Except in Act 2 he performs largely in drag as a "Sylphide" to trick the elderly dacha dweller. It was very silly and very fun.

The nice thing about a Saturday matinee is that it's not so late when it's over and I'm not in a rush to get home. So I hung around the stage door to wait for Daniil. He was one of the last ones out.

There is a scene in The Bright Stream where the Ballet Dancer signs the autograph book for the foolish elderly woman, identified in the program as "Anxious-to-be-younger-than-she-is Dacha Dweller." Daniil sweetly did an encoure of that scene with me.

love, hosaa
a little foolish, but brightly so

Fancy That

Back from the Kennedy Center--no, not the gala for the JFK inauguration anniversary. I went to the ballet next door (American Ballet Theatre).

If it weren't for the dancing, it would have been a pretty miserable night. I wanted to see Daniil Simkin dance, of course, and had waited and waited for ABT and Kennedy Center to announce the cast list for this tour. When they finally did, and I saw Daniil was supposed to dance in "Fancy Free" on the 20th, I grabbed my ticket.

"Cast subject to change." So they did. I saw on the KenCen Web site a couple of weeks ago that Daniil was taken off the performance I had a ticket for. Boo. But I still love ABT. And I knew Daniil was also rehearsing "The Bright Stream," so I got another ticket, for the Saturday matinee.

As for tonight, well, let's just say I'm clueless and didn't know about the gala. We got e-mails from KenCen letting us know that, due to "unusual circumstances," access to the parking garage would be closed on one side. (I didn't want to take Metro because I'm getting old, ya'll, and the Foggy Bottom station's escalators are out.)

So I wind my way around to enter through the usual exit at KenCen, then idle in a line to have my trunk and hood inspected by security. There is a bomb-sniffing German shepherd looking very authoritative and all. And when I finally get inside, there's a big well-dressed mob, all being herded into the grand foyer and toward a row of metal detectors.

Oh great. Obviously the President is in the building. I look around for celebrity political people, but I don't know any. When I get close enough to the check-in place to look around a little, I see that I'm being herded toward the Concert Hall (gala) and not toward the Opera House (ballet). So I work my way through the tuxedos and their dates (something about the well-heeled that doesn't like stepping aside).

I had missed dinner and was annoyed, but at least I could get a snack in the foyer--and some cookies and lemonade in the Members Lounge.

The pieces of the mixed rep program were "Theme and Variations" (Balanchine), "Jardin Aux Lilas" (Tudor), "Duo Concertant" (Balanchine), and "Fancy Free" (Robbins).

The first piece was marred by an incident in the audience; even up in the first tier we could hear loud talking, and I thought it was probably the security guys' walkie talkies. I mentioned it to the usher at intermission, and he told me someone had collapsed and they had to call an ambulance.

Though it was pretty distracting to the audience, it didn't seem to faze the dancers at all (principals were Michele Wiles and Cory Stearns, and the commotion went on mainly during their spotlight duet).

"T&V" is the sort of Pretty Princesses piece you expect in the ABT mixed-rep program. The only thing that distracted me a little (besides the walkie-talkie incident) was the fact that the gentlemen's military-themed wardrobe came in different colors. If they're in the same Army, wouldn't they wear the same color? (Stupid audience observation.)

"Jardin" was a somber Tudor morality play, but I couldn't really figure out who or what the characters represented. I guess I should have downloaded the plot synopsis, like I did for Cymbeline for our Shakespeare Readers last week. Anyway, Julie Kent was lovely as the main lady torn between lovers (I guess) and leaving with the dancer that brung her.

"Concertant" was simply charming. Two dancers listen to the pianist and violinist, then dance a bit.

There was a change of casting for "Fancy Free" due to injury; instead of Cornejo, Stiefel, and Carreno, we got Salstein, Radetsky, and Gomes. Anyway, even if I couldn't see my fave, these gentlemen were fancy enough indeed. Love me some Marcelo Gomes. Hope I didn't make any distracting noises. (Slurp!)

Much easier getting home than getting there. It should be less complicated on Saturday--let's hope for no more galas and German shepherds and tuxedo mobs. Just my Little Prince and the new production of "Bright Stream" everyone's buzzing about.

love, hosaa
wishing I could be a little more footloose in all this ...

(1-21-11, edited to add a little detail about the dances themselves.)

Futuring for Haiti: Tools, Not Rules

At our small office in downtown Bethesda, Maryland, the World Future Society welcomed the former Haitian ambassador to the United States, Raymond Joseph. He was accompanied by his son, Paul Joseph (a futurist and activist who arranged the meeting), and Emmanuel Henry, a former vice president for Panasonic. The goal of the meeting was to explore ways that the tools of futuring can help rebuild their nation.

(From left) Raymond Joseph, Timothy C. Mack, Emmanuel Henry, Cynthia G. Wagner, Paul JosephWorld Future Society photograph by Lisa Mathias

Raymond Joseph is an ambitious man. Not only does he want to save his own country, but he wants Haiti to become a role model for other countries written off as “failed states” with no futures.

As one of many would-be candidates in the recent presidential election whose eligibility was revoked (allegedly because he had abandoned his duties as ambassador in order to make a bid for the presidency), Joseph conceded that his ambitions are political. The first thing his country needs, he said, is leadership, but one that is based on trust.

The Josephs and their compatriot Henry, who helped manage the Friends of Raymond Joseph for President campaign in 2010, spoke with Society President Timothy Mack and myself (FUTURIST magazine editor Cindy Wagner) on January 13, one day after the first anniversary of the devastating earthquake that brought international attention to Haiti.

Four days later, exiled dictator Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier returned to Haiti accompanied by heavy security, leaving Joseph’s hopes for the future—his country’s and his own—even more uncertain.

Below are excerpts from our dialogue.

Raymond Joseph: [Speaking of the immediate aftermath of the earthquake on Jan. 12, 2010, at which time he was in Washington, D.C., serving as ambassador.] The leadership was absent, they were not to be seen anywhere, so all of a sudden I became the face of Haiti for the world. And also I had to take the first decisions in the first 48 hours, to get help to the country.

It’s based on that, quite a few of my friends, both Haitian and foreign, came to me and said, “You know what, we need new leadership in Haiti. You should consider the president’s candidacy,” which I did. And for no reason at all, they disqualified me.

Mack: Let me speak frankly to you. I think that they felt they had lots of reasons, because you posed a threat. You were too well known and too popular.

Raymond Joseph: Yes because of that I was a threat. Yesterday I wrote a piece in the Wall Street Journal, and in there I say what needs to be done if we’re going to get Haiti back on track. And what I said should be done is for the president who’s there now, whose term ends February 7th, to exit on February 7th with his team and not try to hang on as he wants to until May 14th. Because in three more months, he will not be able to accomplish what he could not do in five years.

Now, what I seek in government for Haiti is a large coalition, and that’s what I’m working for, that’s why I stayed in the country after they disqualified me. They thought I was going to go back abroad. I did not do that.

I feel that we need to look at ways of changing Haiti. And to do that, we have to change the leadership. That’s what I’m working on.

But besides changing the leadership of Haiti, people know that I have some ideas for the future. One of the ideas I have is about energy, what are we going to do about energy, and another major idea for us is reforestation, and what we’re going to do about that.

And to get these things moving on, I feel that we have to entice a percentage of Haitian intellectuals and professionals living abroad … and according to the IDB, the Inter-American Development Bank, that’s 83% of our intellectuals and professionals living abroad. I feel we have to entice a percentage of them to come back.

Wagner: To reverse the brain drain.

Raymond Joseph: To reverse the brain drain.

...

Wagner: Part of the enticement, of bringing the intellectuals back into Haiti, has to be from Haiti itself.

Raymond Joseph: Right.

...

Wagner: But what you face is a collection of problems, and the decision has to be made, what do you tackle first?

Mack: And of course the biggest problem you face is leadership.

Raymond Joseph: That’s it, that’s it.

Mack: And how do you get the strong leadership that is necessary to make this change even be considered. ... What are your next steps? What are you hoping to accomplish in the next few weeks?

Raymond Joseph: My next steps. That’s what I’ve been working on. Since I was bumped off the ballot, I have stayed in Haiti and worked with various candidates that even some who were running, and some who were not running, and looking towards having a large coalition for future change. That’s my goal.

...

So, the idea that I have tried to do in the past of building a coalition of ethical leaderships have been successful. Since they have bumped me off the ballot as for the presidency, I’ve come back. Now we have quite a few candidates for presidency. I want to tell them you cannot all be president of Haiti, but you can all work for change.

Mack: Yes. You can all be friends of Haiti.

Raymond Joseph: Exactly. So, let’s work together to do this. Immediately, the next thing I’m doing is to help annul the elections that took place, which was not an election. Now, that’s what I’m working on right now.

Mack: Are you also working on observers for the coming elections too, or is that something that will happen no matter what?

Raymond Joseph: We haven’t gotten there yet. However, the first democratic elections in Haiti, which the press talked about, in 1990, December 16th, I was the one that signed the agreement with the OAS back then. I was the representative of the country to OAS, and the UN took that agreement and expanded on it, and we had 3,000 observers in Haiti the week of the elections. So I’m used to doing that. And I will want to, [in] the elections coming up, after we get through this harrow here, to have the best observer teams. I brought President Carter to Haiti in 1990, and others. I want to get to that point in the next elections coming up. Which will probably be in a year, because this thing here that they’re trying to patch up, they cannot patch it up. They’re trying to patch it up at the level of the presidential elections, however, the fraud was widespread. It was at the legislative [level] also.

Mack: And that may be very self-defeating in the sense that a weak government does not last, especially if that government is clearly founded on fraud.

Raymond Joseph: Exactly. ...

To be frank with you, since the earthquake, Haiti has had too many NGOs, so much so that now they’re calling Haiti “The Republic of NGOs.” They’re saying ten thousand. ... There’s no coordination, ... and you don’t see what they accomplish.

Wagner: There’s duplication and gaps.

Mack: Right, right, the gaps are very important, but also they are there to accomplish what they are built for, which is their own, their own …

Paul Joseph: … agendas.

Mack: Not just agendas, their own pride. You’ve seen that. You know, NGOs are very proud. And they are very moral, but not always in a good way. “Maybe you should change the way you live your life because I say so.” Too much of that in NGOs. [chuckling in agreement] I think that what we bring is tools for the people of Haiti to use, as opposed to rules for the people of Haiti to follow.

Henry: That’s well said.

Raymond Joseph: Good. That’s well said. I will take that. [chuckling] I want to take that sentence.

Henry: And when you have ten thousand NGOs, everybody wants to pull you in different directions. “My direction is better, yours is better” and nothing is accomplished, nothing is achieved.

Mack: But we’re very, very pleased that you would come here and talk to us about this, and we want to be as helpful as we can. That’s my answer.

Raymond Joseph: And I’m going to tell you, also, Paul has tried to get me to talk to various people, and you know …

Mack: Some you say Yes, some you say No.

Raymond Joseph: When he talked about you, I said I want to come. Not because I know you’re going to help me solve the problem right away, but that you can help me think about the future.

Raymond Joseph

World Future Society photograph by C. G. Wagner

"Futcha"!

I just wanted to share these pictures from my New Year's Eve treat at the Kennedy Center - a chance to go backstage after seeing our "futurist" songwriter Nnenna Freelon perform with the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra of New York.

Nnenna, as you know, wrote "Future News Blues" and other songs with an inspiring message for futurists, and inspired the creation of our Futurist Playlist.

Nnenna Freelon, backstage, Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, December 31, 2010:

Nnenna Freelon with Cindy Wagner ("hosaa")

A memento! Nnenna signs a copy of her latest CD, Homefree

love, "Futcha" girl...