Happengläd's New Hat #4

Happengläd's New Hat is a monthly New Work Salon, hosted by the ever-labouring lady of laughs  DeAnne Smith. It's a chance for Montrealers to watch local performers "try things out." If you are familiar with the concept of creativity, trying things out is very, very important. However, things tried are not always perfect or particularly refined. At other times they are truly magical. You don't know until it's tried, honestly. And that's half the fun (I'm not sure what the other half is - but I believe it has something to do with the cheap refreshments available at the theatre). 

I'll be participating this month in my first attempt at what I'm calling a "public service announcement" of sorts. I have a few of these percolating, this will be the first public execution of one. This one has a decidedly light tone - it deals with murder, hospital visits and dogs. Come, watch - and let me know what I can do to improve on this sort of thing.    

Tuesday September 28, 8pm - only $5 tiny loonies, 264 St. Catherine Est, near Berri Metro. 

"Man Muß Immer Umkehren!"

I have the word "umkehren" tattooed on my arm. It is part of the above phrase, which is credited to the 19th century geometrist Jacobi, who apparently suggested inverting every geometrical theorem to better understand it. "Umkehren" means "to invert." There are some obvious reasons I did not want the English translation on my arm, as fitting as it my be. Like many others, I believe that Jocobi's phrase has a much broader application than the one he developed for geometry. It is important to always question assumptions and to turn some notions on their head to understand them from another perspective. As such, my tattoo serves as a reminder to challenge my assumptions when I do not immediately understand something.

In the place of such a corporeal reminder, feel free to watch this great short clip featuring musician and entrepreneur Derek Sivers, which cleverly explores this very notion.

Part 5: The Sisterhood of Roller Derby

Last, but certainly not least:

Part 4: The Culture of Roller Derby

This piece features a brief interview with the ever insightful Rick Mercer (aka Hurt Browning), who came to play with us during a fun bout.

Part 3: The people of MTLRD.

Part 2: Roller Derby Bootcamp

To better understand the whole Roller Derby thing.

This was a series made last year by watchmojo.com about roller derby featuring the Montreal Roller Derby League. I like that the makers of this particular series took the time to really explore multiple aspects of the sport and to interview a number of people from the league about their various experiences with the sport. I'll post the whole series one day at a time.