Walking around in my neighborhood past cars parked 90 degrees on a hill, I thought, ‘What other city has that? What other city has the number of hills and vistas that San Francisco does, where cars have to park at 90 degree angles?’
This town is a great one. Diverse. Academic. Liberal. Unique. It always amazes me the crazy things people come up with. The Exploratorium. Burning Man. The De Young Museum.
Every time I had driven past it, I told myself I needed to check it out. So I went last night to the Audium. Notable for being the only theater of its kind, the Audium is a small space where up to 49 people sit in concentric circles. The theater is filled with 169 speakers in front of you, behind you, above you, below you…and sounds are played through these speakers in darkness.
I know sound. I was classically trained in piano for almost ten years. As a former season ticket holder, I absolutely adore the ballet. I like adding in a symphony or opera every once in a while. Overall, I’d consider myself a music lover. Even then, it’s always more than just sound. It’s dancers, performance, lights, musicians, staging.
At this theater, the focus is on the beauty of sound alone. I felt like I was getting an aural massage. I could feel the sounds (music, people talking, ocean waves crashing, a school band) reverberating throughout my body. And when I exited, I thought, ‘Only in San Francisco,’ as a man approached, muttering, “Do you know where the nearest shelter is?”
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“Life’s Too Short to Drink House Wine.”
Citizen Cake
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