tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730000995968771158.post8678305844681287369..comments2023-10-30T03:56:27.386-07:00Comments on Writing ~ Reading ~ Reflecting: Jazz & Roar - A Short StoryBonnie Randallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02813024239481434223noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730000995968771158.post-37373372062024890322015-01-14T18:24:03.967-08:002015-01-14T18:24:03.967-08:00Sincere and deep thanks for such a touching review...Sincere and deep thanks for such a touching review. It is a writer's greatest compliment to have a reader say that a piece made them *feel*. I only spent two days crafting Jazz & Roar (I guess they'd expect me to call them Jasmine & Rory) but I nonetheless felt deeply touched by a love meant to be yet extinguished oh-so-quickly. <br />And Nettle - ah, Nettle. We are ALL Nettle, aren't we? Or at least those of us who've ever lived and socialized in a small town certainly are. I really enjoyed employing a stock character like Nettle as a literary device because she illustrated a couple things your review so deftly touched on: 1. Extroverts, in small towns, are gregarious a million different times - yet taken a million different ways. Would a different theatre goer react differently to Nettle than Jasmine did? Undoubtedly. But Jasmine is who Jasmine is (so withdrawn), yet Nettle, in turn, is who she is too. Is Nettle offensive? I don't know. I don't *think* so. But is Jasmine offensive? Oh, God yes. She takes delight in it, even - Roar tells her this more than once - and, whether she likes it or not, she *is*snooty. (But I still love her) 2. Of course we see Jasmine die - and in dying she (unbeknownst to herself, clearly) comes to terms with / makes peace with those who remain in her life. She tells Wren goodbye 'accidentally' and then has that reflection on Nettle that is much kinder (as it should be) than her abruptness was. She grows as her last page, both figuratively and literally, turns and maybe that's partly why she's finally ready for her big reunion. :) <br />All that said, it was with great joy that I tackled this small fictional study of a small town social event and I am so thrilled it moved you as much as it did. If you liked this you will LOVE anything written by a master of magical realism and small town dynamics, Sarah Addison Allen. Her stories, set in the deep south, just *sparkle* and I highly, highly recommend her wonderful, enchanting prose. Bonnie Randallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02813024239481434223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6730000995968771158.post-13942211748633134112015-01-14T17:45:31.677-08:002015-01-14T17:45:31.677-08:00Ms Randall captured the spirit and character of ma...Ms Randall captured the spirit and character of many small town theatres and their patrons beautifully! She portrayed the haughty, introverted Jasmine types, the extroverted Nettle types and the artsy types who genuinely love the culture and wanted to share that culture via places like ‘The Red Brick’ that could provide these things to a smaller community.<br />I see little bits of Nettle in many of us in this story, myself included. Some of us are like social butterflies and we flit about alighting upon those persons that emit that glow of light that serves to attract our interest. Some folks we know better than others so we stop and chat a while revelling in the lively social atmosphere of the theatre. Others are cranky, dour looking types, like Jasmine and even we extroverts steer clear of them---and for good reason. <br />Secret glances in the dark. Laughter, music, make-believe and time spent outside the normal ups and downs of life in a small town---escape from the mundane, this is what small town theater can mean to some. I loved that I could ‘feel’ all of those emotions flowing from the crowd waiting in anticipation for the curtain to raise, just as Jazz felt---these emotions were all there in The Red Brick that night too! I loved that this story captured that feeling and made me contemplate more of what those ‘other’ audience members lives may really hold?<br />Love and loss…time and memories. The love shared between Jazz and Roar was a splendid tale in itself. And the haunting way Ms Randall spun that saga of lonely, heartfelt memories that Jazz relived throughout the evening at The Red Brick Hatlen Theatre was brilliant. I was captivated from start to finish…and yes, tears rolled down my cheeks. But, in the end, I could not tell if they were tears of happiness or sadness? Now that is a tale well spun. Bravo!!!<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com