The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Melissa Bartley

Posted At : August 27, 2008 1:00 AM
Related Categories: Drama

Excerpted from "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe" by Jane Wagner, published by HarperCollins.

Read by Melissa Bartley: "This passage helps to remind me to dwell in the art of possibility and thinking about how meaning and mystery figure in our lives." Melissa was raised in Alaska since 1980 by an outdoor-adventurous family. She holds a B.S. in Biological Sciences and an M.S. in Women's Studies. Melissa is employed by a local social service provider and enjoys biking, hiking, reading, and spending time with her Springer Spaniel. Check out the Central Asia Institute, about Greg Mortenson's (Three Cups of Tea) efforts to build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

In "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe," a play by Jane Wagner, Trudy the bag lady reflects on what she's learned from her visitors from outer space:

"See, it's not so much what we know,
but how we know, and what
it is about us that needs to know.

...Of all the things we've learned, we still haven't learned
where did this desire to want to know come from? ...

So maybe we should stop trying to figure out the meaning of
life and sit back and enjoy
the mystery of life.
The operative word
here is what?
Mystery!
Not meaning."

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The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Ursula Gould

Posted At : June 11, 2008 1:00 AM
Related Categories: Drama

Excerpted from "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe" by Jane Wagner, published by HarperCollins.

Read by Ursula Gould: "I recently played Aunt G, the giraffe in "Elephant's Child," about a very curious child who taught us we might always try to answer their many questions." Ursula, Anchorage's local "fun goddess," sings during her atrium parties, acts on stage and off, dances everywhere and teaches music in her spare time.

In "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe," a play by Jane Wagner, Trudy the bag lady is escorting her visitors from outer space:

"...we stopped to look at the stars.
And as usual,
I felt in awe.
And then I felt even deeper in awe at this capacity we have to be
in awe about something.

Then I became even more awestruck
at the thought that I was,
in some small way,
a part of that
which I was in awe about.

And this feeling went on
and on
and on....

Because at that moment you are most in awe of all there is
about life that you don't understand
you are closer to understanding it all
than at any other time."

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Radio Days: Mark Schneiter

Posted At : June 9, 2008 1:00 AM
Related Categories: Drama

Excerpted from Radio Days by Woody Allen.

Read by Mark Schneiter: "This bit makes me laugh because it reminds me of my dating experiences as a young man." Mark has been providing semi-professional CPA services to greater Anchorage for the better part of 30 years. He has also managed to stay married to the same woman for 30 years (40 years with the wind chill factor)! Favorite website: www.SchneiterandMoad.com.

In Radio Days, a movie by Woody Allen, it's the 1940s and Aunt Bea has developed a crush on Mr. Manulis on their first date. Afterwards, while driving home, a harrowing announcement comes on the radio:

"We interrupt this program... to bring you a special news bulletin. A state of emergency has been declared... by the President of the United States. We're switching live to Wilson's Glen, New Jersey... where the landing of hundreds of unidentified spacecraft... has now been officially confirmed... as a full-scale invasion of the Earth by Martians.

Despite his bravado all evening... Mr. Manulis panicked and bolted out of the car. He was so frightened by the reports... of interplanetary invasion that he ran off... leaving Aunt Bea to contend with the slimy green monsters... he expected to drop from the sky at any moment.

She walked home 6 miles.

When Mr. Manulis called for a date the next week...she told my mother to tell him she couldn't see him anymore. She had married a Martian."

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The Time of Your Life: Sandy Harper

Posted At : June 4, 2008 1:00 AM
Related Categories: Drama

From the prologue to William Saroyan's "The Time of Your Life," published by Samuel French.

Contributed and read by Sandy Harper, the Producing Artistic Director of Cyrano's Theatre Company. "Cyrano's Theatre Company will be producing William Saroyan's "The Time of Your Life" through June 8." Active in the Anchorage arts community, Sandy is the past president of the Anchorage Cultural Council and one of the founding members of the Alaska Center for the Book.

In the prologue to "The Time of Your Life," William Saroyan writes:

"In the time of your life, live -- so that in that good time there shall be no ugliness or death for yourself or for any life your life touches. Seek goodness everywhere, and when it is found, bring it out of its hiding-place and let it be free and unashamed. ... Discover in all things that which shines and is beyond corruption. ... Remember that every man is a variation of yourself. No man's guilt is not yours, nor is any man's innocence a thing apart. ... Have no shame in being kindly and gentle, but if the time comes in the time of your life to kill, kill and have no regret. In the time of your life, live -- so that in that wondrous time you shall not add to the misery and sorrow of the world, but shall smile to the infinite delight and mystery of it."

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