Body Worlds 2 in San Jose, The Rainmaker in San Francisco and Greater Tuna in Walnut Creek!
Body Worlds 2 is an unrivaled anatomical exhibit that allows us to explore the beauty and complexity of the human body as seldom witnessed by the average man!
One of the wonderful benefits of this job is the opportunity to be educated as well as entertained. Sometimes, entertainment is highly educational and occasionally, education is the primary reward with entertainment a peripheral benefit. Such was the case this weekend when I had the opportunity to visit the Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose to see and experience Dr. Gunther von Hagen’s “Body Worlds 2 - The Anatomical Exhibit of Real Human Bodies.” I missed this exhibit when it was presented in San Francisco approximately a year ago and had wanted to see what other theatre critics have described as one of the most beneficial scientific exhibits for young and old alike, to come to the San Francisco Bay Area.
The process of finding better means of body preservation following death has been a rigorously sought after goal of scientific and religious interests for centuries. Preserving deities by many religious sects’ dates back to periods before the Egyptian rulers and the prevention of deterioration of human remains has been paramount in the process of advancing the healing arts for hundreds of years. Initially, dehydration in hot desert climes led to mummification.
Then chemicals such as Formalin were discovered that could be injected into human tissues, replacing the water in the deceased human cadaver or animal body, allowing it to be preserved for longer and longer periods of time. The more efficient the preservation process, the less offensive the natural decomposition became and the more advantageous the process of examining the miraculous structure of human and animal bodies became to the edification of mankind through scientific research.
In visiting Wikipedia on the internet, I found an excellent article on the development of a process of preservation that has come to be known as “Plastination”, and I extracted a small portion of that article as follows to aid in my explanation of this exhibit and I include that as follows:
“In November of 1978 Dr. Gunther von Hagens applied for a US Patent. He proposed the idea of preserving animal and vegetable tissues permanently by synthetic resin impregnation. Since then Dr. von Hagens has applied for two more US Patents. The final one coming in May of 1982 when Dr. von Hagens received a Patent by the United States government for his work on preserving biological tissues with polymers. Since then the art form known as Plastination has been an ongoing battle of art vs. ethics. With the success of his Patents, von Hagens went on to form the Institute of Plastination in Heidelberg, Germany in 1993. The Institute of Plastination, along with Dr. von Hagens made their first showing of plastinated bodies in Japan in 1995, which drew over three million people .”
Plastination is a technique used in anatomy to preserve bodies or body parts. The water and fat are replaced by certain plastics, yielding specimens that can be touched, do not smell or decay, and even retain most microscopic properties of the original sample. Dr. von Hagen acquires specimens exclusively through a large, carefully controlled donation program managed by his institute. Exhibits have been mounted now around the world, designed in part to educate the general population about the beauty and complexity of the human body, allowing them to look into a world previously accessible only to medical students or practitioners.
Body Worlds 2 is an anatomical exhibition that presents the human body in such a way that we can experience the beauty, complexity, function and form as never before possible. It is one thing to read about how the coal mine dust affects the life of the miner, but to actually see a real pair of lungs taken from a coal miner, ebony black in appearance, or the lungs of a smoker perforated like a piece of grey Swiss cheese that one can truly begin to see the deleterious effects of our working environment and life styles on this miraculous human structure we have been endowed with. It is a truly marvelous experience to be able to examine the peripheral nervous system, or the blood distribution system, or the muscular-skeletal inner workings, for us to begin to appreciate this miracle of life.
The exhibits include full body displays, artfully arranged to demonstrate people in typical real life poses, much as if you had X-ray vision, and could see beneath the skin to see how the muscles come to bear on such activities as dancing, sitting, skate-boarding, playing baseball and soccer. There are over 200 authentic specimen displays showing body parts such as (for example) a foot, informing us how the foot functions, how many bones it has, and how it operates. The foot has 26 bones, 100 ligaments and the 33 controlling foot muscles actually originate in the lower leg. These incredible displays provide profound insights into the entire body and how health and disease affect it. There are displays of prosthetic implements, artificial joints, repair devices and even a pace-maker, allowing people who may be contemplating such surgery to see very clearly just how and why these modern medical miracles work.
Sure there are complete skeletons, typical of those a student might encounter in a science lab class, but this exhibit provides an educational opportunity that should be seen and experienced by everyone. The displays are beautifully and artfully designed and supported by both visual and audio systems that make the learning experience more informative and enjoyable.
After much discussion and forethought, one of my neighbors took their two boys (aged 6 and 10) to see the exhibit last week, concerned about what they were going to see, and how it would be presented, especially to youngsters. Both husband and wife and each of the children described with enthusiasm how much they were enthralled and thrilled and educated by this incredible exhibit. Karen and I only wish we would have allowed more than the 1 & ½ hours that we had set aside to see and hear the extremely well presented information.
You can rent audio recorders that you carry with you that provide narratives at each display exhibit you are seeing. These devices cost an additional $3 to $4 dollars per person, but believe me, they are well worth the price. The detail on the audio is far more informative than the printed explanations on display. This exhibit is truly “Anatomy for Everyone!”
The Tech Museum of Innovation is located at 201 South Market Street in downtown San Jose. You can call (408) 294-8324 or go on the internet and visit http://www.bodyworlds.com/ or http://www.thetech.org/ (408) 294-TECH (8324) for more information, and directions to the site. Tickets range between $15 (youth), to $18.50 (seniors), to $22 (adults) for each person. The hours of operation for this exhibit range from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, now through December 25th.
The Rainmaker enthralls ACT audiences!
Now back to regular theatrical entertainment as the American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) in San Francisco opened with their outstanding production of N. Richard Nash’s classic story of hope, The Rainmaker.
When one mentions a show about The Rainmaker most people seem to recall the famous award winning 1956 film by the same name, starring Burt Lancaster and Katherine Hepburn, a story about drought, dreams, schemes and deliverance! The story tells of ranchers plagued by an extended drought that is costing them their livelihoods, more especially their cattle and feed crops. This story tells of the tensions and concerns of these hardworking people who are subject to the elements, to the whims of nature, to the perils constantly hanging over their fragile existence. In this story, there is a drought of another kind, an extended loss of confidence, and a dwindling loss of hope. The Curry family consists of a father, H.C, (played by Jack Willis), two sons, Noah (Stephen Barker Turner) and Jim (Alex Morf) and a daughter, Lizzie (Rene Augusen), who appears to be heading towards a life as a spinster or an “Old Maid”, an unmarried woman.
Lizzie is a very independent, hard-working, well educated woman, who, unfortunately, is not the prettiest filly in the pasture, who is considered by her family and herself as somewhat plain. She doesn’t seem to attract boyfriends, in fact, there seems to be a drought there as well. After having been sent to visit cousins in another community by her father, Lizzie has just returned to the family farm, knowing full well the reason for her trip (to be seen by eligible bachelors). Her family is anxious to get her married before she gets too old to be a desirable catch.
Knowing that Lizzie has eyes for their local sheriff’s deputy, a man by the name of File, the father and brothers run off to town to try to arrange for Deputy File to join them for a card game and dinner at the family home. File (Anthony Fusco) is a divorcee who was devistated by his wife who ran off with another man several years earlier, and is not looking to experience the rejection again. He realizes very quickly why he is being asked to visit the Curry farm, and declines the offer. Lizzie, who has been led to believe that File was really looking forward to enjoying one of her great home-cooked meals, is deeply hurt when he declines the offer.
Into the midst of this parched and fragile life without love, in the middle of this parched and stricken landscape, wanders a huckster, a conman, a self-professed rainmaker by the name of Bill Starbuck (Geordie Johnson). Starbuck knocks on the farmhouse door on that same evening when the dinner table had been set for five, announcing that he had come to save this family from the crisis looming before them, promising to bring them rain. In addition, he promises to deliver any kind or size of rainstorm they could imagine, anything from simple spring showers to the wrath of Noah’s flood.
While brother Noah, the business manager of the ranch, and Lizzie, rejects Starbuck’s overtures immediately and completely, father Curry and the younger brother, Jim, warm towards this stranger, embracing his challenge and hoping that maybe this charming stranger might offer something more than just a little rain.
What the play brings to us is a delightfully funny and heartwarming tale of hope and change, understanding and personal growth. The story translates as well today as it did back in the 50’s, and the entire cast, directed by Mark Rucker, is an “all-stops out” terrific, superlative cast in every conceivable way. When you walk out of the theater on your way home, the day just seems to be better for some reason and you’re glad to have experienced it.
In addition to the other actors previously mentioned, Rod Gnapp plays the role of the Sheriff very well. The whole package is great, from sound by Jeff Mockus, to costumes by Lydia Tanji, to the superb set, by Robert Mark Morgan.
The Rainmaker plays Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m., with Sunday performances at 7 p.m., now through November 25th. The ACT Theater is located at 415 Geary Street in San Francisco. For tickets call 7498-2228 or visit http://www.act-sf.org/ for more information.
Greater Tuna so successful it had to move to another theatre!
One more footnote and a reminder that Act Now! Theatre has moved their outrageously funny comedy about red-neck life in Tuna Texas, a show called Greater Tuna, to the Del Valle Theatre at 1963 Tice Valley Bouldvard in Walnut Creek. You can visit their web-site at http://www.actnowtheatre.org/ or call 943-SHOW (7469) for ticket and reservation information. If you did not see this terrific production starring Jerry Motta and Ron Meir, that sold out week after week when it was at the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, then by all means, don’t miss it now! Some people call this show a tongue-in-cheek look at “the other side of bigotry”, with a Texas tick! It plays now through the 17th.