Hello-
I am not sure if anyone is still reading it, but just in case I thought I would give a brief update. The school year has started in Ohio and I have been busy teaching, going to class, researching, and writing. I am teaching Theatre 100. I have 3 sections of discussions. So far, it has been harmless. I gave my first mini lecture on Thursday only to discover that 2+ hours of preparations = 15-20 minutes in the classroom. Next week we start Shakespeare, so it should be a little easier for me.
I can now say that I have started writing my thesis. The first chapter I am working on is a production of Richard II with Fiona Shaw in the title role.
I am getting ready to apply to PhD programs. So far the list is: UC Santa Barbara, UC Berkeley, Northwestern, University of Minnesota- Minneapolis, Brown University, and OSU. I'll keep you updated as the list changes as it might.
I hope everyone is well and it still would be great to hear from people.

These are all pictures from Scotland. I am really messing up this photo format thing, so I will just put all the pictures without all the descriptions.

This is one of the inspiring alleyways in Edinburgh.

















This is a picture from the Globe. Eric Colleary and I are in places for watching a production of The Tempest. Getting close to the stage is key for many reasons. Not only do you get an unobstructed view of the stage but you can lean against the stage which makes standing for 2-3 hours bearable.









This is a picture of Saint Paul's Cathedral. I went to a Matin service there one Sunday morning. They sing everything except the readings and the sermon. It was gorgeous.

Pictures! Finally!
Above: Here is a shot of basically my neighborhood. This was around Fitzroy square and just down the block from Ramsay.

Below is a picture from Hampstead Heath. Early one morning Christina, Nick, and I headed over. It's about a fifteen minute tube ride. We went to a french bakery and got breakfast. We hiked and had a little picnic overlooking the city. This was one of the many trails.
Below is a picture from the Queen's walkway along the Thames river on the South Bank. The South Bank was my favorite place in London. Just a little ways down from this picture is the National Theatre. Farther down the path, you'll find the Globe Theatre and then eventually you will reach the Tower.

Above is a picture from the Queen's Garden in Regent's park.
This is where I spent lovely afternoon smelling the roses.

I want a digital camera.
For a long time, I have stuck with film. I prefered the old fashioned surprise after developing. I got back my pictures from London today. The store lost a roll of my film. It was the roll that contained the pictures from Stratford. E, I have no proof of the orange and purple room in which I stayed and Jamie, we will not be able to compare chandelier pictures. Luckily I bought some postcards so I do have some pictures from Stratford, but I am still disappointed. I can only hope that either I am a complete dufas and I will find the roll of film in somewhere hidden in my apartment or CVS will find it.
Since I have been back I have been struggling with the time change and finding where my stuff is stored. I reorganized prior to leaving and I don't know where anything is. It has taken me a day and a half to find all of my socks.
I will try to get a few of the pictures on the blog in the days to come. I have finally unpacked and put away most of my belongings. Next up- the photo album, laundry, and then the papers I have to write to get credit for the trip. And for the record, the order listed is also my priority list. :)
Hope all is well with everyone. I will keep posting on the blog but unfortunately it probably won't be as exciting or I could try writing in a more sensational manner. It will depend on my workload- the more work I have, the more time I will be putting into the blog. Mmmmmm...denial...

Hello-
A very quick post to say I am back in Columbus and made it here safe and sound. The flight was fairly unevently except for a air steward breakdown. One too many people asked about the chicken which they apparently ran out of. He began talking excitedly about he would have to make the chicken out of thin air because there just wasn't any chicken and began doing some frantic hand gestures to illustrate his point. It was incredibly bizarre and even more bizarre that no one else seemed to think it was bizarre. I feel like I enter this twilight zone vacuum when I got I get on an air plane or any public transportation vehicle.
I look forward to talking to everyone and catching up.
love, kimberly

Winding down in London

Hello everyone. The trip is really winding down now. I have been trying to get in the things I have wanted to do, but didn't do yet. Yesterday I spent a few hours in the National Portrait Gallery looking at portraits of many people I have studied as well as contemporary ones (George Elliott, Bronte sisters, Queen Elizabeth, Seamus Heaney, Katie Mitchell, Samuel Beckett). Then I went to Saint Martin in the Fields, a beautiful church in Travalgar Square. After people watching on the stairs of the church, I met some friends to see The Storm at the Globe. Very fun play with artistic director, Mark Rylance in the cast. After the show we found out they were having a cast discussion so we went to that and talked to Mark Rylance after the show. He's brilliant, kind, and gentle. He signed my season poster. :) I was star struck.
I went with Nick, another PhD HLC student, to get bangers and mash (sausage and mashed potatoes) at Royal Court Theatre restaurant before seeing a show there. The show was really good. The play began with a family in 1914 and went through present day. Dad, you would have been so impressed with the set. Each time it hit a new generation, it was changed to reflect that and they did a very nice, subtle job. It even included laying down linoleum at one point. I have the script and you may be interested in reading it. It seemed like a show you would like. :)
This morning I had to feverishly write in my journal to have it complete by 10. I went to the British National Museum. One of the exhibits was an art piece composed of pills that an average Britain takes in the course of his/her life. It was composed of 14,400 pills sewn into fabric. I have pictures and copied down some of the information. I figured my medical and pharmaceutical friends would be really interested.
As a group, we ate a 3 course lunch in the Court Restaurant in the British National Museum. After that, Kristine (resident costume designer) and I tried to get tickets for The Tempest and then we tried to get tickets for Les Miserables. We were foiled on both attempts and might try for Les Mis tomorrow night.
I don't know if I have written since Friday but the strangest thing happened- my watch somehow ended up 45 minutes ahead. It was so bizarre. I got to a theatre 1 1/2 early, when I only wanted to be 45 minutes early. It took me awhile (and a lot of confusion) to realize that my watch was so off. Since then I have been leary of time. It says 7:30, but is it really?
Tomorrow I think I am going to go to Covent Garden and the Theatre Museum. Tuesday I fly back! Amanda and Casey- I will send flight information tomorrow morning.