This Can't Be Broccoli

I typically don't post more than one of these interviews in a week, because transcribing them can sometimes be a headache, but after I posted the Tuesday interview, I got a lot of feedback from people online asking why the director of the production that the Teenager I interviewed was in didn't get any flack from the Dream Team and why she didn't do something about the bullying. It turns out, that director wanted to speak with me and answer some of these questions, and I decided it would be good to get that out sooner rather than later. Here's the interview: ME:  Before we start, I just want to point out that you are not part of the Dream Team and you never have been. THEM:  Yes. ME:  You never had the t-shirt? THEM:  (Laughs.)  I was never offered the t-shirt, no. ME:  Do you think they've burned them at this point? THEM:  Uh, they should.  I would. ME:  So you read the interview, but I know you're not on social media. TH...

If you haven't been following my ongoing series-within-a-series about a group of theater people causing problems within their (unnamed) community, check out these links now: http://thiscantbebroccoli.blogspot.com/2019/08/theater-and-dream-team.html http://thiscantbebroccoli.blogspot.com/2019/08/theater-and-dream-team-part-two.html In those posts, we mentioned that this group had bullied a teenager online, and in the process of posting these interviews, I had the opportunity to speak with the teenager's mother, then the sixteen-year-old herself, and we all agreed that something might be gained from doing an interview with her. So, I met with the teenager and her mother before I left for California last week, and this is the interview. ME:  How are you doing today? THEM:  I'm okay. ME:  I just want to mention that your mom's here in the theater with us. THEM:  Yeah. ME:  I'm going to note that you just rolled your eyes really hard. THEM:  ...

This weekend, I attended my fourth D23 Expo.  The convention for all things Disney. My boyfriend Adam has been to all six D23 Expos, which are held every other year, and I started tagging along in 2013, not sure what to expect other than lots of enthusiastic Mickey fans and grown men dressed like Gadget from the Rescue Rangers. Well, I got all that and more, and over the years, I've experienced the peaks and valleys of a fan convention, but at least the valleys come with Dole Whips. This was, by far, my most successful D23--depending on what you consider success to be--and so I thought I'd give a brief rundown of all the highlights. For me, success is always going to be about getting in the big presentations.  Usually that means the animation and live action presentations, but this year, those were combined, and Disney dedicated an entire chunk of the schedule to the launch of its new streaming service--Disney+.  The legends ceremony has also grown in popularity, ...

A week ago I interviewed a friend I'd worked with over ten years ago at a theater outside my home of Rhode Island.  The experience has stuck with me over the years, because it involved a group of people who, at the time, were something of a clique, but who over the years seemed to transform into something a little more toxic.  I would keep tabs on them on social media, and it seemed that they were now calling themselves The Dream Team. While I knew that they were still a tight-knit entity in their community, I wasn't aware of the scope of their influence until the friend I interviewed got in touch with me about what had transpired over the past decade involving them.  You can read that interview here:   https://thiscantbebroccoli.blogspot.com/2019/08/theater-and-dream-team.html Almost as soon as I posted the interview, one of the self-proclaimed members of The Dream Team contacted me about it.  As you can imagine, they weren't very pleased with how th...

I know. I know. I know. You read the headline of the post and you were like-- He's lost his mind. First of all, joke's on you.  I lost it years ago. SECOND of all, yes, I do worship at the altar of Mr. The Rock, but nevertheless-- Hobbes and Shaw  is one of the greatest summer movie of all time--ever. Let me break down this masterwork for you. The movie starts out with a bunch of MI6 agents trying to steal a virus. Okay, let's stop right there. This movie belongs to a cinematic universe that was founded on a two-dollar movie about street racing in LA.  How did we EVER get to a point where MI6 agents are involved? Anyone? ANYone? Moving on. Vanessa Kirby is one of the agents and I think she backstabs her team?  I can't tell.  Oh, by the way, spoiler alert, but, like, you won't be understand anything I'm saying from here on in, and you definitely won't be able to make sense of the movie no matter WHAT so just read on and enjoy. Vaness...

Ever since I started doing these interviews, there's one story of my own that's been on my mind.  It involves a theater I worked at shortly after college.  It was a one-and-done experience that stuck with me for awhile, because while the job was out-of-state, I stayed friends with a few of the people in that community.  When I started posting about people quitting theater, a few of them reached out to me to discuss their own reasons for doing so.  After the posts about the Wolf, one of them messaged me to say that their community had their own version of the Wolf, although in this case, it was a group of people that self-identified as The Dream Team.  I knew all about them, because one was my director all those years ago, and I caught a few glimpses of the behavior that was already becoming standard practice at that point.  I was wondering if anybody would be willing to talk to me--even anonymously--about the Dream Team. Yesterday afternoon, someone did. ...