You really couldn't start much higher than a dazzling audio vision like "Koyaanisqatsi," the 1983 film about life out of balance with a Philip Glass soundtrack.
Sitting at UR's Modlin Center with a roomful of people willing to forsake a crystalline late summer day and the NFL for a non-narrative movie with only one word in it (the Hopi chant "koyaanisqatsi") surely qualified me as both a music and film nerd.
Unfortunately, not everyone in attendance was as enthralled with the movie as my companions and I were.
Directly in front of us was a UR student who moved constantly and restlessly from side to side in his chair, his head always in his hands as if he needed to hold it up.
In front of him, a kid napped through the whole thing.
Personally, I find the visuals of nature followed by technology followed by cultural references and eventually decay to be a meditation on the planet.
And of course, on the late '70s, early '80s when it was shot.
Like the billboard in Times Square advertising, "Sony Betamax."
And the beauty of implosions, long a fascination for me.
I am one of those people who got up at the crack of dawn to watch the old Times Disptach building imploded back in September '98.
The film had image after image of implosions, truly a combination of science and beauty.
But if you've seen the film, you know how tense the score and images make you by the end of the film.
We stayed for the talkback with UR's music director and the remaining devotees of the film for some additional insight.
Afterwards, the four of us dined at Don't Look Back, discussing the film and its two sequels, neither of which I've seen.
A Frito pie and Herradura Reposado helped clear my head of the apocalyptic vision we'd just seen on the big screen.
And, honestly, where can you go after apocalypse and Fritos but to the Ghost Light Afterparty?
This month's event was called "Sha-GLAP," leading me to suspect a '50s theme.
Walking in to a room full of poodle skirts, bobby socks and ponytails, I knew I was right.
My date guessed that there's be some '60s, too, and a chat with co-host Maggie confirmed this.
The decades may change, but the GLAP is essentially a piano bar with members of the theater community taking the stage to sing whatever the hell they want.
As co-host Matt said tonight, "If you wanna sing a song from Les Mis and then talk about how much you hate Les Mis, that's fine."
Maggie explained the housekeeping issues, including a plea for some appropriate music. "We do appreciate some theme-i-ness."
And we got theme-i-ness almost at once with the marvelous Wonderettes (currently in production at Swift Mill) doing "Son of a Preacherman," complete with choreography and praying hands.
And we were off and running.
Part of the drill at GLAP is always Mad Libs set to a song of the period and we were warned that two Mad Libs were now in circulation and to feel free to contribute any dirty words we cared to to the project.
"F**k hasn't come up and we only have one penis," Miss Mad Lib informed us.
"One penis is never enough," Matt quipped.
Lamentation gave way to opera as Stephanie and Ingrid got up and sang a piece from "Tales of Hoffman."
"Last month we had "Smells Like Teen Spirit," Matt laughed. "And now we have opera. That's what Ghost Light is all about."
Maggie sang "Let the Good Times Roll" with Matt on shaker balls, providing my favorite lyric of the evening, "Love can be such a swinging thing."
Warning us that, "This could be tragic, but we welcome tragedy here," Matt did "On Broadway" (with back up singers), even changing the lyrics to "On Broad Street" and ending with jazz hands.
We like jazz hands at the GLAP.
Elizabeth jumped decades and did "Sweet Baby James," Peter did a soulful version of "Let It Be Me" and Sarah did "Stand By Me" with an impromptu group of backup singers and shakers almost upstaging her.
The Wonderettes returned for a beautifully-executed "Mr. Sandman" and an hysterical "Lollipop" that included a take-off on a Saturday Night Live skit that had one of the Wonderettes wearing prosthetic tubes with doll arms attached.
Georgia was the brave one to sing the first Mad Lib to "It's My Party," full of innuendo and trash talk ("It's my party and I'll masturbate if I want to").
When Matt spotted Evan looking very much like Buddy Holly, he burst into Weezer song, "Ooh,we, ooh, you look just like Buddy Holly and Karen, you're Mary Tyler Moore."
Not gonna lie, it was my first musical shout-out from the stage and I could get used to it.
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" got the bongos and shaker treatment.
One of the night's highlights was Katrina singing (with flowers in her hair) and Iman beat boxing to "Killing Me Softly."
It was the kind of sublime moment that you just had to be present for.
The TheaterLab group did "Summer Nights" from "Grease" and Evan added a mean tambourine to that.
Then it was intermission, meaning pizza time and Matt instructed, "Crank up that tuna-age!" so we had music to munch by.
Sarah did "Freddy, My Love" before raffle winners were pulled.
One prize was a bottle of malbec and Maggie read from the bottle's label that the winemakers selected from grapes that were 47 years old.
"That's so old!" Maggie exclaimed.
God, yes, 47, that's practically deathbed material.
Paul did a sweet version of "In My Own Little Corner" from "Cinderella," complete with high drama and an abrupt and unexpected ending, at least for him.
"That was very unceremonious and I loved it," Maggie observed.
Katie got Mad Lib duty this time and hers came with a warning at the top saying, "This is filthy."
Sung to Grease's "Sandra Dee" it included phrases like "pink velvet sausage pocket."
GLAP is not for the faint of heart, kids.
Nick did a rousing rendition of "If You Wanna Be Happy" with the sage lyrics "never make a pretty woman your wife" and three guys on heartfelt backup vocals plus bongos.
The crowd, now well lubricated, got vocal, testifying as Carla sang Streisand's "Evergreen" to shouts of "Come on!" and "Go, girl."
In a nod to the mood, she even changed a lyric to "Every day I am tipsy."
Katrina got called back up next, prompting her to say, "Oh, great! I have to go after Carla!"
Oh, great was right as she did "Stars and the Moon," noting midway through, "This song makes me cry."
Meanwhile you could have heard a pin drop in the room as everyone listened intently.
Even as our own bottle of Rose got lower and lower, Matt acknowledged, "I just accidentally chugged my bourbon and ginger and there's so many words on this page," before singing the hilarious "Therapy" from "Tick Tick Boom."
Paul did a song requested by Annie, saying, "To all you Glappers who have nothing better to do on a Sunday, there's nothing better than love, so here's "A Sunday Kind of Love."
Once again, he finished unceremoniously, getting many laughs for it.
The last song was "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)" with Carla, Matt, Maggie and even Evan shaking his
Conclusion after nearly five hours of Glappage?
If it's love, if it really is, it's there in his kiss.
That, and I'm happy to concede that I have nothing better to do on a Sunday evening than let tipsy theater people sing to me.
Where else on earth am I going to be able to relive my youth singing along with a roomful of people to "Good Morning, Starshine"?
Only at GLAP, my friends, only at GLAP.
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