#that contrast stitching is putting in some WORK y'all

[saphyrenights]

August 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew making it's historic impact on the Bahamas, southern Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and other parts of the south and east in 1992. It was the first category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Camille in 1969. Since Andrew, only one other category five hurricane has made a US landfall: Hurricane Michael in 2018.

Adjusted for inflation, Hurricane Andrew caused almost $50 billion in damage, leading to the collapse of Florida's homeowner insurance system. In the years since, building codes were vastly improved in south Florida to withstand powerful hurricanes.

65 people died as a result of the storm, with most fatalities occurring during the recovery phase due to accidents and medical emergencies. Given the enormous amount of damage Hurricane Andrew caused, the shockingly low death toll (especially in Florida) has sometimes been partially credited to meteorologist Bryan Norcross and his 23-hour-long broadcast before, during, and after Andrew made its first US landfall. As the hurricane battered the television studio in downtown Miami, Norcross kept up a calm, steady flow of information and encouragement to everyone listening/watching, even as the storm forced him and his fellow anchors into a small concrete "bunker" for safety.

A humanitarian crisis grew in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew. Neither President George H. W. Bush nor Florida Governor Lawton Chiles wanted to take responsibility for the government's delayed response to Kate Hale (Miami's deputy emergency management coordinator) and her requests for help in south Florida. With few structures remaining operable, people were becoming dehydrated from lack of water, starving from a lack of food, and desperation grew more prevalent among the survivors. Even with private citizens from all over the country attempting to help the people in south Florida, it wasn't enough. Society broke down into lawlessness and fear. Government reinforcements finally arrived almost a week after Andrew ravaged southern Florida and the northern Gulf coast. 1992 was an election year, and many people cited Bush's delayed disaster response as the reason they voted for his rival, Bill Clinton.

Hurricane Andrew had lasting ripple effects on everything from the insurance industry, to the local ecology (displaced pet pythons formed a breeding population in the Everglades, for example), to national politics. Though its legacy has been eclipsed by arguably more catastrophic hurricanes like Katrina, Maria, and Michael, Andrew marked the beginning of a new era of devastating hurricanes to ravage a more connected United States. In 1992, cell phones, live satellite feeds, cable TV, rudimentary internet, and improved computer modeling kept Americans all over the country informed about Hurricane Andrew in a way that didn't happen just a few years earlier with Hurricane Hugo. Hurricane Andrew marks a milestone in modern disaster messaging and communications.

As we progress through yet another hurricane season, let's not forget the lessons that Hurricane Andrew taught us 30 years ago. 1) Be prepared BEFORE disaster strikes. 2) Working together for the greater good can literally save lives. 3) If authorities tell you to evacuate, LEAVE. 4) A battery powered radio is a lifeline when the electricity goes out. 5) Studying history can prepare us for the future.

Thanks for reading, and stay safe.

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edit: This was in my drafts. I forgot to post it back in August. I didn't want to delete it, so I'll just post it now, a day late and a dollar short. IDK if anyone following me will get anything out of it, but I like writing essays, so...here ya go.

#hurricane andrew #hurricane season #hurricane #i wrote this essay for fun #i hope y'all enjoy it #i can talk about this particular hurricane forever #and ngl i mostly wrote this #so i could have an excuse #to post that news anchor's outfit #that contrast stitching is putting in some WORK y'all

[yukinojou]

Hamilton West End: delayed impressions of December 15

*eyedart* It's been 3 weeks, high time to write my impressions of Hamilton in London...

I saw the December 15 show, 1 week before official opening night, from the first row of the upper circle, with the full first cast. I was last at the Victoria Palace Theatre for Billy Elliot in 2012, so the renovation was quite stunning. The Upper Circle is still dizzyingly steep, but there are actual handrails making the descent comfortable enough, and the renovation team actually put in enough ladies' restrooms for once. Props to the staff lady doing traffic control in the loo, making sure people didn't miss an empty cubicle :) The extra hard ticket control was also done very smoothly, though the pre-show mailings scared us a bit too much - we got there 90 minutes before the show and ended up camping in the upper bar for almost an hour.

Anticipation was high, but I admit to a moment of trepidation as well. I've been blasting the cast album for over two years, I've inhaled the Hamiltome and I admit I got my paws on some video visuals of dubious legality, so I was very attached to the original Broadway cast, especially since all of them were so absolutely stunning. I've had this reaction before - after so many viewings of the Warsaw Tanz der Vampire production it's so carved into my brain that I'm immensely critical of other performers tackling the same songs...

That lasted about 5 bars into the opening song, mind you.

Photos and clips don't do the set and choreography justice. There's always something going on everywhere on both levels and every freaking finger-twitch from the most in-the-background person in the shadows means something. There's actually quite a lot of props, and the bare set means that all of them have to be carried on by the cast. And every time it's freaking meaningful who carries the quill / jacket / desk / whatever. I could watch this show 15 times and still notice new things.

The choreography and direction is about both symbolism and shapes. So many times it's a living sculpture onstage. And the same in the soundscape of the songs and the lyrics and the acting. Yeah, it's the one freaking show that's not overhyped.

Cast, in bullet points and mostly random order:

Rachelle Ann Go - I intentionally avoided reading too much info about the cast, and the moment she opened her mouth I went "wait, she's Filipina, isn't she?" She's got that pure nightingale voice and steam-train charisma that must be in the water there. Same stunning mold as Lea Salonga and Leah Delos Santos. And on top of that, she was absolute steel underneath in the second act. This was an Eliza who is very much in charge, someone that Alexander is chasing to keep up with. She didn't steal the show, she owned it from Schuyler Sisters onwards.

Obioma Ugoala - Washington was the role I was most worried about, mostly because Christopher Jackson was so good and commanding and three-dimensional. Um. Yeah. I may actually have a new favourite Washington, both with the fatherly vibe towards Hamilton and with the sheer gravitas. This man yells "attack", you freaking attack. Best. Casting. Ever. Also had me in sniffles during One Last Time.

Jason Pennycooke - Lafayette/Jefferson was second on the worry list, seeing as readers of this tumblr have had to suffer many many pictures of Daveed Diggs. Guess who did his best to steal the show. Tiny adorable floofy-haired dynamo of a man, bouncy as all get out, absolutely different from Daveed and so very very good at playing a totally self-centered but very intelligent man. The moment we left the theatre, we all went "JEFFERSON!"

Rachel John - the saddest, most mature Angelica I've heard yet. Virtuoso, but with an undercurrent of melancholy that made the role her own. After Schuyler Sisters, she seemed slightly apart from the show, always watching, always the observer.

Cleve September - adorable is a good word. He was an absolute sweetheart in his own songs, and when he wasn't singing, he was doing his best to make everyone else shine too, putting telling the story ahead of his own applause. If he was a Takarazuka actress he'd be in Yukigumi, and y'all know I'm a forever-Yuki girl.

Christine Allado - she still seemed to be finding her Peggy (though the shyness worked for the character), but her Maria was an absolute tour de force. Someone get this woman to sing tango. And dance tango. She's got an opera background, and the combination of those deep tones with a deeper version of that pure Filipino sound is killer.

Tarinn Callender - Numero Tres I was worried about needlessly. His Mulligan was powerful and joyful, while his Madison was just hilarious, especially the contrast between his nerd-dom and Jefferson’s look-I’m-so-cool. I just about choked when they couldn’t work out the mic drop :D

Giles Terera - I think he may have had a bit of a cold or something distracted him in Act One, because I wasn't quite feeling it. I thought it was the combination of not entirely clear diction (as a non-native speaker I take a while to get used to unfamiliar accents) and a distant aspect that didn't connect with me. Whatever it was, it cleared up by Act Two. His Room brought the house down, and by the time he was falling apart in The World Was Wide Enough, my heart was breaking.

Michael Jibson - MWAHAHA. Someone give this guy an Olivier for sheer comedic timing. No slouch on the voice and movement, but it's the freaking timing that had me in stitches.

Jamael Westman - giant giraffe of a junior Machiavelli who needs a hug :D He had a great concept for Act Two and Hamilton's entire emotional journey. Great voice, good acting, arms and legs all over the place, and possibly my Hamilton from now on.

Ensemble - so energetic and precise. I loved the Bullet, Leah Hill, especially - she's got a magnetic quality. Not quite sure who was our James Reynolds, but he oozed evil.

In conclusion: very tempted to hunt for cheap flights and cancellation tickets.

#hamilton #hamilton west end #hamilton london #rachelle ann go #jamael westman #obioma ugoala #jason pennycooke #rachel john #cleve september #christine allado #tarinn callender #michael jibson