#Roman Macharoni

[romanmacharoni]

Here’s my review for “Almost, Maine”, the inaugural production for the Bay Village Community Theater. Was a pleasure to see the show. They are well on their way to being a new and exciting place to see local talent. 

#Roman Macharoni #Cleveland Jewish News #Almost Maine #Bay Village Community Theater

[clevelandstate]

CSU program is ‘win-win-win’ for student-critics, community theaters and local newspapers

Cleveland State University journalism students are critiquing the Northeast Ohio theater scene – and they’re earning rave reviews for their work.

For a prime example of Engaged Learning in action, look no further. Bob Abelman, Ph.D., a professor of media arts and technology in the CSU School of Communication, received a CSU Civic Engagement Grant to recruit and train a small corps of student-critics to review the productions of dozens of community theaters throughout the region. Delivered on tight deadlines, their write-ups run in print or online for several local media outlets, including the Cleveland Jewish News, The Chagrin Valley Times and The News-Herald.

“The students are not only learning to be arts journalists, but they’re also learning how to be critical thinkers and writers,” Dr. Abelman says.

This semester, the student-critics are (pictured above, from left) Eric Kish, Roman Macharoni and Gwendolyn Kochur. Completing the program in the fall were Tommy Carosielli and Nikolet Hermida.

Gwendolyn, a freshman who is studying journalism and film, recently reviewed Coach House Theatre’s production of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. She will be covering Cassidy Theatre’s Titanic: The Musical and East Cleveland Theater’s Blood Money, among others.

“I love doing it,” she says. “It’s wonderful to get exposure and start building a portfolio with your byline out there in different newspapers.”

For Gwendolyn, any given assignment begins with extensive background research on the show. During the performance, she takes copious notes. Afterwards, she spends a few more hours writing and fine-tuning her review.

The reviews are edited by Dr. Abelman, an award-winning theater critic himself for the Cleveland Jewish News. He was named best critic in Ohio last year by the Society of Professional Journalists and best columnist this year by the Associated Press. He also is the co-author of the book Refereeing the Muses, a theater criticism and arts journalism primer used in college writing courses across the country.

The student-critics receive academic credit as well as a stipend for their reviews through the grant program, which has just been renewed for another academic year.

Drew Rothman of the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is one of many community theater publicity managers who applaud the initiative.

“The reviews have been well-composed and well thought-out,” he says. “Coverage of community theater in the area is always welcome, and having this program has been great. Most publications don’t have the staff for such things. Having the student reviewers – particularly under the tutelage of Bob, who I know to be the most honest, creative and reasonable critic in town – is a great expansion of quality exposure for us.”

Dr. Abelman calls it a “win-win-win” situation.

“The students gain valuable experience, the community theater artists receive some well-deserved attention and the newspapers get fair and accurate reviews at no cost,” he says.

“If these students go on to become arts journalists, they’ll be exceptionally well-equipped to take on those important positions. If not, they’ll still be deeper thinkers and better writers. Those skills will come in handy no matter which careers they choose.”

#Cleveland State University #CLEstate #Bob Abelman #Eric Kish #Roman Macharoni #Gwendolyn Kochur #Tommy Carosielli #Nikolet Hermida #CSU Civic Engagement Grant #CSU School of Communication #theater criticism #Chagrin Valley Little Theatre

[romanmacharoni]

My first published piece in the Cleveland Jewish News!! Be on the lookout for several more over the coming months!

Another special thanks to Prof. Bob Abelman for the opportunity. This review is thanks to the Cleveland State University Civic Engagement grant. 

#Roman Macharoni #Cleveland Jewish News #Community Theatre #Community Theatre Reviews #Love From A Stranger #Clague Playhouse

[romanmacharoni]

“Jackie” Movie Review

A Cold Death Meets Warm Reception

by Roman Macharoni

The death of President John F. Kennedy has become something of an enigma. The controversy and mystique behind his untimely demise can be compared to that of Jimi Hendrix, Kirk Cobain and Janis Joplin, of a person taken from us at the peak of their potential and life. “Jackie” — released Dec. 2 — singles out the week of his death, burial and memorial from a unique perspective: his wife, in the forefront of the swarming media as well as a country in mourning. But instead of sheltering her family and moving on, she displays her grief in a more... grander fashion, and by doing so she secured a lasting final memory of Jack Kennedy. 

Jackie (Natalie Portman) is shown in varying degrees of grief, anger, shame and bright moments of fond recollection.  Her fights with Bobby (Peter Sarsgaard) over the nature of the funeral are cold and distant, almost unnerving to watch. It feels authentic and bitter, but such is the nature of these kind of talks. It’s brutally sincere and clear-cut: there is mourning and moving on simultaneously. Her struggle with letting go and moving out of the White House is understandable yet bizarre in its presentation. The entire film has an almost eerie vibe to it, but ends with a slightly more optimistic note of the importance of legacy and the ideas passed on by those with the position to enact them. 

As far as performances go, Portman does a fine job at depicting the First Lady. Her accent was a bit odd at the first ten minutes, but it became more comfortable and genuine as the movie progressed. The guy they got to play JFK, Caspar Phillipson, is picture-perfect. However, they don’t have him talk (unless it’s dubbed over by the real JFK’s voice), so the looks may have been the only reason they got him. To single out performances, John Hurt’s portrayal of a priest attempting to get Jackie towards the path to God is perfect. His talks with her are among the best parts of the film. Billy Crudup’s portrayal of the journalist to interview her is also a bright spot in the justifiable dreariness of the subject matter. Her at-first shrill nature is quite humorous as she slowly opens up to him.

The pacing of the film, though taking place in a relatively short amount of time, is slow yet methodical. The cinematography reflects this, taking the time to show the anguish of Jackie throughout. It highlights her performance and becomes an instrument of intimacy. It was undoubtedly a wise choice dictatorially. 

I don’t often comment on sound design, but they did a great job with the authenticity of vintage tape playback, as there are scenes showing the recording of the White House tours by Jackie Kennedy, and the voices are dubbed and manipulated to sound like the real thing. This also hearkens back to my comments on Phillipson’s performance; his few on-screen lines are dubbed in this manner, and it look convincing enough because it was used with restraint. 

The harsh reality of the 35th President’s death is competently and beautifully envisioned and placed on a pedestal in “Jackie”. It’s a fitting representation to the death and legacy of JFK, and a brutally honest depiction of a woman with such grace and vanity that she became arguably as big of a symbol as her husband. I’d recommend this to fans of biopics and historical pieces, as well as fans of movies that offer a clear view into the mind of a person with inner struggle. 

Grade: B

#Roman Macharoni #Jackie #Jackie Movie #jackie kennedy #Jackie O #Natalie Portman #Movie Review #Caspar Phillipson #peter sarsgaard #Greta Gerwig #Billy Crudup

[romanmacharoni]

2017 Update!

Hello everyone, 

It’s been a while since I’ve posted here, but that is mostly because I forgot my login information for this account! Apologies. 

I also have been working as a blogger for Cleveland State Campus Recreation Services, posting content (including videos!) about three-to-four times a week. So, this personal blog had to suffer just a bit. If you want to check that stuff out, just go here! 

Also, I’ll be posting my favorite articles I’ve written for the Cauldron right here every once in a while. Plus, a Top 15 Movies of 2016 (and Top 5 Worst) and a Top 10 Best and Worst Songs of 2016 within the next week or so. 

Hope everyone enjoyed the holidays, you’ll be seeing some more stuff from me soon. 

#Roman Macharoni #Update #2017 #2016 #Upcoming #Blog.csurec.com #Cleveland State Campus Recreation Services

[romanmacharoni]

Unedited Review: “Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice”

Yes, I know. This review is LOOONNNNGGGGG overdue. But since I added this to my worst list of 2016, I felt I needed to give you my unedited opinion on this. This is what I couldn’t post in the Cauldron. Enjoy. 

Batman vs. Superman vs. Studio Mandates

by Roman Macharoni

Original Grade: C+

Looking up in the sky is not a bird nor a plane, but a concept that may have sputtered and careened over the heads of comic book fans and critics alike.

It’s a clash of icons— and of creative control— in “Batman V Superman” Dawn of Justice”, released March 25, undoubtedly one of the more polarizing films in some time.

After the events of “Man of Steel”, the government is trying to monitor the actions of Superman. (Henry Cavill, who should have gotten a better set of lines to read), who has plunged himself into problems with unintended larger ramifications to global security and safety. This gets the attention of Bruce Wayne/Batman (Bruce Wayne, arguably the best thing about this film), who is suspicious of the Man of Tomorrow’s actions and devices a failsafe plan to stop him if the world ever was in danger of Superman’s power.

Also devising a plan is Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg, who is trying way too hard), who quietly manipulates and plots to make the world—and these two heroes—bend to his perverted sense of order.

There are several issues with characterization for Superman and Batman, but for the sake of brevity, Batman is portrayed with more realism and closeness to the source material.

I feel that director Zack Snyder has a primal understanding of the ideals of Detective Comics’ most iconic characters, but fails to present them as little more than reason to provide some admittedly spectacular visuals. Entire scenes seem to be constructed simply because Snyder feels it would look ‘cool’ on the big screen. This includes the abundance of flashbacks and dream sequences, which initiate a lot of the character studies in the film. And you don’t want to only establish character through flashbacks and hypotheticals. Just like in comics, the audience needs something more to tether themselves onto.

 “Batman vs. Superman” is everything it had to be, and goes down its own checklist of what information should be shown to the audience to hype up the next line-up of films that will stem from this movie (So I don’t sound like I’m only hating on DC, “Age of Ultron” did this too to only some avail). In this way, the film succeeds, establishing the tone that will also accompany these upcoming films—such as a solo “Batman” film and “Aquaman”, both slated for releases within the next few years. On the other hand, it leaves its audience flustered.

However, the filmmakers seemingly did not stop to comprehend if what they are creating or shoehorning into its already congested story is necessary, and the film loses much of its charm and novelty in the process. This film is exactly what it needs to be, but does not aspire for more, as a film of this magnitude should. The end product is, unfortunately, only satisfactory when it should have shot for the amazing. It ran with its idea, when it should have soared. And that means that this clash of champions ended up being a big waste of potential, from the creative people behind and in front of the camera. 

Grade: C

#Roman Macharoni #Movie Review #batman v supeman: dawn of justice #Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Review #Henry Cavill #ben affleck #Gal Gadot #Jesse Eisenberg #Amy Addams #Batman #Superman #Wonder Woman #DC Comics #Lex Luthor #Doomsday #Aquaman

[romanmacharoni]

Check out my latest project, a fan film on Moon Knight, two years in the making. Thanks to all involved. (via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MG_LViPX9o)

#Roman Macharoni #Moon Knight:Bad Moon Rising #Moon Knight #marvel community #marvel comics #Marvel Fan Film #Fan Film Trailer

[romanmacharoni]

CSU to make 3 to 1 Credit Hour “Bigger Switch”

***This is an Onion-style article, not to be taken seriously. Happy April Fools’ Day!***

by Roman Macharoni

              A year following the monumental decision to make the four to three credit hour switch for close to all courses offered at the university, President Berkman after much consideration announced this past Friday an innovative initiative in what is being called the “Bigger Switch”. This switch will become active starting in the 2016 fall semester.

              In an effort to make college even more accessible to the average student, all courses will be offered in an unprecedented one credit hour system. Courses that currently have class times that are 50 or 65 minutes long will be shortened to 15 or 25 minutes, consecutively.

             President Berkman commented on the shocking nature of this groundbreaking change following the announcement. “The only bigger switch within Cleveland State University is in the interior decorating for my new house! I going to try feng shui this time around,” Berkman stated.

              Professor Michael Rand has hope in the experimental switch, saying that since 20 minutes is generally the average student’s attention span. He says it is a win-win scenario.

              Many students made aware of the switch were stunned by the action taken by CSU’s Board of Trustees.

              “Hey, as long as I don’t have to spend as much time in class, I’m okay with it,” said Mike D., a sophomore Communications major.

              “I’m not even sure how the heck this is even supposed to work,” questioned Mathew Q., a Junior Psychology major.

              While a majority of the students interviewed are not looking forward to the switch, many esteemed facility members are very optimistic. Professor Peter Roth brought up one of the benefits of the switch.

              “I was originally worried about how this would affect adjunct salary, but the free drink ticket to Bar UNO will be worth a lot more than they’re paying us now,” stated Roth.

              One professor, who chose to remain anonymous, expressed his preparations for one credit hour courses.

              “It’s quite simple… I intend on talking three times as fast,” the professor said. “Studies have also showed that student questions during class only slow things down… thus, students are no longer going to able to ask questions.”

              Other professors have suggested this policy, the only circumstances allowed being requests to use the restroom.

              “This is simply the next phase in the natural evolution of higher education”, said Professor Robert Abelman. “The final phase will be when no one actually shows up for class.”

              Other structural elements of the switch have yet to be released at this time, including the adjustment of the credit hours needed to graduate. The Provost office will send an automated email later this week to all students and facility on further details of this switch. Students, in the meantime, are cautioned to meet with their advisor as soon as possible, as classes are likely to fill up quickly after registration becomes available.

#Roman Macharoni #April Fools Day #The Onion #President Berkman #Cleveland State University #Parody Article #Parody #Three to One Credit Hour Conversion #Three to One #asdfgvkvnjsnfvif