Dear Crabby, Do You Miss Going to Canada?

Dear Crabby, One of my favorite summertime Michigan memories was all the random road trips we’d take. Not only did we cruise around Michigan, but we also ventured into Canada. But now that the border is closed, I really miss having that option. I wonder if you or any of your other readers miss going to Canada as well? Thanks, C. Mountie Dear C. Mountie, We are rather spoiled having another country so close we can drive there pretty much any time we please. Shoot. I remember … [Read more...]

Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ Coming to Oakland University Stage

Come Experience 'Double, double, toil and trouble' February 6 - 9, 13 - 16 Something “wicked” is coming to the Oakland University (OU) stage as the Department of Theatre presents William Shakespeare’s Macbeth — a cautionary tale about the trappings of power and what happens when vaulting ambition takes priority over the people one is expected to govern — from February 6-9, 13-16 in the Varner Studio Theatre on the OU campus. “With Brexit on the horizon, we have set our play in an imagined … [Read more...]

Author’s Corner: How to Get the Most from Your Metaphors

Metaphors What are they, and when is the best time to deploy them? What should you avoid at all costs? Metaphors are, and will likely always be, a major pillar of most fiction. Used to liven up descriptive writing, metaphors are primarily a comparison tool. Along with similes, they make up most of our well-known ‘figure of speech’ idioms. However, where a simile uses “like a …” or “as a …” – for example, her eyes sparkled like jewels – metaphors are a way of describing an emotion, … [Read more...]

The Good Person of Szechwan

By Michael Dwyer The Good Person of Szechwan Bertolt Brecht wrote "The Good Person of Szechwan" between 1939 and 1943 while in exile from Germany during World War II. It made its debut on February 4, 1943, at the Schauspielhaus Zurich, in Zurich, Switzerland. Considered one of the best epic plays by Brecht because of its universal themes and the way it challenges the audience. The first English-language version of the play came to the United States in 1948 and the Brecht parable … [Read more...]