PJ Powers, artistic director at TimeLine Theatre Company, which is currently performing 33 Variations, cracks one open for:
Life, on the Line I am passionate not only about theater but also food. In particular, I’m often drawn to biographies of great chefs or to exposés that take you behind the scenes in notable kitchens. In many ways, it’s similar to my world of producing theater and the challenge of delivering a transformative experience for a new audience every night.
There are many great books out there that do this, but my most recent recommendation is Life, on the Line by chef Grant Achatz and his business partner, Nick Kokonas. While I regrettably have yet to eat at either of their restaurants, Alinea or Next, I did thoroughly enjoy this fascinating window into their partnership and the process of building Alinea, all while Achatz waged a vicious battle with cancer. For anyone who has ever built something from scratch, overcome tremendous odds, or enjoyed thoroughly decadent dining, it’s an inspiring and interesting read. And if, like me, you are a junkie for insight into the culinary world, well, pour a glass of wine and crack open this book for a great treat.
Emily Reusswig, communications director at Redmoon Theater, which is putting together the Halloween show Boneshaker, tosses and turns for:
Sleepwalk With Me This heartwarming and sad movie is based on a 2008 This American Life episode by Mike Birbiglia. I like This American Life, and watching Sleepwalk With Me is kind of like seeing the visual version of the radio show.
It’s kind of sad-guy funny. Birbiglia is not as dark as Louie C.K., but he’s kind of in a bad place. Sleepwalk With Me is about a relationship, sad in the fact that it didn’t work out but also heartwarming in the humor and the humanity of it—he has a sleep disorder and he chronicles his journey to becoming a comic, which lines up with his developing sleep disorder and the end of the relationship.
The best moment? Birbiglia dreams about being caught in a spaceship just before he runs into a window and falls two stories from the hotel where he’s staying, which actually happened to him. He wakes up on the ground with glass all over him and walks into the hotel saying, “I think I need an ambulance, I just ran out of a second-story window.”
Aislinn Gagliardi, classical and Irish harpist is cashing it in for:
Busting Loose From the Money Game Lately I’ve been devouring Busting Loose From the Money Game by Robert Scheinfeld. It’s a fascinating and revolutionary book that proposes a radically new way to create a healthier relationship with money, and offers tools that can really apply to all other parts of my life that I might want to change. Scheinfeld talks a lot about how we create our own realities, and how money is no exception to this. He also breaks down processes to help us get out of a cycle that we can’t win, and offers step-by-step instructions on how to create the life of our dreams.
Already I am noticing shifts in what I have applied from this book so far, and it’s a must-read for every creative type. Imagine what would happen if we all applied our creative energies toward manifesting our desires.