Articles written by Michael Bettencourt - Page 18

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About me - Michael Bettencourt

Michael Bettencourt is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. His A QUESTION OF COLOR won an Ostrander award in Memphis (TN) for Best Original Script in July 2005. IN THE FORT chosen was a Selected Script by Inner Voices. In 2004 he won Boston Theatre

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Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: When it ends: 13 of 14
ENDINGS I recently saw a dance choreographed to a piece of music by Philip Glass, a composer called "minimalist" for the scaled-down, narrow-toned, repetitive pattern of his work. The music got me to thinking because it presents a unique problem: how will it end? The music's obligation to a kind of free verse means that it c... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas Ideas for getting back the true Christmas spirit in Christmas: 14 of 14
CHRISTMAS PASSED UP As soon as the carny barker's voice calls us all to ride the carousel of Christmas spending, I begin to hear on the radio and television how the "spirit of Christmas" is being debased, how much better it was when people didn't have credit cards. Well, I have a solution to the dilemma of the buyers in the ... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Connections: 9 of 9
CONNECTIONS When I teach poetry I eventually give my students an assignment called the "telescope poem." They have to take a simple object and flesh out all the connections the object has to the world. If it's a piece of paper, the list of connections could run back through the stationer to the mill worker to the logger to t... More..
Religion & Spirituality > Christian Doctrine & Issues The essence of salvation: 7 of 7
FEBRUARY February 2, Groundhog's Day, is also the feast of Candlemas, celebrating the purification of the Virgin Mary when Christ was presented to her in the Temple. The Catholic Church once had a procession to consecrate all the candles to be used in the church during the coming year; the candles symbolized Jesus Christ, ca... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Spring: 6 of 6
ATROPOS The night before, the Earth had hurdled from winter into spring over the vernal equinox, but in the morning a snow squall spit the length of Elm Street in Somerville. People hunkered into their coats like turtles into their shells, and the cars cut the slush with tires that seemed to hiss in anger at the betrayal. I ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US Law & Justice (Other) Intellectual property violations: 5 of 5
DEAD MR. BECKETT: THE ABUSE OF COPYRIGHT LAW In 2007, the Wall Street Journal had two articles dealing with copyright, arising out of an attempt by the estate of Samuel Beckett to stop an Italian production of "Waiting for Godot" performed with twin female actors in the lead roles. An Italian court issued an injunction again... More..
Creative Writing > Memoirs Memoirs: Melancholia: 2 of 2
The Fount of Melancholy Dr. Peter Kramer, the chronicler of Prozac in an earlier book, has a tome out titled Against Depression, in which he argues that we don't take depression seriously enough and should treat it as we would any other debilitating disease, that is, pharmacologically, that is, through the capitalist enterpr... More..