Hi friends,
Sad news this morning. Lou Cassella, Claire Szabo-Cassella's husband and
one of her main caregivers, died last night. David Ziegler is with Claire.
He told me he would give more detail on this list later, but I could let
people know.
Lou came to the 45th Reunion with Claire so she could participate. He was a
loving, gentle presence with us that week.
If you do not already follow Claire's Red Scooter Diaries
<https://redscooterdiaries.com/>, please have a look. You can read Lou's
contributions under Confessions of a Caregiver
<https://redscooterdiaries.com/2018/02/21/confessions-of-a-caregiver-vol-1-f…>.
The website also offers ways to support Claire.
Claire, we are all sending you so much love. David, thank you for being
there for both Claire and Lou.
Much love to all,
Madge
--
*Madge Darlington, M.F.A.*
mmdarlington(a)utexas.edu
(512) 627-6038
*Assistant Professor of Instruction*
The University of Texas at Austin
Department of Theatre and Dance <https://theatredance.utexas.edu/>
*Interim Director*
Shakespeare at Winedale <https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/winedale/>
Hi all,
On Saturday, Jeff Larsen and I are going to meet at the Theatre Barn at
Winedale to do a few projects in preparation for the summer. I plan on
being there from 9:30 am - 3:30 pm.
I'm sorry for the short notice, but if you can join us, please do. You can
let me know if you plan to drop by for all or part of the time at
mmdarlington(a)gmail.com. That will help me determine the scope of what we
are trying to accomplish and how many kolaches we'll need to fuel us.
If it is just Jeff and me, we are going to work on setting up a tool
pegboard in the barn. If others can join, I'll have a few more projects we
can tackle.
Thanks for considering. If you can't make this one, there will be other
opportunities in the future.
Best,
Madge
--
*Madge Darlington, M.F.A.*
mmdarlington(a)utexas.edu
(512) 627-6038
*Assistant Professor of Instruction*
The University of Texas at Austin
Department of Theatre and Dance <https://theatredance.utexas.edu/>
*Interim Director*
Shakespeare at Winedale <https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/winedale/>
I thought you all might be interested in my little contribution to a
colloquy in Reason magazine's 2024 issue. You can find the whole thing
here:
https://web.archive.org/web/20240506084929/https://reason.com/2024/05/05/ai…
AI Is Like the Dawn of Modern Medicine
By Mike Godwin
When I think about the emergence of "artificial intelligence," I keep
coming back to the beginnings of modern medicine.
Today's professionalized practice of medicine was roughly born in the
earliest decades of the 19th century—a time when the production of more
scientific studies of medicine and disease was beginning to accelerate (and
propagate, thanks to the printing press). Doctors and their patients took
these advances to be harbingers of hope. But it's no accident this
acceleration kicked in right about the same time that Mary Wollstonecraft
Shelley (née Godwin, no relation) penned her first draft of *Frankenstein;
or, The Modern Prometheus*—planting the first seed of modern
science-fictional horror.
Shelley knew what Luigi Galvani and Joseph Lister believed they knew, which
is that there was some kind of parallel (or maybe connection!) between
electric current and muscular contraction. She also knew that many would-be
physicians and scientists learned their anatomy from dissecting human
corpses, often acquired in sketchy ways.
She also likely knew that some would-be doctors had even fewer moral
scruples and fewer ideals than her creation Victor Frankenstein. Anyone who
studied the early 19th-century marketplace for medical services could see
there were as many quacktitioners and snake-oil salesmen as there were
serious health professionals. It was definitely a "free market"—it lacked
regulation—but a market largely untouched by James Surowiecki's "wisdom of
crowds."
Even the most principled physicians knew they often were competing with
charlatans who did more harm than good, and that patients rarely had the
knowledge base to judge between good doctors and bad ones. As medical
science advanced in the 19thcentury, physicians also called for medical
students at universities to study chemistry and physics as well as
physiology.
In addition, the physicians' professional societies, both in Europe and in
the United States, began to promulgate the first modern medical-ethics
codes—not grounded in half-remembered quotes from Hippocrates, but
rigorously worked out by modern doctors who knew that their mastery of
medicine would always be a moving target. That's why medical ethics were
constructed to provide fixed reference points, even as medical knowledge
and practice continued to evolve. This ethical framework was rooted in four
principles: "autonomy" (respecting patient's rights, including
self-determination and privacy, and requiring patients' informed consent to
treatment), "beneficence" (leaving the patient healthier if at all
possible), "non-maleficence" ("doing no harm"), and "justice" (treating
every patient with the greatest care).
These days, most of us have some sense of medical ethics, but we're not
there yet with so-called "artificial intelligence"—we don't even have a
marketplace sorted between high-quality AI work products and statistically
driven confabulation or "hallucination" of seemingly (but not actually)
reliable content. Generative AI with access to the internet also seems to
pose other risks that range from privacy invasions to copyright
infringements.
What we need right now is a consensus about what ethical AI practice looks
like. "First do no harm" is a good place to start, along with values such
as autonomy, human privacy, and equity. A society informed by a
layman-friendly AI code of ethics, and with an earned reputation for
ethical AI practice, can then decide whether—and how—to regulate.
*Mike Godwin is a technology policy lawyer in Washington, D.C.*
Glen teaches writing and is a semi-professional science-fiction writer. (He
made me say "semi-professional" there.)
He's at engelcox(a)gmail.com or gengelcox(a)icloud.com.
Mike
If there’s any group that would have noticed, this would be it. But just in case, a book from Judy Dench was published this week.
Here’s the publisher’s description for Shakespeare: The Man who Pays the Rent. No need for me to offer something different.
"For the very first time, Judi opens up about every Shakespearean role she has played throughout her seven-decade career, from Lady Macbeth and Titania to Ophelia and Cleopatra. In a series of intimate conversations with actor & director Brendan O'Hea, she guides us through Shakespeare's plays with incisive clarity, revealing the secrets of her rehearsal process and inviting us to share in her triumphs, disasters, and backstage shenanigans.
'Interspersed with vignettes on audiences, critics, company spirit and rehearsal room etiquette, she serves up priceless revelations on everything from the craft of speaking in verse to her personal interpretations of some of Shakespeare's most famous scenes, all brightened by her mischievous sense of humour, striking level of honesty and a peppering of hilarious anecdotes, many of which have remained under lock and key until now."
What I can say myself is that I began to feel guilty enjoying the book so much and not mentioning it to this particular group, just in case the general noise level kept you from noticing it.
I’m not sure there’s anything like it.
Love,
Carl
What a cast and crew!
From: Lynn McGuire <lynnedwardsmcguire(a)hotmail.com>
Date: Friday, March 15, 2024 at 4:11 PM
To: "shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com" <shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com>
Cc: Laurel Loehlin <LLoehlin(a)bmiusa.com>, Shakespeare at Winedale 1970-2000 alums <winedale-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>, Willy Shakes <winedale50th(a)gmail.com>
Subject: [Winedale-l] Re: Knight of the Burning Pestle at Winedale
You don't often get email from lynnedwardsmcguire(a)hotmail.com. Learn why this is important<https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification>
Clayton & Steve, what a nice piece of memorabilia! And what a great story to go with it!🥰
Sent from my iPhone
On Mar 15, 2024, at 4:42 PM, Clayton Stromberger <cstromberger(a)austin.utexas.edu> wrote:
As a footnote in the book of Winedale lore related to “Knight of the Burning Pestle”: In the fall of 1984 a group of Winedalers from the early ‘80s classes – along with some of their friends from the worlds of Austin music and theater – came together to work on a production of the play, with evening sessions spent playing on the little stage in Calhoun 100. I seem to recall that there was no director; it was to be ensemble-led. The cast list, courtesy of the Steve Price archives:
[cid:image001.jpg@01DA76F5.A602D700]
I have fond memories of James’s sweet and winning Rafe… Mark and Elise were as funny as you would imagine… I remember Steve’s exuberant Merrythought… Sadly the warning at the bottom of the sheet – “Opening night is sooner than you think” – did not prove true. Opening night never came; the company dissolved a few weeks into rehearsals after a few key players left for various reasons and no one had the extra time that semester to plug the gaps and rebuild momentum. I remember a somber final meeting in Calhoun Hall, with all of us sitting around on benches and on the floor outside Doc’s basement office, as the group decided to let the idea go.
It still gives many of us a pang that we never had a chance to see this Winedale-inspired “Pestle” in its full potential glory… What a cast list!
Best,
cs
From: shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com <shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com> on behalf of Casey Caldwell <w.casey.caldwell(a)gmail.com>
Date: Friday, March 15, 2024 at 12:58 PM
To: shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com <shakespeare-at-winedale-email-list(a)googlegroups.com>
Cc: Laurel Loehlin <LLoehlin(a)bmiusa.com>, Madge Darlington <mmdarlington(a)gmail.com>, Shakespeare at Winedale 1970-2000 alums <winedale-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org>, Willy Shakes <winedale50th(a)gmail.com>
Subject: Knight of the Burning Pestle at Winedale
Hi, friends!
Do we know if there are any photos from the Winedale Knight of the Burning Pestle that are shareable on here? What year was that? 1980s? KOBP and Shoemaker’s Holiday were the first non-Shakespeare plays out at Winedale once y’all started doing full plays, is that right? Or no?
I’m writing a chapter dedicated to KOBP for my book on citizenship with Arden/Bloomsbury press and I’ve already given a talk based on my work using pics from the ASC Blackfriars production. I’d love to incorporate/celebrate some images from Winedale as well in future presentations!
Doc, how did y’all stage the citizen and wife when they say they’ll sit down on stage? Did you use benches on stage?
Cheers, all!
Casey
--
Be vigitant, I beseech you!
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I join my anceanos and all those who came after in wishing Doc the happiest of days.This weekend a friend of mine, recently moved from Maine to Staunton, Virginia, posted a photo and comment about having seen Midsummer's Night in the Blackfriar Theater and how impressed they were. I dug into my emails and found the exchange we had when Doc and James Loehlin received the "Burbage Award" in that theater for their work with SAW. The short but sweet description of their dedication to their students and to the Bard brought me to tears. I had to miss that ceremony but was there in spirit. Heather DolstraSent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device