Day: June 12, 2018

Lazy and Ageless – A Perfect Description | Sunday 6/10 Shows @ HFF18

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

userpic=fringeAs I wrote about our Saturday shows, the reaction of audiences to theatre can range the gamut from “Wow! What was that!” to “Ugh. What was that?”. Saturday had the “Wows”. Sunday was different: there was a “Hmmm” and an “Ugh”. But first, however, my stock description of what the Fringe Festival is:

* For those unfamiliar with  Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), there are over 390 different shows occurring in the heart of Hollywood, with most along the stretch of Santa Monica Blvd from Western to W of LaBrea, and between Hollywood Blvd and Melrose. The shows run from 5 minutes to 2 hours, from one person shows to gigantic casts, from mimes to musicals. They have one — and only one — thing in common: they have to be able to load into a theatre in 15 minutes or less, and get out afterwards in the same time. You never know what you will see: it could be complete crap, it could be the start of a major new show. The shows and scheduling thereof are a nightmare to coordinate, but you could easily end up seeing four to five shows in a day. However, you can be guaranteed of a good time.

And now, on to our Sunday shows:

How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty (HFF18)As we were reading through the Fringe schedule back in May to decide what shows we should see, we came across the following description for How to Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty:

A hilarious social satire about a woman who overworks herself until she goes mad! …yay?

Follow Jenine and a psychotic ensemble of characters – including her boss, family, Sponsors™, Satan and coworkers – as they collectively run her into the ground! Watch her sacrifice everything for her ambition: her time, her health… maybe even… her relationship?! To find out if she makes it out alive or is completely consumed by the pressures of productivity, you’ll have to watch for yourself. An absurdist, style-bending, ensemble-based satire guaranteed to make you take a long hard look at your own life – what more could you want?

Being the types that want to be lazy, and being Jewish so we understand guilt, this sounded like the perfect show.

As the summary indicated, the story presented centered around Janine, an employee at some generic company where, presumably, she did critical but generic things. The company was pressuring her to get these generic things — and creating loads of guilt around her getting these things done. There was so much pressure, in fact, that she was giving up other things in her life: sleep, her boyfriend, sleep, sex, sleep, friendships. Did I mention that she was working so hard she was constantly fighting not to fall asleep, and feeling even more guilty when she did.

The execution of the show was humorous and frenetic, silly and overdone at times, earnest at others. What impressed me most about the show was the point that it was making: that far too often we place far too much importance in the things that we have to do, as opposed to the people we care about around us. That’s a message that resonates with someone who is going crazy doing updates to the Highway pages, attempting to attend 20 HFF18 shows and write up every one, doing stuff for my synagogue’s Men’s Club, all without ignoring my wife who has criticized me before for spending too much time on the computer.

Translation: Yes, this show hit home. Yes, this show incited some deep thought and internal conversations. Yes, this show did exactly what theatre should do.

The execution of the show wasn’t perfect. It was Fringe, after all. It was a bit overdone, the freneticism distracted at times from the story. If it is to move and expand into a longer piece with a longer life for traditional venues, it needs expansion, deeper fleshing out of the characters and relationships, and better understanding of the drives and changes. It also needs to show stronger motivation, and perhaps some false starts at moving in the right direction. But I think the notion and underlying message would make that effort worth it: this show says something that needs to be said.

As Janine, Sarah Richards (FB) captured the overworked and overwhelmed nature of her character well. She was fun to watch. Duncan Kinzie (FB) was her boyfriend Thomas, and he embodied an interesting character contrast. The remaining actors (Emerson Harris (FB), Drew Petriello (FB), and Addison Turner (FB)) formed an ensemble of various characters: bosses, parents, co-workers, the Devil, and such.  I do have to complement Addison Turner (FB), just because she was just so much fun to watch, with a great energy and humor that radiated to the audience.

The show was written by Drew Petriello (FB), and directed by Natasha Gualy (★FB, FB) [who was also the producer, and “designer of all things”]. Sound design by Emerson Harris (FB). It was a Leaky Faucet & Sons (FB) production.

In summary, I think How To Be Lazy and Not Feel Guilty was worth seeing.

Ageless Wonders: A Grown Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer (HFF18)Alas, I can’t say the same thing for Ageless Wonders: A Grown Up Kids Guide to Growing Newer. It fell into the “Ugh. What was that?” category, and did not meet our expectations.

The show was described on the Fringe website as:

Mindy is fascinating. All she has to do is get up and talk. She muses on entering this new “senior club” and enlightens on the benefits ( and discounts!). Fradkin aka Princess Wow gives a fresh perspective on aging and that we truly are “ageless wonders”. She speaks directly to the audience, takes you into her world, and you gladly go. This one hour performance promises to evoke some tears, guarantee smiles and even laughter. The play has a catchy original score written by Grammy Award winner Roland Mousaa & Mindy Fradkin, both of whom had the privilege of working and befriending the late great Pete Seeger, folk icon/activist.

We went in expecting to have a one-person exploration of the aspects of aging, and how one can age without gaining the “Get Off My Lawn” attitude. We expected a performer that had the material down pat, that was able to engage and tell the story and keep the audience entranced. That view would be reinforced by all the rave reviews on the performers website. One would expect a highly entertaining, well-organized, one-person show.

I don’t know what show those people were seeing (or what they were smoking). Perhaps she was having a bad day, but what we got was something different. What we got was the author, Mindy Fradkin (FB), also known as “Princess Wow“, rambling and telling the story of her life, constantly putting on her glasses and reading from her notes, and then taking them off again. Incidents were told multiple times. There was disorganization on the slides shown, and they often didn’t seem to convey anything useful.  It came across as a self-indulgent rental of a theatre space.

Here’s another way of looking at it: I’m not an actor. I’m a cybersecurity expert, and I often get up and give talks and tutorials using Powerpoint. I know my material down pat — not as a script, but I intimately know the subject. I use my Powerpoint slides as a reference, just as an actor would use a prompt. I can do an engaging talk and finish on time. But I’ve been in many a presentation where the presenter just reads off their slides, and it is a painful process. This show struck me as the latter.

The nature of the show was reflected in the program that was handed out. Not only does it have bios of the actors, authors, and production team, but there are detailed photo credits and graphic credits, details on the video editing, links of referrals from the Powerpoint slides, links of additional resources, book references, and links to other references. Perhaps we should have received a copy of the slides.

I could have done better just giving my tutorial on the Cybersecurity Acquisition Process. Perhaps at the next Fringe. 🙂 But that’s the subject of tomorrow’s post.*
(*: The link will work, well, tomorrow)

I think the show oversold itself, and needed significantly better preparation. I expect a Fringe show, unless advertised otherwise, to be “off book”. If you must have a trigger, put it on the Powerpoint slide, have your laptop screen facing you, and keep your eyes on the audience (except for the occasional quick glance). Don’t keep looking in your book of notes.  Most important: know your material, know what you want to say, and clearly make the points you want to make. Don’t ramble.

The production was directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson (FB), who seemed to be directing a large number of other Fringe shows as well. Jessica: Please get your performer to listen to you and learn her material; I’m sure you tried. It featured a few songs — with questionable singing — with lyrics by Roland Mousaa (FB) and Mindy Fradkin (FB) (Roland & Mindy FB), and music by Roland Mousaa (FB).

Luckily, the listed performances have all taken place, although I seem to recall mention of a performance being added. Avoid it. This has evidently been submitted to other Fringe festivals; I’d wait for word of mouth to see if she was better prepared and had improved the show before trying it again. We weren’t that impressed.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals). I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

July will get busier again. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). For the next weekend, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦., we’ve replaced it with Tabletop, a reading of a new musical about tabletop RPGs at the Charles Stewart Howard Playhouse (FB). The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

 

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Strength Comes From Within | “The Color Purple” @ Pantages

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

The Color Purple (Hollywood Pantages)Saturday was a musical day, and a day for deconstruction. We started down the street from the Hollywood Pantages (FB) at the The Hobgoblin Playhouse, where we saw the final production of the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, The Story of My Life. This was the second time we had seen the show; we saw it first in 2010. We then toddled down the street to the Pantages to see the touring company (FB) of the 2016 Revival of The Color Purple; this was another revisit, as we saw the original tour of the show back in 2008. Both of Saturday’s shows were also, essentially, deconstructed versions. Story was deconstructed out of necessity: it was part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB).  Purple’s deconstruction was more of a directoral choice: this production came from the Menier Chocolate Factory (FB) in London, where director John Doyle applies a minimalist aesthetic to the production. In this case, that means no set pieces other than chairs; minimal different costumes, and suggestions for place from fabric.

I would have thought, given that this was emphasized as a deconstructed notion, that it would have been markedly different than the original. But looking back at my comments from 2008, I noted:

The sets for the show were very simple: painted scrims and simple building pieces. What was spectacular was the lighting, which provided the ability to transform the basic wood-ish floor of the Ahmanson stage into a field of crops, and African jungle, a garden. The lighting designer (Brian MacDevitt) really deserves special mention. It is rare I notice how much lighting contributes to the mood and feel of a show. This time I did.

The costumes for the show were also spectacular. Most of it was period dress of the 1910s and 1920s. Celie’s costumes, however, did a wonderful job of changing the look and sense of the actress, and conveying the sense of “ugly” that was required. I was also taken by the costumes in the African Homeland scene, which conveyed a sense of rawness without being too out in the open.

Truthfully, what I remember most about the 2008 production was the lighting: use of gobos to create wood floor effects, and the realistic and colorful costumes from the African scenes. This production was markedly different in that regard. Most of the lighting was stark; I’d say that white light was used through 75% of the show. Costumes, except for a few characters, were drab until the second act, reflecting the drab life of the characters. From what I’ve been told, the interstitial dialogue may have been cut down (although I noted back in 2008 it was mostly sung). The focus of this show was the music, and the ability of the music to tell the story. Superficialities cut away, as it were.

If you’re not familiar with the story of The Color Purple, it begins with the 1983 book of The Color Purple by Alice Walker. This was made into a motion picture in 1985. It was adapted for the theatre in 2005, with a book by Marsha Norman, and  music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray, all of whom were new to the musical theatre. Back in 2008, I described the story thusly:

“The Color Purple” basically tells the storie of Celie, a young black girl in the south, knocked up by her step-pseudofather twice by the age of 14, and then married off soon after to a man who beats her to get her to obey. It is the story of the love between Celie and her sister Nettie, the story of the relationships in Celie’s life. In particular, it is about how Celie’s relationships with some strong black women make her realize that she is loved, that she does have value, that she can stand up for herself and accomplish something, and the power that love plays in it all.

Viewed through slightly different eyes a decade later, The Color Purple is really a story of female empowerment and taking charge of one’s life. It resonates especially well in the last couple of years: Purple was #MeToo and #TimesUp well before those entered the hashicon. It is the story of how one strong woman — Sofia — can serve as an example to others that they can say “Hell No!” when faced with abuse and mistreatment, and how seeing confident and powerful women can inspire those who have lived in fear for most of their lives to, in Hamilton-speak, grab the narrative by the balls and rewrite the story of the rest of their lives. This message clearly hit with the audience.

But Color Purple is much more. Shall we say it shades the story in a very special way. This isn’t just the story of women taking charge of their lives: it is the story of African-American women taking charge of their lives. This is a black cast telling a black story, but one with larger resonance. It also celebrates the black form, which is often a very different aesthetic than the white form: with curves and a respect for size and shape and using — and celebrating — what nature gave you. That, too, appeared to hit a nerve with the audience, judging by the applause.

In addition to the power of the story, there was the power of the music. I’ve read some reviewers that view the music of this show as pedestrian — but what do they know. I enjoyed it, and the performances were great (tempered only by the problematic sound system of the Pantages).

In the lead position was Adrianna Hicks (FB) as Celie. Hicks was at the center of the action; onstage for most of the show. She carried most of the story; she was also the character that had the greatest transformation from beginning to end. Hicks captured well the change from frightened young girl to self-confident woman who know what she wanted and how to get it. Hicks had a strong voice and sang spectacularly; she ovation she got at the end was well deserved.

In the second tier of strong women were Carrie Compere (FB) as Sofia and Carla R. Stewart (FB) as Shug Avery. Both were the catalysts for Celie’s transformation. Both were exemplars for size, beauty and strength on stage — and the audience ate all of those attributes up. Strong performers, strong singers, strong movement, strong style.

In the third tier of women who found their strength were Erica Durham (FB) as Nettie and Gabrielle Reid (FB) as Squeak (we had understudies at our performance; the roles are normally played by N’Jameh Camara (FB) and Erica Durham (FB), respectfully). Both captured their characters well and sang strongly.

Turning to the main named male roles, who have in many ways a secondary, although key, role in the story. Gavin Gregory (FB)’s Mister was a strong performance: violent and mean at the beginning, transformed at the end. J. Daughtry (FB) was an ebullent Harbo who worked well with Compere’s Sofia.

The remaining characters were portrayed by members of the ensemble, strongly and with feeling. Ensemble members were (named characters noted, grey indicates a normal role but not at our performance): Darnell Abraham (FB) [Adam], Amar Atkins (FB) [Guard], Kyle E. Baird (FB) [Bobby / Buster], Angela Birchett (FB) [Church Lady], Bianca Horn (FB) [Church Lady], Mekhai Lee (FB) [Grady], C. E. Smith (FB) [Preacher / Ol’ Mister], Clyde Voce (FB) [Adam / Swing], Nyla Watson (FB) [Olivia / Swing], J. D. Webster (FB) [Pa], Brit West (FB) [Church Lady]. Swings were Nikisha Williams (FB) [Asst. Stage Manager] and Michael Wordly.

Music was provided by a nine-piece orchestra conducted by Darryl Archibald (FB) [Keys 1], with Wayne Green [Keys 2] as Associate Conductor. The remaining members of the orchestra († indicates local) were: Michael Karcher (FB) [Guitar (Electric, Acoustic, Dobro, Harmonica, 12 String)]; Chris Thigpen (FB) [Bass (Electric, Acoustic)]; Trevor Holder [Drums], Frank Fontaine† (FB) [Alto Sax, Clarinet, Flute, Alto Flute]; Richard Mitchell† [Bari Sax, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Tenor Sax]; Aaron Smith† (FB) [Trumpet, Flugelhorn]; William Malpede† (FB) [Keyboard Sub]. Other music credits: Randy Cohen (FB) [Keyboard Programming]; Talitha Fehr† (FB) [Music Coordinator]; Eric Heinly† [Orchestra Contractor]. Production music credits: Catherine Jayes (FB) [Music Supervisor], Joseph Joubert (FB) [Orchestrations].

Turning to the production and creative credits: In addition to serving as director, John Doyle did the set design and musical staging. This design was augmented by Ann Hould-Ward‘s costume design and Charles G. LaPointe (FB)’s wig and hair design. Although minimal, they worked well to establish place and time. Jane Cox (FB)’s lighting design was also minimal, but it established mood well. The biggest weakness was Dan Moses Schreier (FB)’s sound design: although it worked well for a touring company, it was swallowed by the Pantages. Amplification was obvious and a bit tinny, and the actual words often got lost for the muddiness of the sound. The Pantages facility is a hard one to amplify in a clean manner — it is perhaps its biggest drawback with so many hard surfaces bouncing the sound in many ways. The Pantages really needs a local sound designer to tweak tour sound, but that never happens. Rounding out the production credits: Matt DiCarlo (FB) [Associate Director];  Telsey + Company (FB) [Casting]; Thomas Schall [Fight Coordinator]; Brian Schrader [General Manager]; Jose Solivan (FB) [Company Manager]; Melissa Chacón (FB) [Production Stage Manager]; Richard A. Leigh (FB) [Stage Manager]. There were loads of producers, touring producers, executive producers, and such that I’m not going to list.

The Color Purple continues at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) through June 17, 2018. Tickets are available through the Pantages Website. Discount tickets may be available through Goldstar or TodayTix. I found the show worth seeing and quite enjoyable.

***

Ob. Disclaimer: I am not a trained theatre (or music) critic; I am, however, a regular theatre and music audience member. I’ve been attending live theatre and concerts in Los Angeles since 1972; I’ve been writing up my thoughts on theatre (and the shows I see) since 2004. I do not have theatre training (I’m a computer security specialist), but have learned a lot about theatre over my many years of attending theatre and talking to talented professionals. I pay for all my tickets unless otherwise noted. I am not compensated by anyone for doing these writeups in any way, shape, or form. I currently subscribe at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) [the company formerly known as Cabrillo Music Theatre (FB)], the Hollywood Pantages (FB), Actors Co-op (FB), the Chromolume Theatre (FB) ז״ל, a mini-subscription at the Soraya [nee the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC)] (FB), and the Ahmanson Theatre (FB). Through my theatre attendance I have made friends with cast, crew, and producers, but I do strive to not let those relationships color my writing (with one exception: when writing up children’s production, I focus on the positive — one gains nothing except bad karma by raking a child over the coals). I believe in telling you about the shows I see to help you form your opinion; it is up to you to determine the weight you give my writeups.

Upcoming Shows:

It’s June — ah, June. That, my friends, means only one thing: the Hollywood Fringe Festival (FB), Here’s our June schedule:

July will get busier again. It starts with the 50th Anniversary of Gindling Hilltop Camp, followed by On Your Feet at the Hollywood Pantages (FB). The next weekend appears to be open, as Jane Eyre The Musical from Chromolume Theatre (FB) looks to be a dead parrot ⚰🐦. The third weekend in July brings a Bat Mitzvah in Victorville, and Beauty and The Beast at 5 Star Theatricals (FB) that evening on Saturday, and a hold for the OperaWorks (FB) “Opera ReConstructed” at CSUN on Sunday. The last weekend may be a Muse/ique (FB) show. August starts with Waitress at the Hollywood Pantages (FB) on Saturday, and the Actors Co-Op Too! production of Always Andrews: A Musical Tribute to the Andrews Sisters on Sunday at Actors Co-op (FB). The next weekend brings the last Actors Co-Op Too! production, Twelfth Night, or What You Will at Actors Co-op (FB). There may also be a production of The Most Happy Fella at MTW — I’m not sure about it, but the hold date is on the calendar.

As always, I’m keeping my eyes open for interesting productions mentioned on sites such as Better-Lemons, Musicals in LA, @ This Stage, Footlights, as well as productions I see on Goldstar, LA Stage Tix, Plays411 or that are sent to me by publicists or the venues themselves. Note: Lastly, want to know how to attend lots of live stuff affordably? Take a look at my post on How to attend Live Theatre on a Budget.

 

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The Danger of North Korea

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

userpic=divided-nationPresident Trump has just met with the leader of North Korea, and we need to be very very careful and be cautious…

…lest we shoot ourselves in the foot.

Perhaps I should explain. When I got up this morning, I was greeted with a barrage of posts from my friends on the right talking about the achievements of Trump in North Korea. I was also greeted from a barrage of posts from the left dismissing everything Trump has done there — he’s sold us down the river, he’s doing this to get a hotel, he’s doing this because I loves Kim, he’s being naive. Reading both side, it started this post welling up in me.

To my liberal and progressive friends, I want you to think back to those wonderful days when Obama was President. Are you in your happy place? Good. Now, think about how you felt when the right — the opposition to Obama — dismissed anything and everything he did. How in their book, Obama was a disgrace and it was impossible for him to get anything — a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g — right. How did that make you feel? How receptive did that make you to anything the other side side? How did that contribute to the growing divide between the left and the right?

Most of you are too young to remember Richard Nixon. He was a President during the Vietnam War, the man behind Watergate, and the only President to resign. He was an ardent anti-Communist, the VP under Eisenhower, at the height of the Cold War. Yet it was Richard Nixon that first went to China, and got us talking to that nation. It was often said, “Only Nixon can go to China”.

It may be that “Only Trump could go to North Korea”.

Whether initiated by the Democrats or the Republicans, talking to your enemy is a good thing. Establishing the dialogue. Remember when we were all in favor of it when Obama was President? Remember how we wanted him to talk to North Korea, but it was dismissed as dangerous by the right because he was too naive? Remember.

If we, as progressives, do not acknowledged the few things that Trump somehow does that are movements in the correct direction, anything we say will be dismissed out of hand. I like to say that even a broken clock tells the correct time twice a day. Think of Trump as that clock. If Trump is able to open a dialogue with North Korea, he has achieved something. He may not be the reason the dialogue has opened, but if it serves to increase understanding between the two countries, if it reduces nuclear tension, that that’s a good thing. More important, if we do not acknowledge it as good thing, we will be doing something the Democratic Party has been expert in: self-sabotage. We won’t need the Republicans to lose us the upcoming the elections, we can do it to ourselves. We did it in 2016, and we can do it again.

It is vital for the success of this nation that we do not self-sabotage, that we acknowledge that “Only Trump could go to North Korea”.

There are also some important things to remember:

First, Trump and Kim have supposedly signed an agreement. But remember, if it is a treaty or an agreement, Congress must ratify it. How many treaties have past Presidents signed that Congress never ratified, and thus the country was never committed. Right.

Second, it could very well be that Trump is doing this so he can personally gain by building in North Korea. That, actually, is neither here nor there. Remember what I’ve said about collusion: It could very well be that Trump didn’t collude with Russia. Collusion means there is conscious working together to achieve a particular goal. But two organizations can have the same goal and not work together. Russia could have been working to get Trump elected and to get Trump in power for their own reasons — and that includes behind the scenes subtle manipulation of Trump. But that doesn’t mean that Trump was working with them; he just had the same goal. This is the same way that “Independent PACs” can work to get a candidate elected without being in coordination with the candidate’s campaign. Similarly, Trump might be doing this for the personal gain, but that doesn’t mean the end result might not also lower the tension in the region.

The key point here is this: If we are so “knee-jerk” that we can’t acknowledge an occasional stumble into success, we (i.e., we progressives) will be dismissed out of hand by the other side. That, in turn, will make it even harder for us to gain any concessions or make any compromises. It will further solidify the divide in this nation. It could very well keep Trump in power and hurt the Democratic party.

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