Vlad Panait's Home Page

Oscar si tanti roz, Bulandra

2012-02-01T14:21:00.000-08:00

Oscar si tanti roz, Bulandra
Nota: 5+/5

Actori: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5/5
Regie: 5/5

Daca piesa merita cel putin un +, este cu siguranta pentru actori. Stiam ca Marius Manole este un actor bun, asemeni de Oana Pellea, insa in aceasta piesa prestatia lor este superlativa.
Piesa este o drama si cred ca e mai bine sa stiti, inainte sa o vizionati, ca este despre "moartea unui baietel de 10 ani de cancer". Aceasta descriere sumara aproape ca mi-a taiat orice dorinta de a o vedea, insa recomandarile bune, m-au convins spre bucuria mea sa ma avant in sala.

Piesa este mult indulcita cu teme din cele mai diverse despre viata, filozofie digerata, si nu putin umor. Marius Manole interpreteaza magistral un baietel de 10 ani, un adolescent trait din perspectiva baietelului, asemeni un om matur.. Dumnezeu, dragostea, prietenia, scopul vietii - toate sunt comprimate intr-un text accesibil si foarte emotionant. Nu in cele din urma atmosfera este per ansamblu pozitiva, tocmai textul si forma de interpretare daruiesc spectatorilor un pozitivism contagios.

De remarcat ca este prima piesa in regia lui Chris Simion care imi place.. :)
Teatrul Bulandra m-a surprins din nou foarte placut, cu siguranta in ultimii ani au cel mai bun raport de piese bune din stagiune.

Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/oscar.php

Capra cu trei iezi, Teatrul Act

2012-02-01T14:06:00.000-08:00

Capra cu trei iezi, Teatrul Act

Gen: Comedie/Exercitiu regizoral

Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5

Regia: 5/5

Considerand ca povestioara lui Ion Creanga va este cunoscuta, piesa surprinde cu siguranta mai ales prin modalitatile mereu noi de refolosire a textului, prin umorul Seinfeld-ian, si in general prin abordare. Si chiar daca stiam cum se termina, tot mi-a dat la final acea senzatie tensionata, de nerabdare a deznodamantului.

Un exercitiu superb a lui Alexandru Dabija, exercitiu diferit regizoral de "Absolut", si cu siguranta astept si piesa a treia a lui Ion Creanga ce o va pune in scena tot la Act.

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=292

Dineu cu prosti, TNB

2012-02-01T13:36:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie de situatie, TNB

Nota: 5-/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariul: 5-/5

Desi nu am ras cu lacrimi, "Dineu cu prosti" este un spectacol bun, probabil una din comediile cele mai reusite din stagiunea actuala. Are doua atuuri majore: un text foarte bun, un rol ce i se potriveste manusa lui Horatiu Malaele. Personal mi-a placut si interpretarea lui Ion Caramitru, ce reuseste sa se faca extrem de antipatic.. in fond (cred) asta este rolul sau.. :)

O comedie relaxanta, plina de situatii haioase, Malaiele adauga sarea si piperul, deci nu poate fi decat un eveniment placut. Totusi, nu va asteptati la o capodopera, e doar o comedie.. :)

Singurul mic minus mi s-a parut pe alocuri traducerea, ce cred ca putea obtine mai mult din text. Cu riscul de a ma repeta, compenseaza Malaele.

Link: http://www.tnb.ro/?page=spectacol&idspec=413

Scaunele, Teatrul Bulandra

2012-01-23T14:02:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama/Teatru absurd
Nota: 5/5

E greu sa dai o nota unui clasic, iar Scaunele este una din piesele foarte cunoscute a lui Eugen Ionesco. Am fost luat prin surprindere de inceput, in fapt ma asteptam la o piesa greu de patruns si chiar asa a fost. Ionesco are un stil aparte de a construi piesa, nu spune lucrurilor pe nume, ci mai degraba creeaza un puzzle de descifrat pentru spectator.

La un moment dat dupa cam 10-15 minute de spectacol m-am conectat complet la piesa si rezultatul a fost spectaculos pentru mine - un univers trist, chiar deprimant, insignifianta existentei umane, degenerarea si absurdul cuplului, relatiile din afara cuplului, sotia ca mama, copilul, visele omorate .. etc etc..

Ideile sunt din cate inteleg clasice pentru Ionesco (mai multe informatii aici), ce mi-a placut in mod deosebit este modalitatea de exprimare - fiecare propozitie se doreste descifrata atent, a o intelege in profunzime este imposibil, totusi lasa fiecaruia dintre spectatori posibilitatea unei acceptiuni personale, fiecare dupa rostul si firea sa.. dupa propria experienta de viata. Apoi, peste acest puzzle alegoric adaugam un pic de piper de teatru absurd si rezultatul este spectaculos. Nimeni nu poate sustine ca a inteles piesa, anumite pasaje pot fi intelese in mai multe sensuri, toate cu o coloristica aparte, asemenatoare prin absurdul si frumusetea lor cu koan-ii.

O piesa ce merita vazuta, insa trebuie sa fiti intr-o dispozitie mentala potrivita pentru a-i acorda atentia necesara unei digestii decente.

Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/scaunele.htm

Absolut, Teatrul Act

2012-01-20T12:02:00.000-08:00

Gen: Povestire / Piesa de interpretare. Teatrul Act
Nota: 5+/5

Interpretare: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5/5
Regia: 5/5

Am venit complet incantat de la acest spectacol, recitisem acum cateva saptamani Ivan Turbinca, din pura intamplare, deci povestea in sine era greu sa ma uimeasca .. insa am fost luat complet prin surprindere de interpretarea incredibila a lui Marcel Iures. Daca mi-am dorit vreodata un bunic, ce atunci cand eram mic, sa imi spuna o poveste cu patos la gura sobei, apoi aceasta ora si jumatate de spectacol m-a proiectat fara nici o posibilitate de rezistenta in lumea copilariei si a povestilor. Cu multa dezinvoltura si carisma in interpretare, Iures reuseste sa intre in pielea a patru-cinci personaje, sa le sustina cu voiosie si umor, sa schimbe intre ele cu lejeritatea unui actor cu adevarat desavarsit. Jos palaria..

Imi cer scuze daca am scris prea multe cuvinte de lauda, insa e o piesa care trebuie vazuta, revazuta si re-revazuta.. :) inclusiv alaturi de copii. O piesa povestire.. o povestire la gura de soba, plina de tot farmecul copilariei.

In plus, Alexandru Dabija va pune in scena la Act in acest an, trei piese adaptate dupa Ion Creanga. "Capra cu trei iezi" este proaspata pe scena, abia saptamana aceasta a inceput sa se joace.. Asa ca din nou Teatrul Act revine in atentie..

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=261

Mascariciu, Teatrul Bulandra

2012-01-16T10:28:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie de interpretare, Teatrul Bulandra
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/mascariciul.php

Nota: 3.6/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariul: 2/5
Regia: 4/5

Desi sunt un admirator al lui Horatiu Malaele, e a doua oara in aceasta stagiune cand ies de la o piesa a lui cu un gust amar, ca atunci cand un idol ma dezamageste. Piesa nu este la fel de slaba precum "Femeia care si-a pierdut jartierele", dar asta nu ma face cu nimic mai fericit.

Pentru a nu ma intelege gresit, multa lume din sala a ras, asemeni sala a fost plina ochi. Pentru a intelege insa de ce nu mi-a placut haide sa rezum un pic ce am vazut in aceasta seara.

Piesa are pe scurt trei ipostaze, o deschidere care personal mi-a placut, in care cele doua personaje abia se definesc si am inca senzatia ca sunt o multitudine de posibilitati; urmeaza cele doua personaje ajung subit la pace (este evident ca intre ele nu a fost, nu este si nu va fi nici un conflict) si cei doi incep sa bea, apoi o suita de glumite facile mai mult sau mai putin piperate, si in final o incercare, reincercare, reincercare de a avea un monolog; ta-da piesa se termina ..

Asadar e a doua oara cand sunt atras la o piesa doar pentru ca joaca Horatiu Malaele, este a doua oara cand ies de la o piesa dezamagit, si desi imi place stilul lui de interpretare, simt ca sunt gol, ca si cum nu am primit absolut nimic.

Regia mi-a placut, actorii sunt buni, insa piesa e ori inexistenta, ori adaptarea e slaba. Orice comedie de interpretare trebuie sa aiba totusi un text bun, aceasta piesa nu il are, ci un colaj de glumite si scene faimoase din piese celebre. Deci avem variantele: Cehov are si piese proaste, adaptarea romaneasca e slaba, umilul critic ce scrie aceste randuri traieste in alta poveste.

Totusi, in afara de review-urile pozitive "genial", "incredibil", "fin", "fantastic", "magic", etc.. etc.. etc.. mai gasiti pe internet si alte pareri proaste, cu care rezonez, spre exemplu:
- http://invizibil.blogspot.com/2008/05/mascariciul-bulandra.html
- http://agenda.liternet.ro/articol/9308/Catalina-Miciu/Mascaricii-suntem-noi.html

Nu recomand piesa decat daca nu ati mai fost de mult la teatru, sau daca sunteti intr-o dispozitie hilara cand orice gest va face sa radeti.

Ivanov, Teatrul Bulandra

2012-01-13T13:03:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/ivanov.htm

Nota: 4.6+/5

Actori: 5+/5
Regie: 4.5/5
Scenariul: 4.5/5

Impresia cea mai buna mi-au lasat-o de la distanta actorii, o multitudine de actori cunoscuti sau mai putin cunoscuti care joaca teribil de bine. Cornel Scripcaru, ce in "Casatoria" nu mi-a placut, in aceasta piesa a jucat foarte bine, haios, neexagerat, accentuand acolo unde trebuie.
Marius Manole face un personaj foarte energic si cu toate acestea reuseste sa nu intre in absurd. Vlad Ivanov joaca un "Ivanov" foarte greu si placut, jos palaria. Apoi nu in ultimul rand, Victor Rebengiuc ce se distinge dar nu sufoca scena, Manuela Ciucur intr-un rol dificil, sintetic, amuzant si diabolic intr-o anumita masura.

Scenariul este de asemeni reusit, drama unui om complet neinteles de cei din jur, a carui destin se supune neputincios hazardului vietii. Momente de reflexie din cele mai diverse legate de disparitia iubirii, moarte, compasiune, entuziasm naiv tineresc, avaritie.. pentru a numi doar cateva dintre ele. Asadar o drama reflexiva, cu sporadice accente comice.

De remarcat iarasi regia, nu am realizat ca este semnata de Andrei Serban decat cand m-am apucat sa scriu pe blog, totusi regia am remarcat-o pozitiv din timpul spectacolului. Asa ca ma bucur ca nu bifez cu "genial/extraordinar", ci doar cu acele distinctii ce mi s-au parut personal deosebite si anume: o dinamica mare a personajelor folosindu-se atat de o scena prelungita in toate directiile si pe mai multe nivele, cat si de sala (printre spectatori); apoi folosirea excelenta a luminilor mai ales in monoloage, sau cand doreste sa accentueze o un anumit pasaj; nu in ultimul rand folosirea in doua planuri a scenei, astfel incat actiunea principala se petrece in fata, insa undeva in background se desfasoara o activitate paralela..

Desi recomand piesa cu caldura, mai putin daca ati avut un deces de curand, doar cateva lucruri mi-au atras atentia mai putin pozitiv:
- necesitatea tipetelor si a isteriei ca forma teatrala, devine in multe cazuri exagerata si nejustificata
- desi regia m-a surprins foarte placut, totusi dorinta de a alerga in tot decorul este de neinteles in mai multe scene
- similar cateva dintre glume se repeta obsesiv si isi pierd complet comicul (nu va invat eu ca o gluma repetata de mai mult de doua ori devine o gluma proasta, cand faci asta de 5+ ori..)
- desi scenariul este reflexiv, textul cred ca putea fi adaptat in cel putin cateva instante ceva mai bine.. e ca si cum ceva din mesajul "initial" se pierde..

Per ansamblu o piesa musai de vazut, ce mi-a adus aminte de punerile in scena de opera intr-un decor modern a unor piese clasice, renascentiste.. acum citind despre Andrei Serban, vad ca are un lung istoric in acest sens atat cu opera cat si cu teatru.

Insemnarile unui necunoscut, Teatrul Bulandra

2012-01-11T11:28:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/insemnarile_unui_necunoscut.htm

Nota: 3/5

Actori: 4/5
Regie: 4/5
Scenariu: 1/5

Nu ma pretind un cunoscator al lui Dostoievsky, insa cred ca e complicat sa il pui in scena. Asta pentru ca personajele lui sunt simboluri, filozofeaza in sinea lor, sunt puse fata in fata in cadrul unor conflicte uneori fortate doar pentru a-si arata ideile definitorii. Asa ceva e greu de pus in scena, si cred ca piesa de fata este un exemplu a cat de prost se poate face..

Intinzandu-se pe perioada a patru ore, la care am rezistate destoinic in scaun, incercand sa gasesc aspecte pozitive ale piesei, timp in care m-am bucurat ca alti spectatori au parasit sala - exprimandu-si tacut dezacordul, piesa are parti bune (mai putine) si parti proaste..

Parti bune:
- Dostoievsky e o incercare grea, admir curajul regizorului
- actorii sunt buni, un rol frumos facut mi s-a parut al lui Virgil Ogasanu (Foma), si nu mi-a placut exagerarea stupida pe alocuri a lui Mihai Constantin. Totusi am auzit si parerea fix opusa de la un apropiat, asa ca teatrul ramane interpretabil.. :)

Parti rele:
- scenariul mi se pare jalnic, daca va imaginati intalnirea dintre Eliade si Cioran rezumata prin "Cei doi au trecut strada, au baut o cafea si au stat de vorba.." cred ca e o expresie foarte buna a cantitatii de filozofie Dostoievskiana din aceasta piesa.. :)
- scene idealice/filozofice care in cadrul cartii au sens, in cadrul acestei piese de teatru sunt ridicole
- sunt dese scene de frenezie in care personajele se suprapun haotic, alearga pe scena, devin isterice. Poate o astfel de scena luata separat are sens, insa dupa mai multe incercari (nu le-am numarat) devine strident, groaznic, penibil..

Per ansamblu o piesa pe care nu o recomand deloc, printre cele mai slabe de la Bulandra din aceasta stagiune, dupa umila-mi parere.

Ingropati-ma pe dupa plinta, Teatrul Bulanda

2012-01-01T15:01:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5
Regie: 5+/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Link: http://bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/plinta.html

Probabil una dintre cele mai bune piese ce se joaca momentan in Bucuresti.
Semnata de Yuri Kordonsky, regia este absolut senzationala, ca sa va dau un mic exemplu - "imaginati-va oameni alergand intre case pe un viscol cu zapada.." toate acestea pe o muzica ruseasca de iti ingenunchiaza sufletul..

Nu am sa va dezvalui scenariul si sincer nici nu va recomand sa il cititi inainte de piesa.. lasati-va surprinsi.. merita.. Tot ce trebuie sa va spun este ca piesa e grea, o drama ruseasca regizata de un rus ce te face sa simti ruseste. Din drama devine si mai drama, din greu si mai greu.. 3h de rezistat in corzi.. Regizorul ia in mod real sufletul spectatorilor in maini si il modeleaza, il chinuie.. Din cand in cand o mica glumita, sau ceea ce poate fi cu greu considerata o glumita, spectatorii se agata de ea pentru a se mai elibera un pic din tensiunea cumulata.

Cred ca despre actori este greu sa nu vorbesti la superlativ. Mariana Mihut si Marian Ralea fac niste roluti absolut senzationale, sustinute in cele mai mici detalii, lucrate minutios si cu rabdare.

Una din piesele ce nu trebuie ratate .. probabil printre cele mai bune piese din stagiune ..

Moartea unui comis-voiajor, Teatrul Bulandra

2012-01-01T06:14:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/moartea_unui_comis_voiajor.php

Nota: 5+/5

Actori: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5+/5
Regia: 5/5

Piesa urmeaza cu strictete scenariul (premiat Pulizer) al lui Arthur Miller, pentru o descriere amanuntita urmati (link). O drama urmarind ultimele zile din viata unui comis voiajor, atinge cu multa emotie teme dificile legate de viata de familie, de asteptarile dintre parinti si copii, despre devenire si ratare, despre "visul american".

Desi nu sunt adeptul superlativelor pentru actorii consacrati, ce de multe ori se bucura de aplauze nemeritate, in cazul piesei de fata, Victor Rebengiuc face un rol memorabil, alternand intre alienare, durere, asteptari, lupta.
Desi piesa este dusa in spate de rolul principal, de remarcat sunt si interpretarile Marianei Mihutz si Serban Pavlu.

Probabil una din piesele cela mai bune ale stagiunii actuale, o piesa de vazut si de revazut.

Acasa la tata, Teatrul Act

2011-12-31T05:09:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Act
Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=192
Nota: 2.5/5

Actori: 4/5
Scenariul: 2/5
Regia: 2/5

O piesa foarte titrata, care dupa umila-mi parere este una din marile nereusite ale stagiunii, mai ales din punct de vedere a scenariului. Minorele incursiuni in psihicul uman, nereusita personajelor si asumarea unui statut nemeritat in viata, lasa mult de dorit de la o piesa cu actori valorosi si cu regia semnata de Alexandru Dabija (cel ce semneaza regia si pentru piese merituase precum "Creatorul de teatru", "Capra sau cine e Sylvia?", "Pyramus and Thisbe 4 You", etc)

Sincer o piesa la care imi pare rau ca am mers..

Capra sau cine e Sylvia? Teatrul Act

2011-12-31T04:59:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama/Comedie filozofica, Teatrul Act

Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariul: 5+/5
Regia: 5/5

Nu credeam ca idei filozofice atat de complexe pot fi redate intr-un spectacol de teatru cu atata precizie, umor si patos. Subiectul piesei este dragostea, pornind de la aspectele ei cele mai de neinteles, mai tabu, ni se face un pastel al iubirii pure intre doua fiinte. Cu mult umor sunt puse sub semnul intrebarii idei fundamentale ale cuplului, ale familiei, ale moralei crestine in particular. Pentru mai multe detalii despre scenariu a se vedea si cronica din linkul oficial.

O piesa de vazut si revazut. Una dintre acele reprezentatii ce fiind incarcate de atat de multe idei, trezeste la fiecare revedere ganduri si sentimente noi.

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=107

Creatorul de teatru, Teatrul Act

2011-12-31T04:45:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama/Spectacol de interpretare, Teatrul Act
Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=155
Nota: 4.3

Actori: 5/5
Scenariul: 4/5
Regia: 4/5

Un portret si autoportret amar al actorului, interpretat cu desavarsit talent de Marcel Iures. Nu mergeti la aceasta piesa asteptand un scenariu surprinzator, ci mai degraba bucurati-va de interpretare, de amaraciune, de tot buchetul de sentimente pe care actorii le trezesc in public in aceasta drama.

O piesa de vazut si revazut.

OPPOSITES ATTRACT de Bruce KANE, Teatrul Metropolis

2011-12-31T04:37:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie
Link: http://www.teatrulmetropolis.ro/spectacole/opposites-attract-de-bruce-kane.html
Nota: 4/5

Actori: 4/5
Scenariu: 4/5
Regia: 4/5

O comedie atipica, partial comedie de interpretare, partial datorita situatiilor. Surprinzand cu mult umor scene tipice din viata emotionala a cuplurilor tinere sau adolescente, comedia are varii momente de filozofie, e imposibil sa nu te puna un pic pe ganduri.
Interpretarea lui Florin Piersic Jr, cat si a tanarului colectiv mi s-a parut foarte reusita. Per ansamblu o piesa care merita vazuta.

Crima la Howard Johnson

2011-12-31T04:25:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie
Nota: 4.3/5

Actori: 4/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regia: 4/5

Pentru fanii lui Bendeac, piesa este cu siguranta o reusita. Scenariul este savuros: cei 3 actori incearca rand pe rand sa se omoare unul pe altul, in toate combinatiile posibile.
Personal nu imi place stilul lui Bendeac de interpretare, desi un actor foarte bun, e imposibil sa fie credibil, tot jocul sau este caricaturizat pana la absurd. Dar desigur este doar o parere personala - desi nu memorabila, piesa este relaxanta si mai mult ca sigur o experienta pozitiva pentru spectatori..

Fantoma dragostea mea, Teatrul Metropolis

2011-12-31T04:15:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie, Teatrul Metropolis
Link: http://www.teatrulmetropolis.ro/spectacole/fantoma-dragostea-mea-de-noel-coward.html

Nota: 4.6/5

Actori: 4/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regie: 5/5

O comedie reusita de situatie, un scriitor proaspat recasatorit, face cercetari pentru noua sa carte. In aceasta ipostaza afla ca viata de dincolo nu este doar o fictiune. Cu o interpretare foarte buna a scriitorului, Marius Vizante, duce greul piesei si culege hohote de ras. Asemeni se remarca pozitiv Raluca Ghervan.
Dupa umila-mi parere, o interpretare ceva mai slaba din partea Alexandrei Velniciuc, cat si a celorlalti actori secundari.

Una din comediile foarte reusite ale acestei stagiuni.

Pyramus and Thisbe 4 You, Teatrul Odeon

2011-12-31T03:58:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie, Teatrul Odeon, Autor: W. Shakespeare
Regia: Alexandru Dabija

Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regia: 5/5

Folosind si refolosind tema piesei lui Shakespeare, redusa la minimul necesar, suntem placut surprinsi de o frumoasa comedie de interpretare, pusa in scena in cele mai neasteptate variante. Un colectiv numeros de actori, atat tineri cat si consacrati, interpreteaza aceeasi scena in stil clasic/neindemanatic, modern/plin de vitalitate, neaos/ardelenesc etc..

Daca va bucurati de o comedie de interpretare, probabil este una din reprezentantele cele mai bune din aceasta stagiune.

Link: http://www.teatrul-odeon.ro/spectacole/pyramus.html

Un cuplu ciudat, Teatrul Arca din La Scena

2011-12-31T03:42:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie, Teatrul Arca din La Scena, Autor: Neil Simon
Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regia: 5/5

O comedie reusita a tipologiilor umane. In caldurosul ambient de la Teatrul Arca, un colectiv tanar de actori foarte talentati surprind publicul cu o comedie savuroasa. Sase personaje feminine, fiecare cu propriul fel de a fi, frumos conturat prin replici si statut, sunt puse intr-o situatie neasteptata - despartirea de sot a uneia dintre ele.

Pentru a nu desconspira prea mult din scenariu, va voi recomanda cu caldura aceasta piesa in cazul in care doriti o sa va relaxati cu o comedie reusita in acasta stagiune.

Faust, Teatrul National Doamna Stanca - Sibiu

2011-12-18T06:28:00.001-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul National Doamna Stanca - Sibiu
Nota: 5+/5

Actori: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5+/5
Regia: 5+/5

Piesa premiata in nenumarate randuri la festivaluri internationale, de altfel invitata special in nenumarate randuri. O punere in scena neconformista a lui Faust, sincer nerecomandat pentru copii sau pentru cei mai slabi de inger..

Regia lui Silviu Purcarete este rara, piesa parca se desfasoara intr-un spatiu alienat, suntem intr-un spital de nebuni, unde Mefisto isi are tot sensul din lume. Personal noaptea valpurgiei mi s-a parut un pic exagerata, cantitatea de sange, artificii si capete de porc, intrecand anumite limite rezonabile. Asemeni scena in sine ofera o rupere fata de continuitatea piesei. Totusi trebuie sa admit o anumita tresarire si tensiune la trecerea in sala secundara din Sibiu, deci sentimentele sunt oarecum impartite.

Actorii din rolurile principale Ofelia Popii si Ilie Gheorghe sunt memorabili. Pentru o frumusete de femeie ca Ofelia, cu un glas foarte feminin, trecerea la Mefisto este surprinzatoare si, cred, rar intalnita cel putin pe scenele din Romania. Asemeni contorsiunile, pozitiile adoptate, mimica fetei sunt perfect jucate in cadrul piesei.
Ilie Gheorghe realizeaza un Faust de tinut minte. Batran, totusi puternic, libidinos, totusi pasional..

O piesa ce trebuie neaparat vazuta in viata, si probabil cea mai buna punere in scena din aceasta clipa de pe scenele din tara.

Casatoria, Teatrul Bulandra

2011-12-18T00:33:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie, Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Nota: 4/5

Actorii: 4/5
Scenariu: 4/5
Regia: 4/5
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/casatoria.htm

O comedie/drama despre greutatea de a face decizia finala, definitiva, irevocabila a casatoriei. Situata intr-un spatiu rus, decizia este cu atat mai grea. Comedia de caracter abunda in toata piesa, multe personaje, fiecare cu metehnele proprii, cu atitudinea personala in viata, fiecare aducandu-si aportul hazliu la atmosfera generala.

Interpretarea este buna, uneori fortata. Remarcabila interpretarea lui Razvan Vasilescu si a Marianei Mihut, care infloresc personajul modest, nu il caricaturizeaza, si desi comic, personajele lor par credibile. Nu acelasi este cazul si pentru Cornel Scripcaru, in rolul principal. Greu de decis daca este vina scenariului sau a interpretarii, insa personajul isi pierde pe alocuri din credibilitate, comicul devine semn de intrebare.

Arta, Teatrul Bulandra

2011-12-17T15:09:00.001-08:00

Gen: Comedie/Filozofie, Teatrul Bulandra
Nota: 5/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariu: 5/5

Un spectacol despre prietenie, despre adevarurile fine, rareori vorbite deschis ale relatiilor dintre oameni.
Trei prieteni isi dau orice garda jos si se lovesc in punctele cele mai sensibile, comic, fin, brutal.
Remarcabil scenariul semnat de Yasmina Reza, ce merita urmarita pe viitor. Interpretarea perfecta - Vlad Zamfirescu, Serban Pavlu, Gheorghe Ifrim sunt perfect alesi in rolurile pe care le joaca.

O piesa care cu siguranta nu trebuie ratata, vazuta si revazuta pentru scenariul si multitudinea de idei vehiculate.

Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/arta.html

Femeia care şi-a pierdut jartierele, Teatrul de comedie

2011-12-17T14:50:00.001-08:00

Genul: comedie bulevardiera, Teatrul de comedie
Nota: 2.5/5

Actori: 5/5
Regie: 5/5
Scenariu: 0/5
Muzical: 0/5
Link: http://www.comedie.ro/spectacol/femeia-care-si-a-pierdut-jartierele

Am citit multe cuvinte de lauda despre piesa, insa haide totusi sa fim mai deschisi si spre critica.
In primul rand scenariul este aproape zero, intriga acestei piese lasa mult mult de dorit, toata piesa poate fi rezumata intr-o propozitie..
Asemeni, doi actori atat de buni, ce te pot face sa razi si daca iti spun cuvintele cele mai banale, sa ii pui in inconfortabila situatie de a canta pe scena.. a canta prost si foarte prost.. ajutati pe alocuri de sistemul audio.. este absolut penibil..

Sincer, piesa avea tot ce ii trebuie, regia lui Silviu Purcarete este exceptionala, face arta din absolut nimic. Asemeni Horatiu Malaele si George Mihaita sunt fabulosi. Insa cum ar zice un bulevardier din aceasta piesa bulevardiera "gasiti neiculitza un text.. asta e totul.. nu ii mai puneti sa se prostitueze cu cantat si gimbuslucuri.. ne facem de ras taiculitza.."

Recomand piesa daca va place sa auziti un cantat foarte prost, cateva glumite si mici batai cu frisca..

Vizita batranei doamne, Teatrul National Bucuresti (TNB)

2011-12-17T14:29:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama/Comedie
Nota: 4.3/5

Actori: 5/5
Regie: 5/5
Scenariu: 3/5

Daca doriti sa vizionati o comedie, probabil ca este un spectacol decent, desi aveti multe alte variate mai bune. Cateva scene de teatru bulevardier dau o nota haioasa spectacolului, alaturi de o regie foarte reusita.

Din pacate piesa nu este o comedie, iar tematica propusa este o drama in toata puterea cuvantului "poate fi viata unui om cumparata cu o suma mare de bani?"Pacat ca aceasta tema nu a fost tratata cu seriozitate. Atat actorii cat si publicul meritau un spectacol mult mai bun. Practic suntem pusi in fata unei alegeri tare nefericite din punct de vedere a scenariului, pe alocuri avem parte de o drama in toata puterea cuvantului, in fond este vorba de viata unui om care atarna de un fir de par; iar pe de alta parte, asistam la mici poante, mici comedii de situatie ce scot complet publicul din atmosfera si din drama ce se desfasoara in fata lor.

Pentru a intelege livretului de opera intr-un sens mai aproape de original, ecranizarea pe micile ecrane, in interpretarea lui Anthony Quinn si Ingrid Bergman, ne ofera o imagine mult mai buna despre miza piesei. De urmarit macar sfarsitul - http://www.trilulilu.ro/30072BB/9d7df76d208e54

Toata aprecierea pentru interpretarea actorilor si pentru regie. Pacat de piesa.. chiar se putea mult mult mai bine.

Link: http://www.tnb.ro/index.php?page=spectacol&idspec=420

Nimeni nu-i perfect, regia Radu Beligan

2011-10-15T08:43:00.000-07:00

Gen: Comedie de situatie
Nota: 3.6/5

Actori: 3/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regie: 3/5

O comedie usoara, atat traducerea lui Radu Beligan cat si scenariul sunt ok, totusi piesa lasa per ansamblu de dorit, sau ca sa fiu critic-constructiv, cred ca mai trebuie jucata mult timp pana sa exploateze ceva mai bine posibilitatile textului.

Scenariul ne poarta in casa unui scriitor (despartit de nevasta) ce incearca sa castige un ban din ultima nuvela, pentru a-si intretine mica familie. Comedia de situatie apare cand este fortat sa isi deghizeze in femeie, pentru a putea intra in posesia banilor. Condimentat cu putina romanta, un tata batran si afemeiat (jucat foarte haios de Stefan Radof), o fetita adolescenta cu problemele varstei.. textul cred ca are un potential mai bun decat ce am vazut pe scena.

De remarcat si eforturile actorului principal Silviu Biris, ce incearca tot posibilul sa interpreteze rolul dificil de barbat/tata/femeie/indragostit.. Nu l-as numi vinovat ca nu starneste rasete o lunga perioada de timp, mai ales in prima jumatate a piesei.. totusi ceva nu se leaga sesizabil intre scena si public; pe finalul piesei este ceva mai bine.

Per ansamblu o comedie usoara de descretit fruntea. Nu va asteptati sa preluati vreo idee filozofica la iesirea din sala si nici sa radeti in lacrimi..

O alta cronica rezonabila de la Metropotam (aici).

Cafeneaua cu Horatiu Malaele, Teatrul Bulandra

2011-09-15T09:00:00.000-07:00

Gen: Comedie/Drama, Teatrul Bulandra
Link: http://www.bulandra.ro/ro/spectacole/cafeneaua.htm

Nota: 4.6/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regia: 4/5

O comedie care il pune deplin in valoare pe Horatiu Malaele, in ipostaza de visator om de afaceri, de sot si amant, de batran privind melancolic la visele neimplinite.
O comedie despre viata, vise si neimpliniri, despre tradare si iubire.

Cel mai longeviv spectacol al Teatrului Bulandra, cu siguranta merita vazut cat timp se mai joaca..

Raoul, James Thiérrée

2011-05-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul National Bucuresti

Nota: 5+/5

Actor: 5+/5

Scenariu: 5+/5

Regia: 5+/5

Cu siguranta cea mai buna piesa pe care am vazut-o vreodata, Raoul este povestea descoperirii de sine a unui om. O piesa in care nu se spune aproape nici un cuvant, o piesa in care doar muzica, gesturile si simbolurile ne poarta in lumea magica a sufletului unui om, pe drumul devenirii sale dintr-o larva ascunsa intr-un birou mizer, in misticul empatic cu publicul, in descoperitorul de lumi si universuri noi.

Din pacate marketata prost in Bucuresti, James Thierree nu este doar un urmas de sange al lui Charlie Chaplin, el este un creator de teatru de cea mai inalta clasa. Din nou nu sunt un adept al superlativelor si a laudelor nemeritate, insa Thierree atinge cu aceasta piesa parti ale sufletului greu exprimabile in cuvinte, starneste in public cuvinte nespuse, cuvinte ce nu ar putea fi spuse pentru ca nu exista un limbaj pentru ele.
Incarcata de simboluri din cele mai complexe: "Pestele" simbol al lumii acvatice, identificata de istorici ai religiilor ca locul in care toti eroii se afunda pentru a renaste intr-o noua viata; "Elefantul" ca si simbol indian al intelepciunii; "Oglinda" ca simbol al sufletului.
Regia este de neegalat: magia integrata in teatru si plasata exact acolo unde are sens, pentru a exprima o idee, insa neexagerand; "iluminarea" personajului in actul final in care putem vedea un pic din firele ce leaga papusile de scena..

O piesa nu numai de vazut si revazut, un autor si actor ce merita urmarit si vizionat indiferent de tara unde joaca. Piesa a ridicat pentru mine cu mult stafeta la ce inseamna o piesa buna de teatru modern.

XXL (Fat Pig), Teatrul Act

2011-03-15T08:18:00.000-07:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Act
Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=248
Nota: 4.6/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariu: 5/5
Regie: 4/5

Piesa poarta amprenta inconfundabila a lui Neil LaBute (Shape of Things, In the Company of Men etc), textul atinge subiecte inconfortabile, precum slabiciunea in fata ideilor preconcepute ale societatii, lasitatea in fata presiunii celor din jur. Intr-o lume in care toata lumea "stie" cum e mai bine si imprima brutal sablonul societatii asupra tuturor precum, cat de usor este sa iti urmezi propriile ganduri, propriile vise si valori? cat de diferiti si frumosi mai putem fi noi?

Mi-au placut dezvaluirile actritei principale - Raluca Vermesan, ce face un rol foarte bun. Tanara echipa de actori (Vlad Zamfirescu, Irina Velcescu si Andi Vasluianu) joaca bine, probabil insa ca spectacolul mai trebuie jucat cateva stagiuni pana sa fie inchegat complet ..

O comedie amara despre viata asa cum este ea ..

Welcome to my web-page

2011-01-01T06:54:00.000-08:00

I would describe myself as a passionate person,
and here is a brief list of what I especially like to do:

1. to read - take a look at the list of books I especially enjoyed, and authors I appreciate
2. to travel and understand different mind-sets
3. to work - I find lots of pleasure and challenge in my work. My special interests are in IT, startups and business development
4. to do tons of sports
5. take pictures, thou I rarely make time to select and process them (maybe when I'll get older)
6. and not the least, to love..

So: Warm welcome my friends! Enjoy my thoughts, and I will be glad to listen your comments..

AMERICAN BUFFALO de David Mamet, Teatrul Act

2010-12-15T05:19:00.000-08:00

Gen: Comedie, Teatrul Act

Actori: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5/5
Regia: 5/5

O comedie pe care am revazut-o de cateva ori pentru scenariul savuros si pentru interpretarea incredibila a actorilor. Un godfather ratat si sentimental interpretat de Gheorghe Ifrim, un hot ambitios in afirmare interpretat de Vlad Zamfirescu, sunt completati de semiretardul interpretat cu atat de mult umor de Marius Vizante.
Si dupa ani imi aduc aminte de tusitul si vorbitul gutural al nasului, de porceala de la gura lui Vlad Zamfirescu, cat si de replica amortita a lui Vizante "bai, bai eu nu ma simt prea bine.." Un trio perfect, interpretand un scenariu superb.

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=stagiunea&cat=spectacole&id=171

Burghezul gentilom, TNB

2010-06-01T07:45:00.000-07:00

Gen: Comedie, Teatrul National Bucuresti

Nota: 3.6/5

Actori: 4/5
Scenariu: 3/5
Regie: 4/5

Adaptare la plaiul mioritic dupa Moliere, din textul original nu se pastreaza nimic, doar linia generala a intrigii. O comedie usoara de caracter, o becalizare a personajului principal, piesa se adreseaza publicului larg de televiziune si mai putin unui public amator de teatru.

O comedie usoara de descretit fruntea, cu siguranta nu este o piesa care merita prea multa atentie.

Link: http://www.tnb.ro/?page=spectacol&idspec=118
Link alte cronici: http://regizorcautpiesa.ro/spectacole/Burghezul-gentilom-regia-Petrica-Ionescu-1642.html

Dumnezeul de a doua zi, Teatrul Act

2010-01-30T07:52:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Act
Regia: Mimi Branescu

Nota: 2.3/5

Actori: 3/5
Scenariul: 1/5
Regia: 3/5

A doua piesa de Mimi Branescu ce nu mi-a spus absolut nimic, ba in plus mi-a parut rau ca am pierdut timpul cu ea. Cred ca propriile cuvinte ale lui Mimi Branescu descriu cel mai bine piesa: „Toate textele mele de teatru sunt incercari, mai mult sau mai putin reusite. Sunt exercitii destinate in primul rand actorilor. Nu contin mesaje profunde si nici nu-si propun să dezbata teme mari, universale. Din neputinta. Sunt inspirate din realitatea imediată si povestite sincer, cu onestitate.”

O cronica ceva mai pozitiva pentru aceeasi piesa (aici). Totusi din prezentare sunt de acord doar cu interpretarea buna a lui Vlad Zamfirescu, precum si cu prezenta "portretelor" ca si forma teatrala, in afara de aceasta, textul este aproape nul..

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=despre&cat=arhivas&id=142

Pascal Quignard - Le sexe et l'effroi

2010-01-25T11:51:00.000-08:00

Based on old Roman texts, the author depicts some Roman habits and myths - building around two main themes sexuality and fear.

- Epicur is the 3rd century's Freud:

a. a person that doesn't enjoy life, creates his own illness.

b. any person, in his own intimacy, has a restless heart, that drives the soul crazy with silly thoughts.

- we were born animals, thus regardless of the number of laws, the humanity cannot escape it's animal roots.

- Septimius: "the one who writes - sodomizes, while the reader is sodomized"

- 470 a.d - Sollius Sidonius Apollinaris: "There are no longer hierarchies between the noble people, hierarchies that allowed us in the past to know the ranks; thus from now on the only hint about how noble one person is, will be found in the amount of knowledge".

Suetoniu, talking about emperor August's death: talking to his friends the emperor asked if they think he played a good role in the comedy of life, and than he added 'if i played well, give a round of applause for the play'

Rabbit Hole, Teatrul Act

2010-01-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul Act

Nota: 4.6/5

Actori: 5/5
Scenariul: 5/5
Regia: 4/5

Piesa e bazata pe scenariul lui David Lindsay-Abaire, scenariul a fost si ecranizat - avand in rolul principal pe Nikole Kidman (imdb). Subiectul este greu, asa ca e mai bine sa fii pus in garda inainte de vizionare - un cuplu tanar, incearca sa isi revina dupa moartea accidentala a singurului lor copil de cativa anisori.

Remarcabila pentru mine a fost interpretarea actorilor, in special a Catalinei Moga (in rolul mamei) ce reuseste in acest rol greu, nu doar sa fie veridica, ci sa vibreze pe scena, sa sufere alaturi de sot si mama, cat si sa fie umana in relatia cu tanarul ce este autorul accidentului. Un rol foarte dificil, interpretat extrem de bine, dupa umila-mi parere.

Asemeni mi-au placut si ceilalti actori, cat si personajele lor - un tata frumos conturat, ce doreste re-creerea unei noi lumi/familii, o mama ce incearca sa isi readuca copii cu picioarele pe pamant, o sora zvapaiata - haios interpretata de Nicolata Lefter, cat si a adolescentului neindemanatic - frumos schitat de Cosmin Panaite.

O piesa ce merita vazuta macar pentru colectivul frumos sudat si interpretarea tare reusita. Subiectul e greu, asa ca mergeti pregatiti.. :)

Link: http://www.teatrulact.ro/index.php?pag=despre&cat=arhivas&id=233

The French Lieutenant's Woman - by John Fowles

2009-10-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

Written as an exercise of Victorian literature, the book depicts the psychological evolution of an impossible love. The characters psyche is Victorian, and all their inner evolution follows the epoch's constraints.

Island, by Aldous Huxley

2009-08-28T09:42:00.000-07:00

Written towards the end of his life, the book draws Huxley's view about the perfect utopic society. With only minor influences from Brave New World, Huxley succeeds in creating a society where Budhism, psichology and medicine, drugs and sexuality, and many more, all add their benefit to the individual experience, to the personal achievement.

Quotes worth thinking about:

- But Good Being is in the knowledge of who in fact one is in relation to all experiences. So be aware - aware in every context, at all times and whatever, creditable or discreditable, pleasant or unpleasant, you may be doing or suffering.

- faith is something very different from belief. Belied is the systematic taking of unanalyzed words much too seriously. Paul's words, Mohammed's words, Marx's .. - people take them too seriously, and what happens? What happens is the senseless ambivalence of history - sadism versus duty, sadism as duty; devotion counterbalanced by organized paranoia.. Faith, on the contrary, can never be taken too seriously. For Faith is the empirically justified confidence in our capacity to know who in fact we are, to forget the belief-intoxicated Manichee in Good Being.

- .. about the sexuality of children. What we're born with , what we experience all through infancy and childhood, is a sexuality that isn't concentrated on the genitals; it's a sexuality diffused throughout the whole organism. That's the paradise we inherit.

- does one learn how to forget?

It isn't a matter of forgetting. What one has to learn is how to remember and yet be free of the past. How to be there with the dead and yet be here, on the spot, with the living.

- one has no right to inflict one's sadness on other people. And no right, of course, to pretend that one isn't sad. One just has to accept one's grief and one's absurd attempts to be a stoic.

- Perfect faith is defined as something that produces perfect peace of mind. But perfect peace of mind is something that practically nobody possesses. Therefore practically nobody possesses perfect faith. Therefore practically everybody is predestined to eternal punishment.

- Man is a machine, the brain secretes thought as the liver secretes bile.

- You think first of getting the biggest possible output in the shortest possible time. We think first of human beings and their satisfactions.

- Abstract materialism is as bad as abstract idealism; it makes immediate spiritual experience almost impossible.

- We cannot reason ourselves out of our basic irrationality. All we can do is to learn the art of being irrational in a reasonable way.

- "I" affirms a separate and abiding me-substance; "am" denies the fact that all existence is relationship and change. "I am". Two tiny word, but what an enormity of untruth.

- .. a talent for manipulating symbols tempts its possessors into habitual symbol manipulation, and habitual symbol manipulation is an obstacle in the way of concrete experiencing and the reception of gratuitous graces.

- The point is to get people to understand we're not at the mercy of our memory and our phantasies. If we're disturbed by what's going on inside our heads, we can do something about it.

- one thinks one's something unique and wonderful at the center of the universe. But in fact one's merely a slight delay in the ongoing march of entropy.

Book Awards

2009-06-13T11:31:00.001-07:00

Nobel Prize for Literature - website, laureates

Pulizer - website, awards

Man Booker Prize (UK, 1969, fiction) - website, awards

Orange Prize (UK, 1996, English female authors) - website

Commonwealth Writers' Prize (UK, 1987) - website

National Book Awards (USA) - website

American Booksellers Association (USA) - website

Goncourt (France) - website

Prix Medicis (France) - website

Prix Renaudot (France) - website

Prix Femina (France) - website

Premio Nacional de Literatura (Espagna)

Romulo Gallegos (Venezuela, 1967)

Lord of the Flies, by William Golding

2009-01-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

The book tells the story of the cultural and emotional regression (degradation) of a group of young English school-boys that are by accident all alone on a deserted island. Some philosophical reasonings come to attention: hedonism versus responsibility, self versus group, death morality versus group adherence, innocence versus savagery.
The author leaves children to play and evolve under our eyes, their simple and rudimentary decisions become, at a smaller scale, the decisions of the modern civilization.

"Egoistul" cu Radu Beligan, TNB

2009-01-13T11:50:00.000-08:00

Gen: Drama, Teatrul National Bucuresti
Nota: 5+/5

Actori: 5+/5
Scenariul: 5+/5
Regia: 5/5

Am vazut intr-un final "Egoistul", imi doream de tare mult sa ajung, am vanat bilete cu intrerupere timp de 4-5 ani. Punerea in piesa a fost superba, Radu Beligan a tinut practic tot spectacolul. Tema: egoismul din noi, egoismul in familie, intre prieteni, intre toti cei dragi; iar la finalul zilei suntem singuri, asa cum ne-am nascut, goliti de energie de cei din jur, in jocul agitat al vietii.

Beligan a avut rolul autorului, observatorului rece, participand la piesa vietii doar distant, ironic si fara implicare emotonala; parca amuzat fiind de jocul ce se desfasoara in fata sa, insa deloc uimit, si nici macar incercand sa ii faca pe ceilalti sa priceapa jocul sau, intelegerea sa.

E ca si cum s-a distantat de viata, o intelege prea bine ca sa cada in plasele intinse de ea, priveste ironic si rational la dezlantuirea plina de energie a fiintelor din jurul sau, energie depusa cu siretenie si interes.

Totusi, ironic, e ca si cum isi traieste pe scena propria viata, ajunsa la sfarsit. Probabil de aceea a si starnit in mine tristete, probabil ca mi-as fi dorit chiar eu, in egoismul meu, sa traiesc aceasta piesa mai mult timp, acele momente sa le inghet in timp, sau sa pot reveni la ele. Insa nu ma voi mai putea intoarce la ele, probabil si actorul va muri, si clipele au fost cele de azi, pline de farmec si inteles, si poate mai pline de substanta tocmai prin coincidenta vietii actorului cu personajul.

Pana la urma spectatorii nu au fost egoisti, desi probabil toti ne doream sa aplaudam mai mult, sa ne aducem aprecierea pentru piesa foarte reusita, aplauzele nu au durat mult, aceasta pentru ca Beligan a iesit din scena obosit, prea obosit de viata. Dar cu siguranta aceasta este viata, si ea isi urmeaza cursul simplu, cu viata si moarte, pentru noi toti, fara un talc anume, doar simplu.

Link: http://www.tnb.ro/?page=spectacol&idspec=143

Mindfulness In Plain English - by Ven. Henepola Gunaratana

2009-01-12T10:09:00.000-08:00

A good friend recommended this book, you can download it using the link.

This is the most clear book on meditation I've read until now. It clearly states what meditation is, and is not, it does not go into philosophy that much (unless needed for the understanding of the techniques), it gives lots of details and alternatives to the techniques used, it states what can go wrong and how to fix it, and what are the stages along the way.

Thought scramble / distractions (= monkey mind) =>
thought understanding (patience and usage of positive feelings as antidotes) =>
meditation (= mindfulness & concentration) =>
enlightenment

Some quotes I especially liked:

The purpose of Vipassana meditation is nothing less than the radical and permanent transformation of your entire sensory and cognitive experience. It is meant to revolutionize the whole of your life experience. Those periods of seated practice are times set aside for instilling new mental habits. You learn new ways to receive and understand sensation. You develop new methods of dealing with conscious thought, and new modes of attending to the incessant rush of your own emotions. These new mental behaviors must be made to carry over into the rest of your life.
You search for that thing you call 'me', but what you find is a physical body and how you have identified your sense of yourself with that bag of skin and bones. You search further and you find all manner of mental phenomena, such as emotions, thought patterns and opinions, and see how you identify the sense of yourself with each of them. You watch yourself becoming possessive, protective and defensive over these pitiful things and you see how crazy that is. You rummage furiously among these various items, constantly searching for yourself -- physical matter, bodily sensations, feelings and emotions -- it all keeps whirling round and round as you root through it, peering into every nook and cranny, endlessly hunting for 'me'. You find nothing. In all that collection of mental hardware in this endless stream of ever-shifting experience all you can find is innumerable impersonal processes which have been caused and conditioned by previous processes. There is no static self to be found; it is all process. You find thoughts but no thinker, you find emotions and desires, but nobody doing them. The house itself is empty. There is nobody home.

When you hate somebody you think, "Let him be ugly. Let him lie in pain. Let him have no prosperity. Let him not be right. Let him not be famous. Let him have no friends. Let him, after death, reappear in an unhappy state of depravation in a bad destination in perdition." However, what actually happens is that your own body generates such harmful chemistry that you experience pain, increased heart beat, tension, change of facial expression, loss of appetite for food, deprivation of sleep and appear very unpleasant to others. You go through the same things you wish for your enemy. Also you cannot see the truth as it is. Your mind is like boiling water. Or you are like a patient suffering from jaundice to whom any delicious food tastes bland. Similarly, you cannot appreciate somebody's appearance, achievement, success, etc. As long as this condition exists, you cannot meditate well.
Those who have studied Buddhism superficially are quick to conclude that it is a pessimistic set of teachings, always harping on unpleasant things like suffering, always urging us to confront the uncomfortable realities of pain, death and illness. Buddhist thinkers do not regard themselves as pessimists--quite the opposite, actually. Pain exists in the universe; some measure of it is unavoidable. Learning to deal with it is not pessimism, but a very pragmatic form of optimism. How would you deal with the death of your spouse? How would you feel if you lost your mother tomorrow? Or your sister or your closest friend? Suppose you lost your job, your savings, and the use of your hands, on the same day; could you face the prospect of spending the rest of your life in a wheelchair? How are you going to cope with the pain of terminal cancer if you contract it, and how will you deal with your own death, when that approaches? You may escape most of these misfortunes, but you won't escape all of them. Most of us lose friends and relatives at some time during our lives; all of us get sick now and then; at the very least you are going to die someday. You can suffer through things like that or you can face them openly--the choice is yours.
Pain is inevitable, suffering is not. Pain and suffering are two different animals.
If the breath seems an exceedingly dull thing to observe over and over, you may rest assured of one thing: You have ceased to observe the process with true mindfulness. Mindfulness is never boring. Look again. Don't assume that you know what breath is. Don't take it for granted that you have already seen everything there is to see. If you do, you are conceptualizing the process. You are not observing its living reality. When you are clearly mindful of breath or indeed anything else, it is never boring. Mindfulness looks at everything with the eyes of a child, with the sense of wonder. Mindfulness sees every second as if it were the first and the only second in the universe. So look again.
Restlessness is often a cover-up for some deeper experience taking place in the unconscious. We humans are great at repressing things. Rather than confronting some unpleasant thought we experience, we try to bury it. We won't have to deal with the issue.
Thoughts of greed cover everything connected with desire, from outright avarice for material gain, all the way down to a subtle need to be respected as a moral person. Thoughts of hatred run the gamut from petty peevishness to murderous rage. Delusion covers everything from daydreaming through actual hallucinations. Generosity cancels greed. Benevolence and compassion cancel hatred. You can find a specific antidote for any troubling thought if you just think about it a while.
The purpose of meditation is not to concentrate on the breath, without interruption, forever. That by itself would be a useless goal. The purpose of meditation is not to achieve a perfectly still and serene mind. Although a lovely state, it doesn't lead to liberation by itself. The purpose of meditation is to achieve uninterrupted mindfulness. Mindfulness, and only mindfulness, produces Enlightenment.
mindfulness and concentration. A bit of caution on this term: The word 'hindrances' carries a negative connotation, and indeed these are states of mind we want to eradicate. That does not mean, however, that they are to be repressed, avoided or condemned.
Let's use greed as an example. We wish to avoid prolonging any state of greed that arises, because a continuation of that state leads to bondage and sorrow. That does not mean we try to toss the thought out of the mind when it appears. We simply refuse to encourage it to stay. We let it come, and we let it go. When greed is first observed with bare attention, no value judgements are made. We simply stand back and watch it arise. The whole dynamic of greed from start to finish is simply observed in this way. We don't help it, or hinder it, or interfere with it in the slightest. It stays as long as it stays. And we learn as much about it as we can while it is there. We watch what greed does. We watch how it troubles us, and how it burdens others. We notice how it keeps us perpetually unsatisfied, forever in a state of unfulfilled longing. From this first-hand experience, we ascertain at a gut level that greed is an unskillful way to run your life. There is nothing theoretical about this realization.
desire => want more => use more energy to get it => never ending circle
Aversion: Suppose that you have been distracted by some negative experience. It could be something you fear or some nagging worry. It might be guilt or depression or pain. Whatever the actual substance of the thought or sensation, you find yourself rejecting or repressing -- trying to avoid it, resist it or deny it. The handling here is essentially the same. Watch the arising of the thought or sensation. Notice the state of rejection that comes with it. Gauge the extent or degree of that rejection. See how long it lasts and when it fades away.
Every mental state has a birth, a growth and a decay. You should strive to see these stages clearly. This is no easy thing to do, however. As we have already noted, every thought and sensation begins first in the unconscious region of the mind and only later rises to consciousness. We generally become aware of such things only after they have arisen in the conscious realm and stayed there for some time. Indeed we usually become aware of distractions only when they have released their hold on us and are already on their way out. It is at this point that we are struck with the sudden realization that we have been somewhere, day-dreaming, fantasizing, or whatever. Quite obviously this is far too late in the chain of events. We may call this phenomenon catching the lion by its tail, and it is an unskillful thing to do. Like confronting a dangerous beast, we must approach mental states head-on.
Meditation is a bit like mental acid. It eats away slowly at whatever you put it on. We humans are very odd beings. We like the taste of certain poisons and we stubbornly continue to eat them even while they are killing us. Thoughts to which we are attached are poison. You will find yourself quite eager to dig some thoughts out by the roots while you jealously guard and cherish certain others. That is the human condition.
Mindfulness is mirror-thought. It reflects only what is presently happening and in exactly the way it is happening. There are no biases.
Mindfulness is non-judgmental observation. It is that ability of the mind to observe without criticism. With this ability, one sees things without condemnation or judgment. One is surprised by nothing. One simply takes a balanced interest in things exactly as they are in their natural states. One does not decide and does not judge. One just observes.
Mindfulness is goal-less awareness. In Mindfulness, one does not strain for results. One does not try to accomplish anything. When one is mindful, one experiences reality in the present moment in whatever form it takes. There is nothing to be achieved. There is only observation.
Mindfulness, one is an unbiased observer whose sole job is to keep track of the constantly passing show of the universe within. Please note that last point. In Mindfulness, one watches the universe within. The meditator who is developing Mindfulness is not concerned with the external universe. It is there, but in meditation, one's field of study is one's own experience, one's thoughts, one's feelings, and one's perceptions. In meditation, one is one's own laboratory. The universe within has an enormous fund of information containing the reflection of the external world and much more. An examination of this material leads to total freedom.
There are three fundamental activities of Mindfulness. We can use these activities as functional definitions of the term: (1) Mindfulness reminds us of what we are supposed to be doing; (2) it sees things as they really are; and (3) it sees the deep nature of all phenomena.
Mindfulness alone has the power to reveal the deepest level of reality available to human observation: (a) all conditioned things are inherently transitory; (b) every worldly thing is, in the end, unsatisfying; and (c) there are really no entities that are unchanging or permanent, only processes.
Mindfulness reminds the meditator to apply his attention to the proper object at the proper time and to exert precisely the amount of energy needed to do the job.
Concentration should be regarded as a tool. Like any tool, it can be used for good or for ill. A sharp knife can be used to create a beautiful carving or to harm someone. It is all up to the one who uses the knife. Concentration is similar. Properly used, it can assist you
towards liberation. But it can also be used in the service of the ego. It can operate in the framework of achievement and competition. You can use concentration to dominate others. You can use it to be selfish. The real problem is that concentration alone will not give you a perspective on yourself. It won't throw light on the basic problems of selfishness and the nature of suffering. It can be used to dig down into deep psychological states. But even then, the forces of egotism won't be understood.
In a state of mindfulness, you see yourself exactly as you are. You see your own selfish behavior. You see your own suffering. And you see how you create that suffering. You see how you hurt others. You pierce right through the layer of lies that you normally tell yourself and you see what is really there. Mindfulness leads to wisdom.
We spend most of our time running on automatic pilot, lost in the fog of day-dreams and preoccupations.
One of the most frequently ignored aspects of our existence is our body

There should be a clear difference between tasks/actions on one hand and feelings and actions tight with those feelings on the other hand. One should be able to be Mindfull on the first and do the task, while should be analytical-Mindfull with the second. Otherwise the meditator would not be able to solve any activity.
VERIFY THIS AGAINST
"The meditator learns to pay bare attention to the birth, growth, and decay of all the phenomena of the mind. He turns from none of it, and he lets none of it escape. Thoughts and emotions, activities and desires, the whole show. He watches it all and he watches it continuously. It matters not whether it is lovely or horrid, beautiful or shameful."

Foucault's_Pendulum - Umberto Eco

2009-01-07T03:31:00.000-08:00

Reminded me of two books "Alice in wonderland" and "Da Vinci Code", the plot is about the creation of a mystical book by three authors. While in the creation process, the book affects the author's lives profoundly.
I did not enjoy the tons of mystical, Templars and RosiCrucians literature cut-pasted in the book,
never the less I did enjoy the creative process, and the final plot, but that is aprox less than 10% of the whole book.

Norwegian Forest - by Haruki Murakami

2008-11-06T10:41:00.000-08:00

The book follows the story of 2 Japanese teenagers, that are in love. Both of them go through a shock, after their best friend, and the former lover of the girl, commits suicide.

Recommended readings:
- "The Centaur" - John Updike
- "Sexual Beings" - Kenzaburo Oe - Nobel Prize '94
- "August Light" - Faulkner
- "Beneath the Wheel" - Hermann Hesse

Midnight's Children - by Salman Rushdie

2008-10-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

This is the last time I read Rushdie .. :(

It is my second attempt to read Rushdie, after "The Satanic Verses"; this time I finished the book, and I was very disappointed. After finishing the book, I thought I should have known more about the Indian history in order to really appreciate it, but than I read the description on Wikipedia, and the review there is exactly as I would describe the book in a few words..

John Fowles - "The Collector"

2008-08-23T09:59:00.000-07:00

Two completely different characters meet, an artist young girl, dedicated to art, creation, love and life, and a brain-limited butterfly collector, in search for love.

Striking is the intersection of the two universes that seem not to have anything in common, even the understanding of one character from the perspective of the other is very far from the truth. A reminder of how different people are, think, feel, and understand the others.

The Dalai Lama at MIT

2008-06-23T08:30:00.000-07:00

Brief:
This is one of the most rewarding books I read on Buddhism, and the connections with the modern sciences like psychology and neurology.
Some prominent Western scientist meet Buddhist monks under the roof or MIT, and discuss topics of interests for both parts, as well as means of better collaborating in the future. Main topics are:
- attention and cognitive control
- imagery and visualization
- emotion

Some thoughts:
- attention as a relaxing state of mind (effortless process)

- how can we possibly experience compassion for a person who engages in evil, especially if this very harmful behavior is directed toward ourselves

- emotions in Buddhism: the concept of emotion as we know it plays practically no role in the Indian and Tibetan Buddhist discussions of the mind. There is no term in the traditional Buddhist vocabulary that resembles our notion of emotion

- the connection between feelings and afflictions is crucial in Abhidharma: on the basis of our misapprehension of the self, we become entangled in the compulsive attitudes that lead us into suffering.

- the possibility that certain emotions such as anger, that we normally consider destructive might contain some root component that is valuable, that can be used skillfully to overcome obstacles. What is the evolutionary role for what Buddhists would consider nonvirtuous emotions like anger and fear?

- What is interesting is that ordinary people have so little insight into the sources of their own well-being and happiness. Both traditions agree on that. There isn't a lot of mystery about why Westerners believe that transitory pleasures should last. We live in a consumer society. It's meant to maximize consumption, not our happiness. We want to maximize our happiness and the society wants to maximize our consumption, and so we are taught that our consumption will bring us happiness. It turns out to be a lie, but we dies soon enough and then a whole new generation gets to believe it.

- Even if the trained introspectionist were able to pierce the veil that hides the fast-moving, subtle changes that occur in brain and body, the person would have great difficulty in sharing that information with others. Perhaps nature wanted these feelings to remain secret, locked in each agent's sense of his being. "I've often mistrusted the spoken word. You give a quick tug on a line and out they come from the dark continent of the mind, those little rasps of sound that jostle together, shoulder to shoulder, that are supposed to be able to five shape to what you really think, feel, or know. But words easily miss the point. They drift in the wrong direction, or they insist on providing a clear shape for something that, by its nature, is lost when it's pinned down." (Julia Blackburn)

- Buddha's teachings: "you are right to doubt, because you double that which should be doubted - because you don't know. When you hear something being expressed of this nature, you shouldn't accept it just because it's widespread news that everyone thinks this way. You shouldn't follow it just because it's what your parents do. You shouldn't follow it just because it's the lates new thing. You shouldn't follow it just because it 's cited in scriptures. You shouldn't follow it just because it is hammered out by logic or by inductive or deductive reasoning. And you shouldn't follow it just because it appeals to common sense, or because of the credibility of the speaker, or even because it's your own teacher who's saying it to you. If you take something and apply it, see whether it leads to benefit for peaceful, more harmonious, more benevolent? Then take it and use it. If it makes life more difficult and more harmful for yourself and others, than leave it aside."

Suggestions of reading:
- Abhidharma: one of the oldest Buddhist textual traditions. It contains the earlier texts in which Buddhist concepts were developed, as such it has been the source of most philosophical developments in Indian Buddhism.
- Howard Cutler - "The Art of Happiness": "The systematic training of the mind, the cultivation of happiness, the genuine inner transformation by deliberately selecting and focusing on positive mental states and challenging negative mental states, is possible because of the very structure and function of the brain. But the wiring in our brains is not static, not irrevocably fixed. Our brains are also adaptable" (Dalai Lama)

"Why Most Things Fail: And how to avoid it" by Paul Ormerod

2008-03-22T11:21:00.000-07:00

Brief:
An interesting book of modern-wave economy. The author proves that the universe of a company is way to complex to be understood, thus any strategy has an undetermined probability to succeed or fail. There is a great number of examples of strategies that failed, of big companies that really did not understood their market even after being a leader in the business for many years. Also the game theory is presented, along with the ice-cream vendors on the beach game.
I personally did not appreciate a great deal the "What is to be done?" chapter, otherwise the book has tons of good information.

Links to other books:
- "Scale and Scope: the Dynamics of Industrial Capitalism" by Alfred Chandler
Charts in great detail the development of large firms in America, Britain and Germany around 1900

- "Eat the rich" by P.J. O'Rourke
"Microeconomics concerns things that economists are specifically wrong about, while macroeconomics concerns things economists are wrong about generally"

- "Barbarians Led by Bill Gates" by Marlin Eller
About Microsoft strategies, and the lack/luck of it..

- "The Country of the Blind" by H.G. Wells
"In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is King."

New Ideas from Dead Economists: An Introduction to Modern Economic Thought by Todd G. Buchholz and Martin Feldstein

2008-01-21T08:47:00.000-08:00

"Our children are no longer raised by people who know the world, not because parents have gotten stupid or lazy, but because the world has gotten too big to master. Parents must eventually learn to teach their children how to handle uncertainty - not how to ensure stability"

I find that all people that know very well their business, they obey two rules: first they can make even a stupid man understand, by simple and amusing stories, such a way regardless of how complicated all seems so simple and common; and second they can always look at many sides of the story, and as Keynes "always have two answers for one question". This reminded me of other two writers I liked a lot Stephen Hawking and Bill Bryson, that after analyzing many theories, inside up, they come to the conclusion that sill there is much to discover.

The book simply presents all the important economists and their ideas through the centuries, with lots of humor and simple example. I found out about: Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" - the free market, the division of labor, deregulations.. Found out the the prophecies of overpopulation and global climate change are actually very old, dating from Malthus time, that is around 1800. Found out how Ricardo's law of "competitive advantage" works, and why free trade is so important.

Jeremy Bentham's "pleasure, pain and arithmetic" sounded a little similar to Dalai Lama's teachings, thou I am pretty sure I have to read a little more into it.. :)

Also found out about John Stuart Mill's theories, Karl Marx life and "contributions", Alfred Marshall's marginalist theories, economic time - short and long runs (and how our perception of morality and ethics changes given a different time constraint), the biological view of economy.

And here comes the fun part:
1. Institutionalists:
- Thorstein Veblen and his "Theory of the Leisure Class" (1899) "Clothing use to have labels on the inside, hidden from view. [..] Ralph Lauren's name tells the world that the wearer can afford expensive clothing."
A follower, John K Galbraith - "advertising and salesmanship cannot be reconciled with the notion of independently determined desires, for their central function is to create desire - to ring into being wants that previously did not exist "

- The creativity of engineers, in the face of business man
- Economy and law - hand in hand, and how does it apply to negligence, property, crime and corporate finance.

2. MV = PQ : Keynes vs Friedman (monetarist), and how modern economies are shaken/driven by the four pedals that these currents created.

3. The Public Choice School/The politics as a business: trying to explain why politicians act as they do, and what are their constraints from an economical point of view.

4. The Rational Expectations and Behavioral Economics: that brings fresh ideas on stock exchange and the new economy we leave in. "Stock picking is ineffective because so many people engage in research and stock analysis." "Plenty of brokers and publicists rave about their predictions. Careful studies uncover little reason to believe them."
Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky - theories on how people react depending on the why the problem is formulated. Rchard Thaler's intertemporal choice - how people value the future - the people discount the future too much.

Even so, even if my late-hour review is just a long list of names, at the end of the story it is a good start point to investigate more, at least on bold topics. Night night.

"All Marketers are Liars" - Seth Godin (Google presentation)

2008-01-14T02:55:00.000-08:00

I've just seen this presentation from Seth Godin, about new means of marketing products, two years after his presentation, and I find him completely right and according to the directions of the Web3.0 in the last years.

It will be interesting to watch how Google and other companies apply this, for sure Apple does it; as well as to look fw for other presentations of the guy.

"Ideas that spread win", use this in conjunction with the power of internet communities, and you are a winner. Talk to the people that care about it (early adopters).

Check his blog and website.

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't by Jim Collins

2007-09-09T08:06:00.000-07:00

Definitively a must-read book for any company, manager and self-motivated employees.

The book is a remarkable synthesis on the research analysis of the Forbes's company top in the last 70 years. From all the companies that made it in the top, they especially select and analyze companies that respect one pattern: when they started growing as a business, successfully sustained the growth of the company for several years in a raw.

Incredible or not, from thousands of companies, only 11 were selected!
Even more incredible are their conclusions regarding: motivation, team cohesion, creating a unique-company-concept for income, and keeping to that concept regardless of what it takes.

The Serpent and the Rainbow: A Harvard Scientist's Astonishing Journey into the Secret Societies of Haitian Voodoo, Zombis, and Magic by Wade Davis

2007-08-01T08:48:00.000-07:00

Wade Davis is one of the persons I really admire. He dedicated an important part of his life to anthropology and ethnobotany, so he is one of the persons who tried it all from the herbalist point of view.. :) up-to meeting the most interesting and remote communities of people.

In this book, Davis relates his stay in Haiti, a place and culture that he felt in love with.
His story presents the mind-set of the local people. Through the eyes of the US PhD author, the voodoos are presented, very different from the Hollywood's portrait, with subtle and insight details of the zombies, their herbals, their secrets, and people way of thinking.

Zen in the Art of Archery by Eugen Herrigel

2007-05-05T12:59:00.000-07:00

I found by mistake "Zen Bow, Zen Arrow - John Stevens" while killing time in Cape Town, looking for presents, and it directed me to "Zen in the Art of Archery by Eugen Herrigel", which I prefer from the two books.

Both of the books are about Awa Kenzo, the Japanese archery master, the big difference is that Herrigel is the one that actually took classes with the master, and recalls his history.

Other than the clear explanation of the sport itself, and the struggles to learn it, I liked a lot the explanation of the meditation while doing archery, or any another Asian art (even gardening). At the end of the day is the story of a westerner, that tries to understand the mindset of orientals through the art of archery; and as I was also arguing in this post, this is not that easy as it seems.. :)

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell

2007-04-09T08:34:00.000-07:00

A good book, basically it talks about improving one-self up-to the point that one can do a task, perfectly without even thinking of it.

Also I have recently seen an interesting documentary about the savant syndrome, and it seems that the research in this field may one day provide us means to develop our mind in the most unusual ways. Ex: the Chinese scholars that practice long computations with the abac, after several year, they can compute without the abac long computations, without even not thinking about it, by a simple movement of the hand.

Also interesting enough is the other side of the story, the more you develop your inner side, the more it is possible to affect your means of interrelation with other people.

Dalai Lama

2007-03-10T13:50:00.000-08:00

"Freedom in Exile" was one of the first books to introduce me to the Buddhist religion, even more the book is the presentation of the Dalai Lama's first years of life, through the eyes of the mature man; still the text is abundant in childish jokes, making this one of the best autobiographies I have read so far.

"Ethics for the New Millennium" is an approach to the tough subject of ethics through the eyes of the Dalai Lama. I would silly-interpret the main idea as follows "an ethic action is an action that makes the vast majority of people happy". Quite difficult I presume to measure the happiness of the people around us, when taking an action; never the less interesting enough, the theories seem quite similar with what I found about Jeremy Bentham's utilitarian writings; I will investigate more on the topics.

Letters of Recommendation

2007-02-21T09:34:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure to receive some thoughts from people I worked with,
here are some of them:

- Cristian Caciuloiu
Software Development Manager
Freescale Semiconductor Romania
(Cristian.Caciuloiu at freescale.com)

- Nicolae Tapus
Head of Computer Science and Engineering Dept
Vice Rector Politehnica University of Bucharest
(ntapus at cs.pub.ro)

- Weng-Fai Wong (Dr.Eng.Sc.)
Associate Professor - Dept of Computer Science
National University of Singapore
(wongwf at comp.nus.edu.sg)

The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman

2007-02-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

In the book, Friedman analysis the new world, and the means of collaboration in between companies. One can ignore this book, as one can ignore his company.. :)

Ex, I found great the means of using other channels for fast deployment and support in the large world-market.

I especially enjoyed his African proverb quote, and use it as my motto:

"Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up.
It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning a lion wakes up.
It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.

It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle.
When the sun comes up, you better start running. (Africa proverb)"

Freakonomics by Steven D Levitt & Stephen J Dubner

2007-01-10T12:58:00.000-08:00

A charming book, because each idea, as crazy as it might seem, is backed-up by numbers and facts. One can find out:
- who cheats? Bagel Man: "mankind may be more honest than we think"
- understanding KKK and why a new car is suddenly worth so much less the moment it leaves the lot
- why drug dealers still live with their moms.

Regardless of the question, the way each theory is proven is great! Take nothing for granted.. :)

The Magus by John Fowles

2007-01-10T12:57:00.000-08:00

Somebody younger asked me for a good book recommendation.. and I guess, one of my favorite is "The Magus".
It is one 5-600 pages book I remember I read in 2 days (day and night), almost no sleep.. :)
I read it in the first University years, and I still remember the tale and of most important the end.. a passionated slap..

The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels Between Modern Physics, by Fritjof Capra

2006-11-10T14:23:00.000-08:00

Wow.. the book was great, at least for clearing up for me the difference in between the westing mind-set, and the oriental one. We as westerners are born to think in precise terms, atheism is on our lips everyday, and most of us do not find any difference in between spirituality, religion, love. We take life really mathematical, adding and multiplying people with apples, and animals with colors; our world is economy, profit and the mathematics of it.

Orientals think in a different way, the world is an abstract being, the economy, social structure, and life are just some manifestations of the "abstract being".

Thus for westerners will be tempted to conclude that two clapping hands create a kid-game, or an applause; while the orientals will view the the same event as a complex metaphor in the koan "Two hands clap and there is a sound; what is the sound of one hand?"

This is just a brief of what one will find in the book, probably for the physics addicts, there is even more.

A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

2006-06-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

An excellent book, an attempt to write about almost all fields of research, their history, and their status now. It is impressing how, after all this time, we are still unable to answer some very basic questions about ourselves and the world around us: take the global temperatures as an example, subject brought in the world attention by Malthus, around 1800, and reiterated again and again thought the years by several writers, arguing for the "warming" or the "cooling" of the earth.

The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield

2006-05-10T12:55:00.000-07:00

Getting in the possession of this book, was like reading a quote of the intro of the book itself. I just returned from Singapore, and was interested in Buddhism and spirituality, and one close friend of my father, and soon to become a friend of mine, made this book a gift..

The story takes us in South America, where the discovery of some ancient texts bring enlightenment to the main characters. I did not enjoy the tale as much as the teachings, or better to say, I appreciated a lot the new perspective on life, human interaction, children raising, self teaching, etc.. that the book brings.

I would associate the book to the same current of ideas as the ones present at Huxley in "Doors of Perception", or Carlos Castaneda.

Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley

2006-01-09T08:51:00.000-08:00

A must read book for any "The Doors" band fans.. :)

As a university student, the book was one of the first to open up my curiosity for spirituality, other means of communication between the people, other means of understanding and seeing life, the beauty of life. Probably there has to be some kind of balance for my IT/engineering professional life.. :)

Briefly the Huxley presents his thoughts and perceptions on life while being drugged with mescaline, a traditional Indian drug made out of a cactus.
Starting from this, the book is an essay on other means of perception.

I would recommend in the same category, readings from Wade Davis, Carlos Castaneda, Fritjof Capra, James Redfield, and of course other suggestions from Amazon.. :)

Curriculum Vitae

2006-01-09T03:51:00.000-08:00

Vlad-Mihai PANAIT
Email address: vpanait at gmail.com

Studies:

2004-2006 School of Management Graduate-Academic Study (www.sam-upb.ro)
Management in Business Administration

2003-2004 "Politehnica" University of Bucharest (www.cs.pub.ro)
Computer Science and Engineering Department, Master of Science
Overall GPA : 10 (on a 1-10 scale)

1998-2003 "Politehnica" University of Bucharest (www.cs.pub.ro)
Computer Science and Engineering Department, System Software Specialization
Overall GPA : 9.80 (on a 1-10 scale), Excellence Scholarship (1 / 3000 students)

Work-Related Experience:

May 2008 - present: project manager and contractor - http://www.itwizard.ro/
May 2005 – Sept 2008 Chief Technology Officer for American International Radio (www.airadio.net). Managing director for American International Radio’s Tech Division.
2003 – 2005 Contractor for American International Radio.
2004 – 2005 Contractor and Trainer for Motorola/Freescale Romania
2003 – 2006 Head of Motorola/Freescale Research Center in Politehnica University, Supervisor for the Motorola/Freescale intern bachelor-thesis projects
2003 – 2006 Team mentor for international student competitions (UPB) – received several international awards with the teams
May 2004 – June 2004 Technical interviewer for Motorola/Freescale Romania
2002 – 2005 Teaching assistant, "Politehnica" University Bucharest.
February 2003 - August 2003 Research Internship "National University of Singapore".
August 2000 – December 2002 Software consultant for S.C. PANACOM SRL

Relevant Experience:

System - Romanian MoH (2007 – present) Managed a 1.000.000+$ project for fleet management regarding the Romanian MoH. The project contained software architecture/devel, hardware architecture/devel, hw production, integration, and installations in all Romania.

System - Japan Korea US DoD (2006-2007) Managed a 400.000+$ project for fleet management for the US DoD from Japan and Korea. The project contained software architecture/devel, integration, and installations.

System – Transportation Company (2007 – present) Managed a 300.000+$ project for fleet management for one of the biggest Romanian fleet transporters. The project contained software architecture/devel, integration, and installations.

Whole product lifecycle management Managed the architecture, hw and sw development of a large fleet management system, as well as seven different products and accessories; from the research phase, alpha testing in the field, and until final production and integration with the clients. Implemented the ISO procedures for the company.Implemented small scale MK and sales activities for the region.
Patents Patent analysis and patent application phase one (market research).

HW Product - Professional Units Software architect: interface definition and code development for the business core, and communication mediums: Tetra radios, GPRS, iDEN.
HW Product - Open Enterprise Software architect: business core. Supports multiple communication mediums: Tetra, CDMA, GPRS, iDEN, Canopy, Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth
SW Product - MotoTRBO Software architect and developer: Localization/Presence/Messaging Services protocols implementation.
SW Product - SafeDispatch Software architect: fleet management desktop application.
SW Product - Middleware Gateway Middleware for multithreaded processing of TCP/IP flows of data. Supports thousands of TCP/IP flows simultaneously
SW Product - Mobile phone development Java and .net phone development
SW Product - Preprocessor development Freescale internal use preprocessor development
SW Product – codec development Freescale codecs development for VoIP architectures, for Freescale SC140 DSP
SW Platform - VoIP VoIP software phone - software architect (all VoIP levels)
Platform and prototype - BeSafe Team leader and software architect for BeSafe, a wireless distributed system for data acquisition and control, targeted for safety procedures and people evacuation in large buildings (structures). (www.computer.org/csidc - year 2002-2003 section)

Awards and Certificates:

January 2004, Bucharest, Romania Certificate of Achievement, IEEE Romanian Section
May 2003, Bucharest, Romania “Trophy for Best National Achievement in Information Technology”, The Romanian Ministry for Sports and Youths
October 2002 - July 2003, Bucharest, Romania Scholarship for remarkable scholar activity - "Politehnica" University Bucharest
August 2002, Bucharest, Romania “Gold award” - Romanian Ministry of Youth for remarkable activity in the IT world
July 2002, Bucharest, Romania "ANIS - Excellence Award 2002 - GOLD " (www.anis.ro)
23 June 2002, Washington, DC, USA Computer Society International Design Competition 2002 (www.computer.org/csidc) – awarded 1st place
May 2002, Suceava, Romania International Computers Students' Contest Hard & Soft 2002 Suceava - awarded 4th place (www.eed.usv.ro/html/hard_soft_contest.html)
May 2002, Bucharest, Romania Annual Student Science Session of Communications - 2002 - awarded 1st place
May 2001, Bucharest, Romania Annual Student Science Session of Communications - 2001 - awarded 3rd place

Publications:

2004, San Francisco, USA “Static Identification of Delinquent Loads”, Code Generation and Optimization, IEEE 2004
2004, Los Angeles, USA “Wireless distributes system for data acquisition and control”, Modeling and Simulation, IASTED 2004
2004, Bucharest, Ed. BYBLOS Co-Translator “Modern Operating Systems” – A. Tanenbaum
2003, Bucharest, Ed. BYBLOS Co-Translator “Computer Networks” – A. Tanenbaum

Trainings:

December 2007, Bucharest Project Management Methodology According to PMI – Project Management Institute (www.pmi.org)
April 2007, Bucharest How to market your products at tradeshows.
August 2004, Bucharest Capability Maturity Model (Motorola Romania)
March 2004, Bucharest CPort network processor (Motorola Romania)
December 2003, Bucharest StarCore140 (Motorola Romania)
July 2003, Singapore XILINX Training, FPGA Advanced (www.insight.memec.com)
June 2003, Singapore XILINX Training, Fundamentals of Digital Design (www.insight.memec.com)
May 2002, Bucharest, Romania ORACLE certification diploma
May 2002, Bucharest, Romania CISCO Networking Academy - Semester 2 (www.academiacisco.ro)
February 2002, Bucharest, Romania CISCO Networking Academy - Semester 1 (www.academiacisco.ro)

Spoken Languages:
English - Proficient
French - Intermediate
Italian - Beginner
Romanian - Native

Software Skills:

ANSI C/C++ for Linux:
• complex client-server systems, with thousands of streams processed in parallel, with assured data redundancy, scalability and fail-over system
• designed and developed the business logic for a family of products (assured portability in between 4 different platforms);
• Tetra radio/radio/sms/cdma/gprs software processing gateway

ANSI C for StarCore140: decompilation analysis for SC140, vocoders (G722, G722.1)

ANSI C for TI and Freescale Microcontrollers:
• Localization, control and communication equipments
• Communication software stacks: Tetra radio/GPRS/iDEN software stack design and development
C/C++ for DOS developed MS-DOS code for reading and displaying ext2 partitions

Wireless:
• Tetra: developed software stack (PPP/UDP/IP) for using a Tetra data modem, and for interfacing with SDR (Dimetra IP)
• MotoTRBO: implemented the software stack for Presence/Localization/Messaging Services
• GPRS/CDMA/iDEN: developed software stack for using the data modems
• Bluetooth technology (developed java, c++, ATMEL's 8051 code for HCI level; as well as PAN applications; translator A. Tanenbaum "Computer Networks (4th Ed.) on Bluetooth technology")

Compilers: lex, yacc (I have designed and created a basic compiler for Ansi C; my bachelor thesis work was in optimizations - compilers field; modified gcc, trimaran (EPIC) and SimpleScalar for MIPS). Designed and developed preprocessor for a customized Freescale programming language.

Programming Languages: ANSI C/C++, Java, .net, OpenGL, Pascal, PHP, JavaScript, Visual Basic, Prolog, Perl.
Parallel Progr. Languages: MPI, Parallaxis, SR, LOTOS
RPC: RPCGEN, RMI
Machine Language: MCS 51 (ATMEL family), ASM (Intel Family), MIPS, HPL-PD
FPGA: architecture, basic programming concepts
VLIW: worked with SC140 for my master of science paper
EPIC: worked in a Trimaran based project (www.trimaran.org)

A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

2006-01-01T12:57:00.000-08:00

Other than the great presentation of the theories of the universe in common words, I especially enjoyed the continuous reminder of the possible place for God in our new world, on a theory to theory basis.. :)

Also the modesty of the writer is impressive, I find amazing Hawking's openness to new ideas, and his ability to change minds in the name of science, even if that means to give up fighting for his own theories.