They made fun of her having struggled to cope with the ridiculous amount of fame and pressure that was put upon her, made fun of her mental health issues that resulted (including insinuating she was mad and then AH contradicted this by declaring she only thought Susan went into the Priory for ‘a holiday’). They made fun of her accent, they made fun of her dress sense, they made fun of her whole entire appearance and capped it all off by ‘dressing up as her’ to sing a duet of I Dreamed Dream. This involved them sticking fake monobrows on (only AH stuck hers t her upper lip because ‘SuBo had trouble in that area too’), putting on gold dresses, and wigs. There was even more that was objectionable in it. The only reason I watched the whole segment is that I decided immediately I want to write a complaint about it, and needed to see all of it to do so.

It was just so fucking cruel, and to me, the very fact this was on TV and the audience were laughing their heads off shows how much pretence (maybe fear?) that there was around ‘wishing her well’ when she blew them all away. Like, the people laughing and jibing at her couldn’t cope with someone as wonderful as Susan who wasn’t a 19 year old model… so they mocked her, ridiculed her, and hounded her. All that, and the rest of the media attention (which here at least turned pretty nasty) which was really intense, until she had a collapse. And then as if that wasn’t enough ‘punishment’ she is apparently ‘fair game’ for this kind of cruelty on TV. I’m fucking livid, and so, so sad. Did anyone else see it?

Aren’t WE also promulgating a stereotype when we say, “Hey, look! This fat, dowdy, poor lady really showed them! If only we could show the world our secret, inner talents and finally get the respect we deserve!”

It’s not about having a fantastic singing talent or the ability to make tons of money with your intelligence or “showing them”. It’s about realizing that EVERY person is worthy. Whether they’re fat or thin or short or tall or rich or poor. Every person is worthy and deserving of love and recognition and respect.

There is far too much emphasis currently on “outward appearance” and far too little on the things that matter – a person’s spirit, a person’s soul, a person’s inner strength – the essential human qualities we all share. If Susan Boyle should be respected for anything, it’s that. And if people like Simon Cowell and whoever else can’t recognize the value of each and every person, talented or not, attractive or not, that’s their prerogative.

Early this semester, I was cast in a lead role in a musical at my college – that of Nadia in “bare: a pop opera.” Nadia is a fatty, who sings about how much people are assholes in a spirited song (“plain jane fatass / guilty of swallowing Jenny Craig whole / plain jane fatass / keeping society so ill at ease and loving her role”) – and also about how lonely she is in a sad song (“a quiet night at home / play my siren song / attracting none, my ship just won’t come in”). She provides much of the comic relief but she’s got some very vulnerable moments too. Basically, the best role a fat young actress/singer could ask for, and one that I was able to do a lot with. I’m not angry like Nadia but sometimes I’d like to act out like her when it gets so hard to be fat in a thin world (especially here at a college full of really fit students) – and I got to do that with this role.

In the days after (the production opened and closed this past weekend), countless strangers have come up to me to say how much they loved the play and my performance, that I stole the show — which has been really gratifying. But I had a really good moment today. I went to yoga class for the first time, in a room full of skinny people and mirrors, and was feeling lumpy and awkward in my tank top (I don’t usually wear them).

These two girls are looking at me and one of them opens her mouth and says, “Hey, were you in that play this weekend?” And I’m like “Yeah,” and she’s like “You were so awesome! You were incredible! I loved it!” etc. It’s something I’ve been told a lot this week but it was such a good moment to get that compliment — right when I’d been actively feeling down on my body and hating being fat and worrying about people judging me, this girl was so excited about a performance I could never have given if I weren’t exactly the person I am.

So I’ve been feeling a little like Susan Boyle lately.

But speaking of buttons, it just seems to me that in many of the articles they make it sound like she’s SO OLD. She’s only 47!

That’s a good point — she’s actually only a little older than Janet Jackson, if you think about it.

(The YouTube vid has been viewed almost 6 million times now. In 4 days.)

It’s more than that now! 27 million on the main one, with a few other more or less identical ones that have a few million hits each.

This was actually my first time seeing Simon Cowell in action, and even though I’m sure he was much nicer here than he usually is, I can’t believe how much I hated him. The other two judges didn’t seem so bad, but he managed to be a condescending assknob even when he was dispensing praise. Did anybody notice that when Susan started to leave the stage and the other two judges were calling her back, he was motioning for her to come back? Hey dumbshit, if somebody’s back is turned to you, that means they can’t see you. Get it?

http://master.perezhilton.com/2009-04-17-vintage-susan-boyle

Go figure :s

I also loved watching the reactions of the audience and the judges–as they were reminded that one cannot judge a book by it’s cover. I was reminded immediately of two others who were misjudged thusly–Clay Aiken and Jim Nabors. Both men came across as far from the ideal, but when they opened their mouths and began to sing… Merlin! It was Nirvana!!

I don’t think that audition was staged at all. If you watch the video someone made of just Simon’s reactions. The man is mesmerized, he even sighs in total contentment, before being taken on a journey of enjoyment by Susan’s beautiful voice. Sure he can be an arse, but, he can be gobsmacked just like the rest of us. Don’t you think, it is few and far between, the voices he hears like hers? A case in point; all the bad acts on American Idol, only a few of which we are subjected to ( I keep the mute button under my thumb). I’m appalled by the way the show exploits and lets these people embarrass themselves. I’m sure they all have far better talents in other areas. Either everyone around them is deaf or they just want the national attention, no matter the cost to their reputation or dignity (I won’t even go into the tantrum-throwers).

I have a feeling that even with a new do, eyebrow waxing, new wardrobe, etc., Ms. Boyle will retain her feisty personality–and more power to her! I am looking forward to hearing more of that glorious voice, and wouldn’t be surprised to see her on the theatre stage in the near future!

My daughter, who inherited her voice from both myself and her father (who sang even better than myself), wants to sing professionally. She works hard at it and has been chosen for many solos. I showed her the video and she just kept saying how beautiful Ms. Boyle’s voice is and how happy she was for her. Even if my daughter never becomes a professional singer, I will encourage her to continue to exersize her ‘instrument’ and sing just for her enjoyment and for those around her. It is a gift after all.

Hmmm… She’d be perfect for a duet with Andrea Bocelli… (another favorite of mine.) I may just go watch her video again, just to relive the warm fuzzies it gave me…