Fassbinder Retrospective at the Film Society of Lincoln Center
November 7 – 26
One of the most prolific and influential European filmmakers of the
second half of the 20th century, Rainer Werner Fassbinder completed
nearly 40 feature-length films between 1969 and 1982 (the year he died
at age 37) and left behind one of the most cohesive and provocative
bodies of work in the history of cinema. In his many melodramas,
gangster movies, literary adaptations, and even sci-fi films, he
returned obsessively to themes of love, crime, labor, and social and
emotional exploitation. He was similarly fixated on his beloved
performers, many of whom—Hanna Schygulla, El Hedi ben Salem, Ulli
Lommel, and countless others—comprised a repertory company whose fierce,
complicated devotion to their visionary leader defies comparison. Part
two of our retrospective—the largest in New York City in over a
decade—which includes all of Fassbinder’s theatrical movies and many of
his television films, along with several works connected with his
eternally relevant artistry.
Click on the LINK above for schedule and more information.
Monday, November 3, 2014
Friday, October 24, 2014
Angels in America at BAM, October 23-25, 2014
Angels in America at BAM
October 23-25, 2014
By Tony Kushner
Toneelgroep Amsterdam
Directed by Ivo van Hove
There are no feathers here. Instead of beating wings, there's David Bowie's otherworldly wails. With little more than a stack of vinyl records, a few fluorescent lights, and a saline drip, Dutch visionary Ivo van Hove and Toneelgroep Amsterdam deliver a revelatory take on Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning epic. Encompassing both "Millennium Approaches" and "Perestroika," this marathon production strips Kushner's now-iconic characters - Prior Walter and his boyfriend Louis, Reaganite lawyer Roy Cohn, Mormon couple Joe and Harper Pit - to their essence, boldly reimagining "A Gay Fantasia on National Themes."
Set and light design by Jan Versweyveld
Costume design by Wojciech Dziedzic
Video design by Tal Yarden
Music by Wim Selles
October 23-25, 2014
By Tony Kushner
Toneelgroep Amsterdam
Directed by Ivo van Hove
There are no feathers here. Instead of beating wings, there's David Bowie's otherworldly wails. With little more than a stack of vinyl records, a few fluorescent lights, and a saline drip, Dutch visionary Ivo van Hove and Toneelgroep Amsterdam deliver a revelatory take on Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning epic. Encompassing both "Millennium Approaches" and "Perestroika," this marathon production strips Kushner's now-iconic characters - Prior Walter and his boyfriend Louis, Reaganite lawyer Roy Cohn, Mormon couple Joe and Harper Pit - to their essence, boldly reimagining "A Gay Fantasia on National Themes."
Set and light design by Jan Versweyveld
Costume design by Wojciech Dziedzic
Video design by Tal Yarden
Music by Wim Selles
In Dutch with English titles.
A very few seats still available at the top link.
Saturday, September 27, 2014
NYTimes LensBlog : Gay Africans Seeking Asylum in New York
NYTimes LensBlog : Gay Africans Seeking Asylum in New York
By Fayemi Shakur
Photos By Rahima Gambo
Nigeria’s passage of a law criminalizing same-sex relationships drew immediate international outrage earlier this year. In New York, gay activists held protests outside the Nigerian government’s offices, something that amazed Rahima Gambo. With so much of life hidden in Nigeria, she said, nothing so bold would have happened there.
That realization led Ms. Gambo, a Nigerian photographer raised in London, to explore the lives of the growing number of gay men who have fled to the United States seeking asylum and a chance to live freely. It was during the March protest in New York that she met Saheed Ipadeola, a young man living in Brooklyn who introduced her to other asylum seekers. They shared their stories in ways that would never be seen in Nigerian media, which she said reduced them to stereotypes without dignity.
Click on the above Link for full text and photos
By Fayemi Shakur
Photos By Rahima Gambo
Nigeria’s passage of a law criminalizing same-sex relationships drew immediate international outrage earlier this year. In New York, gay activists held protests outside the Nigerian government’s offices, something that amazed Rahima Gambo. With so much of life hidden in Nigeria, she said, nothing so bold would have happened there.
That realization led Ms. Gambo, a Nigerian photographer raised in London, to explore the lives of the growing number of gay men who have fled to the United States seeking asylum and a chance to live freely. It was during the March protest in New York that she met Saheed Ipadeola, a young man living in Brooklyn who introduced her to other asylum seekers. They shared their stories in ways that would never be seen in Nigerian media, which she said reduced them to stereotypes without dignity.
Click on the above Link for full text and photos
Friday, August 1, 2014
The Film Society to Present Complete John Waters Retrospective in September
John Waters retrospective at the Film Society
Get ready for some of the "filthiest people alive" heading once again to the big screen. The Film Society of Lincoln Center will celebrate legendary director and personality John Waters's five decades in filmmaking with a complete retrospective, the first in the United States. The event, titled Fifty Years of John Waters: How Much Can You Take?, will be comprised of his 12 features, including Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, Polyester, Hairspray, Serial Mom, and his first two, Mondo Trasho and Multiple Maniacs,
http://www.filmlinc.com/daily/entry/john-waters-retrospective-film-society-of-lincoln-center-2014
John Waters interview with the Film Society
John Waters began moving the pendulum of taste and decorum on the big screen, remarkably, 50 years ago this year. The Baltimore native who brought filth to the big screen in such romps as Mondo Trasho (1969), Multiple Maniacs (1970), Pink Flamingos (1972), and Female Trouble (1974) made his first short, Hag In a Black Leather Jacket, in 1964. Together with his high-school friend turned on-screen muse Divine, Waters paved a filmmaking DIY ethos decades before crowdfunding, social media, and the Internet made going it alone (or relatively so) plausible.
http://www.filmlinc.com/daily/entry/john-waters-interview-retrospective-film-society-2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
James Baldwin street renaming Aug 2
The Year of James Baldwin: A 90th Birthday Celebration
August 2, 2014 3:00pm
A consortium of cultural organizations throughout New York City are uniting to declare 2014-15 The Year of James Baldwin on what would have been the great American essayist, novelist, playwright, poet, and activist James Baldwin’s 90th year (he was born in Harlem on August 2, 1924).
This commemoration of James Baldwin on the occasion of his 90th birthday will take place on Saturday, August 2, 2014, 12 Noon, culminating in the renaming of a section of West 128th Street as “James Baldwin Place,” in honor of the work, life, and legacies of one of the greatest writers and thinkers of the past century.
http://www.nationalblacktheatre.org/#!year-of-baldwin/c1hmz
http://arts.columbia.edu/coe/news/2014/baldwin-street-naming
August 2, 2014 3:00pm
A consortium of cultural organizations throughout New York City are uniting to declare 2014-15 The Year of James Baldwin on what would have been the great American essayist, novelist, playwright, poet, and activist James Baldwin’s 90th year (he was born in Harlem on August 2, 1924).
This commemoration of James Baldwin on the occasion of his 90th birthday will take place on Saturday, August 2, 2014, 12 Noon, culminating in the renaming of a section of West 128th Street as “James Baldwin Place,” in honor of the work, life, and legacies of one of the greatest writers and thinkers of the past century.
http://www.nationalblacktheatre.org/#!year-of-baldwin/c1hmz
http://arts.columbia.edu/coe/news/2014/baldwin-street-naming
Monday, July 28, 2014
No Strings Attached
Monty and Luis have had a happy romantic partnership for ten years. A chance encounter with Stefan, a sexy, mysterious waiter, disrupts their cozy lives: both Monty and Luis have a secret connection to him. Monty comes from a happy Italian family; Luis was raised over a bar by his shady Grandma. Stefan has trouble pinning down exactly where he came from though parts of his past are on display all over the internet. The three men’s lives intertwine in a number of surprising, romantic and potentially devastating ways. No Strings Attached stars Casey Burden as Monty, Afrim Gjonbalaj as Luis and Kevin Perez as Stefan and is directed by Robert Teague.“There are so many hot men in New York and I want to f—k all of them. If I can’t I would at least like a representative sampling.”
No Strings Attached (originally titled NSA) premiered at the Stage Left’s Left Out Festival in April with two sold-out performances. NY Theater Now, said: “Three highly individual, richly fleshed-out characters. They behave like real people rather than constructs or archetypes. It’s a real privilege to spend time with them…indulging along with them in their fantasies and foibles. We care for them when our time with them is over.”
Igrejas’ previous plays include Shrinkage, Kitty and Lina, Miss Mary Dugan, Hassan and Sylvia (both won Fresh Fruit Festival Best Play Awards), Margarita and Max (winner Best Short Play, Midtown Festival).
Info and tickets.
Running time – 90 minutes
All performances are at Stage Left Studio, 214 West 30th Street, 6th floor, NYC. Convenient to the A,C,E,B,D,F,N,R,1,2 and 3 lines
Tickets $18 (plus $2 ticketing surcharge)
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Anthem: The Musical with Randy Jones of the Village People
Anthem: The Musical
45 Bleecker Street
New York NY 10012
Information at the link:
LINK: Athem: The Musical
Directed, Choreographed & Designed by Rachel Klein
Featuring Jason Gotay, Remy Zaken with Jenna Leigh Green
and Randy Jones of the Village People as the evil overlord, Tiberius!
Culture Project's Lynn Redgrave TheaterFeaturing Jason Gotay, Remy Zaken with Jenna Leigh Green
and Randy Jones of the Village People as the evil overlord, Tiberius!
45 Bleecker Street
New York NY 10012
Information at the link:
LINK: Athem: The Musical
BAM presents Everybooty
BAM presents
EverybootyCurated by SPANK, HEY QUEEN!, Earl Dax, and Big Art Group
Everybooty returns to BAM to celebrate Pride month Brooklyn style. Featuring the city’s hottest LGBT artists and DJs, with installations, music, performances, dancing, and drinks filling the BAM Fisher from basement to rooftop until 2am.
Click on the link for more information and tickets
LINK: BAM presents Everybooty Brooklyn Pride Party
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Friday, May 30, 2014
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
29x/y - A New Play By Marcus Yi
Having seen The Procedure, we were eager to see Marcus Yi's latest play. If you're in NYC this coming weekend and have an appetite for raw, experimental, youthful, casual and fun theater, your last chance to see his 29x/y will be Saturday at 11AM or Sunday at 1:30PM.
From the author's website: "29x/y is a collage theater piece. 29 segments written in 29 days in the 29th year of the playwrights life, this is a play that fuses monologues, songs, dance and experiments in theatrical statements. Confessional monologues from a bathhouse, fag hag haters, dysfunctional ex-lovers, dancing Republicans, eccentric want-ads and Super Mario fetishists all make an appearance to help you understand the meaning of 29x/y."
I'm glad I went, but I remain convinced that what Yi needs is a good editor because the contents of both plays range from the very good to the very bad. For instance, in 29x/y, there is a slide show on a side wall of the theater going on during the play. It adds nothing to what happens on stage. After the play, I learned that in an earlier production elsewhere, those slides were an integral part of the set, forming the background to the action. The logistics of this performance space did not permit that, so Yi chose to have someone sitting in the front row working a slide projector aimed at one side of the audience space. No. (If you go, try to ignore the slides and the awful light from the projector.)
Surprisingly funny—because as a gimmick it could have been both annoying and flat— were two scenes in which the characters repeat only one word or phrase, such as "whatever," throughout the bit. I'd gladly watch those scenes again.
29x/y contains a whole slew of really good young actors who perfectly inhabit Yi's material. They seem very much at home in his head where they frequently and smoothly rearrange the furniture and the action giving us a well-paced composite that is engaging and humorous.
Two performers stand out. Caroline Mahoney elevates a bit about hamsters with adroit and polished delivery adding savory ingredients to the material.
Monique Sanchez has that rare and indefinable kind of stage presence that doesn't allow you to take your eyes off her. Her delivery is instinctive. While others have to tell their face or limbs what to do on stage, she seems to simply flip a switch at each entrance and suddenly the lighting and the action around her seem brighter. Watching her, I kept thinking of Julie Halston or Christine Baranski. I hope she has a long and wonderful performing career.
29x/y is a "Hey, it is what it is" kind of play. Marcus Yi continues to pursue his colorful route as a playwright like someone blindfolded and rowing a boat under the Bow Bridge in Central Park. He'll take us on a lively ride, bumping into things that almost capsize us. A good editor/advisor would make for a smoother excursion, but we don't say no to the possibility of future outings.
From the author's website: "29x/y is a collage theater piece. 29 segments written in 29 days in the 29th year of the playwrights life, this is a play that fuses monologues, songs, dance and experiments in theatrical statements. Confessional monologues from a bathhouse, fag hag haters, dysfunctional ex-lovers, dancing Republicans, eccentric want-ads and Super Mario fetishists all make an appearance to help you understand the meaning of 29x/y."
I'm glad I went, but I remain convinced that what Yi needs is a good editor because the contents of both plays range from the very good to the very bad. For instance, in 29x/y, there is a slide show on a side wall of the theater going on during the play. It adds nothing to what happens on stage. After the play, I learned that in an earlier production elsewhere, those slides were an integral part of the set, forming the background to the action. The logistics of this performance space did not permit that, so Yi chose to have someone sitting in the front row working a slide projector aimed at one side of the audience space. No. (If you go, try to ignore the slides and the awful light from the projector.)
Surprisingly funny—because as a gimmick it could have been both annoying and flat— were two scenes in which the characters repeat only one word or phrase, such as "whatever," throughout the bit. I'd gladly watch those scenes again.
29x/y contains a whole slew of really good young actors who perfectly inhabit Yi's material. They seem very much at home in his head where they frequently and smoothly rearrange the furniture and the action giving us a well-paced composite that is engaging and humorous.
Two performers stand out. Caroline Mahoney elevates a bit about hamsters with adroit and polished delivery adding savory ingredients to the material.
Monique Sanchez has that rare and indefinable kind of stage presence that doesn't allow you to take your eyes off her. Her delivery is instinctive. While others have to tell their face or limbs what to do on stage, she seems to simply flip a switch at each entrance and suddenly the lighting and the action around her seem brighter. Watching her, I kept thinking of Julie Halston or Christine Baranski. I hope she has a long and wonderful performing career.
29x/y is a "Hey, it is what it is" kind of play. Marcus Yi continues to pursue his colorful route as a playwright like someone blindfolded and rowing a boat under the Bow Bridge in Central Park. He'll take us on a lively ride, bumping into things that almost capsize us. A good editor/advisor would make for a smoother excursion, but we don't say no to the possibility of future outings.
Paradise Factory, at 64th E. 4th St New York NY 10003.
For tix: http://planetconnections.org/29xy/
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Monday, March 10, 2014
Painted Stained Glass By Joseph Cavalieri
What: Painted Stained Glass Works of Joseph Cavalieri, an Art Exhibit
Where: Better Being 940.
537 9th Av @ 40th St Mon-Fri 8am-9:30pm. (212) 858-9448
537 9th Av @ 40th St Mon-Fri 8am-9:30pm. (212) 858-9448
When: Opening March 13 from 6-8pm.
Exhibit continues to July 12th, 2014.
Exhibit continues to July 12th, 2014.
Isaac Hayes, Agnes Moorehead and a blue Jacqueline Kennedy, are some of the personalities featured in an exhibit of the works of East Village glass artist Joseph Cavalieri. These graphic portraits use hand lettered and silk-screened processes on stained glass, a technique which dates back to Medieval times. The collection of over 12 works show off Cavalieri’s unique sense of humor and master of the craft, all at ‘Better Being 940’ in Hell’s Kitchen, serving daily changing, hot, delicious breakfast, lunch & dinner. Art is for sale, starting at $330.
Contacts:
Joseph Cavalieri
Joseph Cavalieri
Friday, February 21, 2014
k.d. lang on broadway in After Midnight
After Midnight
k.d. lang joins the cast of After Midnight running right now until March 9th. Even if she wasn't involved it would be completely worth your time seeing such a fantastic cast of dancers, singers, performers and the spot-on Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars. I saw this show at City Center last year, as a special performance called The Cotton Club Parade, and this transfer to Broadway maintains all the excitement, fun, and pure musical talent. Click the above link for more information.
k.d. lang joins the cast of After Midnight running right now until March 9th. Even if she wasn't involved it would be completely worth your time seeing such a fantastic cast of dancers, singers, performers and the spot-on Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars. I saw this show at City Center last year, as a special performance called The Cotton Club Parade, and this transfer to Broadway maintains all the excitement, fun, and pure musical talent. Click the above link for more information.
Saturday, February 15, 2014
Can We Come To The Table?
"From Alan Bounville’s 6,000-mile walk across the USA for gender and sexual orientation equality, comes the new interview-based play, Can We Come to the Table? - Stories About Gender Identity, Gender Expression, & Sexual Orientation. The play includes meticulously transcribed stories with people Bounville met along his walking journey."
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Broadway Backwards 2014: Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS
Monday, March 24, 8pm
Al Hirschfeld Theatre, NYC
Broadway's hottest young stars will join legendary performers of the Great White Way for the ninth annual edition of Broadway Backwards, a one-night-only performance produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and benefiting BC/EFA and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center of New York.
The roster of Broadway stars joining this year's Broadway Backwards includes Bryan Batt, Tony Award nominee Stephanie J. Block, Tony winner Len Cariou, two-time Tony nominee Robin De Jesús, Tony nominee Jonathan Groff, three-time Tony nominee Judy Kuhn, Tony nominee Jessie Mueller, Krysta Rodriguez, Cass Morgan, Tony Yazbeck and Patricia Morison, Broadway's original "Kate" in Kiss Me, Kate and a veteran of several other original Broadway companies including The King and I.
Additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks. Performers subject to change.
VIP tickets include premium seats and a special post-show party with the cast. A limited number of "Backstage & Beyond" ticket packages also are available, which include the opportunity to see the dress rehearsal, exclusive backstage access, a "meet and greet" with some of the stars of Broadway Backwards, premium seats for the show and more.
Broadway Backwards is the annual celebration where gays and lesbians see their stories told through the great songs of musical theatre, sung by their favorite Broadway performers.It began as a grassroots concert performed at the Center in 2006. In subsequent years, the event grew quickly, performing Off-Broadway, then on Broadway for the last five years. Last year's sold-out show raised a record-breaking $347,060 for the two organizations.
Creator Robert Bartley will again direct and choreograph, with additional choreography by Amy Jones and Melissa Rae Mahon. Mary-Mitchell Campbell returns as music supervisor with Tim Rosser as music director.
