The Arrival by Shaun Tan

Beautiful imagery. Beautiful story.
The Arrival tells an important story of immigration that could apply to every one of us because the truth is we ALL came here from somewhere else.
And if you feel like you don't have time to read, that is OK, there are no words.

Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 7 Up—Tan captures the displacement and awe with which immigrants respond to their new surroundings in this wordless graphic novel. It depicts the journey of one man, threatened by dark shapes that cast shadows on his family's life, to a new country. The only writing is in an invented alphabet, which creates the sensation immigrants must feel when they encounter a strange new language and way of life. A wide variety of ethnicities is represented in Tan's hyper-realistic style, and the sense of warmth and caring for others, regardless of race, age, or background, is present on nearly every page. Young readers will be fascinated by the strange new world the artist creates, complete with floating elevators and unusual creatures, but may not realize the depth of meaning or understand what the man's journey symbolizes. More sophisticated readers, however, will grasp the sense of strangeness and find themselves participating in the man's experiences. They will linger over the details in the beautiful sepia pictures and will likely pick up the book to pore over it again and again.

—Alana Abbott, James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT

Buy it on Amazon

Coppelia

Went to a rehearsal a couple of weeks ago of George Balanchine's Coppelia at the Pacific Northwest Ballet. Coppelia is a lifelike doll that is so beautiful that one of the men in the village falls in love with her much to the chagrin of a jealous girlfriend. Everyone dances and it work out in the end that the two actually get together and Coppelia ends up as a pile of lifeless limbs. Great.

However the real comedy came because what we were seeing was a dress rehearsal. So periodically we were taken completely out of the performance by a voice from above asking the guest conductor, Nathan, to adjust the music. I am guessing that the person we heard was either the stager or the director or someone like that but her requests started off small but then seemed more worrisome as the rehearsal went on.

She first began with, "A bit slower please Nathan." Repeated several times in about 15 minute intervals.

Which turned into, "A bit faster please Nathan."

Then finally and hilariously, "OK. Now split the difference Nathan."

But the best rehearsal moment came when we were all taken inside the doll maker's shop and someone has flung back a curtain to reveal the tiny room where Coppelia is sitting. Apparently however the curtain was not flung back nearly as much as it should have been because a very round, bearded, and generally scruffy looking stage hand waddles out and opens the curtain the rest of the way. It was this that made me decide that I only wish to attend rehearsals when I go to the ballet.

The Thin Place

The Thin Place is described as the place where the human and the divine meet.

Intiman Theatre's production of the one man drama, The Thin Place, Gbenga Akinnagbe portrays multiple different characters recounting spiritual and religious experiences. The stories are based on interviews with actual people ranging from a local Buddhist meditation teacher, a gay South African Anglican priest, and a survivor of the 2006 shootings at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle.

They all describe their history with their different faiths and are tied together by the main character, Isaac, who channels each character when he has seizures. Gbenga Akinnagbe, who was once a part of the HBO series The Wire, described the challenges of a one man show in a post performance discussion forum. He described one of the female roles being the most difficult to get a hold of as an actor.

Despite pretty awful reviews from critics, everyone who stayed for the discussion, had nothing but wonderful things to say of the writer, actor, and the piece as a whole. The set was beautiful in its simplicity and appeared as a dock that extended away from the audience divided by three transparent fiber frames that made the lighting look ethereal. I was really touched by the subject matter (religion, faith, and loss) but in retrospect decided that these were topics that are somewhat overdone. The actor's portrayal of seizures left me unconvinced and removed. They were used as transitions between characters but seemed unnecessary and almost comical.

I think that the performance should be seen by all, if only to weigh in on the discussion.

The Seattle Times is not a fan.

RoboPop!

And the award for coolest idea for a birthday party goes to... Jenny Haight for her role in planning and executing Josh Windsor's Washington Ensemble Theatre birthday celebration!
Much thanks to both of them for making the theater exclusive to birthday guests and free of charge to all.
RoboPop! is the latest display of the Washington Ensemble Theatre's total awesomeness. You may remember me mentioning them before as the people that brought to Seattle a story of Sex, Death, and Meat in Hunter Gatherers. RoboPop! is a star crossed love story of the future and features music to jam to and glorious robotic dance moves.
The story begins by pointing out some obvious differences between humans and robots in a future where everyone seemingly gets along fine until order is disrupted and a war begins. The humans seek revenge after a robot dog kills one of their own and all are recruited to serve the queen who is larger than life and dons a dress made of teddy bears.
Hannah Victoria Franklin gives a Blade Runner-esq performance as the cold and beloved Teddy Bear Dress Queen who seems to be running out of time. And Libby Matthews is great as The Girl who must go against her own kind, mankind, for the sake of true love.
There are many highlights to this particular performance but I think my favorite came when the star robot had to be brought back to life and he (or she?) and The Girl were captured in a moment soundtracked by Spiritualized's Ladies and Gentlemen (see Playlist to the right).
For a production that had no verbal dialogue the themes of robot love and differences overcome shone through.
I won't ruin the end of the story but I will say that the ultimate conclusion was a Stripping Teddy Bear Dance Party Fight.
Happy Birthday Josh!
I love you Washington Ensemble Theatre!

Bronson: Britain's Most Violent Prisoner

You know how people say that love will hit you as soon as you stop looking for it?

I could not agree more. I had given up all hope. Resigned myself to the sad fact that I would never again feel that special feeling. I had even asked around and attempted to be matched in order to find that certain connection. But nothing seemed to do it for me.
I mean I was seeing everyone from Oscar winners and nominees to indies and still I felt nothing.
Until now. My love came to me in the form of a twist on a true life story of Britain's most notorious prisoner, Charles Bronson. Renamed by his bare knuckle boxing manager, after the very famous star of the Death Wish movies, Charley Bronson is a total loon. The film had been sitting at the top of my Netflix for a few months now and only because I knew that it starred Tom Hardy.
* Sigh * Tom Hardy, whom I first fell in love with as Heathcliff in a Masterpiece Theater version of Wuthering Heights (also known as the most depressing and sadly relate-able story ever told). Then discovered that he had gone unnoticed by me in two movies that I have seen multiple times and basically adore, L4yer Cake and Rock n Rolla. He also has a brief and confusing role in a movie called Scenes of a Sexual Nature, which despite the title, is really only meh.
But in BRONSON, he is a God. I later read that he visited 'the queen's most expensive prisoner' when preparing for the role. And what a role it is. The man has been in prison for most of his adult life, 35 years. 30 of those years has been spent in solitary. And basically it seems as though he is just completely off the reservation.
In the film, psychosis and caveman-like qualities reign supreme. Not to mention, Hardy has added about 35 lbs of pure muscle to his build. And oh so British. So very British. Wonderful and British in that special 'I don't give a fuck' kind of British way.
Director Nicholas Winding Refn picks the perfect music and has impeccable timing. As a visual person, I even greatly appreciated the strange dedication to Bronson's prison drawings.
If you like Guy Ritchie movies, ultraviolence in the form of bare knuckle boxing, bad ass Brits, cool as shit music, or full frontal male nudity, you will like this movie. Really if you just like one of the aforementioned traits you should see it. But if you like them all then you will fall in love the way that I have.

Bronson = my kind of chick flick.

Article about Nicholas Winding Refn's newest movie Valhalla Rising

Black Women Conquer the West

Last night the Northwest African American Museum (less than a mile from my apt.) hosted a Central District Forum for Arts and Ideas panel discussion examining the roles that Black women had in conquering and pioneering the West. This was the final panel of the season in their American Heritage Series.
The panel was moderated by Dr. Stephanie E. Smallwood who received her PhD in American History from Duke University (home to the 2010 NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament Champions :) and included Associate Professor and author Dr. Lynn M. Hudson, writer and researcher Esther Hall Mumford, and principal of Browns Point Elementary School in Tacoma Patricia Moncure Thomas.
The discussion began with a short performance by The Hansberry Project of Pearl Cleage's Flyin' West, introduced with a reading by my former Persuasive Communication professor, Vivian Phillips. It was a portrayal of two Black women homesteaders and a conversation that involved dreams of land ownership and equality. Such a great and touching way to start an important conversation like the one that followed.
The discussion was all about the history of the West and the way that regardless of their importance, Black women tend to be left out of it.
As someone who is not Black or from the West I was amazed when this topic really hit home for me. Especially when Patricia Thomas talked about the work that she had done on her genealogy project and the importance of recording the stories of your own family and knowing your ancestry. Patricia has created a book of Moncure (her family name) stories and is her family's historian.
Another fascinating topic of the evening was that of stories and speculations surrounding 19th Century female entrepreneur of African descent Mary Ellen Pleasant also known as Mammy Pleasant. She worked on the Underground Railroad and was considered to be the Mother of Human Rights in California. Panelist Dr. Lynn M. Hudson is author of the book The Making of Mammy Pleasant. Very fascinating stuff!
Last night's panel discussion was not only a history lesson but a life lesson.
And today I begin taking a closer look at my own family's genealogy project.

Great Waves, Winners of Sound Off! 2010

Candysound

SEACATS


On a night where basement bands emerge as real life musicians, Great Waves takes the lead. At the final round of Experience Music Project's Sound Off! 2010 Candy Sound (1st Round Winners), Hooves and Beak (2nd round), Great Waves (3rd round) and SEACATS (Wild Card Winners) competed for the grand prize of all of this great stuff:


- Performance at Bumbershoot 2010
- Live on-air performance on 1077 The End's Locals Only
- 2 days of studio time (including space use and engineer) at Orbit Audio
- Production of one song by producer Glenn Lorbecki of Glenn Sound Studio - KORG equipment - Epiphone gear
- Industry consultation from the Recording Academy
- One song featured for sale in Rock Band through the Rock Band Network, the new suite of tools allowing bands to plug their original songs into the Rock Band game

The finalist round took place on a stage in EMP's Sky Church where just the night before HEART performed to a sold out audience. I arrived to work at the Sound Board booth with friend and classmate Roxy to which I pointed at Great Waves on the list of performers and said, "If this band does not win, the Earth will certainly spin off of its axis." Fortunately that did not occur. The winners fell in this order:

4th: SEACATS
3rd: Candy Sound
2nd: Hooves and Beak
1st: Great Waves

Every one of the kids were completely amazing and the experience as a whole was one to remember and be inspired by. I cannot wait to see Great Waves at Bumbershoot!

Glengarry Glen Ross

Another David Mamet play. This time my virgin ears were attacked by Mamet at the Seattle Repertory Theater in the production of Glengarry Glen Ross. Seattle Rep is a substantially larger theater than Balagan which is really more of a basement and so the set was very elaborate. As someone who is not experienced in the behind the scenes workings of theater, I am still confused as to how some of the set changeovers were accomplished.
Glengarry Glen Ross is the story of men working in the real estate business who do not allow their moral values to get in the way of making a sale. John Aylward played the part of Shelly Levene, a man desperate to make it to the top of salesmen and in turn win the coveted Cadillac. Aylward looked terribly familiar and upon further investigation I discovered that he has been in several movies and TV shows but I probably recognize him most from his role on ER.
My favorite character was Ricky Roma played by R. Hamilton Wright. Ricky was a snappy quick witted guy who was currently at the top sales position of the company. He was a prideful man who at one point sunk as low as making a sale to a poor man that he met in a bar who could clearly not afford the new home and ran the risk of losing his wife in the deal.
The play won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize and New York Drama Critics Circle Award but other than the elaborate set design I was mostly bored. The acting was wonderful but when comparing it to seeing Edmond at Balagan the story just didn't seem to have as much action. It was the same theme of bad people doing bad things and a lot of cursing but other than a robbery committed by an inside party nothing else too crazy occurs.

SOUND OFF! Round 3

Last Saturday was the 3rd round of EMP's Sound Off! Battle of the Underage Bands. For my second time volunteering for the event my role was to give away cool Sound Off! buttons, informational handouts, and persuade people to head upstairs to sign up for The Sound Board. (Which anyone reading this should certainly do, because its free and its success is directly related to the success of EMP programs.) The Sound Board is devoted to the northwest's all ages music and arts scene. It serves as a kind of forum for all ages to discuss the younger Seattle music scene. It is a useful way to give and receive information about music and arts from all ages in the pacific northwest.
I daresay that I enjoyed this week of Sound Off even more than the first. The lineup was filled with young talent and the audience had grown substantially since the first Saturday of the event. The music started with SEACATS, a fun punky band ages 14 - 19. Their sound really caused people to move and their between-song-banter was adorable. The tiny, 14 year old, bass player even took a moment to address the audience with a very serious statement:

"Can I tell you guys something really personal right now? I have been having this reoccurring nightmare where my amp is taller than I am." (He turns behind him to look at the amp, which coincidentally IS taller than he is.) "Oh God I think its really happening."

Then there was Subtle Like a T-Rex, which despite the clever name, brought back war flashbacks of my x-boyfriend dragging me to multiple Perpetual Groove shows in various locations around NC. I am not a fan.

Then like a bright and shining star from out of nowhere came Great Waves. 4 guys and 1 girl ages 19 - 20 who were stunning musicians. In addition to the typical instruments that are included in most of the bands, one member also played a violin and a mandolin. The lead singer, Ashley, channeled vocals the likes of The Sundays, The Cranberries, Sinead O'Connor, and Sia. I kept starring at her, convinced that at some point she would reveal herself as someone who was actually closer to age 50 than 19. Her voice was soulful, knowledgeable, and mysterious and far outshone all others. They announced to the audience that they had been playing together as a band since they were in the 8th grade. And it showed. The sound was crisp and polished and while listening I was at a loss for words. I just kept saying to the volunteer next to me, "My God, this is beautiful." Beautiful. Not a word that I use often, but it certainly applied in this case.

The final band was a Seattle local called Us on Roofs and certainly a crowd favorite. The lead singer, though very attractive, reminded me a lot of Death Cab For Cutie, even in his flat footed dance moves. Music, lyrics, and even the dedications were emo beyond words. The crowd certainly loved them but I accredit that to the fact that they were local.

In the end Great Waves arose as victorious with SEACATS winning the wild card and the opportunity to compete in the finals. Saturday the entire competition will wrap up with a battle between Candysound (1st round winners), Hooves and Beak (round 2), Great Waves (round 3), and SEACATS (wild card winners). Of these, my love and support goes to Great Waves. Though I have not heard Hooves and Beak I am just not seeing how anyone could steal my affection from Great Waves at this point. They generously passed out some burned cd's with 5 of their songs on them. I have been listening to them all week.

Click on any of the Great Waves links to hear/download their music for free.

SOUND OFF! Battle of the Underage Bands

The Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum is in the midst of it's 9th year of Sound Off! a competition between underage bands. Applicants to Sound Off! must all be 21 years of age or younger and from the Pacific Northwest. This competition gives young emerging music artists the opportunity to have their music heard by professionals in the area while they are still too young to play in local bars and venues that serve alcohol. In the past, finalists and semi finalists have included bands like, Dyme Def, The Lonely Forest, and Natalie Portman's Shaved Head (whom I adore). The winners of it all receive a performance at this year's Bumbershoot Festival and various other prizes.

The night that I volunteered, Semifinals Round 1, the lineup was Sea Fever, Apache Chief, (Sui-Generis), and Candysound. Of these, my favorite was Apache Chief who were described as;

"Influenced by garage rock, post hardcore and noise, Apache Chief is already known in their hometown of Tacoma for raucous gigs and unorthodox use of guitar pickups and reverb tanks. Seeped in the dirty lo-fi of The Stooges, this trio brutally rips through sets at top speed leaving the audience decimated and wanting more."

Or as their MySpace page says: Post-Progessive Banana Slam

These three kids from Tacoma were awesome. They had quite a fan base in the audience, some of which sported Apache Chief t-shirts. During the performance there was a couple of mini mosh pits that left the EMP security a little baffled. Despite they audience support and my love they did not emerge victorious. The winners of the first round who receive the opportunity to compete in the finals were the wonderful Candysound. A duo that I thought had kind of a Vampire Weekend sound. The wild card winners who receive the possibility of maybe competing in the finals were Sea Fever. Also wonderful.
Friends Kristen, Claire, and I stood around wondering; "What if we had had something like this in our hometowns?" But really it seems as though such an event may only work in a place like Seattle. Home to Hendrix, Pearl Jam, and so many other greats. And what a wonderful gift to offer younger music artists: opportunity. Even semifinalists remain on the Experience Music Project Sound Off archive list which offers them some level of notoriety.
The most wonderful part of the whole event is the infectious optimism of the kids. Post performance/pre - 'announcement of the winners' an Apache Chief member was talking to us and hearing our praises of his performance and his whole demeanor just lit up right in front of us. He was hurrying to get back to the stage but out of excitement turned to us with his arms in the air and exclaimed, "I'm just so happy!"
I will be at Semifinals Round 3 this Saturday and hopefully the March 6th Finals event. I cannot wait to find out who wins!

Battle of the Bards IV

Ghost Light Theatricals is a small theater in Ballard that is impossible to find. It makes me completely banana sandwich when my GPS tells me that I am standing on top of something that I cannot see. However this time it was right because the theater space was through a door, down some stairs and underground. Apparently it was formerly a strip club called Live Girls!
Ghost Light Theatricals has found a really unique and fun way to construct their season schedule of plays and simultaneously raise money for the theater. They hold a Battle of the Bards; 3 plays show different 30 minutes snippets over the course of a weekend and then appeal to the audience and their friends to support them in a competition that decides which one will be added to the theater's lineup. You receive one vote by purchasing a ticket and then money buys additional votes. $1 = one vote.

The three plays were modern adaptations of three classics: The Clouds, Fortinbras, and Metamorphosis.

The Clouds:
Written originally by Aristophanes and adapted by Alexis Holzer is the story of an alcoholic mother and her spoiled teenage daughter. After hearing an advertisement for a school that promises to turn the spoiled daughter into a useful money maker the mother goes to investigate and turns over her jewelry and shoes in an effort to be taught at the school. Then Socrates (the Greek philosopher) pops out from under a desk to tell her all about The Clouds which are 4 girls in togas that often talk in rhyme. Some other stuff happens that I don't remember. However I do remember that at one point during the production The Clouds take a few minutes to pass out free wine and appeal to the audience for votes. All that I got from this was a free cup of red wine.

Metamorphosis:
Written by Franz Kafka and adapted here by Stephen Ross is the story of a man who is awkward and transforms into an insect. See: The Fly starring Jeff Goldblum. The 30 minutes of this play was taken up by some odd occurrences between a carpet salesman and his family. Then a giant chunk of it was dedicated to a strange visual that I think was meant to explain his transformation. The salesman falls asleep in his chair while behind him projected onto a framed screen a scene unfolds. Behind the chair three people use an old overhead projector and black cutouts of insect people to reflect a world where everyone is an insect. Insect people doing insect things in their insect town. When the man wakes he is a bug which is reflected simply by him walking on all fours with his hands turned out. All that I got from this was the urge to procure an overhead projector.

Fortinbras:
The middle play was Fortinbras which I saved for last because it was my favorite. Fortinbras, written by Lee Blessing and directed by Shawn Bookey, is a kind of Hamlet II. Which is difficult sure, because everyone dies at the end of Hamlet. And Fortinbras himself is usually cut out of most Hamlet productions. But whatever. In this story Fortinbras has become king in the event of Hamlet's death and he is constantly haunted and plagued by all of the dead characters from Hamlet. Including Ophelia who seduces him and Hamlet himself who appears to him as a man in a wheelchair wrapped in a cape with his head inside of a TV screen. I really found this to be hilarious. TV headed Hamlet was so funny as he repeatedly barked at his subjects to be sure to NOT hit the On/Off button on the TV. The ghosts were also funny as a dead Laertes dressed in gym shorts and sweat bands really seemed to just want to play basketball with Fortinbras. This play was glorious and I would love to see it how it ends.

By the end of the event there was a tie. Unfortunately (for me) the tie was between Metamorphosis and The Clouds which will both be added to the 2010/2011 season. I am not sure if the Fortinbras cast simply did not advertise properly to their friends and loved ones to come out and support their efforts or perhaps I merely have bad taste in theatrical drama. Regardless it was a fun night of theatrics ending with a post-play dance party. And the Ghost Light Theater earned some well deserved revenue from their genius production of a Battle of the Bards.

Battle of The Bards IV:
Includes 3 video interviews with the directors of each play

Ghost Light Theatricals

Spectrum Dance Theater and Donald Byrd presents FAREWELL

Recently I was given the good fortune to attend a rehearsal for the piece Farewell which is soon to be performed by Spectrum Dance Theater at The Moore Theater downtown. Thanks to Josh Windsor, the new Marketing and Development Manager at Spectrum, I got a sneak preview of the show and heard a little about the inspiration and realization of the performance.
Donald Byrd, Spectrum's Artistic Director, has launched a three part initiative/series that addresses cultural awareness. Farewell is the second in the series and examines parallels between the events of 9/11 and the Tiananmen Square massacres. Byrd lists the novel, Beijing Coma by: Ma Jian, as a primary influence for the piece. The story is that of a graduate student who is shot in the head during the protests in Tiananmen Square. Like the novel, Farewell also features a coma victim who comes in and out of consciousness to discover that his reality is altered.
The dance features a mixture of martial arts and classical Chinese dance. Some parts included the dancers doing listless movements that made them appear to be bodies that were being moved around by other dancers. The combination of these movements and audio from actual interviews of students that witnessed the events of the Tiananmen Square massacre was moving. I could not help but thinking; these dancers are so young and the people who died in the square were also so young. It was a saddening realization.
The event will premiere February 18th, 19th, and 20th at 8pm and I am certain it will be even more amazing than the rehearsal, which itself was wonderful. The completed piece will feature photographs and imagery of both 9/11 and the events of Tiananmen Square as well as live music. During the discussion after the rehearsal someone asked about the different instruments being used and Byron Au Yong, the composer, mentioned a few instruments including a bicycle wheel. I thought that perhaps that was the name of an instrument and turned to ask my friend Kristen about it, thinking that she was more musically knowledgeable than I. But then Au Yong returned to center stage with an actual bicycle wheel in hand and described how the spokes of it could be played with a bow. I learn something new everyday.
I cannot wait to see the completed piece.

For Tickets to Farewell
* On this page there is a preview video that is really fascinating and shows interview snippets with Donald Byrd and Byron Au Yong. Also the dancer with really blond hair is a girl named Tory Peil and she is positively amazing. They are all really amazing but the way that she moves is absolute perfection.

About Farewell and Spectrum
About the Dancers
Beijing Coma by: Ma Jian

Henry Art Gallery Part 2: Vortexhibition Polyphonica

Cherry Bomb Vortex By: E.V. Day

Meanwhile downstairs at The Henry:

A not so permanent exhibit of The Henry's permanent collection. It seems like this exhibition is meant to change over the course of the... um... exhibition.
I am not quite sure what it means but here is the statement from the website: "Working with this innovative concept, Henry curators will select distinctive objects to act as conceptual “hubs.” These anchoring works will establish topics around which a constellation of other objects will orbit. Over the course of the extended exhibition run, the curatorial team will work with a call-and-response tactic to create new hubs with new supporting pieces. These groups will be integrated into the exhibition gradually: as some objects exit others will enter to reconfigure and re-contextualize the exhibition."

Regardless of what gets moved around or becomes a 'hub'. I wanted to mention an artist in the exhibit that stood out to me as particularly fabulous:

E.V. Day
Day is a NY based artist with an MFA from Yale. Impressive. She works in sculpture (though the piece that I saw might be difficult to consider as sculpture) and installation. Her piece Cherry Bomb Vortex was the first thing to smack me in face as I walked in to the gallery. It was red fabric suspended from the ceiling by clear wire and an elaborate system of hooks. The title of her collection that houses Cherry Bomb Vortex: Exploding Couture. I love this title. It is both descriptive and imaginative.
Any amount of my own description of this artist's work will not be able to paint quite as successful a picture as an actual....picture. (I cannot imagine the time that goes into this installation process. I would cry.)

Henry Art Gallery
E.V. Day Website

Henry Art Gallery Part 1: Polaroids: Mapplethorpe

Last Sunday was the last day of the Polaroids: Mapplethorpe exhibit at the Henry Art Gallery at the University of Washington. And after hearing Patti Smith discuss her relationship with the photographer I felt very compelled to see the work. I also took time to reflect on how much my thoughts about Robert Mapplethorpe have changed over the years.

ROBERT MAPPLETHORPE AND ME
My first knowledge of the work of Robert Mapplethorpe came in my first semester at ASU in my very first art history class taught by my favorite; Dr. Eli Bentor, or as I call him The Human Library. We had to do group presentations about the topic of obscenity so naturally Mapplethorpe was an easy target as well as painter Georgia O'keefe and I also think photographer Sally Mann. I was in charge of the introduction of the presentation which involved me standing in front of the class with a Mapplethorpe slide projecting on the screen behind me. This Mapplethorpe slide: Man In Polyester Suit
It was from this time on that I had come to know him as someone whose artistic purpose was merely based on shock value. A Google image search of just his name will result in pictures that would make Larry Flint blush. Doing research on him has always left me with imagery that one cannot simply UNSEE. His content often involves portraiture of celebrities and his own lovers. They are often homo-erotic in nature and sometimes a bit sadomasochistic. They are typically in black and white however I have seen some of his work that is in color and they usually involve at least one body part that we as citizens are required by law to have covered when in public.
None of this even makes me flinch. I am mostly desensitized by art classes actually it was a few select female artists that were responsible for my inability to become shocked by the human figure. But there was something that never sat quite right with me regarding his portraits of nude children. To be fair they are all commissioned by the parents of the children in question. And who doesn't have that picture that their mom took of them getting bathed in the sink as a baby? But still I could never get past these things to see clearly into Mapplethorpe as an artist.
Other experiences I have had with Robert Mapplethorpe have included the time that my 8 year old nephew and I were at the Scene in America exhibit at The Mint which was focused around the contemporary image of the black man and Mapplethorpe's piece was a wonderful nude in which my nephew upon seeing replied, "Why is that guy naked?" To which I said, "Well, being naked in art is different than being naked in everyday life." Thank God he accepted that and we were permitted to move on.
I came across Mapplethorpe again in my Art Criticism and Theory class while we were reading Camera Lucida by Roland Barthes. This time the discussion surrounded the relationship of photographer to subject and the way that Mapplethorpe's subjects were almost always his lovers. We talked about what that meant for the image and whether or not it reflected in the photographs. In my opinion, it does. Blatantly in his case.
Another time I utilized Mapplethorpe for another discussion about obscenity in a paper/presentation that I did for my Philosophy of Art and Beauty class. I was critiquing his nude portraits of children in comparison with Sally Mann's nudes of her own children. The discussion was about small technicalities that determined Mapplethorpe's to be more offending to audiences than Mann's. This is a whole different topic but I presented copies of the paper to everyone in the class with an attached image of one of Mann's photographs and then separately I distributed a folded image of Mapplethorpe's Jesse McBride. My class responded to my presentation of the image as a sign that not one of them wanted to see it. I don't personally condone censorship as much as I myself, hate being surprised, and wished to give everyone the option of not permanently having the image burned into their minds.
My opinion of him was pretty low. It had become completely impossible to move past his subjects and content to see his artistic contribution to the world of photography. That all began to change when I saw a piece of his at The Weatherspoon Art Museum in Greensboro. Up until this point I had only seen the images on computers, in books and never in person. The Weatherpoon image (which I have never since been able to locate) was an 8x10 of a man dressed head to toe in some sort of latex situation. Kind of reminiscent of 'the gimp' from Pulp Fiction. Disturbing yes, but something about the size and actuality of the picture made it somehow less frightening.

NOW
Patti Smith's apparent love and tenderness of Mapplethorpe made a huge impact on my perception of him. The way that she talked about him, his death, and her need to feel as though he is still around and a part of her own life, was not unlike the way that I feel about my friends. She talked about how they first met and the life that they had led together and suddenly I began to realize that he was just a person like anyone else.
The Henry show took my understanding of the man to a whole new level. The fact that they were all Polaroids made them seem so personal to his life. I kept thinking about how Polaroids are so different from the way that people take pictures today and how we are given the luxury of seeing instantly whether or not we wish to save a picture, take another one, or delete it forever.
The show also made it seem as though he had a multitude of lovers but the images of them almost seemed painfully distant and added to my idea that he was in fact very lonely.
Over time my idea of Robert Mapplethorpe, the man, has gone from being this semi-great photographer, maybe even child pornographer, who has less talent and more of a desire to shock and appall the public to something completely different.
Now he is just a human. A person like anyone else. He seemed to fall in love constantly with the whole that is a person. His photographs leave little to the imagination because that is what people permitted him to see. I cannot imagine the personality that one must have in order to persuade others to be that visually open with themselves and their bodies and their love affairs. Now he just seems brave.

Henry Art Gallery / Polaroids: Mapplethorpe
The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation

Images (from top):
1. Self Portrait
2. Marianne Faithfull
3. Robert and lover Sam Wagstaff
4. Arnold Schwarzenegger (obviously)
5. A self portrait for the publications for one of his exhibits in NY.

The Comedic....Um....Arts

On Friday my long awaited need to see Aussie comedian Jim Jefferies came to an end at the Showbox at the Market.
Showbox website.
I first saw Jim (I can call him Jim because we are dear friends now (not really)) when I was house/dog sitting in Greensboro over the summer. The house that I was at had TIVOed his HBO special I Swear To God and so I watched it one night knowing nothing about it other than that I had not seen the likes of HBO in months and was therefore thrilled to have it. About 2 hours later I was laughing out loud to myself and turning to Scooby (the dog) saying, "This guy is freaking hilarious!" I watched the whole thing over once more as soon as it had ended and laughed just as hard.
HBO special I Swear To God
From that point on I began constantly searching for his tour dates only to discover that he wasn't really coming anywhere near where I was except for one weekend he was to be in Greensboro at the same time that I was at the beach with Kevina and Greg having our last bit of fun before they left for the Peace Corps. Do I abandon my friends that I shall not see for 2 years to go and see a comedian? I may or may not have considered it but no I didn't.
Further checking of his website left me disappointed to discover that ALL of the tour locations were in Europe. I had already become a 'fan' of his page on Facebook long ago and had just come to the conclusion that it was never going to happen. THEN magically as if it were an answer to a prayer it showed up on my newsfeed that he had added new US dates to the tour, the 3rd of which was Seattle! Yes! Yes! Yes! I blindly bought 2 tickets without consulting a calendar or any of my friends to see if they wanted to go.
Fortunately Josi did want to go however no one else could be sold on the matter, which in retrospect may have been a good thing because the guy really is pretty offensive and may or may not have been a problem for some of my more PC PNW friends.
We got to the Showbox around 7:45pm to discover that a line had formed in the hopes of going inside. We met a super friendly and informed teenager in the line who described his first Jim experience identically to mine, and made a hilarious joke about how I must have tested Josi's sense of humor for the show by yelling the word 'cunt' at her repeatedly. I did not but this would be an accurate way of determining whether your friend or loved one has the capacity to withstand Jim. We get inside and manage to sit at the front, though it seemed mostly occupied by really young people, who I began to nervously wonder if they were even going to laugh.
The show was opened by two comedians who were local and said that they played somewhere on Tuesday nights or something that I could not bring myself to care about because I didn't like them as much.
And then JIM: He looked to be about half hammered before even getting on the stage and so adorable in his skinny jeans (no emo) and button down shirt. He was glorious. He did all new material and then at the end took requests for jokes from the HBO special. The crowd was a bit much. The Showbox has a sitting section in the front and two bar areas on the side. You are not permitted to take drinks into the sitting section and most people have to stand if you are up by the bars. I was in the front row and not thirsty enough to compromise my good fortune. So the bar crowd would not shut the hell up through much of the performance, which Jim handled with much grace mostly by yelling at them gently.
Regardless the show was wonderful. The best joke/story was probably the one about him taking his 30 something year old virgin terminally ill friend to a brothel. The poor guy was wheelchair stricken as a result of multiple sclerosis (i think) and had never 'known' a woman. So Jim and the guy's brother resolved to get him a prostitute which they feared may kill him but decided that it may very well be worth it to their friend/brother.
Other favorite high points of the show included a kind of a lull at the end when Jim claimed to be on 'borrowed time' and was just somewhat talking to the audience. This hilarity began when someone from the bar yells something which causes a man behind me to yell, "homo".

Bar Person: "a;sdkfowe98324** asdlkfj"

Man Behind Me: "Homo"

Jim (to man behind me): "What was that sir?"

Man Behind Me: "I said he was a homo."

Jim: "He's a homo? My aren't we quick to pass out that term when someone yells something. So quick to call someone a poofter. That's what they call fags in Australia. And in England a fag is a cigarette. But I guess a homo is a homo everywhere."

Different Man from Bar (taking advantage of the lull to attempt to make Jim discuss popular topics in the media aka Tiger Woods): "What about Tiger?"

Jim: "What about Tiger? No a tiger is still called a tiger in Australia. It's not like we see a tiger and say, "Oh look at that dog." No it is still called a tiger all over mate. Because when you see one, no matter where you are, you need to run away from it. So it is still called a tiger."

And scene.

He also took a minute towards the middle to berate some much younger teenagers sitting in the front row that had apparently not laughed during the whole show. During which he was merciless and I believe he frightened them into laughing because one of the smaller of the three began to laugh nervously while looking around and I am pretty sure that he had begun to fear for his life.
Jim was gracious enough to pose for pictures with fans after the show. His comedy isn't so different from anyone else. He still hits the same topics as all of the great comedians. Religion, sex, fat Americans that feel superior, and the way that the pandas are dying out because they will not have sex with each other. But he does it in a way that is horrifying because of the language he uses and the level of inappropriateness. As someone who feels completely desensitized by art school (particularly History of Women Artists class) and life in general, this is the only type of humor that does it for me. Its not for everyone but basically I am in love with Jim Jefferies.
Jim on Studs and Sluts
Jim on Pandas
Jim on Crazy Ass Women also known as 'This is Your Baby'

Because the Night Belongs to Lovers

Left early from a MFA meeting to see, hear, and experience Patti Smith at the stunning Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle. Thanks to Amanda's wonderfulness and Seattle Arts and Lectures genius this too was free to broke little me.
I am not going to lie, before last night all that I knew of Patti Smith was the song 'Because the Night'. After last night I intend to read her new book and potentially everything that she has ever written and advised others to read.
The woman was a delight and her voice is this perfect mixture of syrupy badassedness and liquid sex. She read from her new book Just Kids and spoke fondly of her friendship and life with artist and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. It was unusual to hear someone describe Mapplethorpe the way that Smith did last night, as I had always thought of him as more of a Warhol type of character. At least in terms of relationships. I had imagined him as this somewhat cold man who thrived on controversy and the stereotypical artist lifestyle. It seems that this was not the case. Patti talked of him as a best friend and someone she lived with for years and considered family. She spoke of his photography methods and the organic way that a picture would manifest itself when he was the one taking it.
She began by reading some of her own poems and also some exerts from her books. She answered audience questions in a sly quick witted style.
When asked how it felt to be considered a fashion icon, she replied, "I have always had my own way of dealing with fashion."
When asked who would be someone she would like to collaborate with she replied: Russell Crowe.
Mediator: "Russell Crowe? Do you mean collaborate with him as an actor or as a musician?"
Patti Smith: "I mean as a girl."
This response got the biggest laugh from the audience.
After the question and answer portion of the night she sang some really touching songs while playing a guitar. Her guitar playing left a little to be desired (which she noted) and I somewhat wish that she had simply just sung the songs. Then finally she thankfully abandoned the guitar to sing "Because the Night" using us, the audience, for the chorus.
Perfect.
Loved it.
It was clear to see that she is someone who knows undoubtedly the importance of friendship. What an interesting life she has led and with so much loss. How unusual it must have been to have Robert Mapplethorpe as a best friend.
Seattle Arts and Lectures presents Patti Smith
Because the Night

David Mamet's Edmond

Thanks to Seattle Comp Tickets and a promotional that Balagan Theater was running I was able to see the play Edmond on Sunday night. For FREE! (My favorite.)
Edmond is the story of a sad, angry man that comes into contact with many unfortunate circumstances and reacts to them all in the worst possible ways. Tagline: "Do you know what madness is?"
I knew nothing of this play before seeing it except that my friend Josi insured me that since it was a David Mamet play we would probably hear the word 'cunt' at least once. We did. More than once. Among many other angry and often racially charged slurs.
I have been to Balagan Theater once before to see The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, which I loved. (Also for free because the founder of the theater is a graduate of my MFA program.) The set for Signs of Intelligent Life was pretty minimal, in a good way. It was a lot of mirror fragments glued to the walls, floor, and ceiling and a couple of large wooden boxes that could be sat on. It was a one woman show and the one woman used this hilarious shopping cart/bed/chair/hat to contact aliens.
I was thrilled to see how different the layout was for the set of Edmond. There was a long table in the center of the room and the seats for the audience were on all four walls. There were two large screens suspended from the ceiling and facing each other and two rows of track lights that seemed to work perfectly regardless of the nature and setting of the scene. Balagan was completely transformed.
During the production the two screens would show scenes of city nightlife and lights. Perhaps my favorite moment was when Edmond was being questioned in front of a camera by police officers and the screens began to show a live feed of his interrogation. Very cool.
The story starts with a man leaving his wife and then heading out into the city where occurrences quickly go from bad to worse. As the audience we quickly realize that Edmond himself is mostly a really bad person. Really there is only once throughout the production that I felt pity for him. I won't give it away but let's just say I tend to wind up seeing plays that involve some sort of forced guy on guy sexual act.
Throughout the performance I was struck with this wonderful and nearly tangible feeling of discomfort and despair. I also realized that I kept unintentionally holding my breath. I left with the urge to go home and expose myself to something joyous in hopes of erasing the angry and horrible feelings.
Sam Hagan was the actor playing Edmond and I was completely impressed with his ability to yell. There was a lot of yelling in this play and this guy could really yell. Not just yell but the content of his yelling was words and phrases that I could never whisper alone in my room much less yell at another person, in front of a room full of people. Actors must be very brave.
Balagan posted an article about Edmond, Mamet and, the play which is where I learned that it has also been made into a movie starring William H. Macy as Edmond. The article quotes Mamet as having said that Edmond is a story of how, "An everyman descends into the maelstrom of big city degradation." I instantly added the movie to my Netflix. Something about William H. Macy playing him seems like a whole new world from this play. I think it would be easier to get on board with Macy as a victim of the city rather than a victim of his own inhumanity (if that is even the message). I am kind of imagining him in his roles in Pleasantville and Magnolia and how he is such a victim and lacks control and therefore makes poor decisions. I also think that I would have an easier time feeling sorry for him than I did Sam Hagan.
The performance certainly evokes some intense emotions. It may have been a little much for me on a Sunday night, but then again I would not have wished to start off a Friday or Saturday with such an unfortunate emotion.
The Article
Balagan Theater
Seattle Comp Tickets

The Island of Slaves

Last night I attended a FREE dress rehearsal of the Lee Center's Island of Slaves. We were warned at the beginning that because it was a dress rehearsal the cast may have to stop at some point, but that never occurred.
The story begins when two men wake up on an island to discover that their ship has wrecked and they are stranded. Harlequin is the servant of Iphicrates and the two come to realize that they have landed on the Island of Slaves. A place where masters are either killed or enslaved and servants rule. They are soon joined by a man who repeatedly plays the guitar and breaks into song and acts as a kind of enforcer of the laws of the island. He makes the men switch clothes and explains their new roles on the island. He does the same to an upper class woman and her maid and then sends them to live on the island as such for 3 years.
The comedy bits got a few laughs but overall I was bored by the amount of repetitive dialogue. The story was originally conceived in 1725 as a kind of preemptive commentary on the French Revolution. So the amount of dialogue makes sense. The whole thing ends with an appeal to the audience and a kind of moral message to treat others as you would be treated. Or as the final all cast musical number would put it, "Who do you think you are?"
However the audience participation was somewhat lost on me as the message just seemed kind of outdated in lieu of more useful messages. I cannot imagine why.......1725. It ran for 2 hours with an oddly timed intermission that came about 20 minutes before the ending rather than in the middle. Most of the time I had no clue what the songs were about, for lack of being able to clearly decipher the words. The highlights were the costumes and the three background island girls who had really cute color coordinated outfits. Otherwise I was mostly bored.

Hunter Gatherers: Sex, Death, and Meat

Last night my friend Josi was nice enough to take me with her to the Washington Ensemble Theater for a production of their currently running play Hunter Gatherers.
To give an idea of the basis of the play the tagline is "A living room play about sex, love, and meat." Three of my favorite things!
The story starts with a seemingly normal married couple in their seemingly normal living room killing a lamb in a cardboard box for the night's dinner party. Pam begrudgingly assists Richard by holding and calming the lamb by petting it and telling it a magical story about a wizard, while he cuts its throat.
The two are later joined by their oldest and dearest friends, Wendy and Tom, and we quickly learn that the four shared a joint wedding and meet for dinner once a year. We also quickly learn that Richard and Wendy have each year, been using the excuse of stuffing mushrooms, to go and have sex with each other in the kitchen.
While having sex on this particular occasion a pot falls off of the rack and hits Richard in the head. He begins to bleed, and Tom (who is a doctor) stitches him up. Tom is fully aware of his wife's infidelities with Richard, but innocent and naive Pam is in the dark and refuses to believe when Tom informs her.
When the girls are alone together, we learn that Wendy is desperate to have children. In a roundabout way she asks Pam to lend her blessing to the idea of her and Richard having sex in order to conceive. Pam seems as though she may agree to it but then suspicious, asks Wendy if she may have some stuffed mushrooms. Wendy realizing that Pam now knows of her indiscretions proceeds to tell her that she intends to take Richard for herself.
Later Richard and Wendy begin to awkwardly dance with one another while Tom and Pam look on in horror. Pam removes the lamb from the oven and brings it into the living room only for Richard to discover that it is still raw. He and Wendy eat it anyway, off of the floor, in a ravenous animal like manner and then begin to have sex but fall asleep as a result of all of the meat.
Meanwhile Pam and Tom are upstairs feeling victimized and when they begin to have sex Pam gets too into it and accidentally chokes Tom to death.
I won't ruin the end but by the time it was over we had witnessed an attempted ass raping, several murders, and meat and mixed nuts being thrown around the stage and clinging to the walls. Needless to say it was a comedy. The characters were hilarious and much more complex than I have made them out to be.
By far the person who stood out the most was Patrick Allcorn who played the role of Richard. The guy had this frightening Amityville Horror look to him and a style that instilled fear and comedy simultaneously.
Hunter Gatherers inspired the same discomfort that I received while reading Bret Easton Ellis' American Psycho. I do so adore that feeling.
It will be running at the Washington Ensemble Theater until February 8th.
Washington Ensemble Theater