Home for Thanksgiving. I could really get used to this. As soon as I set foot into the house, mom brings me to the kitchen table and puts one big bowl of hot noodle soup, one big bowl of shrimp fried rice, and two big plates of fresh fruit down in front of me. I stuff my face. I watch TV. I go to bed and sleep in until 11:00. Wake up. Repeat.
I can't wait until tonight's fest. It will be the first for baby Kyle. Larry is sick so I'll have to be careful. I can't imagine anything worse than getting sick this week while on vacation, especially with the Gala, my birthday, and the party next week.
What's nice about coming home to the cookie cutter suburbs is that I really have no desire to go out and do anything. I have no obligations to see anyone or anything. I can feel the tension and stress leaking out of my body. For the first time in months, I feel relaxed. Don't get me wrong, the past couple of weeks have been fantastic, but there comes a point where you can only do so much art. I'm completely art-ed and cultured out. Here's why...
Near Life Experience
From the lighting to the costumes (and especially the dancers), Angelin Preljocaj's Near Life Experience was slick, glossy, and beautiful. A piece about "altered states of mind and soul" where intense physical and metaphysical (or spiritual) sensations create realties that transcend human bounds. The group performed a series of these meditations to music by Air. Although the program eluded to new original music, most of it was just remixes of songs from Talkie Walkie and 10,000Hz Legend -- a bit of a dissapointment and let down. I think they must've used versions of "Alone in Kyoto" at least twice if not three times, which I felt was pretty lame. While aesthetically, the production was hard not to like, I really thought it was a bit superficial and gimmicky. Ohhh, the French, when will they learn...
I went to Near Life with Arlene and afterwards we saw the wonderful Czech film, Bored in Brno by the director Vladimír Morávek. Honestly, though unplanned, this was the highlight of the night. A hysterical and, for lack of a better word, "charming" film about a young mentally impaired couple who receive advice from friends and family before their first planned sexual experience together -- beautifully and sparingly shot in black & white and on a nickle-and-dime budget.
Jim Jarmusch Retrospective
I had grand plans to see just about every film that was being screened the next week for the big Jarmusch retrospective, but in the end, I only saw three of them: Down by Law, Dead Man, and Night on Earth. Night on Earth was the only Jarmusch film that I saw before (not including Coffee & Cigarettes), and after watching it again, I remembered why I ever fell in love with Winona Ryder in the first place. Dead Man was a bit of a dissapointment. I understand it's satyrical take on old westerns, but it was a little too slapstick for my tastes. The "humor" was forced and Johnny Depp's rather serious performance never really matched the absurd nature of the script. It was also a bit drawn out in my opinion.
Down by Law on the otherhand was absolutely brilliant. One of the best movies I've seen. Vintage Roberto Begnini. Tom Waits like you've never seen before. John Lurie at a time when he looked poised for fame. The script was free and effective and Jarmusch has this way of exploiting that open improvisational nature of the dialogue with his lens and his editing to create the illusion of comic genius. I believe this was the first film he ever shot using Robby Muller as the Director of Photography, who is the same DP that Wim Wenders uses. Some of the scenes were breathtakingly gorgeous. Muller has this incredible sensitivity for filtered light that is somewhat of a trademark.
Afterwards he gave a Q&A. Jeremy, An, Ben, Claire, and Natalie were with me. In addition to the typical questions about film, some of the questions were unabashedly political. I always heard that Jarmusch was socially awkward, shy, and reserved. But, with the election just a little over a week before, he responded with little reservation. When asked his thoughts on Bush's re(?)-election, he went on to say that the Presidency was once again "stolen", "a fraud", and "a conspiracy". Next, somebody commented that through his films, it was evident how much he loved America and asked him to elaborate on this sense of pride. He began by saying how he did love a lot of things about the land and its people, but that Nationalism was bullshit and he certainly took no pride in a history that was founded on "theft", "fear", "corruption", and "genocide"!!! It was hysterical, yet right on point. Everyone in the theater clapped and cheered.
Chengwin vs. Chunk
I mean, what I can I say? Half-chicken, half-penguin. Half-chicken, half-skunk. The eternal battle between good and evil, complete with homecoming queens and football. Earlier that day, before Down by Law and the Jarmusch Q&A, I found myself parading down Houston and Broadway in SoHo on a Saturday afternoon against traffic with thousands of screaming hipsters waving pom-poms chanting "CHENGWIN, CHENGWIN, CHENGWIN" or "CHUNK CHUNK CHUNK CHUNK" following two big birds and a marching band -- not something you see everday. The look on the faces of the bystanders was priceless. I'm still not quite sure what the hell I was doing there or what the hell I saw. But, I guess, thank you Deirdre for enlightening me. Remember, wherever there is love, evil lurks not far behind. WTF?
The Original (OG) Big Bird
Of course, Chengwin & Chunk owe everything to the original gangsta, Big Bird. Last weekend I worked the big Jim Henson Muppets Festival. I was an escort to Craig Shemin who's on the Board of Directors of the Jim Henson Legacy Foundation and was also a writer for the Muppets for 15 years. On Saturday and Sunday we had a marathon screening of shorts, television specials, and movies featuring the muppets. A lot of the original voices and writers/producers were on-hand in addition to many members of the Henson family. All of them had silver hair and the kindest faces you've ever seen. Super sweet people. I got to meet Carroll Spinney, the voice behind Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. While he wasn't in costume, he did carry around Oscar in a little duffle bag and brought him out for several of the Q&As. It was so fantastic and surreal to hear those voices coming out of that odd, sweet old man. I saw him crying at the end of A Muppets Christmas when Jim Henson came out on screen, while his wife who was sitting by his side, comforted him.
I hadn't seen any of these "characters" for years. Contrary to what one might expect, there is nothing like the laughter of little kids and the nostalgia of your childhood seeing Snufflelupagus, Kermit the Frog, Emmet Otter, and the Count to cure a slight hangover.
On a related note, there is nothing like seeing David Bowie in tights to mark the perfect end to a beautiful day filled with nudity. After spending the afternoon gallery-hopping in Chelsea with Jen, seeing a trillion and one varations of nekid people, we met up with her friend Sophie to see Jim Henson and George Lucas' Labyrinth starring David Bowie (and a young Jennifer Connelly), only to find that it was completely sold out. Booooo. So, we went back to Jen's to watch it on video. What a twisted, bizarre, and genius movie -- evidence of a lost craft and a copious amount of acid dropped over the years. Speaking of which, we loved the halucinatory, high-end, synthetic narcotic feel to David Altmejd's decomposing werewolves at the Andrea Rosen Gallery earlier that day. Highly recommended.
For the Children of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
It's work like this that makes me fall in love with my job all over again. Everytime I think I'm just beginning to understand what dance or theater is, something comes along like Pina Bausch's Für die Kinder von gestern, heute und morgen (For the Children of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow) that completely changes my perceptions and expands me in a way I thought unimaginable. Equally affectionate, humanistic, beautiful, colorful, minimal, dramatic, comic, existential, sadistic, loving, and tender, the dance spoke in a bold, vulnerable, and honest tongue. Dancers ranged in all shapes, colors, ages, and sizes -- attributes that are integral to the context and narrative of the work, which I'm told is classic Pina Bausch. It was singularly, the most heartfelt, moving, and inspiring show I've seen yet. I can only dream of creating art this sophisticated and candid. If you ever have a chance to see Pina Bausch's work, don't be lazy, don't be a thrifty bastard, and don't hesitate. Just go see it. And bring a date. I promise you'll have no regrets.
Check out NPR's feature on Pina Bausch and a preview of "For the Children..." here. And don't forget to click on the rare audio interview with the choreographer: "I always try to speak about all of us, about what we feel, about our same language, about our wishes, our hope, our desires, our fears, about love, about yes, being human -- and how beautiful each person is, and how fragile each person is... And I think all these together is what I have to say."
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Love your families, love a bird, and love each other.
almost 3 months since my last post. pathetic, i know. still reading kafka on the shore (pathetic, i know). when i think of one of the main characters in the book, the old man nakata, i imagine jimmy mirikitani (see picture in last post below). anyone else imagine nakata looks like that?
