this week in literature

FIAF FALL FSTVL: CROSSING THE LINE

Eliane Radigue and Xavier Veilhan’s SYSTEMA OCCAM kicks off FIAF’s seventh annual Crossing the Line festival

French Institute Alliance Française and other locations
Florence Gould Hall, 55 East 59th St. between Madison & Park Aves.
Le Skyroom and FIAF Gallery, 22 East 60th St. between Madison & Park Aves.
September 19 – October 13, free – $30
212-355-6160
www.fiaf.org

Curators Lili Chopra, Simon Dove, and Gideon Lester have once again put together an impressive, wide-ranging program for the Crossing the Line festival, now in its seventh year. Sponsored by the French Institute Alliance Française and taking place there as well as at other venues around the city, CTL features cutting-edge art, dance, music, theater, discussion, and more from an international collection of multidisciplinary performers, with many events free and nothing costing more than $30. The twenty-five-day festival begins September 19 with electronic music composer Eliane Radigue and artist Xavier Veilhan collaborating on Systema Occam (Florence Gould Hall, $30), a multimedia performance installation that is part of CTL’s “New Settings” series, a joint venture with Hermès; the fashion company will be hosting Martine Fougeron’s “Teen Tribe” photo exhibition at the Gallery at Hermès from September 20 to November 8. In Capitalism Works for Me! True/False (September 20, October 6-9, free), Steve Lambert will keep score in Times Square as people vote on whether capitalism indeed works for them. The award-winning Nature Theater of Oklahoma presents episodes 4.5 and 5 at FIAF of their massive undertaking, Life and Times (September 20-21, $30), accompanied by the FIAF Gallery show “10fps,” consisting of 1,343 hand-colored drawings (September 21 – November 2, free). For “The Library,” Fanny de Chaillé invites people to FIAF’s Haskell Library on September 24 and 26 and the NYPL’s Jefferson Market Branch on September 27 (free), where they can choose books that are actually men and women who will share their stories verbally one on one.

Boyzie Cekwana and Panaibra Canda look at postcolonial Africa in THE INKOMATI (DIS)CORD

In The Inkomati (dis)cord (September 25-26, New York Live Arts, $20), Boyzie Cekwana and Panaibra Canda use contemporary dance to examine postcolonial Africa. De Chaillé teams up with Philippe Ramette for Passage à l’acte / Acting Out (September 26-28, Invisible Dog, $30), using absurdist human sculpture to “rationalize the irrational.” Dancer and choreographer Nora Chipaumire will perform the CTL-commissioned solo piece rite riot (October 3-5, Le Skyroom, $30), exploring African stereotypes, collaborating with writer Teju Cole and visual artist Wangechi Mutu. Pascal Rembert’s large-scale A (micro) history of world economics, danced (October 11-13, La MaMa, $20) features New Yorkers discussing how the financial crisis impacted their lives. The festival also includes works by Annie Dorsen, Ernesto Pujol and Carol Becker, Bouchra Ouizguen, Tim Etchells, and Kyle deCamp and Joshua Thorson, in addition to a series of talks and conversations.

BLINK YOUR EYES: SEKOU SUNDIATA REVISITED

The legacy of multidisciplinary artist and social activist Sekou Sundiata is being celebrated in wide-ranging retrospective

Multiple venues
September 10 – October 12, free – $20
www.sekousundiata.org

In his poem “Blink Your Eyes,” poet, writer, teacher, activist, playwright, musician, and performance artist Sekou Sundiata wrote, “I could wake up in the morning / without a warning / and my world could change: / blink your eyes. / All depends, all depends on the skin, / all depends on the skin you’re living in,” addressing what is now known as stop and frisk. Born Robert Franklin Feaster in Harlem in 1948, he adopted the name Sekou Sundiata while attending the Caribbean Festival of the Arts in Guyana in 1972, taking the first name from the first president of Guinea, Sékou Touré, and the last name from the founder of the Mali Empire, Sundiata Keita. Over the next thirty-five years, until his death in 2007 at the age of fifty-eight, Sundiata performed with his bands, Are & Be, the Kou, and dadahdoodahda; became the first writer-in-residence at the New School; kicked a heroin addiction; staged such theatrical productions as The Circle Unbroken Is a Hard Bop, blessing the boats, the 51st (dream) state, The Return of Elijah, the African, and The Mystery of Love, Etc.: An Anthology of Folk Tales, Stories, Poems, and Lies; received a kidney transplant; delivered keynote addresses at international conferences, including “East Coast, West Coast, Worldwide: American Artists and World Citizenship,” “An Artist’s Journey Through Transplantation and Recovery,” and “Ground Zero: One of Many Thin Places / Notes on My New Project”; and started WeDaPeoples Cabaret, all the while fighting for social justice, building local communities, and trying to make the world a better place for everyone.

In honor of what would have been his sixty-fifth birthday, MAPP International Productions has put together the wide-ranging retrospective “Blink Your Eyes: Sekou Sundiata Revisited,” a series of events around the city that continues through October. On September 10, Cave Canem presents “Oralizing: The Speed of Spoken Thought” at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture ($10, 7:30), with Juliette Jones, Marvin Sewell, Val-Inc, Dael Orlandersmith, Tyehimba Jess, and Karma Mayet Johnson, reimagining Sundiata’s “blues of transcendence.” On September 13, teachers, activists, artists, musicians, and others will gather at the New School for “The America Project Methodology Remix: A Symposium for Educators, Artists, and Students” (free but advance RSVP required, 10:00 am). On September 22, Michaela Angela Davis, Bryonn Bain, Ebony Golden, and others will participate in the public dialogue “From Double Consciousness to Post‐Black: A Long‐Table Conversation on Black Identity” at the Actors Fund Arts Center (free, 2:00). On September 27, Hip-Hop Theater Festival artistic director Kamilah Forbes will stage an updated version of The Circle Unbroken Is a Hard Bop with MuMs, Carvens Lissaint, and Traci Tolmaire at the Kumble Theater for the Performing Arts ($10, 7:30). On October 3, Columbia University will host “Geographies of Incarceration: A 21st-Century Teach-In” (free, 6:00) examining the role of the artist in social transformation, led by Kendall Thomas. On October 10, Arthur Yorinks directs a radio version of the 51st (dream) state at the Jerome L. Greene Performance Space ($20, 7:00), hosted by John Schaefer and starring the original cast, with LaTanya Hall taking over Sundiata’s narrator role. On October 11-12, Harlem Stage presents “Days of Arts and Ideas,” with a panel discussion with Khalil Gibran Muhammad, Rob Fields, Shani Jamila, and Forbes at Harlem Stage Gatehouse (free, 7:30) the first day and dance and talk with Jawole Zollar and Liz Lerman at Aaron Davis Hall (free, 4:00) the second day. The “Blink Your Eyes” festival then comes to a triumphant close on October 12 with WeDaPeoples Cabaret at Aaron Davis Hall ($20, 7:00), a community celebration with Chanda Rule, Liza Jesse Peterson, Mendi Obadike, Keith Obadike, Immortal Technique, Rashida Bumbray, Frantz Jerome, Aisha Jordan, and Zora Howard, with a special look at his seminal speech “Thinking Out Loud: Democracy, Imagination, and Peeps of Color.” In his poem “Hopes Up Too High,” Sundiata wrote, “And what if we could show / that what we dream / is deeper than what we know? / Suppose if something does not live / in the world / that we long to see / then we make it ourselves / as we want it to be.” Sundiata continues to be an inspiration to so many; this retrospective offers a great way to keep that legacy vibrant and alive.

TWI-NY TALK: SARA FARIZAN

Sara Farizan will be at McNally Jackson on September 10 talking about her debut novel, IF YOU COULD BE MINE, as part of the launch celebration of the Alquonquin Young Readers imprint

McNally Jackson
52 Prince St. between Lafayette & Mulberry Sts.
Tuesday, September 10, free, 7:00
212-274-1160
www.mcnallyjackson.com
www.algonquinyoungreaders.com

In her debut novel, If You Could Be Mine (Algonquin Young Readers, August 2013, $16.95), Sara Farizan details the dangerous love between two seventeen-year-old Tehran girls who must keep their relationship secret from everyone. The story is narrated by Sahar, who has wanted to marry Nasrin since they were six, but same-sex relationships are punishable by death in Iran. “It’s difficult, hiding my feelings for her. Tehran isn’t exactly safe for two girls in love with each other,” Sahar explains at the beginning of the book. “We are always around each other, so I don’t think anyone will suspect that Nasrin and I are in love. She worries, though, all the time. I tell her no one will know, that I will protect her, but when we kiss I can feel her tense. She keeps thinking about the two boys who were hung years ago in Mashhad.” When Nasrin’s family arranges for her to marry a doctor, Sahar considers taking extreme measures to continue their secret love.

In the book, Farizan, a gay woman born in Massachusetts to Iranian immigrant parents, explores the very serious subjects of homosexuality, gender identity, gender reassignment surgery, and other aspects of LGBTQ life in Iran with tenderness, intelligence, and humor. On September 10, Farizan will be at McNally Jackson with fellow novelists Hollis Seamon (Somebody Up There Hates You) and Amy Herrick (The Time Fetch) celebrating the launch of Algonquin Young Readers, with each of the writers reading from their works, speaking with AYR editor and publisher Elise Howard, and participating in an audience Q&A, followed by a signing. But first, Farizan took part in an exclusive twi-ny talk, discussing the book, her influences, her family’s reaction when she came out to them, and more.

twi-ny: If You Could Be Mine is a deeply intimate story about two very different girls. Would you say there are parts of you in each of them, or do you most closely identify with one of them?

Sara Farizan: I suppose I am more like Sahar but to be honest they are both really nothing like me. They are both a lot braver than I am; I’m a big scaredy cat. I think I know people that have elements of Nasrin’s personality, but I created them pretty much from scratch.

twi-ny: Sahar and Nasrin have to hide their love from their parents. You’ve stated that your own coming out to your family was very difficult. How is your relationship with them now, especially with the publication of the book, which explores some very complex themes that are rarely dealt with in YA novels and are often not discussed between parents and children?

Sara Farizan: My parents have been amazing and I am so lucky to have them in my life. I came out to them about ten years ago and it wasn’t always easy but they have never treated me differently and truly love me unconditionally. My mom is a big champion of the book and loves the idea that it might help other families discuss these issues. Dad still hasn’t read the book because I think he’s a little scared but he Googles me a lot, which I find adorable. I give them a lot of credit and am so proud of the growth they have shown in just ten years.

twi-ny: You’ve traveled to your parents’ home country of Iran several times, including to research the book. How does the gay community over there deal with the apparent contradiction that the government openly supports gender reassignment surgery but outlaws homosexuality?

Sara Farizan: Well, I can’t speak for the whole community because it’s a country of 70 million people, but there are a lot of groups that have to deal with things privately. I think there is a huge distinction between gender identity and sexual orientation and everyone has their own opinion. I imagine it must be frustrating for both groups because the two have a tendency to get blended together.

twi-ny: What books and authors, either YA or adult, served as influences while you were writing If You Could Be Mine?

Sara Farizan: My mentor, Chris Lynch, is amazing and lovely. I read books by Deborah Ellis, Marjane Satrapi, Khaled Hosseini, Julie Ann Peters, Cris Beam, and many others.

twi-ny: How long did the research/writing process take?

Sara Farizan: It took me about two and a half years with all the research and finishing a final draft.

twi-ny: Your undergraduate degree is in film and media studies. Iran has a rich yet complex cinema history, with such directors as Jafar Panahi, Abbas Kiarostami, and Mohsen Makhmalbaf making often controversial films that sometimes get banned and can get them arrested. Did any specific Iranian films play a role in your research?

Sara Farizan: I’ve grown up watching a lot of Iranian films and they have kind of informed me about many issues that I may not have been privy to in my Western bubble. Some favorites include Children of Heaven, Santoori, Leila, No One Knows about Persian Cats, and the documentaries Be Like Others and The Iran Job.

twi-ny: On September 10, you, Amy Herrick, and Hollis Seamon will be featured at a launch party at McNally Jackson for the Algonquin Young Readers imprint. What’s it like to be part of this launch? What are you personal expectations for the event?

Sara Farizan: It is so surreal and I still can’t really believe it. I keep thinking someone is going to call me and say, “Actually we’ve made a mistake.” I love Algonquin Young Readers and I don’t want to ever disappoint them. I hope it will be a special evening and I hope people see how much passion we put into our novels.

FIAF OPEN HOUSE

The Nature Theater of Oklahoma will be presenting an exhibit of drawings as well as episodes 4.5 and 5 of LIFE AND TIMES at FIAF this fall

French Institute Alliance Française
Florence Gould Hall and Tinker Auditorium, 55 East 59th St. between Madison & Park Aves.
Le Skyroom and FIAF Gallery, 22 East 60th St. between Madison & Park Aves.
Tuesday, September 10, free, 6:00 – 8:00
212-355-6160
www.fiaf.org

The French Institute Alliance Française is getting ready for the fall season, highlighted every year by its multidisciplinary Crossing the Line festival, with a free open house on September 10. From 6:00 to 8:00, visitors will be able to sample French wine and cheese in Tinker Auditorium, check out the Nature Theater of Oklahoma drawings exhibit “10fps” in the FIAF Gallery, receive beauty treatments in Le Skyroom, explore the new digital library Culturethèque, meet author-artist Gwenaëlle Gobé (The Diary of Stephanie: Electoral Surge) in the Haskell Library, watch Ruben Toledo’s short animated film Fashionation in Florence Gould Hall (with Toledo introducing the 7:00 screening), and take mini-French classes in the sixth-floor Language Center. Look for twi-ny’s preview of the 2013 Crossing the Line Festival next week.

READING OF THE DAY: TURN AROUND BRIGHT EYES BY ROB SHEFFIELD

Rolling Stone contributing editor Rob Sheffield has been entertaining us for years with his sly, hysterical, and unique take on pop culture, from his merry meanderings through movies and television to music and more. The Brooklyn-based Sheffield has just released his third book, Turn Around Bright Eyes: The Rituals of Love & Karaoke (Harper, August 6, $25.99), the follow-up to 2007’s Love Is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time and 2011’s Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: One Young Man’s Quest for True Love and a Cooler Haircut. The new tome, which features such song-related chapter titles as “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “99 Luftballons,” “Hot Legs,” “Debaser,” and “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” reveals Sheffield and his wife’s addiction to karaoke, something we can’t say we share but makes for some very funny reading. There should be some very funny reading and discussion on August 23, when Sheffield presents the book at the Barnes & Noble at 2289 Broadway at 82nd St. at 7:00. “Once upon a time I was falling apart. Now I’m always falling in love,” the book begins. “This spiritual quest, like so many spiritual quests, involves Bonnie Tyler,” Sheffield adds. That’s more than enough for us; count us in.

FANTASTIC FICTION AT KGB: LIBBA BRAY AND NOVA REN SUMA

KGB Bar
85 East Fourth St. off Second Ave.
Wednesday, August 21, free, 7:00
www.kgbbar.com

KGB Bar’s latest Fantastic Fiction lineup should be a mutual lovefest, as Michael L. Printz Award winner Libba Bray (Going Bovine, Beauty Queens) teams up with rising YA star Nova Ren Suma (Imaginary Girls) for an evening of readings and discussion hosted by Ellen Datlow and Matthew Kressel. Here’s what Bray, who is a YA goddess — from her popular books to her band, Tiger Beat, which features fellow YA authors Natalie Standiford, Barnabas Miller, and Daniel Ehrenhaft, to her potentially lucrative Tampon Poetry™ — has to say about Suma’s latest novel, 17 & Gone: “Elegant, riveting, powerful, and poignant, this suspenseful, supernatural tale slips under the skin, inking out a haunting tapestry of menace and madness. Nova Ren Suma is, quite simply, a masterful storyteller and one of my favorite writers.” Suma is one of our favorite writers as well, and not only because we used to work with her and that she gave her first public reading of Imaginary Girls at twi-ny’s tenth anniversary party. She is also an expert craftsperson who agonizes over every word of the complex, fascinating worlds she creates, filled with wholly believable characters trapped in extraordinary situations. Here’s a tiny taste, from the first chapter of 17 & Gone (Dutton, March 2013, $17.99): “Abby Sinclair. There at the intersection. I’m not saying she was there in the flesh with her thumb out and her hair wild in the wind and her bare knees purpled from cold — it didn’t start out that way. The first time I saw Abby, it was only a picture: the class photograph reproduced on her Missing poster.” We know that makes us want to read a whole lot more, and it should do the same to you. Suma’s next book, The Walls Around Us, is due out from Algonquin in 2015.

CINE-SIMENON — GEORGES SIMENON ON FILM: THE CLOCKMAKER

Philippe Noiret gives one of his most intricate performances in Bertrand Tavernier’s poignant drama based on Georges Simenon novel

THE CLOCKMAKER (L’HORLOGER DE SAINT-PAUL) (Bertrand Tavernier, 1973)
Anthology Film Archives
32 Second Ave. at Second St.
Thursday, August 8, 7:00, Saturday, August 10, 8:45, and Sunday, August 11, 4:45
Series runs August 8-21
212-505-5181
www.anthologyfilmarchives.org

Based on Georges Simenon’s novel L’horloger de Saint-Paul, Bertrand Tavernier’s first feature-length film is a quiet, introspective triumph from start to finish. Philippe Noiret stars as the title character, Michel Descombes, a widowed clockmaker who is told by a police inspector (Jean Rochefort) that his son, Antoine (Jacques Denis), has killed a man and is on the run with a woman named Liliane (Christine Pascal). A despondent Michel struggles to understand what led his son to commit such a crime, examining deep inside himself in the process. The many scenes that center on the clockmaker and the inspector discussing life in general terms are simply wonderful, except when the cop talks about the movies, which takes the audience out of the film, especially when they mention La Grande Bouffe, Noiret’s previous work. Otherwise, The Clockmaker is an absolute gem, with Tavernier’s subtle narrative style guiding Noiret (Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, Le vieux fusil) to one of the greatest understated performances you’re ever likely to see. Winner of the Silver Bear at the 1974 Berlinale, The Clockmaker is screening August 8, 10, and 11 as part of the Anthology Film Archives series “Cine-Simenon: Georges Simenon on Film,” consisting of fourteen cinematic adaptations of books by the Belgian-born French-language creator of Inspector Maigret, including Marcel Carné’s La Marie du Port and Three Rooms in Manhattan, Patrice Leconte’s Monsieur Hire, Henry Hathaway’s The Bottom of the Bottle, Claude Chabrol’s Betty, and Burgess Meredith’s The Man on the Eiffel Tower.