twi-ny recommended events

2010 DOWNTOWN DANCE FESTIVAL

The Yuko Takahashi Dance Company are one of more than a dozen ensembles participating in the annual Downtown Dance Festival

RIVER TO RIVER FESTIVAL
Battery Park, State St. & Battery Pl.
One New York Plaza, Water & Whitehall Sts.
Daily through August 20
Admission: free
212-219-3910
www.batterydance.org

The twenty-ninth annual Downtown Dance Festival is under way, featuring performances in Battery Park and at One New York Plaza. The event, as always, is hosted by the Battery Dance Company, which is celebrating its thirty-fifth season. The schedule comprises a great mix of ensembles, with Sunday’s lineup consisting of Classical Contemporary Ballet Theatre, Yuko Takahashi Dance Company from Japan, Lori Belilove & the Isadora Duncan Dance Company, India’s Guru Radha Mohanan & Troupe, binbinFactory, Battery Dance Company, and C. Eule Dance performing on the Battery Park lawn from 1:00 to 4:00. The rest of the shows will be held at noon at One New York Plaza: On Monday, binbinFactory and Yuko Takahashi Dance Company team up; on Tuesday, Guru Radha Mohanan Kathakali Troupe of India will perform as part of the third annual Erasing Borders: IAAC Festival of Indian Dance; on Wednesday, Lane & Co., Blakeley White-McGuire, Classical Contemporary Ballet Theatre, Dušan Týnek Dance Theatre, and the Battery Dance Company hit the plaza; on Thursday, Buglisi Dance Theatre, Erica Essner Performance Co-Op, and Lori Belilove & the Isadora Duncan Dance Company will appear; and on Friday, the festival wraps up with the Amy Marshall Dance Company, Dušan Týnek Dance Theatre, and Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet Dance Theatre of Brooklyn. The Downtown Dance Festival is always a great way to take in emerging talent in contemporary dance, free and outdoors.

BRUCE NAUMAN: DAYS

The days go flying by in Bruce Nauman’s audiovisual installation at MoMA (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53rd St. between Fifth & Sixth Aves.
Through August 23
Admission: $20 (includes same-day film screening)
212-708-9400
www.moma.org

As the August doldrums begin to take hold, it’s getting harder and harder to even remember what day it is. To add to the confusion, multimedia performance artist Bruce Nauman has installed “Days” at MoMA. For nearly fifty years, the Indiana-born Nauman, who has been based in New Mexico since 1979, has been challenging the conventions of art and language via neon sculptures, film and video, live performances, and unique installations. Created for the 2009 Venice Biennale, “Days” is not really much to look at: fourteen relatively bland speakers in two rows, with a handful of stools between them in an otherwise empty room. But oh, what beautiful noise reverberates throughout the gallery. Nauman recorded seven people reading off the days of the week, each person given a different, random order, none following the established Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, etc. Visitors can approach a particular speaker, where that specific voice and order will gain prominence, or can stand off to the side or in the middle and let all the days of the week reverberate in ways that end up being more comforting than confusing. By having men, women, and children of different ages and speech patterns calling out the days, Nauman allows the viewer/listener an opportunity to contemplate time as both a personal reality and a metaphysical concept. We recommend grabbing a stool, sitting in the middle of the room, and letting the “music” roll over you like waves on the beach. As far as forgetting what day it is goes, you should try to remember Fridays, when admission to MoMA is free after 4:00, and Tuesdays, when the museum is closed. And as long as you’re there, you might as well check out a couple of other pretty sweet exhibits, including “Matisse: Radical Invention, 1913–1917,” “Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography,” and “The Original Copy: Photography of Sculpture, 1839 to Today.”

SALUTE INDIA: CELEBRATING THE SPIRIT OF INDIA

New York will salute India at thirtieth anniversary parade and festival on August 15

2010 INDIA DAY PARADE
Madison Ave. from 38th to 28th Sts.
Sunday, August 15, free, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
www.fianynjct.org

The world’s largest India Day Parade takes place on Sunday, August 15, as thousands of marchers and spectators will gather along Madison Ave. between 28th & 38th Sts. to see the floats, check out live performances, taste Indian cuisine, and take in special cultural programs and activities marking the event’s thirtieth anniversary. This year’s grand marshal is Bollywood actress Preity Zinta, who has starred in such films as ARMAAN, SALAAM NAMASTE, KABHI ALVIDA NAA KEHNA, and HEAVEN ON EARTH.

EMOTIONAL SLOPPY MANIC CINEMA: LITTLE OTIK

Stop-motion Czech fairy tale is part of BAMcinématek’s “Emotional Sloppy Manic Cinema”

BAMcinématek
30 Lafayette Ave. between Ashland Pl. & St. Felix St.
Tuesday, August 17, 6:30 & 9:15
Series continues through August 24
718-636-4100
www.bam.org

LITTLE OTIK (OTESÁNEK) (Jan Svankmajer, 2000)
Poor Bozena (Veronika Zilková) and Karel (Jan Hartl) are unable to have a baby, so Karel decides to carve one out of a tree for his desperate wife. Bozena showers her wooden child with lots of love — and soon the little tyke is crying and very, very hungry. Based on a poem by Czech writer Karel Jaromír Erben, LITTLE OTIK was written and directed by master stop-motion animator Jan Svankmajer, who has made such feature-length films as ALICE (1988) and FAUST (1994) as well as myriad shorts, including PUNCH AND JUDY (1966), DON JUAN (1969), MEAT LOVE (1988), and FOOD (1992). In LITTLE OTIK, Svankmajer mixes live action and animation to create a delightful, if disturbingly bizarre, fairy tale. The film will screen on August 17 as part of BAMcinématek’s “Emotional Sloppy Manic Cinema,” a two-week series curated by brothers Josh and Benny Safdie The diverse group of works range from Robert Bresson’s A MAN ESCAPED to Jafar Panahi’s THE MIRROR, from Olivier Assayas’s COLD WATER to François Truffaut’s SMALL CHANGE, from Ulu Grosbard’s STRAIGHT TIME to Ralph Bakshi’s HEAVY TRAFFIC, and from Woody Allen’s HUSBANDS AND WIVES to Elaine May’s MIKEY AND NICKY. Of course, the brothers have also included their own DADDY LONGLEGS and Red Bucket Shorts and will be on hand to introduce several of the screenings, including the 6:30 showing of LITTLE OTIK.

TWI-NY TALK: ELISSA LERNER

Elissa Lerner investigates religious differences in unique ways in ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS, part of the 2010 Fringe Festival (photo by Kaija B. Braus)

ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS
New York International Fringe Festival
SoHo Playhouse
15 Vandam St.
Sunday, August 15, 7:15; Tuesday, August 17, 5:45; Saturday, August 21, 4:45; Wednesday, August 25, 9:45; Saturday, August 28, 6:00
Tickets: $15-$18
866-468-7619
www.abrahamsdaughterstheplay.com
www.fringenyc.org

Forest Hills native Elissa Lerner headed south for college, graduating cum laude in religion and theater studies from Duke University. She put those disciplines together for her honors thesis, ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS, a provocative play that has been selected to be part of the fourteenth annual New York International Fringe Festival. Produced by Lerner and directed by Niccolo Aeed, ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS follows the changing personal and sexual relationships among a group of students at a southern university, including the Jewish Sara (Rebecca LaChance), the Muslim Ranya (Déa Julien), the Methodist Kate (Keely Flaherty), and the atheist Will (Ayreh Lappin). Earlier this week, Lerner, who is also a freelance journalist working on her master’s at NYU, took a break from her hectic production schedule to discuss Duke, religious politics, and being at the Fringe.

twi-ny: ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS has been influenced by stops in Qatar and Israel, among other locations. Currently, in New York City, there is a debate going on about the potential building of a mosque near Ground Zero, and there are more and more protests against Israeli actions, especially on college campuses. Where does the play fit in the ongoing battle over religious freedom and interfaith dialogue?

Elissa Lerner: That’s a great question, and an important one. One of the things the director and I have talked about with regard to ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS is that the play is about interfaith dialogue but it’s not a conversation full of buzzwords and catchphrases, ie., Muslims have lives that don’t have to circuitously relate to 9/11 just as Jews aren’t necessarily defined by Israel around the clock (and Christians have lives that are not reduced to fundamentalist caricatures). Where the play succeeds, I hope, is that it tells an honest story of individuals and their relationships to each other and how their faiths influence them in both conscious and unconscious ways. I think this is where the audience will be able to relate to the characters — not because of a shared religious ideology masquerading as politics (or vice versa) but because all of us have personal relationships to our religious (or irreligious or areligious) backgrounds, and hopefully this will be a welcome forum to turn a critical eye and sensitive ear.



twi-ny: What does it mean to you to be part of the New York Fringe Festival?

EL: It’s incredibly exciting to be a part of the Fringe. I had a few friends involved in the Fringe last year and I thought, wow, this seems like a great opportunity, I wonder if I could make it? So when I found out ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS made it in this year, it was very gratifying to be considered among a pool of extremely talented artists from around the city, the country, and even the world. I’m just really proud and honored to have the chance to be a part of that.

twi-ny: What was a nice Jewish girl like you doing in a place like Duke? You seem to have shaken up both the religion and theater departments while you were there. What was that experience like?

EL: That’s funny! There is certainly a lingering perception among northern Jews about Duke, but I found it to be, well, unfounded. One of the things I loved most about my time there was that Duke brings together students from all over the country — Jews included. It was great meeting Jews from places like Texas and Alabama and comparing notes. But at the same time, for example, I relished getting to know grad students who had gone to bible colleges and were preparing for Christian ministry. It was just completely different exposure than what I had known growing up in New York City. And as for shaking up departments — one of the first things I was told as a freshman was that Duke is proud of its traditions but equally proud of creating new ones. With that in mind a few years later, I thought perhaps the religion and theater studies departments would be open to an unusual honors project proposal. It did take some convincing — but any viable honors project should take some convincing to prove to faculty that you’re serious. And at the end of the day, it was (and continues to be) extremely rewarding to see that this crazy idea really does have legs.

NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL

Irreverence is all part of the fun at the Fringe Festival, which takes aim at contemporary society in such shows as POPE! AN EPIC MUSICAL

Multiple venues
August 13-29, $15-$18
Fiver Pass $70, Flex Pass $120, Lunatic Pass $500
www.fringenyc.org

One of our favorite things to do when the Fringe Festival, now in its fourteenth year, comes to town is to check out some of the coolest, most absurd, and craziest titles. Among the finest this time around are THE ALTOONA DADA SOCIETY PRESENTS THE VELVET GENTLEMAN, AMSTERDAM ABORTION SURVIVOR, THE BATTLE OF SPANKTOWN, HEADSCARF AND THE ANGRY BITCH, JEW WISH, MACCHIN: THE LAMENTABLE TRAGEDIE OF JAY LENO, OMARYS CONCEPCION LOPEZ PEREZ GOES TO ISRAEL (TO SPEAK TO GOD AT THE WAILING WALL), TERMS OF DISMEMBERMENT: A MUSICAL WITH HEART . . . AND OTHER BODY PARTS, and BUTTERFLY, BUTTERFLY, KILL KILL KILL! As always, there will also be numerous takes on Shakespeare, with this year’s victims being HAMLET, AS YOU LIKE IT, JULIUS CAESAR, and RICHARD III. Of course, the Fringe is about much more than just impressive names; it gives alternative, cutting-edge, and experimental theater a chance to shine at such downtown venues as Dixon Place, the Kraine Theater, La Mama, the Lucille Lortel Theatre, the SoHo Playhouse, HERE Arts Center, and other locations. Among the shows we’re looking forward to are Susan Dworkin’s ALL DAY SUCKERS, set in the maelstrom of the health-care system; HEARTS FULL OF BLOOD, from Chicago-based company the New Colony; Edinburgh Fringe Festival fave WEST LETHARGY, about an Old West pioneer couple on their way to California; Stephen Padilla’s political drama PICKING PALIN; Elissa Lerner’s ABRAHAM’S DAUGHTERS, which investigates interfaith dialogue; Seth Sikes’s BUNKED!, a musical following the exploits of five summer-camp counselors; and the Contasia Players’ STRANGE LOVE IN OUTER SPACE, which promises an alien princess, a mad-scientist worm, a bloodthirsty merman, and a doggish pirate.

SEAPORT MUSIC: THE WEDDING PRESENT / SAVOIR ADORE

The Wedding Present will close out summer season of free shows at the seaport

River to River Festival
South Street Seaport, Pier 17
Friday, August 13, free, 6:00
www.myspace.com/theweddingpresent

While River to River’s Seaport Music festival specializes in bringing buzz bands and rising stars of the indie music scene to Pier 17, over the years they have also reintroduced such old-timers as Wire, Suicide, and Superchunk. This Friday, their ninth season closes with quite a gift, British legends the Wedding Present. For twenty-five years, the Wedding Present has gone through constant change, with band members joining, quitting, rejoining, getting fired, and, as a whole, taking a long sabbatical. But founder, guitarist, and lead singer David Gedge has always been front and center, through such albums as GEORGE BEST (1987), BIZARRO (1989), SEAMONSTERS (1991), WATUSI (1994), SATURNALIA (1996), and TAKE FOUNTAIN (2005). (Gedge also made several records as Cinerama beginning in 1998.) The band’s most recent official release was EL REY (Manifesto, May 2008), and the current touring lineup consists of Gedge along with in-and-out guitarist Simon Cleave, bassist Terry de Castro, and drummer Graeme Ramsay. The Wedding Present’s songs are filled with great guitar-laden hooks, melding pop, punk, and alternative that you’ll swear you’ve heard before and probably have — or else you’ve heard their licks stolen by just about any indie band you can think of.

Savoir Adore will open final Seaport Music show of the summer (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Deidre Muro and Paul Hammer claim that they started a band as an “accident,” that they were fooling around with some songs, shared them with friends, and eventually became a little more serious about it. Briefly known as Les Frogs, Muro and Hammer renamed themselves Savoir Adore and are touring in support of their debut full-length, the lush, adventurous IN THE WOODED FOREST (Cantora, September 2009), joined by David Perlick-Molinari (who, with Hammer, is part of YouTooCanWoo Prod.), bassist Sasha Brown, and drummer Tim McCoy (who leads the Papercuts). A mix of pure pop delights and sweet instrumental-heavy tunes that walk the fine line between nature and technology, the infectious album features two of the best-titled songs of last year, “The Scientific Findings of Dr. Rousseau” and “Transylvanian Candy Patrol,” but Savoir Adore is about a lot more than just unusual names (even though their first EP was called THE ADVENTURES OF MR. PUMPERNICKEL AND THE GIRL WITH ANIMALS IN HER THROAT). “We Talk Like Machines” has a hook most bands would kill for, with the chorus of “Early Bird” right behind it. “The fires burning bright, everyone’s out tonight! 1 and 2 and 3 and 4, the starry night’s our disco ball!” Muro declares on MERP, which is a good description of Savoir Adore itself.