twi-ny recommended events

3-D VIEWING PARTY

Rangers-Islanders rivalry will take on whole hew dimension on March 24

Rangers-Islanders rivalry will take on whole new dimension on March 24

RANGERS vs. ISLANDERS
The Theater at Madison Square Garden
32nd St. at Seventh Ave.
Wednesday, March 24, $20, 7:00
www.rangers.nhl.com

Will the Rangers play any better in 3-D than in 2-D? While the Blueshirts face the Islanders on Wednesday night in a Patrick Division showdown of two teams unlikely to make the playoffs, the game will be broadcast at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in 3-D, with special guests such as Mark Messier, Adam Graves, Ron Duguay, Ron Greschner, and Nick Fotiu participating in the multidimensional fun. It’s the first-ever 3-D broadcast of a live hockey game, and Rangers vs. Islanders is always a great battle, no matter how lousy the individual teams might be, so this should be one groovy evening. This matchup often ends up having more fights in the stands than on the ice, which begs the question: Is it okay for a Rangers fan to punch an Islanders fan wearing 3-D glasses?

WILLIAM KENTRIDGE: SHEETS OF EVIDENCE

William Kentridge, page six of SHEETS OF EVIDENCE, watermarked cotton, 2009 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Dieu Donné
315 West 36th St. between Eighth & Ninth Aves.
Monday-Saturday through April 24
212-226-0573
www.dieudonne.org

One of the myriad delights about South African visual artist William Kentridge is that he follows no conventions; he does things his own way, resulting in engaging and unique films, drawing, operas, one-man performances, and stereoscopic installations. For the past several years, he has been collaborating with Dieu Donné on an ambitious series of limited-edition books. Through March 27, SHEETS OF EVIDENCE, his latest such work consisting of unusual watermarked images on special handmade paper, is on view, offering an exciting glimpse into the mind and working process of the ingenious creator. The small gallery has laid out all eighteen sheets of images and text, each one propped against a lightbox so they can be more easily seen; the sparse scenes primarily depict a man and a woman experiencing love, eroticism, and death. Some of Kentridge’s studio materials can be examined at the front desk; be sure to ask the person there to explain how it’s all done, as the procedures are fascinating. Dieu Donné is also displaying THINKING IN WATER, a three-piece suite made by using copper wire and watermarks, and RECEIVER, a book consisting of twenty-three Kentridge etchings that accompany poems he selected by Nobel Laureate Wislawa Szymborska; it’s so fragile that you have to wear white gloves in order to page through it. Whether you know anything about Kentridge or not, this show is a must-see.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS IN NEW YORK

New York City is celebrating Tennessee Williams’s ninety-ninth birthday with numerous special events

Tennessee Williams, who died under questionable circumstances in New York in 1983, would have turned ninety-nine this month. In advance of his centennial, there is a multitude of Williams-related events going on in the city, celebrating the storied career of the award-winning Mississippi-born playwright. The LAByrinth Theater Company is hosting “TENN 99” at the Cherry Lane Theater’s Cherry Pit, three days of nonstop readings, including plays, essays, letters, interviews, even notes on a napkin if Williams wrote on it; among the remarkable all-star participants are Ellen Burstyn, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Rockwell, Michael Stuhlbarg, Eli Wallach, Judith Ivey, Kyra Sedgwick, and dozens more, beginning March 26 at 6:00 and continuing through March 28 at midnight (free). The Target Margin Theater is in the third week of its Unknown Williams festival at the Bushwick Starr, featuring productions of NOW THE CATS WITH JEWELLED CLAWS, THE PRONOUN “I,” GREEN EYES, and THE REMARKABLE ROOMING-HOUSE OF MME. LE MONDE ($12, March 24-28). TMT will follow that with the world premiere of THE REALLY BIG ONCE, about the collaboration between Williams and Elia Kazan, with previews beginning April 13 at the Ontological at St. Marks. Meanwhile, the Roundabout is staging a revival of THE GLASS MENAGERIE at the Laura Pels Theatre, set for a March 24 opening ($70-$80).

KOREAN MOVIE NIGHT: SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE

A kidnapping goes terribly wrong in ultra-violent Korean flick

SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE (Park Chan-wook, 2002)
Tribeca Cinemas
54 Varick St. at Laight St.
Alternating Tuesday nights at 7:00 through April 6
Admission: free; reservations accepted at info@koreanculture.org or 212-759-9550
www.subwaycinema.com
www.koreanculture.org

Park Chan-wook kicked off his revenge trilogy with SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE (even though the second film, OLDBOY, was the first one released in the States), a creepy, quirky tale that lays low for quite a while before busting loose with a massive splattering of the old ultra-violence. After deaf-mute Ryu (Ha-kyun Shin) fails miserably in a desperate, ridiculous attempt to get his dying sister (Ji-eun Lim) a kidney, the recently laid-off Ryu is convinced by his anarchist girlfriend, Youngmin (Doo-na Bae), to kidnap the four-year-old daughter (Bo-bae Han) of Park (Kang-ho Song), the man who owned the factory that kicked him out. But when the plan goes awry, both Ryu and Park become obsessed with avenging their torn-apart lives. Although the first half of the film is too slow and heads off in too many directions, the second half brings everything together, chock full of the kind of violence promised by the title. The film is being screened as part of Korean Movie Night presented at Tribeca Cinemas by the Korean Cultural Service and Subway Cinema.

PUBLIC ART TALKS

Art lovers will be rushing to see a host of special talks and discussions this month, including Alexey Titarenko at Nailya Alexander

The last week of this month is filled with some intriguing, exciting public art talks all around town, offering insight into specific exhibits, artists, and movements. On March 23 (free, 6:30), photographer Barbara Probst, who takes pictures of created scenes from multiple angles at the same time, will speak at Aperture as part of the Parsons Lecture Series. Also on March 23 ($15, 6:30), architect Shigeru Ban, composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, and artist Mariko Mori join moderator Stefano Tonchi at the Japan Society for “Conscious Inspiration: Juxtaposing Nature & Art Form,” a panel discussion about art and environmentalism. Béatrice Coron, who is included in the excellent “Slash” show at the Museum of Arts & Design, will participate in the latest “Rock, Paper, Scissors!” gallery talk at FIAF on March 24 ($15, 7:00), discussing “The Silhouette World of Béatrice Coron.” Also on March 24 ($15, 7:00), the Photographer Lecture Series at ICP focuses on JoAnn Verburg, who will speak with Phillip S. Block in conjunction with the opening of her latest exhibit, “Interruptions,” at Pace/MacGill, and Deborah Hay will present a Lecture on the Performance of Beauty in the Great Hall at the Cooper Union (free, 7:00). On March 25, Freedom Riders Joseph Charles Jones and George Bundy Smith will participate in a civil rights panel discussion with Blanche Wiesen Cook, Dr. Victoria Pérez-Rios, Bettina Carbonell, Lisa Farrington, and artist Charlotta Janssen at the closing of Janssen’s “Freedom Riders & Bus Boycotters” painting exhibit at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice (free, 6:30). Also on March 25, Ghada Amer will speak with curator Sam Bardaouil at the Swiss Institute as part of the Across Histories series (free, 6:30), Dan Cameron will talk about Project New Orleans at the New York Academy of Art (free, 6:30), and Alfredo Jaar will screen his new short film, THE ASHES OF PASOLINI, followed by a discussion between him and David Levi Strauss at the SVA Theatre (free, 7:00). The New School will be hosting the illustration symposium “The Artist as Author” on March 27 (free, 3:00 – 8:30), featuring Ben Katchor, Patricia Mainardi, Emily Lauer, David Kurnick, and Jerry Moriarty. On March 30 (free, 5:30), photography fans can Meet the Artist at the Nailya Alexander Gallery, talking to Alexey Titarenko about his stunning series “Saint Petersburg in Four Movements.” Also on March 30 ($10, 7:00), Craig Dykers lectures on “Conditions of Architecture & Current Works” at Scandinavia House, a companion lecture to the exhibition “SNØHETTA: architecture – landscape – interior,” and Sanford Biggers and Lorraine O’Grady will speak with PERFORMA founding director and curator RoseLee Goldberg in the latest installment of MoMA’s Among Friends series, followed by a cocktail reception ($35, 7:00).

MONEYBROTHER / RHETT MILLER

Moneybrother will open up terrific double bill with Rhett Miller at City Winery

City Winery
155 Varick St.
Saturday, March 20, $22-$28, 7:00 & 10:00
212-608-0555
www.citywinery.com
www.myspace.com/moneybrother

Although the late show is sold out, there are still seats available for the early show of this great double bill at City Winery. Opening up is Moneybrother, the creation of former Monster Anders Wendin. A soulful mix of pop, punk, reggae, classic rock, and disco, Moneybrother’s latest album, REAL CONTROL (April 2010), is a musical tour de force, from the funky opener, “Born Under a Bad Sign,” to the rollicking gem “Get Some Tonight,” from the infectious choruses of “We Die Only Once” and “Just Another Part of Me That Breaks Down” to the power ballad “6 AM” and the lovely closer, “Showdown,” a song that would make Ian Hunter proud. At times, Wendin’s voice is a little Mick Jones and a lot Joe Strummer, turning REAL CONTROL into a Clash-like foray into love and heartbreak, with horns and strings and other accoutrements. Headliner Rhett Miller is best known as singer and guitarist of the Old 97’s, but he’s also released several solo albums, from 1989’s MYTHOLOGIES and 2002’s THE INSTIGATOR to 2006’s THE BELIEVER and last summer’s RHETT MILLER, which includes such songs as “Nobody Says I Love You Anymore” and “If It’s Not Love.” On “like Love,” Miller sings, “She was gone before I woke up / Now I’m downtown, putting on a show.” As we said above, you can still catch the early performance downtown at City Winery, but be sure not to miss Moneybrother opening up.

SABOR! OUR ABUELAS LEGACY

Carlos Irrizary’s “Andy Warhol” is part of “Voces y Visiones” exhibit

SUPER SABADO
El Museo del Barrio
1230 Fifth Ave. at 104th St.
Saturday, March 20, free, 11:00 am – 8:30 pm
212-831-7272
www.elmuseo.org

On the third Saturday of every month, the recently renovated El Museo del Barrio opens its doors for free, hosting a full day of special programming. On March 20, the schedule includes an art workshop in which kids can create a self-portrait using food and spices, storytelling with Carmen Peláez, a photo station, a screening of WHAT’S ON YOUR PLATE? (Catherine Gund, 2009), a spoken-word workshop with the Peace Poets, tortilla making, and a “Rainbow Racionality” performance. Although it’s in between temporary exhibitions right now (“Phantom Sightings: Art After the Chicano Movement” opens on March 24, though if you’re good they’ll let you have an advance sneak peek), there will be gallery tours of the permanent display “Voces y Visiones: Four Decades Through El Museo del Barrio’s Permanent Collection,” which gives a terrific capsule history of the museum and its mission, with works going back to the Taíno Legacy through graphics and politics, traditional and devotional objects, abstraction, migration and language. And the café features some fine fare, homemade Latino plates (all under ten dollars) with an ever-changing menu; we highly recommend the spicy pulpo if it’s available.