twi-ny recommended events

CHRISTMAS WITHOUT TEARS (DOES THIS TREE MAKE ME LOOK FAT?)

CHRISTMAS WITHOUT TEARS (DOES THIS TREE MAKE ME LOOK FAT?)
The Cutting Room
44 East 32nd St. between Madison & Park Aves.
Friday, December 5, and Monday, December 8, GA $40, VIP $75 (plus $20 food/drink minimum), 8:00
212-691-1900
www.thecuttingroomnyc.com
www.judithowen.net

Spinal Tap star and multiple Simpsons voice Harry Shearer and his wife, musician and songwriter Judith Owen, will be celebrating the season as only they can December 5 and 8 at the Cutting Room with their unique touring variety show, “Christmas without Tears (Does This Make Me Look Fat?).” A fifteen-year tradition previously known as “Judith Owen and Harry Shearer’s Holiday Sing-a-Long,” the evening is broken into two segments, the first consisting of holiday classics (“Winter Wonderland,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”) and originals (“F&*k Christmas,” “Jesus Was a Dreidel Spinner”) performed by Shearer, Owen, and surprise guests, which in the past have included such celebrities as Weird Al Yankovic, Richard Thompson, Catherine O’Hara, Christopher Guest, and Donald Fagen. (The 2014 guest list features Evan Christopher, Davell Crawford, Tom McDermott, Teddy Thompson, David Torkanowsky, Mario Cantone, the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus, Amy Engelhardt, the Gregory Brothers, Artie Lange, Amy Miles, and Alice Ripley appearing at stops either in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Evanston.) For the second act, the audience receives specially designed songbooks and is invited to sing along to a collection of carols until mayhem ensues. Every year, Owen and Shearer release a seasonal song; this year’s treat is their jazzy version of Spinal Tap’s “Christmas with the Devil.” Proceeds from the first show, which will have a decidedly more Creole feel, will benefit the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic & Assistance Foundation, while the December 8 show benefits the Actors Fund.

ZERO MOTIVATION

Daffi (Nelly Tagar) and Zohar (Dana Ivgy) are on their way to more exciting military service in ZERO MOTIVATION

ZERO MOTIVATION (Talya Lavie, 2014)
Film Forum
209 West Houston St.
December 3-16
212-727-8110
www.filmforum.org
www.kinolorber.com

Writer-director Talya Lavie makes a smashing debut with the outrageously funny black comedy Zero Motivation. Inspired by her own mandatory service in the Israeli army, where she served as a secretary, Lavie skewers both military life and office work as she focuses on a group of woman NCOs who spend most of their time fetching coffee for the male officers, singing, poking fun at one another, and trying to break the Minesweeper record on their aging computers. When Tehila (Yonit Tobi) arrives, Daffi (Nelly Tagar) is positive that the mousy young woman is her replacement and that her request for a transfer to Tel Aviv has finally been approved. Daffi’s best friend, Zohar (Dana Ivgy), refuses to follow orders, continually getting into trouble as she disobeys their commander, Rama (Shani Klein), who is gung ho on joining the men at the big boys’ table, and not just to make sure their cups and plates are full. Irena (Tamara Klingon) is a beautiful blond Russian who develops a curious problem of her own. And Livnat (Heli Twito) and Liat (Meytal Gal) enjoy needling the clueless Daffi and the dour Zohar as often as they possibly can. Not much real work gets done in this office, but with an important inspection on the horizon, the women have to shift into gear, although not all of them are exactly on the same page.

Military black comedy was a huge critical and commercial success in Israel

Named Best Narrative Feature at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival and winner of five Israeli Academy Awards — Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Editing (Arik Leibovitch), Best Music (Ran Bagno), and Best Actress (Ivgy, who also won Best Supporting Actress for Next to Her) — Zero Motivation is a madcap romp through the lives of these women, tinged with just the right amount of seriousness. Evoking M*A*S*H mixed with The Office and Orange Is the New Black, the film explores such themes as sex, feminism, power, war, office politics, and love, mostly with its tongue placed firmly in its cheek, along with some genuinely tender moments and a truly devastating scene following a harsh breakup, reminding everyone what really matters. But through it all, Lavie keeps the jokes coming, many of them of the laugh-out-loud, fall-off-your-chair variety, even while sharing telling insights on the mundanity of human existence and the ever-present gender-inequality divide. Zero Motivation is playing December 3-16 at Film Forum, with Lavie and Ivgy on hand for Q&As following the 7:15 shows on December 3, 4, and 5.

FIRST SATURDAYS: BROOKLYN FASHION

Christian Louboutin, “Printz,” Spring/Summer 2013 (courtesy of Christian Louboutin; photograph by Jay Zukerkorn)

Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway at Washington St.
Saturday, December 6, free, 5:00 – 11:00
212-864-5400
www.brooklynmuseum.org

The Brooklyn Museum has fun with its new exhibit, “Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe,” in the December edition of its free First Saturdays program. “Brooklyn Fashion” will feature live performances by the Hot Sardines and TK Wonder; a shoe-making art workshop; a talk with Manufacture New York CEO Bob Bland; screenings of Julie Benasra’s 2011 documentary, God Save My Shoes, and Tom Kalin’s Alternate Endings, short films made in collaboration with artists Rhys Ernst, Glen Fogel, Lyle Ashton Harris, Derek Jackson, My Barbarian, and Julie Tolentino in honor of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Visual AIDS’ Day With(out) Art; a talk with “Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe” curator Lisa Small; an interactive story hour with Aunt Helen’s Closet; a “Killer Heels” photo booth; and a social club with dapperQ.com that includes pop-up shops, a Dapper Academy, and a fashion show. In addition, you can check out such exhibitions as “Revolution! Works from the Black Arts Movement,” “Judith Scott — Bound and Unbound,” and “Crossing Brooklyn: Art from Bushwick, Bed-Stuy, and Beyond.”

REUNION READING AND ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION: THE HASTY HEART

Keith Nobbs and Emily Donahoe will participate in special reading of THE HASTY HEART for Keen Company benefit celebration (photo © Josh Bradford)

The Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row
410 West 42nd St. between Ninth & Tenth Aves.
Monday, December 8, $75-$100, 8:00
www.keencompany.org

In the fall of 2004, Keen Company presented a well-received revival of John Patrick’s 1945 play, The Hasty Heart, about soldiers in a temporary British hospital in South Asia near the end of WWII. In celebration of that production’s tenth anniversary and the troupe’s fifteenth — Keen was founded in 1999 with a mission to “create theater that provokes identification, reflection, and emotional connection . . . telling stories in which people strive to live with integrity” — they will be presenting a special reading of the play on December 8, reuniting most of the cast. Helmed by artistic director Jonathan Silverstein, the reading will take place at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row and will be performed by original cast members Stephen Bradbury, Emily Donahoe, Lucas Hall, Anthony Manna, Keith Nobbs, Brian Sgambati, and Paul Swinnerton along with newcomers Jimonn Cole and Bill Heck. Patrick went on to win a Pulitzer for his 1953 play, Teahouse of the August Moon, and wrote such screenplays as High Society, The World of Suzie Wong, and Some Came Running; The Hasty Heart was also made into a 1949 film starring Ronald Reagan, Patricia Neal, and Richard Todd.

ADGFEST 2014

AMERICAN DANCE GUILD PERFORMANCE FESTIVAL 2014
The Ailey Citigroup Theater
The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 West 55th St. at Ninth Ave.
December 4-7, $20-$30
800-838-3006 ext1
www.americandanceguild.org

The American Dance Guild’s Annual Performance Festival is set for December 4-7 at the Ailey Citigroup Theater, with thirty-three artists and companies performing, including special tributes to Philadanco founder Joan Myers Brown, Douglas Dunn, and Bill Evans. “The American Dance Guild annual festival now holds a unique position as both a promoter of the new and preserver of the living history of modern dance as an art form,” ADG president Gloria McLean said in a statement. The four-day event begins on December 4 with an awards ceremony and works presented by Brown with Hope Boykin, Dunn (Near Miss), Evans (the solo Three Preludes), John Pennington (the New York City premiere of Daniel Nagrin’s solo Man of Action), Sun Ock Lee, Sarah Skaggs, Jody Oberfelder, Chad Michael Hall, Catherine Gallant, and Eye on Dance/Celia Ipiotis, followed by a gala. Friday night brings together Brown (Ronald K. Brown’s Gatekeepers), Juri Nishio, Kyla Barkin, McLean, Dana Tai Burgess, Loretta Fois & Sabatino Verlezza, Aaron Atkins, Zach Ingram, and Sue Bernhard. Taking the stage Saturday night will be Dunn, Amy Pivar, Indah M. Walsh, Chien Ying Wang & Paul Ocampo, Gesel Mason (dancing Donald McKayle’s Saturday’s Child), Maxine Steinman, Mary Seidman, and Azul Dance Theater. ADGFEST 2014 concludes Sunday night with Bill Evans Dance Company (Colony), Tina Croll, Elizabeth Shea, Kanon Sapp, Janet Charleston performing a solo created for her by Dunn, Jin Ju Song-Begin, Ara Fitzgerald & Clare Byrne, and Nai Ni Chen Dance Company.

FILM SOCIETY FREE TALKS: LIV ULLMANN

The lovely Liv Ullmann will be at Lincoln Center for free talk about her adaptation of MISS JULIE

Film Society of Lincoln Center Amphitheater
144 West 65th St. between Eighth Ave. & Broadway
Tuesday, December 2, free, 6:30
212-875-5050
www.filmlinc.com
www.wildbunch.biz

A dozen years ago, we had the pleasure of attending the U.S. premiere of Arne Skouen’s 1969 film, An-Margritt, at Scandinavia House, which was followed by a wonderful discussion with Skouen and his ever-charming star, Liv Ullmann. The Japan-born Norwegian actress, who was raised partly in New York, will be back in town on December 2 to talk about her new cinematic adaptation of August Strindberg’s 1888 play, Miss Julie. Her fifth film as director — she previously helmed Sofie, Kristin Lavransdatter, Private Confessions, and Faithless — Miss Julie, which opens December 5, features Jessica Chastain as the title character, Colin Farrell as John, and Samantha Morton as Kathleen. “I feel the play has always been a part of me. I had hoped to have the chance to play the role on stage when I was younger but it never happened,” Ullmann, who also wrote the screenplay, says in the film’s press kit. “When the producers first contacted me, they asked me if I would be interested in making a film on the theme of a ‘femme fatale,’ a proposal they had also made to a French and a Spanish director. I thought of Miss Julie straightaway and they agreed it was a marvelous idea. As soon as I started to work on the adaptation, I fell in love with it, and not only because of Strindberg’s writing but also because of the themes that are important to me on a personal level: to be seen or to remain invisible, to present an image of oneself which does not correspond to whom one really is, to be loved for oneself and not for what others see in you, the relations between the sexes, and the crises that stem from them….” What should be a lovely, intimate discussion is part of the ongoing series “Film Society Free Talks” at Lincoln Center; free tickets will be given out beginning at 5:30, one per person.

VIDEO OF THE DAY: THE BOTH

After taking a break the past two holiday seasons, Aimee Mann is back with her annual noël celebration. “The Return of the Aimee Mann Christmas Show” comes to New York City on December 13 at the Town Hall, with Aimee joined by Ted Leo, her partner in the new band the Both. Special guests for the evening, which will feature a mix of original music, holiday classics, video, sketches, and more, include Bangles leader Susanna Hoffs, singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton, and comedian Fred Armisen. In preparation for the tour, which will make stops in Tarrytown on December 10 and Westbury on December 12, the Both has released “Nothing Left to Do (Let’s Make This Christmas Blue).”