this week in lectures, signings, panel discussions, workshops, and Q&As

LEBOWSKI FEST NY 2011

The Dude will abide at this year’s Lebowski Fest, which includes a Q&A with Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore, and T Bone Burnett

THE BIG LEBOWSKI (Joel & Ethan Coen, 1998)
Monday, August 15, 300 New York, Chelsea Piers, $30, 8:00
Tuesday, August 16, Hammerstein Ballroom, 311 West 34th St. between Eighth & Ninth Aves., $52-$74, 8:00
www.lebowskifest.com

One of the ultimate cult classics and the best bowling movie ever, the Coen brothers’ The Big Lebowski has built up such a following since its 1998 release that fans now gather every year for Lebowski Fest, where they honor all things Dude. This time around they’ll be partying even harder, celebrating the August 16 release of the limited-edition Blu-Ray at a pair of special events. On August 15, Achievers can go bowling at Chelsea Piers and take part in costume and trivia contests. The next night, the movie will be screened at the Hammerstein Ballroom, followed by a Q&A with stars Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, and Julianne Moore and music impresario T Bone Burnett, as well as other festivities. As far as the film itself goes, if you’ve never seen it, well, this would be a fine time to finally catch this intricately weaved gem. Bridges is awesome as the Dude, a laid-back cool cat who gets sucked into a noirish plot of jealousy, murder, money, mistaken identity, and messy carpets. Moore is excellent as free spirit Maude, Tara Reid struts her stuff as Bunny, and Peter Stormare, Flea, and Torsten Voges are a riot as a trio of nihilists. Also on hand are Philip Seymour Hoffman, David Huddleston, Aimee Mann, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, David Thewlis, Sam Elliott, Ben Gazzara, Jon Polito, and other crazy characters, but the film really belongs to the Dude and his fellow bowlers Jesus Quintana (John Turturro, who is so dirty he is completely cut out of the television version), Donny (Buscemi), and Walter (Goodman), who refuses to roll on Shabbos. And through it all, one thing always holds true: The Dude abides. (August 16 also marks the release of Bridges’s latest CD, which he will be signing August 18 at 6:30 at the B&N at 555 Fifth and 46th St.; please note that he will not be signing anything else, including Blu-Ray copies of The Big Lebowski.)

FIRST SATURDAYS: CARIBBEAN COUNTDOWN

The Cool and Deadly will play at Brooklyn Museum First Saturday program on August 6

Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway
Saturday, August 6, free, 5:00 – 11:00 (some events require free tickets distributed in advance at the Visitor Center)
212-864-5400
www.brooklynmuseum.org

The Brooklyn Museum is getting its annual Caribbean celebration under way early this year with a full slate of activities as part of its free August First Saturdays program. Things get going at 5:00 with Tribal Legacy leading a funky reggae get-down. At 6:00, visitors have their choice of curator Rich Aste giving a talk on the new acquisition “Free Women of Color With Their Children and Servants in a Landscape” and a screening of Frances-Anne Solomon’s 1995 Trinidad drama What My Mother Told Me. At 6:30, Trinidad native Hazelle Goodman will perform her one-woman show, Don’t Get Me Started, and the Hands-on Art workshop will offer participants the chance to decorate fabrics with Afro-Caribbean designs. At 7:00, NYU associate professor of anthropology Aisha Khan will discuss South Asian and Islamic cultural influences on the museum’s holdings. At 8:00, DJ Spice will get the monthly dance party going, with the Cool and Deadly and DJ Jillionaire highlighting the Afro-Punk Festival at 8:30. As always, the galleries are open until 11:00, giving everyone the chance to see such exhibitions as “Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue-Skinned Savior,” “reOrder: An Architectural Environment by Situ Studio,” “Lorna Simpson: Gathered,” “Skylar Fein: Black Lincoln for Dooky Chase,” “Split Second: Indian Paintings,” “Four Bathers by Degas and Bonnard,” and “Sam Taylor-Wood: Ghosts.”

MASTER CLASS: STEVE JAMES —THE INTERRUPTERS

Former gang members try to stop the violence on the streets of Chicago in THE INTERRUPTERS

Maysles Institute
343 Malcolm X Blvd. between 127th & 128th Sts.
August 5-11, $10
212-582-6050
www.mayslesinstitute.org
www.interrupters.kartemquin.com

For The Interrupters, director, producer, and editor Steve James (Hoop Dreams, At the Death House Door) teamed up with journalist Alex Kotlowitz (There Are No Children Here) to hit the dangerous inner-city streets of Chicago with the men and women of CeaseFire, a grass-roots organization of former gang members who are now trying to stop the violence. Inspired by Kotlowitz’s New York Times Magazine article, the two men concentrate on three primary stories. Ameena Matthews, the Muslim daughter of notorious gang leader Jeff Fort, is working with a deeply troubled young woman who’d rather fight than flee, even if it means being sent back to prison. Cobe Williams has his hands full with the angry, recently released Flamo, who thinks the whole world is against him. And Eddie Bocanegra is attempting to come to grips with a cold-blooded revenge murder he committed when he was a teenager by visiting schools and talking about turning his life around. One of the most poignant moments of the film occurs when Williams brings Lil Mikey back to the barbershop he and several of his cohorts robbed at gunpoint as he again faces some of his victims. Matthews, Williams, and Bocanegra are paid employees of CeaseFire, which was founded by Dr. Gary Slutkin, an epidemiologist who believes that violence is a disease that can be treated in similar ways, and is run by Tio Hardman, who handles his extremely tough task with intelligence and dignity as he deals with what he calls “the madness.” But in a society in which “words’ll get you killed,” as Matthews says early on, these tireless violence interrupters put their own lives on the line every day, battling a sickness that seems to have no end in sight. The award-winning film, a hit at numerous film festivals, felt a bit long at its original 144 minutes, but James has since edited it down to a more streamlined 124 minutes for its theatrical release, which began July 29 at the IFC Center and expands August 5-11 to the Maysles Institute as part of the “Master Class: Steve James” series curated by Sylvia Savadjian, which previously screened such James films as Hoop Dreams, At the Death House Door, and No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson. The August 5 screening at 7:30 will be followed by a Q&A with Operation S.N.U.G.’s Robin Holmes and Karim Chapman, Courtney Bennett of the New York Mission Society), and local Harlem-based violence interrupters.

NATO THOMPSON: SOCIALLY ENGAGED ART OUTSIDE THE BOUNDS OF ARTISTIC DISCIPLINE

Creative Time chief curator Nato Thonpson will give free talk about upcoming exhibition August 2 at the Cooper Union

Rose Auditorium, the Cooper Union
41 Cooper Square
Tuesday, August 2, free, 6:30
www.creativetime.org

From September 23 to October 16, the nonprofit arts initiative Creative Time will be holding the ambitious exhibition “Living as Form” in the abandoned fifteen-thousand-square-foot Essex Market Building, where they previously sponsored Mike Nelson’s “A Psychic Vacuum” in fall 2007. A complex environment constructed by twenty-five curators and more than one hundred artists covering some 350 international projects over twenty years and including nine new site-specific commissions in the surrounding neighborhood, the exhibit focuses on art and activism, highlighting socially engaged works that challenge the status quo. Creative Time is getting the pubic ready for “Living as Form” by holding a series of special events in anticipation of the opening. On Tuesday, August 2, the organization’s chief curator, Nato Thompson, will be be giving a free talk at the Cooper Union, followed by a Q&A moderated by Doug Ashford, an artist, activist, and associate professor at the downtown institution. Creative Time will also host its third annual public summit on September 23 at NYU’s Skirball Center ($45), focusing on socially engaged art, bringing together artists, writers, critics, curators, and art lovers in all-day discussions and presentations.

TWI-NY TALK: MINGMEI YIP

Artist, musician, storyteller, teacher, calligrapher, and novelist Mingmei Yip will help MOCA celebrate Dragon Boat Festival Family Day on July 31

DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL FAMILY DAY
Museum of Chinese in America
215 Centre St. between Howard & Grand Sts.
Sunday, July 31, $10, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
212-619-4785
www.mocanyc.org
www.mingmeiyip.com

Mingmei Yip’s given name means “bright and beautiful,” and it couldn’t be more appropriate for the vivacious, extremely intelligent, utterly engaging Chinese-born multidisciplinary artist, who earned her PhD from the Sorbonne and has lived in New York City since 1992. Mingmei is a journalist, lecturer, tai chi teacher, illustrator, calligrapher, painter, children’s book author, and novelist, having published three well-received tales of historical fiction, Song of the Silk Road, Peach Blossom Pavilion, and Petals from the Sky.

On Sunday, July 31, at 12 noon she’ll be at the Museum of Chinese in America for the second annual Dragon Boat Festival Family Day, telling stories and playing the traditional qin. The celebration will also include a poetry workshop with author Janet Wong, gallery tours, arts & crafts, and much more. Hard at work on her next novel, Mingmei discussed her career and dragon boats with twi-ny.

twi-ny: You have been at the Museum of Chinese in Americas for many events, at both the old and the new venues. What are your impressions of the museum’s new space on Centre St.?

Mingmei Yip: I like the new place! It is very spacious for people to look around, especially the area where they display the books and the permanent exhibition. There are also large rooms for different kinds of events, such as the calligraphy workshop I did earlier this year.

twi-ny: You are a multidisciplinary artist with a wide range of talents. How did you develop such a diverse group of interests?

MY: I am very grateful to my parents — who are unfortunately no longer in this life — who sent me to take painting and music lessons at a very young age. Unlike some children who hate to practice the piano, I loved it! Later, my love of music led me to take up an ancient Chinese stringed instrument called the qin, on which I now perform professionally. I was recently invited by Carnegie Hall to play at its Ancient Paths, Modern Voices Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture. My next concert will be at Smith College on August 8. I am also doing a few storytelling events and calligraphy workshops for children.

twi-ny: Do you get different kinds of satisfactions from each artistic discipline?

MY: I do get different kinds of satisfaction from each of my artistic activities. Now my focus is on writing my novels. My third, Song of the Silk Road, just came out. It is an adventure and love story set along China’s most fabled route with the lure of a three million dollar reward.

The bright and beautiful Mingmei Yip lives up to her name in many ways

twi-ny: Might you be able to share any details with us about your next book?

MY: My next novel is The Skeleton Women, set in the thirties in Shanghai — the same era as my first novel, Peach Blossom Pavilion — to be published by Kensington Books in 2012. In China, femme fatales were known as skeleton women because their charm and scheme could reduce a man to a skeleton. For a susceptible man, the change from mansion to homelessness could happen in the blink of a mascaraed eye. In The Skeleton Women, the protagonist is known as a nightclub singer but is actually a spy for a powerful gangster organization trying to topple a rival gang!

twi-ny: Your novels touch on the changing sociocultural landscape of China on a very personal level. You were born in China; do you ever go back? What do you see as some of the positive changes occurring in China today, and what are some of the negatives?

MY: I go back to China very often, mainly to do research for my future novels or to play at qin events. I’m very glad to see that as China modernizes, things are clean and convenient. However, I am less happy to see the big cities occupied by foreign chains like McDonald’s, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and expensive designer boutiques.

twi-ny: You will be performing as part of MOCA’s Dragon Boat Festival Family Day. Does the Dragon Boat Festival hold any personal memories for you?

MY: The Dragon Boat Festival is to honor Qu Yuan, the patriotic poet. But what I remember from childhood is the tasty dumplings and exciting Dragon Boat races!

THE INTERRUPTERS

Former gang members try to stop the violence on the streets of Chicago in THE INTERRUPTERS

THE INTERRUPTERS (Steve James, 2011)
IFC Center
323 Sixth Ave. at West Third St.
Opens Friday, July 29
212-924-7771
www.ifccenter.com
www.interrupters.kartemquin.com

For The Interrupters, director, producer, and editor Steve James (Hoop Dreams, At the Death House Door) teamed up with journalist Alex Kotlowitz (There Are No Children Here) to hit the dangerous inner-city streets of Chicago with the men and women of CeaseFire, a grass-roots organization of former gang members who are now trying to stop the violence. Inspired by Kotlowitz’s New York Times Magazine article, the two men concentrate on three primary stories. Ameena Matthews, the Muslim daughter of notorious gang leader Jeff Fort, is working with a deeply troubled young woman who’d rather fight than flee, even if it means being sent back to prison. Cobe Williams has his hands full with the angry, recently released Flamo, who thinks the whole world is against him. And Eddie Bocanegra is attempting to come to grips with a cold-blooded revenge murder he committed when he was a teenager by visiting schools and talking about turning his life around. One of the most poignant moments of the film occurs when Williams brings Lil Mikey back to the barbershop he and several of his cohorts robbed at gunpoint as he again faces some of his victims. Matthews, Williams, and Bocanegra are paid employees of CeaseFire, which was founded by Dr. Gary Slutkin, an epidemiologist who believes that violence is a disease that can be treated in similar ways, and is run by Tio Hardman, who handles his extremely tough task with intelligence and dignity as he deals with what he calls “the madness.” But in a society in which “words’ll get you killed,” as Matthews says early on, these tireless violence interrupters put their own lives on the line every day, battling a sickness that seems to have no end in sight. The award-winning film, a hit at numerous film festivals, felt a bit long at its original 144 minutes, but James has since edited it down to a more streamlined 124 minutes for its theatrical release, which begins July 29 at the IFC Center. James, Kotlowitz, Williams, and coproducer Zak Piper will be on hand for several opening-weekend screenings to talk about the film and CeaseFire. In conjunction with the release of The Interrupters, the Maysles Institute is hosting “Master Class: Steve James,” curated by Sylvia Savadjian, which continues with screenings of Hoop Dreams on July 29, At the Death House Door on August 4, and then The Interrupters August 5-11.

THE PONDEROSA STOMP: SHE’S GOT THE POWER! A GIRL GROUP EXTRAVAGANZA

Some of the greatest female singers in girl-group history will be belting it out at the annual Ponderosa Stomp at Lincoln Center on Saturday

Lincoln Center Out of Doors
Saturday, July 30, free
David Rubenstein Atrium, 12 noon – 4:00
Damrosch Park Bandshell, 5:00 – 10:00
www.ponderosastomp.com

The annual Ponderosa Stomp celebration at Lincoln Center’s summer Out of Doors festival returns this Saturday with a pair of exciting — and free — presentations that pay tribute to the classic girl groups of the 1950s and ’60s. First up is “Girl Talk,” a symposium being held in the David Rubenstein Atrium from 12 noon to 4:00 on July 30. Moderated by Sheryl Farber, Alison Fensterstock, and Lauren Onkey, the various panels will examine Ellie Greenwich’s legacy, share rare film clips of girl groups (courtesy of Joe Lauro), and include interviews and appearances by Lesley Gore, Peggy Santiglia Davison and Jiggs Sirico of the Angels, Beverly Warren, Brenda Reid, and Lillian Walker Moss of the Exciters, and others. At 5:00 everyone will head over to the Damrosch Park Bandshell for “She’s Got the Power! A Girl Group Extravaganza,” a five-hour concert featuring all of the above performers in addition to Arlene Smith from the Chantels, Baby Washington, Barbara Harris of the Toys, LaLa Brooks from the Crystals, Louise Murray of the Jaynetts, Margaret Ross of the Cookies, and Nanette Licori of Reparata and the Delrons. Oh, did we mention that the amazing Ronnie Spector and the great Maxine Brown will be there as well?