Phantasmaphile

Various and Sundry

Lots of tasty news to share with you, so apologies for the Phantasmaphilic potpourri:

First off, my darling husband, Matthew Freeman, has a workshop of his new theatre piece, in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More, which will be opening next week.  He has written and directed it, and it's a sort of avant garde language piece, very poetic and harrowing.  I keep referring to it as his Thom Yorke play.  Performances are Thurs Sept 29th, Fri Sept 30th, and Sat Oct 1st, all at 8pm for $10 admission, at the Brick Theater in Williamsburg:

 

Secondly, the newest episode of The Midnight Archive is up, and it features my frequent collaborator and friend, Mitch Horowitz, giving a brief sampling of the Occult New York Walking Tour we do here in NYC:

We are indeed planning more tours, and I'll keep you posted about them here.  In the meantime, you can check out Mitch in person at Observatory on Friday, October 21st, giving an illustrated lecture on the brilliant esotericist, Manly P. Hall:

Manly P. Hall and The Secret Teachings of All Ages

 

A Talk and Visual Presentation by Mitch Horowitz
Date: Friday, October 21st
Time: 8pm
Admission: $8
Presented by: Phantasmaphile

It is one of the strangest and most beguiling books of the twentieth century: The Secret Teachings of All Ages. Privately printed in 1928 by a 27-year-old occult scholar named Manly P. Hall, the table-top sized volume – brimming with arcane diagrams, otherworldly illustrations, and detailed entries on everything from Pythagorean mathematics and Egyptian geometry to the origins of the Tarot and the secret authorship of the Shakespearean plays – became one of the most successful underground books ever published. Passing through many printings and versions, including a compact “reader’s edition” in the twenty-first century, it reigns as the Encyclopedia Arcana of the modern age – a must-read for every acolyte of mythical traditions, esoterica, and the occult.

Who was the young and preternaturally gifted author of this massive and impactful work? And what were the circumstances behind the early genius of Hall, a man with little conventional schooling who went on to become the most influential occult voice of the last century? In this vibrant and intellectually lively evening, author Mitch Horowitz (Occult America) – who has written widely about Hall’s life and published the recent “reader’s edition” of The Secret Teachings of All Ages – explores the remarkable persona behind this mysterious tome.

Horowitz dissects the unusual career of Hall and explores his legendary status on the West Coast occult scene for most of the twentieth century. From Hall’s art-deco headquarters in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park neighborhood, the arcane scholar not only helped reignite the academic study of esoterica but made an impact on figures as diffuse as Bela Lugosi and Ronald Reagan (who actually quoted from Hall in his speeches). Horowitz also explores the circumstances surrounding Hall’s 1990 death, which is marked by persistent rumors of foul play. Finally, Horowitz considers the wide-ranging influence of The Secret Teachings of All Ages, including the book’s strengths and weaknesses, enduring mysteries, and seismically powerful, yet underappreciated, impact.

***Books will be available for purchase and signing

Mitch Horowitz is the editor-in-chief of Tarcher/Penguin and the author of Occult America (Bantam), which The Washington Post Book World called: “Fascinating…a serious, wide-ranging study of all the magical, mystical, and spiritual movements that have arisen and influenced American history in often-surprising ways.” Horowitz has written on alternative spiritual topics for The Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, CNBC.com, Boing Boing, and The Washington Post, where he recently explored the relationship between Manly P. Hall and Ronald Reagan. In 2003, Horowitz published the “reader’s edition” of The Secret Teachings of All Ages. He leads Observatory’s popular Occult New York Walking Tours and has discussed alternative spirituality on CBS Sunday Morning, Dateline NBC, and All Things Considered. Horowitz is currently writing a history of the positive-thinking movement, to be published by Crown. Visit him online at: www.MitchHorowitz.com.

 

Magic is in the air...!

Séance on a Wet Afternoon

On Friday night, I was given the delicious opportunity to see New York City Opera's current show, Séance on a Wet Afternoon.  The piece was written by musical theater deity Steven Schwartz, prodigy behind Pippin, Godspell, and Wicked.  This is Schwartz's first foray into opera, and he has adapted the 1964 film of the same name (originally a novel by Mark McShane), into a dramatic and elegant spectacle.

The plot: Myra, a local medium, and her obsequious husband, Billy, decide to stage the kidnapping of a little girl.  Myra's interest is not in the ransom money however (she plans not to keep it), but rather in the fame and adulation she will assuredly gain when she "solves" the case using her visionary gift.  The plan gets complicated, however, as the veil between the psychological and spiritual worlds begins to tear.

To say anything more would give too much away, but I will say the story is a lean and intriguing mystery, which turns many corners and asks many questions: about love, morality, reality, and the uncharted realms of the mind.

The production design, devised by Schwartz's son, Scott, is beautiful to behold.  An entire Victorian style house is the main set piece, and made gorgeously ghostly with its translucent walls and silvery sheen.  Curtains of chain shimmer and glint, reminding one of San Francisco rain or ethereal plasma.  The actors are dressed in stylish period garb, and the masterful lighting design illuminates key moments with an otherworldly glow.  These stage pictures were by far my favorite parts of the evening.

As to its success as an opera, I'll leave to more seasoned connoisseurs to debate in great detail.  To my mind, Schwartz has attempted to make a piece that's accessible and modern.  It's in English (and supertitled nonetheless), the language is clear (at times, perhaps more than necessary), the story is very easy to follow, but consistenly interesting, and the music is very pretty.  I will say, the emotionality was a bit uneven for my taste - some high key moments fell a bit flat for me, while at other times I audibly gasped with surprise or reverie.  I'm not sure if this was due to the fluctuating energy of the performers, or due to directorial or musical decisions that need to be tweaked.  I will also say, that as visually stunning as the show is, the lack of any sort of change in the 2nd act made the enchantment wear a little thin.  I would have loved to have seen a new set piece introduced, or even just a change of lighting or color or other sort new visual development as the story progressed.

That said, I feel very fortunate to have gotten to see this opera, and recommend others do the same.  It's a lovely and eerie evening on the whole, with lots to dissect afterwards.  One of the songs has been playing in my head ever since, like a phantom lullaby, and it still gives me the chills.

Remaining Dates at Lincoln Center:

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 7:30pm
Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 8pm
Friday, April 29, 2011 at 8pm
Saturday, April 30, 2011 at 8pm
Sunday, May 1, 2011 1:30pm

(And many thanks to the NYC Opera for my tickets!)

Shameless Spousal Promotion

Many of you know by now that my husband, Matthew Freeman, is a (brilliant) playwright.  He's doing something really cool at the moment as a bit of an experiment, which is making an older play of his, The Americans, available as a Kindle e-book for the can't-be-beat price of $1.99.  This is a wonderful play that reads very lyrically, so perfect for the page...errr screen.  It's about a man who writes a poem so beautiful that it causes a mass explosion.  It also has special significance to me, because it's the first play of his I ever saw back in 2004, when we first started dating.  As the lights went down I thought to myself, "Dear God, I like this guy a lot, so please don't let his play suck."  It didn't.  In fact it made me like him even more, and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Anyhow, you can download the play for your Kindle here, and you can read his thoughts about why he decided to try self-publishing in this format here. 

If paper books are more your thing, you can order his more formally published plays as well:

The Death of King Arthur (Playscripts, Inc.)

When Is A Clock (Samuel French)  

Glee Club  (Playscripts, Inc.)

And he's got loads of short plays and monologues available in many other books, which can best be viewed here, under LINKS on the left.

Anyhow, go head and give The Americans a download.  And let him know what you think of the format, wouldja?  Is reading a play on the Kindle a good experience?  Should he put some other older works up in this fashion?

And isn't he grand?  (Rhetorical, but feel free to tell him so if you like.)

Winter in the Woods performances!

I have raved about theatrical dance troupe Desert Sin before, and always rejoice when any of their company members have a new performance to unveil.  As luck would have it, Desert Sin mastermind, Djahari Clark, has put together a beautiful show which is opening later this month.  It's called "Winter in the Woods" and will be up at The Bushwick Starr for two nights only: Friday, March 18th and Saturday, March 19th.  The show is a pageant of fairy tales and woodland creatures represented though dance (including one of my favorite pieces, "The Snow Queen" with the ethereal Cassandra Rosebeetle), puppetry, and music:

Producer and Director, Djahari Clark, brings an original, dark, and whimsical collaborative project to the stage for one weekend only this March. Inspired by death in 2010, and the desire to turn a looming harsh winter into a positive experience, Djahari approached several of the most inspiring and creative artists in New York asking them to dwell on the theme “winter in the woods”. What came back was an astonishingly beautiful and haunting fairytale world in a thriving winter landscape!

The woods often represent our inner fears: things that are hidden, forbidden, and terrifying. Our group of artists went searching in the frosty forest this winter, and for one weekend only, at the state of the art Bushwick Starr in the thriving community of Bushwick, these artists will show you their magical, disturbing, and playful discoveries through music, song, dance, puppetry, beautiful monsters, and more!

Cunning, disturbing, and always entertaining Desert Sin features Baba Yaga as the host for the evening of “Winter in the Woods”. Fresh off the heels of her new fashion line, “Monstrous”, Kristin Costa breathes life into the winter set and fills the forest with her woodland monsters. Cassandra Rosebeetle, producer of “Sex and Taboo”, gives you a glimpse of one of the wood’s more formidable romantic characters in Desert Sin’s “Snow Queen”. Once again collaborating with Djahari is Jesse Kingsley, founder of LA-based Mystery Bird Puppets, whose puppet mastery and childlike yet eerie aesthetics fill our hearts with fear and wonder. Musician Buffie Roseanne brings a haunting story of Persephone and Demeter, while Cor Leonis, “the Courtney Love of theremin”, tantalizes us with mythical sounds of winter. Brian Ballard’s strong and rousing baritone floats out of the woods to give us hope, and several other artists aid in bringing these stories to the stage!

Djahari Clark, Founder of Desert Sin Dance Theater, has been creating new and emotionally riveting
productions for over a decade with such companies as Desert Sin, The Hidden Room Theater, and Burning Galileo Productions, traveling all over the world to share her ‘strong, disturbing, gorgeous, and distinctly feminine’ characters and stories. Through Desert Sin, and a love of collaboration with other artists, she shares a magical view of the world with people. Djahari has created and produced several full-length productions in Los Angeles and New York including "Musée des Femmes", “Sita’s Fire”, and “Twitchers” at such venues as Hollywood’s Ivar Theater, The Zipper Factory Theater, Galapagos Art Space, Theater for the New City, and The House of Yes. She is delighted to be working with The Bushwick Starr, and invites you to enter “Winter in the Woods”!

Public performances
are March 18th and 19th at 8pm at The Bushwick Starr, 207 Starr Street Brooklyn, NY 11237.

Tickets on sale here.

I will most certainly be there, and you should be, too.

Brandywine Distillery Fire!

Yes, friends.  My schweetheart Matt Freeman's play, Brandywine Distillery Fire, opened last night, and it is utterly brilliant, bizarre, and unmissable.  Tix are usually $18, but tonight's performance is only $10 if you buy online and use discount code "dogfighting" - such a bargain I tell you!  I'll be there myself, you should come.  If you can't make it tonight, no worries, as it's up until September 18th.  Read the deliciously ambiguous synopsis below, buy your tickets, and prepare yourself for an extremely unique and exceptional evening of experimental theatre:

Brandywine Distillery Fire began as an attempt to destroy storytelling.
Or an attempt to tell story in the way that Jackson Pollack paints landscapes. Playmakers Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman conjectured that to develop a theater work in the “wrongest” way possible might be a liberating experience for artists and audiences alike. They proceeded with a series of workshops. In the workshops, they led a process of improvising a play from scratch. And failing. Deliberately. And writing it down. And failing further.

 

Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman

present

Brandywine Distillery Fire

Witness the birth of New Naturalism.
A performance style that will change the way you hear. 
Words.

From the creators of When Is a Clock and Notes from Underground.

Starring Kina Bermudez, Steve Burns, Maggie Cino, Ivanna Cullinan*, Sarah Malinda Engelke*, Alexis Sottile and Moira Stone*

Written by Matthew Freeman

Directed by Michael Gardner

Sept. 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17 & 18 at 8pm
at Incubator Arts Project
www.incubatorarts.org
located in the St. Mark's Church
131 E. 10th Street, New York, NY

Tickets:
General $18.00
Student $14.00

Brandywine Distillery Fire - Please Help & Please Come See It!

Yes, folks, my brilliant and prolific playwright of a fiance, Mr. Matthew Freeman, has a play opening soon at the legendary St. Mark's Church (formerly the artistic home of Richard Foreman).  The play is called Brandywine Distillery Fire, and it is sure to be one of the most unusual and beguiling pieces of theatre you have seen in a very long time:

Brandywine Distillery Fire began as an attempt to destroy storytelling.
Or an attempt to tell story in the way that Jackson Pollack paints landscapes. Playmakers Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman conjectured that to develop a theater work in the “wrongest” way possible might be a liberating experience for artists and audiences alike. They proceeded with a series of workshops. In the workshops, they led a process of improvising a play from scratch. And failing. Deliberately. And writing it down. And failing further.

 

Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman

present

Brandywine Distillery Fire

Witness the birth of New Naturalism.
A performance style that will change the way you hear. 
Words.

From the creators of When Is a Clock and Notes from Underground.

Starring Kina Bermudez, Steve Burns, Maggie Cino, Ivanna Cullinan*, Sarah Malinda Engelke*, Alexis Sottile and Moira Stone*

Written by Matthew Freeman

Directed by Michael Gardner

Sept. 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17 & 18 at 8pm
at Incubator Arts Project
www.incubatorarts.org
located in the St. Mark's Church
131 E. 10th Street, New York, NY

Tickets:
General $18.00
Student $14.00

Now here's the thing my friends.  To have this show be selected for the Incubator Festival is a great honor and wonderful opportunity for my fellow.  In addition to coming to a performance of it (or in lieu of, for you non-NYCers), would you kindly consider helping support the production?  They are in the midst of fundraising for it, and you can rest assured that every cent you send along will be used toward creating this innovative work of art.  Even if it's only $1, truly every little bit helps, so would you please donate here, if you can?

Thanks so much, and see you at the show!

Twitchers

Last night at East Williamsburg's diamond in the rough space House of Yes, I saw an absolutely enthralling and fanciful performance by my favorite theatrical dance company, Desert Sin.  They have joined forces with Lady Circus and The Mystery Bird Puppet Show to create "Twitchers," a stunning evening of performances about birds and flying, and I truly cannot recommend it highly enough.  Each piece is incredibly inventive, the performers have grace and skill in spades, and the costumes are an exquisite riot of glitter, lace, and - of course - feathers.  It is awe inspiring to see the imagination and talent that has gone into the show, especially in light of the fact that they are all relatively young troupes with presumably limited resources.  I sat there the entire time breathless, my jaw agape, and feeling that pure childlike wonder that is too often a rarity these days.  It's difficult for me to choose my favorite part, as there was so much variety and beauty throughout the night, but I will say I was entirely unprepared to feel not only delighted but totally moved by one piece in particular about a deer and a vulture - and that's all I'll say about that.  Anyway, get yourself tickets NOW, this is not to be missed.  And here are more details:

Twitchers…

A tour of birds, dreams, and women who take flight…

A theatrical immersion of dance, puppetry, aerial, live music, spectacle, and pure emotion.

The Desert Sin Dance Company, known internationally for their edgy and sensational fusion of dance is one of the most experimental, cutting-edge theatrical dance companies in North America.

Desert Sin will be teaming up with Mystery Bird Puppet Theater, Lady Circus, and The House of Yes Theater to create a Brooklyn bird-watching experience of a lifetime!

October 1,2,3 and 8,9,10

Doors open at 8pm, the show starts at 9pm:

Tickets:

$15 presale @ www.desertsin.com
$20 at the door

You will be in for a unique and totally unforgettable evening.  Trust me on this one.

Martha Clarke's Garden of Earthly Delights

Last night I had one of the most memorable, awe-striking theatre experiences of my life.  Martha Clarke's Garden of Earthly Delights is a dance/aerial piece based on Hieronymus Bosch's legendary triptych.  I don't even want to say too much about it, because the visuals, choreography, and live music are so surprising and inventive, and frankly, a bit difficult to put into words.  I will say it is a living phantasmagoria that is NOT TO BE MISSED.  It is minimalist and decadent at once, intense and sublime, with undulating shapes and mesmerising stage pictures that sink deep into the psyche.  (Also, it could be a great Valentine's date, provided you and your beloved like your sensuality accented with a bit of the grotesque.)  It's up at the Minetta Lane Theater through March 1st.  I truly cannot recommend this enough, GO SEE IT.

Desert Sin show!

I have written about the dark and beauteous burlesque troupe, Desert Sin, before.  Their show, Musée des Femmes: Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque, has been brought back by popular demand to the Zipper Factory.  Information is as follows:

Desert Sin Dance Company presents:
"Musée des Femmes - Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque"
Thursdays, November 20th and December 18th at 8pm at the Zipper Factory Theater and Tavern
336 W. 37th St. NY, NY 10018
Tickets $20:  (212) 352-3101 or available at www.thezipperfactory.com
Produced by Djahari Clark and Cassandra Siegler, in association with The Zipper Factory Theater
Directed by Djahari Clark

Desert Sin Dance Company, known internationally for their edgy and erotic fusion of dance and theater, now comes to New York with their acclaimed production, "Musée des Femmes - Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque".  This sideshow-stylized psychological spectacle is an imaginative journey through sight-and-sound and is guaranteed to mesmerize the audience!  The unique story line lends an emotional and
human twist to stories of some of the boldest and most intriguing women throughout time, both fictional and historical, including legendary film starlet Mata Hari, The Hindu Goddess Kali, The Snow Queen, and Joan of Arc.

Do go see it - it is gorgeous, disturbing, and really sexy.

Desert Sin

So.  You're interested in the exploding burlesque and belly dancing scene, but you're not sure which act to catch.  Might I recommend the fantastical alternative troupe, Desert Sin?  They interpret myths, fairy tales, and powerful female archetypes through sexy dances and elaborate, shimmering costumes.  I was introduced to them via their enchanting Mermaid Dance, which they performed at the Dances of Vice Festival this past winter.  New Yorkers can see them at the next incarnation of the festival (more on that soon), or by getting tickets to their full-length show, Musée des Femmes: Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque at The Zipper Factory on July 8th or August 12th.

When Is a Clock

"When Is a Clock" is a new play by the very brilliant trailblazer (and keeper of my heart), Matthew Freeman.  It is being billed as "a surrealistic detective story," but I would add that it has moments of outlandish humor, as well as incredible poignance.  Freeman's script is lyrical and bursting with strange beauty, director Kyle Ancowitz is a true visionary, and the actors are some of the finest you will see in New York.  I don't want to give anything else away, so you simply must come and see it yourself.  The show is up at Blue Coyote's Access Theater through May 10th.  Tickets are $18, though preview performances (April 15th-17th) are discounted to $12.  Get em while they're hot (and still available).

Blue Coyote Theater Group presents

When Is A Clock
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 through Saturday, May 10, 2008
8:00pm

A surrealistic detective story from Matthew Freeman.

Length: 1 hr 45 mins
Intermission: None
Seating: General Admission

When Gordon's wife vanishes, the only clue to her whereabouts is a dog-eared copy of an odd book. Pursued by the police as a potential homicide suspect and perpetually nagged by his smart-ass teenage son, Gordon takes off to a strange Pennsylvania town to search for his missing wife. At turns both scathingly funny and disturbingly compelling, When Is A Clock features Freeman's celebrated deconstruction of American culture - which has been called "nonviolent, though as savage as any slasher film" by the NY Times.

Access Theater
380 Broadway
New York, NY 10013
(Corner of B'Way/White Street)
   

Hotel Cassiopeia

We just got tickets to Charles Mee's Hotel Cassiopeia at BAM's Next Wave Festival.  The play is about the illustrious Joseph Cornell, and, as you can see above, the sets look as though they are refracted versions of his famous box assemblages.  The NY Times called the piece, "...a haunting theatrical dreamscape."  Sounds as if it will be right up my alley.