I recently had the pleasure of talking with Drew Johnson, a genderfluid Austin artist. Born and raised in the Austin area, Johnson graduated in 2008 from the Gemini School of Visual Arts, a 4-year vocational program in Cedar Park. Johnson’s Kickstarter campaign, Gender Portraits, was recently funded at 132% of it’s $7,500 goal. Through Gender […]
Going With the Flow
Something I’ve been thinking about for a few days now. Just got back from Burning Flipside, a much-needed artistic vacation. My lover and I had printed out the list of events from the website before leaving, and while we consulted it several times to see what interesting things might be going on, we mostly just wandered […]
Book Review: The Vagina: A Literary and Cultural History
The Vagina: A Literary and Cultural History, by Emma L. E. Rees explores how female genitalia is represented in popular culture, both throughout history and in the present day. Exploring Literature, Visual Art, Film, Television, and Performance Art, Rees argues that cultural representation of female genitalia follow two tropes: covert visibility (simultaneously seen and unseen) […]
Finding the Way Back to Me
There’s something I’ve been thinking a lot about the past few weeks. I posted a lot while I was still in my old job about how difficult and stressful and demoralizing it was working in a call center. I spent so long trying to get out of there that I didn’t think about how long […]
SXSW Film Review: Song from the Forest
Song From the Forest had its US premiere at Austin’s 2014 SXSW festival. Directed by Michael Obert, Song From the Forest chronicles the life and work of Louis Sarno. Sarno is an ethnomusicologist whose work with the Bayaka pygmies has led to him becoming a full member of their community and creating a life in […]
SXSW Film Review: Born to Fly
Born to Fly is a new documentary film which premiered March 8 at the 2014 SXSW festival. Directed by Catherine Gund, Born to Fly chronicles the work of action architect Elizabeth Streb of the STREB Extreme Action Company in Brooklyn, NY. STREB was founded in 1985, allowing dancers to explore Streb’s “POPACTION” techniques both in […]
Epiphany
Sometimes things which *should* be obvious are not. We’re so occupied elsewhere that we miss what’s in front of our face. That happened to me the other day. I was catching a bus downtown for SXSW, and it dawned on me. I live in Austin. I live in AUSTIN. I LIVE in Austin. For as […]
Review: Zach Theatre’s In the Next Room
ZACH Theatre’s In The Next Room (or the vibrator play) is directed by Sarah Rasmussen, head of UT Austin’s MFA Directing program and former Associate artistic director of ZACH Theatre. Originally produced on Broadway in 2009, In The Next Room is set in the late 19th century at the home of Dr. Givings, a doctor and scientist […]
BOOK REVIEW: Girlfag: A Life Told in Sex and Musicals
Janet W. Hardy pulls no punches in her memoir regarding the road less traveled when it comes to sexuality and intimate relationships. Hardy’s own life story is interspersed with the fictional characters and musical plots which informed it, as well as some historical figures whose stories as told through Hardy’s lens might be surprising. The […]
Margaret Cho’s MOTHER (REVIEW)
Austin’s Paramount, built in Baroque Revival style, was a beautiful location for the show. The walls and ceiling were filled with ornate and elaborate decorations, including a painting of an angel and gargoyles of what might have been Dionysus on either side by the gallery seating. The Paramount was also appropriate for this particular event as […]