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tellevangeline · 3 months

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(Photo of me and my husband by @mettieostrowski on insta)

Caroline Polachek as a Sociological Phenomena and why it’s Important to Gatekeep Twinks.

So there I was (picture unrelated) waiting for the train at 10:30 PM on a Sunday so I can go take some extra estradiol from a generous friend at a gay bar, full incognito, wearing a fucking hoodie, I’m so tired I spent all day working on the flier for my new absurdist drag bingo because I and everyone I know are walking parodies of bushwick transexuals.

Train is taking forever so I have some time to kill, and I decide (d? Should I care about continuity? I am not a writer, I’m an author.)

Anyway I decided to put the recent Caroline Polachek album on, which is big for me because I have been a bit of a Caroline Polachek denier. I listened to Chairlift very casually when I was a teenager but I was far from die hard and since then I’ve kind of just thought of her as an unfortunate but all too common case of a talented musician being so aggressively HAIM-Pilled that it’s practically deafening. I say this as a dyke with love for all dykes❤️

Also the “new queen of artpop” claims coming from the exact type of 5’8 naturally dirty blonde he/they’s I’ve made it my life goal to disagree with at all times are really not helping her case for me.

Because here’s my thing. I’m a Kate Bush ride or die, surprising I know. I have I’ve always been a coward tattooed below my collarbones like the only 1% I’ll ever be a part of is her Spotify listeners.

But here’s the tea, if you’re not ready and willing to hee haw like a fucking donkey on a song that’s probably about some form of domestic abuse you just aren’t the new queen of artpop. I do make the rules and to be honest the only people in pop music right now not named lady fucking gaga who has the panache, the gaul, the unwavering commitment to pull stunts and shenanigans on that level are Ethel Cain and Lingua Ignota, especially since FKA Twigs decided she wanted to live a happy and fulfilling life (and good for her, thank you for all the good times queen)

And Caroline is simply not there, she’s too squeaky clean and widely appealing to go to those absurd and ugly places that make a Bjork.

Now my personal cocomelon/surrogate father figure Anthony Fantano the Internet’s Busiest Music Nerd did love her album, and I usually agree with his takes (mbdtf is mid you just love it because it was baby’s first concept album and you have a deep yearning to return to a time in your life where you first realized music could be art) BUT WHILE I AGREE WITH MANY OF HIS TAKES (sorry) my one glaring exception is that he never takes how cunt something is into consideration while evaluating a piece of music, and by that I do mean that he said gaga peaked at fame monster and 212 is the only good azealia banks song. He doesn’t have the tools to engage with music in a fag like manor, so when we’re dealing with music for gays, I don’t trust him.

And then last night I saw a Drag Queen named The Illustrious Pearl perform welcome to my island as a showgirl vampire wearing rhinestoned knee pads and frankly if Caroline is good enough for her she’s certainly good enough for me.

And I’m gonna be really vulnerable here, I really enjoyed the album. Like, there’s about as much art in it’s pop as cranberry in a gay bar vodka cran but it’s damn good pop and the art adds a nice little aftertaste.

I believe is definetely my favorite, those Rhythm Nation/Mortal Kombat ass synth hits always make me convulse (America Has A Problem is my favorite track off Renaissance) (it took me a whole 2 minutes to spell renaissance right) but I also like welcome to my island a lot and I at least liked everything else except for Billions which sounds like a song that was rejected from The Sensual World because Kate would never release a song that non-violent.

But it was cute. I have a meeting with a literal church upstate that is trying to book me for their pride drag show tomorrow and one of them just texted me “Brainstorming with the Holy Spirit is so exciting and so fruitful ✝️💜✝️) and I believe those synth hits on I Believe will carry me through my challenges tomorrow. Love Down.

Xoxo

-Evangeline

#caroline polachek #gay twink #bushwick #does tumblr have an algorithm now?

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writemarcus · 1 year

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In Conversation: Keelay Gipson with Marcus Scott

Keelay Gipson, an award-winning multi-disciplinary Afro-surrealist dramatist, activist, and teaching artist, knows what it means to battle your inner demons and come out the other side.

In June 2020, during the pandemic, Gipson’s mother, Gwendolyn, passed away. From the pangs of grief, Gipson began excavating and examining his life and journey as a storyteller. Born in Oklahoma City to a young, unwed mother, the prolific writer was adopted by a Black married couple from the Deep South who relocated and raised him in the idyllic suburbs of Tulsa. It was his mother that nourished his love of theater and the performing arts. Studying acting at Pace, and after a period of being relegated to roles of drug dealers, gang bangers, and sex workers, Gipson turned his focus to writing for the stage and advocating for Black people and Black lives through his work. This would eventually lead to a passionate drive as an activist, with Gipson eventually becoming a member of “We See You, White American Theater,” an anonymously-led coalition of artists that circulated a widely read set of demands for change during a cultural reckoning that saw seismic shifts in and out of the entertainment world.

Now, the award-winning scribe is on the verge of making his off-Broadway debut with the kitchen-sink drama demons., a poetic meditation on loss and legacy. The play, produced by The Bushwick Starr in association with JAG Productions, revolves around the Daimon family who have come together to bury their patriarch and exorcise the trauma passed down to them—but is it too late?

While speaking via FaceTime from his apartment in Brooklyn’s Flatbush neighborhood, Gipson was in the midst of rehearsals for DOT DOT DOT, a TheaterworksUSA musical commission based on the Creatrilogy trio of picture books by New York Times bestselling author Peter H. Reynolds, adapted with composer Sam Salmond. Below is our conversation about the glass ceiling, gatekeeping, and demons.

Marcus Scott (Rail): Can you describe the journey of going from actor to playwright?

Keelay Gipson: The journey from actor to playwright was really just me following the path of least resistance. I was a student in the Musical Theater program at Pace University (class of 2010) and didn’t find much success in booking roles in my time there. This was way before we were having these kinds of nuanced conversations surrounding race and representation in theater. So I began writing roles for myself to act. I would get folks together in an empty studio and we’d read my plays. Soon I stopped acting in them and would just listen to them. I found my voice while trying to give me and the other brown and Black folks an opportunity to be full artists during a time and in a program where that wasn’t happening.

Rail: How many plays have you written and where does demons. stand among them?

Gipson: I’ve written seven full length plays. demons. is the most recent. I began working on it in the summer of 2019 as part of a joint residency with New York Stage and Film and the Dramatist Guild Foundation.

Rail: While I have my theories—why is the name of your show called demons.?

Gipson: I grew up in a Southern Baptist household. The idea of demons. is something that has always been a part of my consciousness. As a child, I remember my dad telling stories about seeing exorcisms, and it always fascinated me. This idea that something other could be the cause of our afflictions, both mentally and physically. I wanted to toy with that idea. Honor the faith that I grew up with while reclaiming it on some level.

Rail: In a 2020 interview with JAGFest, you said “demons. was a play I wasn’t supposed to write, so I listened to the muse; I sat down and it came out of me.” Can you explain this?

Gipson: As I said, I was in residence with NYSAF and DGF at Vassar in the summer of 2019. I was there to work on another play of mine, The Red and the Black—which is a play about the rise of New Black Conservatism. I often have multiple projects going at one time. A play I’m “supposed to” be writing and a “procrastination play” [laughs]. demons. was the latter. Honestly, it was a thought experiment. I was moving squarely into my mid-thirties and I had seen friends lose parents, and I was trying to mentally prepare myself for what that might feel like. Little did I know, the play would be the precursor for my own experience with the death of a parent during the pandemic. I say, “it wasn’t the play I was supposed to write” but it was the play I needed to write.

Rail: So, what’s it about? What was the inspiration for your play demons.? I assume the loss of your mother.

Gipson: Yeah. So, the story follows a Black family after the death of their patriarch. And what I noticed in dealing with the aftermath of a death is that a lot of stuff comes up, right? So, demons. is an exploration through an Afro-surrealist lens of what comes up after the death of a family member, mainly of a parent. The things that you have to reckon with, things that maybe aren’t yours, but that you inherit. So, there’s this idea of inherited trauma, and especially with Black folks in America, what we pass down to our family members and what we leave behind when we’re no longer here. So, demons. is an exploration of all of those good things that death sort of unearths.

Rail: I followed your journey throughout the pandemic with regards to the loss. Once again, I'm very sorry for your loss, man.

Gipson: Thank you. I appreciate it.

Rail: What was your relation like to your mother?

Gipson: My mother was my biggest cheerleader. In high school, she was the president of the parent association for the drama program. She got the pass to come do a photo-call during the dress rehearsal; she would be there with her camera in the front row taking pictures, not for promotional use but for the scrapbook. Like, my mom was the one who was like, “Go to New York.” I went to New York a couple times in high school with my drama program and my mom came as a chaperone. We went and saw the shows that we saw with the theater department and then we went and saw our own shows. My mom, she loved theater and she was the one that—when we didn’t have the money and I didn’t know if I could come to New York to go to school—she pulled me aside and was like, “I’m gonna make this happen for you.” She was… she was everything.

Rail: So, you’re working on this play about Black conservatives—I think it’s hilarious cause both of us have written about Black conservatives during the pandemic, by the way—and you’ve got so many other things going on; you’re an advocate, or an “artivist” as you call yourself, being one of the figureheads behind We See You, White American Theater and the issues revolving around that, in tandem with the multiple projects you’re cultivating. So before we get into that aspect of your life, was it hard for you to kind of mentally go from one place to another place? Are you one of those writers where you have to be working on multiple projects or are you one of those writers where you can only work on one project at a time?

Gipson: I have never worked on just one project at a time. I think for me, I need something that’s completely opposite of the thing that I’m supposed to be doing. Like, if I have a commission that’s about a historical moment, then I’m gonna write something that’s wild and fanciful over here to like, break out of that—not monotony—but break out of the sort of structure that one wouldn't give me. So yeah, I’m often working on multiple things just to keep my brain limber.

Rail: That’s interesting. I see the link between The Red and the Black in your artivism, but what about this particular play with regards to it?

Gipson: This play kind of feels like a new era of my artistry. You know, I’ve written several plays that are about race, that are about Black folks dealing with race and racism, and not like, being beat down by it, but finding a way through; and I try to be honest in all of those works, but this play feels very much not a part of that pantheon. It feels like, to quote Toni Morrison, I’m taking the white person off of my shoulder. It’s not about race. It’s about Black folks. I wanna write about Blackness and all its complexity and not in relationship to whiteness or to racism. This feels like a new era of work for me, where it’s just about these Black folks in a room trying to figure out how they move forward after this thing devastates them. In the opening of the play, it says “a Black family and extremists.” Like, that’s what the play’s about. How do we relate to each other? The world sort of doesn’t come inside of the space in this play. It’s about Black folks in a space together figuring it out and not in relationship to society or the political landscape or 2022, 2023… it’s timeless in a way because death will always be true.

Rail: Let’s talk politics. Let’s get into it. There were many incidents over the last three years and many of those incidents in the industry in some way involved We See You, White American Theater. This collective has attracted the likes of Tony Award winners, the Academy Award winners, the Broadway Elite and those on the rise… What was the intention behind that? Was there a litmus for that?

Gipson: I think that during the pandemic, we had a lot of time, right? I’ll say that a lot of people had things in the pipeline and the industry was chugging along. There was no reason for it to change. It was working. Then everything stopped and we had time to look at the way that things are going. Look at our industry for real, holistically, and I think a lot of us brown and Black folks saw that it's not working, not for us, and it hasn't been for a long time. We’ve been tokenized. So, in working alongside those organizations and those movements, I was trying to galvanize other brown and Black folks who felt similarly that the industry wasn’t working for us and we could do better. Like, especially in the theater.

The theater is different than film and television because it’s people in a room breathing the same air, there are people sharing space, right? And I’ve always wondered how we can do better at sharing spaces with one another; and I’m all about community. The theater for me has always been a community-driven space. So, I wanted this community to mean what it says! I do think that it's business as usual a little bit again, which is not concerning because I think that the theater is working the way that it was designed to work. Much like a lot of things in our society. Yes, we can push back on it, but if we don’t imagine new models—like completely new models—then the old models that we’re trying to reform are always going to try to revert back to the way they were working. Cause that’s how they were built to work. So, the momentum of some of these things, like We See You… there are several organizations, I don’t want to just point to that one… but I wonder what their role is now because things kind of feel like they’re back to normal. I mean, the seven Broadway shows that were Black-led that came right out of the pandemic, that’s a great thing. But they all closed pretty early. Even with Ain't No Mo… it’s not working. So what?

It’s not us, it’s not the Black creatives. Right? It's because we know these things that we’re trying to make it better and it’s not getting better. So, it feels like it’s the model. I don't know, I think we need to imagine bigger than we are even doing now. I think we need to think magically, we’re theatremakers, right? We deal in magical thinking. I think we need to do that more when it comes to the theater because right now we’re just trying to polish a turd a little bit, it feels like. [Laughs] Like, we know it doesn’t work. And we had all of this time to try to make it work and it’s still not working. I think of the Cleveland Play House incident that just happened. And I’m like, “How, after all of this time of listening and learning, did we come to this moment?” So, we have to think magically. We need to think bigger than I think we even know.

Rail: For our readers, what are some things that we need to really look at? You mentioned the seven shows that opened on Broadway in the fall of 2021: Pass Over by Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu, Lackawanna Blues by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Chicken & Biscuits by Douglas Lyons, Thoughts of a Colored Man by Keenan Scott II, Trouble in Mind by Alice Childress, Clyde’s by Lynn Nottage, and Skeleton Crew by Dominique Morisseau. Since that time, shows like Jordan E. Cooper’s Ain’t No Mo’, the Broadway transfer of the Asian-led musical K-Pop, MJ: The Musical (also penned by Nottage) and Adrienne Kennedy’s Ohio State Murders opened and closed on Broadway. Not to mention, Michael R. Jackson’s A Strange Loop.

Gipson: And it won every single award it could possibly win; you know what I mean?

Rail: What are some things that we can look at in general for the field? Because this is a global issue affecting Black, Brown and BIPOC people on both sides of the pond. Using a bit of magical thinking, what are some concepts, machinations or ideas that could work?

Gipson: I think it starts with audience cultivation. Honestly. I think outreach is a huge thing that theaters don’t know how to do because they rely on their subscriber base. That's the truth. The subscriber base we know is mostly older white folks who have disposable income. Millennials don’t have disposable income. And like, I'm sorry, but to get a package at one of these off-Broadway theaters, or to go to a night at the theater and get a good seat, it’s expensive. Right? So there needs to be outreach to people who can't spend a hundred dollars or five hundred dollars or a thousand dollars on a package for a season. And we need to make it cool. Honestly, theater is not cool. It’s only cool when it’s like the hottest ticket in town, right? Right? We need to figure out a way to make theater accessible to people younger than the Boomers and to Millennials that don’t have disposable income. And it’s not gonna happen with one or two nights of Affinity Nights. It’s gonna happen by putting people on late night shows! I don't know. I’m not like a marketing person but to me, it feels like there’s a disconnect between what the theater is talking about. Because once people come see these plays and get talking, that’s where the change will happen. But you gotta get people into the theater and from what I’ve seen, it’s the same people. And yes, there’s Affinity Nights, and so you can go to a Black Theater Night or an LGBTQ Theater Night and see your community. But the truth of the matter is we’re either seeing it for the second time, or it’s because it's your community, you’re finally seeing those people, but they were gonna come to the show anyway.

Rail: Ain’t that the truth. So, you are trying to appeal to a particular audience. How would you market demons.?

Gipson: I don't know. That's interesting because I couldn’t go to churches, I don't think, and market this show in the same way that like Ain’t No Mo’ might be able to. I’m a professor, so I’m going to try and get young people to see this show. Young Black people because this show’s kind of weird. I like weird stuff. Weird Black shows can be successful too. Shows that are weird and Black… there's a place for them. A Strange Loop is weird to me. I’m like, that's cool. Passing Strange, things like that. How can we take Black surrealism, things that are a little left of center, but talk about being Black in a way that is just as valid as something that’s a little more straightforward.

Rail: You’ve grown exponentially as an artist, mostly because of just the nature of the beast. Where do you think the next stage of Keelay Gipson is going?

Gipson: I hope it is still in the theater. Actually, I know it is. I think I'm working on some musicals. I know I’m working on some musicals. I’m working on a new history play about Tulsa (because I’m from Tulsa and I haven’t written about being from Tulsa and being Black from Tulsa, and I think I should do that). So musicals, a play about Tulsa and hopefully, a film or a TV show.

Rail: And if you could bring any family member to see this show, who would you bring?

Gipson: I would bring my mother. Yeah, I would bring my mother. I kind of regret—I’ve told her to wait so many times to, you know, just wait until it’s the real thing. “Don’t come to the reading, just wait till it’s the real thing.” So, I would want her to see the real thing.

Rail: Pleasure to finally meet you, Keelay.

Gipson: No, this was lovely. Thank you. Thank you.

The Bushwick Starr and The Connolly Theater demons. May 20–June 10, 2023 Brooklyn

Contributor

Marcus Scott

Marcus Scott is a New York City-based playwright, musical writer, opera librettist, and journalist. He has contributed to Time Out New York, American Theatre Magazine, Architectural Digest, The Brooklyn Rail, Elle, Essence, Out, Uptown, Trace, Hello Beautiful, Madame Noire and Playbill, among other publications. Follow Marcus on Instagram.

#Keelay Gipson #KeelayGipson #Marcus Scott #MarcusScott #WriteMarcus #Write Marcus #Playwrights #Black Playwrights #Writers #Black Writers #The Brooklyn Rail #Brooklyn Rail

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thnxforknowingme · 1 year

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My fic year in review 2022

Copying @forabeatofadrum because I like to talk about myself and this seems like a fun end-of-year reflection. If any other writers see this and want to do it, please do!

Fics I wrote:

True Colors

The Feeling's Plain to Me

In Orbit

these bodies are hoping to get addicted to sound

Miles To Go

Courting Royalty

Cohabiting

Confluence

Connecting

Peaches

Roots

Babysitting

A Matter of Distance

Texts With Benefits

The Some Kind of Summer series

A World to Rediscover

The Mattress

Naughty and Oh, So Nice

Questions and thoughts below:

Best/worst title?

I hate titling stories, so honestly I'm not totally satisfied with any of my titles. Courting Royalty is probably my most clever - it's thematically relevant, a pun, and isn't just a lyric or literary reference. The worst title is these bodies are hoping to get addicted to sound because it's SO LONG WHY DID I DO THIS?

Best/worst summary?

I'm pretty happy with the summary for Miles To Go, because I feel like it gets at the tone and plot of the story without giving too much away:

In the wake of Finn’s death, Kurt struggles to keep up with schoolwork at NYADA or engage with his life in general. He finally finds purpose again when he decides to spend the summer venturing west, to scatter Finn’s ashes in the Pacific Ocean. The road trip is long and lonely and challenging, but Kurt’s luck starts to turn around when he meets a handsome man named Blaine, who’s heading to California for his own reasons. After crossing paths in Colorado, they decide to travel together. As they get closer to the west coast they start to let down their walls, learning more about each other and revealing what they’re really seeking on this trip.

The worst summary is probably The Feeling's Plain to Me, because it's so nondescript and boring, but I feel like I can get away with it because it's a sequel:

Ficlets set in the same ‘verse as It’s Who I’m With. What did Kurt and Blaine get up to in between Christmas and St. Patrick’s Day?

Best/worst first line?

If I have to pick a best, it might be Confluence, because I feel like it packs a lot into one sentence:

Charades and fishbowl were the first-choice games to get drunk during in the Bushwick loft, but sometimes the roommates wanted a quicker avenue to intoxication - in which case they played King’s Cup.

This is kind of cheating because Courting Royalty really opens with a magazine article, but the first line of narration is probably my favorite opening:

When Rachel had told Kurt that she was secretly a European princess, he was 100% certain that it was a scam.

I don't have anything that stands out to me as "worst" - just a few pretty mediocre ones.

Best/worst last line?

I'm gonna say that the best is True Colors, because it's decently long and interesting:

But she smiled at her reflection - pink hair and ratty clothes and eyes bright with the sheen of intoxication - because she was free, and she was excited to figure out who the hell this new self was.

I think worst is probably Confluence. Not because it's particularly bad, but because I realize it's the second time this year I ended a fic with "Blaine follows Kurt out of bed for post-sex showering," and this ending line is the less interesting version of that:

“Ours,” Blaine agreed, and then pushed himself out of bed to follow his breathtaking naked fiancé to the shower.

Looking back, did you write more fics than you thought you would this year, less than you thought, or about what you predicted?

Way more! I feel like I was constantly writing this year. I did not expect to both have so many ideas and be able to deliver on so many of them.

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted last year?

Uhhhh I mean I never expected to write a Kurt/Blaine/Sam threesome, let alone multiple fics about it, let alone spark a whole impromptu fest about it. This started as one sort of silly idea - the observation that both Kurt and Blaine had crushed on Sam and then ended up living with him - that other people took and built on, inspiring me and others to keep writing more.

Relatedly, I also didn't expect to write real actual smut, but we'll get back to that later.

What’s your favourite story this year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you the happiest.

Ooof. I mean, I don't publish anything that I'm not proud of, and it's hard to pick my favorite child. If I had to choose one story that I'm the proudest of (saying it makes me happy is a little weird, although it does), it's probably Miles To Go. I know I've talked a lot about it elsewhere, but I think it's the most impressive work I've made this year, and there are so many scenes that I just love (the WHOLE Vegas sequence, man, I love myself for that).

Okay, NOW your most popular story.

By pretty much any metric, it's In Orbit. I'm immensely surprised and pleased that so many people enjoyed it. It meant a lot to me, and god was it fun to write.

Story most underappreciated by the universe?

This year it looks like it was True Colors, which has existed for just under a year and has 50 hits. I get it - it's a gen fic, a character study of Quinn - but I'm really proud of that story. It was one of those delightful creative exercises where I got to dive into the weird complexities of what characters might be going through emotionally, giving a little more weight and reality to the high-drama insanity that is Glee.

Story that could have been better?

I think it's Courting Royalty. I adored that prompt, and was so happy to write for it. I think it could have been a much more expansive story - there's so much to explore in the idea of surprise teenage royalty, and honestly it could have used more humor and hijinks. But I knew going in that I had to keep the scope pretty limited. I had just finished writing Miles To Go, which was 35k that I wrote in like, 2 months? I was tired, and on a deadline for the bang, so I kept it pretty succinct while still telling a complete story. I have some vague ideas for a sequel, so hopefully I can return to that world someday and expand on it.

Sexiest story?

Gotta be Confluence. It wasn't the first E-rated fic that I wrote, but it was the most like..."this is just a story about sex" fic that I wrote. I still kind of can't believe I did it.

Saddest story?

Miles To Go. It's about grief, and loss, and figuring out how to move forward from that. I'm happy with how I portrayed that, and if I did my job right I made some readers cry.

Most fun?

Maybe these bodies? It was sexy and fun, I got to throw in a little Kurtbastian to a Klaine story, and there was something very entertaining about Blaine's mix of immense guilt and immense horniness.

Story with single sweetest moment?

I don't think I write terribly treacly scenes. What comes to mind is the end of In Orbit - because the boys had been through a lot, so the epilogue was pretty damn sweet.

Hardest story to write?

Probably Naughty and Oh, So Nice. I was SO not inspired for this one. I wanted to write a Kublam Christmas fic - because, I don't know, there was something there about the warmth of the holidays mixed with the excitement of seeing old friends mixed with the dizzying possibilities of "seeing" old "friends" wink-wink-nudge-nudge. But then I was just not in a sex-writing mood but I needed to get it done by Christmas. The first draft of this was so bad, y'all. It had sentences like "and it felt amazing and then they both came." I still don't think it's as good as my other smutty fics (and I don't know how personal I wanna get in order to justify that lol), but thankfully several heroes from the Lima Bean Discord server helped me punch it up.

Easiest/most fun story to write?

Oh this is kind of how I answered the previous questions about these bodies, but I'll also say that In Orbit was a joy to write. There were some parts that were a little tougher to figure out, but overall I was just building the story ahead of me as I went, and it was a delight the whole time.

Did any stories shift your perceptions of the characters?

I really enjoyed examining both Quinn and Sam in the stories they were featured in this year - both of which I started doing a little last year, too. Writing the Some Kind of Summer stories was also a fun way to examine an alternate backstory for Sebastian. It's usually so accepted fandom-wide that he's a trust fund baby, so making it so that his stepdad was the rich/notable family member and he actually came from humbler roots was a fun avenue to explore. How does that recast Sebastian's personality and actions?

Most overdue story?

Definitely the Some Kind of Summer series. I had this image of Kurt and Sebastian being next-door neighbors and meeting on the roof outside of their bedrooms YEARS ago. Like, Glee-was-still-airing years ago. So I'm super glad that I finally got the chance to write that.

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?

Firstly I would just say that writing smut is a writing risk that I didn't expect to take. I think I have some old post where I say smut writers are braver than US marines and I can't imagine doing that - but, bit by bit, I worked my way up to the stuff I've written this year. It's challenging in a new way, but it's been interesting to play with and fun to bring some of my sexier ideas to life.

Secondly, I participated in collaborative fandom events, and working with an artist was a new and totally delightful experience for me. I can see how nerve-wracking that kind of collaboration could be, but I was fortunate to work with people who were great teammates and made some incredible art to go along with my stories!

Somewhat relatedly, I also became an admin for a fandom blog, and we hosted an event for the first time. We didn't get a ton of engagement, but we did get some, and I'm so grateful and astounded that anyone at all wanted to participate. I'm also really happy with the stuff that I wrote for that event. I don't know that it taught me much about writing, but running a fandom blog has definitely been a learning experience, and I hope we continue to grow and get better as we try more events.

This year’s theme and the story that demonstrates it most:

I cannot think of a cohesive theme for everything I've written this year (beyond the reality that it's all written by me and so it has my interests and experiences and hangups throughout). Honestly I'm happy with the variety, though.

What are your fic writing goals for next year?

I want to make progress on and start posting Disaster Boys (working title) (and also hopefully finish it, God I hope that doesn't take a whole year). I also have a whole list of other fic ideas I'd love to make headway on - most notably my Mediator AU, which I MUST WRITE but still have to work out so many plotting kinks before I can truly start drafting.

Overall, this was a shockingly productive and creative year. According to AO3 I published 164,797 words in 2022 (which is inflated because In Orbit was actually mostly posted in 2021). It's the first full year of fic writing I've had since getting back into fandom. I'm pleased that I still have so much that I want to work on.

#about my fic

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hoes4dylanobrien · 2 years

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The Fun Parts (A More Informal Review of NotOkay)

Oh ya, I should prob mention #spoilers

Colin being a reverse SexGod (he’d still have me at his beck and call, tho)

Kelvin: “White Women, Amiright?”

Danni and Rowan blasting Avril Lavigne’s ‘Complicated’

Danni’s guinea pig and their luscious hair

Danni actually being a good writer, even if she appropriated half of it

The support group’s heartwarming team game

Bushwick NYC references

Danni’s dad crying incoherently when he thought she could’ve died

Danni being high AF

Danni’s motherfuckin’ shorts during sex!!!! lmaooo

Colin being unable to light his own joint

Harper to Colin: “You’re from Maine” And Colin simultaneously switching up his accent mid-sentence

Colin being unable to remember anything that doesn’t have to do with him and #thegram

(To add onto the earlier reverse sex god comment) Colin ejaculating in 3 seconds flat

Colin being generally oblivious (was waiting for him to call her out but it never came!)

Colin’s handle weedboi

Colin ‘K’ing Danni

Kendall Jenner roasts (esp the ‘reserved seat’ at the second support group about internet shame)

The clothes (honestly, I want some full outfit recs y’all!)

Danni thinking she can get away with not being spotted because she puts a hat on (wonder who she got that from...?? *cough* lookin at you, Cap *cough cough*)

Me being angry this was not a series because I need more #Colin and NotOkay in my life

#notokay #not okay #film #review #funny #spoof #satire #blackcomedy #comedy #spoilers

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cerriddwenluna · 1 year

Note

writer asks: 16, 24, & 25 :p

*cracks knuckles* Alright, lets do this! <3

25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of (yes, I'm switching them round cause this deserves to be above the cut ;))

It's an excerpt from my very first published fic Wild Rose, which is still the most honest and raw fiction I have ever written (Note: This is NOT talking about Kurt or Blaine, I could never kill my darlings ;))

“It is going to take time. It has only been a few weeks since our world got turned upside down. We are going to cry and scream and shout and want to break things and not get out of bed some days. And we will let ourselves take that time to grieve the loss of such a vital part of ourselves. We will feel it all, and then, in time, we will learn to deal. We will keep living. We will grieve and grow and miss you forever, but we will live.”

16) are there any characters who haunt you?

Rachel fucking Berry. That damn girl represents every single bully that ever made my life a living hell and I really, really wish I could just despise her but she is so goddamn useful that she somehow keeps sneaking her way into almost everything I write, and not even as a villain... -.-

24) have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story?

The answer is under the cut 'cause I get semi graphic and long winded in the second part because I don't do taboo subjects. You enter at your own risk lol

The irony (yes, I know this is not the definition of that word. Blame Alanis Morissette.) of you asking me this after we spent way too long google streetviewing the highway between Scarsdale and Bushwick yesterday, just to see what the toll gate looked like, is not lost on me. Especially not considering I then went off and followed that entire route past the plethora of graveyards into Bushwick proper and tried in vain to find any building that looked like it could hold the Loft, while you were off actually being a 'sponsible adult xD

But for a serious answer, I research everything I can (even if it is really not necessary), but the most revelatory one was butt sex. As a cis woman who has no practical experience with gay butt sex, I went off into the deep end, and to my great surprise I discovered that the whole concept of 'stretching' as portrayed in some fiction is actually quite unnecessary. Imagine you are massively constipated and you are passing a truly ginormous log. Would you stretch out your anal muscles first? No! The way these muscles are designed means that they can relax and contract as and when necessary (i.e. pooping), which means that the whole 'stretching' is really quite obsolete. A thing that can be necessary, especially when dealing with a partner with limited anal experience, is to get them comfortable and relaxed which in turn means the muscles will give way easier. Despite the pleasure points located in the rectum and anal passage, it is not actually designed for things to be shoved up there, so it is completely normal to need a period of adjustment, just like with any other muscle group that is having to perform in a way they are not used to. So what actually happens when the receiving partner gets 'stretched' is that the muscles are being given an intrusion to respond to, and they will tighten when tense, but loosen when relax. An experienced bottoming partner's muscles will give way much easier because the body has learned it to be a pleasant experience, but someone who is relatively new to anal sex (or someone who is just really tense) would need to learn to relax around the intrusion. And the way to do that is not by scissoring your fingers to force the muscles apart (nevermind the strength you'd need in your fingers for that), but by making sure your partner is relaxed and comfortable. Just sticking a finger in there and gently moving it back and forth will do just fine. Also, you don't need your whole hand up there to reach the prostate, honestly. Note: You're usually better off building up to full penetration when inexperienced, especially when your partner has a massive schlong like so many fics write either Kurt or Blaine, or both, as having. It is never supposed to hurt! Note 2: I feel this might be a bit redundant too, but LUBE IS OUR FRIEND! And more importantly: SPIT IS NOT GOOD LUBE! Just to cover my own ass here, I don't actually claim to be an expert on this. Yes, there are always exceptions, there is no one size fits all, yadda yadda yadda :P

tl;dr... Butt sex, my friends. Butt sex. Oh, and also anal/penile sex toys and gay male sex positions, for funsies.

#ask and ye shall be answered #quizasvivamos #about me #'read more' at your own risk lol #writer asks #there's a PSA of sorts under the cut #if you're interested #in how to have or write butt sex that is #long post

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artphotocollector · 2 years

Photo

“I think that the ideal space must contain elements of magic, serenity, sorcery and mystery.”--Luis Barragán

Artists need support and we need artists. The noted collector and patron, Lonti Ebers, established Amant last year to provide an exhibition space and residency program for contemporary artists. Located in Bushwick, Brooklyn, the center designed by the innovative firm SO-IL Studio is an impressive addition to our arts community in NYC.

Their current show, SIREN (some poetics), curated by poet and writer Quinn Latimer is currently on display, and offers a cerebral exploration into meanings, connections, and borders. Latimer writes:

“SIREN (some poetics) examines what lies beyond such borders and binaries—ancestral, technological, epistemological, literary, patriarchal, corporeal, emotional or otherwise,” she continues. “Devoted to the voice [...] and the avatar-like bodies we build and break around it, the exhibition considers technologies of myth and mouth, earth and alarm, gender and poetics.”

Amant’s programming, led by Director and Chief Curator Ruth Estévez, also includes artist residencies and a learning center providing a wholistic and international approach to supporting the arts...one that is focused on connecting artistic practices in a multi-disciplinary fashion with other fields of knowledge and experience.

Amant is a welcomed partner to our arts community in Brooklyn. I encourage everyone to visit, to explore, to learn, and to discover this “ideal space” for themselves.--Lane Nevares

#amant.org #artists #brooklyn #Bushwick #so-il #contemporary art #art

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pixijelly · 2 years

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an assignment i must cope with

“The three readings this week agreed upon one simple idea: nearly everyone is capable of labor. Smith emphasizes the consistency of labor in which a participating member of society must contribute to the market, so as to embrace collectivism. A virtuous cycle begins. Marx shares a similar sentiment in that capital is limitless. There always exists a buyer and a seller, and I interpreted his critique as a comment on human limitations in their labor-power. Instead of naturalizing the idea of the market, he attributes it to a historical development in which commodities have gone through years of mistaken theory, according to Marx. Smith embraces individuals working together to build security in society while Marx critiques the means of production as an animalistic chase of money, which then relates to Weber’s essay on the protestants. They believe in sin, greed and money going hand in hand, but ultimately bending to the market. A question that I sat on while flipping through the readings stems from my ignorance of the philosophies in human motivation. If capital is limitless, not securely finite, how does one view equality when indulging in individualism? Rather than villainizing and attempting to stomp out the market, a focus on the individual in their natural instinct towards self-interest ensures a working market, but then exists those who fail to produce thus the struggle and crisis of capitalism begins. Are human limitations to be ignored?”

If you completely read my ramblings, you would understand that I know nothing at all. Purely auto-biographical and generic, but I can read across as ‘GOD CAN SHE SHUT UP!? She’s actually the worst, but she claims to be the best because she values THE SOCIAL LADDER.’ Whatever that means.

There are at least ten thousand hotter, more talented, greedier, more nihilistic, edgier, more profound ‘sad girls’ out there. I promise you, you are not the hot shit you so deluded yourself into thinking you are.

Because I look at you and see nothing but a pathetic attempt at redemption. So go on! Ignore my hand and seek out a bonier, more inviting hand as you see mine shake. Your outfit makes me cringe. My friends are cooler than you. We would spit on you if we saw you at Trans-Pecos. You would stick out like a sore thumb.

Perhaps I’m being too mean… But I realize that I’m not because I’ve met bitchier, more sinister little bitches. Except, I respected them as they wore cuter clothes than your long leather jacket. You must feel so NYC with that on. I don’t think I’m a bitch at all. Sure, I slink around the grimy gutters with a Marlboro Light, call myself a “Club Kid,” and stick around the DJs, but I am not at the same level of those bitchier, more sinister little bitches who wore cuter clothes. I am a step below, the writer who observes it all, and tucks it away for a later date. Like right now! As I type out this assignment I must cope with…

There is a greedy chase in this so-called ‘social ladder.’ It does not exist, yet everyone in the room realizes one thing when they talk to some Bushwick-ian looking freak, “What can they do for me?” When you enter some Dimes Square rooftop poetry reading, you sit back and wonder, “Did they get canceled? Does that make them more interesting?”

I have no clue at all what you can take away from this pathetic attempt at social commentary… Creative writing has been my ‘thing’ for awhile. Please don’t take that away from me… Just look at me and acknowledge that I’m fucking cooler than you. I am the micro-influencer you so desperately try to cling to.

This is creative writing and I did not mean a single thing I said, but I will post it anyway because I think you can laugh and roll your eyes with me.

Tell everyone about the horrible NYC take you read. Tell everyone about how I wrote a substack article on you! I am probably talking about you. Tell everyone about how delusional I am for even thinking this was okay! Afterall, I have no grasp on the human limitations on shittalking…

#writing #words

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menarddg · 2 years

Video

vimeo

"Americanized" | Short Film from Erica Eng on Vimeo.

Growing up in Oakland’s hip-hop culture, Eng struggles with her Chinese American identity. To her high school basketball team, she’s just that girl who sits on the bench, but to the Asian kids she’s "Americanized." As her sophomore year of high school comes to an end, Eng tries to find a sense of belonging within the two worlds that don't accept her.

Writer & Director: Erica Eng Producer: Simran Mahal Casting Director: Claire Koonce Director of Photography: Drew Daniels Production Design: J.D. Moran Editor: Bowei Yue Sound Design & Mix: Bo Pang Music Composer: Aiko Fukushima Post Color: Asa Fox Featuring Music by Zion I and Beejus

Eng: Terry Hu Nee Nee: Helen Ong Steph: Amber Gaston Tori: Sharar Ali-Speaks Coach Carr: Mark Neely David: Charles Yan Denise: Shannon Dang

Poster design by Blood, Sweat + Polony

AWARDS: Won “Best Dramatic Short” Cinequest * Oscar Qualified Won “Young Cineastes Award” Palm Springs ShortFest Won “Audience Choice Award” Cinequest Film Festival Won “Best Short Film” Bentonville Film Festival Won “Best Narrative Short” San Diego Asian Film Fest Won "Best Cinematography" Salute Your Shorts Film Festival Won “The Marlyn Mason Award” 1st Place Flickers’ Rhode Island Won “Best Director” TIDE Film Festival Won “Rising Star Award” Bushwick Film Festival Won “Best Local Film” Drunken Film Festival Oakland Won “Best Short Film” Oakland Short Film Festival Won “Gratitude Award” Centre Film Festival Won “Audience Award: Best Narrative Short” Centre Film Festival Won “Excellence in Narrative Short Storytelling” Destiny Film Festival Won “Audience Award: Best Narrative Short” Coronado Island Film Festival Won “Audience Choice Award: Best Narrative Short” DisOrient Film Festival Won “Outstanding Music” Short Circuit Pacific Rim Film Festival Won “Outstanding International Film” Short Circuit Pacific Rim Film Festival

Nominated “Best Narrative Short” Seattle Asian American Film Festival Nominated “Best Narrative Short” Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival Nominated “Best Female Focus” Cordillera Film Festival Nominated "Best Local Film" Salute Your Shorts Film Festival Honorable Mention “Best Live-Action Short” Gold List Semi-finalist ScreenCraft Film Fund Fall 2019

Official Selection: Atlanta Film Festival, Cleveland International Film Festival, Urbanworld, IndyShorts International Film Festival, Newport Beach Film Festival, Calgary International Film Festival, Pittsburgh Shorts Film Festival, Salute Your Shorts, LA Shorts International, San Diego International ShortFest, Boston Asian American Film Festival, Vancouver Asian American Film Festival, CAAM Fest, NewFilmmakers LA, DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival, Oakland International Film Festival + more

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northelypark · 2 years

Note

For the mini fics, what about Gemma and Bern with J. When words aren’t enough.?

Sorry for the wait! I’m dealing with serious writer’s block right now, but this definitely helped me combat it. Not really a mini fic anymore, haha, but hope you enjoy! This is set sometime in the summer during L^3, after Gemma and Bern are better friends but still getting to know each other.

In the back of her head, Gemma has always imagined Bernard’s home as an enormous library. Maybe even one with a moat to keep out unwanted visitors.

She never expected him to live in a cluttered flat near Bowlyn Hill.

There are clothes and take-out boxes strewn on the sofa and heavy blinds that block out the windows. The dim light makes it easy to stumble, which she does twice before Bernard switches on a lamp.

“Mind the boxes,” he mutters as they pass through a short hallway.

Some are partially unpacked; others are still sealed with tape. From what Gemma can tell, they contain old textbooks and stacks of paperwork that spill out onto the musty carpet.

When they enter the kitchen, it’s as if they’ve entered another flat entirely.

“It’s so cosy in here!” Gemma can’t help but say, pausing to take in the sagging shelf full of old cookbooks and the neatly stacked dishes in the cupboard. It’s the tiniest kitchen she’s ever seen, but the slice of warm afternoon showing through the curtains keeps it from feeling cramped.

“Dad doesn’t come in here much,” Bernard admits with a shrug.

“What’s this?” Gemma spies an open book by the sink. She steps closer, her finger running down a carrot cake recipe before Bernard slams the book shut.

Yanking her finger out a second too late, Gemma lets out a suitable curse (her friend is, admittedly, a terrible influence).

“Sorry.” Bernard’s ears have caught fire. He slips the book into the nearby shelf. “I—er—I didn’t mean to hurt you. That was supposed to be put away.”

“It’s okay.” Gemma winces as she sucks on finger. “Whose cookbooks are those?”

“Erm. You’d better run that under cold water.”

Bernard lifts the handle of the faucet, but—apart from a dry creak—nothing comes out. He tries it again more forcefully, cursing under his breath when he achieves the same disappointing result.

“Something wrong with it?”

“Dad’s wrong with it. I’ll be back.” Bernard stalks out of the kitchen and into the dark den.

The pain in Gemma’s finger is already fading, but she jiggles the faucet handle a few more times, just to make doubly sure it’s not working.

She doesn’t know anything about plumbing, so she feels a bit useless. All she can think to do is shuffle her feet and glance around the kitchen. Her gaze inevitably wanders back to the mysterious shelf of cookbooks. If Bernard’s dad never goes into the kitchen…

Gemma’s eyes widen. Could it be that they used to belong to Bernard’s mother?

Bernard grumbles about his dad a lot, but he never mentions his mum. Gemma wonders if she might’ve died when he was young. Are these books his last remaining keepsake of hers? Are they full of all the recipes he likes best? Perhaps they even contain secret messages from his mother just for him.

The idea intrigues her. She wants to take another look, but restrains herself. Bernard seemed keen to keep the books private and, besides, she’s his guest. She doesn’t want to spoil their time together by being nosy.

Without warning, Bernard returns, a cheque clenched in his hand. “Dad forgot to pay the water bill. Again.” He says in response to her confused look.

“You mean, they turn it off if you don’t pay on time? That’s terrible.”

“That’s reality.”

“Are you going to give it to your dad?”

“No. Dad’s teaching until eleven. I’m going to give it to Mr. Bushwick.”

That’s right. During the summer, Bernard’s dad teaches classes at a nearby university, which means Bernard is home by himself for long stretches of time. Gemma doesn’t know how he survives. She would be awfully lonely with no siblings or parents to bicker with. Maybe that’s why he decided to invite her over (after only a teensy bit of prodding on her part).

“Do you want me to come with?”

Bernard keeps his eyes fixed on the cheque. “No. Stay here. Mr. Bushwick doesn’t like when we have guests.”

“Oh. Well, if you’re sure… Good luck!”

With a terse wave, Bernard slips out the door, leaving Gemma alone in the kitchen once more. She doesn’t want to leave. This room is a breath of air compared to the rest of the flat. Bernard must spend a lot of time in here when he’s home.

Gemma starts to pace. He looked so miserable when he left. She wonders how many bills he’s had to pay by himself. If only she could cheer him up. But what can she say, really? This is Bernard’s home—his everyday reality— and she’s starting to realize she knows very little about it.

Gemma’s attention returns once more to the shelf of cookbooks.

Maybe she doesn’t have to say anything at all. Maybe she can make Bernard something to eat, instead. He must be tired of having take-out all the time. Something sweet and homemade to lift his spirits. Something like carrot cake…

Gemma almost grabs the cookbook Bernard put away, but she stops herself. She‘ll have to try and make the recipe without it.

She opens the refrigerator and is pleased to find a basket of carrots. They’re the most important ingredient. Probably. The tricky part will be figuring out what to mix them with.

Gemma spends the next ten minutes searching for ingredients. She decides eggs, flour and sugar are a must, though she’s not sure which sugar to use (Bernard’s kitchen is stocked with three separate kinds). She ends up pouring in a cup of each, alongside a pinch of bicarb.

After mixing everything but the carrots together (and accidentally cracking one egg onto the floor), Gemma pauses. How is she supposed to blend the carrots in? Should she chop them into chunks? Toss them in whole? Try to juice them?

She’s starting to wonder how a cake could even taste good with vegetables in it, when Bernard steps into the kitchen.

He stops so fast he nearly trips, his twitching eyes rising up from the egg on the floor, to the countertop mess of flour and measuring cups, and, finally, to Gemma, who is suddenly sure she has more ingredients on herself, then in the bowl.

“Surprise,” she says weakly. When Bernard doesn’t say anything, she forges ahead. “I, er, wanted to make something for you. I got the idea from you’re mum’s cookbook.”

“My mum’s cook—“ Bernard strides over to her. “What are you talking about, Mudget? And what’s this? You’ve mixed everything into one bowl. You’re supposed to combine dry and wet ingredients separately.”

He's upset about that?

Gemma steps aside as Bernard examines the lumpy batter. “Oops. This is my first time making a cake. Gosh, I should’ve looked at the recipe. But I didn’t want to take your mum’s stuff.”

“Why do you keep bringing up my mum?” Bernard asks in exasperation.

“Those are her cookbooks up there, right?” Gemma nods at the shelf. “I promise I didn’t look at any of them. I mean, I was really curious. But I know it’s none of my business.”

Bernard’s expression shifts from annoyance to something else. He pinches his lips and wrinkles his nose, his brow digging deep furrows into his scrunched forehead. He looks like he’s in terrible pain, but what comes out of his mouth is a rusty laugh. He quickly hides it under a cough.

“You…” Bernard shakes his head. “You jump to conclusions faster than anyone I’ve ever met.”

The grudging awe in his voice makes Gemma feel strangely proud.

“Thank you.” Her face is warm and prickly. She wonders if it’s the wayward sugar on her cheeks starting to melt. “Erm, I’m guessing those cookbooks aren’t your mum’s, then?”

“No.” Bernard’s ears look prickly, too. “They’re mine. I was planning on making that cake.” He glares up at her, suddenly serious as death. “Cooking is no different from science. You have to observe, and measure, and test. Recipes, that is. It’s just as logical as psychology or—or chemistry." He pauses, his intense gaze wavering. "Right?”

“Sure.” Gemma laughs, feeling unqualified to answer since she’s terrible at both cooking and science. “To be honest, I think it’s kind of boring. Why follow a recipe when you can experiment? What do you think would happen if we mixed everything in your kitchen together?”

“You can experiment with cooking," Bernard says adamantly. “You just have to know the fundamentals. But before we do anything else, we ought to finish this cake.”

Gemma grins. “Still salvageable, is it?”

Bernard hands her a whisk, for once unable to hide his smile in such a bright room. “We’ll see.”

#professor layton #gemma mudget #bernard trewinkle #ask #writing prompt #the lamplight letters #professor layton ocs

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grusik · 1 month

Photo

Throwback Picture. Graffiti. Near Bushwick, Brooklyn. SPY. MILLS. Photo taken May, 217. Can anyone ID the pother Writers beyond SPY? Also MILLS . by Allan Ludwig

#flickr

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lboogie1906 · 2 months

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Joseph Williams (April 6, 1886 - February 25, 1951) “Smokey” Joe Williams (known as “Cyclone” Joe Williams) was born in Sequin, Texas, and is regarded as one of the greatest Black baseball pitchers. In 1952, when the Pittsburgh Courier asked a panel of veterans and sports writers to name the best Negro League pitcher of all time, he was the winner over Satchel Paige, 20-19. He stood 6’ 5” and had a variety of power pitches but was known for his fastball. He began to pitch around San Antonio in 1905 and compiled a record of 28-4. In 1907, he played for the San Antonio Broncos as a pitcher-outfielder, winning 20 and losing 8. In 1909, when Rube Foster, “The Father of Black Baseball,” brought his Leland Giants through San Antonio, he saw him pitch against Foster’s team and was amazed at his speed. He and his team beat the Giants 3-0. When the Giants left, they took him north with them.

On October 24, 1912, he faced the National League champion New York Giants in an exhibition game. The Giants were coming off a World Series loss to the Boston Red Sox. He shut out the Giants with only four hits for a 6-0 victory. By 1913, he won four and lost one against the white players in MLB. At a time when professional baseball was not integrated and the Negro League teams were considered semi-pro, the victory over the Giants gave him and his team considerable national exposure.

He spent most of his best years (1912-23) as a strikeout and location pitcher with the Lincoln Giants. A twenty-strikeout game was not unusual for him. His record for a single-day game was twenty-five strikeouts in twelve innings against the Bushwicks soon after he was traded to the Brooklyn Royal Giants in 1924. He became known as “Smokey” Joe because he still had a blazing fastball even though he was approaching the age of forty. He struck out twenty-seven Kansas City Monarchs in a twelve-inning night game in 1930.

He retired in 1934. In twenty-six post-season games against the best MLB clubs (1913-32), he won nineteen, lost six, and tied one. The Veterans Committee elected him to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

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korekplaybeta2024 · 4 months

Video

vimeo

The Businessman from Nathan Ginter on Vimeo.

Official Selection: Fantastic Fest, London Short Film Festival, Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival, Chattanooga Film Festival, Bushwick Film Festival, National Film Festival for Talented Youth, HorrorFest International, A Night of Horror International Film Festival, SLASH Film Festival, Coney Island Film Festival, Waco Independent Film Festival

“Best Writing” at Brooklyn Horror Film Festival “Best Student Short” at the New Hampshire Film Festival “Best Student Short” Nomination at FilmQuest

On the way home from school, a young girl runs into a mysterious salesman who looks to instill the fear of financial insecurity and coerce her into selling fashion magazines for him.

Lola - Liviya Meyers The Businessman - Steve Gamble Darryl - Jeremy Koch Writer, Director & Editor - Nathan Ginter Director of Photography - Shane Bagwell Score - Vincent DiFrancesco Production Design, Titles, & AD - Aidan Flynn 2nd AC - Arif Jamal 1st AC & Steadicam Operator - Garet Jatsek 2nd AC - Estevan Falcon Production Sound - Matt Baum Grip - John Hart Grip - Daniel Wilson Sound Design - David V. Britton Colorist - Zack Chalmers Magazine Design - Ashley Marzulla

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corndoggod · 7 months

Text

A Review of Matthew Gasda's "Zoomers"

“Do you know a white rapper named Small Boss?”

“I don’t.”

“That’s my cousin!”

I overheard this standing in line for the bathroom at Matthew Gasda’s new play Zoomers, which took place dramatically in a Bushwick boys apartment and literally in a north Greenpoint loft called “The Brooklyn Center for Theater Research,” a new LLC. The bathroom line snaked through the kitchen and determined the length of intermission (I held my pee). I was eyeing the $7 Stellas in the fridge when C whispered in my ear, “The playwright’s dressed like Holden Caulfield.”

It was obvious he was the director/writer from the way he swished around softly commanding attention and obedience. A scarf nuzzled his neck and rimless glasses telescoped his discerning eyes. This was one of the earliest performances and Gasda watched the play a couple seats away, laughing with and without us, piquing my curiosity when he laughed without us.

Dean Kissick was there with his high cheekbones and ugly Asics seated in front of me. We met one of the actor’s friends in line, they worked together at a sushi restaurant in Williambsurg, and this was his first play in New York. I thought I saw Christian Lorentzen too, but Google suggested this guy with bulging eyes was crowned with too much hair.

The set, true to its twentysomething adrift tenants, was shaggy and minimalist: nothing more than a couch, bong, cluttered coffee table, TV and Nintendo Switch. The opening action took place in Nintendo’s multiverse as Luigi and Kirby faced off in Super Smash Bros and the two Bushwick Bros bantered, “Kirby’s a bitch.” After a summerlong hiatus I was back on Smash, drumming King K Rool’s belly with war, grief, and eternal life, and it was charming to see the quotidien fabric of life, as useful and smelly as a tube sock, dramatically staged.

The Switch acted as a far-reaching lighthouse in Gasda’s referential fog of New York life as a recent transplant fresh out of school. The play is crowded with such touchstones: polyamory, food delivery, Venmo requests, ambition softened by the city’s edge and the fear that “taking a break” isn’t catching one’s breath but a tombstone. Amidst this sea of uncertainty, Smash served as a kind of narcotic not just for New York but for everyone everywhere.

While Gasda was quite skilled at identifying these nodes of tribal identity, he had more trouble making sense of them and the issues those tribes faced. Based on the title and the Switch, I thought it was a pandemic play. But the play was actually a romcom occupied with casual and toxic relationships, the rude reality of life post-Ivy, a feast of anxiety and floundering for deeper connectivity.

The play made emotional sense but it had no depth. It wasn’t for a lack of trying either, it’s just that the attempts to get there bordered on the cliche, as when the “adult” character, an architect who viewed boundaries as a blueprint for happiness, says to his more-than-a-decade-younger lover something like, “I’m afraid if I dip my toes in this current it’s strong enough to drag me away,” to which she replies, “I’ll sail with you.” But then there were other lines like, “Love is young people growing old together,” which I liked and could probably find on Etsy.

The writing was strong overall (I’d like to see and read more of Gasda), but the acting was gnarly. I don’t want to be mean so I won’t say more. But I will say it didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the play too much.

I came to Zoomers curious from the hype around Dimes Square that launched Gasda into the headlines. I was ready to be skeptical, but the writing was impressive and so was Gasda’s whole enterprise: the LLC, the workshops, the afterparty, which he seemed to treat as an opportunity for further observation, perhaps fishing around for his next play. I respected that he was actually doing the work. It made me want to convert my apartment into a soiree to show my friend’s art and workshop each other’s work, to host plays choreographed specifically for our sunken lime wash jungle of a living room. I could start a shell company to squirrel away all our hidden artistic treasures and shored up dreams.

#dimes square #Matthew gasda #dean kissick #brooklyn

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writemarcus · 9 months

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JCTC Produces Reading of New Play SIBLING RIVALRIES By Marcus Scott

The production is set for September 18.

By: Stephi Wild Sep. 06, 2023

Jersey City Theater Center will present a reading of Sibling Rivalries by Marcus Scott, a new play set at a fictional Ivy League school in the years following the Obama Administration. This political drama follows a diverse group of young black men, all members of a fraternity, who face shifting loyalties and eroded principles when they are forced to compete against one another for a prestigious fellowship. Sibling Rivalries will take place at Jersey City Theater Center (165 Newark Ave, Jersey City, NJ 07302 / Entrance from Barrow St., Jersey City, NJ, 07302) on Monday, September 18 at 7:30PM. Tickets start at just $5.00 and are available at www.JCTCenter.org. "As we prepare to showcase the extraordinary talent of Marcus Scott, a remarkable representative of the black, queer community, whose work we have had the privilege of nurturing by providing a creative residency in 2023, our enthusiasm knows no bounds. At the very core of our mission lies our unwavering commitment to open doors for emerging playwrights, allowing their voices to resound both locally and on the globally," stated Olga Levina, the Executive Producer at JCTC. "JCTC is immensely thankful for our enduring partnership with I Love Greenville and the sponsorship from Healthier JC, our collaboration has given rise to a wide spectrum of programming, each piece thoughtfully designed to shed light on the experiences and obstacles faced by people of color while celebrating their rich cultural traditions." We wish to express our gratitude to the Performers' Unions: ACTORS' EQUITY ASSOCIATION, AMERICAN GUILD OF MUSICAL ARTISTS, AMERICAN GUILD OF VARIETY ARTISTS and SAG-AFTRA through Theatre Authority, Inc. for their cooperation in permitting the Artists to appear in this program.

About Marcus Scott

Marcus Scott is a playwright, musical theatre writer & journalist. Full-length works: Tumbleweed (finalist: 2017 BAPF & the 2017 Festival of New American Plays at Austin Playhouse; semifinalist: 2022 O'Neill NPC, 2022 Blue Ink Playwriting Award & 2017 New Dramatists Princess Grace Award in Playwriting Fellowship), Sibling Rivalries (finalist: Normal Ave's NAPseries, 2021 Seven Devils Playwrights Conference & 2021 ATHE-KCACTF Judith Royer Excellence In Playwriting Award; semi- finalist: 2022 Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival, 2021 Blue Ink Playwriting Award & 2021 New Dramatists Princess Grace Award in Playwriting Fellowship; long-listed: 2020 Theatre503 International Playwriting Award), There Goes The Neighborhood (finalist: 2023 New Dramatists Princess Grace Award in Playwriting Fellowship, 2023 Blue Ink Playwriting Award, the 2019 Bushwick Starr Reading Series; semifinalist: 2023 BAPF) & Cherry Bomb (recipient: 2017 Drama League First Stage Artist-In-Residence, 2017 New York Theatre Barn's New Works Series; 2017 finalist for the Yale Institute for Music Theatre). Heartbeat Opera commissioned Scott to adapt Beethoven's “Fidelio” (Co-writer; Met Live Arts at the MET Museum, Mondavi Center at UC Davis, Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, The Broad Stage, Rutgers Presbyterian Church, Baruch Performing Arts Center; NYTimes Critics' Pick! ★★★★). Scott is the recipient of the WTP Rosalind Ayres-Williams Memorial Scholarship (2022-2024). Scott is the recipient of the WTP Rosalind Ayres-Williams Memorial Scholarship (2022-2024). His one-act Sundown Town is published in Obsidian: Literature and Arts of the African Diaspora: Issue: 48.1. His work has developed or presented at Concord Theatricals/Sam French OOB Short Play Festival, Queens Theatre (New American Voices series), The Fire This Time Festival, Zoetic Stage (Finstrom Festival Of New Work), Dixon Place, Feinstein's/54 Below, Abingdon Theatre Company, Downtown Urban Arts Festival, Classical Theatre of Harlem, Across A Crowded Room at Lincoln Center Performing Arts Library (NYPL), Musical Theater Factory's 4x15 Series, Space on Ryder Farm, Theatre West, New Circle Theatre Company, MicroTheater Miami, Columbia College Chicago, among others. Residencies and retreats: The inaugural Personal Pizza Party Writers' Kitchen cohort (2023), The 2022 Valdez Theatre Conference, The Road Theatre Company's Under Construction 3 Playwrights Group (2022), Mojoaa Performing Arts Company's Southern Black Playwrights Lab (Cohort 2; 2022), Works & Process LaunchPAD “Process as Destination” Residency at the Guggenheim (2022), Prospect Musical Theater Lab (2021), María Irene Fornés Playwriting Workshop (2021), JACK Governor's Island Artist Residency (2021), Catwalk Artist Residency (2021), The Center at West Park Virtual Performance Residency (2020-2021), Gingold Theatre Group Speaker's Corner Writer (2020-2022), Liberation Theatre Company's Playwriting Residency Fellowship (2018), Athena Theatre Company's Athena Writes Playwriting Fellowship (2018-2019), the inaugural LIT Council at the Tank (2018-2019), Fresh Ground Pepper Artist-In-Residence BRB Retreat (2017), One Co. Writers' Residency at Little Farm (2017) and Goodspeed Opera House Retreat (2013). Scott is a 2021 NYSAF Founders' Award finalist, a 2021 Doric Wilson Independent Playwright Award semi-finalist, a four-time National Black Theatre I AM SOUL Playwrights Residency finalist and a four-time top finalist for The Civilians R&D Group. His articles appeared in Architectural Digest, Time Out New York, American Theatre Magazine, Playbill, Elle, Out, Essence, The Brooklyn Rail, among others. BFA: State University College at Buffalo, MFA: NYU Tisch.

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