CINELIBRE BEZIEHT STELLUNG ZUR KULTURBOTSCHAFT
Last night was glorious at Rising Stars, Falling Stars screening of the 1920 Maurice Stiller Swedish film Erotikon.Eunice Martin radiantly took control of the klavier playing with tumultuous passion injecting a bit of humour into her repertoire as well.I was loving how when the film’s heroine was playing a certain song on piano,Eunice had the sheet music for that exact tune, and its always delightful to see Ms. Martin chuckling as she watches the film and accompanies it.The audience was held spellbound. Eunice is also featured in the latest issue of the Kinema Kommunal Journal.
After the screening in the Rote Foyer we celebrated the 27th birthday of Manuel Schubert of internet radio multicult FM’s Film Highlights Magazine.The personable radio presenter was in a sparkling mood with his latest paramour Scandanavian DJ, and musician Nicolas Tange Lange of the art band Nuclear Family.Those of you here in Berlin visiting for the spring can catch Mr. Tange Lange at Chantal’s House of Shame in Bassy Cowboy Club Schoenhauser Allee 176 on May 12th or at The Rock n Roll Fag Bar at Monster Ronson’s Warschauer Str 34 on May 16th and at Built For Speed in King Kong Klub Brunnen Str 173 on May 19th.I saw Nuclear Family at Ducky in London and I can attest that they are ill.
Also cavorting and looking fresh and lovely Arsenal Empress Stefanie Schulte Strathaus, whose family owns all the canals in Berlin, the divine Susanne Sachsse with her gorgeous teenage daughter Salome Gersh just back from filming in Poland for the new Yael Bertrana film installation that will be part of the Venice Biennale. Hobnobbing with La Sachsse, Ewa of Poland who is a regular in Betrana’s films, musician and filmmaker Tim Blue, Daniel Hendrickson the Jewish Muslim for Christ, Uli Ziemons the handsomest man in all Europe wearing some vintage tennis shoes that looked amazing on his rather large masculine feet.Uli is a shrimp poster boy for beautiful male footery, the adorable Tobias Rauscher and his peni Dagmar, stylish art photographer Paula Winkler of Hugs and Kisses Magazine with Canadian cutup and cineaste Marc Andre Pennock and his vivacious galpal Melena, Marc Siegel doppelganger Todd Sekuler, the young American junior curator with C/O Gallery the photo & exhibition space that recently featured a Mapplethorpe retrospektacle.
Not to toot my own horn, but I can’t wait to start work on The Communist Bigamist, my collaboration with Susanne Sachsse who will also direct. The piece based on the 1953 Joan Fontaine/Ida Lupino film The Bigamist will premiere in the late fall at HAU 3.
Susanne and I star in the piece with assist from gorgeous Nazli Kilerci - Assitant and Videoproducer,Nebojsa Tabacki production and stage designer Marc Siegel, Dramaturgy,Jackie Shemesh the light designer who works with Yael Bertrana, John Blue, sound, Tan Binh Nguyen makeup, and Anna Muelter the production manager.

***
My beautiful sweet phd student from NYU Joshua Lubin Levy who collaborated with me on my Ethyl Eichelberger award winning piece Speaking From the Diaphragm,(which of all things i found out is nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for Best Off/Off Broadway piece) Lovesexy Joshua is working on a new project and sent me this request:

Dear Friends,
I’m writing to ask you to be part of a new artists collaboration and book project that I am working on.
THE REQUEST: Submit a drawing of a space in New York City where you had a public sexual encounter. Do this sketch from memory, however you remember the space.
THE DETAILS: Your sketch should be done on an 8.5 x 11 piece of white paper. You can draw, collage, design on the computer…however you feel like translating your memory. Write a short line or two that sheds light on what this space means to you.
THE SUBMISSION: Send this 8.5 x 11 memory along with the text to:
For Mail: Carlos Motta. P.O. BOX 11. Cooper Square Station. NY, NY 10276.
For Email: email a hi-res scan (300dpi) to petitemortproject@gmail.com.
In Person: we can come pick it up if you’re in New York City.
WHAT THEN? These drawings will be collected into a book titled Petite Mort. The goal of our project is to use the book as an architecture in which the memories of gay male strangers can mix and mingle, crossing paths and form new connections. Furthermore, these drawings highlight the fundamental connection between public space and queer life.
The deadline for submitting is May 15th, 2011. Please let us know if you will be contributing or have any questions! petitemortproject@gmail.com
WHAT IF I DON’T WANT TO CONTRIBUTE? You can always help us by passing this request on to others who might be interested.
Thank you so much!
Joshua & Carlos
For more information visit: www.joshualubinlevy.com/petite_mort/
To make a financial contribution visit: www.unitedstatesartists.org/project/petite_mort_recollections_of_a_queer_public.

SCHNUPPERLOKAL UND MUSTERSTIMMHEFT
Its never too late for internet radio, and below is a link to my FilmHighlights interview with birthday boy Manuel Schubert of Multikult FM. Enjoy.

Rising Stars-Falling Stars - with Vaginal Davis - April 2011 by filmanzeiger

LOCKER VOM ROCKER
Marc Siegel always writes hysterical CHEAP newsletter emails.Below i have included his latest dispatch. So mark all the dates on your calendaria for the upcoming spring and summer eventas. Remember tomorrow night at Arsenal Kino 2 is Rising Stars Falling Stars 9pm where we will also be celebrating the birthday of internet radio guru Manuel Schubert of FilmHighlights Magazine.

Dear CHEAP Friends,

There are a number of spring events we would like to recommend


1. Vaginal Davis's Rising Stars, Falling Stars, this Wed., April 27, Arsenal
(It's usually Sunday night, but this time it's not)
2. Trash/People like Us: Book presentation and clip show for Jon Davies's
Trash (directed by Paul Morissey) + Colin Campbell videos, Monday, May 2 +
May 3 &4, Arsenal
3. Winnipeg and Los Angeles music legend Glen Meadmore with rare European
perfs, April 30 - May 4
4. Festival/Conference/Live Film shooting at Hannah Hurtzig's Die Untoten,
with Susanne Sachsse/Bruce LaBruce, Vaginal Davis, Christiane Voss and more,
12-14, May in Hamburg
5. Rare CHEAP soundtracks by Tim Blue, available free online


So, allow me to go through the events one by one.

1. Vaginal Davis's Rising Stars, Falling Stars, this Wed., April 27, Arsenal

The event that gathers more steam and dignity each month. Come out this
Wednesday and tease Miss Davis for being such a mainstream, sell-out queen
that she's nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for best Off-Off Braodway play.
(It's true!). This week Berlin's own treasure, Miss VD presents Jerry
Stiller's father's and Anne Meara's father-in-law's silent treasure EROTIKON
(Mauritz Stiller, Sweden, 1920). The evening promises lots of sexy
Scandinavian incest, adultery, and perversity both on and off-screen.
Musical accompaniment by Eunice Martins. Event starts promptly with Miss D's
inimitable introduction at 9pm. Arsenal, Potsdamerstr. 2

2. Trash/People like Us: the Canadian writer and curator Jon Davies will be
in Berlin for a few days of presentations at the Arsenal. Davies recently
wrote a great little book on Paul Morissey's film TRASH starring Holly
Woodlawn and Joe Dallesandro.

*On Monday, May 2, yours truly will moderate a discussion with Jon Davies
about the book and we will look at some clips from the flick. Arsenal,
Potsdmaerstr. 2, 8pm.

*On May 3 & 4, Davies will be joined by fellow Canadians Lisa Steele and Kim
Tomczak for a rare treat: four programs of videos by pioneering queer
Canadian video artist Colin Campbell. Arsenal, Potsdamerstr. 2, both nights,
19:15/21:15 Uhr

3. Rare Berlin and Euro apperances by LA Legend and Vaginal Davis
collaborator, Glen Meadmore. Don't miss the hilarious wacky music of this
artist's artist! Inspirer of the likes of fellow Winnipegger Guy Maddin and
fellow Canadian Bruce LaBruce (great scenes in Hustler White) and frequent
performer in Vaginal Davis's conceptual bands, like PME! In fact, Meadmore
is the only underground artist who can from his 6 feet and something inches
actually look down on Miss Davis! Don't miss one of these perfs:

april 30 bertholdsaal weyer, oberer markt, 3335 weyer, osterreich
may 2 monster ronsons, warschauerstr. 34, 10243 berlin
may 3 golden pudel, st. pauli fischmarkt 27 ,20359 hamburg
may 4 shade inc. ,neue berliner initiative, schonhauser allee 36, berlin

4. Hannah Hurtzig always puts together stylish and intellectually
challenging events. The UNDEAD: Life Sciences and Pulp Fiction promises
exactly that. From 12-14 May in Hamburga at Kampnagel, you will get to
consider such pessoptimistic topics as: when does life end? When does it
begin? Who gets to decide? Go to Hamburg to see Susanne Sachsse appear in
the live shooting of Bruce LaBruce's new film called ULRIKE'S BRAIN! Go to
Hamburg to get some counseling from Vaginal Davis or Nico Siepen! Go to
Hamburg to hear a lecture by Dorothee Wenner or Christiane Voss! more info:
www.untot.info/

5. Finally, I come to number 5. CHEAPs own Tim Blue has decided to make
available rare CHEAP soundtracks and outtakes, as well as his whole backlist
of The Pixie Kitchen productions. Download them all for free, and wax
nostalgic about the performance days of yore at:

http://www.last.fm/music/The+Pixie+Kitchen/+albums


Warm spring greetings,
Marc


*****
CHEAP Summer Plans

*Spend a few days of your summer with Mario Montez and me (and many others)
in Wroclaw, Poland at the fabulous Era New Horizons Festival! Many Germans
seem unaware of the fact that there is a country with a rich cultural past
and present right next door to them. Join Mario and me in Wroclaw from July
23-28 for a Jack Smith retrospective featuring the likes of Jim Hoberman,
Jerry Tartaglia, Ela Troyano, Uzi Parnes, Stefanie Schulte Strathaus and
others! a great city, delicious food, tons of great films, and some
wonderful people! for info:
http://www.enh.pl/index.do?lang=en

***

Sad to report that Poly Styrene of one of my alltime early punk bands XRaySpecs died age 53. Not only has Ms. Styrene passed but another famous black woman from the
1970s singer Phoebe Snow died age 58. I always loved that recognizeable voice of Ms. Snow and her hit song "Poetry Man" Also French actress Marie-France Pisier died age 66. I will never forget her in the 1975 film Cousin,Cousine.