Review of Luna Gale, on stage at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. Cynicism is an easy currency to trade in, especially when the subject is the government and its initiatives – and popular entertainment is a large marketplace. Consider child protective services and related efforts to help distressed children; how often is the social worker positioned relative to families as the internal affairs investigator is to the police? In Luna Gale, playwright Rebecca Gilman wisely resists the impulse to be cynical without resorting to romanticism. Her depiction of a social worker’s efforts on behalf of the titular baby is poignant, yes, but also …
Moderately Suggestive: Thoughts on Slightly Salacious at WLAC’s Fine Arts Gallery
Anyone hoping for nerve-tingling titillation or grand displays of erotic prowess from the West L.A. College Fine Arts Gallery’s latest show would do well to recall its title: Slightly Salacious. There are nudes, yes, as well as insinuations, but nothing outrageous enough to work up a good froth over. The exhibit offers no incentive to re-chart well-trod topographies in an attempt to delineate pornography from art, although I wonder to what extent the question even holds any interest in this worldly age. What Slightly Salacious does offer, however, is …
Racing to the Future While Chained to the Past
A review of Fanon for Beginners, by Deborah Wyrick Ph.D. If we are to believe the commentariat, the best experts on race in America are white men – the same folks who, coincidentally, are also experts on women. The good news expounded by these experts, whose expertise rests in being experts more so than anything resembling social science, is ably summed up by …
Solomon Settles the Farragut Parking Dispute
I’m normally rather loathe to comment on local politics. But this heated debate about parking on one block of Farragut Drive has got me in a kerfuffle. Watching Les Greenberg and Ken Smith spar is like watching football teams argue a game-winning goal by …
Good Things Come in Cardboard Packages
A review of The Boxtrolls. Who would guess that, in today’s reactionary America, an animated family-friendly (ish) film could be imbued with such a blatant, albeit non-specific and apolitical, social critique? It’s not the French Revolution, but where most films add silly but subtle adult innuendo over children’s fare, The Boxtrolls also hints at the instinct of an Occupy Wall Street protest. Richly animated with delightfully exaggerated character designs, details galore to feast on, and unimpeachable voice acting, the film is …
Is There Really Any “Good” in the Good Book?
A review of The Ethics of the Faith: Right, Wrong, and the God of Abraham. Ean Burchell is not the first to offer remedial Bible studies to people who might not have paid enough attention to the so-called “Good Book” the first time around. Ben Akerley provided a look the Bible’s sordid sexuality in The X-Rated Bible, while Edward Falzon satirically paraphrased the Pentateuch in his provocative broadside, Being Gay Is Disgusting, Or God Loves the Smell of Burning Fat. The difference between this latest addition to an already crowded library shelf and those previous volumes, other than a distinct lack of humour, is a specific project for evaluating the ethical merits of the God (arguably) common to the Abrahamic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Setting aside empirical and ontological considerations, Burchell asks, “…does faith in Yahweh really offer us the only road to ethical relationships with our families, friends and neighbors?”
The Globe Is Warming, but Our Debating Should Cool
I’m not a climate scientist and, chances are, neither are you. So how do we have an intelligent and productive conversation about one of the most critical challenges our civilization ever has confronted? We can’t turn to the GOP for a model to follow. In their view, the absence of scientific qualifications on their part isn’t reason enough to avoid making scientific policy decisions. It baffles me that people who otherwise would gladly take advice from experts on everything from preparing for surgery to how best to drive a ball down the fairway would make an exception in the case of climate scientists.
The problem with discussing climate change is two-fold.
The Parabolic Trajectory of a Dynamic New Author
The best thing about attending a convention like L.A.’s Comikaze or San Diego Comic-Con isn’t the big-ticket events and vendors, as exciting as they are, but the opportunity to meet dazzlingly creative independent artists. I never fail to be impressed by the diverse, idiosyncratic visions of talented individuals having a go at sharing their work with the public. One example comes from last year’s Comikaze, where I came across …
Identity, Equality, Humanity; How Social Roles Restrict us
Review of Gender & Sexuality for Beginners … written by Jaimee Garbacik and illustrated by Jeffrey Lewis, examines arguably the most fundamental manifestation of identity politics. Much like Greek Mythology for Beginners, the book is formatted less like a comic book and more like an illustrated text – and a fairly dense one at that. The graphic design would have better benefited readers with a cleaner, more spacious layout. Nevertheless, the book’s well-researched and documented examination of gender construction and sexual orientation is first-rate.
Beau & Aero Hits the Target and Lifts Audiences with Laughter
A Little Bit Off's Beau & Aero
Review of Beau & Aero, on stage at the Complex (Dorie Theatre) as part of the 2014 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Hurry! Only 3 performances left…Do you want to know the secret of flight? Here: If you want to fly, you don’t need to close your eyes, madly flap your arms, and wish really hard only to inevitably be disappointed that your feet remained firmly grounded. Instead, go see Beau & Aero, a flight of fancy whose inspired silliness will lift you up with laughter.