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  • Over the last several years if not longer, there’s been an exodus of nightclubs in Manhattan. High rents and the burgeoning scene in Brooklyn took a toll on the once king of the boroughs for nightlife.

    Over the last 6 months, some new spots began to pop up in the city. Last Thursday night I decided to check out this new club called Virgo in the LES. Some DJ friends were talking about it online. So, I decided to venture down to Grand Street to see what this new spot had to offer.

    Upon arriving, there was a small cue with some dudes in line that had no shot at making it inside. A rather funny conversation was going on, but we won’t get into that. The maze like entrance led us to a long bar where we grabbed some lovely drinks from Luciano (bartender) before finding our way to the main area, dance floor. The first thing that caught my attention, was the high quality sound and the creative lighting that brought a cool vibe to the room. The DJs were spinning some funky tech house for a fun mix of downtown clubbers who were ready to party.

    Virgo is a refreshing addition to the NYC nightlife scene and a spot where you can hear quality house music without all the hang ups of going to a big club in Brooklyn.

  • Courtesy of Kino Lorber

    An intriguing new film from Chase Joynt, Framing Agnes is a docudrama hybrid that delves into a notorious 1960s gender health study at UCLA. Using reenactments, the film fleshes out several of the study’s transgender subjects, including the titular pseudonymous Agnes, who became renowned for “tricking” UCLA in to obtain gender-affirming surgery at a time when such procedures were only done abroad and trans Americans were little seen or understood.

    At the beginning of the film, we see news footage of trans pioneer Christine Jorgensen, then one of the most famous women in the world. At the time (1950s) her blond, glamorous image (representing the apex of American femininity) was one of the few public representations — and for many, the only one — of a transgender woman. Joynt then introduces us to six subjects of the UCLA study portrayed by trans actors including Angelica Ross (Pose), Jen Richards (Mrs. Fletcher), and Zackary Drucker (Transparent), as they reenact actual interviews with sociologist Harold Garfinkel (played by Joynt himself), taken directly from unearthed transcripts. They are a cross-section of America, including the blonde, glamorous Agnes (Drucker); church-going African-American Georgia (Ross), and midwestern, working-class Denny (Silas Howard); all of them sharp, thoughtful, and crystal clear about themselves and their place in society at the time. Filmed in black and white, these scenes are fraught with tamped down emotion as the subjects calmly explain themselves to an often clueless Garfinkel. At times, Joynt and an actor will interrupt a scene to talk about the character or the words of the transcript, giving some interesting context and background to the process.

    Angelica Ross by Stephanie Owens/Courtesy of Kino Lorber

    Interspersed throughout are snippets of the actors talking about their own lives, as well as commentary from current trans figures including scholar and researcher Jules Gill-Peterson, weighing in on this important chapter in trans history.  The “talk show” format of the reenacted interviews reflects the fact that transgender people have been guests on many actual TV talk shows over the years, often portrayed as exotic novelties. Included are scenes from Katie Couric’s 2017 documentary Gender Revolution featuring Carmen Carrera, Laverne Cox and others. Couric was criticized at the time for her sensationalistic emphasis on the physical aspects of transitioning, a reflection of the media’s general fascination.

    Framing Agnes is straightforward, moving and revelatory for both viewer and the actors themselves, some of whom are as surprised as we are by the subjects’ frank conversations about love, relationships, and identity. There are parallels to the present, such as the tougher experience of trans women of color, as embodied by Georgia. Through these interviews, we gain a wider perspective of the trans experience in America, including a time when trans or non-binary people didn’t dare talk about themselves or acknowledge each other in public. Also surprising is Jimmy (Stephen Ira), a 15-year-old whose mother brought him to UCLA for the study. Though trans teens may seem like a relatively recent phenomenon, we can assume that there were many others like Jimmy in the 1960s (and earlier).

    Courtesy of Kino Lorber

    Joynt, who co-directed the excellent 2020 documentary No Ordinary Man, about jazz musician Billy Tipton, has made Framing Agnes a stylish, compelling film that should be eye-opening even to those who are familiar with American transgender history.

    Framing Agnes opens in New York on Friday, Dec. 2.

    Marina Zogbi

  • Image courtesy of “You Resemble Me”

    Boasting an impressive list of producers––including Spike Lee, Riz Ahmed, Alma Har’el, and Spike Jonze––Dina Amer’s gripping and deeply affecting directorial debut You Resemble Me dramatizes the sad and embattled life of Hasna Ait Boulahcen, a young woman who was falsely depicted as Europe’s first female suicide bomber after the 2015 Paris bombings.

    The first part of the film portrays Hasna and her younger sister Mariam (played with realistic lack of inhibition by real-life sisters Lorenza and Ilonna Grimaudo) as they navigate life in in the suburbs of Paris. Moroccan immigrants, they live in a multi-racial housing complex with their overwhelmed, abusive mother and two other siblings. Despite life’s challenges and the neighborhood’s roughness, the closely bonded Hasna and Mariam manage to have fun playing and running through the streets. With its naturalistic action, dialogue and characters, the film is instantly compelling. Amer presents her story in a straightforward yet often poetic way; it’s easy to get drawn into the lives of these scrappy sisters.

    Dina Amer
    (photo: Kevin Scanlon)

    During an impromptu birthday celebration for Mariam, their mother attempts to collect her daughter’s gifts to sell for cash. Hasna rebels, running away with Mariam in tow. They take the train into the city, where they sleep in a park in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower and snatch food from street vendors.

    Eventually the girls are apprehended (not for the first time) by authorities and literally torn apart, relegated to separate foster homes. Like the rest of You Resemble Me, this wrenching scene is intimate and raw, the camera closing in on the girls’ agonized faces.

    Things are tense in Hasna’s foster home and she runs away again, wearing a cowboy hat she somehow acquired. (Actual press photos of Ait Boulahcen included one of her in a similar hat. A fan of Westerns, her character pretends to draw guns and shoot “bad guys” at several points during the film.)

    The film jumps ahead several years, showing a grown-up Hasna drinking and dancing uninhibitedly in a club, then getting beaten up for selling bad drugs and being told by another man, “Everyone knows you’re a whore.” As an adult, Hasna is played by three different women including director Amer, with the fantastic Mouna Soualem doing the heaviest lifting. The multi-actress device, which is a bit confusing at first, symbolizes the character’s fragmented self.

    Hasna repeatedly blames herself for splitting up her siblings and keeps trying to contact Mariam who doesn’t return her calls. One day she is verbally attacked by several men at the shawarma place where she works and is rescued by a Muslim couple.

    At her lowest point, she sees her cousin Abdelhamid (Alexandre Gonin) on TV news, depicted as a “radical Islamist” and ISIS member. Hasna later watches one of his recruitment videos, which are clearly made to lure lost souls like herself. Eventually she makes contact and they begin texting, Abdelhamid urging her to come to Syria. Wanting to be useful somewhere, she also attempts to join the French Army, but is rudely dismissed at her interview.

    Hasna’s eventual transformation into a pious Muslim isn’t smooth or complete; she remains rebellious and irreverent. Juxtaposed against Abdelhamid’s lulling descriptions of the “paradise” that awaits Hasna, we see news reports of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, and later, the coordinated St. Denis/Paris attacks that included the horrific Bataclan nightclub shootings. Eventually, Hasna decides to join her cousin.

    Image courtesy of “You Remember Me”

    When Hasna’s real-life relatives weigh in on her life and circumstances late in the film, it makes for an emotionally powerful and devastating ending.

    Though most of You Resemble Me is a fictionalized version of what led to Hasna’s “radicalization,” it’s a compelling portrait of how a broken person might become involved in something that is beyond comprehension to most of us. It’s also Amer’s attempt to set the record straight, as initial reports of Hasna as suicide bomber were later disproved. An impressive debut, the film manages to unspool a complicated narrative and tightly hold our attention throughout.

    You Resemble Me opens at the Angelika Film Center on Friday, November 4.

    –– Marina Zogbi

  • Mixed Greens, Saturday, November 12th

    Art for Progress “Mixed Greens” series continues November 12th with a retrospective in art featuring many artists who have exhibited with AFP over the past 20 years. Paintings, photography, collage, mixed media, digital art, illustrations and more will be part of the show. New work and older work will be included in the show, while some of the work to be exhibited is held in private collections.

    The stories of the artists and work are vast, and some very powerful. For example, we’ll be showing artwork from street artist Jef Campion (Army of One) who was a fireman, artist, activist and volunteer. Jeff was a first responder on that unforgettable day, 9/11. Jef dedicated his time to art and activism as a result of that experience. Sadly, in 2014 Jef took his own life, but the power of his life’s work lives on. A mural was dedicated in his honor at a ceremony in his hometown of Yonkers a few years ago. We look forward to sharing his work with you, as the message hits home today with the horrific war in Ukraine.

    The show will also feature work by illustrator, Don Sipley. Don also passed away some years back. He was a kind soul who was well recognized as a leading commercial illustrator in publishing and fashion. Don was very generous and appreciative of Art for Progress, where he donated his services and time on many occasions.

    Other stories include, noted, early Burning Man photographer Gabe Kirchheimer, who’s work was featured in the New York Times and prolific Spanish painter Juan Manuel Pajares. Art for Progress helped establish his work in the NYC market. Visual artist Michael Alan, who’s worked with Art for Progress over the years, will also be part for the show. Plus, we’ll be exhibiting work created at AFP’s event in Central Park in 2009, with street artist Royce Bannon and others.

    On the music side of things, the night will feature two live music performances. Zef Noise (Emilio Zef China), who performed at one of AFP’s very first events will perform on November 12th. Zef is a world class talent with a storied career. In recent years, he’s toured with Bauhaus, Peter Murphy’s Goth rock band, and has worked with many well-known acts including Dirty Projectors, The Naked and Famous, and DeerHunter. We’re also pleased to have Kara Ali joining us. Kara is a NY-based soulful Singer/Songwriter. Writing a fusion of rock, folk and soul, her music marries a throwback feel with modern touches for a unique and honest sound. She has strong jazzy alto vocals and her lyrics are often introspective, playful and highly relatable. Kara’s latest works touch on self-discovery and LGBT love themes, employing metaphors and an earnest delivery.

    Participating Artists: Michael Alan, Royce Bannon, Jef Campion, Jason Covert, Pablo Damas, Martin Deegan, Gabe Kirchheimer, Juan Pajares, Don Sipley, Jeanne Wilkinson

    Live Music performances by Zef Noise, Kara Ali

    DJs spinning: Gatto, Eric Shans, Sanam

    Seven House, 35 Meadow Street, Brooklyn (L train to Grand)

    Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mixed-greens-tickets-419867303407

    Doors: 7PM – Midnight, $10 Suggested Donation, $20 donation includes open bar (beer and wine)

    Funds raised will go to support the artists and Art for Progress’ arts education programs in under-served communities in NYC