Volume 78 / Number 18 - October 1 - 7, 2008
West and East Village, Chelsea, Soho, Noho, Little Italy, Chinatown and Lower East Side, Since 1933

The A-List

Theater

Ellie Covan, owner, founder and mistress of Dixon Place

Dixon Place
Dixon Place, self-described as “an artistic laboratory with an audience,” is a LES institution, known for presenting original works of theater, dance and literature at various stages of development. To commemorate their impending move from 258 Bowery to 161 Christie Street, they’re celebrating with four gala parties in October. This fall also features two Mondo Cané commissions: “Forever” by Laura Peterson Choreography; and “Potatoes of August,” by Sibyl Kempson, a theatrical fugue wherein four retirees encounter a sack of sentient potatoes and find their outworn belief systems confronted by the challenges of metaphysics. Ah, New York! Gala parties Oct. 21, 21, 27 & 28. Dixon Place. 161 Christie St. 212-219-0736, dixonplace.org.

Photography by Lol Crawley. © 2007 Ballast, LLC.

Jim Myron Ross as James and Micheal J. Smtih Sr. as Lawrence

Ballast
“Ballast,” a feature that won the Best Director award at the 2008 Sundance Film Fest, depicts a young boy drifting through a wintry Mississippi township and a middle-aged man sitting in his rural home, frozen in grief after his brother’s suicide. These images spark a riveting story of three people trying to reposition their lives after experiencing a traumatic loss. Director Lance Hammer has been compared to the Dardenne Brothers, for the assured hand with which he tells a delicate, quietly unfolding story using understated means and non-professionals from the Mississippi Delta. Hammer will do a Q&A following the 8 p.m. screenings on October 1, 3, 4, and 5. Opens Oct. 1 $10 adults. $7 students, seniors, neighbors & artists. Film Forum. 209 W. Houston St. 212-727-8110, filmforum.org.

Reading

Courtesy of Suzanne Fiol. From her book “Mothers of Creation” Hearth Press, 2007.

Kimiko Hahn with her daughters, oil on cibachrome by Suzanne Fiol, 4030’.

PARIS REVIEW SALON
This “Friday Happy Hour” Reading Series, hosted by NYU’s Creative Writing Program, features readings by Jesse Ball and Kimiko Hahn. The recipient of The Paris Review’s 2008 Plimpton Prize, Ball has authored four books including a book of poems, “March Book” and a novel, “Samedi the Deafness.” Hahn’s seven collections of poetry include “The Unbearable Heart,” “Earshot,” and “The Narrow Road to the Interior.” The Paris Review editors Christopher Cox and Meghan O’Rourke host. This series runs most Fridays from Oct. 3-Nov. 7. Oct. 10 at 5 p.m. Free and open to the public. Lillian Vernon Writers House. 58 W. 10th St. 212-998-8816, cwp.fas.nyu.edu.

Film Talk

Politics: Past, Present & Future
Moderated by David Edelstein, film critic of New York magazine, this discussion features James Carville, Democratic political consultant; Dee Dee Myers, former White House Press Secretary for President Clinton; DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, filmmakers; Mark Miller, Newsweek journalist. When “The War Room” was released in 1993, it changed the way the media covers the campaign trail and marked the first time a candidate’s behind-the-scenes staff became nearly as well-known as the presidential hopeful himself. In their Oscar-nominated film, directors Pennebaker and Hegedus chronicled the inner workings of then-governor Bill Clinton’s command center. Pennebaker and Hegedus are now celebrating the documentary’s 15th anniversary with a new documentary for the Sundance Channel, “The Return of the War Room,” revisiting Carville, Mary Matalin, George Stephanopoulos, Paul Begala, and others. Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. $15-25. The Paley Center for Media. 25 W. 52nd St. 866-811-4111, paleycenter.org.

B&Mac245;enefit

Courtesy 3LD

A scene from “Rods & Cables”

‘SHHHHH….’
3-Legged Dog, the nonprofit media and theater group focusing on large-scale experimental artwork, host their annual benefit party. This all night event, called “SHHHHH...” comes fully equipped with new work from 3-Legged Dog, video art from 3LD’s Resident Artists, DJs, cutting edge installations from 3LD’s Media Arts Program (MAP) Artists, a scene from the upcoming show “Rods & Cables,” a freak show, street performers, two dance rooms, open bar until midnight. Oct. 17 from 9 p.m.-6 a.m. $10 advance and $15 at the door. 3LD. 80 Greenwich St. (betw. Rector and Edgar). 212-352-3101, 3ldnyc.org