ARMENIAN REPORTER
PO Box 129
Paramus, New Jersey 07652
Tel: 1-201-226-1995
Fax: 1-201-226-1660
Web:
Email: [email protected]
February 10, 2007 — From the Arts & Culture section
1. Nuclear art: Three Egoyans in four acts
2. Cheers to POMEGRANATE WHISKY
3.Arts Briefs
* BEAUTIFUL ARMENIANS on Watertown cable in February
* New Armenian sacred music
* Zulal’s Anaïs, Teni & Yeraz: In their own words
* Minnesota Book Awards honors Akçam’s new book
* The ARMENIAN REPORTER wants your art briefs
****************************************** *********************************
1. Nuclear art: Three Egoyans in four acts
* Atom in words, Eve in notes and Arsinee in Berlin
by Paul Chaderjian
Special to the ARMENIAN REPORTER
* Act I: Atomic Thinking & the Bigger Picture
The fascinating genius of Atom Egoyan is the subject of a new book
titled IMAGE AND TERRITORY: ESSAYS ON ATOM EGOYAN. Editors Monique
Tschofen and Jennifer Burwell, both English professors at Toronto’s
Ryerson University, offer cinephiles and fans nearly 500 pages of
thought-provoking essays about Egoyan’s body of work. The book is
published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press.
IMAGES AND TERRITORY features both in-depth essays and interviews
about one of the most talented artistic voices of the era. Penned by
leading film and media scholars, the book offers an insider’s
perspective into the mind of the award-winning director, producer,
writer, musician and artist. The essays also give the reader a
perspective of how Egoyan’s vision and words fit into, push forward,
or challenge grander milieus like the arts, philosophy and politics.
Inspiration, logic, relationships, and aesthetic are some of the
themes explored in this multidisciplinary, must-read collection of
essays about the nucleus of the man, the sought-after Hollywood
director, the cult hero indie filmmaker, and Canadian and Armenian
royalty.
While you’re on Amazon ordering the book, you may consider adding to
your DVD collection titles like the ADJUSTER, SPEAKING PARTS,
FELICIA’S JOURNEY, EXOTICA, THE SWEET HEREAFTER, WHERE THE TRUTH LIES,
CALENDAR, and of course, ARARAT.
* Act II: Mrs. Egoyan, AKA Arsinee Khanjian, takes Berlin
The 57th Annual Berlin International Film Festival opened this week
with a program of 343 films from 46 countries. One of the films chosen
to be on the Bernali’s film program this year is STONE TIME TOUCH,
starring Arsinee Khanjian.
The Canadian-Armenian film, directed by 36-year-old Gariné Torossian,
will screen on February 9, 10 and 11. Torossian, like Khanjian, was
born in Lebanon and immigrated to Canada. She says the film, her first
feature, captures the diversity of communities in Armenia, the
extremes and complexities of history since the Genocide, and explores
Armenian identity and the meaning of the homeland.
* Act III: All about Eve
Critics are still raving about Eve Egoyan’s January 25th performance
with the Victoria Symphony. Under the direction of conductor Tania
Miller, Eve (Atom’s sister), was the featured piano soloist, taking on
Rudolf Komorous’ piece for piano called THE SEVEN SIDES OF MAXINE’S
SILVER DIE.
The GLOBE AND MAIL said Egoyan’s remarkable playing balanced the
delicacy of the piece with intense focus, "holding all in a net." The
newspaper’s Elissa Poole writes, "Egoyan timed these decelerations so
perfectly that the spaces in between the notes were still charged with
presence. Similarly when scales made way for chords, it was possible
to imagine them as the same object perceived within different time
frames."
Want to know "All about Eve," point and click your way to
, check out her CDs, read the reviews, and get to
know another talented Atomic electron from Canada’s Garden of Eden.
* Act IV: Fusion vs. Fission? Censors Vote for Violence
Atom Egoyan is on film talking about the illogical rating system used
by the Motion Picture Association of America. In the new documentary
THIS FILM IS NOT RATED, Egoyan is interviewed by filmmaker Kirby Dick
about the shadowy board which controls what audiences in the U.S. see
on big and small screens.
The documentary exposes the ratings process, the subjective dynamics
and the religious-right influenced decisions that directly determine
how films are made and whether or not they are successful. THIS FILM
IS NOT RATED unmasks the decision makers who serve on the board, work
behind closed doors, and often favor big-budget studio-produced films
over independent ones.
Egoyan is interviewed about how the MPAA board threatened him with an
NC-17 rating for WHERE THE TRUTH LIES. The board told the director
that he had to make certain shots in the Kevin Bacon-Colin Firth movie
fuzzy to receive an R rating. In the documentary, Egoyan asks the head
of the board: "Would you like to edit my next film?"
Along with Egoyan, other bewildered directors interviewed about the
MPAA rating system include Kimberly Pierce (BOYS DON’T CRY), Kevin
Smith (JERSEY GIRL), Wayne Kramer (THE COOLER), Mary Heron (AMERICAN
PSYCHO), and John Waters (A DIRTY SHAME).
**************************************** ***********************************
2. Cheers to POMEGRANATE WHISKY
by Aram Kouyoumdjian
"I want to go back to France," she drones, rolling the "r" and the
cigarette in her hand. "She" happens to be the Statue of Liberty,
depressed and embittered, and bored of American shores – at least as
imagined by performance artist Lory Tatoulian in "Pomegranate Whisky,"
her latest cocktail of comedic monologues and musical numbers. The
faux cabaret plays Sunday nights at the Heartbreak House Studio in
Atwater through March 18.
Among the evening’s many highlights, the Statue of Liberty segment is
particularly memorable, thanks to Tatoulian’s sophisticated humor and
the deadpan hilarity of her performance. Lady Liberty longs for Paris
as she laments her diminishing role in welcoming immigrants and, in a
sharp political jibe, confesses fearing relocation to the Mexican
border as a guard against illegal crossings.
Despite her youth, Tatoulian is a veteran solo performer whose credits
include "Sitting Twisted, Talking Straight" and "Unplucked." Press
materials describe her as an "actress and playwright whose work
explores issues of cultural identity, gender, and ethnic community
dynamics," all true. In "Pomegranate Whisky," she morphs into diverse
characters in a dozen vignettes, promising to leave her audience
"shaken and stirred."
The show actually opens with a lesser piece about a Southern cosmetics
consultant hell-bent on introducing Western beauty techniques to the
women of the Middle East through her "Operation Makeover Takeover."
Unfortunately, "Takeover" never really takes off, despite Tatoulian’s
spot-on parody of the make-up maven.
The evening soon shifts into high gear, however, with Tatoulian’s
kinetic portrayal of a chicana madly in love with Los Angeles mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa. As she struts around exuding attitude, Tatoulian
engages in some fearless physical comedy, even as she shows off her
skill with accents and detailed, telling gestures.
Proving her versatility and range, Tatoulian follows that piece with a
vodka-swilling Russian man’s existentialist riff on Communism.
References to Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy ("funny guys") abound in the
literate monologue, which often breaks into an absurdly distorted
version of "I Love Paris."
The musical portions of the program are consistently witty. While
Tatoulian can claim credit for the clever lyrics, the arrangements and
original compositions are the work of Ara Dabandjian, who provides
instrumental accompaniment not just on keyboards, but also guitar and
accordion.
The most risqué among the songs is a subversive take on "My Favorite
Things," the all-too-familiar tune from "The Sound of Music." In her
gleeful rendition, Tatoulian – now sporting a British accent, natch –
strips the song of its family-friendly lyrics and substitutes
mischievous double entendres about the monthly visit of Aunt Flo.
The standout musical sequence of the show, however, is a medley of
Armenian children’s songs that Tatoulian performs to sultry jazz
rhythms. The concept is so inspired and the execution so flawless that
one wishes Tatoulian were in an actual cabaret club rather than the
somewhat drab studio where the show is currently staged.
Although Tatoulian is dynamic throughout the show, portions of the
evening that deal with Armenian themes and characters carry special
resonance. An improvisational bit about Armenian history fell a tad
flat during a recent performance, but Tatoulian was masterful in one
of her signature roles, the middle-aged, middle-class transplant from
Beirut to "the hills of the Glendale."
Tatoulian captures the chatty lady’s traits – from her mannerisms to
her diction – so precisely that the resulting performance proves not
just hysterically funny, but painfully honest. To be sure, the
character’s unchecked, inappropriate remarks generate hearty laughs
(the suggestive ring of her heavily-accented pronunciation of "vacuum"
leaves the audience in stitches). Yet, the power of Tatoulian’s comedy
lies in her ability to satirize the provincialism and materialism of
the character and of certain strata within the Armenian community that
she represents.
So, if it’s Sunday night and you’re in the mood for a drink, try
"Pomegranate Whisky." You will taste a wide range of surprising
flavors, from sweet vermouth to bitter gin, with a splash of Armenian
oghi thrown in.
********************************************* ******************************
3.Arts Briefs
* BEAUTIFUL ARMENIANS on Watertown cable in February
The independent documentary BEAUTIFUL ARMENIANS by Tamar Salibian is
broadcasting five days a week on Watertown’s Comcast cable channel 10
or RCN cable channel 13. The hour-long program airs on Fridays at 7
P.M., on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 9 A.M. and on Mondays and
Thursdays at 4 P.M.
In BEAUTIFUL ARMENIANS* Salibian reflects on the interrelation of
culture, family, and memory. Part travelogue, part family chronicle,
part meditation, BEAUTIFUL ARMENIANS starts in the United States and
eventually moves to the Middle East. Salibian weaves interviews,
portraits and comedic moments into a film about the place of the
individual in the contradictions of transnational identity.
Anahid Kassabian, film curator and professor at the University of
Liverpool says that Salibian’s "story sense is terrific" and the film
explores its subject with "subtlety, empathy and humor."
connect:
menians
* New Armenian sacred music
A new composition of Armenian sacred church music — the Badarak or
Divine Liturgy of the Armenian Apostolic Church — has been written by
San Diego-based composer George Kirazian and performed by the Pacific
Camerata choral group.
Composing the Badarak was a 12-year labor of love for Kirazian, who
became intimately familiar with the Yegmalian and Gomidas-composed
Badaraks while singing in San Diego’s Saint John Garabed Armenian
Church. With love and respect for the Yegmalian and Gomidas versions,
he was inspired to compose a new version of the music, combining both
modern sensibilities and traditional harmonies while retaining the
original text.
A published author and English professor at Grossmont College for
nearly forty years, Kirazian has always dedicated himself to music
since studying opera and literature at New York University as a young
student.
Selected sharagans from Kirazian’s BADARAK were recently performed by
the professional choral group, Pacific Camerata, which also plans to
record the composition.
connect:
bd.html
* Zulal’s Anaïs, Teni & Yeraz: In their own words
"We had a wonderful time in L.A. at the Mosaic Concert. The concert
was well organized by Hamazkayin, and the audience was incredibly
receptive to Zulal. We had such a warm reception from the audience
after the show, and it was truly a wonderful experience. From teens to
the older generation, it seems like we touched people and that felt
really wonderful. There’s already talk of organizing the next Mosaic 2
concert, so we might be back in L.A. again before we know it."
"As for the rest of this year, we’ll be taking a performance break to
really focus on our second album. Teni, our soprano, just moved back
to New York from Boston. So, the three of us are once again living in
the same city, and we have a found new energy to forge ahead on
several new projects."
"We’ve been working with several film directors to create music for
their soundtracks, which has been exciting. With our second album
coming out towards the end of this year, we already have booking
agents calling us to plan our concert tour, which will include New
York, L.A., and several cities in Europe."
(Editor’s note: Zulal is on the soundtrack of Arsinee Khanjian and
Gariné Torossian’s film STONE TIME TOUCH, playing this weekend at the
Berlin International Film Festival).
connect:
zulal
* Minnesota Book Awards honors Akçam’s new book
Taner Akçam’s A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question
of Turkish Responsibility has been named a finalist in the 19th annual
Minnesota Book Awards.
The statewide honor will pick from nearly 300 books entered in eight
categories. A SHAMEFUL ACT was one of five finalists in the General
Nonfiction category, which at 90 entries was the toughest to win.
In addition to the General Nonfiction honor, A SHAMEFUL ACT is
eligible for the Readers’ Choice Award. Minnesotans will have a chance
to vote online for this award between March 1 and April 15.
Winners will be announced on Saturday, May 5, at the Crowne Plaza
Hotel on the Saint Paul Riverfront in downtown. From 1 P.M. to 2:30
P.M. on May 5, the finalists will appear at a book signing at the
Central Library, 90 W. 4th St., Saint Paul.
connect:
[email protected]
www.th efriends.org/mnbookawards.html
* The ARMENIAN REPORTER wants your art briefs
The ARMENIAN REPORTER newspaper’s new weekly Arts & Culture section
wants your arts, entertainment, and cultural news headlines and story
ideas.
We want to know what Armenian artists and community and cultural
organizations are up to, what your accomplishments have been, and what
your future plans are. Write us if you know of or have heard about
Armenians doing anything that you feel is interesting for other
Armenians to know about, and we’ll follow up.
contact:
[email protected]
****************** ************************************************** *******
Please send your news to [email protected] and your letters to
[email protected]
(c) 2007 CS Media Enterprises LLC. All Rights Reserved
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
