March 2022 | Arts in the City
♪ [Opening Music] ♪ Carol Anne Riddell: Hi everyone. I'm Carol Anne Riddell and welcome to Arts in the City. If you're searching for something fun to do with the kids look no further. We are at the Staten Island Children's Museum and there is plenty to do and see here with the family. We'll show you some highlights a bit later in the show.
But first, a theater company that is breaking down social stigma on stage. Susan Jhun takes us there. > I think you're pulling something on me. And this is not a good time to be pulling something on me. > If I wanted to pull something- why would I pull something? I just think- I just- gosh! Susan Jhun: Gerard Riley is living his lifelong dream of acting onstage professionally. A dream that seemed unattainable just over a year ago.
Gerard Riley: I wanted to find a place where I can be accepted and make a lot of new friends and also bring my acting talent to the next level. Susan Jhun: A challenge for actors like Riley who identify as neurodivergent. Fortunately for Riley, he discovered EPIC Players, a neurodiverse theater company committed to creating a professional performing arts platform for those living with developmental disabilities.
> You're mad. > I'm not mad. Susan Jhun: Like actor Whitney Blythe who says the name EPIC, which stands for empower, perform, include, and create, says it all. Whitney Blythe: I can just be myself and yet pretend. Aubrie Therrien: I believe it doesn't matter if you have a disability or not.
If you were born to love the stage, then you should have an opportunity to pursue that. Susan Jhun: Former actor Aubrie Therrien founded the nonprofit in 2016. Aubrie Therrien: My mother was a teacher for students with disabilities.
And so every year when I was breaking for tour, I would go home and I would do play workshops with my mom's students. And we would see how much confidence they got and their language skills increasing and their social skills. Susan Jhun: An experience that inspired Therrien to form the theater company, which she says is now more important than ever. Aubrie Therrien: More often we are seeing roles written for neurodivergent characters or characters with developmental disabilities, but we're still seeing neurotypical or ablebodied actors playing those roles.
And that is just not fair. And it propagates the stigma of lack of competence or lack of ability from the disabled community, which is just untrue. Susan Jhun: EPIC has challenged those preconceived notions, producing several main stage productions, including original works and cabarets. > [singing] ♪ I didn't do it. [ I didn't do it ] But if I'd done it. [ But if she'd done it ] How could you tell me that I was wrong? ♪ > [singing] ♪ You'll be back, soon you'll see, you'll remember you belong to me. ♪
Susan Jhun: The theater troupe returned to the stage in October with Cabaret at Joe's Pub, after producing virtually during the height of the pandemic. EPIC most recently finished a main stage production of Almost Maine. > Raspberries? > Nope. Aubrie Therrien: There is a tendency to infantilize people with disabilities, specifically people with developmental disabilities. And that's kind of why at EPIC, we choose shows that allow our players to express their humanity, not just shows that express the disability.
So it's love, it's sadness, it's hope, it's humor. Susan Jhun: All shows are neuro-inclusive with a mix of actors with and without disabilities. All of whom have to audition to be a part of EPIC. Aubrie Therrien: We are not a drama therapy program. We are a theater company, so we exist to provide actors with disabilities a chance to learn, to have access to maybe a conservatory like training that they wouldn't have access to before and perform on professional stages and get credit and get paid for their work. Susan Jhun: Everything at EPIC is free, including advocates for the actors and the opportunity to collaborate with Broadway stars in workshops and masterclasses.
What do you see for the future of EPIC Players? Aubrie Therrien: I want to win a Tony. I mean, that's obvious. [laughing] Susan Jhun: Therrien would also love to see EPIC elevated to off-Broadway and Broadway stages. For more on these epic performances, visit EPICPlayersNYC.org. For Arts in the City, I'm Susan Jhun. > [singing] ♪ No one fights like Gaston.
Douses lights like Gaston. ♪ Carol Anne Riddell: Our Neil Rosen is back with another big celebrity interview. He spoke with actor Andrew Garfield about his new movie tick, tick...BOOM! and the buzz around his portrayal of Jonathan Larson, the creator of Rent. Neil Rosen: Andrew Garfield swung onto movie screens playing the Amazing Spider-Man, grabbed an Oscar nomination for his role in Hacksaw Ridge, and won a Tony Award for his performance on Broadway in the acclaimed revival of Angels in America.
His latest film is tick, tick... BOOM! where he plays this famed musical composer. > Hello. Hi. Welcome. I'm Jonathan Larson.
Neil Rosen: Larson is best known for writing the iconic musical Rent and tragically died the day before it opened. But the film tick, tick...BOOM!, directed by the incomparable Lin-Manuel Miranda, looks at his days before Rent, a time when Larson was a struggling New York composer and playwright trying to get another one of his earlier works noticed.
> I have an original rock musical. > Hey boy genius. > And I've spent the last eight years of my life writing it. Neil Rosen: First of all, amazing performance here. And there's, look, there's lots of research and film available to you to play Jonathan Larson. What is your process? How do you approach something like this? Andrew Garfield: It's about getting to an essence, I think.
And it's about then using your own being as a vessel for that essence to come through. Using parts of yourself that align with that character. Using, you know, yourself physically, emotionally, and intellectually to let that character, that person's essence be expressed through you. So that was what I ultimately got to do every morning on set. After all that preparation was to say to John, you know, you're in me now, move through me and I will follow your impulses.
I'll let your impulses run ragged. And he was an incredibly impulsive person. He was someone who was incredibly spontaneous, free, full of abandon, and kind of a wild charismatic kind of whirlwind of a creative, emotional force. Everything turned up to an 11 all the time.
And he was singing for his life, you know? He was singing for his life. He knew that he had a small amount of time on this planet and it showed in all of his creative output. > [singing] ♪ This is the life, bo-bo, bo-bo-bo.
This is the life, bo-bo, bo-bo-bo. This is the life, bo-bo, bo-bo-bo. Bohemia. ♪ Neil Rosen: Lin-Manuel Miranda, it's his directorial debut. Did you find him- you've worked with lots of directors.
Did you find him confident? Andrew Garfield: Yeah. It's so interesting. He shares a quality that the most seasoned kind of confident directors that I've worked with have. Like Scorsese, you know, like Fincher, and it is a confidence in collaboration. It's a real openness to the best idea winning.
And that is very rare for a young director, let alone a first time director. But Lin obviously is a different breed. You know, he's someone who has had so much success as a musical theater creator and writer that I think he just innately has a kind of assured sense of where he's going creatively. Neil Rosen: Larson was really a New York guy, you know, in every sense of the word. And you've spent time here. You've been on Broadway here. Are you a fan of the city? Andrew Garfield: Oh yeah.
I mean, yeah, New York is in me. Like I, you know, it's maybe too much information. I was conceived in New York. [chuckling]
So that's in my DNA in some way. And yeah, whenever I've been, whenever I visited or lived there, I've lived in the city for a few periods of time while working on things. And, you know, particularly when I'm doing a play, when I did Death of a Salesman or Angels in America, you feel kind of, you feel kind of sewn in to the fabric of the city in a way where you feel so included and welcomed in a sense of belonging when you're doing a show in New York. And, you know, it's just such a beautiful thing to feel like you're part of the fabric of the greatest city in the world. Neil Rosen: With Andrew Garfield, for Arts in the City, I'm Neil Rosen.
Carol Anne Riddell: March is Women's History Month so our photographer Laura Fuchs took to the streets with her camera to capture the beauty and strength of New York City women. Carol Anne Riddell: A cemetery might not be at the top of your list for a cultural outing, but when it comes to Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, maybe it should be. Take a look.
The Green-Wood Cemetery is a permanent home for more than 550,000 souls resting in the tranquility of these 478 acres. But it's also very much a place for the living. Harry Weil: I like to think Green-Wood is trying to redefine what a cemetery in the 21st century could be.
Carol Anne Riddell: Harry Weil is the Director of Public Programs at Green-Wood. Harry Weil: Yes, we are an active burial site. You know, people are cremated and buried here on a daily basis, but we're a place that welcomes visitors for tours, concerts, and programs throughout the year too. Carol Anne Riddell: For example, step inside the historic chapel and take in stunning stained glass, hop on a trolley tour, or check out a concert in the catacombs. Harry Weil: I have to say the catacombs are my favorite spot in the cemetery.
So in the middle of the cemetery is this beautiful long hallway that looks as though it's somewhere out of medieval Europe or something. And on either side are 15 family vaults. And because of the shape of it the sound just echoes so the performances in there are really special.
Carol Anne Riddell: Or perhaps architecture is your thing. Harry Weil: You can't get away from architecture. So whether it's the main gate, which is this beautiful Gothic Revival Archway, but all of the many mausoleums that are, you know, spread throughout the grounds.
You know, whether it's Egyptian Revival or Gothic Revival or Greek Revival, it's every major trend from the 19th and 20th century you'll find. Carol Anne Riddell: And while the dead are memorialized on these grounds, their stories bring history to life. Among those here, the composer Leonard Bernstein, artists Jean-Michel Basquiat, and the infamous politician Boss Tweed. Jeff Richman: So it's estimated that he stole in like 1870 money, about $250 million from New York City and New York State. My favorite Boss Tweed story is I was driving past his lot about a year ago, and I saw something at the gate of the lot and backed up to see what it was and it was a little plastic trophy that you can buy in a trophy store. And it said, Best Boss on it. [laughing]
So we have two keys here, one for the outside door. Carol Anne Riddell: Defying the notion of you can't take it with you, some of the residents here did just that. We got a rare glimpse of beautiful sculpture behind mausoleum doors. Art that sits in the dark quiet of eternity. Finally, some other notable residents who call the main gates home.
Jeff Richman: So they came in on a shipment from South America being imported, you know, as exotic birds and somehow cracked out of their case and made a run for it. And so they particularly love high places and they've been here ever since many, many generations of Monk parakeets have established themselves in the main gates. So we've actually done two restorations on those gates. They are New York City landmarks.
And during the two restorations, they moved to a nearby tree and watched as their condo was rehabbed. And then they moved back in and you typically see them flying around with a twig in their beaks and they're building their nest and kind of, you know, fixing it up. Carol Anne Riddell: Like true New Yorkers, obsessed with real estate. Next up, Lisa Beth Kovetz introduces us to the art of bow ties at a one man shop in Brooklyn that takes dapper dressing to another level. Richard Joseph: My son and I wanted to start a t-shirt business.
And I didn't really have the funds to pay for a graphic designer and I still wanted to create something. And then one day it just clicked. I said, bow ties. They're fairly simple, in theory, on how to make it right. And it just fit for me. And that's what I'm into when things fit with who I am as a person, the type of creative attitude that I have.
Lisa Beth Kovetz: When he's not coordinating the Communications Broadcast and Multimedia Production at Medgar Evers College, Richard Joseph can be found in his workshop creating a near perfect line of bespoke products. Richard Joseph: I only do one of a kind. Very few products are created by one person. Let's say this pair of jeans, one person puts it on a label.
Somebody puts on a pocket, somebody puts on, you know, the belt loops and the button. Lisa Beth Kovetz: But at King-N-Rook, Joseph builds every bow tie, wallet, and pair of suspenders by hand, even cutting and dyeing the leather to the exact color that fits his vision. All King-N-Rook bow ties are reversible and require a special little twist to be worn to their fullest glory. Richard Joseph: So this is the process that I use for tying a bow tie with the contract. It's one less step and a little bit of twisting magic that I do in order to reveal the contrast. And I use this finger to keep a little gap here and one loop tightens around the neck, which is typically the back loop and the front loop tightens the knot.
All of the ends in the bows are evenly spaced. And then, you know, you do a little zhoosh and voila. Lisa Beth Kovetz: And of course I had to ask him, so what's your opinion on the clip on tie? Richard Joseph: The clip on ties are great for people who need them, but I'm more into the authenticity of things. I have a very old school type of mentality and I think it came from my education. One of my professors in a web design class taught us that yes, there are all these tools at your disposal.
These clicking and drag type of applications he said, but I need you guys to know the basics. How to do it the hard way before you do it the easy way. And so I adapted that mentality of, I need to know how to do it by hand, you know, the bare bones way of doing things before I take it to the easy way. Because when the tools break or the technology goes, you should still be able to accomplish your goals.
Lisa Beth Kovetz: The mastery of the task is undeniable, but something more than great technique is going on at King-N-Rook. Richard Joseph: Bold combinations of fabrics and colors and things like that. It's always a way that I guess it's a form of communication for me as well. Lisa Beth Kovetz: It's a work of art.
It's absolutely beautiful. Richard Joseph: Thank you very much. I worked very hard at getting you to say that. [laughing] Took months and months to get people to say things like that to me. I love it. I really do. Lisa Beth Kovetz: King-N-Rook is available to order online at KingNRook.com.
This has been Lisa Beth Kovetz for Arts in the City. Carol Anne Riddell: Now a story from CUNY TV's Italics, that is a true taste of Italy and it will leave you hungry for more. We visit Raffetto's, the family owned shop in the village that's been making fresh pasta for more than a hundred years.
Andrew Raffetto: My grandfather started the business in 1906. Marcello Raffetto. The first store was at 176 Sullivan Street, which is just around the corner from here. After about 15 years or 14 years of making pasta on Sullivan Street, he saved enough money to buy this building where we are today, either 1920 or 1921.
So it's 100 years at this location. My father had always said, if you make something, you know, good and the best it could be, it will always sell. Don't cut corners. Don't find a less expensive ricotta or parmigiano.
Just make the good things, price it accordingly, and New Yorkers who are exposed to so many foods and different levels, they know what's good and what's not. For about 70 or 80 years, about 85 years, it was all made in the back room here. But as you make more flavors, you need more ingredients, more boxes, that we needed more space. So in 1992, we found like an empty building in the West Village, made it into a food manufacturing building. At our factory in New Jersey the machine that creates the sheet of pasta to put in the guillotine is still used.
And that machine was purchased in 1917. You put the mixture in here and you have a stick and you make a sheet, you crush it into a sheet and you would cut it into pieces and those pieces would come here so we could sell it and cut to order. We dust it with semolina so it doesn't stick when you cut it with the guillotine. And this is so efficient that you just change the size by moving this slightly.
So this will be linguini. It's the pasta that was made that day. So it's a, kinda like an old fashioned way of shopping. Sarah Raffetto: In 2019 I started a long time dream of turning our retail space and this counter where we're standing into a pop-up private event space, where there would be private dinners and publicly ticketed dinners. So it turned out to be a great way of capitalizing on a space that we already owned and being in a very unique space for an Italian dining experience. So being surrounded by all of these cans and tomatoes and the pasta drawers, you're really immersed in a very old, special environment.
Andrew Raffetto: Being in a family business is extremely rewarding. My parents with my brother and then my mother until three years ago was here helping out. So there's three generations doing things. Sarah Raffetto: It's also about the fact that we like each other, because you can love your family because they're your family and you'll love them no matter what, but it's so much different to actually like people. It's so much easier and enjoyable to spend all this time together while having this common goal.
Carol Anne Riddell: What sort of music puts you in a mellow state of mind? For some people, head banging punk rock is a source of relaxation, even introspection. Here's Barry Mitchell, and he's ready to turn up the volume. Barry Mitchell: Meet Brian Lugo and Annette Santiago, AKA Roseblood and Thorn Black.
Just your typical circus acrobats slash metal influence horror punk musicians. Annette Santiago: We are performing artists and circus acrobats. And we also are in a band called Cut Like This. > [singing] ♪ You think that you are special and oh so perfect. ♪ Annette Santiago: The audience for horror punk is pretty much anybody that loves horror movies. People that like a dark aesthetic.
Very spooky, very cathartic, a little bit angry, a little bit edgy. Cut Like This is a little bit different than a lot of the other bands in horror punk or even the goth scene in general, in that we are all people of color and that's not something that you see as often as I would like to see. Barry Mitchell: Brian met Annette when he joined her band.
They were intrigued by an outdoor circus trapeze school when they were walking by Chelsea Piers. Annette Santiago: We're like, oh, that looks cool. I was like, you want to do that with me? And he's like, yeah, I'd do that with you. And then we just found a circus school here in New York City, even though we were starting at an older age than most people start doing acrobatics. And because, you know, we were just really determined we ended up becoming real professional circus acrobats. We've lived off of it for many years.
We've performed stilt walking in all kinds of crazy situations and with a really stunning variety of clients. Macy's Parade, at the Museum of Natural History. We've performed stilt walking at Electric Zoo for four years in a row at Randall's Island Park in New York, the big electronic music festival.
Barry Mitchell: How do you keep your chops up during the pandemic when you can't perform? Annette Santiago: We are focused mainly on our stretching and flexibility. We kind of shifted our focus on our music and our other artistic outlets that are easier for us to pull off right now with things being the way that they are. > [singing] ♪ One, two, it's coming for you. Waiting in the dark, tell me whatcha gonna do? It's the boogeyman. ♪
Brian Lugo: It's called The Boogeyman. That's our new single, and we also have a remix. Barry Mitchell: A deliciously, evil lullaby available on Bandcamp. Annette Santiago: This album and these songs are also an exploration of the monsters inside of us.
Like which one is scarier? The one on the TV screen or the one inside of your heart, inside of your mind? The one that's telling you that you're worthless or that, you know, that you're not good enough. You know what I mean? And it's like, that's a scarier monster. [laughing] > [singing] ♪ It's the boogeyman. ♪
Annette Santiago: Our website is CutLikeThisMusic.com. We are also on YouTube. In addition to our music videos, we have a horror and anime review show called The Cutting Room Floor and there are 30 episodes. Barry Mitchell: And their multimedia goal? Annette Santiago: Create the art that I want to create and hopefully share it with people that understand it too. Barry Mitchell: Barry Mitchell, Arts in the City.
Carol Anne Riddell: That is our show for today. Thanks so much for watching. A quick reminder to check us out on social media. We'd love to hear from you.
I'm Carol Anne Riddell. See you next time on Arts in the City. ♪ [Closing Music] ♪
2022-03-22 01:28
