Nutcracker!

photo credit to Alistair Muir

A Christmas classic with music that is recognisable by all, the Nutcracker has long held a place in our hearts as one of the most famous ballets. Some characters, such as the Sugar Plum Fairy, have passed into cultural legend and advertisers frequently assail our ears with a multitude of variations on the same four bars, used in almost every TV advert that pretends it’s not playing Christmas music.

However, Matthew Bourne OBE has cast his magic over this classic and turned it into something entirely new and different. Often noted as Britain’s most popular and successful choreographer, Bourne is the only British director to have won Best Direction of a Musical and Best Choreography.

You may recognise his name from the bill of Swan Lake, where instead of the dainty Odette and her accompanying ballerinas, we were presented with male swans, bare chested and in feathery pantaloons. Bourne’s genius is no less apparent in Nutcracker! where Act One starts in a Dickensian orphanage rather than the sumptuous settings of previous incarnations. The pas de deux of the Sugar Plum Fairy has changed – there are four people on stage, and none en pointe. It is different, it is sassy and it is utterly charming. Expect techno colours and cheeky grins!

I shan’t spoil it for you; suffice to say, the plot has changed enough to entice and captivate every audience member from ballet veterans to those who go along for the sake of their date. This irreverent and utterly genius interpretation is not to be missed. There are performances running until the 22nd January at Sadler Well’s Theatre and tickets are still available.

From Birth To Chosen

A vibrant treasure of a collection of short films was shown at the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. ‘From Birth To Chosen’  had eight films that explored the areas of gender and family, both born and chosen. With a mix of documentary, drama and comedy, this group of films delighted the audience and left all who saw them contemplating issues of gender identity and what family is all about.

The programme started with a U.S. documentary, ‘The Family Journey: Raising Gender Nonconforming Children’, which interviewed various family members from several families about the issues that both they,  and their children,  faced in society and amongst friends and peers. This touching, candid film was very moving. It was refreshing to see the family love and support that was given to the children concerned. With a wealth of different experiences and emotions felt between the interviewees, this film provided a sense of hope and recognition to many.

Another short film from the U.S., ‘Loop Plane’ was a gem of a film. With a fictional story set in an amusement park, following a day in the life of a transgender teen who lives and works there with his supportive father, this wonderful short took you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Beautifully acted and directed, and with some quite stunning cinematography, this film is definitely worth looking out for.

Nominated by the LLGFF for the Iris Short Film Prize (which is one of, if not the, gay and lesbian short film awards), ‘James Dean’ was a smart, funny short set in Scotland. Perfectly capturing the way families behave, argue and relate, all whilst waiting in a car ready for a family outing, this amusing film pleased the audience no end. Everyone could relate to the way families bicker, support or disagree, and the ‘punchline’ towards the end of the film was fabulous.

‘Spiral transition’ was a personal exploration of the development of relations between a mother and her trans son, from the moment when he first finds out her feelings about his transitioning. ‘Absence’ was an artily crafted short about gender fluidity, and the way some have to navigate between identities, in order to relate to family members. ‘Living Room: Bar Wotever 2008-2009′ is the first installment of an ongoing project by Dr Jane, about the people who go to the fantastic Bar Wotever, and what the space means to them. It gave a real sense of why Bar Wotever is cherished by so many and incorporated some of Dr Jane’s stunning photographs as well.

Filmed as a pilot for a possible series, ‘Traverse City’ followed the adventures of a woman and her trans boyfriend as they cross the U.S. to meet her gay male parents. Much comedy was had from the reactions of the gay father, the seperate sexual adventures of the non-monogomous central couple, and the awkwardness of having a partner meet the parents for the first time, which most can relate to. Incorporating comedy, drama, animation and fantasy, this had the audience laughing out loud and waiting for the next installment.

The final film in the selection was ‘Bella Maddo’. This fantastic comic melodrama was about a self-obsessed pregnant wife and mother, and the hell she brings on most of her loved ones. Although none of the characters in the story were transgendered, all the actors in the film were. Co-writer, director and amazing star of the film, Janice Danielle, wanted to make a film that showcased talented trans performers, in roles they may usually not be considered for. This hilarious film had a great sense of heightened drama (in the best possible way!) and was shot, written, directed and acted to a very high standard. It made ‘Mommie Dearest’ seem tame by comparison, and was extremely well received by the audience.

Hopefully you will all get the chance to see this great collection of films. You will be amused, enlightened and have your heart touched by the films.

Mutantes (Punk Porn Feminism)

Showing at the BFI London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival,  ’Mutantes (Punk Porn Feminism)’  is a documentary about the sex positive feminist movement, as seen by the activists, sex workers and performers. Virginie Despentes (director of the film ‘Baise-Moi’ amongst others) has interviewed a wide-range of pro-sex performers, academics, film makers and activists across the U.S and Europe, notably France and Spain. With clips from various porn films and performance pieces interspersed throughout, this winner of the CHE ‘Derek Oystan Film Award’ at this years’ LLGFF, is thought-provoking, entertaining, sexy and informative.

The list of interviewees is extensive, starting with Annie Sprinkle, who always manges to raise a smile and challenge prejudice in an enlightened and humourous way, Carol Queen and other women from the early days of the pro-sex feminist era. We follow the changes, growth and expansion of ideologies from the early 1980s to the present day, demonstrated by the views, activism and porn produced by the punk porn movement’s new radicals in France and Barcelona. The way the shift in feminist thinking has occurred over the decades shows how there is constant change as our understanding of gender, femininities and masculinities and sex itself is constantly challenged and built upon.

This refreshing, provocative film has many instances of humour, politics and what the pleasures and limitless expectations of sex is all about. It will leave the viewer with much to think about, as well as the memory of some hot films, which I am sure you will want to remember the titles of. Some of these clips have not been widely seen before, and will leave you wanting to seek them out to view in full. It also helps you rediscover some lost classics; I, myself, had forgotten the joys of Lydia Lunch’s fishnet clad ass as well as Tribe8′s ferocious BDSM influenced live performances. Strong, intelligent women, with a pro-sex, ethical feminist stance and aesthetic, that will hopefully counteract what is unfortunately an often misogynist porn industry, can only be a good thing. Let’s hope we get the chance to see more work from the punk porn feminist movement, and open up all our eyes to what is possible.

I Love You, But..

On 20th March, from 7-10pm, The Oval House Theatre hosts ‘I Love You, But We Only Have Fourteen Minutes To Save The Earth’, a mixture of live and video performances. Created, directed and developed by Nathan Evans, the talented performer known for his work at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, the show boasts some of the best gender and genre-defying acts that grace our appreciative performance venues.

The wonderful, acerbic, intelligent and (very, very!) funny David Hoyle, reigning Alternative Miss World and (sometime) Bluestocking Society performer Fancy Chance, and bearded lady, homespun philosopher Timberlina, will be performing live. All-round icon, legend and actor Betty Bourne and video artist Kate Pelling will be performing in projected form.

The project gives each unique performer the chance to display their amazing talents within the remit of the title’s outline. This show promises to deliver some of the most thought-provoking, intelligent and amusing performances available at the present time. Tickets cost £5, and I doubt you will find a better priced evening’s entertainment. A one-off show that will delight and inform on a discourse we can all relate to.

London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival

 

Running from the 31st March until the 6th April, the BFI LLGFF will be a place to watch some great films, get involved in some equally fabulous events and hang out with friends, lovers and many a queer cinephile. This year celebrates the 25th anniversary of the event. Originally starting out as a short festival with just a handful of films, the LLGFF has grown over the years to become one of the hotspots of LGBTQ community entertainment.

This year, due to cuts in funding, the festival will be shorter than it has been in recent years, running just one week. However, the programmers have still managed to select a comprehensive range of films that should interest many a film-goer. With new films, world premieres, workshops, interviews and many classic documentaries and dramas on offer, there is something for everyone.

Gregg Araki’s latest film Kaboom opens the festival, and if you’ve been a fan of his earlier work (Totally F***ed Up and The Doom Generation) this film will not disappoint, as it visits similar themes. We Are Family, the LLGFF film event for kids, their families and friends is now in its third year. Showing LGBT themed cartoons and film clips and with an array of activities and performances, this is always a popular event. There are also many other features and short films that will appeal to a diverse LGBT and straight film-loving crowd, with many themed events throughout the course of the festival.

Tickets go on sale to the general public on the 18th of March. As the festival is shorter this year, no doubt tickets will be in great demand. Not only do you get to see some excellent films, but you have the chance to meet and mix with a predominantly LGBT crowd at one of London’s best arts spaces.  So, here’s your ‘heads up’ to the hottest event this spring!

From A Top Writer – ‘Boy In The Middle’

Patrick Califia is one of my all-time favourite writers. He is an incredible wordsmith, able to write both fiction and fact in a way that both draws the reader in and informs you. His erotica is some of the hottest writing you will come across. Boy In The Middle is another of his compelling, sexy short story collections of polymorphous perversity and hardcore, sexually charged scenes. Califia has a way of taking the reader right into the story. He has the ability to describe place, character and atmosphere so well, you can’t but help feel a part of it.

cover for "Boy In The Middle" by Patrick Califia

Boy In The Middle has such a collection of differing characters and set-ups that I defy anyone not to get some pleasure from it. Whatever your kink, fetish , gender or sexuality, Califia caters for you in this book. His writing will  surprise you, in being able to turn you on to a story, scene or character you may otherwise not have thought you’d be interested in; such is the power of his imagination. I recommend anyone who enjoys erotic fiction to read this book. Allow yourself some time to indulge and immerse yourself  in it, because it will be hard to put down. Oh, and if you’re reading Boy In The Middle in public, be aware that its effect may leave you needing to find somewhere, for a ‘quiet, private moment’!

Night of the Blue Stockings- Up the Ladder to Success!

Night of the Blue Stockings, photo K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

Be upstanding for the fabulous Night of the Blue Stockings! We were lucky enough to go and see this popular and busy evening of cabaret and burlesque performance held monthly at the Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club last Thursday night, and what a glittering, fun-packed show it was. A host of  hilarious acts with a warmth and sense of joy that would be hard-pressed to better, captivated their appreciative crowd.

Fancy Chance, photo K.James for Coffee Cake and kink

Our honorary Madam Chairperson for the evening was reigning Alternative Miss World 2009 and London’s Top Tranny 2010, Fancy Chance. Keeping things swinging, with her humour and audience interaction, she MC’d throughout the night between the other great acts on offer. She also delighted us with her own revolutionary act, taking us all the way from North Korea’s national anthem to good ol’ Yankee capitalism via an outrageously funny dance and rhythmic gymnastic display that had the audience on their feet and wanting more.

Honey Wilde, photo K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

First act up was Justin Pants, with his alternative burlesque Action Man strip. If you ever wondered what Action Man keeps under his pants, well, yes, it is a weird, plastic non-penis. A very clever take on male stripping! Next up was Honey Wilde, the fantastic burlesque artist, with an avant-garde, in the most tongue-in-cheek way, musical performance of inventive cover versions of some 80s electro classics. Never before have two (yes, TWO!) toy pianos and a kazoo (!) sounded so good. The crowd both recognised and loved her amusing renditions of tunes by A-Ha, the Pet Shop Boys and others. Laurie Anderson could learn a thing or two.

Misster Blanche Dubois, photo by K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

All the way from 1933, Depression era Kentucky (kinda), came songstress Miss Anna Kronist. Playing her guitar and singing quite beautifully, she entertained us with her songs about love, death and a Blondie cover in the style of  down home Americana. A wonderful musical moment.  She was followed by Misster Blanche Dubois, who was somehow able to  blend drag with a lion costume! Singing ‘La Vie En Rose’ in an operatic, lionesque (trust me) chanteuse way, he then transformed into a kinky, burlesque striptease. The audience bellowed with laughter as we were treated to what a ‘naked’ lion can do.

Anna Kronist with Fancy Chance, photo by K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

The Madam Secretary of The Blue Stocking Society is Audacity Chutzpah, and, as her name suggests, she certainly had plenty of both and more besides. She amused and delighted the house with a very witty sketch about being stuck on a desert island. It was an inventive and engaging act, which had the audience in stitches. Ending with a sing-along, in which we all happily joined in, this was a fantastic evening.

Audacity Chutzpah, photo by K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

With tea and cakes on offer (a nice little touch) and DJ Josephine Shaker playing a suitably impressive selection of retro sounds in keeping with the ambience of the night, a very enjoyable and entertaining night was had by all. The lack of any pretension, the engaging nature of all the performers, and the unique blend of inventiveness and hilarity on offer, makes this a night out I can not recommend highly enough.

Night of the Blue Stockings, photo by K.James for Coffee Cake and Kink

Art Wank- Porn, Performance, And A Pleasure!

The London Launch of Art Wank happened last night, and what a happening it was. Curated and hosted by the talented, funny and damned sexy Ophelia Bitz, Art Wank is the perfect night for lovers of classic, retro porn, the curious and those of us who like a chance to dress up, have fun and be enlightened to our kink history. Yes, a pornucopia of entertainment was had by all!

Ophelia Bitz, photo by K. James for Coffee, Cake and Kink

Art Wank was held at the Horse Hospital in Bloomsbury, a wonderfully intimate venue that felt just right for the occasion. Ophelia Bitz, our hostess with the mostest and wearing a stunning outfit to boot, welcomed a glamourous capacity crowd who had also dressed for the occasion. The night itself was a glorious mixture of showings from very early porn films (from the silent era up to early 70s ‘lost’ classics), entertaining acts, music, comedy and an insightful mini-lecture on ‘Why sex is fun’.

Kitty Stryker, photo by K.James for Coffee, Cake and Kink

Ophelia has spent days, nay months, researching early porn films (so you don’t have to!) to delight a very appreciative audience. From early (mostly French, ooh la la) films, that seemed to have a penchant for outdoors threesomes, up to early 70s football themed gay male porn, with a witty, specially selected (by Ophelia herself) and apt music accompaniment , the films showed how both the aesthetics and content of porn have changed over the decades. The innocence, naivety and lack of camera awareness of the early performers was a refreshing joy, and the audience happily laughed along to the films. Mr Tom Baker provided wonderful musical accompaniment on the accordion to these very early classics, which seemed especially fitting for the French films, in particular.

Kitty Stryker, sex worker and sex educator, who you may know from Kinky Salon London, gave a thought-provoking, amusing, empowering and well researched mini-lecture on ‘Why sex is fun’. Challenging the audience to think about how we view and consume porn, how we should bring the fun and pure joy back to it, even encouraging us to take control and make it ourselves; Kitty reminded us that sex is both fun, and often funny. She is also probably the reason why there were so many clowns in the audience (you should’ve been there).

Crimson Skye, photo by K.James for Coffee, Cake and Kink

Ophelia Bitz held the night together with both wit and aplomb. Charming all who were there, she added her amusing asides to accompany and introduce the films, performed a very funny take on the song ‘Falling in Love Again’ (with an apt change to the lyrics) and held a competition that had the crowd hooting with laughter. Performance artiste, Crimson Skye, also entertained the crowd with her sassy, sparkling (in more ways than one!) act. She had the audience whooping for more, and added to a brilliant night’s entertainment.

Ophelia and contestants, photo by K.James for Coffee, Cake and Kink

Art Wank is a magical amalgam of  a night out. Educational (though not in the way that our education system works. If only school was like this, I would’ve paid more attention!), fantastic performances, fabulous films, humour and the chance to socialise with a charismatic crowd, it was all very enjoyable. There will be another Art Wank next month, and if the popularity of last night’s event is anything to go by, I recommend you get your tickets early. Trust me, you will love it!

Picture Perfect

There is currently a Robert Mapplethorpe exhibition taking place at Alison Jacques Gallery in London, running until 19th March. With his photographs, polaroids and sculptures chosen by the band Scissor Sisters, as well as works by other artists who have been influenced by Mapplethorpe, this is a rare opportunity to see these works together.

The photos chosen by the band, who have used Mapplethorpe’s imagery on their record covers in the past, cover his flower photography as well as his wonderful nudes, still-lifes and shots of leathermen and bondage. Mapplethorpe was a genius at capturing the human form, and his still-lifes and flower portraits are shot and lit with the same aesthetic appeal. If you are already a Mapplethorpe fan you will enjoy this exhibition immensely, and the works by other artists such as Matthew Barney and Scott Treleaven show how his work continues to inspire. If you are new to Mapplethorpe’s work (why has it taken you so long?), you can revel in its beauty, sensuality and kinkiness.

Though a relatively small exhibition, it is a fantastic reminder of a great artist. The works by the artists influenced by him have been cleverly chosen, keeping a sense of continuity running throughout the show. So, for lovers of great photography, (homo)erotica, stunning imagery and general kinkiness, get yourself to the exhibition and treat yourself to the great man’s work.

Robert Mapplethorpe, 'Skull and Crossbones' 1983



Robert Mapplethorpe, ‘Skull and Crossbones’ 1983



A New Year’s Eve: San Francisco

Two shows of Gay Comedy by Marga Gomez: laughs and balloons to be had, for sure.  The rhino!