Réney Warrington shares her highlights on the August events calendar.
The Fosters (TV)
Before The Fosters, a Jennifer Lopez-produced TV show, even hit the airways, One Million Moms (which is probably 57 bored old tannies) had their panties in a twist. Why? It featured lesbians! Two lesbians, nogal! Two hot lesbians!
Of course I immediately started watching the show! (I did the same with the Rodney Seale book my mom game my when I was 13 years old. It warned against the dangers or rock ‘n roll, backtracking and other myths. Even back then I used it as research. I remember making a note to check out some chick called Pat Benatar for “strutting in leather pants”!)
Initially I thought the series was a bit twee, not edgy enough, but I would soon realise the importance of this show geared towards teenagers.
It deals with family, with the day-to-day life of a loving, rather large family with a biological son, adopted Latina twins and two new foster children being thrown into the mix. The family just happens to have two moms running it. It is almost irrelevant.
The show is not preachy, the writing is easy-going and fair. It deals with everyone’s strengths and flaws and it is being embraced by the American public.
The highlight of the show was an episode in which the foster son, Jude, is bullied for wearing blue nail polish. The speech Lena gives him about acceptance and being who you are trended worldwide along with the Twitter hashtag #blueforjude. Go and check it out. Fans painted their nails and posted the pics to social platforms. Heart-warming stuff.
The Turbine Hall Art Fair
Last weekend the super-fabulous Turbine Hall in Joburg was the venue for the first Turbine Hall Art Fair (THAF). Of course a comparison with the very upmarket, ever so slightly uptight, Joburg Art Fair was inevitable and my conclusion is, there is room for both.
The THAF was promoted as the affordable art fair and it was indeed the case. You could pick up incredible works from R1 000. The food was good, the vibe great. There was even an art room especially for kids and they were prompted to stick smiley face stickers below their favourite art work!
I have only two complaints – there was not enough art and some vendors started packing up before the fair had closed. Not cool, people.
Orange is the new black (TV)
It is a Netflix original series, which means they commissioned it, shot it and streamed all 13 episodes in a 24-hour span. This way they don’t have to worry about conservative network bosses, ratings or people having to choose between watching two shows on at the same time. It was a roaring success.
Yes, it does deal with some heavy issues as faced in a women’s prison: race, transgender issues, sexuality, mental health, shortcomings of the criminal justice system – but it is not Oz! It is hilarious, very sexy, ultimately heart-warming.
The shock of the fall (Literature)
Isn’t it the most beautiful title? I bought it just for that.
Certainly not an easy read. It deals with the death of a mentally disabled sibling, the consequences of his death for his family, and ultimately his younger brother and the incredibly disabling, destructive path that guilt takes you on.
The text is accompanied by beautiful childlike drawings, and the spacing, and even the font, changes every so often.
What makes it so powerful is that it is told from the younger sibling’s perspective as he grows up, grows confused and mixes reality with dreams. Nathan Filer manages to pull you in and keep you captivated right to the end.
Noodlebox Cinema at the Bioscope (Joburg)
Once a month the Bioscope in the Maboneng District hosts a Noodlebox Cinema evening. You watch a kung fu action movie with your choice of noodles in hand. What a cool idea.
You order your tickets online and choose between chicken, beef and veggie noodles. You rock up at the cinema, pick up your warm noodles and sit down for, in my case, Ghost in the Shell!
Of course it was awesome to walk out of the cinema and into the chaos that is Critical Mass – a bunch of cool nut jobs who start from Braamfontein, cycle through the city and have a couple of beers on the way. I’m guessing there were at least 300–400 people? I’m on the next ride.
Daytrotter (Music)
So head over to their site, pay $32 for an annual membership and download every single session they’ve ever recorded. Yep.
So you might be wondering what they record? Incredible, super-talented up-and-coming artists who use real instruments get to record four tracks in their studios. These are released as MP3s. Obviously you’re not gonna dig all of it. (There’s a bit too much twang for my liking – they are situated in Nashville, after all.) You will like a lot of it, though, and you certainly will discover artists you won’t find on the big labels. Just this week I discovered the Aussie muso Matt Corby and proceeded to download everything of his I could find. YouTube him. You won’t be sorry.
Open Air Cinema (Joburg)
So a rooftop in Braamfontein is the normal venue for the Open Air Cinema events. I’m not sure if it was the Joburg winter, or perhaps the audience that Casablanca would draw; either which way I spend Saturday night watching said film at the Alexander Theatre. What an evening!
As part of your ticket you get bottomless popcorn, a glass of champagne and a couple of diehard fans dressed in the signature Humphrey Bogart raincoat and hat.
Rumour has it their next film is a Cohen Brothers feature.
Report-back
A few months ago I mentioned two new shows, Ray Donovan and Under the Dome. Ray turned out to be everything it promised to be – sexy, violent, gangsta and beautiful all rolled up in one. Under the Dome turned out to be super-lame. I’ve stopped watching after 6 episodes. It is schmaltzy American TV. Avoid.