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Broadway In Iowa: Hancher Shares Its Enthusiasm for 2024-2025 Season
By Khaleel Hayes
Special to GoGuide Magazine
The University of Iowa’s Hancher Auditorium’s first Broadway season—which included heavy hitters such as To Kill a Mockingbird, Hairspray, Chicago, and Come From Away—was such a hit that Hancher decided to host a second season of Broadway shows in late 2024 to 2025.
The lineup includes Dear Evan Hansen, Hadestown, Mean Girls, Riverdance, and Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.
Aaron Greenwald, Hancher’s Director of Programming and Engagement, was ecstatic about audiences receiving the first season with open arms. Please scroll down for the complete article.
Julio Torres makes it easy to love “Problemista”
By Gregg Shapiro
It should come as no surprise that gay writer and actor Julio Torres’ film directorial debut “Problemista” (A24) would not only be quirky and original but also deeply moving while subtly making a political statement. After all, Torres is the same person behind some of the most unforgettable SNL sketches of the last 10 years, including “Wells for Boys” (a favorite of Stephen Colbert’s).
Please scroll down for the complete interview.
Come to this book with a movie-lover sensibility and stay for the wealth of photos and sidebars. If you're up for binge-reading, binge-watching, or Date Night, dig into "Hollywood Pride." Popcorn is not necessary, but it is welcome. Please scroll down for the complete article.
Editor's note: It's not too late to add Gregg Shapiro's Pride Playlist 2024 to your Pride Playlist.
Please scroll down to view the complete playlist.
By Gregg Shapiro
Special to GoGuide Magazine
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Our July issue focuses on our new section, GoGuide Talk. This month's headline is an interview with Julio Torres by Gregg Shapiro.
Please welcome our newest GoGuide contributor. Khaleel Hayes previews UI's upcoming 2024-25 Hancher at Broadway series.
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by Gregg Shapiro
A local GoGuide Exclusive
It should come as no surprise that gay writer and actor Julio Torres’ film directorial debut “Problemista” (A24) would not only be quirky and original but also deeply moving, while subtly making a political statement. After all, Torres is the same person behind some of the most unforgettable SNL sketches of the last 10 years, including “Wells for Boys” (which is a favorite of Stephen Colbert’s). Additionally, his HBO projects, the special “My Favorite Shapes” and the series “Los Espookys” have garnered Torres raves and a sizeable audience. And who can forget his brief but memorable performance as Jules in “Together Together.” With “Problemista,” in which he plays struggling toy designer Alejandro, alongside Tilda Swinton, RZA, James Scully, and Isabella Rossellini, among others, he has given viewers the most delightful movie of the season. I had the pleasure of speaking with Julio while he was in Miami Beach.
Gregg Shapiro: The release of “Problemista” was delayed due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. What does it mean to you that your movie can finally reach its audience?
Julio Torres: It's huge! I didn't really mourn the push at all. Anyone who's made a movie knows how long it takes. To me, personally, it was neither here nor there when it was going to come out, so long as it came out one day. I'm happy that the time is now and that it gets to be not compromised or not subverting any greater effort. Yeah, I'm happy.
GS: “Problemista” features narration and humorous commentary by Isabella Rosellini. What made her the right voice for that role?
JT: I think that it's because she is one of those voices that just echoes in my head and has been in my head for so long. I think the same is true of so many queer people. “And now a warning,” from “Death Becomes Her,” or “Blue Velvet.”
GS: “Marcel the Shell.”
JT: Yes, “Marcel the Shell,” very recently.
GS: And the one where she voices the hamster.
JT: Oh, yes! Stephen Dunn’s “Closet Monster.” Yes, she voices a hamster in that, you're right.
GS: She has a great voice.
JT: Yes, she has a fantastic voice. It just felt like a voice that was commanding, yet fairytale-like, that provokes respect and awe at the same time.
GS: Tilda Swinton is alternately hilarious and terrifying as Elizabeth. Was that part written with her in mind, if not, what was involved in casting her for that part?
JT: I did not have anyone in mind when I was writing it. I love writing for people that I know, but I didn't know anyone personally that could play her. I didn't know Tilda. Sometimes I would think of an actress, and then I would be like, “Well, I don't know these people. Why would they ever be in this?” I didn't want to paint myself into a corner. No, I didn't write with her in mind even though I was such a colossal fan of hers for so long. Then the script got to her and she was familiar with “Los Espookys” and the “My Favorite Shapes” special on HBO and she was excited to work with me on something. It was just such a dream come true.
GS: Alejandro has this beautiful and supportive relationship with his mother Dolores (Catalina Saavedra). Do or did you have something similar with your mother?
JT: I do, yeah! It's very based on my relationship with my mother. It's a bit of a thank you card to her.
GS: Has she seen the movie, and if so, what does she think of it?
JT: Yes! She doesn't speak English, but she's a very visually driven person. She really loved it!
GS: A couple of things that stood out to me are Alejandro’s cowlick and his distinctive gait. Please say something about those characteristics.
JT: The hair is something that my hair does every now and then.
GS: Lucky you!
JT: [Laughs] That I have that luxury [laughs]? It's also something that my father's hair does a lot. I felt like I was paying tribute to that. It also communicates that he's not on top of it. Then his walk just came about as soon as I put on the backpack. I like to think of him as a little explorer, like a little alien explorer collecting data.
GS: Please tell the readers about your decision to have Craigslist personified as a character, played by Larry Owens in “Problemista.”
JT: The incredible Larry Owens. That was a crucial decision that really opened the door to the rest of the movie. At first, I was writing or attempting to write a sort of a bare-bones, slice-of-life version of this movie. I was just so bored by it. I was so disinterested in it, and then suddenly I was like, “What if Craigslist was a person?” That unlocked the tone and style of the movie. It was one of the first pieces that came to me.
GS: “Problemista” is timely in the way that it is also an immigration story.
JT: People keep referring to it as timely, but I feel like this is a subject that's always happening because it's never fixed. The problem gets a different face. People say it's timely, but I say when hasn't it been timely in recent history? I feel like the anguish of feeling trapped in a system that has your fate in its hands, a system that has no face and makes no sense, it's something that feels very relatable to people. It's something that I think that people now experience regardless of whether they're immigrants or not. I've had people connect with it because they dealing with an insurance nightmare or bureaucracy or they’re in a crazy amount of debt and they're trying to find their way out of that. Immigration happens to be the card that I was dealt, but I think we all share this common frustration for these systems that we are constantly told to just keep our heads down, work really hard, and to overcome them. Even though this story is partially about someone who does that, it's also, I think, a story about someone who questions that well.
GS: I think the queer community can connect to it, too because our lives feel increasingly tenous, especially with Alito and Thomas on the Supreme Court, who want to take away our rights.
JT: Yes, that feeling like you're building a house of cards.
GS: Your boyfriend James Scully plays Bingham, a character who is sort of Alejandro’s nemesis.
JT: It's interesting because, yes, I agree with you, but I feel like some people misread it and see it as like a crush or something.
GS: I didn’t see it that way at all. What was it like to work with James onscreen?
JT: It wasn't written for him. It was already written by the time I met him. I love working in community. All the people in the movie are either really old friends or new friends. I think that that is just the type of director that I am. So it really felt very organic and very joyful. My parents have been working together their whole professional lives. They are very much the kind of couple who have blueprints in bed.
GS: So, work never stops?
JT: Work never stops, and I think that creating is a love language for me. Extending that to people that I love is is sort of a no-brainer
GS: The final act of the movie takes place 322 years in the future. How did you decide on that specific number?
JT: I think that's one of those numbers where it's like, “Julio, just give us a number!” And I just texted the number. I think because it feels arbitrary.
GS: But also specific -- 3-2-2.
JT: Yes, and it's enough time for it to be extremely disorienting, but not enough time to assume that humanity is completely gone [laughs]. We're still out there somewhere or another. But (for the scene) I purposely found a space that had no windows.
GS: Thank you for not killing us off.
JT: [Laughs]
GS: Have you started thinking about or working on your next creative project?
JT: Oh, my God, I have started daydreaming of getting the time to work on the next project. I do have a couple of seeds of ideas that I hope to get to.
June 23, 2024
By Khaleel Hayes
Special to GoGuide Magazine
The University of Iowa’s Hancher Auditorium’s first Broadway season—which included heavy hitters such as To Kill a Mockingbird, Hairspray, Chicago, and Come From Away—was such a hit that Hancher decided to host a second season of Broadway shows in late 2024 to 2025.
The lineup includes Dear Evan Hansen, Hadestown, Mean Girls, Riverdance, and Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.
Aaron Greenwald, Hancher’s Director of Programming and Engagement, was ecstatic about audiences receiving the first season with open arms.
“Our first season of Broadway last year, people were just wildly enthusiastic about it,” Greenwald said. “There’s still a community of folks that want to get together in a theater and watch someone tell them a story, laugh together, [and] cry together. That’s pretty compelling.
“Ironically, every show we did last year had someone from Iowa in it,” he added. “And many of them had a connection to the University of Iowa, which was nice.”
Let’s dive into each show and what to expect during the 2024-2025 Broadway season:
Dear Evan Hansen | Dec. 6-8, 2024
Dear Evan Hansen is the story of Evan Hansen, a boy with social anxiety disorder, who seeks social acceptance from his peers by lying about a friendship he had with a student who died by suicide. Hansen’s tall tale lands him complete popularity and a girlfriend, but he must choose between living the lie or coming clean.
Greenwald said this show struck a chord with audiences upon its initial release.
“When that work emerged, it talked about something that had not been spoken about before,” he explained. “I think it has a great set of songs.”
Dear Evan Hansen swept plenty of Tony Awards in 2017, including Best Musical, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Original Musical Score, and more.
Hadestown | January 24-26, 2025
Written by singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and directed by Rachel Chavkin, Hadestown focuses on the two mythic love stories of Orpheus and Eurydice and the King of Hades and Persephone on a “hell-raising journey to the underworld and back.”
Greenwald, who said he was most excited about this show, discussed Iowa’s connection.
“When Anaïs Mitchell first made the concept record for Hadestownlike a decade and a half ago,” Greenwald said. “She tapped all these different folk musicians to sing the parts, and Greg Brown, who is from Iowa City, was the voice of Hades. So, we’re kinda excited that that little aspect of the show comes full circle.”
Hadestown won several 2019 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Actor, Best Sound Design, and more. It also scored a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album in 2020.
Mean Girls | March 7-9, 2025
Based on the 2004 Lindsey Lohan and 2024 Angourie Rice movies by Tina Fey, the story of a new girl who enters the popular, mean girls clique and becomes a mean girl, too, finds new life on the stage.
Mean Girls received 12 Tony Award nominations in 2018 but walked away empty-handed. Greenwald said, “Mean Girls and Tina Fey have a huge spot in our culture, especially if you grew up in the 2000s. So, I think there’s a lot of enthusiasm with college-age students [and] their parents.”
Riverdance 30thAnniversary | May 9-11, 2025
Riverdance, a Mother’s Day treat, will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2025. This classic show fuses Irish and international dance live onstage, keeping audiences wanting more. Riverdance scored a Grammy for Best Musical Show Album in 1997.
Tina: The Tina Turner Musical | May 30-June 1, 2025
This inspirational musical explores the life of Tina Turner, the trailblazing, Grammy-winning artist who overcame hardships to become the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll and sold numerous records worldwide.
Tina: The Tina Turner Musical scored 12 Tony Award nominations and one win for Best Actress in 2020.
Greenwald stated, “Clearly, Tina Turner led an unbelievable life, and they’ve effectively captured her life in that musical. She was undeniable.”
The Theater Lives On:
Hancher received a huge turnout of attendees during its first Broadway season, from parents and their children to theater students and retirees.
Greenwald described the audience’s reaction to their showing of Come From Away and how live shows still have a place in 2024.
“[Audiences] were laughing at every joke, in tears when the musical got heavy, and applauding loudly after every tune,” Greenwald recalled. “Then it ended, and they shot up out of their seats in a spontaneous standing ovation. To me, that was really moving that in the world, there is so much streaming content and virtual reality, and we’re always on our phones, listening to podcasts or whatever, “That people still value, and there’s still a community of folks that want to get together in a theater and watch someone tell them a story,” he continued. “I don’t think I’m that sentimental, but I find that to be a moving experience.”
Hancher’s Broadway 2024-2025 Season Info/Tickets: https://hancher.uiowa.edu/2024-25
Editor's note: It's not too late to add Gregg Shapiro's Pride Playlist 2024 to your Pride Playlist.
Pride 2024
By Gregg Shapiro
Special to GoGuide Magazine
A new Pet Shop Boys studio album is always cause for celebration, especially because it’s been four years since the last one was released. In the interim, PSB released the extraordinary (and aptly titled) “Smash” 2023 box set, easily the duo’s most complete hits compilation. On the just-released 10-song vinyl LP “Nonetheless” (Warner/Parlophone), Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe get us on our feet and dancing with opener “Loneliness,” “Feel,” and “Bullet for Narcissus.” Dancing is a theme here, not only sonically, but in song titles, including the epic club track “Why am I dancing?” and the lite funk of “Dancing Star,” as well as in the slow number “A new Bohemia” (including the line, “Who dances now to their sweet old song?”). The ‘80s vibe of “New London Boy,” which asks the question, “Is everyone gay?” is taken seriously with the inclusion of an ‘80s-style rap. PSB has always had a way with a beautiful tune, including the previously named “Feel,” as well as “The Secret of Happiness” (featuring a full orchestra and harp!).
When Brett Anderson was lead vocalist of the London Suede (the name the band Suede was called in the US following losing a lawsuit brought by lesbian trumpeter Suede, who had been using the name for years), he described himself as "a bisexual man who never had a homosexual experience." Sounds gay, he’s in! Interestingly, Anderson’s former London Suede bandmate Bernard Butler recorded a few albums with gay singer/songwriter David McAlmont as the duo McAlmont & Butler. Anderson’s latest music project is Paraorchestra, a marvelous collaboration with British conductor Charles Hazlewood, featuring guest artists Nadine Shah, Gwenno, Portishead’s Adrian Utley, and Sons of Kemet’s Seb Rochford. Paraorchestra’s gorgeous new album “Death Songbook” (World Circuit/BMG), available as a double vinyl LP, reimagines songs by Echo & The Bunnymen (“The Killing Moon”), Mercury Rev (“Holes”), Japan (“Nightporter”), Black (“Wonderful Life”), Depeche Mode (“Enjoy The Silence”), Skeeter Davis (“The End Of The World”), Scott Walker (“My Death”) and even the London Suede (“She Still Leads Me On,” “The Next Life,” and “He’s Dead,” in stunning orchestral arrangements you never realized that the songs required.
These days, it seems like you can’t listen to SiriusXM without hearing “Hand to Hand” by queer singer/songwriter from her wonderful “Blue Raspberry” album. If you dig that song, you owe it to yourself to explore “Heart of the Artichoke” (Bayonet), the layered new album by Bloomsday. Led by non-binary singer/songwriter Iris James Garrison, Bloomsday (which also includes Alex Harwood) are purveyors of glorious enby music that is as lush as it is luminous. Before you know it, you will find yourself singing along to “Virtual Hug,” “Where I End and You Begin,” “Bumper Sticker,” “Artichoke,” “Look After,” and the subtle twang of “Dollar Slice.” The only complaint is that at just over 33 minutes, the 10 songs on this breathtaking album go by much too fast.
Non-binary lesbian singer/songwriter Torres (aka Mackenzie Scott, not to be confused with the ex-wife of Jeff Bezos) has returned with “What An Enormous Room” (Merge), their sixth full-length album in 10 years. Down to just Torres, co-producer and multi-instrumentalist Sarah Jaffe (with additional assistance from TJ Allen), you might expect “…Enormous Room” to sound stripped down. On the contrary, these musicians fill up the enormous room with blazing guitars, synths, and other keyboards, and plenty of beats, as you can clearly hear on “Life As We Don’t Know It,” “Collect,” and “Jerk Into Joy.” The mesmerizing and unexpected piano + vocal closer “Songbird Forever,” alternates between an unsettling “you and me” and “you own me” state of mind.
"Neon Cross,” the second album by queer country diva Jaime Wyatt was one of the best releases of 2020. Produced by Shooter Jennings (son of country music royalty Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter), the album was as country as can be. Now, Wyatt has returned with her third full-length, the irresistibly soulful “Feel Good” (New West). There is an audible sonic shift, beginning with the album opener “World Worth Keeping.” Wyatt, who maintains her country twang and vocal lilt, incorporates a funky, Stax Records vibe on the previously mentioned song, as well as on the title tune, queer love song “Love Is A Place,” “Hold Me One Last Time,” “Jukebox Holiday,” and the Grateful Dead cover “Althea.”
Produced by fellow Nashville resident and music legend Kim Richey, “Love I Swore” (31 Tigers) is another fine effort by independent queer singer/songwriter Amelia White. The 11 songs focus on the rockier side of country although the Nashville energy radiates loud and clear on “Nothing I Can Do,” “Beautiful Dream” (featuring duet vocals by Ben Glover), the bluesy “Get To The Show,” the fabulous vintage country echo of “Can You See Me Now” (featuring Richey), and the pleasingly rhythmic “Lost Myself.”
“Creekbed Carter” (Gar Hole) by trans folk artist Creekbed Carter Hogan is such an exemplary effort that, at only eight songs in length, listeners might find themselves reduced to begging for more. An accomplished musician, Hogan’s plaintive and powerful vocals are the perfect complement to his exceptional songwriting skills. Each song feels like a revelation, and don’t be surprised if, as you find yourself listening to songs such as “Lord, Make Me a Scorpion,” “If I Was,” “Sycamore,” and “Apiary,” you discover something new with each spin. “The Relic Song” (in which Hogan takes the Catholic Church to task) is simply brilliant.
In the liner notes for “Time and Evolution” (stephaniesammons.com), the full-length debut album by queer Dallas-based Americana artist Stephanie Sammons, she expresses her gratitude to her “incredible songwriting mentor friends” including Mary Gauthier, Emily Saliers, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Jonatha Brooke, Gretchen Peters, and Suzy Boggus. You can definitely hear the influence and inspiration of those amazing artists throughout the 10 songs, including the standouts “Lazarus,” “Make Me Believe,” “Innocence Lost,” and “Mend.” Fans of the late vocalist Ingrid Graudins are sure to be thrilled to hear her voice on the song “Year of the Dog.”
Also hailing from the Lone Star State is country-pop duo The Western Civilization, featuring queer artist Rachel Hansbro. The pair’s lush new album “Fractions of a Whole” (Reggie) is reminiscent of “Translanticism”-era Death Cab For Cutie (take a listen to “She’s By The Sea,” for example). But there’s more to The Western Civilization, and songs including “Bible Verses for Kids,” “If You’re Lucky,” “Noctambulism” (which sounds like a lost Bitch song), “Stitches,” “The Ocean’s On the Rise,” and “Proselytism,” are all deserving of praise.
Some readers may recognize the name of nonbinary musician Zoe Boekbinder from their time as one-half of the early 21st-century band Vermilion Lies in which they performed with their sibling Max. A transplant from New Orleans to upstate New York, Boekbinder has just released a new album titled “Wildflower” (Are & Be). Evocative opening track “Cover Up The Moon” sets the modern Americana tone, which they sustain on “The Rest of His Days,” the queer love song “More Like A Home” (featuring Megan McCormick on lap steel), ”You Won’t Let Me Go,” and the down-home “No Sunshine, No Hurricane.” Detours into vintage pop (the Elvis-esque “Hold My Hand”) and experimentation (“Garden” and “Supernatural”) keep things interesting.
“When It All Goes Down” (Ringleader), the debut album by queer singer/songwriter Sarah King is described as “Americana Noir,” and that’s a fitting description. King’s powerful voice has a melancholy quality which gives songs including the title track, “Lord Take My Soul,” “Blame It On the Booze,” “The Moth,” and the titular song, a haunting quality. It’s also not all that surprising that King covers Led Zeppelin’s “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do,” and does the band proud in the process.
Gay musician Michael Quercio, whose name readers may recognize from a variety of bands including Game Theory, Permanent Green Light, and The Salvation Army, was also part of L.A.’s Paisley Underground scene of the 1980s which included The Bangles, Rain Parade, Green On Red, and The Dream Syndicate. Quercio, who gets credit for coining the term Paisley Underground, was the lead vocalist for The Three O’Clock, an especially popular Paisley Underground quartet. The Three O’Clock’s 1982 debut EP “Baroque Hoedown” has been newly reissued in an expanded edition, along with the band’s acclaimed 1983 full-length album “Sixteen Tambourines” (both on Yep Roc). When they were initially released, these Three O’Clock platters created a sense of nostalgia that was pleasing during the unpleasantness of the Reagan years. More than 40 years later, the music turns out to be timeless enough to be appreciated by 21st-century ears.
Vivabeat was another L.A. band that was around at the same time as The Three O’Clock. Led by late, queer frontperson Terrance Robay, Vivabeat’s sound and style was more closely associated with synth-pop and glam rock. “Party In The War Zone” (Rubellan Remasters), the band’s 1980 full-length debut album, featuring Vivabeat’s best-known song “Man From China,” has been given the reissue treatment, expanding the original release’s 10 tracks to 20, with a multitude of bonus material including six that were previously unreleased. Additionally, the 12-track LP, “The House is Burning” (Rubellan Remasters) on purple splatter vinyl, includes another six songs not available on the “Party In The War Zone.”
Queer UK trio Autoheart’s most recent album of new songs is 2021’s “Hellbent.” It’s not a bad way to become familiar with the band, and tunes such as “I Know He Loves Me,” the swirling instrumental “Perestroika,” the island beat of “Rabbit in a Headlight,” the bouncy “Older” (which sounds like a long-lost Erasure gem), and the sizzling funk of the title cut, are a nice introduction. Equally wonderful and worth owning is the recently released 10th anniversary expanded reissue of Autoheart’s 2013 debut album “Punch” (O/R Records). Available on vibrant orange vinyl, the triple LP set features all 15 tracks from the original CD (including the three bonus tracks). There’s not a single bit of filler here, with the particularly noteworthy ones “Control,” “Agoraphobia,” “The Sailor Song,” “The Witching Hour,” and “Anniversary” deserving of mention. The reissue expands on the initial album offering with eight more songs, such as a live version of “Moscow,” as well as acoustic renditions of “Lent,” “Stalker’s Tango,” and “Hungover in the City of Dust.” Highly recommended!
Billy Idol isn’t queer, but that hasn’t stopped countless gay men from fantasizing about him. And why not? Between his sharp cheekbones, pouty lips and accompanying sneer, bedroom eyes, six-pack abs, and penchant for dressing (or being half-undressed) in leather, Idol amassed a considerable queer following beginning with his days in the band Generation X and continuing through his lengthy solo career. “Rebel Yell” (Capitol/UME) Idol’s second solo album, originally released on Chrysalis in 1983, has been reissued in an expanded double LP vinyl edition featuring eight bonus tracks, including a cover of Rose Royce’s “Love Don’t Here Anymore,” delivered in his trademark growl. Among the nine songs on the original album were some of Idol’s highest charting singles, including the title track, “Eyes Without A Face,” and “Flesh For Fantasy.”
Amy Winehouse wasn’t queer, and she had a reputation for spouting unpleasantries toward us when she was soused, but you’d probably need at least ten fingers or more to count the number of drag queens you’ve seen doing Amy at a drag show. She even asked an indifferent lover if he was gay on “Stronger Than Me,” the opening cut on her 2003 debut album “Frank” (Island/Universal Music Recordings), newly reissued on vinyl as a double LP picture disc set. The 11 numbers, including “Fuck Me Pumps,” “In My Bed,” “You Sent Me Flying,” and “October Song,” hinted at what would come next on her acclaimed 2006 “Back to Black” album.
by Gregg Shapiro
A local GoGuide Exclusive
The Indigo Girls – Emily Saliers and Amy Ray – are having a moment. Since the release of Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” movie in the summer of 2023, in which the queer duo’s “Closer To Fine” was heard repeatedly, to today, when they are prominently featured in Tom Gustafson’s “Glitter & Doom” and Alexandria Bombach’s doc “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” Indigo Girls are hotter than ever. That’s just the half of it! In addition to a well-received performance on the “Today” show, Indigo Girls are embarking on a multi-city concert tour, including several dates with Melissa Etheridge. In the midst of their super busy schedule, Emily was generous enough to make time for an interview.
Gregg Shapiro: In the introduction to my favorable review of Alexandria Bombach’s documentary “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” I talk about how since the summer of 2023, when “Closer To Fine” was featured prominently in Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” to today when we are speaking, Indigo Girls are having an amazing year. So, I’d like to begin by asking you to say what it meant to you to have “Closer To Fine” heard in “Barbie.”
Emily Saliers: First of all, it was a huge surprise to be asked. And it was an honor because both Amy and I adore Greta Gerwig’s work. It just kind of fell out of the sky, this massive gift. We knew it was going to be in the trailer, but we didn't know it was gonna be in the film. We certainly didn't know that was going to be featured in its own way in terms of its content in the movie. It was so exciting and so gratifying because we love Greta’s work. I loved the movie, too. I thought it was amazing on so many levels. The issues it delved into, the way it looked, how stylized it was, how funny it was, how clever, and the dancing. The whole thing was like this big experience. So, to have “Closer To Fine” included in something that I really loved so much as a piece of art was fantastic. Then, of course, there was a spike in interest, I think, in the Indigo Girls’ music. What a gift that was to come out of nowhere and take hold. I think we’re still feeling the repercussions of that in a positive way.
GS: As I mentioned, I enjoyed the doc “It’s Only Life After All.” How did it feel to be the subject of a documentary and have your life and career highlighted that way?
ES: We met Alexandria, the director, through Kathlyn Horan who was one of the producers on the documentary. We had lunch together and she said, “I’d like to make a documentary about y’all. I can see that that’s never been done before.” In our conversations, we were clear with Alexandria that we wanted it to be not so much just about us, but about our community. About a community that has gone through these things together. I think she handled that very deftly and respectfully. Instead of feeling like, “Here’s a movie about y’all,” it feels more like here’s a movie about the power of music and community. Especially for queer folks or people who don't fit inside a box, for them to have an openness and expression. And for us to go through our hard times in life together. The fact that it landed within the scope of the time of “Barbie” and “Glitter & Doom,” was just kind of like, “Wow! What is happening?” This is like the giving season for the Indigo Girls.
GS: I’m glad you mentioned “Glitter & Doom.” When I interviewed Amy in 2023 about her solo album (“If It All Goes South”), I asked her about the possibility of a stage musical consisting of Indigo Girls songs, and that’s when I learned about “Glitter & Doom.” The movie not only incorporates many Indigo Girls songs, but you also appear in the movie as the character of The Dream. What was that experience like for you?
ES: We read the script -- we get script submissions sometimes -- but this one really stood out. We loved the story. Then we heard the music, Michelle Chamuel’s arrangements and production, and how our music was arranged, produced, and performed in a way that we’d never heard before. That was really exciting for us and we loved it. We love Tom (Gustafson) and Cory (Krueckeberg) who co-directed the film (written by Krueckeberg). To be a cameo – Amy, I think, was terrified. Amy will tell you she does not like to act. I think she did an amazing job. For me, it was exciting. I was in high school theater, and I don't mind that. We had a different experience of actually being in the film. We both love the movie and it just premiered in a theater in New York. It’s so well done. It's a colorful and well- directed film with the songs. The actors are captivating. I love the story. Again, it was this wonderful piece of art that someone was creating that they invited us to be part of with our music. That feels good. Also, the other thing Gregg, that's important to me and Amy, is that when we were coming up, I remember this growing up as a young queer in Atlanta; there was a divide between the gay male world and the lesbian world. There was the complexity of the horror of the AIDS crisis, but beyond that, there was a separation, sort of never the twain shall meet. I feel like this experience with Tom and Cory and the gay male presence, the queer presence in the film, and then bringing in the lesbian artists to contribute was such a great energy and a great confluence of things that historically has not always happened. It's sort of like bringing all the queers together. That was profoundly moving to me and Amy, as well. I think it was important. I don't know if you remember that divide.
GS: I do! We’re close in age, and I remember that divide within the community. When I would tell people about “Glitter & Doom,” about how it features the Indigo Girls’ music, they would ask if it was a movie about a lesbian couple. I’d tell them, no, it's about a male couple and they’d say, “Wow! Indigo Girls songs in a movie about a gay male couple!” So, yes, you’re right. “Glitter & Doom” attempts to bridge that gap.
ES: It does. I knew it, intellectually, but sitting in the theater and experiencing it was a whole other thing. It brought to life the way that queer people come together and the power of that, artistically, politically, socially, in every realm. Amy was sitting there in the theater experiencing the same thing and we didn't realize it until we started answering questions during the Q&A after the film was shown.
GS: “Glitter & Doom” also includes a song from your 2017 solo album “Murmuration Nation.” What does that inclusion mean to you?
ES: When I heard the way it’s treated in the movie, it was so thrilling. I wrote that song, “Match,” with Kristen Hall, one of the original members of Sugarland. It takes a seed of a song that was written so long ago for fun with a friend, and it makes it become this whole world of its own in the context of the movie. I love the way it was treated musically. In a way, it's like sitting outside of something and hearing something beautiful, but then it's connected to you because you created it. It's hard to articulate, but I thought it was really cool that they included a solo song from each of us in the whole body of work for the movie. For me, sitting there as an audience member, I was like, “Oh, who wrote this song? It’s pretty. This is really working [laughs].” It was the experience of being outside and inside at the same time and I don't get to experience that a lot. It was really cool.
GS: We’re speaking on March 28, and later today Indigo Girls perform at David Geffen Hall in New York, and the concert includes a conversation with the brilliant music journalist Ann Powers. What are you most looking forward to about that?
ES: Amy and I have the utmost respect for Ann Powers. When we first met her, we were so intimidated, I don't think we could barely speak [laughs]. Now, our paths have crossed through the years. To sit in an intimate gathering and talk with Ann, it's always an honor to have anything mediated by Ann. She’s such a stellar journalist, a journalist of incredible pedigree. It’s going to be intimate because Amy and I won’t be standing up at our mic stands and doing a whole show. We're seated and we're playing songs and Ann is asking questions about the process. It’s going to be a much more intimate experience. Of course, to be in New York, it's one of my very favorite places to play. We're looking forward to it. Lincoln Center is beautiful. It’s sold out. They're going to be showing it on big screens outside the theatre, and that will be cool, too. I'm looking forward to the whole experience of it.
GS: Speaking of concerts, Indigo Girls are touring with Melissa Etheridge. How did this amazing combination come to be?
ES: It is so cool! We've never done anything like this with Melissa. Of course, we have such respect for her career and her music. She was doing one of those rock cruises and we got invited to be on that, and we couldn't do it. But the speed was planted. After all these years, there was interest from both parties to play some shows together. Then it turned out to be playing summer sheds together. She’ll have her thing and we'll have our band, and we'll do some stuff together. Then it turned into this run of shows. When we first announced to a crowd that we were doing shows with Melissa Etheridge, it was in the Northeast somewhere, people screamed [laughs]! It was like, “Okay, this is a good decision.” We've been in touch with each other about doing a song together or whatever the case may be. It’s the first time we've done something like this with a storied artist like Melissa and we're both so excited.
GS: Additionally, on Sept. 1 Indigo Girls are playing Town Hall in Provincetown.
ES: Woo hoo!
GS: This made me wonder if Lea DeLaria, who not only appears in “Glitter & Doom,” but is also a presence in PTOWN might be joining the Indigo Girls for a number.
ES: We haven't heard from Lea, but we would always welcome Lea with open arms, of course. We love Lea, and if Lea is there, of course we'll do something together. But we haven’t gone through official lines. Maybe you’re putting the bug in Lea’s ear right now.
GS: I’m sure you don’t need to be reminded, but it’s been four years since the release of the Indigo Girls’ “Look Long” album. Is there a new Indigo Girls album in the works?
ES: It’s kind of floating in the ether. Everything is meeting at this juncture where we have the documentary and “Glitter & Doom,” and then “Barbie” happened, and we're doing a lot of symphony shows and touring. At the same time, Amy has a 10- year-old-daughter and I have an 11-year-old-daughter. We’re feeling the pain of missing life. So, we're trying to orchestrate how to keep our lives in balance with home life and touring. Then Amy had a super long tour with her solo band. And I'm writing for musical theater. To answer your question, as we're getting older we just seem to be getting busier [laughs] with these projects that are all wonderful. We have talked about the next album, and we started tossing around ideas, but we're going to take a little bit of a mental break this summer and spend time with our family. Then I’m sure we’ll be refreshed after that and from the tour with Melissa and Amos Lee and start to really focus in on when we can do the next album. There will be a next album, it’s just been such a busy time.
GS: Finally, because Indigo Girls are renowned for their activism, do you have any words of wisdom regarding the upcoming 2024 election?
ES: [Long pause] I'm just going to come out and say I'm voting for Biden. I'm going to say that it is absolutely critical that if you’re of voting age and ability, you have to vote. You cannot be distracted by the media that may pull you one way or another. I encourage you not to be distracted by a feeling of, “Well, my vote doesn't count,” because this election is as critical as any election has ever been. We're seeing a shift after Roe V. Wade was overturned in local and state politics. The onslaught of legislation against queer people, particularly trans people; conservatives are coming for all our rights, all of them, I would say, please vote, vote progressive. Don't be distracted by anything, even if you feel you have to vote for the lesser of two evils in your mind, vote for the lesser of two evils. This is an absolutely critical juncture for obvious reasons. I truly believe that the fabric of democracy is coming apart in this country, but we have to protect our queer family. We are under attack, and you have to vote for the candidate who supports us. That candidate is obviously Biden. It's extremely important to vote in your local elections because conservatives who are anti-queer are taking over school boards. You know what they're doing; banning books. Gregg, I could spend the next 20 minutes imploring anybody who's reading this to vote through a progressive lens. They're coming after us and we need to stand up for equal rights and for the future of democracy in this country.
Attendee panel closed
Author Alonso Duralde
c.2024, Running Press $40.00 322 pages
Review by The Bookworm Sez
A GoGuide Exclusive
You plan to buy lots of Jujubes.
They'll stick to your teeth, but whatever, you'll be too busy watching to care. You like the director and know most of the actors are first-rate. The word is that the newcomer couldn't be more fitting for the role. Yep, you've done your homework. You read Rotten Tomatoes, looked up IMBd, and bought your ticket online. All you need is "Hollywood Pride" by Alonso Duralde, and your movie night is complete.
William Kennedy Laurie Dickson likely had no idea what he'd done was monumental.
Sometime in the very late 1800s, he set up a film camera and a wax cylinder to record a short dance between two men, hands around one another's waists, as Dickson played the violin. It "was one of the very first movies ever shot" and probably the first film to record men dancing rather intimately alone together.
Back then, and until well into the twentieth century, there were laws against most homosexual behavior and cross-dressing and very rigid standards of activity between men and women. This led to many "intense relationships... between people of the same gender." Still, in World War I-era theaters and though LGBTQ+ representation "was somewhat slower to get rolling" then, audiences saw films that might include drag (often for comedy's sake), camp, covert affection, and "bad girls of the era."
Thankfully, things changed because of people like Marlene Dietrich, Ramon Novarro, Claudette Colbert, George Cukor, Alfred Hitchcock, and others through the years, people who ignored social mores and the Hays Code to give audiences what they wanted. Moviegoers could find LGBTQ+ actors and themes in most genres by the 1940s; despite politics and a "pink scare" in the 1950s, gay actors and drag (still for comedy's sake) still appeared on-screen. By the 1960s, the Hays Code had been dismantled. And the Me Decade of the 1970s, says Duralde, "ended with the promise that something new and exciting was about to happen."
So, have you run out of movies on your TBW list? If so, get ready...
You never want to start a movie at the end, but it's okay if you do that with "Hollywood Pride." Flip to the end of the book, and look up your favorite stars or directors. Page to the end of each chapter, and you'll find "artists of note." Just before that: "films of note." Page anywhere, in fact, and you'll like what you see.
In his introduction, author Alonso Duralde apologizes if he didn't include your favorites, but "Hollywood has been a magnet for LGBTQ+ people" for more than a century, making it hard to capture it completely. That said, movie-loving readers will still be content with what's inside this well-illustrated, well-curated, highly readable historical overview of LGBTQ+ films and the people who made them.
Come to this book with a movie-lover sensibility and stay for the wealth of photos and sidebars. If you're up for binge-reading, binge-watching, or Date Night, dig into "Hollywood Pride." Popcorn is not necessary, but it is welcome.
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Event date: Friday, May 3, 2024 - 7:00pm
Prairie Lights Bookstore to host and a special event with beloved Iowa folk musician Greg Brown, who will read from and talk about Ring Around The Moon - A Songbook. Due to limited space, this will be a ticketed event for the first 150 takers. Tickets are free, must be picked up in person at the cash register. Books will be for sale at the event.
Ring Around the Moon is a collection of songs, stories, photographs, and drawings by Greg Brown, published by Ramshackle Press. "A songwriter's songwriter, Iowa folk artist Greg Brown is in a category all of his own, with a body of work stretching back to 1981's The Iowa Waltz (on Minnesota's Red House Records), followed by more than 30 highly-regarded albums.
While Brown has retired from music and touring, he collaborated with Minnesota's Ramshackle Press on Ring Around The Moon - A Songbook. The 136-page book is a collection of writings, drawings, and photographs that accompany the lyrics and sheet music to many of Greg’s classic songs and features a foreword by musician Seth Avett, who released an album of Brown's songs in 2022." - Gratefulweb/Propeller.
Greg Brown was born in the Hacklebarney section of southeastern Iowa and raised by a family that made words and music a way of life. His seasoned songwriting, storytelling, and music are deeply rooted in that place.
Ramshackle Press, Founded in 2020, is based in Viroqua, WI, and Winona, MN, and is focused on publishing the writing of musicians and other unique Midwest voices.
Event address: Prairie Lights Bookstore, Iowa City Iowa
https://www.prairielights.com/
APRIL 2024
"Seek: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Life and Change the World"
by Scott Shigeoka
c.2023, Balance $30.00 243 pages
Curiosity killed the cat.
Preview by The Bookworm Sez
That's what Grandma said when you were a nosy little kid, but you needed to learn about your world. Asking questions that's what kids do – and so do savvy grown-ups. Curiosity may have plagued Grandma's cat, but as you'll see in "Seek" by Scott Shigeoka, a lack of it could harm you.
His friends worried about him. When Scott Shigeoka quit his job to travel around America for a year, they figured he'd be the target of all kinds of bad things. As a queer Asian American man, Shigeoka wasn't searching for himself, and he indeed wasn't looking for trouble. No, he was looking for strangers to see what we had in common."I wanted to feel less scared and angry all the time," he says,
Shigeoka's interpretation of studies is that our general lack of curiosity about one another "is literally killing us." With that in mind, he left his home and job and headed out to small towns in the south, a reservation in Minnesota, a Trump rally, and a retreat center with nuns and millennials. He squashed his inner negativity, bravely swallowed his reluctance, approached people, and cultivated his curiosity by speaking with religious leaders, zealots, and everyday folks. In doing so, he learned to D.I.V.E. into his outward curiosity.
He says Detach and let go of "the ABCs": assumptions, biases, and certainty. Even if you think you're against racism, homophobia, or any other intolerance, you "still have unconscious biases that need... interrupted and challenged." Learn to act with Intent. Know what questions to ask so that you can best learn about others and their thoughts. Show someone their Value by remembering that their political leaning, for instance, "is only one piece of a person's life and personality." And finally, learn to Embrace what's in front of you. This will "open the doors" to "more fulfillment and happiness in your life."
Does it sometimes seem like today's world is filled with awkward moments? Like you want to communicate with people you meet, but the rules have changed? Or maybe you have, and if that's the case, then author Scott Shigeoka has a fix. In "Seek," he shows how one tiny action can open great big doors.
It seems fun: you meet someone new, show a gentle bit of interest and pay attention, ask a few open-ended questions, and voila! New friend or client. Fresh, healthy lines of communication. New or enhanced working relationship. Big yay.
And yet – while this book is very useful, easy to grasp, and enthusiastic, Shigeoka has very few cautionary words to offer readers who may be too eager. In the wrong hands, some of the ideas here may be perceived as obnoxious or threatening. Understanding when to back off might have been good advice here, too.
Remember, know your target, open your heart, and have fun. If your curiosity needs fluffing up, "Seek" may be the up, "Seek" may be the purrfect book for you.
FEB 2024
"Blood Sisters" by Vanessa Lillie
Preview is written by Bookworm Sez for GoGuide Magazine
c.2023, Berkley $27.00 384 pages
It's the truth. Scout's honor.
Pinky swear. Spit on your palms prick your fingers, and shake hands. As a child, you had many ways to show that you intended to keep a promise when you made it and your word was your bond, but you've grown up. Today, you cross your heart but, as in the new novel "Blood Sisters" by Vanessa Lillie, you hope no one has to die.
She wasn't looking for skeletal remains.
For Bureau of Indian Affairs archaeologist Syd Walker, such a find was very unusual but not unknown. Odd things happen during geological surveys on tribal lands everywhere. Still, the gruesome recovery in Rhode Island wasn't top on Syd's mind.
She'd gotten a call that her sister, Emma Lou, was missing in Oklahoma.
Again.
Fifteen years before, as Syd, Emma Lou, and Luna, whom they'd considered a sister, were chilling in Luna's family's trailer, a group of men broke in. Wearing masks, the "devils" killed Luna and her parents, and the small town of Picher, was never the same.
Neither were Emma Lou or Syd. As a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Syd was well aware of the problems near her hometown, the issues Native Americans had there with the BIA, and her own ancestors' efforts to survive on land that was given and then snatched back. She also knew the fact that she had a wife at home in Rhode Island set her apart since she'd left. And drugs – too many people on tribal allotments were getting drugs too easily.
But someone wanted Syd to come home: a female skull was found in the crook of a tree with her old work badge in its mouth. Despite knowing that Syd had fled Oklahoma on purpose, her new boss at the BIA pulled strings to arrange the trip and assigned her the case.
Years ago, Syd had promised to protect Luna and Emma Lou.
One of them was already dead. The other was missing. Was the skull a threat – or a warning?
Here is the best advice you're going to get when you grab "Blood Sisters": pay close attention to the minutiae. Without being a spoiler, little things mean a lot.
Unless you watch carefully, you'll be cruising along at 200 miles an hour in a screaming run through pages and pages of barely-bearable excitement when suddenly, your brain will make that scratchy sound like a stopped record album. It's there where author Vanessa Lillie drops three tons of TNT, right towards the almost-end of her story and whoa, Nelly. If you're not paying attention, you may have to read the chapter multiple times to cut your "What the....?" down to a manageable level.
Yeah, this is that kind of book, the kind that's written with authenticity, an insider's feel, and heightened tension that'll keep you awake.
The kind that you think you know how it'll end and you're wrong. For mystery lovers or thriller fans, "Blood Sisters" is the kind of book you should scout out.
FEB 2024
"Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family"
by Mark Daley
c.2024, Atria Books $28.99 304 pages
The closet is full of miniature hangers. The mattress bumpers match the drapes and the rug beneath the tiny bed. There's a rocker for late-night fusses, a tall giraffe in the corner, and wind-up elephants march in a circle over the crib. Now you need someone to occupy that space and in the new book, "Safe" by Mark Daley, there's more than one way to accomplish that dream.
Jason was a natural-born father. Mark Daley knew that when they were dating, when he watched Jason with his nephew, with infants, and the look on Jason's face when he had one in his arms. As a gay man, Daley never thought much having a family but he knew Jason did – and so, shortly after their wedding, they began exploring surrogacy and foster-to-adopt.
Daley knew how important it was to get the latter right: his mother had a less-than-optimal childhood, and she protected her own children fiercely for it. When Daley came out to her, and to his father, he was instantly supported and that's what he wanted to give: support and loving comfort to a child in a hard situation.
Or children, as it happened. Just weeks after competing in foster parenting classes and after telling the social worker they'd take siblings if there were a need, the prospective dads were offered two small brothers to foster.
It was love at first sight, but courts, laws, and rules somewhat tempered euphoria. Their social worker warned several times that reunifying the boys with their parents was "Plan A," but Daley couldn't imagine it. The parents seemed unreliable; they rarely kept appointments, and they didn't seem to want to learn better parenting skills. The mother all but ignored the baby, and the child noticed.
So did Daley, but the courts held all the power, and predicting an outcome was impossible."All we had was the present," he said. "If I didn't stay in it, I was going to lose everything I had."
So was there a Happily-Ever-After? Ah, you won't find an answer to that question here. You'll need to read "Safe" and wear your heart outside your chest for an hour or so, to find out. Bring tissues.
Bring a sense of humor, too, because author and founder of One Iowa Mark Daley takes readers along on his journey to being someone's Daddy, and he does it with the sweetest open-minded open-heartedness. He's also Mama Bear here, too, which is what you want to see, although there can sometimes be a lot of tiresome overdrama and over-fretting.
And yet, this isn't just a sweet but angst-riddled tale of family. If you're looking to foster, here's one man's truth about the frustrations, the stratospheric highs, and the deep lows. Will your foster experiences be similar? Maybe, but reading this book about it is its reward.
"Safe" soars, and it dives. It plays with your emotions, and it wallows in anxiety. You'll hang on to every word if you're a parent.
Screen Savor: Midwestern melodrama
By Gregg Shapiro
Editors note: Gregg Shapiro is a nationally recognized journalist and author. Visit amazon.com
to view a list of available books.
The title of the documentary “We Live Here: The Midwest” (Hulu) is a somewhat misleading misnomer. A far better name for the project, featuring interviews with five LGBTQ+ couples, would be “We Live Here: The RURAL Midwest.”
The Midwestern states represented in the doc include Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Ohio, and Minnesota. The first stop is Iowa, the home of Nia and Katie. The land of “Iowa nice,” a passive/aggressive behavior as described by trans lesbian Nia, that is defined by people not saying “I don’t support you” to your face, but instead starting a letter-writing campaign to disparage you (actually, when it comes to the Midwest, that’s not limited to the borders of Iowa). Des Moines natives who never left, Nia and Katie met in second grade, attended the same “progressive evangelical church,” dated, married, and started a family. And then Nia came out as trans. Turns out the church wasn’t as progressive as they thought.
In Nebraska, where Mario and Monte are “one out of three black families, let alone gay families,” we learn about their history (and struggles), which is also connected to a church community. The married fathers of a baby girl, Mario and Monte provided the “mystery sperm” (both mixed together) for surrogate Ariel. They arrived in Nebraska (after living in more liberal Colorado) where Mario, who is in the Air Force, is stationed.
Courtney and Denise, who live in Kansas with their son Marek always wanted land, to be closer to their food, and to ranch goats. It was definitely an adjustment for the couple, who had met in Lawrence, Kansas, especially for Denise who had lived in New York, Portland, and Austin. However, it was Marek’s experience of being bullied in school that opened their eyes to the ways in which (again, rural) Midwestern culture is resistant to change.
The next stop is Ohio, the furthest east Midwestern state, where married gay couple Russ and Mark live. Russ is a high school teacher who came out later in life. They talk about how representation matters (Russ’ students know that Mark is his husband) where they live, as well as how following the presidential election in 2016 a change occurred resulting in a backlash against all the progress made by the LGBTQ+ community prior to that.
Finally, we arrive in Minnesota. This segment includes an interview with indigenous queer Heather Keeler of the Minnesota House of Representatives. But the main focus is trans couple Jenn and Debb, and features interviews with Jenn’s daughters, as well as her ex-wife Tricia.
With a runtime of less than an hour, and only five couples (and assorted others, including family members and neighbors) as interview subjects, it’s reasonable that “We Live Here,” would come up short. Making matters worse is that it feels incredibly amateur and unclear in its messaging (i.e. Jenn’s daughters still refer to her as “dad”). It’s admirable that Melinda Maerker wanted to address a segment of the population that doesn’t get much attention, but unfortunately the execution is flawed.
FEB 2024
"Interesting Facts about Space"
by Emily Austin
c.2024, Atria $27.99 320 pages
People don't understand you. They don't "get" you at all. Your sense of humor goes over their heads. If you're happy, you're weird; it makes no sense to them if you're angry. You're an enigma to most people – even sometimes, as in the new book "Interesting Facts about Space" by Emily Austin, you're an enigma to yourself.
Enid Hughes wasn't entirely sure why she was at her half-sister's gender reveal party.
Truth was, Enid found those kinds of parties rather repugnant, but whatever, her half-sisters seemed to want a relationship with her. She didn't know why that, either. It wasn't like they all grew up together or anything; their father out-and-out abandoned her in favor of his second family. It was all just so awkward.
That whole thing still depressed Enid's mother years later, which Enid thought about as she spent party time surreptitiously texting space facts to her mom. Space facts were comforting and a way of checking in. She also sometimes texted women she'd met online, random hook-ups she'd had with zero plans of ever seeing any of the women again.
Usually, that was a way to avoid a mess, but she'd recently learned that she'd been duped into seeing someone who was married, and things got complicated when the woman's wife found out. Yes, Enid was a lesbian, so what? When she was younger, she thought of boys and marriage but eventually decided that love was for everybody else.
For real, who would put up with someone who thought her apartment was being cased or who had a serious phobia of bald men and their smell? Nobody in their right mind would put up with a woman who was obsessed with true-crime podcasts who loved the stars, planets, and the moon, or who texted a pre-written message when she wanted to break up.
Who'd want to date someone who was constantly being watched?
Don't be surprised if you're mystified when you first start "Interesting Facts about Space." Don't be surprised if you squirm because it's an uncomfortable read.
Which doesn't mean that you won't want to continue.
Enid's story is compelling, but as a character, she's hard to categorize, and author Emily Austin doesn't make that easy to figure out. Enid's not gregarious or particularly friendly; her odd-duck ways are charming and abrasive with the lightest whiff of humor, but she's also depreciative and sad, and that doesn't abate – which may not make her very likable, but you still won't quit her. So why not?
Because you know something's coming. Like or dislike, Enid's quite the conundrum until you get toward the end of this story, and the whole thing pivots. Suddenly, everything you've read, every angsty comment and weird quirk, is turned upside down, and you will be, too.
It's an excellent pay-off if you can warm up to the quirkiness of this story and stick around. Until then, you may wonder why you're immersed in "Interesting Facts about Space." A few pages in, and you'll understand.
Synopsis:
All families must confront challenges every day. But many also face a rising tide of discrimination and hate in their churches, schools, and even their neighborhoods. "We Live Here: The Midwest" profiles families who hope to stay in a part of the country they love and where they have often established deep roots: a trans/queer family with five children in Iowa must find a new community after being expelled from their church; a gay Black couple with a young daughter test the line of acceptance in Nebraska; a lesbian couple homeschool their bullied son on a farm in Kansas; a gay teacher in Ohio creates a safe space for LGBTQIA+ students; and a couple in Minnesota struggles to rebuild their families following both of their transitions. Meanwhile, Minnesota State Representative and queer mother Heather Keeler brings LGBTQIA+ rights to the political forefront despite ongoing death threats. Fundamentally, the film captures a crucial time when anti-queer legislation and sentiment are rapidly multiplying across the country, and the values of all midwestern families are put to the ultimate test.
The documentary is now airing on HULU!
View the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzzIXrdLpOk
Credits: Melinda Maerker (director, producer), David Clayton Miller (producer) me to record this song with Stevie.”
“Everything” everywhere all at once: an interview with Freda Love Smith
Editors note: Gregg Shapiro is a Hall of Fame and nationally recognized journalist and author.
November 5
by Gregg Shapiro
For many people, the name Freda Love Smith conjures the sound of music. Drumming, in particular. Before she retired, Smith was a drummer in several bands, including Blake Babies, The Mysteries of Life, Antenna, Some Girls, and Sunshine Boys to mention a few. Smith wrote about that part of her life in her marvelous 2015 memoir “Red Velvet Underground.” The subject of music also features prominently in her equally awesome new book, “I Quit Everything” (Agate, 2023). Subtitled, “How One Woman’s Addiction to Quitting Helped Her Confront Bad Habits and Embrace Midlife,” the book includes sections on alcohol, sugar, cannabis, caffeine, and social media, and is equal parts confessional and self-help guide. Smith’s honest and open voice guides readers through her experiences while generously providing hard-won wisdom. Freda was kind enough to make time for an interview shortly before the book’s release.
Gregg Shapiro: Your new book “I Quit Everything” is your second after 2015’s “Red Velvet Underground.” Did you know after the first book that you had another in you?
Freda Love Smith: I knew I wanted to write more books, and even before “Red Velvet Underground” came out I was experimenting with another food-related project. That fizzled, and then a surprising thing happened, which was the resurrection of my drumming career with Chicago band Sunshine Boys—suddenly I had a whole other, all-consuming artistic outlet. I kept writing during that time, but I wrote slower and less. The narrative of “I Quit Everything” ends with my retirement from drumming, but the process of writing the book actually began with that retirement. At one of my final musical performances, I read an early draft of the social media chapter, marking my transition from one type of creative work to another.
GS: In the book you write about completing your MFA in Creative Nonfiction. Did any part of this book begin while you were working on your MFA?
FLS: Writing this book interrupted the project I’d been working on for my MFA! My thesis was a biography of Angela DeAngelis, a member of the Symbionese Liberation Army and an instrumental player in the kidnapping and indoctrination of Patty Hearst. Angela went to college in my hometown, Bloomington, Indiana. I have a contract for that book, and I still absolutely intend to write it, although it seems to be morphing into a novel. The idea to write “I Quit Everything” popped into my head, and it wouldn’t leave me alone until I wrote it. It’s a very short book, and it didn’t take long; it just came pouring out of me. I’d already lived through all the quitting that the book documents, and had kept a detailed journal throughout, so it was just a matter of finding points of connection, doing some research, and assembling a loose structure.
GS: “I Quit Everything” is separated into seven sections, five of which have addictive-substance-titles, with each one containing brief essays. Did the essays or the section themes come first in your creative process?
FLS: I mostly started with the themes. One advantage I had in figuring out the structure was that the book documents an experiment that spanned about eight months, so there was an intrinsic chronology I could rely on: first I quit this, then that, then that. Within this framework I certainly take liberties, but at least there is a basic timeline to contain the chaos!
GS: “I Quit Everything” is a book full of books with quotes from and references to “Sugar Blues,” “The Doors of Perception,” and “The Botany of Desire,” to name a few. Do you feel, as a writer, that you have a responsibility to recommend books to your readers?
FLS: I am grateful when writers recommend books to me and I love when one piece of writing points me to another, so it’s natural to want to pay it forward! “I Quit Everything” does end up being partly about books—I write about how books saved me during Covid, and about how a bookstore job helped me escape the academic job I was eager to quit. And although the book is a deeply personal memoir, documenting my struggles with addiction and withdrawal and midlife, I wanted it to be more than just my story; I wanted to fold in the stories and observations and research of others to give the book more texture and substance.
GS: In addition to quoting writers, you also quote musicians, including Jonathan Richman on pages 82 and 104. Would it be fair to say you consider Richman as an influence?
FLS: Yes, for sure! Jonathan Richman has been a force in my life since I first heard his solo albums in the eighties, which inspired me to seek out his earlier work with the Modern Lovers, one of my favorite bands of all time. Few songwriters are as singular--he steers clear of cliché, irony, and cultural pressure to conform to any current trends. He makes sincerity seem like the most punk thing ever.
GS: Would you agree that the looseness you write about in the “I’m Loose” essay seems to have been replaced by a kind of cultural tightness? If so, do you see that as a positive or negative?
FLS: This is amazing timing! I was just talking about “looseness” today with a former student of mine. She’s in her twenties, and at a recent family event her aunt (a Gen-X’er like me, in her fifties) went on a rant about how kids these days are too uptight, how we all used to drive drunk, and it was fine! I don’t advocate a return to rampant drunk driving, but believe me, I understand the sentiment, absolutely.
GS: I love the way you write about actors and films. For people familiar with you as a musician in bands including Blake Babies, Mysteries of Life, and Some Girls, to name a few, do you think they’ll be surprised to learn about movie star dreams?
FLS: I think they’ll be surprised, yes. I always felt most comfortable hiding back behind the drum set and became very shy when I had a microphone in front of my face.
GS: Did being a musician and playing for audiences fulfill that longing for you?
FLS: It absolutely did and gave me a more comfortable way to be an artist and performer; one better suited to my disposition!
GS: I loved the Sugar section, as that is also my addiction. I totally related to Cap’n Crunch’s violent mouth shredding, which is why I preferred the now defunct Quisp – same manufacturer, same taste, but gentler on the gums. Are you concerned about a backlash from Big Cereal?
FLS: First of all, I’d like a time machine so I can go back and pour myself a big bowl of Quisp—how did I never know about Quisp! I feel cheated. I have often felt the same way about quaaludes. Totally missed out, born just a little too late. Anyway, it’s unlikely Big Cereal will find me much of a threat; I think their power is even greater than it was when I was a kid. I recently read that they continue to reformulate those cereals to make them more appealing and—to borrow a cute adjective from the British—“moreish.”
GS: On a more serious note, the Social Media section of the book becomes a eulogy for your friend Faith Kleppinger. Did you know when writing that section that that’s what it would be or was it something that developed organically?
FLS: That came straight out of the journal that I was keeping at the time, writing about my quitting process and about the major events of my life. I loved her so much, and that loss permeated everything at the time.
GS: In the “Dignified and Old” essay, you wrote about the TV series “Absolutely Fabulous” in the most delightful way. I think you may be the first straight person I’ve encountered who enjoyed the show as much as me and my friends. Did it, perhaps, speak to your inner gay man?
FLS: Edina and Patsy forever [laughs]. And, yes, I totally have an inner gay man! When I was a teenager, I kept getting huge crushes on gay boys until I realized: it wasn’t that I wanted them, I wanted to BE them! I wanted their dance moves and their brilliant taste in music, I wanted their bravery and sense of identity, and I also wanted to resist gender stereotypes, convention, heteronormativity. I was—and am—attracted to she’s as well as he’s, and the LGBTQ+ people in my life emboldened me to identify as bisexual.
GS: Your mentions of Sir Elton John, Cher, and “Tootsie,” made me wonder if you were aware of an LGBTQ+ following for your various bands, and if so, what that means to you.
FLS: I’ve been told that Blake Babies had a significant LGBTQ+ following and that delights me. For much of the Blake Babies, I had short hair or a shaved head, and I was frequently mistaken for a guy behind the drums. Juliana and I refused to appear traditionally feminine in the band—
we wore no make-up, and our typical stage garb was men’s t-shirts and baggy jeans. I’ve told this story a lot—after one concert in North Carolina the promoter approached John Strohm, the guitarist in the band, and said “You’ve got to get those girls in some dresses.” We scoffed at that. We wanted to define womanhood on our own terms. This possibly contributed to our appeal to those who identified as genderqueer, gender-fluid, or gender nonconforming, all groups that I deeply respect.
GS: What would it mean to you if “I Quit Everything” became recommended reading for people in the recovery community?
FLS: I feel big love for the recovery community and have been thrilled to glimpse the ways in which that world is opening up, diversifying, allowing in myriad voices and approaches. I appreciate the nuance in language like “soberish,” “sober curious,” and “California sober.” It feels to me like there is more space for people to decide what they want their sobriety to look like; not everyone fits every program. It would mean the world to me if “I Quit Everything” were to help anyone to break a destructive habit, to take a good honest look within and decide what they can and can’t afford to mess with, and to trust themselves to make the right choices.
GoGuide Magzine caught up with our own Miss Christine (they/them) while on tour a couple of weeks ago. They were kind enough to do a Q&A with us for our new online magazine's inaugural issue.
According to Miss Christine's website, "The "Miss" has nothing to do with womanhood and everything to do with absence and longing. In this case, it's the longing for truth and freedom from misguided external perceptions.
Miss Christine attended the Berklee College of Music before gaining experience as a session musician in Nashville. Christine defied expectations again by leaving Nashville behind for a farm near Iowa City, where they write and record their original songs. Miss Christine released their debut solo album, Conversion, in 2019. The follow-up, Bittersweet, is out June 2023 on Bandcamp, vinyl, and CD
GoGuide Magazine (GGM): How would you describe your tour, and how has it changed over the years?
Miss Christine: The tour has been so much fun! Before the pandemic, I played close to 100 shows a year, so since 2020, my tour schedule has slowed down tremendously. It felt so good to be back on stage this summer, playing Pride festivals and shows around the Midwest to support the release of my second album, Bittersweet. The pandemic allowed me the space to become more comfortable with my queerness and performing in public as my genderqueer self. My audience has changed so much since my first tour. It is much more queer.
I've been performing under the moniker Miss Christine since 2010. In 2017, I began to pursue my original music much more seriously, and in 2018, I hit the road touring around the Midwest, Northeast, and Southeast. I've been touring the last five years with different lineups of musicians in Miss Christine. A Miss Christine show is energetic and empowering with some introspective moments.
Fortunately, Miss Christine can be found in Iowa City performing at LA Wine Bar on November 16 and at Gabe's on November 24.
GGM: How many albums have you recorded? What songs are fan favorites?
Miss Christine: I've recorded two full-length albums and two EPs. My first album, Conversion, came out in 2019, and my second album, Bittersweet, in 2023. Fan favorite songs are Conversion, Google University, and Profound. My favorite song at the moment is My Brain, which is about the time I got a concussion. It is so much fun to play live. Someone deemed it Doom Pop, which makes me laugh.
GGM: How would you describe your musical and performance style? Who in the music influenced you the most?
Miss Christine: I call it punk rock doo-wop. There are lots of vocal harmonies, defiant punk attitude, soulful moments, and occasional guitar and keyboard solos. Since I am a singing bassist, my songs are often short and full of unexpected surprises. My biggest influences are Paul McCartney, James Jamerson, Carol Kaye, The Beatles, The Grates, and The Supremes. I often say that I'm stuck in the '60s. I love music from that decade, especially Motown.
GGM: What has been your biggest hurdle in getting to the point you're at now?
Miss Christine: I spent most of my life hiding behind my bass playing instead of listening to who I am outside of my musicianship. My biggest hurdle has been learning to respect myself enough to advocate for my self-worth. Even though people like me are often left out of the mainstream, we exist and are valid just as we are. Since being public with my genderqueerness and asexuality, my life and music career have blossomed in a new way I never thought possible.
GGM: You will be headlining the Third Coralville Pride Festival next June. What can the crowd expect, and do you have any surprises for the show?
Miss Christine: We are excited to play at the Coralville Pride Festival next year! The crowd can expect a fun and energetic show filled with self-compassion. You'll have to come to the show and find out about surprises. ;)
Visit the Miss Christine website for complete tour date listings and more information: https://www.misschristinemusic.com/
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