8 PM, Sat. May 8
Academy Award Winning Filmmaker
PAMELA BOLL
Introducing & Screening
WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?
Georgia O'Keefe. Edith Wharton. Janis Joplin. Emily Dickinson. Amelia Earhart. None of these women had children. Who Does She Think She Is?, the new documentary by Oscar winning filmmaker Pamela Boll (Born into Brothels), explores the competing demands of muse and mothering and the struggle to make art while nurturing life. The film, which follows five fierce women who refuse to choose, is a call to arms (rise up ladies! with your chisels and brushes and pens!) and ultimately demonstrates that creativity and care-giving are not mutually exclusive, but deeply connected. Followed by an on stage interview btwn Ms. Boll and Emmy Award winning cultural arts journalist John Bathke (News 12's "On the Scene").For trailer, click HERE. Bring your Mom! What better way to spend Mother's Day weekend? 6:30 - 7:30 PM Raconteur Cocktail Reception w/Ms. Boll. Join Oscar winner Pam Boll @ The Raconteur (431 Main Street, Metuchen, NJ) for some complimentary vino and up-close conversation before the movie.The reception is FREE! for Raconteur Society Members. $10 suggested donation for non-members.
7:30 PM, Thurs. May 13
JOHN HAMMEL'S SERIOUS FUN
The Creep Song Cycle
John Hammel (vocals/harmonica/percussion), Anthony LaMort (keyboards), Michael Cohen (bass. Classic rock and soul strung together in a thematic song cycle Opening set of poetry and free form improvisation by Hammel/LaMort/Cohen. FREE Will Donation. Please Note: this is a rental (budding bands, authors, and filmmakers regularly rent our space).
8 PM, Tues. May 18
CHRIS GRABENSTEIN
Reading/Signing
ROLLING THUNDER: A John Ceepak Mystery
Trojan Man Grabenstein continues his chronicle of the NJ beach dick, rounding out his Ceepak six pack with a can of whup ass called ROLLING THUNDER. A prominent citizen dies on a brand new roller coaster's first trip around the tracks. Was it a heart attack or did it just look like one? And why is Ceepak's skeevy father back in Sea Haven? Hang on for the read of your life!
A former improvisational comedian (he and Bruce Willis were in the same Greenwich Village comedy troupe in the early 1980s), Grabenstein spent almost twenty years writing commercials. He was, perhaps most famously, the copy writer who created Trojan Man. His writing talent was first discovered by James Patterson, the Creative Director at J. Walter Thompson Advertising. He won the Anthony Award for "Best First Mystery" for his debut TILT A WHIRL, the first in a series of John Ceepak stories to be set "Down The Shore" in a New Jersey tourist town called Sea Haven. The second book, MAD MOUSE, was called one of the "Ten Best Mysteries of 2006" by Kirkus. The New York Daily News called the fourth Ceepak book, HELL HOLE, a "must-read." FREE! Complimentary wine. Books on sale at event.
8 PM, Fri. May 21
CALOURI(violin)/KAPLAN(guitar)
Live Music
400 years of music: from Gustav Holst to classic Zep (Led, that is), with detours into Celtic folk and Victorian dance hall. Steve Kaplan and Paul Calouri bring their love of traditional folk, classical music and acoustic jazz into sharp focus by using truly acoustic instruments to perform, exploring sonic possibilities without the "clutter" of other instrumentation. Their approach to the music is deceptively simple: wring out as much emotion as possible without losing the essential structure of the pieces they're playing. FREE! Complimentary wine.
8 PM, Sat. May 22
2010 OSCAR Winning Director
ROGER ROSS WILLIAMS
Introducing/Screening MUSIC BY PRUDENCE
Followed by a Q&A with Williams and a concert by PRUDENCE!
Roger Ross Williams, the first African American filmmaker to win the Academy Award, introduces and screens the film for which he won the Oscar. "Music by Prudence" follows Prudence Mahena, a severely disabled Zimbabwean woman born into extreme poverty and believed to be the product of witchcraft, who transcends hatred and superstition to form an Afro-fusion band called Liyan, in which all eight members are disabled. The screening will be followed by an onstage interview/conversation between News 12's John Bathke and Williams, an audience Q&A, and a concert by Prudence herself! who's in from Zimbabwe for a slew of interviews with Williams (O Magazine, CNN, NPR, Gail King Show, and pending appearances on The View and Oprah) and the HBO premiere of the film. Admission: $20. To buy a ticket online, click HERE. To see the trailer, click HERE.THE REFECTORY (adjacent to the First Presbyterian Church), 270 Woodbridge Ave, Metuchen, NJ 08840
COCKTAIL RECEPTION FOLLOWING THE EVENT
Join 2010 Oscar winner Roger Ross Williams and Prudence Mahena for complimentary wine, up close conversation, and an exclusive a cappella concert AFTER the event. Attendance limited to 65! Cash menu and bar. Novitas Lounge, 25 Pearl Street, Metuchen, NJ. 10:00 PM - 11:00 PM. Admission: $15.00. To buy a reception ticket online, click HERE. Reception tickets available at The Raconteur starting Sat 5/15.
8 PM, Tues. May 25
THE BACKPOCKETS
Live Music
The Back Pockets is three girls, two boys, and one old geezer who looks like a cross between Dusty Hill and the guy with ripped flannel elbows drinking brekkie shots of Ten High who just stole your smokes. They play banjos and bongos, fiddles and flutes. Sometimes they lay electric guitars across their laps and saw on them with a violin bows. The girls dress like flappers, acrobats, or, on occasion, the Daryl Hannah android from Bladerunner. The boys wear Mexican wrestling masks and fencing helmets. They like sidewalks at night, homemade things, and carnies. They frequently rig and engage tightropes and trapezes during their shows, and have played whole songs hanging from their knees. The sound is folk, but the experience is Stomp. They're painters as well as musicians. They hail from Atlanta, GA. They sometimes describe themselves as Jefferson Airplane meets Blue Man Group. FREE! Complimentary wine. CDs on sale at the event (you remember their CDs, they come in little canvas pockets embroidered with doodles fastened with Velcro).
