2007-06 Vital Source Mag – June 2007
Black Strobe
By Ally Berndt Norwegian death metal. Gothic French electro. ‘80s electronic body music. Something totally different. Any or all of the above can be ways used to describe Black Strobe. Burn Your Own Church – “Brenn Di Ega Kjerke” in Norwegian – is Black Strobe’s latest album, and while all 11 tracks reflect the group’s Depeche Mode and ‘80s rock influences, most also represent a darker, trance-like mood. The sound is good, but probably best appreciated if you’re hopped up at a Euro rave. “Blood Shot Eyes” is a quirky song that’s mixed well and puts the synthesizer to great use, yet sounds oddly reminiscent of the Super Mario Brothers theme if set against Norwegian metal. Included on the album is a cover of Bo Diddly’s “I’m a Man.” It’s bluesy but more hyped up – a little bit out there, but enjoyable nonetheless. And if Rammstein put together an ‘80s house mix, I’m pretty sure it would sound very much like “Not What I Need,” with its deep half-spoken lyrics in Euro-metal drag. The last two tracks – “Last Club on Earth” and “Crave for Speed” – are by far the best, featuring not only the strongest vocals, but also some great piano work. It’s a welcome switch from synth and showcases Black Strobe’s low-key side. Burn Your Own Church is a decent album with a lot of great production work; the mixes are actually the best part. There could’ve been a little more guitar and a little less of the often over-powering keyboards and synthesizers, but overall Black Strobe has put together a well-rounded record that pulls elements from many styles of music and then lays them over acid-infused beats. Americans should definitely check it out, if only for the fact that it’s just not your everyday electro mix. VS
Jun 1st, 2007 by Vital Archives
Milwaukee Short Film Festival reels up its 9th season
It’s with some irony that the decaying relationship between Time Warner Cable and the local public access outlet (MATA Community Media) helped foster the physical existence of the Milwaukee Short Film Festival, and even more ironic that the internet – well known for stealing eyes away from theaters and television – has helped the local showcase become more popular. Festival founder and director Ross Bigley first showcased local filmmakers’ short submissions – each narrative run between 2 to 18 minutes – for several years on public access in the mid-1990s. After a short break, the festival moved to area coffeehouses before finally landing at its present venue in the Times Cinema (5906 W. Vliet St., Wauwatosa) in 2004. The 2007 series now starts with an unusual feature attraction at the Astor Theater (1696 N. Astor St., Milwaukee) Saturday June 9 at 4 p.m. and continues Sunday June 10 at the Times with a 4 p.m. retrospective and main contest showings at 7 p.m. The rapid ascent of the internet as marketer and community tool actually helped spread the word about the festival. Now entries come all the way from Los Angeles, New York, Toronto and London. MSFF has received notices from magazines and websites and features a judging panel of several accomplished members of the entertainment industry. A $1000 juried grand prize was created by previous festival sponsors and has remained by popular demand along with a separate “audience award,” both to be determined at the event. The monetary prize comes directly from entry fees and sales – so the showcase is not technically a money-making venture. Bigley and friends do it for the love of film and storytelling. MSFF’s growth can be most easily attributed to the loyalty of supporters and now two other events: one is a Sunday afternoon exposition at the Times Cinema featuring “Best Of” entries from a 10-year span by such known artists as Dan Wilson (Leavings), Malona P. Voigt (Chicxulub) and Michael John Moynihan (Take a Chance and Happiness is a Long Shot). The other, and more experimental, event takes place the day prior, way over on the east side of town. The Astor Theater plays host to a special free premiere showing of Realization by Chicago’s Splitpillow. The five-year-old non-profit film company’s concept was to create a feature-length film broken down into seven chapters, with each segment written and directed by different crews all utilizing a continuing thread. Also, different actors play the same characters in each segment, creating a very heady concept film. According to Splitpillow, the plot revolves around “a lovesick physicist trying to complete his father’s unfinished work to impress the girl of his dreams.” Official entries in Sunday’s main event are as widely varied in length as they are tone or subject matter, yet most of them promise to not be the typical summer multiplex film. Some highlights should include: The Furry Revolt, by Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design graduate Jessica Bayliss, is a brief stop-motion animation piece […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Brian Jacobson
A crash course in teen parenting
Dear Readers, As I write my column this month, I’m sitting at my patio table in the early chill of a spring morning. I can only write when I’m alone, and today this is the only quiet corner of my universe. I am so far behind that the rest of the magazine is already at the printer, waiting for this last addition. As I shared a few months back, I am marrying a man with four children, three of them teenage girls. Until March of this year, my only child was a third grade boy and the rest of our tribe’s kids ranged in age from 2 to 11. I was still enrolled in Parenting 101: instilling values and a work ethic, providing emotional safety and stability, helping with homework and prioritizing quality time. Given this, I feel grossly under-prepared for my new parenting life. I am now a step-mom, which comes with the inherent complexities of who I am to the kids and where our boundaries lay, plus the myriad dramas that sometimes seem to dominate our lives. A few weeks ago it was the 15-year-old wanting her upper ear pierced. Last week it was the soon-to-be 13-year-old lobbying for a cell phone (and a car) for her birthday. This weekend, it was a matter of life and death. On Saturday, my fiancé and I were on our first real date in months, the younger children all safely occupied for the evening and the oldest, 17 year-old Alex, two hours north with a friend, interviewing the Amish for her senior final project. Michael had left his phone in the car, and as we got in after dinner it was ringing. It was Alex’s number, but it wasn’t Alex on the line. Her friend, a boy, had made the call, and he was clearly upset. From the passenger seat I could hear shouted fragments of his side of the exchange. “I’m sorry, Mr. Gull, I’m so sorry!” “The car flipped over three times…” “I got Alex out but the paramedic needs to talk to you…” And again, “I’m so sorry.” Michael laid his forehead against the steering wheel for a moment while the boy gave the phone to the paramedic. I could feel the blood chilling in Michael’s veins as his face turned to ash. Finally, we were informed that our daughter had sustained “a crushing injury” to her hand, a laceration of unknown severity to her foot and that further examination was needed at a hospital in Fond du Lac, over an hour from where we were. “Who’s screaming?” asked Michael. “That’s your daughter, sir, she’s pretty shaken up,” replied the paramedic. “Give her the phone, let me talk to her!” Michael’s voice was shaking, and as I write, I am reliving the panic we both felt in that moment. “Oh, Daddy, we tried to stop but we couldn’t and the car flipped over and over and over and I thought I was dead I really thought I was […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Jon Anne Willow
Hot summer in the city
Lesley Kagen is looking out the front window of Restaurant Hama, the fine Japanese establishment her and husband Peter Knapp have operated out of the Audubon Court in Bayside for almost 10 years. But this is not a feature about the fine tempura and fried calamari we will feast on in a few minutes. “Piaskowski,” Kagen interjects with another local family name. Her voice is comforting and level as she continues to identify familiar Brew City names and places. It’s a voice perfect for radio commercials – which Kagen did on the west coast for over a decade. But this is not a feature about past successes in television and voiceover work. “I mean, this is definitely a Milwaukee book,” Kagen continues, and then wrinkles her brow within the context. The Vliet Street characters in her debut novel Whistling in the Dark, published by North American Library (Penguin Books), have remarkable depth. The languid summer of 1959 passes by typically with Popsicles, movies and neighborhood games. But this is not a book about how whimsical, simple and tranquil those times were. “A lot of people like to remember the ‘50s, and say ‘oh wow the ‘50s, it was so innocent.’ But in some ways it wasn’t, especially for girls,” Kagen says. “Girls were treated very differently back then. You were a 2nd-class citizen. Boys were important and girls weren’t. And that led to some situations that were not nice and not healthy.” The main heroine of Whistling is 10-year-old Sally O’Malley, a fiercely loyal and smart girl who becomes an unwilling shamus during one summer dotted with personal tragedy and frustration. After promising her dad before he died to always look after her younger sister, Troo, Sally’s world is thrown asunder when her mother is hospitalized, her stepfather turns to the bottle and a murderer/molester appears on the scene. Highly imaginative, Sally is pretty sure of two things: who the killer is and that she’s next on his list. Now she has no choice but to protect herself and Troo as best she can, relying on her own courage and the kindness of her neighbors. For all the dark corners and mysteries in Kagen’s seeming thriller, however, she was stunned during the many accolades the novel received when the Mystery Guild named it an alternate for book-of-the-month. “I thought why? I would say that it’s a literary novel with an element of mystery as opposed to a true genre mystery. I don’t think it has that feel to it at all,” says Kagen. “I don’t think that Sally is thinking about solving the crime. She’s more concerned with getting the information for keeping her and her sister safe. That’s a real different goal.” Another neat trick that binds the book is the committed narrative voice, which is written in the first person from Sally’s perspective and vernacular ability. “I wanted people to remember that children are different than adults,” she says. “They see things differently. The strange ways that words […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Brian Jacobson
To be young and Polish on a summer evening
Lidia Sobierajski has possibly the coolest job held by any young professional in Milwaukee. At the tender age of 34, she’s Director of Polish Fest, the nation’s largest Polish cultural festival. That having been said, it’s among the smaller of the often-Titanic ethnic festivals that descend upon the Maier Grounds in the summer, drawing diverse crowds from all over the country. That’s a shame, because in addition to truly exposing our city’s proud Polish cultural traditions to those unfortunate enough to never have lived on the South or East sides, Polish Fest is not only a great time, but the first cultural festival of the summer. It also has the benefit of being a bit less crowded, for those of us who prefer traversing the park from end to end in less than two hours. At least that’s the case for now, unless Lidia has her way. The daughter of Polish immigrants (her father came to the U.S. after WWII), Lidia Sobierajski grew up in Milwaukee immersed in both her parents’ native culture and her own American lifestyle. A classically trained musician with a degree in Mathematics and Piano Performance/Pedagogy from Alverno College, she and her sister approached Polish Fest’s organizers in 1998 to hold a Chopin youth piano competition. It’s been a great success, and in 2004 she realized her dream of overseeing the entire festival. “I felt like I had a million ideas,” she explains, “and thought that if I was just given the chance, I could help Polish Fest grow.” And so, armed with a mission and leading an army of dedicated volunteers, Lidia is working day and night to craft a new image for Polish Fest. Seated in the conference room of the Polish Heritage Alliance’s gorgeous new center in Franklin, Lidia looks more like an intern than an executive – but the resemblance is only skin deep. Dressed in black pants and a black t-shirt with POLISH FEST emblazoned in rhinestones across the chest, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed young woman bristles with energy and intelligence as she relates all Polish Fest has to offer. She’s the real deal, and under her guidance Polish Fest may just come into its own in its 26th year. Musically, the fest is known mostly for polka, native folk music and cultural dance demonstrations. This is an important element of a genuine cultural festival, and Polish Fest will always remain true to its mission (unlike a few others that shall remain nameless). After all, it just wouldn’t be Polish Fest without Jimmy Sturr and his Orchestra or the Polish Connection on the Non-Stop Polka Stage. And then there’s the often underrated (though actually quite delicious) food that will always be a mainstay. But Lidia has been slipping in new stuff, geared toward a younger crowd, as well as running vodka and spirit tastings through Stawski Imports that feature some of Eastern Europe’s finest offerings. This year, Friday is the night for the young to come out, with the return of the […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Jon Anne Willow
Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse
“I am Lilly. I am Queen. I like everything,” says Lilly as she roller skates on stage to the surprise of her two mouse friends, Chester and Wilson. In Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse, which opened May 4 at First Stage Children’s Theater, Lilly is indeed queen of this enchanting, eye-catching production. Kevin Kling, who adapted the play from award-winning author Kevin Henke’s popular book of the same name, has blended timeless pre-school tales into one 90-minute play of Lilly’s mishaps and adventures. In this retelling, a carousel of cotton candy colors and a spectrum of patterns, shapes and textures surround Lilly and the large children’s cast of mice. Stars, checks, polka dots and ribbons fall from the ceiling and saturate the stage. Sarah Hunt Frank and Kristina L. Van Slyke, scene designer and costume designer, respectively, breathe life into Henke’s mice. The children in the audience were mesmerized by the visual array, attentively keeping eyes and ears on the show. Kurt Schnabel, lighting designer of Suessical fame, again delights with technical details and special effects. When Henke’s illustrations are added to some of the sequences, the results affectionately remind the audience of Lilly’s artistic beginnings. But the queen of the performance is Lilly herself, Clarise White, an 11-year-old from the Colby Cast that performed opening night. White bursts on to the stage, making believable this Lilly who likes everything, with charm and chutzpah. Thaddeus Bruno as Chester and Henry Ballesteros as Wilson are credit worthy as Lilly’s friends, forming the central three-some. The entire ensemble creates an animated world that plays like a merry-go-round as Lilly lives through all the missteps and fears of a child, yet continually inspires the viewer with her bravery. Such tribulations include surviving a new baby brother, bullies and a mishap at school with her infamous purple plastic purse. Mr. Slinger, her favorite teacher, helps Lilly overcome her misguided feelings and saves the day, even though Lilly saves Mr. Slinger in her imagination. The script is sprinkled with lovely lines and situations from a child’s point of view, dealing with their often unspoken feelings, that Lilly gives voice to and helps them identify. Children repeated these special phrases very softly, showing that the characters truly connected with them. First Stage Theater’s Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse continues through June 17 and is recommended for those over 3, although anyone who is a fan of Henke’s books will appreciate this entertaining real life version of their favorite stories. Adults will also enjoy some of the layered references used throughout the performance. But the true star is Henke’s little mouse Lilly, undoubtedly Queen of the production, bringing a bit of childlike magic to the stage. And to quote Lilly’s favorite teacher, Mr. Slinger, “All I can say is WOW.” VS Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse continues at the Todd Wehr Theater in the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts through June 17. For tickets and information call 414-273-7206 or visit www.firststage.org.
Jun 1st, 2007 by Peggy Sue Dunigan
Vital’s 2007 Farmers Market Guide
By Amy Elliott, Evan Solochek, Jon Anne Willow In the urban epicenter of metropolitan Milwaukee, it’s far too easy to forget that we live in Wisconsin, a major player in the nation’s agricultural life and a leading producer of cranberries, corn, oats, potatoes, cherries, green beans and, of course, fresh dairy. Enter the farmers market – arguably the best way for urbanites to participate responsibly in our rich agricultural infrastructure. While some markets still feature trucked-in fare, more are focusing on what we have right here. There aren’t many downsides to buying locally. Healthier produce raised with fewer chemicals comes to us across far less distance and with shipping costs minimized and no middle man to pay off costs are drastically reduced, and the effect on the environment is alleviated. But most of all, it’s good to know where your food comes from, how it gets here and who’s dealing with it. And with lots of markets offering flowers, baked goods, coffees and teas, artwork and even live music, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more pleasant way to spend a few precious summer hours. NOTE: Some information is unconfirmed and noted with an (*). Bauer’s Farmers Market 11813 7 ½ Mile Rd., Caledonia 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. daily, July through November. 262-835-4386. Brown Deer Farmers Market Bradley Commerce Center, N. 43rd St. and Bradley Rd. 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., Wednesdays through October. Annuals and perennials, herbs, roses, and fruits and vegetables. 414-354-6923. Brookfield Farmers Market City Hall, 2000 N. Calhoun Rd 7:30 a.m. – noon, Saturdays through October. Flowers, fruits and vegetables, Piedmontese beef, maple syrup, chickens, eggs, bison meat, baked goods, dried floral, garden art and much more. Weekly entertainment and demonstrations. 70th annual Dahlia Show September 23, with more than 600 blooms on display for judging. 262-784-7804 or brookfieldfarmersmarket.com. Burlington Farmers Market Echo Park, 588 Milwaukee Ave. 8 a.m. – noon, Saturdays through November. 262-342-1171. Cudahy Farmers Market 4700 S. Packard Ave. 10 a.m. – sold out, Fridays through November. Locally grown and produced baked goods, fresh produce, apples, honey, flowers, crafts and more. ci.cudahy.wi.us. Delafield Farmers Market 514 W. Main St. 7 a.m. – 1 p.m., Saturdays through October. Producer-only market; locally grown vegetables, fruits, herbs, honey, cider, flowers, annual bedding and perennial plants, ironworks, homespun woolen yarns and other locally handcrafted items. 262-968-4471. East Side Open Market 1901 E. North Ave. 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturdays, June 30 through October. Produce, agricultural products, flowers, herbs, CSA, amazing artists and marvelous local musicians. theeastside.org. East Town Farmers Market Cathedral Square Park, 520 E. Wells 7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Saturdays through October. Farm-grown produce, baked goods, specialty foods and arts & crafts. Free entertainment and children’s activities. easttown.com. Elmwood Plaza Farmers Market Durand Ave., Racine 8 a.m. – noon, Tuesdays and Fridays through November 2. Seasonal asparagus, rhubarb, beans, tomatoes, corn, melons, bedding plants, apples, baked goods, chickens, eggs and fresh flowers. 262-886-3284. Fondy Farmers Market 2200 W. Fond du Lac Ave. 7 […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Amy Elliott
Patience
For as long as there has been art, there have been those who have taken the love of aesthetics and beauty to nauseating extremes. In 1881, Gilbert and Sullivan took a satirical jab at artistic pretentiousness with Patience. Today, 126 years later, The Skylight Opera Theatre revisits this classic musical in a production that carries into June. It’s a pleasant, fast-paced staging that the Skylight has polished quite nicely. The radiant Niffer Clarke stars as the simple milkmaid after which the show is named. Patience knows little of and cares little for romantic love yet is nonetheless pursued by two different men. The effeminate Reginald Bunthorne (Gary Briggle) is a poet of extreme pretentiousness who quite readily captures the attentions of all the wealthy girls in the tiny village, but he longs for the one who has no interest in him. Briggle is memorable as the ostentatious poet who cares more for the attentions of his audience than his art. Unable to feel anything but confusion for the deliberately obtuse Bunthorne, Patience talks of love with a friend. She seems to be the only single woman in town who doesn’t know what it is firsthand. In the course of the conversation, Patience remembers a time when she had feelings for a slightly older boy she used to play with as a child. As luck would have it, he shows up and she is smitten with romantic feelings for the first time in her life. His name is Archibald Grosvenor (Norman Moses) and he has loved her since he was a child. However, all who lay eyes on him have an inflated sense of his beauty. Like Bunthorne, Grosvenor is a poet of the highest imaginable aesthetics who is, of course, a cripplingly beautiful person. It is with great disappointment that Patience begins to question her love for Grosvenor. True love, she believes, must be truly selfless and one could never be selfless when loving someone of such overwhelming beauty. His beauty must belong . . . to the world. It would be an act of selfishness to demand his exclusive attentions and so Patience’s first love is a tragic one. Grosvenor is crestfallen, but the stress of the plot works in his favor, as his beauty is, of course, at odds with Bunthorne’s. The two are thus embroiled in a conflict that carries much of the rest of the story. It’s all a great deal of fun. The Chamber Theatre delivers deftly on the wit and speed of Gilbert and Sullivan in song and dialogue. Costuming by Karin Kopischke is impressive here and there is an elaborate simplicity in the design, which compliments the ornate, yet functional set by Peter Dean Beck. As entertaining as it is, the production as a whole feels a bit held back. This is really written to be a Gilbert and Sullivan with teeth and there are moments that are designed to really skewer the lofty insincerity of those who use art as a status-inducing […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Russ Bickerstaff
VITAL’S 2007 Photo Contest Winners
I think photography as the America of “Art.” It is not a perfect analogy; photography doesn’t arrest undocumented artworks and detain them indefinitely, nor is it engaged in an endless quest to start wars against developing art forms whilst alienating and disenfranchising photographs at home. Photographs are sometimes bought and sold to the highest bidder, but that’s not what I mean, either. Photography is a highly democratic art form. Not everyone is born with the fine motor skills to learn how to draw or the craftsmanship necessary to sculpt or carve wood. But most people can figure out how to press a button on a camera. With a light meter and a little practice, even a manual camera is intuitive enough to understand. The ever-expanding accessibility of digital equipment has even made it possible to eliminate the complicated and costly process of developing your own prints. Now all you need is a printer, or someone whose printer you can use and – voilà – a masterpiece. The ease of photography invites experimentation and ingenuity. Like America, nothing is guaranteed – not everyone can afford those fancy macro lenses, and not everyone has an eye for composition – but photography strives for equality of opportunity. And frankly, that makes the old institutions a little bit nervous. If you were an oil painting, you’d be nervous, too. Look at what happened to Great Britain. And in the grand scheme of things, photography is a pretty young way to make art, and even though a photograph is one of the world’s most powerful tools for telling a story or conveying an image, photography is still fighting for its credibility in the art world. Not everyone trusts photography. It’s too instant. It’s too mechanical. The artist is too far removed from the art. Or so it is still sometimes said. This year, in the spirit of opportunity, we awarded two different awards for each category – Best Professional and Best Amateur. The judges – Cori Coffman, Executive Director of the Eisner Musuem of Art and Design; Deone Jahnke, a local professional photographer who works all over the country and Sonja Thomsen, adjunct professor at MIAD and head of Milwaukee’s Coalition of Photographic Arts – swore to be fair and impartial administrators of their duties. They rated each photograph blind before the law (well, they could see, but it was anonymous) and on video camera themselves, for all to witness at our second Random Exposure opening on June 14 at the Eisner, which will include over 60 of our favorite entries, democratically displayed for your viewing enjoyment. There will also be music, food and more. Look for details on page 18. In your winners, you will see testament to the radical and boundless fruits of this art for the people: color, shadows, truth, comedy, tragedy, apathy and beauty. PORTRAIT BEST IN SHOW Best Professional Jessica Kaminski “Girl in Doorway” Jessica Kaminski received her BFA in Fine Art Photography from MIAD in 2001. Since then, she […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Amy Elliott
Long Day’s Journey into Night
Humor can draw anyone into a theatre, but it’s the darkness that really excites the imagination. Eugene O’Neil’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night is one of the great classics of dark American theatre. Under the direction of Heidi Mueller Smith, Cornerstone Theatre Company presents the classic in the basement of the Brumder Mansion. As everyone settles into their seats for the evening, Ruth Williams and Sandy Stehling animate the space with a traditional Irish tune. Gradually, the play settles over the stage. There’s no mistaking that this is going to be a long, dark journey into the inner social dynamics of a particularly dark, iconic American family. Thankfully, with Cornerstone Theatre it’s a trip to the theatre featuring some of the best acting in one of the smallest performances spaces in greater Milwaukee. Cotter Smith stars as family patriarch James Tyrone – an aging actor past his prime who has made a small fortune for himself, but nonetheless tours during the theatre season. It’s August of 1912 and it would appear to have been a very long summer. Smartly dressed with sharp features and meticulously manicured facial hair, Smith cuts a darkly charismatic figure in the role. There’s a mixture of weariness and restlessness in the way Smith carries himself here. Smith’s apparent darkness as James is offset by Michelle Waide’s performance as his wife Mary. O’Neil places Mary as something of a central enigma in the script. Waide’s performance here is particularly clever. She seems to hold a great deal of casual poise, but we can tell that somewhere in the background of her apparent stability lies the hazy static of unhealthy disorder. She’s swept it all into the background of her personality, but it gradually comes to prominence as the play progresses. Waide deftly rides the emotional contours of O’Neil’s script, only letting enough emotional distress slip out to make it to the next scene. Ken T. Williams and Steven Strobel play James and Mary’s sons, Jamie and Edmund. Williams is pleasantly cynical as the older son who has returned home to help out around the house. Being fully aware and at least marginally open about all of the negativity floating around in the family’s closets, Jamie comes across as being one of the darker people in the play. Williams lends a considerable amount of depth and compassion to that darkness, which holds up his end of the play quite well. Edmund, the younger brother, is suffering from a potentially life-threatening ailment. Strobel plays Edmund with the overwhelming presence of a turn of the century slacker. His polite, unassuming presence makes it easy to sympathize with him. Rachel Williams rounds out the cast as Cathleen, the young, Irish housekeeper with a serviceable Irish accent. She plays off the rest of the family dynamic quite well as a disinterested third party. O’Neil has Cathleen surfacing from the rest of the family on brief occasions. On the whole, the ensemble plays out the emotional landscape of the play with more […]
Jun 1st, 2007 by Russ Bickerstaff
