Documentary Films: Witness of the Real
The day after Christmas almost two feet of snow hit certain parts of the Northeast, shuttering major airports in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Boston. The storm threw a wrench in millions of travel plans across the globe, and let’s face it, a lot of people, especially in New York City, were bummed, big time.
But not in Ancram, New York.
Aoife performs at a spoken-word workshop at the Marsha P. Johnson drop-in center in Harlem.
Between foster care, shelters and friends, Aoife Murphy has been living on the streets since she was 12-years-old.
Boutique hotels and $25 burgers make it hard for any art institution to survive, but if they have a Bowery address, it’s near impossible. Once analogous with flop houses and wet brains, the Bowery has become one of the most sought after addresses in the City. We spoke with a couple of the last holdouts of Bowery institutions, Don Holman founder of the Bowery Poetry Club and Tony Amato, founder of the Amato Opera. After a successful 60-year run Amato shuttered his doors in 2009. We were lucky to catch up with him before his retirement. Continue reading “Bowery: The Times They Are A-Changin’”
Text by Karen Zraick, NYC24
Argentine tango is more than a dance for the couples that glide along the dance floor on Saturday nights at the 92nd Street Y. It’s a love affair, a meditation, a life lesson —at its best, a communion between two bodies.
“I never had a passion as strong, as vivid as tango in my life,” said Patrizia Chen, a Manhattan author and chef. “It’s orgasmic.”
That physical vulnerability, that willingness to allow someone to grip you and pull you close, creates an intense intimacy between partners, while the melancholy lyrics give the dance an air of wistful romance.
“No other dance has such a close embrace,” Chen said. “You have to give yourself to the other person.”