January 17, 2011
Portlandia, IFC, Premieres January 21
Meet your new favorite, increasingly odd couple. Saturday Night Live‘s Barack Obama impersonator Fred Armisen has teamed with the singer and guitarist from Sleater-Kinney, Carrie Brownstein. They created and star in this six-episode comedy series that grew out of the two hanging out in Portland, Oregon. The lackadaisical Pacific Northwest culture is skewered like never before. No one’s off limits: a feminist book store honor, artsy couples, and anyone eccentric who dares to get in their path, but Brownstein says they”re not making fun: “It’s really a love letter to Portland.” Kyle MacLachlan, Selma Blair, Aubrey Plaza, Heather Graham, and SNL staple Jason Sudeikis will drop by during the short season, which they threw together in less than a month. The true definition of outsider art airs every Friday at 10:30PM ET/PT.
Blood from a Stone, The New Group, New York, Now “ February 19
Another heroic Off Broadway effort from The New Group. Ethan Hawke stars in this exhausting drama about a blue-collar family in a tumultuous Connecticut household. He’s home for the weekend when all the underlying familial tensions threaten to erupt. Ann Dowd and Gordon Clapp play his parents, separated but still living together”with all the discord that entails”and Natasha Lyonne and Thomas Guiry are pitch-perfect siblings. It’s a relentless production with a few flairs of humor that will make you grateful for your own family at home. Debut playwright Tommy Nohilly is also one to watch.
London Art Fair, Islington, January 19 “ 23
If you can”t make it to Gagosian’s new Hong Kong show, Europe has a lot to offer art collectors looking to buy at this year’s 23rd annual London Art Fair. In 2010, over 23,000 people attended the British contemporary and modern art festival. Budding photojournalists need to look no further than Photo50, a collection of 50 stunning works, including Lisa Barnard’s “Maggie” with photos of Margaret Thatcher. There’s also an Art of Hope auction featuring works by Sam Taylor-Wood, Yoko Ono, Peter Blake, Adam Dant and more. And one of the highlights is Art Projects, which pulls together exhibits and shows from around the world. This little Darth Vader is by artistic duo littlewhitehead. “Spam” is a wax figure who’s adamant about, well, something in this abandoned diner.
The King Is Dead
Yessss, the emo demi-gods are back. Except, suddenly the misanthropic band The Decemberists, known for their mournful songs, sound a whole lot more country and a lot less of mopey rock “n” roll. The King is Dead is their follow-up to the massively successful Hazards of Love album, and they”re taking a stripped-down approach. Country/Americana songstress Gillian Welch is heard on most of the 10-song set. Colin Meloy and his crew recorded the album in a converted barn near Portland (hey, maybe they ran into Fred Armisen?). Meloy said these less epic songs are a little bit like “going from reading a novel to reading a bunch of short stories.” Breezy’s a good thing. The Decemberists” downright radio-friendly effort hits shelves Tuesday.
Mozart Week, Salzburg, Germany, January 21 “ 30
All hail the wondrous, the great, the astounding…Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Since 1956, the classical composer’s hometown has celebrated the day of his birth every year with a musical festival ginned up by the International Mozarteum Foundation. Opera, orchestral, chamber music, and soloist concerts abound at the appropriately named “House of Mozart.” Tickets are still available for this year’s event which promises to bring the unparalleled great back to life.
