WTF?! Festival '09
- Details
- Parent Category: Other Festivals
- Category: Theater
- Published on Friday, 30 October 2009 02:34
- Written by Lynne E Shannon
Presented by The Actors' Gang from October 13 to December 19, 2009 at The Actors' Gang at the Ivy Substation (9070 Venice Boulevard, in Culver City), WTF?! Festival '09 is a new event best described by its founder and curator, Academy Award winning actor Tim Robbins. As Robbins explains, "The name of this festival came to me after a recent board meeting where I was told that due to the economic downswing and recent reduction in donations that we can no 
longer afford to produce theater. I was told it would be less expensive to do nothing. We’re not very good at doing nothing.
So in the spirit of rebellion and our history of survival, we are going to produce three plays, host great artists and authors, screen free documentaries, have open forums for Veterans, have live music nights with great songwriters, present poetry and dance, screen ridiculously funny movies, host talkbacks with directors and try to raise enough money to survive this crap economy.
We are offering a wide variety of events that will fire up new audiences, help them to discover The Gang, and support our community outreach."
Leading the screenings is Sir! No Sir!, the award-winning documentary about the long suppressed story of the GI movement to end the war in Vietnam. A Q&A follows with filmmaker David Zeiger.
Also screening is a new documentary, William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe, by Emily and Sarah Kunstler about their father, the late radical civil rights lawyer who fought for civil rights and represented such controversial clients as the famed Chicago 8 activists and members of the American Indian Movement. Followed by Q&A with filmmaker Emily Kunstler.
Another strong statement is made with The Ground Truth: After the Killing Ends, about the US soldiers as they struggle to come to terms with their experience when returning home from Iraq. There will be a Q&A with filmmaker Patricia Foulkrod along with veterans of the Iraq/Afghanistan conflict.
Also screening is Embedded Live (2004), the controversial play that satirizes neocons and the mainstream media 
at the start of the Iraq war. Written and directed by Tim Robbins, this film captures the last performances at the Public Theater in New York.
But there is also lighter fare, with Jesus is Magic, by comedienne Sarah Silverman, who will be on hand for a Q&A afterwards. Also screening is The Aristocrats, the film that showcased 100 superstar comedians telling the same very dirty joke. Paul Provenza, who directed the film, will be present for the Q&A with some special guests.
In addition, Jammin' in New York, George Carlin's groundbreaking HBO special, will be screened, followed by Q&A and reading of George Carlin's soon-to-be released memoir, Last Words, by his daughter, Kelly Carlin-McCall.
The festival also features some live shows, including:
The Need to Know: A Veteran's Journey from Fear to Freedom, a one-woman show written and performed by April Fitzsimmons, a former Air Force Intelligence Analyst. Her award-winning solo performance tells the story of her pr
ogression from warrior to peace activist. A Veterans' Forum will follow.
All Cake, No File, a Johnny Cash prison tribute cooking show-concert. Celebrity Chef Jewell Rae (Gilkerson) Jeffers, the host of Tastes Like Home live cooking show, will bake Jailbreak cakes every night, backed up by With a Bible and a Gun, a band specializing in the songs of Johnny Cash.
Other live music acts feature Tenacious D, Jackson Browne, Jenny Lewis and Gillian Welch, and Serj Tankian, among others.
In addition, there will be poetry readings, a puppet production, and live readings hosted by Pen American. The festival will end with a performance of Christmas carols by Vox Femina, a choral ensemble--following which, everyone present will be encouraged to join them in going caroling throughout Culver City.
For details, ticket prices and a complete schedule,
call the Actors' Gang box office at (310) 838-4264 or
go to www.wtffestival.theactorsgang.com
WTF?! Festival '09
The Actors' Gang at the Ivy Substation
9070 Venice Boulevard, in Culver City, LA
October 13 to December 19, 2009