This is fabulous. Girl is makin' lemonade.
(Thanks to Joe.My.God. for the clip!)
Our Progress
9 years ago
Monday, March 23, 2009
Q Media: An Ode to Ann-Marie
I first encountered Ann-Marie Macdonald in 2003 when I was cast as the cross-dressing, gender-bending Romeo in a university production of the brilliant Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet). I fell in love with Macdonald's witty dialogue, her larger-than-life characters, and her very clever reworking of Shakespeare's most well-known texts. Somewhere in-between steamy on-stage kisses with Tybalt, I declared myself a Method actor and had my first real, off-stage gay experience.
When the school year ended I found a copy of Fall On Your Knees, Macdonald's first novel, at a used bookstore, and brought it with me on a 36-day canoe trip through Quetico Provincial Park. Utterly rapt with what my co-counsellor called my "epic chick novel," I devoured Ann-Marie's words nightly in the tent, reading by the weak light of my Petzl and totally unable to interrupt my exploration of the Piper family's skeleton-packed closet. Six years later, the book still haunts me.
A month or so ago, upon the recommendation of a colleague, I hesitantly picked up (rather, hoisted) her second novel, the massive Cold War tome called The Way the Crow Flies. Unsure if I had the time to commit to such a large undertaking, I nonetheless began slowly, tentatively at first, working my way through pages and pages of seemingly endless exposition. Slower to develop than Fall On Your Knees, The Way the Crow Flies is nevertheless totally worth the investment. After a few hundred pages, Ann-Marie came through for me once again, and I spent almost an entire weekend in bed reading, unable to stop.
Although it may seem like an exaggerated claim, I find Ann-Marie Macdonald to be a master of suspense. She knows exactly how to lure and tease her reader: dropping a subtle hint here, tossing in an ambiguous passage there, then busting out with a bit of foreshadow so juicy you can't help but turn page after page. Macdonald's plots verge on melodrama -- but masterfully tread the fine line between delirious pleasure and shark-jumping -- and her characters are beautifully, confoundingly complex. Madeleine, the heroine of The Way the Crow Flies, perfectly embodies the spirit and imagination of a feisty preteen and, later, the neuroses and defense mechanisms of a troubled, haunted adult.
Macdonald writes queerness with a rare subtlety; it is neither the focal point of her texts nor an unimaginable. Like in life, her narration of queerness simply is -- it exists not always or simply as a political statement, but rather something that ebbs and flows along with the evolution of her characters, coming in and out of focus with a seemingly natural rhythm.
If you haven't already, any one of Macdonald's texts is a must-read for any CanLit junkie, and anyone and everyone who loves a great read. And, if I must say it to convince you: even Oprah agrees.
When the school year ended I found a copy of Fall On Your Knees, Macdonald's first novel, at a used bookstore, and brought it with me on a 36-day canoe trip through Quetico Provincial Park. Utterly rapt with what my co-counsellor called my "epic chick novel," I devoured Ann-Marie's words nightly in the tent, reading by the weak light of my Petzl and totally unable to interrupt my exploration of the Piper family's skeleton-packed closet. Six years later, the book still haunts me.
A month or so ago, upon the recommendation of a colleague, I hesitantly picked up (rather, hoisted) her second novel, the massive Cold War tome called The Way the Crow Flies. Unsure if I had the time to commit to such a large undertaking, I nonetheless began slowly, tentatively at first, working my way through pages and pages of seemingly endless exposition. Slower to develop than Fall On Your Knees, The Way the Crow Flies is nevertheless totally worth the investment. After a few hundred pages, Ann-Marie came through for me once again, and I spent almost an entire weekend in bed reading, unable to stop.
Although it may seem like an exaggerated claim, I find Ann-Marie Macdonald to be a master of suspense. She knows exactly how to lure and tease her reader: dropping a subtle hint here, tossing in an ambiguous passage there, then busting out with a bit of foreshadow so juicy you can't help but turn page after page. Macdonald's plots verge on melodrama -- but masterfully tread the fine line between delirious pleasure and shark-jumping -- and her characters are beautifully, confoundingly complex. Madeleine, the heroine of The Way the Crow Flies, perfectly embodies the spirit and imagination of a feisty preteen and, later, the neuroses and defense mechanisms of a troubled, haunted adult.
Macdonald writes queerness with a rare subtlety; it is neither the focal point of her texts nor an unimaginable. Like in life, her narration of queerness simply is -- it exists not always or simply as a political statement, but rather something that ebbs and flows along with the evolution of her characters, coming in and out of focus with a seemingly natural rhythm.
If you haven't already, any one of Macdonald's texts is a must-read for any CanLit junkie, and anyone and everyone who loves a great read. And, if I must say it to convince you: even Oprah agrees.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Bits 'n' Bites: Sex and the City
CHARLOTTE: I thought he was...gay!
MIRANDA: Uh, yeah. "Mr. Broadway has to go tinkle?" That has to be the gayest sentence ever uttered.
SAMANTHA: He must be marrying her for the money.
CARRIE: He doesn't need the money. He was one of the original investors in A Chorus Line.
MIRANDA: Just when you thought you'd never hear a phrase gayer than "Mr. Broadway has to go tinkle".
MIRANDA: Uh, yeah. "Mr. Broadway has to go tinkle?" That has to be the gayest sentence ever uttered.
SAMANTHA: He must be marrying her for the money.
CARRIE: He doesn't need the money. He was one of the original investors in A Chorus Line.
MIRANDA: Just when you thought you'd never hear a phrase gayer than "Mr. Broadway has to go tinkle".
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Q Media: RuPaul's Drag Race
Ever since reading I Am Not Myself These Days by Josh Kilmer-Purcell and checking out the ladies at crews, I have had a deep love for drag queens. So naturally my favourite guilty pleasure of this current tv season is Logo's RuPaul's Drag Race.
A dragged out, tongue-in-cheek, camp take on America's Next Top Model, the show has all the great elements of reality tv: challenges, competitions, and a bottom two duel. However, in true queen fashion, the challenges are Vogue-Offs and costume creations, the competitions are runway walks, and the bottom two duel is a lip-synch for your life. Delicious!
Add to all of that personalities like RuPaul and Charo, with total D-List judges like Michelle Williams and Lucy Lawless and you've got forty-five minutes of killer television impossible to turn away from.
My favourite queen was Ongina, who showed true personality and style, as well as tremendous heart. However, she lost a couple of episodes ago in a fierce showdown with Bebe Zahara Benet. As heartbreaking as it was, I think Bebe really turned it out and has proven that she can take the whole thing. Her larger-than-life style and personality is so dramatic and regal that I think she would make a perfect first season winner. Fingers crossed.
All in all, I think that this was a great show that proudly showed the drag community with no apologies. It was fun, ridiculous, and absolutely note-perfect because it knew what it was. And - after all - isn't that what drag is all about?
So to the creators of the Race I say: Chantez, you stay.
A dragged out, tongue-in-cheek, camp take on America's Next Top Model, the show has all the great elements of reality tv: challenges, competitions, and a bottom two duel. However, in true queen fashion, the challenges are Vogue-Offs and costume creations, the competitions are runway walks, and the bottom two duel is a lip-synch for your life. Delicious!
Add to all of that personalities like RuPaul and Charo, with total D-List judges like Michelle Williams and Lucy Lawless and you've got forty-five minutes of killer television impossible to turn away from.
My favourite queen was Ongina, who showed true personality and style, as well as tremendous heart. However, she lost a couple of episodes ago in a fierce showdown with Bebe Zahara Benet. As heartbreaking as it was, I think Bebe really turned it out and has proven that she can take the whole thing. Her larger-than-life style and personality is so dramatic and regal that I think she would make a perfect first season winner. Fingers crossed.
All in all, I think that this was a great show that proudly showed the drag community with no apologies. It was fun, ridiculous, and absolutely note-perfect because it knew what it was. And - after all - isn't that what drag is all about?
So to the creators of the Race I say: Chantez, you stay.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Gratitude
I stumbled upon an interesting article by Craig and Marc Kielburger in the Toronto Star. Entitled "Speaking up for gay rights in Iran," it briefly outlines the experiences of Arsham Parsi, a gay rights activist who founded the Iranian Queer Railroad, an organization that helps Iranian gays find safe passage to Turkey.
In addition to reminding me of the awful fact that there are still 58 countries in this world that punish homosexuality (including nine that invoke the dealth penalty) and making me feel incredibly grateful for whatever stroke of luck enabled me to be born and raised a Canadian, this article also reminded me of a great film that I screened at last year's Inside Out festival. Be Like Others, by Iranian-born filmmaker Tanaz Eshaghian, explores a culture of young Iranian men who undergo sex-change operations to become women so, ultimately, they can fulfill a desire to sleep with other men. Fascinating and harrowing, the documentary follows two young men who are faced with the horrifying dilemma of either being persecuted for their sexual impulses or radically altering their bodies in what they understand as the only somewhat socially acceptable way of living their lives as men who love men.
This article, the IRQR website, and Be Like Others warrant at least a glance. As residents of a country/countries where queers are allowed to live and love (even if there's still room for improvement), we owe it to our queer brothers and sisters around the globe to be as well-informed and active as possible.
In addition to reminding me of the awful fact that there are still 58 countries in this world that punish homosexuality (including nine that invoke the dealth penalty) and making me feel incredibly grateful for whatever stroke of luck enabled me to be born and raised a Canadian, this article also reminded me of a great film that I screened at last year's Inside Out festival. Be Like Others, by Iranian-born filmmaker Tanaz Eshaghian, explores a culture of young Iranian men who undergo sex-change operations to become women so, ultimately, they can fulfill a desire to sleep with other men. Fascinating and harrowing, the documentary follows two young men who are faced with the horrifying dilemma of either being persecuted for their sexual impulses or radically altering their bodies in what they understand as the only somewhat socially acceptable way of living their lives as men who love men.
This article, the IRQR website, and Be Like Others warrant at least a glance. As residents of a country/countries where queers are allowed to live and love (even if there's still room for improvement), we owe it to our queer brothers and sisters around the globe to be as well-informed and active as possible.
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