culture consumed (March, 2026)
Apr. 1st, 2026 09:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hermionesviolin- [Mar 3 MPL Rainbow Book Group] Looking for Lorraine: the Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry by Imani Perry (2019) -- I did not know that she was besties with James Baldwin and Nina Simone!
- Puerto Rico: A National History by Jorell Meléndez-Badillo (2024) -- book by the professor that Bad Bunny consulted with for his latest album (DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS)
- [Mar 25 Arlington library Queer Book Group (QBG)] Your Driver is Waiting by Priya Guns (2024) -- in book club discussion we reminded ourselves that this is a satire, which perhaps explains some of the parts that felt somewhat unrealistic/underdeveloped
- [March 29 OOYL book club] Turning Pointe: How a New Generation of Dancers Is Saving Ballet from Itself by Chloe Angyal (2023) -- this was interesting and engaging even as someone who is not a ballet
- [April 7 MPL Rainbow Book Group] How We Named the Stars by Andrés N. Ordorica -- son of Mexican American immigrants goes away to college and wrestles with love and loss
theatr
- [NTL] The Importance of Being Earnest -- this was streaming on YouTube for about a week
It's the one with Ncuti Gatwa (the 15th Doctor) and was very queer. An excellent first-time experience of this play. - [SHS] Lost Girl [virtual program] -- Catherine M. at church mentioned that she and her husband have been going to the local high school's theater performances. I now live a 15-minute walk from the high school, and I liked the idea of seeing local youth theatre again (something I haven't done since I was also a youth).
Long after returning from Neverland, Wendy decides that she must find Peter in order to reclaim her kiss and move on with her life. Along the way, she meets other girls who went to Neverland and learns she is not alone. A coming-of-age exploration of first love and lasting loss, Lost Girl continues the story of J.M. Barrie’s beloved character – the girl who had to grow up. Recommended for ages 12+
Overall, I think this play does a really good job of feeling like it inhabits the world of Peter Pan. There were some bits that I felt didn't work as well -- but it's also a little hard to tell how much that's the play itself versus the high school production. I was hoping for more of her interacting with the other girls who went to Neverland than we got. I also never got a distinct sense of most of the individual Lost Boys -- in part because we get so little of them as individuals.
Wendy is very focused on her experience with Peter, so the play comes across very heteronormative, with its sweeping statements about boys and girls (which again, feel in keeping with the world of the original), which I didn't love, but I remind myself that Wendy is wrestling with her particular experience, which is shared by many (I was reminded later of "Innocence" in Season 2 of Buffy). - [Ufot #7] Lifted w/ Abby [virtual program]
This was a weirdly scheduled production where it was in 3 different venues over 2 separate weeks (Tues/Thurs/Sat one week and then Tues-Sun 2 weeks later). The email announcing the production said:See the creative process in action as Wellesely Repertory Theatre offers unique 'text-in-hand' presentations of Lifted, Udofia's 7th play of the Ufot Family Cycle.
Based on things I had previously heard, I was pretty sure that "text-in-hand" meant the playwright was/had recently been still writing this play. (Correct.)Lifted centers on Abasiama’s daughter Toyoyima, a high-ranking academic whose career is rocked by a plagiarism accusation. When the scandal comes to a head, Toyoyima travels to Nigeria, a journey that both unleashes her history and heals.
When I booked tickets, the confirmation email said:Message from Wellesley College Theatre
Abby and I were unsure what the play was gonna be like being a "text-in-hand" production, but it was actually quite good. The play is, in fact, unfinished, and we would be interested -- which it sounds like won't be for at least 2-3 years (in the talkback, Udofia said she needs to grow as a playwright in order to do the work this play demands of her).Thank you for securing your ticket to Mfoniso Udofia's Lifted, directed by Josiah Davis.
Lifted continues the story of Dr. Toyoima Ufot, a highly respected academic whose career is upended by an accusation of plagiarism. As the crisis escalates, she travels to Nigeria, a journey that forces her to confront personal history and opens a path toward healing. Toyoima is an ethnomusicologist, and singing will be woven throughout the play. To explore her inner life, the character is portrayed by three actors at once, each representing a different facet of her psyche: Front-Facing, Wrath, and Innocence. This will be the seventh installation of the nine-play Ufot Family Cycle in the Greater Boston area.
This in-process presentation of Lifted invites audiences inside the creative process of a new play in active development. The workshop captures the play in motion, emphasizing immediacy, connection, and the thrill of watching new work take shape. Unique ‘text-in-hand’ performances present Lifted as a dynamic work-in-progress, with minimal tech elements and actors holding scripts onstage while the play evolves in real time. Playwright Mfoniso Udofia will introduce the show most nights, offering context about what she is exploring in the writing, and the questions driving the work at this stage. Scenes, structure, and text will continue to unfold throughout the run, making each presentation a unique opportunity for audiences to gain rare insight into new work development as they experience the next powerful story of the Ufot Family Cycle. There will be a post-show talkback after every presentation, in which audiences can directly engage with members of the creative team.
Playwright Udofia offers: "This process reveals the true nature of new play creation: discovery, risk, revision, and conversation. Each night, audiences will watch the story being built from the ground up. The world of Toyoima will shift. Scenes will change. The play will grow until it finds its final form. This process won't be hidden. After performances, audiences are invited to stay, ask questions, and talk with me about how the story is evolving and where it’s headed. You won’t just see the play. You’ll see how it’s made. I invite you in to witness this piece as it becomes. Come be part of it."
With this ticket - you will be! We look forward to having you at Lifted.
film
- [bad movie night] Zootopia 2
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Currently Reading:
The Backwater Sermons by Jay Hulme (2021) -- poetry by a Christian trans man (one of the authors suggested to me in comments on my FB post about trans poetry)
[April 13 SPL Queer Book Club] Endpapers by Jennifer Savran Kelly (2023) -- genderqueer artist in 2003 NYC
Reading Next:
I've been struggling to find books I like for Nibling M's 10th birthday the end of June and recently ILLed a bunch more options, so I have skim-reading those in my future.
Other April book club books:
[April OOYL book club] Hot Girls with Balls by Benedict Nguyễn (2025) -- satire about trans women in sports (this sport being indoor volleyball, though I always forget what sport it is)
I appreciate that Frankie initially typoed this as "hot girls HAVE balls"
This has been on my maybe TBR since before it came out, so I'm interested to finally read it. It's satire, which is not always my thing. Bethany (of The Transfeminine Review) hated it*, but it's gotten lots of positive reviews, so it'll be interesting to see what I/book club think of it.
*Edit: I went to pull up the Bluesky thread of her live-read, and technically she says, "I wish I could say I unambiguously hated it, but there's a good book in here, buried under one of the worst cases of social media irony poisoning I've read it literature recently." (I'm waiting to read her Patreon review until after I've read the book myself.)
[April DEI book club] We have not yet picked a book, but currently winning (after 3 people voted) is Zahra's Paradise by Amir Soltani and Khalil (~2011), so I think we'll probably do that.
April is Arab American History Month, and I suggested Iran might be a timely theme. People agreed, though it was a struggle to get people to suggest books. I posted: "I found this list from 2020, but it's literally 100 books 😂 (I did find the introduction to the list interesting and worth reading.) https://aaww.org/100-essential-books-by-iranian-writers-an-introduction-nonfiction/"
graphic novel reader R. suggested:
-Historical fiction story of the search for Mehdi, a protestor who vanished after Iran's fraudulent 2009 elections
-Memoir of Marjane Satrapi growing up during the Islamic Revolution
A.D. suggested:
-Memoir of Nafisi as an English university professor during the Islamic Revolution
-Satirical coming of age novel set in Iran post WW2
-Novella follows five women outside of Tehran
no subject
Date: 2026-04-02 01:15 pm (UTC)