6 — Friday, January 25, 2019
Arts
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SUBLETS
The
title
of
Kristen
Roupenian’s
first
short
story
collection,
“You
Know You Want This,” is as
absorbing and inviting as it
is
provocative
and
rancorous.
It’s
the
voice of someone that
knows the power they
wield, a person who is
not afraid to use it to
manipulate. This bold
acknowledgement of
one’s sexual prowess
is something you’d
expect to see in a
raunchy
message,
maybe, or on a film
screen. Anywhere but
the cover of the fresh
literary
sensation’s
first book.
If
the
daring
extorted by the cover
is
an
indicator
of
anything, it’s of the
fierceness to follow.
“You Know You Want
This” is a compilation
of
twelve
short
stories,
with
“Cat
Person,” Roupenian’s
viral
2017
piece,
smack in the middle.
But if readers crack
the
Helen
Zell
Writers’
Program
graduate’s
newest
publication
expecting
another stoic, extra-literary
story of the world like that
of “Cat Person,” they are
expecting wrong.
To
a
grandiose
effect,
Roupenian decides to open
the work with something
brash: the sexual psychosis
and abuse of “Bad Boy.”
Roupenian refuses to hesitate
in introducing her breadth
as a writer, boldly declaring
herself on the page in a take-
it-or-leave-it cleanse. This is
commendable. “Bad Boy” —
if readers survive its horror
— is a fantastic story. No
matter how despicable the
scenario, Roupenian leaves
questions unanswered and
tempts the reader onward, a
choice that few will be able
to turn down.
Following the initiation
“Bad
Boy”
provides,
the
collection wanders off mostly
into story hybrids of horror
and literary fiction. Most of
the stories are successful,
with
only
a
few
failing
to reach splendor. Three
consecutive
stories
near
the center of the work seem
to fumble, like “Sardines,”
a story which lacks the
inflexible and surefire plots
of the rest of the collection.
It reads as misplaced and
incohesive with the tone of
the remaining work. While
the writing of such stories
maintains
their
quality,
the structure falls flat. The
endings jump away from the
central plot they maintained
for their first half, almost as
though Roupenian ran out of
ideas and scribbled in some
gasp-worthy ending so that
the middle stories matched
the rest of the collection.
But
between
“Cat
Person” and the eight other
sensations in “You Know You
Want This,” the collection is
easily forgivable for these
lapses. “Cat Person” in itself
is so wonderfully true to
life, so fearlessly blunt and
unforgiving, that it nearly
absolves the collection all
by itself. Works such as
“The Good Guy,” “Death
Wish” and “Biter,” jaggedly
stand out, too. In the former,
Roupenian returns to the
fable of social media dating,
only this time making it the
female
counterpart
who
knows so badly what they
want — to be harmed a great
deal
prior
to
sex.
This story highlights
what Roupenian does
best: She flashlights
over
the
murkiest
possibilities
of
humanity,
baring
the
vile
and
uncomfortable. This
has more effect than
mere
discomfort
and intrigue. It is
through such reveals
that
Roupenian
is
able
to
pinpoint
exactitudes
of
the
world that innocuous
fiction
cannot
achieve. She offers a
character that elicits
recoil
in
readers,
only to seduce them
into wandering back
into narratives with
her grimness.
Marked
by
the
accomplishment
of
polished writing, this
intrepidness attains
exceptionality.
Impossible
to
be
bored
with,
the
stories pry at the
very edges of what fiction
endangers to do. “You Know
You Want This” navigates
the desire to hurt and be
hurt,
the
realm
of
lust,
infatuation, harassment and,
yes, the politics of being a
mother of a pre-teen. And it
is remarkable.
Any
readers
expecting
regurgitations
of
“Cat
Person” (or any New Yorker
story for that matter) are
sure to be surprised in the
best of ways by the brilliance
and brashness Roupenian is
able to accomplish. “You
Know You Want This,” steers
through venereal, disturbing
and absurdist worlds, daring
readers to keep their eyes
open.
Roupenian
settles
into her place as principal
antagonist by way of her
narratives, as if challenging
readers at every turn: If you
can stomach it, look.
BOOK REVIEW
Roupenian is ravishing
JOHN DECKER
Daily Arts Writer
With Martin Luther King Jr. Day
and dreams for an equal society in
mind, the arrival of “If Beale Street
Could Talk” to the big screen is
undeniably timely. After awing
audiences with the dazzling and
poignant
“Moonlight,”
director
Barry Jenkins proves once more
that his talents know no bounds.
Jenkins’ latest piece, “If Beale
Street Could Talk,” juxtaposes
flickers of the beauty, innocence
and warmth of young love with
the rotten and bitter reality of
racial injustice in the 1970s.
With breathtaking visuals and a
memorable score, Jenkins revives
James Baldwin’s beloved love
story, honoring the late novelist
and shedding light on the societal
inequality that our nation has yet
to overcome still today.
Alonzo “Fonny” (Stephan James,
“Race”) and Tish (KiKi Layne,
“Veracity”) have always belonged
to each other. Neighbors in Harlem
since childhood, the nature of their
relationship evolved as they grew,
but the love between them was
always unquestioned, true and pure.
Fonny and Tish’s future marriage
plans are tested when their worlds
are turned upside-down with news
of both Fonny’s wrongful conviction
of rape and Tish’s unplanned
pregnancy. Led by Tish’s mother
Sharon (Regina King “Ray”), Tish
and Fonny’s families crusade to
prove
Fonny’s
innocence
and
prepare for Tish’s baby, struggling
against a system constructed to deny
them justice.
Hands down, one of the most
impressive aspects of the film is the
brilliant cinematography. Jenkins
stays true to the same style he
established in “Moonlight,” filling
the screen with rich colors and
expertly
interspersing
close-up
shots. The honey-golds, yellows,
deep reds and warm brown tones
that dominate the film’s color
palate, paired with the incredibly
personalized camera movement
invite the viewer inside the emotional
worlds of the characters. In one
especially impactful sequence, we
watch a flashback of artistically-
minded Fonny crafting an unshaped
sculpture out of wood. The camera
pans around Fonny as he inspects
his work, the smoke from a cigarette
between his lips gracefully twirling
into the air. The smoke moves
about in the air as Fonny paces the
floor, creating the stunning image
of a dance between the smoke
and Fonny in sync with the
accompanying melodic score.
Also to Jenkin’s credit is his
clever interplay of auditory and
visual components. “If Beale
Street Could Talk” balances the
heavy and dark with the light
and beautiful, simultaneously
translating Baldwin’s words about
the wonders of first love and the
racist outside world’s threat to it
to screen. The score reflects these
contrasting themes, somehow
managing to sound both deeply
heartbreaking and hopeful. Though
at times the steady-nature of the
film can make some moments drag
a bit long, it is not so much that the
quality of Jenkin’s creation can be
waved aside. All blended together,
the strong use of color, emotional
tangibility of the actors and well-
crafted score create a powerful
effect that can only be described as
symphonic.
FILM REVIEW
‘Beale Street’ a symphony
SAMANTHA NELSON
Daily Arts Writer
ANNAPURNA PICTURES
I
cannot
fathom
the
number of bruises the 21
bodies comprising the Los
Angeles
Master
Chorale
will have as they continue
to
trudge
through
their
world tour performance of
“Lagrime di San Pietro.”
“Lagrime di San Pietro,”
meaning “Tears of St. Peter,”
is an Italian Renaissance
choral piece composed by
Franco-Flemish
composer
Orlando di Lasso in 1594.
The piece depicts the seven
stages of grief experienced by
St. Peter after he renounced
his affiliation with Jesus
Christ before his arrest and
subsequent crucifixion. Upon
Jesus’s arrest, many of his
disciples and followers fled
or were punished alongside
him. St. Peter is a subject of
particular focus upon the
arrest of Jesus because of
his denial of Christ. St. Peter
can be seen as a figure of
betrayal — both betrayal of a
friend and betrayal of faith —
and as such, Peter spent the
rest of his life full of regret
for his disloyalty. Peter is
effectively stuck pondering
on his sin, while the rest of
the world marches on. As
described by Doyle Amburst,
violist
for
the
Spektral
Quartet, “The tragedy in this
story is not the accident. It is
the catastrophe of being left
behind.”
“Lagrime” is an ancient
piece, one that has been
performed countless times
for
countless
audiences
because
of
its
beautiful
harmonies
and
emotional
storyline. The Los Angeles
Master Chorale, guided by
Conductor
Grant
Gershon
and Director Peter Sellars,
embraces a novel element to
“Lagrime”: kinesiology.
The Master Chorale enter
the
stage
lacking
shoes
and garbed in loose gray
clothing, depicting the drab
mental state of Peter. And
though this outfit is not
entirely far off from the
dress of the era, the clothes,
more importantly, allow the
singers to move about the
stage freely. This introduces
a new, kinetic art form to the
traditionally choral piece,
and the group uses it well.
Throughout
the
piece,
dramatic
movements
are
scored
by
strong
Italian
lyrics that may correspond
with or contradict what is
being sung. As Peter was
being metaphorically shot
with
arrows,
the
singers
toppled to the floor in pain
while
maintaining
proper
intonation. After a moment
of silence at the end of a
piece,
the
singers
slowly
maneuvered to their feet,
mimicking
the
malaise
mornings of Peter’s as he was
reminded of his regret.
Some
of
the
group’s
movements, especially those
that are not easy on the body,
were heavily repeated — I
cannot count the number
of times the singers fell to
their knees, laid on the stage,
jumped up quickly, clutched
their
chest
or
clutched
their
fellow
performers.
Upon reflection, however,
the repetitive oscillation of
visible activity and lethargy
elegantly mirrored the cycle
of depression felt by Peter.
This ability to be actively
moving and not miss a musical
beat is a feat in and of itself.
To also incorporate meaning
into those movements shows
true mastery of the piece.
In
addition
to
bodily
representations of the music,
lighting became a key part
of the performance. As the
singers described the cold felt
by Peter, the lights became
a diffuse to a dim white.
Upon the revival of spring,
the lights became warmer,
as the snow melted. Not
only did the lights brighten,
but the singers moved more
gracefully
and
the
notes
being
sung
were
softer
and warmer. In effect, the
lighting created even more
feeling and emotion. Changes
in lighting can easily become
distracting
and
conflict
with the piece. However,
the lighting techniques used
in “Lagrime” were expertly
carried out.
The
performance
runs
approximately 80 minutes
with no intermission. The
audience must sit through
the whole grieving process
of
St.
Peter:
the
anger,
the
depression
and
the
contemplations of suicide.
There is no break from the
grief, no opportunity to slip
away. But to be encapsulated
by this performance for 80
minutes was not something
difficult to do.
COMMUNITY CULTURE REVIEW
LA Chorale was visceral
ZACHARY M.S. WAARALA
Daily Arts Writer
“You Know You Want This”
Kristen Roupenian
Simon & Schuster
Jan. 15, 2019
“If Beale
Street Could
Talk”
State Theatre
Annapurna Pictures
By Jeffrey Wechsler
©2019 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
01/25/19
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
01/25/19
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
Release Date: Friday, January 25, 2019
ACROSS
1 Court player
7 Accident-prone
14 Fuel calculation
15 Satanic attribute
16 Feature of
frequently
sheared sheep?
18 “__ everything?”
19 Orioles’ div.
20 Chill in the air
21 Miss equivalent,
in some cases
22 Player under
Auerbach,
familiarly
23 Like aromatic,
weather-resistant
plants?
30 Namely
31 Turn heads
during the
audition
32 Whodunit
revelation
35 Compare to, with
“against”
39 Fathers
41 Twill fabric
42 Skills acquired
manufacturing
linens?
46 Pennywhistle
sound
47 Take __ empty
stomach
48 Coffee hour
vessel
49 Prohibit
52 It might be
used before
sandpapering
56 Shepherds’ view
during
breakfast?
59 “__ Arms”:
Coldplay song
60 Brother of Isis
61 Business
representatives
62 Least courteous
DOWN
1 Kid
2 Repeat
3 Put away
4 Works on a
route
5 Rhinitis-treating
MD
6 Target field
7 “__ few bars and
I’ll play it for you”
8 Pound sounds
9 Bearskin rug, e.g.
10 “Fever” singer
Peggy
11 Tied
12 Mediterranean
island
13 Was out all night,
maybe
15 Works on one’s
image, in a way
17 “First Lady of
Song”
21 1999 Best Visual
Effects Oscar
winner, with
“The”
22 December
display
23 Fraud watchdog
org.
24 Comedic
Costello
25 Big-eyed flier
26 Excitedly tries to
open, as a gift
27 Cabinet agcy.
founded under
Bush 43
28 Broadway
success
29 Pain relief brand
33 North Atl. country
34 “Oedipus __” :
P.D.Q. Bach
western-themed
parody
36 Many bar
mitzvah guests
37 Chapel Hill sch.
38 “MS. Found in a
Bottle” author
40 Jug band
percussionist’s
tools
42 To fit every
possible
43 Well-supplied with
44 Oklahoma city
45 Tried to be
elected
46 Marching band
section
49 K-12
50 Very short time
pd.
51 Unsettles
52 Source of rage,
briefly
53 Farm unit
54 Downhill runners
55 Restrained
“Hey!”
57 LAX stat
58 SEC school