Every year the Frigid Festival gives us a hangover – of shows, that is!  A Frigid Hangover has nothing to do with alcohol but it has everything to do with shots!  As in — these shows get one more shot at entertaining audiences.

HORSE TRADE THEATER GROUP

PRESENTS THE

2012 FRIGID HANGOVERS

THE BEST & BRIGHTEST FROM

THIS YEARS FESTIVAL

Horse Trade Theater Group (Erez Ziv, Managing Director, Heidi Grumelot, Artistic Director) is proud to present the third annual FRIGID Hangovers, March 5-10 at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery). They’re bringing back the best and the brightest from this years festival, so don’t miss your second chance to catch standout performances of the shows below:

FRIGID Hangovers will run March 5-10 at The Kraine Theater. Tickets ($18-$20) may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

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Stripper Lesbians

Hangover: Mon 3/5 @ 7pm

Evan, a woman’s studies major, is writing a killer senior thesis– by becoming a stripper at her favorite strip club. In between her current girlfriend, a stripper-lesbian, and her ex boyfriend, an unemployed Tisch graduate, Evan dances the line between love and betrayal. A comedy about what it really means to be ‘in love with a stripper’ and what it means to become one.

What we said: Sure, the show is sexy, shows a lot of skin, and has no problem exploring the more intimate moments of the relationship, but Rising Sun’s inherent intelligence as an ensemble ensures that your skin is served up with a side of thoughtful, though-provoking drama which explores the title rather than exploits it.

Fear Factor: Canine Edition

Hangover: Mon 3/5 @ 8:30pm

The peculiar and misguided true adventures of a man and his very trusting, very forgiving, therapy dog. An award-winning tale of true love and overcoming obstacles, while staring fear in the face.

What we said: In Fear Factor: Canine Edition Grady tells the hilarious and heartbreaking story of his life with Abby, and Abby’s last days before she had to be put down. Grady’s stories are beautiful and impassioned, but told simply, with ease and humor.

Little Lady

Hangover: Tue 3/6 @ 7pm

A physical theatre solo show that peers into the fantastical life of Little Lady.

What we said: Little Lady, is happy to hold you in a spell of fascination as she pricks away at your comfort levels, never allowing you to lapse into a passive, carefree enjoyment of her performance.

LOL: The End

Hangover: Tue 3/6 @ 8:30pm

Come to a place where tragedy meets comedy meets stupid. A funny and physical look at natural and human-made disasters through the eyes of three clowns.

What we said: By the end of the show the audience is shown a postapocalyptic world where humankind is reduced back to their primal state by a believable set of circumstances.

The Terrible Manpain of Umberto MacDougal

Hangover: Thu 3/8 @ 7pm

Umberto MacDougal allows you to look through the window of his tragic manpain. With a beard full of tears and a melancholy guitarist playing a sorrowful tune, Umberto reveals the pain that men feel.

What we said: Instead of Umberto simply being a character who is parading his troubles, he has trouble with that parade and it becomes overwhelming to him at times, adding a greater dimension to the work as a whole.

Daughters of Lot

Hangover: Thu 3/8 @ 10pm

The evening’s entertainment is a sexy and silly retelling of an ancient story, until the performers do a trick that requires more than flexibility. Arousing and agitating in Biblical proportions, this is not your daddy’s burlesque club.

What we said: Welcome to Daughters of Lot where the Bible Belt meets the Garter Belt, where Feminism has as many meanings as Eskimos have words for snow and where women run the gamut from young and innocent to young and jaded.

The Rope in Your Hands

Hangover: Fri 3/9 @ 7pm

A solo show based on the true stories of thirteen different survivors of Hurricane Katrina

What we said: O’Loughlin’s interviews span race, class, and age to bring a fully realized account of the storm and its aftermath. Morphing gracefully into each character, with specific physicality and well-practiced speech patterns, O’Loughlin is a joy to watch.

Missed Connections

Hangover: Fri 3/9 @ 8:30pm

Drawing from the sometimes touching, oftentimes torrid (and almost always grammatically incorrect) postings on craigslist’s most notorious section, Missed Connections is a collection of the best and brightest.

What we said: Whether you’re M4W, W4M, M4M, or W4W, there is something for everyone in Missed Connections: An Exploration Into The Online Postings Of Desperate Romantics.

Coosje

Hangover: Sat 3/10 @ 7pm

Coosje is the story of two artists, husband and wife, finding their playful aesthetic together and attempting to escape death. Meanwhile, the singing Pear embarks on a heroic quest to achieve immortality. Their journeys intertwine in this fantastical love story.

What we said: Coosje allows for intimate interaction with the elements of the creative process. This play highlights the notion that every piece of art is the completion of a journey for an object (real or imagined, sentient or inanimate) to get to the place where its inclusion in the art creates the context and meaning of the art itself.

Rabbit Island

Hangover: Sat 3/10 @ 8:30pm

Alex zigzags irregular relationships with an erratic therapist, his on-again off-again girlfriend, an untamed burlesque dancer and The Cleanse. But what more will it take for this verbose Canadian mime to become a Real New Yorker?

What we said: The cast of four is powerful; each embodying complex characters and finding the dualities so that the audience is able to both identify with them as well as inwardly breathe a sigh of relief at how different we are (one would hope).

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• CHALK: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
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A pear is always more than just a pear and a man is more than the sum of his collaborations.

Coosje the story of Claes Oldenburg (played by Steven Conroy) and his long-time collaborator and wife Coosje van Bruggen (played by Julie Congress). It is also the story of a Pear who is “self-aware” (played by Haley Greenstein).

Like Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George, Coosje is a story about how an artist’s process of creating helps them develop a new reality for themselves as well as for the people seeing it.  Coosje allows for intimate interaction with the elements of the creative process.  This play highlights the notion that every piece of art is the completion of a journey for an object (real or imagined, sentient or inanimate) to get to the place where its inclusion in the art creates the context and meaning of the art itself.

The play begins with a short film representing the Happenings of the 50′s and 60′s that occurred organically around the world with many people including Claes Oldenburg.  The Happenings collected people together to do a variety of thing to challenge the rules of convention (think of a more disorganized flash mob before the age of cell phones).  This film is a prequel, of sorts, which sets things up for when we meet our characters.  It is shot in sepia tones and we hear the sound of a clackity old projector. There are various miming people moving in jerky and unusual ways as well as over-graceful and melodramatic ways.  Every movement is laid with meaning  - even if it is to escape the normal meaning of it.

The story begins with the self-aware Pear singing of her journey of discovery as realizing that she is special: she is empowered by this significance to be more than just a snack:

“I’m a pear.  Self-aware … I’ll live 1.000 lives in one for every pear…
I’ll go everywhere…”

And so begins her journey around and around the world and beyond, as she discovers what it means to be human … even if she is a pear…but also searching for her purpose beyond just exploring the world for all those pears that never get beyond the fruitbowl.

This sets the stage for the type of performance that Claes was trying to achieve before he began his journey of challenging  convention by putting everyday objects in extraordinary contexts.  He meets Coosje and they reflect and react to each others’ view of what it means to see the world in terms of art – or art in terms of the world.  Cooje becomes Scully to Claes’ Mulder, and together they create art together unlike any the world has ever seen before.

Looking at the teasers for this show it may seem  like Coosje would be merely a celebration of the fantastic, the absurd, and the surreal — which it is– but the heroes’ journey our characters all go through help them find some very real and provoking truths that are important to be realized and shared in this production.

There is a Pear that sings, dances and – most importantly – explores the world, searching for her purpose. There is also a love story between an artist and a critic.  One wanting to break all conventions of form, the other wanting to figure out how  everything fits together.  Between  moving ballads and giant inflating flowers, there are the personal and spiritual ramifications of a blueberry pie. And much, much more! These all meld together to make some very deep and touching points on why we should all be more playful so as to learn to find out what our purpose in life really is.

Steven Conroy as Claes

The production of the piece is done with great mastery by many talented individuals starting with the short film Happenings (organically arising from the exploits of Giselle Chatelaine, Steven Conroy, Maura Cordial, Ryan Emmons, Haley Greenstein, Ryan Huenstein, Raena Hubbell, Maxwell Schneller, Danny Tieger, and Enrico De Trizio), to the plethora of fantastical art (Jen Neads and Maxwell Schneller) and of course the whimsical costumes (Loring Taoka).  According to actor Steven Conroy who I spoke with briefly after the show,  the writing was done by the ensemble collaboratively  (many of whom are visual artists themselves) after they were inspired by an installation of Oldenburg’s art they had seen together at the MOMA several months ago.  Director (Ryan Emmons) did a great job at orchestrating this complex show with it numerous moving parts, so it looked like it had months of rehersal time behind it.  The songs written by Danny Tieger and music expertly played by Enrico De Trizio (who also did the sound and projections which were an integral part of this piece) as well as the choreography (Olivia Wingerath) and light design (Ryan Hauanstein) put the final touches on this beautiful play premiering at Frigid.  I hope circumstances allow this play to continue on in the future.

Don’t miss out on this thoughtful critique on the nature of art-as- filtering-framework that creates meaning (but then allows that meaning to be flipped around at a moment’s notice).  If you’ve ever wondered what sort of story there could be behind big crazy public art, you need to experience Coosje.

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The 2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL will run February 22-March 4 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1st Ave and Ave A). Tickets to all shows may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

Related Posts:

• Coosje: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Oregon Trails : The Quest For The West! But Which Quest Is Best? (FRIGID New York 2011)
• FRIGID New York Festival 2011 – Five Questions For: The Oregon Trail: Quest For The West!
• The Eyes Of Orbach: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2014 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Starting Tonight! Frigid Hangovers Begin At The Kraine Theater

Five Questions. Five Answers. And One Big Decision: Rock, Paper, Or Scissors?

Coosje

Company: No.11 Productions

Coosje is the story of two artists, husband and wife, finding their playful aesthetic together and attempting to escape death. Meanwhile, the singing Pear embarks on a heroic quest to achieve immortality. Their journeys intertwine in this fantastical love story.

Show Times:

• Thu 2/23 @ 7:30pm
• Sat 2/25 @ 10:00pm
• Wed 2/29 @ 9:00pm
• Fri 3/2 @ 6:00pm
• Sat 3/3 @ 7:00pm

Answers by Ryan Emmons

(Co-Artistic Director of No.11 Productions)

Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
That’s some title. How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?
Ryan: Coosje refers to the Dutch artist, art historian and critic, Coosje van Bruggen. The play is inspired by (and a celebration of) the relationship she had with her husband/collaborator Claes Oldenburg. She influences everything in Claes’ life…so it seemed appropriate that the title be influenced by her.

Diánna Martin’s Question
If you were going to invite five people, anyone from past and present, to see your FRIGID show – who would you invite and why?
Ryan: Claes Oldenburg because this is an artistic representation of his partnership with Coosje and I would love to hear his thoughts and develop the piece further based on his own musings of his work with Coosje. In developing the show we only had research, but no first hand interaction with Oldenburg.
Allan Kaprow because he developed some of the first “happenings” and I would love to see what he thought about the happening we have created to start the show and then make a new one with him.
All FRIGID New York participants because they are some of the best artists I meet every year and the community element of FRIGID New York is what makes it so special.
My family, because I love them and like to show them what I’m doing with my life.
Coosje van Bruggen because her work inspired this and I have a feeling her criticism would have me look at the play in a whole new way.

Antonio Minino’s Question
What is the biggest sacrifice you’ve ever made for your Art and was it worth it?
Ryan: I have been lucky enough (or perhaps I’m young enough) not to have made any major sacrifices for my art. Everything I have done has been a step towards developing No.11 Productions and I have met the most amazing artists and friends along the way. I feel grateful and lucky that I have been able to pursue theatre as fully as I have and I hope to continue growing and learning.

Geoffrey Paddy Johnson’s Question
Was there any unexpected discovery made during the development of this production and, if so, can you share it?
Ryan: We thought a singing Pear was going to be a simple and funny character. We discovered that a singing Pear is a complex and layered element with much more bite than we imagined. I feel proud of the Pear because we pushed ourselves past what started as a gimmick and into juicy territory that interested all of us.

Michelle Augello-Page’s Question
What do you hope the audience receives from the experience of seeing this show?
Ryan: We are all in relationships with our friends, our families our co-workers. We all collaborate and share ourselves with other people. I hope this show inspires audiences to look at the relationships they have all around them and be grateful. I hope Coosje gives people the strength to live more wholeheartedly and to connect with people and the world around them in new ways.

Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament of DEAAAAATH

THM Bonus Question – We’re serious this year!
In the THM virtual Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament of DEAAAAATH which FRIGID Show do you take on? And what do you throw?

Ryan: We take on Missed Connections and throw PAPER!!!!

Ooof, Ryan, that’s gonna leave a mark!  In your RPS challenge with Missed Connections they threw SCISSORS leaving them victorious over your Paper.

However in your second battle with Love in the Time of Chlamydia you’re up against Rock and YOU WIN!  Congratulations!

A win and a loss, that puts you right back where you started … but in some people’s book that’s ahead of the game!

Thanks Coosje for participating in The Happiest Medium’s FRIGID New York Festival 2012 Q&A. And for playing our game! You’re officially PAPER in any and all challenges. You may win, you may not – who knows! This is how it works in the crazy world of the Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament of DEAAAAATH!

For the rest of you don’t forget to check out Coosje!

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The 2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL will run February 22-March 4 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1st Ave and Ave A). Tickets to all shows may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444.

Related Posts:

• Coosje: The “Play” Is The Thing, But Each “Thing” Is A Collaboration (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• The Eyes Of Orbach: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2014 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• LOL: The End. : 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• ‘Til Love Do Us Part: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Aerial Allusions: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)