What’s in this year’s Mini-Fridge?  Some tasty treats you won’t wanna miss – and in honor of the mini-festival which highlights a small but savory platter of hors d’oeuvres made up of FRIGID and FRINGE deliciousness we here will be presenting Mini-Fridge Elevenses.  What is Elevenses?  If you were too lazy to follow that link we’ll tell you: In the United Kingdom and Ireland, elevenses is a snack that is similar to afternoon tea, but eaten in the morning. It is generally less savoury than brunch, and might consist of some cake or biscuits with a cup of coffee or tea. The name refers to the time of day that it is taken: around 11 am.

But here at The Happiest Medium Elevenses is Eleven Questions for our Mini-Fridge participants.  So, grab a snack out of your own fridge and sit back because in the next few days we’ll be featuring some great Q&As with:

Kill the Band: Mock Bottom Presented by Killy Dwyer and Kill the Band

KILL THE BAND presents a surreal, multi-media theatrical experience to celebrate the release of their triumphant second comedy rock album, MOCK BOTTOM! Part CD release party, part psychodramedy, MOCK BOTTOM mockuments the farcical cycle of the band’s breakdowns and break throughs. Free CD included with your ticket!

Thu 6/28 & Sat 6/30 @ 10pm

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Bye Bye Bombay Written & Performed by Cara Yeates

A multimedia adventure to Bollywood and beyond! Join Gauri and her puppet guides as she dodges rickshaws, Russian dancers and lecherous directors. A foreigner lost in a maze of masala, will this lost traveler learn more than just the art of crossing roads in India?

Thu 6/28 @ 8:30pm, Fri 6/29 @ 7pm, & Sat 6/30 @ 7pm

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Intium/Finis Presented by Theatre Reverb

A sensual tale of violence and revolution born in a futuristic metropolis. Theatre Reverb combines media, red-light cabaret, live music, Judeo-Christian and Hindu myth, and classical Indian dance-theatre to envelop spectators in a lush sci-fi noir. This unique, total theatrical experience is the result of a cross-discipline collaboration between artists from the US, Central Europe and Asia.

Sat 6/30 @ 5pm & Sun 7/1 @ 7pm

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Bare. Presented by Peter Aguero

Raw stories paired with raw burlesque. Curated and hosted by Peter Aguero (The Moth, The BTK Band), Bare. will rip the heart out of your chest, place it lovingly back in, and proceed to do it all over again. This special Mini-Fridge volume stars Adam Wade, Sarah Jenness, Diana Spechler, Magdalena Fox, Francine, Amelia Bareparts, and Mary Cyn as The Kraken.

Sun 7/1 @ 9pm

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Bible Burlesque Presented by Brain Melt Consortium

To raise money for the Edinburgh production of their biblical feminist burlesque-themed play, Rachel and Ali have decided to put on a night of hot, lurid bible stories – but they’ve got very different ideas about what that means. An hour of comic meta-theatrical sexy-time. In Biblical proportions. From the creators of the 2012 FRIGID hit, Daughters of Lot.

Sat 6/30 @ 8:30pm

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Lord Gregory & Mademoiselle Godin’s mini XMAS Spectacular  Hosted by Gregory Levine and Michelle Leona Godin

Xmas - What an awful word, non?! And everything so shabby nowadays. Well, perhaps you’ve been going to the wrong parties… Aristocratic siblings Lord Gregory and Mademoiselle Godin — whose twisted bond of love and jealousy has only grown stronger since the terrible day their zygote split in the womb — cordially invite you to the unseasonable soiree of the year: a splendid Xmas gala showcasing the stars of the 2012 mini-FRIDGE, and featuring the marvelous musicians, comedians and performance artist of the Horse Trade family. You will be sadly gauche if you are not in attendance!

Fri 6/29 @ 10pm

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Legendary: A Man-tasia Written & performed by Kevin R. Free Directed by Christopher Burris

What becomes a legend most? Is it truth? Is it fantasy? Is it a sequined gown and pearls? In Legendary: A Man-tasia three gay men explores their love affairs with each other, themselves and – of course – Jennifer Holliday.

Thu 6/28 @ 7pm, Fri 6/29 @ 8:30pm, & Mon 7/2 @ 7pm

Related Posts:

• 2nd Season Mini Fridge – Tasty, Filling And Leaving Audience Wanting More! (Jun 28, 2012 – Jul 04, 2012 )
• It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With Bible Burlesque!
• It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With Kill The Band – Mock Bottom Mockumental CD Release Experience!
• It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With Lord Gregory & Mademoiselle Godin’s miniXMAS Spectacular!
• It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With Bye Bye Bombay!

Initium / Finis is “a sensual tale of violence and revolution born in a futuristic metropolis. Theatre Reverb combines media, red-light cabaret, live music, Judeo-Christian and Hindu myth, and classical Indian dance-theatre to envelop spectators in a lush sci-fi noir.” This Frigid Festival performance is an excerpt from a larger work,  which will be two hours in length and is scheduled to be presented in 2013.

Initium / Finis is an ambitious project, carried by Kristin Arnesen’s performance throughout, as the story expands in many layers, as well as many directions, including an interesting sci-fi premise, sub-plots of intrigue, and cabaret-style entertainment. The play is  supported by live music, visual images and written information in montages of video, and the use of screens to paint pictures with light and shadow. Kristin Arnesen pulls all of these elements and more into a riveting performance; she is a delight to watch on stage as she illustrates the story, demonstrating her evident talents as a performer.

There are many visually stunning moments throughout this play. In the beginning sequence, a video montage of the beginning of creation, as told through Hindu myth, is displayed as backdrop on the screen. In front of the screen, Kristin Arnesen performs a ritualistic dance, retelling the myth in the spirit of classical Indian Dance-Theatre. Her facial expressions tell the story as much as her body does, engaging the audience with allure and humor, taking them through both light and dark. Towards the end of the dance, a scroll of canvas screen is held in front of her, illustrating the remainder of the myth in song and shadowed movement, creating a mesmerizing effect.

A series of cabaret-style performances are woven into the play and comprise some of the most interesting and engaging moments throughout; the role of fetishistic entertainment in this futuristic metropolis is demonstrated and explored, and Kristin Arnesen shines, revealing her amazing ability to hold the audience in her thrall, rapt, willing to go wherever she is going to take them. Initium / Finis is a multi-sensory, funny, serious, erotic, and fascinating piece of theater, which takes the audience on a journey into the complex landscape of a futuristic world.

~~~

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:

• Initium/Finis: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With initium/finis!
• 2nd Season Mini Fridge – Tasty, Filling And Leaving Audience Wanting More! (Jun 28, 2012 – Jul 04, 2012 )
• The Rope In Your Hands: Katrina, In Their Own Words (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Fear Factor: Canine Edition – Puppy Love (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

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

Initium/Finis

Company: Theatre Reverb
Written by: Kristin Arnesen and Radoslaw Konopka

A sensual tale of violence and revolutions born in a futuristic metropolis. Theatre Reverb combines media, red-light cabaret, live music, Judeo-Christian and Hindu myth, and classical Indian dance-theatre to envelop spectators in a lush sci-fi noir.

Show Times:

• Wed 2/22 @ 8:00pm
• Sat 2/25 @ 9:30pm
• Tues 2/28 @ 8:00pm
• Fri 3/2 @ 8:00pm
• Sat 3/3 @ 8:00pm

Answers by Kristin Arnesen

(Co-creator, Designer, Performer)

Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
That’s some title. How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?
Kristin: Initium-beginning; Finis-end (Latin). When it’s connected it means “the beginning of the end.” We put a “/” in between the two words to imply a connection in their meaning and a reversibility of the terms. Our piece explores the connection between creation and destruction in a journey through East/West mythology and science fiction media. This piece is a section of a larger production we are developing so it comes at the beginning of our end times project and the title also fit the subject matter so that’s why we picked it– though it’s hard to pronounce so we are having second thoughts! The larger project we are working on is called “Reliquum” which has a double meaning: mortal remains, and things yet to be. We are hoping to finish it next year.

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?
Kristin:

-Slovoj Zizek because he is a popular culture genius and we’d love to find out what our favorite bad ass would think of our mash up.

-Elizabeth LeCompte- Because we are in awe of her creative work and she’s one of the most incredible women in theatre.

-Cornel West- Because he’s one of the greatest minds of our time and he has an amazing sense of humor and an uncanny knack for speaking the truth.

-Krzysztof Kieslowski- because he explored human nature with the curiosity of a child and the eye of a great director. Plus he was Polish.

-An international producer with lots of money and a taste for curious sci-fi theatre because we need you!

Antonio Minino’s Question
What is the biggest sacrifice you’ve ever made for your Art and was it worth it?
Kristin: We don’t have any money but we never have. We really love working as artists so I think we are OK with that. Probably the real sacrifice is in our social lives. When we’re working on a piece, we don’t have weekends or any real clock out time which can be tough, but it’s all worth it in the end.

Geoffrey Paddy Johnson’s Question
Was there any unexpected discovery made during the development of this production and, if so, can you share it?
Kristin: One of the happiest discoveries with this project was the wisdom of the saying “ask and you shall receive.” We were able to enlist and work on this production with fantastic collaborators who were excited to work hard –which was pretty awesome.

Michelle Augello-Page’s Question
What do you hope the audience receives from the experience of seeing this show?
Kristin: We hope they are surprised at moments, laugh at other ones, and find some beauty somewhere in the mix. Overall we just hope to create an immediate, visceral, unexpected exchange.

Kristin: Rock.

For Everyone?

Kristin: Rock for everyone.

So – you’re using the Love In The Time Of Chlymydia strategy! Whew!  Well, now I’ve got my work cut out for me!  Let’s make this easy …

The other shows who threw ROCK were: Love in the Time of Chlamydia, Judge, Yuri, & Executioner,  Death, it happens: A girl’s guide to death, The Rope in Your Hands, and Afternoon Tea with Jane Austen.  So that’s FIVE TIES.

The shows who threw SCISSORS were: Breathe Love Repeat,  Little Lady, Rabbit Island, Daughters of Lot, Missed Connections: An Exploration into the Online Postings of Desperate Romantics, The Stranger to Kindness and The Terrible Manpain of Umberto MacDougal. That’s SEVEN WINS!

And finally …

The shows who threw PAPER were: I Married A Nun!, Fear Factor: Canine Edition, Poe-Dunk: A Matchbox Entertainment,  Coosje,  Blind to Happiness, Big Plastic Heroes, and Scratch & Pitz: Burlesque Variety Hour.   That’s SEVEN DEAAAAATHS.

Hmm … so, your wins cancel out your losses and the rest are ties.  wish I had better news for you, but at this point that’s about the beginning and the end of it.  Or, you know — the initium and the finis.

Thanks Initium/Finis for participating in The Happiest Medium’s FRIGID New York Festival 2012 Q&A. And for playing our game! You’re officially ROCK 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 Initium/Finis!

~~~

Initium/Finis

Related Posts:

• Initium / Finis: Bold From Beginning To End (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Stripper Lesbians: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• I’m Only Explaining This Once: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Man Saved By Condiments!: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Big Girls Don’t Cry: 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)