Response to Brett Kavanaugh’s Yearbook. The First Eff.
THE FOUR EFFS
I walk into a classroom. There is no teacher present. Across the blackboard in large chalk letters are the words:
Name the Four F’s.
Everyone else is already seated; paper and pencil poised.
I am confused. Did I forget to study for this quiz? And what subject is this?
A geography question? (I can’t get beyond Finland, France… Fiji…)
Language arts? (All I can think of is the word infinitive.)
Then I noticed that all the boys are laughing and poking each other in the ribs. Jean-Marie Agnold gets up–except now she’s Connie Francis– and erases the board.
The boys throw pencils at her. She hides under the teacher’s desk.
I look at the boys and think “Ffffffff…..Fart!”
At the count of three, all the boys grab a girl.
Walter Donovan grabs my arm because he gave me his lucky rabbit foot two weeks ago and so considers me his girlfriend. All the boys laugh as they try to whisper the answer to the Girl of their Choice
They end up yelling:
“Find ‘em. Feel ‘em. Fuck ‘em. Forget ‘em.” I run home.
Home is a long way away and as I run, I notice Walter Donovan running after me.
No one is on the street And it is suddenly night.
Roots on the path trip me.
I get up and run with Walter on my heels Making “eff” sounds with his mouth.
I make it to the house, slam the door
And scramble up the stairs to our second floor apartment. I run into the kitchen out of breath and begin pulling down all the window shades. My mother is washing dishes and notices Walter outside
Staring up at her.
“Oh, look, “ she says, “Walter Donovan. “Why don’t you ask him in?”
© The First Eff, a stage play, by Donna Di Novelli
Framing this: from Barry Jenkins Twitter feed…
Barry JenkinsVerified account @BarryJenkins
MADELINE’S MADELINE is gnarly as hell, full stop. I don’t know what conventions I could frame this film in nor what films of recent memory I would compare it to. Adventurous, bravura filmmaking, insistently challenging and always evolving.
HELENA HOWARD in MADELINE’S MADELINE is one of the best performances I’ve seen in my whole life. She’s so fucking good in this film that I was genuinely concerned for her.

Madeline’s Madeline Reviewed: From The New Yorker
“Like most other great films, Josephine Decker’s new movie, “Madeline’s Madeline,” which opens Friday, is many things at once—a passionate emotional experience, a conjoined vision of intimate and public life, a reinvention of the very elements of filmmaking. It’s also, incidentally, a decisive repudiation of one of the most enduring film-critical shibboleths: that straightforward storytelling is antithetical to directorial originality.
…
The dramatic clarity and psychological acuity with which Decker (who also co-wrote the film, with Donna di Novelli) conveys the characters and their conflicts is only an infinitesimal part of this vast creation, however. Though “Madeline’s Madeline” runs barely an hour and a half, it packs an epic’s worth of expressive detail, imaginative incident, emotional variety and intensity, and aesthetic invention. The tight bond between the movie’s profusion of closely observed details, fleeting moments of intimate poignancy, grand dramatic passions, and social insight is nearly fractal in its unity, yet it also evokes a sense of spontaneity and artistic discovery at every stage of the cinematic process. That sense of discovery is equally a part of the viewing experience; Decker’s approach to every aspect of cinematic form and composition is as distinctive, as freely inventive, as is her renewal of the movie’s classical subject…”
Next up for Madeline’s Madeline
The trailer for Madeline’s Madeline dropped…
Most trailers re-hash the film; encapsulate it and give away all the good lines.
Not this one: Sui generis, just like the film-making of Josephine Decker. Watch it here, and then come to BAM’s CinemaFest on Saturday and say, “hey”.
http://www.firstshowing.net/2018/wild-first-trailer-for-josephine-deckers-acclaimed-madelines-madeline/
Oscilloscope will release Madeline’s Madeline in select theaters starting August 10th
http://www.indiewire.com/2018/06/madelines-madeline-trailer-josephine-decker-miranda-july-molly-parker-1201978518/
BAM’s Next Wave Festival
https://www.bam.org/music/2018/the-good-swimmer
The word on the street…

Teresa Castracane Photography
“Rather than call Florida an opera, let me call it a sung-through sinister graphic novel with libretto full of danger about community standards, revenge and seduction. All with two hours of delicious, moody jazzy and blues orchestral music. … It is sui generis.” David Siegel
“Tackling far too many weighty subjects to be comedic, Florida lays bare the grey area that exists for teenage girls between childhood and womanhood, and society’s disparate reactions to male and female innocence when exploring those desires as teenagers. The delightful mixture of opera and jazz infused into the score leaves you on wonderfully unsure footing and the incredibly strong cast make this production a must see. With piercing themes and dramatic interpretations, Florida will make you take another look at the world before you too decide who is guilty and who is innocent.” Em Skow

Teresa Castracane Photography
“Sharin Apostolou as Florida is positively sensational in her captivating portrayal of the young girl’s lust for life and experiential coming of age. From her sensual physicality to the ease of her vocal production, Apostolou’s high energy performance leads the show with an intensity that matched that of her complex character…Florida remains a strong addition to Urban Arias’ repertoire due to the challenging yet relevant themes it poses of how today’s society perceives a woman’s sexuality.” Erin Ridge
“Sharin Apostolou was terrific playing a curious, vibrant teenager with a vivid and seemingly tireless soprano voice….The idea of a scream inside that, for lack of a better outlet, translates into bright nail polish and blood-red lips; or the number “Madly in Love,” about being in love with nobody in particular, speak strongly to the teen female experience.” Anne Midgette
“This new work has legs, and I hope it continues to grow and flourish.” Susan Galbraith