The Holy 'Greil' for Dylan fans

By Meredith Deliso

Since Robert Zimmerman changed his name to Bob Dylan, he’s transfixed, confused, annoyed and inspired generations of listeners. Chief among them Greil Marcus.

The cultural critic may be the foremost authority on the singer-songwriter. Sure, you may count yourself a Dylan diehard. You may even say you liked “Self Portrait.” But for more than 40 years, Marcus has been covering Dylan’s concerts and writing reviews of his albums for publications ranging from the Village Voice to Rolling Stone, as well as providing liner notes for records — the ultimate task for any fan. 

It all makes for over 500 pages worth of engaging musings, thoughts and critiques — a.k.a. “Bob Dylan: Writings 1968-2010” — an immense retrospective on a career spent covering the voice of a generation.

Between lecturing at the New School and writing his monthly column for the Believer, Marcus doesn’t get into Brooklyn much (the dozens of Dylan concerts he’s seen, alas, doesn’t include the singer’s sold-out show in Prospect Park two years ago). But he’ll make an exception tonight 2 when he reads from his new book at Spoonbill and Sugartown in Williamsburg.

For those looking for intimate stories about Dylan the man, a la Suze Rotolo’s recent memoir, “A Freewheelin’ Time,” you’ve got the wrong book. In fact, Marcus has no personal relationship whatsoever with Dylan. The closest he comes is the knowledge that the gravel-voiced singer liked his 1997 book, “Invisible Republic,” about “The Basement Tapes.”

Marcus will occasionally get sidetracked by other subjects — chief among them Elvis Presley, Van Morrison and The Doors — but what keeps him coming back to Dylan over all these years is that voice, a voice that can be as divisive as religion (or Dylan’s religious albums!).

“What captivates me more than anything is the way he sings, the way he can put emphasis on a word and make it come across in so many different ways, and sometimes with such enormous impact, It’s listening to somebody make meaning through speaking,” said Marcus.

That’s been the one constant, he said, even as Dylan’s voice has changed over the course of more than 30 studio albums.

“When he started, people said his voice sounded like a cat stuck in barbed wire. Not everyone thought it was supple then, but it was,” said Marcus. “His voice is much more of a growl and a mutter today, but you know, muttering can be enormously alluring and seductive.”

Marcus has not always been enamored by Dylan’s music. One of his most famous reviews owes itself to the 1970 album, “Self Portrait,” a deservedly panned record that Marcus starts critiquing with the line: “What is this s—?”

That review, of course, is included in Marcus’s new book, as is his Top 10 lists from Rolling Stone and ArtForum, and pithy 25- or 50-word comments on records, books, concerts and radio commercials. It’s a collection that’s perfect for the Dylan obsessive or a music fan interested in reading about the singer’s contributions over the past 40 years as seen through the eyes — or, rather, ears — of one of the foremost cultural critics of our time (this is the guy who wrote the rock and roll manifesto “Mystery Train,” after all). If you’ve ever questioned why Dylan mattered, this will tell you why, and then some.

Greil Marcus reads from “Bob Dylan: Writings 1968-2010” at Spoonbill and Sugartown [218 Bedford Ave. at N. Fifth Street in Williamsburg, (718) 387-7322], Nov. 2 at 8 pm. Free, but seating is very limited. For info, visit www.spoonbillbooks.com.

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Artist hits a home run

By Aaron Short

The Yankees may be out of the postseason, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still enjoy a little baseball — in a Greenpoint art gallery.

Artist Amelie Mancini will open a new solo show, “Sacrebleu! Napoleon Would Have Made A Fine Shortstop,” featuring nostalgic portraits of New York baseball players at Yashar Gallery in the ground floor of her Greenpoint Avenue studio tonight. 

Mancini, born in France, but now a native Brooklynite, began painting Hall of Famers after attending a Mets game at the old Shea Stadium a few years ago and becoming “actively obsessed” with the sport and its history.

“It’s part of the experience of coming to America from a different country,” said Mancini, explaining her obsession. “Baseball is so essentially American, and a complex and interesting game, that it attracts expatriates easily.”

Mancini chose to profile Hall of Famers including Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, Sandy Koufax and Jackie Robinson (pictured) who have contributed significantly to the game’s reputation and Brooklyn’s romantic relationship with the nation’s pastime.

Each portrait in her series consists of six smaller canvases assembled into a larger painting that recreates a moment of the player’s greatness such as hitting a home run or stealing home plate — in Robinson’s case.

The portraits themselves resemble baseball cards with a ball player in game-action in the foreground, but the background contains empty houses and arches in faux-marble to reflect the simple and powerful undisturbed geometry of extinct baseball stadiums such as Ebbets Field.

Mancini’s Robinson portrait is a standout in the collection, displaying the smiling iconic ballplayer surrounded by a pentagonal-shaped home plate and a sea of Dodger blue with a sharp crimson border — which Mancini made a symbol of Robinson’s internal anger after breaking the major league’s racial barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

“Amelie Mancini: Sacrebleu! Napoleon Would Have Made A Fine Shortstop” at Yashar Gallery [276 Greenpoint Ave. at Provost Street in Greenpoint, (718) 715-5671]. Opening night party on Nov. 2, 6–9 pm.

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It's easy being green with this recipe

By Meredith Deliso

City Tech isn’t just about technology. If you’re looking to brush up on cooking skills, or even just looking for new ideas, the continuing education is offering special culinary classes this month.

“Seasoned foodies and amateurs alike will learn the tricks-of-the-trade that make for great meals,” said Diane Romeo, who runs the college’s adult education department.

That includes this recipe for green beans with tomato and fennel seed, a light, tasty and healthy treat included in the upcoming “Mediterranean Vegetarian” class on Nov. 12, where you’ll learn how to make it — as well as get to taste it — during a demonstration led by award-winning culinary instructor Michael Krondl.

The following week, delve into “Italian Regional Cooking: A Taste of Tuscany,” and you’ll be cooking like the pros — or your Italian grandmother — in no time.

“Mediterranean Vegetarian” at City Tech [300 Jay St. between Tillary and Johnson streets in Downtown, (718) 552-1170], Nov. 12 from 6:30-9:30 pm. $90; “Italian Regional Cooking: A Taste of Tuscany” on Nov. 19 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. $75. Pre-registration is required. For info, visit 

www.citytech.cuny.edu/academics/continuinged/index.shtml.

Fagiolini alla fiorentina (Green beans with tomato and fennel seed)

(serves 4)

1 pound green beans, trimmed

1/2 tsp. fennel seed

4 tbls. olive oil

1 small onion, thinly sliced

Salt 

Pepper

1/2 cup strained tomatoes

In a steamer, steam the beans until they turn a bright green but are still very “al dente,” about two minutes. Drench in cold running water.

Lightly crush the fennel seeds using a mortar and pestle or spice grinder.  

Heat the oil in a sauté pan over moderate heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until soft and transparent, about five minutes. Add the beans, fennel and salt and pepper to taste. Continue to sauté for one minute. Add the tomato, cover and cook about 15 minutes until the beans are very tender. The beans should be almost dry. If there is a lot of liquid, boil the beans over high heat, stirring, until the liquid is no more than a thick glaze. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust seasoning as necessary.

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One pretty dull 'Saw'

“Saw 3D”

One and one half stars

By Gary Buiso

“Saw 3D” is the latest from a once-sharp franchise that has grown progressively duller with each new entry.

Beginning with a non-sequitur of an opening scene — think Home Depot holiday window from hell — the film devolves into a maze of diabolical set pieces whose function has more to do with cinematic narcissism than plot. 

Jigsaw (Tobin Bell), the moral mastermind behind the mayhem, is long gone, but disciple Lt. Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) has been continuing his mission, this time targeting his mentor’s widow, Jill (Betsy Russell). 

The two know each other—she gave him a taste of his own medicine in the last installment.

Meanwhile, Bobby (Sean Patrick Flannery), one of Jigsaws “survivors,” is a self-help guru who has a book tour that is about to get interrupted by a bit more genuine source material. 

Director Kevin Greutert (“Saw VI”) fails to bring any humanity to the script, or life out of his characters—whose performances range from stilted to subpar. 

Watching it all in three dimensions is quite literally a visceral experience, but will likely be appreciated by only the most diehard fans.

“Saw 3D” is rightly the final chapter. Any cultural relevance this franchise once had has been bled dry. 

“Saw 3D.” Rated R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, and language. With Costas Mandylor, Sean Patrick Flannery, Betsy Russell, Cary Elwes, Tobin Bell. Playing in Brooklyn at Access Digital Theatres - Pavilion Cinema in Park Slope, UA Court Street Stadium 12 Downtown, UA Sheepshead Bay 14, Bay Ridge Alpine Cinemas, and Linden Boulevard Multiplex Cinemas in East New York.

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Do you abide?

By Meredith Deliso

Bowling, White Russians and costumes combine next month at Brooklyn Bowl for Lebowski Fest 2010, a celebration of the 1998 Cohen Brothers’ cult comedy and its great anti-hero, The Dude.

For the uninitiated, “The Big Lebowski” is essentially a film about a slacker vet just trying to get his rug back, but who soon finds himself in the middle of a plot involving kidnapping, extortion, nihilists, the avant-garde art world and the L.A. porn scene.

There’s also a lot of bowling.

At the Nov. 4 spectacular, all are encouraged to come in costume and celebrate the film, known for its instantly quotable dialogue and idiosyncratic characters. That could mean going as the nonchalant Dude (black sunglasses, robe, white shirt and shorts, preferably carrying around a carton of half-and-half). Or, for the more ambitious, there’s Maude Lebowski during one of The Dude’s dream sequences, wherein she sports a Brunhilde outfit; Saddam Hussein (that’s from another dream sequence); a Persian rug; or one of the more outlandish side characters, Jesus Quintana, which involves tight pants and lots of purple.

“Williamsburg is a too-cool-for-school kind of neighborhood, but it’s fun to be all dorky with these people,” said Gabriel Miller-Phillips, who attended last year’s festival as Quintana.

In addition to the film, a costume contest, trivia round and some requisite rounds of bowling, the night will feature a performance by Diamondsnake, a metal band comprised of Moby (yes, that Moby) and Phil Costello of Tragedy and Hair Supply.

“Combining such disparate influences as rock, hard rock, metal, and heavy metal, Diamondsnake was borne out of a shared love for entering a small, dark, and musty room, plugging into a few amps, and playing as loud as possible for a seriously long time,” said Moby when he announced the project this past spring.    

Do you abide?

Lebowski Fest 2010 at Brooklyn Bowl [61 Wythe Ave. between N. 11th and N. 12th streets in Williamsburg, (718) 963-3369], Nov. 4 at 6:30 pm. Tickets $20. For info, visit www.brooklynbowl.com.

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'Knitting' together a theater community

Joseph Hendel (center) has founded the Williamsburg Theatre Company with Harry May-Kline (left)  and Andrew Mcnay.

By Meredith Deliso

Williamsburg may be one of the foremost neighborhoods for culture in Brooklyn, but that doesn’t mean it can’t do without a little more theater.

That’s what Joseph Hendel thinks, as least. As the founder of the Williamsburg Theatre Company, he launches the brand new troupe this month with a production of David Ives’s “All in the Timing.” But he’s not doing it at your traditional theater. Instead, he’s turned to the music venue Knitting Factory, which, thanks to a run of one-acts this month, is quickly becoming a destination for theater.

For now, the fun on the boards will take place on Monday nights with “Can I Really Date A Guy Who Wears A Yarmulke?” at 7:30 pm followed by “All in the Timing,” a collection of popular one-act comedies by the absurdist writer, at 10 pm.

“That’s my theater night,” said Ellen Jacobs, who books special events at the Knitting Factory. “If it’s empty on Monday nights, I want to get some really creative stuff going on here.”

It doesn’t stop in November, either. Early next year, Jacobs is producing an original musical by Alex Davis about his transgendered experience, and she looks to work with a new musical by Lloyd Miller of the Deedle Deedle Dees.

For non-musical productions like Hendel’s, the club setting can still work to his advantage. When he directs “All in the Timing,” he’ll use the whole space, including the stage, the floor and the bar, to rework the acts in the unconventional setting.

“The whole idea of the production is that we’re doing it at a club,” said Hendel. “We’re not changing the six pieces, but how you present them is another part of the theater experience.”

Theater at the Knitting Factory [361 Metropolitan Ave. at Havemayer Street in Williamsburg, (347) 529-6696], Mondays in November. For info, visit bk.knittingfactory.com.

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Modern love

Eleanor (played by Catherine LeFrere) is
thinking one thought: “Can I Really
Date a Guy Who Wears a Yarmulke?” —
which, conveniently enough, is the name of
the play in which she considers doing just that with Aaron (Jason Liebman).Photo by S.A. Schwartz

By Meredith Deliso

Amy Holson-Schwartz knew she had a great title on her hands when she had a sold-out run at the Midtown International Theater Festival this past summer with very little advertising.

“Can I Really Date A Guy Who Wears A Yarmulke?” tells the story of a young, single New York Jew who meets the love of her life. The bad part? He’s, like, really Jewish.

Holson-Schwartz, a non-practicing Jew, was inspired to write the play after a Birthright trip to Israel dredged up all sorts of feelings abou the Holy Land, Judaism and love.

“It brought up questions for me about what it means to be young, American and Jewish in modern society — all that existential stuff,” said Holson-Schwartz.

What really did it for her, though, and inspired the trajectory of the piece, was seeing a cute man on the subway and immediately getting turned off by his yarmulke.

The result is the comic love story of Eleanor, a young, single, non-practicing Jew who is set up by her friends with the more Orthodox Aaron. Their differences lead to all sorts of disagreements — over Israel, over the Holocaust, over the roles of women in Jewish society.

Ellen Jacobs, who books special events at the Knitting Factory, saw the play and decided to bring it to the Williamsburg space, where it will run Monday nights in November. 

“It seemed like a lot of young, single people going to the show,” said Jacobs. “I thought it would be really special to do it in another space and, who knows, maybe someone will meet someone and get married.”

The provocative title, and hey, maybe even the promise of a date, may get butts in seats, but what’s sure to keep them there is the universal truths about relationships the play explores.

“People respond to the story. I’ve had a lot of mixed couples, where say, the girl was Jewish and the guy was Christian, who would say, ‘That’s our story,’ ” said Holson-Schwartz. “It’s like real life, only funnier.”

“Can I Really Date A Guy Who Wears A Yarmulke?” at the Knitting Factory [361 Metropolitan Ave. at Havemayer Street in Williamsburg, (347) 529-6696], Mondays in November at 7:30 pm. Tickets $18. For info, visit bk.knittingfactory.com.

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