Erin BroadleyTwo very odd things happened over the weekend: First, Angels and Demons somehow managed to beat Star Trek at the box office (we think it's a conspiracy), and second, two of our writers, Chris Hardwick and Alexia Tsotsis, each broke a toe on Saturday (the same toe, even… also a conspiracy). Don't believe us? Check out the Twitter play-by-play from #brokentoesaturday by following @nerdist and @alexiatsotsis.
For those of us that didn't spend the weekend in the ER, there was plenty of music, art, and even a little tassel twirling to enjoy. Read on for what we did and who we saw…
Academy Award winner Diablo Cody and fellow seductress scribe Lily Burana presented an evening of burlesque on May 15 at Trader Vic's in support of Burana's latest book, I Love a Man in Uniform, and to benefit Operation Bombshell, a burlesque school for military wives founded by the brazen Burana. Read more in Sophia Kercher's “Operation Bombshell Benefit” review and view a full gallery of photos in Timothy Norris' “Operation Bombshell Burlesque” slideshow.
Doves live at the Wiltern; Credit: Timothy Norris
According to Paul Rogers, “Doves shouldn't exist. 'Album' bands like this, who've sustained a theater-level following for a decade without U.S. radio hits (and on May 16 comfortably filled the 2200-capacity Wiltern), supposedly died out with cassette tapes.” Read more in Paul Rogers' Doves live review and view a full gallery of photos in Timothy Norris' Doves slideshow.
House Legend Jesse Saunders at Incognito, 5/15/09; Credit: Liz Ohanesian
Twenty-five years ago, Jesse Saunders' seminal dance single “On & On” was released through his own Jes-Say Records, ushering in a style of dance music called house that would go on to dominate dance charts for the ensuing decades. “On & On” might not necessarily be the birth of house, after all, Saunders and his Chicago cohorts were already established DJs by the time of the single's release. However, the 12″ did alter the way DJs approached their work. Now, DJs weren't solely meant to push dance cuts, they could make their own too. To celebrate this milestone, house legend Saunders kicked off a not-so-ordinary tour on May 16 at Incognito in L.A. Read more in Liz Ohanesian's article, “House Nation: Jesse Saunders Celebrates 25 Years of Four-on-the-Floor at Incognito.”
“Scarlotta” by Dienzo; Credit: Liz Ohanesian
For his first solo show at Hyaena, the Burbank gallery that champions dark and subversive art, artist Rick “Dienzo” Blanco looked towards a favorite subject of his youth, vampires, for inspiration. In Vampyrically Speaking, his mostly female creatures of the night combine the glamour of black-and-white Hollywood photos with the eccentricity of lowbrow art. Read more in Liz Ohanesian's article and interview with the artist, “Fiendishly Cute: How MySpace, Gothic Lolita and Pop Surrealism Influenced Dienzo's Vampires.”
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