Public Programming :: The Jazz Singer
Sunday, Jul 22, 20188 PM - 9 PMPDT
| 2426 W. Washington Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA, USRelated
Public Programming
Join us at 2426WW for Public Programming, a summer-long experimental film series with monthly screenings of some of the public domain's film, radio, and literary material - some reused, some reprogrammed.
Initiated by Noémie Despland-Lichtert (Roundhouse) and Brendan Shea (2426), Public Programming is dedicated to supporting work in the creative commons by contemporary architects and artists. The series aims to investigate changes in the commons of the urban and cultural sphere and facilitate public engagement with works of critical and creative archival research. One artist or architect will join the series for each screening, providing perspective, context, and historical material alongside recent work.
The Jazz Singer
Our guest in July, Marton Robinson, appropriates and reworks prints, sculptures and videos to expose, explore, and challenge conventional representations of identity and ethnicity.
During the event, the mask, widely used as a device throughout history in theater, art, and war, slips off in Alan Crosland’s The Jazz Singer a 1927 musical film, one of the first commercially successful feature-length talkies, based on a play of the same name from the same year. The protagonist, a Jewish singer named Jakie Rabinowitz, repudiates his family’s legacy of singing at the synagogue to become a Broadway performer. Conflict and catharsis ensue. As does caricature—blackface, a practice of theatrical makeup which is now widely considered racist, is central to the development of the plot.
In 1936, the film was adapted into an hour-long radio play, however, an abridged 30-minute version will serve as the soundtrack for both scenes from the original movie and Robinson’s own work on caricature. There is a strong political dimension to his documentation and experimentation. It considers the mask as it is situated in relation to appropriation, exploitation, and assimilation, but also as it intersects with a constellation of mediums and movements—both aesthetic and political.
More Info
- Audio:The Jazz Singer (1936)
- Visuals: The Jazz Singer (1927), Back to Black, Bro Two Shoes, Fucking Stereotypes (2018)
- When: Sunday July 22, 8:00p drinks, 8:30p screening
- Where: 2426 W. Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90018
- Tickets: Free with RSVP
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