A FEAST UNKNOWN adapted by Jason Robert Bell, an experimental film/ dramatic multi-media reading of the infamous book by Philip José Farmer, the "unreadable” sci-fi action adventure porno classic. To be performed in 30 minute segments of the book with pre-recorded audio and a video projection of thousands of original drawings illustrating the story.
Mon 6/6 7:00 (Special hour-long premiere!), Thu 6/16 8:00 (w/This Is Not a Burlesque), Sat 6/18 5:45 (w/Mahamudra), Thu 6/30 7:00 (w/Return of Toodles), Sat 7/2 3:45 (w/Sinistrality), Sun 7/3 4:15 (w/The Perfect Girl) all shows $10 each-
Find out more and get tickets at - http://www.bricktheater.com/moralvalues.htm
Farmer deconstructed his two all time favorite characters from his childhood, Tarzan and Doc Savage (called under different names), and has them doing their best to kill each other. There is one problem though; they are being manipulated by a secret group of immortals called The Nine that rule the world and every act of violence results in an erection and to kill results in an orgasm. A Feast Unknown: Volume IX of the Memoirs of Lord Grandrith (1969), is a brilliant exploration of the sado-masochistic fantasies latent in much heroic fiction, and succeeds as satire, as sf and as a tribute to the creations of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Lester Dent. The entire book is an insane parody of action adventure. Where everything that lies in the subtext of "super-hero" fiction is exposed. The “heroes” are unstoppable, un-ageing; millionaire ubermensches super geniuses that have finally found their match in each other. The imagery is so brutal and over the top and presented without a spark of internal irony, making the entire enterprise as shocking to read as it must have been when the book was published in 1969.
Farmer’s work pushes suspension of disbelief beyond the threshold of comprehension to an endgame where all other power fantasy and high adventure pales in comparison. A cornerstone of most popular adventure fiction (pulps, comic books, films) is that the tales really are happening right here under our noses and cover of darkness in clandestine warfare in a world where there actually are identifiable super-powered forces of Good and Evil. Most fans of “super-fiction” secretly carry a mustard seed of hope within their minds that it is all-true and all a matter of time before they themselves are initiated and suitably augmented into that far-better world. Farmer’s work merely deals with the bald truth of what a real superhuman being would be like, beyond all common understanding physically, mentally, morally, and sexually.
To be performed in 30 minute segments of the book from start to finish with each reading starting with a wrap up of the last segment and ending with a cliffhanger, with added pre-recorded audio and video projections of hundreds of original drawings illustrating the story.
Jason Robert Bell was born and raised in Houston, Texas-the proverbial youth as an economically disfranchised and misunderstood, yet talented social outcast. Made good by graduating from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (BFA 1995) and the Yale School of Art (MFA 2000), both for painting. Now lives in NYC (Greenpoint, BK) with his cat Lucky where he works on large scale paintings depicting the erotic beauty of a female Sasquatch, Abandons sculptures on the streets of New York and photographs people looking at then, publishes the Caveman Robot comic book and sometimes performs with the Brick Theater, most recently giving a 20 minute multi- media lecture on the History of the Idea of Hell for the Bricks Hell Festival. This fall he will be working with the Brick on an Extended fully realized Caveman Robot play. His artwork has been exhibited in New York, Boston, Chicago, Kansas City, and Tokyo.
http://www.tetragrammatron.com
Philip José Farmer was born January 26, 1918 in Terre Haute, Indiana (USA), settled in Peoria, Illinois. He received a B.A. in creative writing from Bradley University in 1950, two years later burst onto the sf scene with his novella "The Lovers" it gained instant acclaim and won PJF a 1953 Hugo for Most Promising New Author. It concerned xenobiology, parasitism and sex, an explosive mixture that was to feature repeatedly in PJF's best work. Farmer continued to produce a myriad of works over the last five decades that have garnished much awards and acclaim,
A Feast Unknown: Volume IX of the Memoirs of Lord Grandrith (1969), Here, as in all his work, PJF is governed by an instinct for extremity. Of all sf writers of the first or second rank, he is perhaps the most threateningly impish, and the most anarchic. Perhaps Farmer’s most lasting contribution is his influence on other writers and artist most notably Allan Moore, Matthew Barney, Kim Newman, and Alex Proyas.
Farmer still lives in Peoria with his lovely wife Bette, and kindly allowed for these projections to take place at the Brick this summer.
Special Thanks to – Ashley Garrett for technical assistance and voice work, Peter Staley and Brian Farrelly for software support, Michael Croteau at http://www. pjfarmer.com, Juliann Elizabeth Kroboth and The Brick.