By Scott Stiffler
READINGS
THE INNER WORLD OF FARM ANIMALS
You wouldn’t think of eating your cat or dog. But pigs and horses might be deeper thinkers than our favorite pets. So how smart does an animal need to be in order to disqualify it as food? Amy Hatkoff says that animals aren’t merely crops — they’re thinking, feeling, intelligent creatures. At this reading of Hatkoff’s “The Inner World of Farm Animals,” the author outlines current research concerning the emotional and intellectual abilities of farm animals. Fur may fly when it’s all over — as carnivores and vegans are left to debate the thorny ethics of putting another thinking being on the dinner plate. FREE (donations accepted). Fri., Aug. 13, 7 p.m. at Bluestockings (172 Allen St., at Stanton St.). Visit www.bluestockings.com.
COMEDY
BITCH, I’M 40!
Flaming homosexual, sketch comedy maven and former young person Jason Blanche is all grown up and poised to enter into that long good night known as “middle age”— which explains the cranky nature of his show’s title (“Bitch, I’m 40!”).
To celebrate the first day of the last stage of his life, Blanche is headlining a comedy show featuring all his fabulous fortysomething friends. The roster of actual seen-them-on-TV working professionals includes Alexandra Cremer, Sherry Davey and Bernadette Paulie (plus Blanche as hardcore gay rapper “Skittle”).
Bringing up the rear, so to speak, is talent-challenged cabaret crooner Sammy Velvet — who’ll perform a custom-made tribute medley. Some say Velvet bears a striking resemblance to our beloved Chelsea Now associate editor — but that’s impossible, since he’s tragically bald and Mr. Velvet’s locks are as long as his insipid between-song banter. Sun., Aug. 15, 7 p.m. at The Duplex (61 Christopher St., at 7th Ave.). There’s a $5 cover, and a two-drink minimum (cover charge waived if you bring Jason a handmade birthday card!).
ART
MARCOART
The guy who drives the Marcoart Mobile has a promotional brochure that provides lots of information — yet even after it’s read cover to cover, you won’t be quite sure who’s pulling the strings. His (fictional, we hope) backstory has “Abu Dhabi-based Portuguese Real Estate Developer and Brand Ambassador” Luz Azul appointed to cut out the greedy middleman and serve up high-end pop art from the curious interior of a bright yellow tricked-out food truck covered with samples of for-sale paintings, murals, portraits and prints. Luz, apparently, is acting on the instructions of “Ollie the Octopus, who saved me from drowning after I fell from my father’s fishing boat when I was a boy.” That boy grew up to become the manager of “artist, designer, illustrator, writer and sketch comedy actor Marco.” Funny how you never see them in the same room.
What you do get when the truck rolls around is an impressively large output of illustrations — many of them featuring puns which take slightly lewd phrases and pair them with innocent visuals (“Doggie Style” has a cute pooch sporting a bow tie and sunglasses). But it’s not all clever smut. “Canned Corn” depicts an ear of corn being fired. To find out when the Mobile will be in your neighborhood, visit www.marcoart.com. For Twitter, marcoartmobile. For Facebook, marcoart. Or go all retro, call 347-422-7821, and ask about booking the Marcoart Mobile for what we assume will be a very memorable children’s party.
ART
RAY T. Lam
When smilin’ monkeys don old school DJ headphones, Ganesh goes skateboarding and Buddha gets a binary reboot, you know you’ve stumbled upon a T-shirt vendor of a visionary stripe. Ray T. Lam’s work puts a reassuring techno spin on images that seeped into the cultural consciousness centuries before the game-changing presence of electronics. The merging of the two, he seems to be saying, is the engine that’s gonna drive us deep into the heart of a brave new Megalopolis populated by mellow party animals whose funky take on the truth has set them free. Try doing that with a plain white T-shirt! Visit www.iteetoo.com.
