Tuesday, December 19, 2023, from 7-10pm
La Discothèque de Sarah Maldoror
361 Stagg Street, Suite 407, Brooklyn
We pause at the House of Diop, here, to listen more closely to the interplay of cinema and music that Maldoror inaugurated with the Monangambée/Sambizanga diptych—a film that is music followed by another about music…
Light Industry and Alfreda’s Cinema are closing out 2023 with an evening inspired by one of the most remarkable film books of the year: Ntone Edjabe’s La Discothèque de Sarah Maldoror, which was released in March by South African publisher Chimurenga, as part of their Chimurenganyana series. Edjabe’s volume “takes the form of a mixtape on the soundworld” of the anti-colonial filmmaker, and is written as a set of poetic annotations to various tracks, illustrating and commenting upon the biographical episodes and political contexts that shaped her work. Our event, in turn, will move seamlessly between a listening party, a screening, and a reading. Edjabe’s playlist has been expanded and arranged on vinyl by DJs Andrew Castillo and Melissa Lyde, and will be heard on a setup by Karlala Soundsystem. The records will feature alongside Maldoror’s 1994 documentary on Léon G. Damas, as well as selections from the text of La Discothèque, read by poet Vee Arumemi. Music starts the second people arrive. Guests may stay for the entirety of the program, or come and go as they please; the bar will be open throughout, and copies of the publication will be available to read and purchase.
Maldoror’s portrait of Damas is the closest she gets to the mixtape as narrative form. She sprinkles his words on a set of thematically arranged music tracks which are bridged by the opinions of his better-known comrades, Césaire and Senghor. Visually, the themes oscillate btwn the land and waterscapes of Guyane and the toxic buzz of Paris-Nègre. Plus, a cloud of mosquitoes here, a trail of ants there, all cut to the rhythm of Damas’ poetry. And of silences.
- from La Discothèque de Sarah Maldoror
Tickets - Pay what you can ($10 suggested donation), available at door.
Please note: space is limited. First-come, first-served. Box office opens at 7pm.