Agenda Newsletter - July 19, 2007

Ladies forge past “spirit” photography
Strange Magic

Untitled Document

Luhring Augustine; Through July 28; More info
If the last few seasons were about occult and “spirit” photography, this one’s forging a more scientific connection between light and paper. Take this show of five trend-setting female photographers. Eileen Quinlan’s “Smoke & Mirrors” series reintroduces clumsy special effects to a medium besotted with seamless digital manipulation, while Liz Deschenes makes shimmery op-art moiré patterns by filtering light through perforated sheets. In the back room, Amy Granat projects scratched and punctured film. (Pictured above: Anne Collier’s Woman With a Camera.) We’re apparently not the only ones who fondly remember the lo-fi aesthetic.

Meg White’s gonna be there
The White Stripes Once upon a time, this art-rock duo’s quirky, cutesy onstage antics and acoustic-country tendencies flattered a small venue. But now that Jack White has more guitar amps and gadgets than Rush and knows exactly how to manhandle them, we think MSG’s a perfect fit. So what if you only read about last month’s secret show at Irving Plaza. Drop some money now and hear them next week: They will rock you even in the 300-level seats. Madison Square Garden
July 24
8 p.m.
$39.50–$49.50 Tickets »

Dando’s back in power-pop gemsville
The Lemonheads There was a time, of course, when Lemonheads front man Evan Dando’s indie-heartthrob status was so pronounced Kathleen Hanna was scribing love-hate manifestos about him. But then the Lemonheads covered “Mrs. Robinson,” Dando got really famous—and a laughably-predictable-if-it-wasn’t-you-know-a-drug-addiction vocal-cord-shredding reliance on crack and cheap-grade Mexican heroin followed suit. Thankfully, Dando’s no Leif Garrett; last year’s The Lemonheads and this incident-free tour mark the cleaned-up hooksmith’s return to sprightly power-pop gemsville—feel free to fawn. Warsaw
Tonight
8 p.m.
$20
Tickets »

Run, don’t walk, to see this movie
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner Tony Richardson’s memorably titled film chronicles the life of a young lad (played by an aching Tom Courtenay) who’s sent to reform school after he’s caught robbing a bakery. Once there, he shows an aptitude for running—an exercise well suited to the school’s very British masochistic tendencies. Exhausted marathoners will appreciate the long shots of Courtenay huffing and puffing through glen and dale, but the desperation and sadness dogging him from start to finish linger even longer. Walter Reade Theater
Today, 4:10 p.m. and 9 p.m.
July 21,
3:50 p.m.
$7–$11
Tickets »

Art show defeats patriarchy!
She Was Born to Be My Unicorn After seeing the phallus-centric show “My People Were Fair…” at Team Gallery in 2003, Amy Kellner thought it would be fun to do a “girlie” version, full of “kittens and hearts and rainbows and dreamy girls with long, flowy hair.” A fifth-grade girl would certainly feel right at home among Michele O’Marah’s construction-paper cutouts and Dana Carlson’s embroidered painting What Cats Think About; we find the works rewardingly disorienting. There are boys here, too, including misty-eyed Morrissey fan Ryan McGinley. Smith-Stewart
Through
July 28
More info »

Professional B-boys break for you
BREAK! You’ve seen those break-dancers who draw crowds in Washington Square Park. Imagine their little spectacle with a showbiz spin. This troupe of phenomenal dancers has toured their B-boy-history lesson around the world (Urban Funk was a huge stadium hit in Korea); this week, as part of the CityPark Kids series, they’re bringing a 45-minute version to three boroughs. Catch it tomorrow in Brower Park, right next to the Brooklyn Children’s Museum. Urban Funk Spectacular
Brower Park
July 20
11 a.m.
More info »