“Heady” & “The Circus” are two found archival 16mm films that document the compelling and oddly disturbing vision of an unknown filmmaker. Heady appears to be the filmmakers wife, and her film shows her in gorgeous color posing in an endless series of outfits and stage sets. Like a Warhol Screen Test from an alternate reality, Heady’s disturbing beauty and bizarre outfits becomes more surreal as this 30 minute film progresses, eventually revealing the mysterious director in the final clip.
 
“The Circus” is a carefully edited compilation of color 16mm film clips of traveling circuses from across the country, probably filmed in the late 50’s by the same unknown director of “Heady”. What makes the film so compelling is that it rarely focuses on the performances in the big tent, but instead on the restless boredom, preparation, and uncomfortable stares coming from the beautiful young women acrobats and animal trainers as they prepare near their trailers or walk to the big tent. It reminds one of the pictures of Diane Arbus, or the surreptitious films of Viviane Meyer, but instead of secretively filming the daily pulse of city life, it documents the mundane moments of the beautiful and hardworking circus women of the 50’s.

The films are silent and will be accompanied by a performance by Michael Lenert (Lettuce Prey) and friends.
 
This event is $10 and all proceeds benefit Vox Populi Gallery, the region’s leading independent artistic collective. The performance begins at 7:30pm