Amy Guay
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Articles by Amy Guay
Companion: Can performative activism still be entertaining?
Content warning: This article includes mention of physical violence and sexual assault. Though innumerable films attempt to provide social commentary about the state of our world, some fall flat, offering little else but weak attempts to garner social validation. It’s often unclear if the message is genuine or if the movie is a ploy to put more money into a faux activist’s pocket.
Kinds of Kindness’ Feral Absurdism
“Some of them want to abuse you / Some of them want to be abused” so opens Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest unhinged arthouse film, with the 1983 earworm “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).” The Eurythmics’ pounding bass beat blasts in the background, inducing a sour, throbbing headache that sets an ominous tone for the rest of the film. Kinds of Kindness (2024) is a three-part movie with a three-hour runtime, with each story getting progressively more wild, suffocating, and strangely universal.
Two decades in, Greensky Bluegrass is far from past its prime
It’s notoriously difficult for bluegrass bands to fill out big venues. Although the genre has its share of rising stars—including artists like Allison Kraus, Trampled by Turtles, and Billy Strings—bluegrass’s limited commercial popularity can put an upper limit on ticket sales. Because of that, its concerts tend to be smaller and more intimate. But the rules don’t seem to apply to Greensky Bluegrass. On Feb.
Poor Things is a philosophical odyssey draped in aesthetic allure
In a year of cinema characterized by ironic juxtapositions—“Barbenheimer” and, to a less ubiquitous but arguably more memeable degree, “Saw Patrol”—it is no wonder that a film which is both comedy and drama, inspires both fear and nostalgia, and is both serious and tongue-in-cheek, feels undeniably current.
POTUS sucker-punches the patriarchy by pairing profane comedy with sharp social critique
There are few plays whose first word (and entire scene, really) could be “cunt” and pull it off. But POTUS: Or Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive succeeds, perfectly balancing colorful comedy and cultural critique. Director Margot Bordelon has brought Selina Fillinger’s riotous comedy to the Arena Stage, much to the delight of D.C. residents like myself.
On the “I Miss You Already + I Haven’t Left Yet” tour, Del Water Gap bridges nostalgia and yearning - The Georgetown Voice
“I’m really just a normal guy under this necktie,” S. Holden Jaffe, known by his stage name Del Water Gap, told his sold-out crowd at the 9:30 Club on Oct. 19. The necktie in question was a large silk ribbon fashioned in a loose bow atop an undeniably stylish outfit: a mesh black shirt, bell-bottomed black trousers, and patent leather heeled boots, which he showed off by playfully kicking his foot up so the crowd could get a glimpse.
Bottoms: In defense of “ugly, untalented gays”
From gory fight scenes to hormonal gay teens, Bottoms (2023) undoubtedly defies expectations of a teen movie. Girls leave each other with bloodied noses and bruised eyes; football players sing “Total Eclipse of the Heart”; history teachers read magazines featuring scantily-clad divorcees. This might not sound like your typical high school experience, and it might not even sound like your typical high school parody.
“Queer chaos” returns to Georgetown with The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The ICC auditorium is many things—including my final resting place after attending government department trivia—but rarely is this venue described as anything resembling “sexy.” All that changed, however, on the evenings of Friday, April 14 and Sunday, April 16 as the auditorium seats filled with spectators eagerly awaiting the annual shadow cast production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
The enduring magic of Sex and the City, 25 years later
Halftime Leisure Design by Maddie Ott I started watching Sex and the City when my childhood best friend, Emily, came to visit. She arrived in the last breath of September, the end of the beginning of our senior year, on her first trip to the East Coast. In the daytime we walked the jagged brick and cobblestone, gossiped over glasses of tea and champagne, and watched the autumn leaves float down around us.
“A Season of Sondheim”: Signature Theatre’s Pacific Overtures pays homage to Japanese theatrical traditions
Content warning: This article includes references to sexual harassment. An exploration of Western imperialism and influence in 19th century Japan, Signature Theatre’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Pacific Overtures handles its complex subject matter sensitively, but never with kid gloves. Education and entertainment seamlessly blend with formidable vocals, intricate mise-en-scène, and rich symbolism to recount Japanese history.
Post Malone’s personality and gratitude carry him through his Capital One Arena concert
Leisure The loud screams of 20,000 fans in the almost sold-out Capital One Arena filled the room in anticipation of Post Malone’s reserved, calming voice. As he emerged from the stage in the red, white, and blue jersey of this stop’s NBA team, the Washington Wizards—as he does for each corresponding city on his tour—singing the slow melody of “Reputation,” the crowd roared. Malone provided an exciting concert that gave D.C. the opportunity to let loose and sing along on a Tuesday night in October.
The Banshees of Inisherin digs deep into a breakup like no other
How would you react if your best friend in the whole world started to ignore you completely out of the blue? That’s the premise of writer-director Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin (2022), only heightened by its isolated setting on Inisherin, a sparsely-populated island off the coast of Ireland in 1923. The story may feel small, but McDonagh—supreme storyteller as he is—uses this breakup to meditate on much deeper issues than a wrecked friendship.
A Cats Movie Party, RONE, and More Best Bets for June 23–29 - WCP
Thursday: RONE at Songbyrd You can expect RONE’s set at Songbyrd on June 23 to be as much a visual and physical experience as an auditory one. At each of his live gigs, mixers and samplers are set up around the Parisian electronic artist like lab instruments around a mad scientist. Erwan Castex, a gangly, bespectacled man, hunches over them as he plays, head bobbing and elbows jutting out as he turns dials with his entire body.
Violet Brings Faith, Hope, and Music to Georgetown’s Davis Center
Leisure How far would you travel for a miracle? How strongly would you have to believe in a higher power to risk all your hopes and dreams? For one young woman with a tragic past, no distance would be too far and her belief in God could not be stronger. Mask and Bauble is back with another senior thesis project: Violet the musical, with music by Jeanine Tesori and libretto by Brian Crawley, is based on the book “The Ugliest Pilgrim” by Doris Betts.
Synetic Theater’s The Servant of Two Masters brings movement and life to a centuries-old classic
Leisure Photo courtesy of Synetic Theatre Synetic Theater is renowned for performing plays without words, making their decision to adapt 18th century Italian playwright Carlo Goldini’s The Servant of Two Masters appear puzzling upon first glance. A complicated play with several major plot points conveyed to the audience through characters’ verbal recounting of events, it hardly seems the perfect candidate for an adaptation without any words.
Fresh: A new horror classic
Leisure A woman dances alongside a man in the outfit he picked out just for her—another way of crafting her into his own personal work of art. She becomes whatever she can provide him: a partner, a victim of his psychopathy, but never wholly herself. Their dancing is flawlessly in sync, but while the man, Steve, thinks he’s growing closer with the woman, Noa, she is actually using this false sense of intimacy against him; in other words, she’s using her own exploitation to save herself.
Leisure Rayanne Gonzales, Jonathan Atkinson, Yesenia Iglesias, Jyline Carranza, and Quynh-My Luu in Daphne's Dive. Photo courtesy of Signature Theatre. As soon as the audience enters Signature Theatre’s ARK, they become immersed in the world of Daphne’s Dive. To get to their seats, they must walk across the black-and-white checkered linoleum floor of the set, passing right by the show’s titular bar. “I feel like we should have a beer,” my neighbor whispered to me prior to the curtain opening.
Malignant's brashness and audacity make it a twist-filled delight
Movies Annabelle Wallis in Malignant. Via Warner Bros. Pictures. As the lights came up at the end of Malignant (2021), James Wan’s demented new horror extravaganza, my friends and I took the opportunity during the credits to howl with laughter. However, that does not mean the film does not work; in fact, just the opposite. Malignant’s fairly standard beginning gives way to a final half hour that is ludicrous in every way, but a strong emotional core keeps the whole thing from flying off the rails.
Nomadland's story of wanderers hits close to home
Movies Frances McDormand in Nomadland (2020). Via IMDB. A story of perpetual travelers and their time on the road seems like it should hold few lessons in a year most spent confined to their homes. Yet Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland (2020) concerns itself with facets of the human experience that sprawl far beyond the varied paths it travels on screen.
Theatre at a distance: Nomadic’s Love & Information
Performance Graphic by Paul James Georgetown’s Nomadic Theatre has been hard at work, even at a distance. The student-run theatre troupe presented its pre-recorded, virtual production of Love & Information on Facebook Live from Nov. 7 through Nov. 13, receiving over 350 streams. Director Paul James (SFS ’23) did not expect to mount a Zoom production when the show was selected last spring.
QUIZ: Which Studio Ghibli movie are you?
Halftime Leisure If there has been one thing saving me from the pit of hellish despair that this past year has been, it is the blissful nostalgia of Studio Ghibli. I mean, damn, who wouldn’t want to be a floppy little fish girl yelling about ham instead of a sort-of adult with depression? Though some days, the line between the two becomes incredibly blurred. Full disclosure, I love Ghibli too much to choose just four options, so each path leads to multiple movies. You’re just dynamic like that.
The Sleigher: Lea Michele, "Christmas in New York"
Glee fans rejoice: Lea Michele is here to bring New York holiday cheer. Dec 10, 2019 4 PM Tweet Share Stephanie Rudig HO HO WHO: Every Gleek’s favorite Broadway-belting diva Lea Michele released a Christmas album just in time for the happiest season. On Oct.
Writer-in-Residence Vi Khi Nao to Talk Pain & Discipline in Brown Bag Craft Talk
Last Sunday, near the beginning of her 3:30 p.m. writer-in-residence reading in the Hall of Philosophy, Vi Khi Nao gave a short Vietnamese lesson using only the word emblazoned across the podium at which she stood: CHAUTAUQUA. She split the word into three — chau, tau and qua — and explained how, roughly translated, the phrase in Vietnamese would read, “Son boat passes.” “I’m hoping we can flow out into the sea of … Vietnamese weirdness,” Nao said.
Week Two CLSC Author Beth Macy to Recount Reporting on Opioid Crisis
Beth Macy To keep track of the web of themes, communities and multiple sources that overflow in her 2018 book Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America, Beth Macy papered her office with Wizard Wall. It was onto those adhesive dry erase sheets that Macy, like a dogged detective hounding a slippery criminal, visually grouped her research on the opioid epidemic, from Roanoke, Virginia, where Macy lives now, to Appalachia, the suburbs and beyond.
A Descendant’s Fight to Preserve Her Ancestors’ History
Now, she’s fighting to have it designated by the National Register of Historic Places, as well as a cemetery that abuts the former plantation, an abandoned one-room schoolhouse, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary cemetery, the final resting place for members of the GU272. For Tilson, seeking designation was the logical next step in her quest to preserve her ancestors’ history. “In Louisiana, we’ve always had historical sites for plantations and land,” said Tilson.
New Study Uplifts Asian American and Pacific Islander History
Few would categorize preservation as disruption. The act of safeguarding structures that have been around for decades or centuries sooner implies the maintenance of an existing environment, while bulldozers are used to upend the status quo. But “Finding a Path Forward,” the newest theme study from the National Historic Landmarks (NHL) Program, posits that preservation can—and should—be a disruptive force. The 400-page study, five years in the making, was published in May 2018.
Oklahoma City’s Vietnamese Community Cooks Up Culture and Community
July 16, 2018 A tiered gateway marks the entrance at North Classen Blvd. and NW 23rd Street. A circular sign emblazoned with a golden dragon hangs from the structure like a gong, proclaiming “Asian District” in extravagant font. Situated among architectural marvels and historic districts like the Gold Dome and Oklahoma City University—and the Milk Bottle Building, located on a former strip of Route 66—Oklahoma City’s Asian District thrives as a space of community.
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