LEO Weekly, May 8, 2024

By Aria Baci

Love Under the Wild Lights

Digital

Sydney Catinna

Culture Writer - Aria Baci

News Writer - Caleb Stultz

CREATIVE

Creative Director - Haimanti Germain

Art Director - Evan Sult

Graphic Designer - Aspen Smit

BUSINESS MANAGER

Elizabeth Knapp

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Marsha Blacker

CONTRIBUTORS

Robin Garr, Jeff Polk, Tracy Heightchew, Dan Savage, Marc Murphy, Rob Brezsny, T.E. Lyons, Arts Angle Vantage

Chief Executive Officer

Chris Keating

Vice President of Digital Services

Stacy Volhein

Digital Operations Coordinator

Elizabeth Knapp

Director of Operations

Emily Fear

Chief Financial Officer

Guillermo Rodriguez

MARC MURPHY

DERBY CITY ETIQUETTE

The Workers Are Working For Fun, Too

BY ERICA RUCKER

Erica Rucker is LEO Weekly’s editor-in-chief. In addition to her work at LEO, she is a haphazard writer, photographer, tarot card reader, and fair-to-middling purveyor of motherhood. Her earliest memories are of telling stories to her family and promising that the next would be shorter than the first. They never were.

During the weeks prior to the Kentucky Derby, the city puts on its best looks and gets fancied up for the big race but also throws some of the most lavish parties of the year. Being a member of the media is really fun during this time of year because you get to rub elbows at some of these events all while spreading the word about the good work that many of these parties fund. For years, this has been a lovely cooperative relationship. As most outlets are working with slim staffing, we often hire extra folks, sometimes enticing them to work for free with the promise of a good party, free/cheap drinks or food. It’s a way that we can do our jobs, give coverage to the many events that need and desire it, and spread some Derby fun around our often underpaid and stressed staff.

We don’t expect expensive dinners (though they are nice when we get them). We don’t need VIP (though it certainly makes our jobs easier). What we do appreciate most is basic access to allow us to fully cover and experience an event so that the coverage is a full picture of what any ticket buyer can expect from one of these parties. People spending hundreds of dollars want to know that their funds will support a good cause but also guarantee a good time. Good media coverage can certainly help that. For the first time this year, we had staff at an event but had to pull them out because the event hadn’t provided for basic human needs considering that actual humans would be covering the event. We were led to believe the coverage area would be wider, and that staff could actually participate in the event as media beyond the “red carpet,” a space which loses its lustre quickly for those thinking about whether or not the ticket prices are worth attending an event.

The staff were asked to show up early, before their own dinnertime. They were

stuck on a red carpet with no air conditioning, no bathroom (ok, they had one bathroom break — being escorted to portalets), and no access to hydration. I’m not naming the event but I’m sure more than a few media members have similar stories of discomfort from this night. After spending three hours on a red carpet where “stars” trickled into the event, it became evident that there would be no access to the actual party, and that they would have to vacate by 10:45 p.m., which would have made more than four hours of no water, bathrooms, or air.

We know these parties are expensive, however, I’m sure most members of the media would have been fine paying for their own drinks if they had access to bars and bathrooms, and could better cover what the event was truly like — although in retrospect, the dry red carpet tells many tales. We’ll never publish the photos. It’s not worth it.

We had staff at other parties, and the weird rules and restrictions didn’t apply. We were given access, Derby-level courtesy, and fun. As an organization, it makes us very likely to cover any of these events again because first, they serve the community we love through major fundraising, but also they understand that Derby is a time for all, and even if someone is working at the event, they deserve a bit of the fun as well.

While this seems like a complaint, it’s really a shout out to the big party givers who also give (at least a drink, a show, or a snack) to the folks that work their events. It’s so deeply appreciated because we can’t necessarily buy tickets to all of them but we do give our time and hearts to the work that we do, and we hope that the charities being supported can get some benefit because of our small part.

When the next Derby rolls around, we’d like to see more event planners remember that a bathroom, a drink and a comfortable experience go a long way.

WHO IS AFFECTED MOST BY EVICTIONS IN LOUISVILLE?

Take a deep dive into how kids and single mothers are losing their homes in real time

BY CALEB STULTZ

In Louisville, homelessness has hit especially hard for those in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas, especially the West End of Louisville. Those affected most by the shift as of 2024 include Black families, especially single mothers and their children.

They are losing their homes at a fast rate, with 83% of Black or African American youth having a higher risk of reporting homelessness in the U.S. than white youth. Young people across the U.S. are losing the place they call home more often than ever before, with about 50% of all unhoused youth becoming homeless for the first time in the past year.

Closer to home, Jefferson County residents face eviction more than double the amount of renters across the country.

In the U.S., out of 100 renters, 7.8 are evicted every year, with the state of Kentucky close to the national average at just 7.6. However, Jefferson County sees nearly 16 evictions for every 100 renters in the area.

Chanelle Helm, who works to “fill in the gaps” with Black Lives Matter Louisville, said in an interview with LEO Weekly that her work ties primarily with helping families find homes, especially with the meteoric rise in homelessness in the city since the COVID-19 pandemic.

How are evictions affecting children disproportionately?

Helm said children who face homelessness feel the effects of an unsteady housing situation quickly, and that trauma can bleed into other areas of their lives, including school.

“That inconsistency builds on different traumas,” she said. “They’re just acting out from inconsistencies at home.”

Across the U.S., nearly 4.2 million young people experience a form of homelessness each year, and as that number continues to rise, nearly half of those young people will experience homelessness more than once, with a large portion stemming from eviction.

As homelessness continues to rise in America’s youth, Jefferson County has seen a slight decrease over the past decade up until 2021, but homelessness still persists for minority families on the West End of Louisville.

In 2016, nearly 21% of all children under 18 were below the federal poverty level according to the Kids Count County Profile from Kentucky Youth Advocates, a nonprofit organization that advocates “for policies that give children the best possible opportunities for a brighter future…”

The latest data from 2021 showed a slight decrease, with just over 19% of children under the poverty line.

New research from Princeton, Rutgers and the US Census Bureau shows that children are impacted to a greater extent by evictions than any other group, showing that the younger children are, the greater their risk of eviction which can lead to many issues down the road.

Karena Cash, the Policy and Research Director for Kentucky Youth Advocates, said in an interview with LEO Weekly that the disproportionate effect of eviction on youth cannot be understated.

“It’s really really traumatizing to be kicked out of your house,” she said. “It’s traumatizing to come home from school and see all of your stuff out on the curb, and it’s really traumatizing to not have a stable place to go at the end of the day where you know you’re safe.”

Cash said the ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) implication of eviction can be extremely damaging to children across the state of Kentucky and all across the country.

As rental prices have surged over the past year and renters are finding it harder to find stable housing, Cash says the weight of an eviction notice becomes heavier and heavier for families and their children, who will also have that eviction on their record no matter if they are newborn or 18 years old.

“(Eviction) also makes it significantly more difficult for you to get housing in the future, because whenever landlords are going to rent

to someone, they are looking at their eviction history to see if you are a reliable person to rent to,” she said. “Even if someone has an eviction that is 10, 20 years old, that eviction still pops up…”

Helm says the rental crisis stemming from inflated housing prices within the past two years has caused a wave of tenants not being able to afford their monthly rent.

“Everyone should be somewhere where they can afford,” she said. “Right now, we do not have any solutions from the redlining that has decimated the West End and continues to be a space where we are always getting the short end of the stick. We need some rent controls to take place now.”

What is the city doing about homelessness?

In 2020, when a national rent moratorium was put into place, many families across Louisville were able to survive without the headache of rent during the COVID-19 pandemic. But when the moratorium ended in July 2021, nearly 21,000 households in Louisville owed almost $63 million.

The latest budget proposal from Mayor Craig Greenberg (D), who Helms said should leave office because “he is a developer that does not understand that affordable housing applies to everyone, and not a select few,” has $32 million going towards helping homeless families in Louisville out of the $1.1 billion in

proposed budget funds.

That would be just under 3% of the entire budget.

That money is set to create or preserve “15,000 units of affordable housing units across the city by 2027,” according to a press release from the mayor’s office.

Nearly half ($15 million) of the money in the $32 million will go towards the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which Greenberg’s office says will gill Louisvillians “long-term housing.”

$238,000 will go to the Louisville Metro Housing Authority to support its most “urgent issues,” with Greenberg stating his administration will continue to work with LMHA to secure more Section 8 vouchers for socioeconomically disadvantaged people throughout the city.

What can Kentucky do to keep families safe from eviction?

Right now, there are no laws to keep children from having an eviction on their record after their parents are evicted from their homes. Cash said this could have consequences down the road for future generations of renters.

“It’s making it a lot more difficult for families to find safe housing,” she said. “Whenever families are able to get into housing, we see worse quality of housing. Things like lead paint, mold, asbestos that ultimately impact

their long-term health outcomes.”

In an article for Kentucky Youth Advocates, Cash points to other states, like Utah, Texas and Kentucky’s neighbor, Indiana that have a process to expunge evictions, “similar to the expungement of other legal proceedings like felonies and bankruptcies.”

“Additionally, Kentucky should prohibit minors from being named on eviction filings so young children do not have their housing stability threatened before they can legally rent,” Cash said in the article.

And though families — especially in Louisville — have the right to counsel, which helps them get their evictions dismissed, that still does not take those evictions off their record. Cash says this could hurt their chances of finding housing in the future.

In 2022, nearly 72% of about 16,000 evictions filed in Jefferson County were dismissed, but were still on those families’ records.

Helm said in an interview that though some parts to fix homelessness are working, it is still not enough for the number of homeless people suffering in Louisville.

“What does it mean to have affordable housing?” she said. “... I think we need to have very robust conversations, and they cannot be only organizationally done. They need to be cross-sector. We have to bring people together to be able to name those things. We have to bring these people together to talk about what housing needs are (in Louisville).”

LOVE in the Time of WILD LIGHTS

Two Chinese performers combine acrobatics and romance at the Louisville Zoo

BY ARIA BACI

The Wild Lights Lantern Festival has returned to the Louisville Zoo for its fifth year. Along with more than 60 displays depicting animal life, ecosystems, and Chinese mythology that sit along the 1.4-mile path, live performances by Chinese folk dancers and acrobats happen on the MetaZoo stage from Thursday through Sunday.

Two of the performers, Liu Xiang and Peng Xinle, crossed an ocean to be together. As if a nighttime performance in a zoological garden illuminated by larger-than-life lanterns was not quite magical enough, their globe-spanning romance is a part of the diverse cast, and they took a moment between performances to share their story.

“I’m from Sichuan and he’s from Hebei Province [in the north],” said Liu. “We got to know each other during a dinner that many performers were at. For safety concerns, he offered to accompany me home afterward, and I was a bit touched by his kindness. Then the story began.”

The couple’s story led them across continents and to Louisville.

“I’ve been performing for eight years and embarked on my journey learning folk dance since high school,” Liu said.

“I started learning and practicing at a very early age, like, when I was six. So it’s been almost 16 years,” said Peng.

The couple performs different yet related roles in Wild Lights. Liu explains that her art is bian lian, which can be translated literally from Mandarin to “face-changing,” an ancient Chinese dramatic art that is an integral part of the Sichuan Opera. In Sichuan Opera, performers wear vividly colored costumes and masks, usually representing characters within a story. Performers change their masks from one face to another with a movement of a fan or a movement of the head or hands that is faster than the audience can perceive — something like a mid-narrative sleight of hand costume change.

Peng performs what he calls a “space walk,”

in which he grabs hold of a straight pole and uses his strength and balance to move. He also collaborates with other cast members to perform acrobatics ranging from hat juggling to hoops.

Liu and Peng say that they cherish the opportunity to perform together, and also that they can share their everyday lives together. They were excited about traveling to the U.S. well before they arrived, partially because their performance in Wild Lights at the Louisville Zoo would be part of their first visit to the U.S.  After performing for only a month, they have been amazed by the consistent enthusiasm of their audience. “We want to express our appreciation,” the couple says.

They hope to continue attracting people to the Louisville Zoo and attend the Wild Lights show.

Wild Lights runs from March 23 through May 19. Check times and ticket pricing at louisvillezoo. org/wildlights2024/.

Liu Xiang and Peng Xingle. Kyle Shepherd

Wild lights at Louisville Zoo.

Erica Rucker

EAT, DRINK AND SEE IN THIS WEEK’S STAFF PICKS

THURSDAY, MAY 9

Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus

Speed Cinema | 2035 S. 3rd St. | speedmuseum. org/cinema/ryuichi-sakamoto-opus | $8 members /$12 non-members | 6 p.m.

From the hands of a master of musical score, “Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus” is a farewell between lifelong friends. Sakamoto ends a career spanning five decades with his final performance, an elegy shared between himself and his piano. This was Sakamoto’s final gift to the world. It is playing one night at the Speed Cinema and should not be missed. Sakamoto died in March 2023 from cancer.

—Erica Rucker

SATURDAY, MAY 11

Kentucky Kingdom Opening Day

Kentucky Kingdom | 937 Phillips Lane | kentuckykingdom.com | $30+ | 10 a.m.

Join Kentucky Kingdom’s Opening Day this year on May 11 to take on huge coasters as the days heat up. Hurricane Bay is set to open on May 25, as well.

—Caleb Stultz

FRIDAY, MAY 10–11

Louisville Orchestra Creators Fest Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts | 501 W. Main St. | louisvilleorchestra.org/concerts | Free or $10

Louisville Orchestra Creators Fest will include two concerts featuring world premieres by the 2023–2024 Creators Corps composers Alex Berko, Nkeiru Okoye, and Tanner Porter. In addition to the main concerts, the festival will feature free performances by local musicians, artists, and storytellers that expand on the narrative themes of the Creators Corps works: grief, nostalgia, triumph, and love.

—Aria Baci

SATURDAY, MAY 11

International Food Truck Festival

Big Four Lawn | 1101 E River Rd. | ourwaterfront.org | Free | 11 a.m.

The third annual international food truck festival is back in Louisville, where foods all around the world are gathered in one location. Try foods from all over including Hurrikanes Monster Dawgs, the sweet taste of My Ol’ Kentucky Lemonade, or the particular blend from 305 Cubano.

—Caleb Stultz

FRIDAY, MAY 10

Snõõper, Deady, Fruit Loops, Plastics Portal | 1535 Lytle St. | portal-louisville.com | $10 adv/$15 door | 8 p.m. | All ages

With their exceedingly high-energy, 80’s neon tracksuits, synchronized choreography, and assortment of papier-mâché props, Nashville’s Snõõper is quite unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before. Described as “a band who, in a 33 ⅓ RPM world, make 45 RPM music they play at 78 RPM,” their sound is somewhere along the lines of Devo covering Black Flag covering The Ramones, and their songs are as catchy as their live show is fun. With a bill that also features the equally as energetic Deady, Fruit Loops (from Cincinnati), and Plastics, this is a show you’re just gonna need to catch!

—Jeff Polk

SATURDAY, MAY 11

How-To Festival

Main Library | 301 York St. | lfpl.org | 10 a.m. | Free

Louisville Free Public Library’s How-To Festival will return for its 11th year on May 11. The annual tradition attracts thousands of Louisvillians in search of educational, entertaining, interactive, and free! The How-To Festival offers people of all ages the opportunity to learn how to do more than 50 different things through out the course of a fivehour program. Sessions last approximately 45 minutes and cover a diverse topics, from business to fitness to gardening.

—Sydney Catinna

SATURDAY, MAY 11

Harbor History Cruise Belle of Louisville | 401 West River Rd. | belleoflousiville.org | $10 | 4 p.m.

The first excursion of the season will be a narrated adventure learning all about the history and founding of Louisville, the significance of steamboats in the city and so much more. Kids are eligible for Free Adventure Passports for this journey.

—Caleb Stultz

SATURDAY, MAY 11

Belushi Speed Ball album release Headliners Music Hall | 1386 Lexington Rd. | headlinerslouisville.com | $10 adv/$15 door | 5:30 p.m. | All ages

Come celebrate the release of Belushi Speed Ball’s latest pizza thrash masterpiece Stellkira the only way BSB knows how: with complete and utter chaos! There truly is nothing like a Belushi Speed Ball show, and they are promising this to be one of their biggest yet, so expect the riffs, La Croix, cardboard, toilet paper, assorted trinkets, and God knows what else to be flying. An absolutely stacked opening lineup featuring Thee Tabs, Surfaced, Busby Death Chair, Mommy’s Cigarettes, and Deep Above make this a show for the ages. This show will definitely sell out, so advance tickets are highly recommended.

—Jeff Polk

WEDNESDAY, MAY 15 – 19 AND 22 – 26

Wildcat

Speed Cinema | 2035 S. 3rd St. | speedmuseum.org/ cinema | $12 or $8 for members | Times Vary

Directed and co-written by Ethan Hawke and filmed in Kentucky, Wildcat explores the interiority of Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor as she contemplates questions raised in her writing: Does suffering precede greatness? Can illness be a blessing? When Flannery (Maya Hawke) is diagnosed with lupus at 24 years old, her imagination drifts into an exploration of her most closely held beliefs.

—Aria Baci

FRIDAY, MAY 17

Deady, Grocer, Shi, Prayer Line

The Alcove | 246 Spring St, Jeffersonville | thealcovebar.com | Free | 9:00 p.m. | 21 and over

One thing we need more of in the Louisville area are shows with some musical diversity, so cheers to The Alcove and whomever put this together because you’re getting a great mix of sounds here. Heading things up are the spunky post punk party mammals Deady. Philadelphia garage punk power trio Grocer swing by while on tour for their latest album Bless Me. Rounding out the bill are depressive stoner doom metal psychos Shi, and horror punk metalheads Prayer Line. And it’s all free, so you have no excuse not to be there.

—Jeff Polk

WEDNESDAY, MAY 15

Court? Throw the Book at Them!

Carmichael’s Bookstore | 2720 Frankfort Ave. | carmichaelsbookstore.com | Free | 7 p.m.

“…the U.S. Constitution does not explicitly confer the right to vote.” Did you know that? University of Kentucky law professor Joshua A. Douglas is pulling back the curtain to show how the highest law of the land has given us decades of reasons to be troubled with legitimate concern. In his second book

“The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights,” Douglas recounts a litany of court decisions that began clawing back on ballot freedoms practically since the ink was still wet on 1965’s Voting Rights Act. Some of these you know: the WTF? of Bush v. Gore. The Citizens United decision that unleashed dark money to become its own towering economy. The trend is far from over. Come to Carmichael’s and hear how the professor adds a firebrand’s prose style to clear and important explanations.

—T.E. Lyons

FRIDAY, MAY 17-19

Poorcastle Festival

Breslin Park | 1400 Payne St. | poorcastle.com | 1 p.m. | $15+

Louisville’s favorite outsider music festival is happening May 17 – 19. Poorcastle will celebrate their 10-year anniversary with a stellar lineup of bands playing all weekend in Breslin Park. The festival will host local vendors, food trucks, immersive art installations, beer and cocktails from Apocalypse Brew Works and The MerryWeather.

—Sydney Catinna

BELUSHI SPEED BALL’S TONY HAZELIP TALKS NEW ALBUM, UPCOMING SHOWS, AND THE DANGERS OF “SERIOUS” STRING

BY JEFF POLK

There is no band quite like Louisville’s own Belushi Speed Ball. Originally founded in 2013 as a studio project by singer and chief songwriter Vinny Castellano, the band shifted from the studio to the stage shortly thereafter. But it wasn’t until they teamed up with their mouthwash-swilling hapless manager Señor Diablo, (filmmaker

has been dubbed “pizza thrash” and was accurately described by MetalSucks as “a freakshow of blistering thrash dedicated to laughing its ass off at blistering thrash.”

Their live shows are legendary; each individually themed and has included everything from the band playing out of a Mad Max-esque moving van, a Terminator-

and Louisville music scene documentarian Beau Kaelin), that the band went in a whole new direction by incorporating props and audience participation into their live shows. Their brand of crossover thrash metal, which is influenced as much by old-school bands like Anthrax and GWAR as it is newer throwback bands like Toxic Holocaust and Municipal Waste,

inspired 300-person Nerf gun fight, to audience members wrestling in a baby pool filled with creamed corn. Known for throwing “trash” at the audience from the stage, (cardboard boxes, toilet paper, random thrift-store found items, etc), the band has developed a reputation for both trashing venues and meticulously cleaning them up after each performance.

And their merch — which has included releasing entire albums on N64, SNES, and Gameboy Advanced game systems, reprogrammed Teddy Ruxpin and Furby that sing and dance along to their music, and singles literally released on Dunkaroos and slices of pizza — are far more creative, off-the-wall, and ultimately hilarious than any other band has ever thought to release. LEO recently caught up with bassist Tony Hazelip for a chat about their upcoming release Stellkira, album release show at Headliners Music Hall, and all things BSB.

LEO: So how did you get hooked up with Belushi Speed Ball?

Tony Hazelip: I met Vinny after the Louisville Is Dead fest in 2018 and asked if he wanted to jam. The other members of Speed Ball decided to move on to other projects, so instead of starting a new band, Vinny said we will just do Speed Ball 2. We wrote some stuff together, some of which ended up on Belushi Speed Ball Part 2: The Frank Castle Picnic. I had to step out [of the band], but stayed close by in an unofficial capacity; being a goon sometimes and just a general rabble rouser until I started playing bass last year.

What can we expect from the new album, Stellkira?

TH: Ohhhhh boy, it’s a banger from top to bottom! There are some heavy duty tracks on it, and we finally got Jamison [LandBelushi Speed Ball’s guitarist and former GWAR bassist] on there!

What are some of your favorite songs on the new album, and what songs are you most looking forward to playing live for the first time?

TH: “The Accountant’s Due (Stab the Katana),” that song slams sooooooo hard! “Griffith Did Literally Everything Wrong,” that song slaaaaaaaays! I can’t wait for Louisville to hear these tracks live May 11th at Headliners!

What can we expect at the album release show?

TH: We’re at home playing one of our favorite places to all of our favorite people... expect everything!

Belushi Speed Ball

Photo submitted by band

What have been some of your favorite Belushi Speed Ball shows?

TH: I loved the Kaiju days; packing into the back room and making the walls sweat. Once, BSB did a Groundhog Day show and played three of my favorite songs three times in a row!

TH: Have there ever been any items you’ve given out at a show that you all instantly regretted?

TH: [Laughs] Yes, the serious string show was rough! This was a few years ago during what I call the Kaiju days when Speed Ball played there a lot, and they really would push the limits on some things. I forget what the theme was, but Kaiju said no silly string, so BSB brought out big balls of actual string and called it serious string. The show turned into a nightmare because everyone got tangled up and we were falling all over the place, and at that time the Speed Ball shows were already pretty chaotic. And we played Indy last October and went on late. It was the weekend before Halloween, so there was already fake blood on shit from the previous band Republikan Sexblanket. We threw out candy corn, which got smashed into the floor and was a biiiiiiitch to clean up! We had to scrape it off the floor.

What piece of Belushi Speed Ball merch has been your favorite so far?

TH: The pizza single — Vinny loves making them!

Is there any piece of merch that you’re surprised actually sold?

TH: [Laughs] The pizza single!

I noticed you all are playing the Milwaukee Metalfest on the same day as Municipal Waste. If you get Municipal Waste to join you all on stage for “Ripping Off Municipal Waste”, would you still be, in fact, ripping off Municipal Waste at that point?

TH: Yep, right to their face! [Laughs] Honestly, the feedback we’ve heard come down the line from Municipal Waste has been positive. We’d love for them to come up though!

You’ve also got a show at the Obscene Extreme Festival in the Czech Republic in July, how did that come about, and will there be a European tour?

TH: Vinny’s constant networking got us that one. As far as I know, it’s just gonna be that one show.

How big are you all looking to make Belushi Speed Ball? Do you all want to keep it as

kind of a weekend gig/short tour kind of thing, or are you all looking to make this a full-time, months on the road at a time kind of thing?

TH: FULL-TIME!!!

You’re also working on a new band, Facilitate. Tell us about that.

TH: It started last summer when Vern [the singer] asked me to start a band. My response was “Do you have a drummer?” It was a yes, and we’ve been plugging away ever since. We have a show at Spinelli’s Downtown on June 6! It’s gonna be a baaaaanger!

You’ve also been doing The Savage Wholigan podcast for quite a few years now, tell us about that.

TH: I started the podcast with my best friend Adam Fish. After he passed away in 2022, I put it on hold until I felt like I could go it alone. Now I’m back, baby! So all you bands, artists and general weirdos beware; I wanna interview you!

Finally, what kinds of plans does Belushi Speed Ball have coming up?

TH: New Album out May 11 and shows, shows, shows! We’re hustling like never before — visiting new places and playing

new festivals. Follow us on Spotify for the tunes and all the socials for tour updates, merch, and all things Belushi Speed Ball!

Belushi Speed Ball’s new album “Stellkira” drops Friday, May 10 on all streaming platforms, and the album release show happens Saturday, May 11 at Headliners Music Hall. To purchase the new album and merch, check out belushispeedball.bandcamp. com. For show information, check out headlinerslouisville.com.

FOOD & DRINK

ANOOSH HAS LEFT THE BUILDING, BUT NOOSH NOSH KEEPS UP THE PACE

BY ROBIN GARR

One of the many memorable immigrant stories in Louisville culinary history wrapped up last month when Chef Anoosh Shariat concluded a 30-year career in local kitchens, retiring from his namesake Anoosh Bistro. Over a year earlier, Shariat had trimmed his workload by selling his other popular East End eatery, Noosh Nosh.

New management at both establishments was quick to assure a wary public that no major changes would be forthcoming at either of the restaurants, which are situated just across a parking lot from each other at Brownsboro Center.

Over at Anoosh Bistro, another coincidence

makes the transition an even more touching story: Shariat, who emigrated from Iran as a refugee from the Ayatollah’s revolution in the late ‘70s, has turned over the reins of this casual spot to recent immigrants from India, who say they want to carry on the dream that Shariat has set in place.

“Anoosh is a legend, and I was fortunate enough to work with him,” said Akshay (“Ak”) Kadam, Noosh Nosh’s new general manager, who came on when Shariat sold the restaurant in the autumn of 2022 and brought in his friend Arthikselvan (“Art”) Rajaiah as chef a couple of months later.

“That was a real challenge for me, as I was the face of Noosh Nosh, and working without Chef Anoosh was not easy,” he said. “But I quickly realized the core of Noosh Nosh is about hospitality and caring for people. I had faith in me

and my team.”

Born in Mumbai, India, Kadam earned a degree in hospitality and catering technology at Mumbai University. then came to America in 2013 to earn his MBA in marketing and finance in California. He came to Louisville on vacation and, he says, fell in love with the vibe of the city.

He got a job as a banquet bar manager at the Galt House, then managed Frankfort Avenue Beer Depot (FABD) and Hooked on Frankfort, where he met Chef Art.

After a spell at an Indian restaurant in Florida, he met Chef Anoosh through a friend. Finding

much in common, he says, they connected right away. He returned to Louisville, came to work for Shariat, and eventually stepped into the management post.

Noosh Nosh’s 10-page menu offers a wide variety of choices to please just about anyone. It hasn’t changed much, and Kadam says that’s intentional, as they’ve sought to refresh the menu, incorporating seasonal ingredients and innovative dishes – a chicken tikka menu turns up as a frequent special – while maintaining the restaurant’s signature flavors.

As in the past, Noosh Nosh’s breakfast menu is served until 3 p.m. daily, and its regular menu available all day. Pricing across the menu is affordable, with most breakfast and all-day dishes in the $12 to $20 range.

Our party of three, with my sister Amy, visiting from Florida, joining us, shared three dishes

Noosh Nosh

4816 Brownsboro Center

205-2888

nooshnosh.com

facebook.com/NooshNoshAllDay

and enjoyed them all.

Black bean cakes ($11) made an appetizing and healthy plant-based and vegan course. Two hefty protein-rich spheres were fashioned from black beans and spices, pleasingly crisp skin surrounding a creamy interior. They were plated on a creamy pool of rich aioli fashioned from pureed cashews and topped with spicy pink salsa roja, and a fresh, tangy pico de gallo.

A roasted half chicken ($22) from the “hearty plates” menu page started with a halal chicken breast, boneless save for the attached wing –what used to be called an airline breast back when airlines served meals. The chicken was tender and juicy from the roasting oven, perched on a sturdy mound of veggies that had joined it in the roast: cauliflower florets, carrots sliced lengthwise, and brussels sprouts. The chicken was drizzled with a tangy citrus glaze, sprinkled with parsley and sumac to provide a scent of Southwest Asia, and garnished with lemon slices. I’ve been somewhat obsessed with pizza lately, so it probably won’t surprise you to see me add a margherita pizza ($16) to the table. It was a pretty good pizza, too, and I’m happy to report that I could see Noosh Nosh’s trademark red-tiled gasand wood-fired stone oven at the back of the room. The margherita pizza, as I’ve probably said before, is no kin to the Mexican margarita cocktail but a classic tradition of Neapolitan pizza. Purportedly created in 1889, when Italy first united as a single nation, it’s named ofter Queen Margarita and designed in the red, white, and green colors of the then-new Italian flag.

Noosh Nosh’s version tweaked that concept just slightly, with tomato slices hidden under a warm blanket of cheese, sliced basil leaves scattered on top, and a thin, tasty spread of pesto coating the thin crust beneath. The cheese was fully melted but the pale crust could have used a bit more time to brown in the oven.

A satisfying brunch for three came to $51.94, plus a $10 tip.

Noise Level: Every table in the small front room was occupied during a busy Sunday lunch, and there was at least one active toddler. Nevertheless, conversation was never difficult.

Accessibility: The restaurant and restrooms appear to be accessible to wheelchair users, although it might be difficult to maneuver between some closely spaced tables.

Noosh Nosh General Manager Akshay Kadam (right) and Chef Arthikselvan Rajaiah at the popular East End restaurant.

Dan Dry

Tender and juicy, Noosh Nosh’s hearty chicken plate, made with halal poultry, boasts a lemony scent and aromatic hints of Southwest Asia.

A margherita flatbread pizza features the traditional mix of basil, tomato, and mozzarella plus a schmear of pesto and a generous hand with the molten cheese.

Robin Garr

WILDCAT

BY TRACY HEIGHTCHEW

Wildcat

May 15-19 & 22-26

Speed Cinema

$12 / $8 for Speed Museum members www.speedmuseum.org/cinema

I am most charmed by what I call “little movies,” film projects that feel like the makers channel them from beyond, compelled by something better than money—the fiery need to tell an intimate, heartfelt story.  Movies like “Dogfight,” “Gas, Food, Lodging,” and “Tangerine,” to name a few. Tiny budgets are

fiction workshop bound twenty-something to the bedridden, peacock-loving genius she would become. Set in 1950, when Flannery is 24 and diagnosed with lupus, the disease that killed her father and will eventually kill her at age 39, the film focuses on Flannery’s life as a writer with huge ambitions, her struggles to come to terms with her serious medical issues, and her relationship with her strong-willed, yet loving caretaker mother. The always delicious Laura Linney plays Flannery’s mother, and Maya Hawke transforms from her “Stranger Things” It Girl persona to the plain, physically ailing and eccentric genius, deliv-

key, since the restrictions plus vision inspire real creativity rather than focus group reads. Often, these films feel like they were made in your backyard. And, sometimes, as is the case of the Ethan and Maya Hawke vehicle “Wildcat,” they really are.

Filmed in and around Louisville, Shelbyville, Frankfort, and Loretto, KY, “Wildcat” is an odd, lovely, and funny glimpse at the life and work of southern gothic writer Flannery O’Connor. Less a straight biopic, “Wildcat” is a meditation of sorts on the early career of O’Connor and her transition from Iowa

ering a nuanced performance. Most importantly to this Kentucky viewer, her accent work is A+ and didn’t grate on me one bit.  Between vignettes of real life, we experience dramatizations of O’Connor’s famous, and often perfect, short stories. These interpretations use the same actors from Flannery’s life to play the wholly original characters she created in her stories, suggesting a connection between O’Connor’s bio and the stories she wrote. O’Connor herself scoffed at the idea that her stories were reminiscent of her life, citing her housebound status as proof.

But “Wildcat” is not interested in explaining away the stories by means of biography, but rather to show that the Catholic O’Connor’s creativity sprang from processing the world around her within the restraints of her illness and station, coupled with her longing to know and serve God.

Traditional biopics create an illusion of telling a whole story of a life, and for that reason, usually fail as art. Their agenda is to create a narrative authority and convince the viewer that what they are seeing is the whole story of a life, or at least, all that matters. What the Hawkes are instead doing with “Wildcat” is to use her imaginary life as told through her stories, coupled with lines from her letters and, most importantly, dramatizations of O’Connor’s “Pray Journal” to create an interpretation of her inner life. The result is that major themes of O’Connor’s life are only glanced over rather than thoroughly explored, and this can be seen as a weakness. Most galling for modern viewers will be the gentle way O’Connor’s own racism is handled when there is potential for an entire movie that is about nothing but her relationship to race. It is a theme to be grappled with and I would love to see the movie that shows the creators absorbed takes from thinkers like Hilton Als, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison, all writers who get into the meat of O’Connor and race, and offer complex readings of her work and life.

This longing for an additional movie is not a sign that “Wildcat” is not a strong work of art though. It is not aiming to be the endpoint of the audience’s relationship with this literary giant, but rather a jumping off point. Like “A Prayer Journal” itself, an incomplete, strong in craftsmanship, heartfelt pleading with God that inspired Maya Hawke to create “Wildcat” in the first place, this film is a strong scaffolding for a lifetime of inquiry.

To get maximum enjoyment out of “Wildcat,” I would suggest reading “A Prayer Journal” and the short stories featured in the film, preferably before watching the film. Luckily, all these stories are widely available and fun to read! There is also a PBS American Masters doc about FOC that is enjoyable homework.

The “Wildcat” short story syllabus:

“Good Country People”

“Everything That Rises Must Converge”

“Revelation”

“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”

“The Enduring Chill”

“Parker’s Back”

“The Comforts of Home”

DERBY STAR SIERRA LEONE RACED TO SUPPORT THE

BACKSIDE COMMUNITY

Owner Brook T. Smith pledged $100,000 of potential winnings to the Backside Learning Center.

BY ARIA BACI

Brook Smith, owner of Kentucky Derby favorite and Blue Grass Stakes winner Sierra Leone, is a long-time supporter of the Backside Learning Center (BLC). The BLC is an independent non-profit organization that provides support and resources for the diverse community of Churchill Downs racetrack workers and their families. If Sierra Leone won the Derby, Smith pledged $100,000 to the Backside Learning Center.

support group called El Grupo De Mamás (The Mom’s Group), which centers the importance of literacy in early childhood education. For tweens and teens, the BLC offers youth-specific health and wellness services, like therapeutic recreation and excursions outside Louisville. Since opening its doors in 2004, the community center at the BLC has become a home away from home for its staff, instructors, and volunteers, as well as for backside and trackside workers.

Giving Back Through Purses For A Purpose In LEO’s coverage of Gallopalooza 2024 — for which, Louisville-based artist Sara Noori collaborated with backside workers to create a pattern of handprints on the horse sculpture sponsored by the BLC — executive director of the BLC Sherry Stanley discussed ways in which “the most exciting two minutes in sports” requires 365 days of labor. Much of that labor is unseen and under-appreciated. “There are people back here working in the stable area 10 months out of the year,” she said. “And at the Trackside Training Center off Poplar Level, 12 months out of the year.” Throughout the year, the BLC schedules classes that offer educational support, like English learning for adults and youth. Other programs provide workers and their families with services that range from housing support and transportation access, to legal advocacy and community financial resources. The BLC facilitates a parent

Smith’s support of the BLC is measurable: he helped develop the Purses for a Purpose program that fortifies the BLC’s efforts to more directly connect horse owners to the backside community. For Smith, racehorse ownership carries with it an obligation to support the people who make it all happen. Giving back through Purses for a Purpose accelerates that support. Funds from the initiative go directly to programming at the BLC, which include language learning opportunities, artmaking, and human services.

In addition to the standard percentage of purse earnings that Brook automatically donates to the BLC through Purses for a Purpose, if Sierra Leone had won the 150th Kentucky Derby, Smith promised an additional $100,000 to the BLC.

Smith says he has a challenge for other horse owners this year. “If we can get 150 owners, and 150 horses for that matter, and they pledge to donate 1% of purse winnings with these 150

horses, that moves a bigger needle than people realize.” Beyond the actual dollar amount — which is considerable — Smiths says, “it means a lot, the thought that the owners think about the backside, and those who support it.” Smith’s challenge has already inspired trainer Cherie DeVaux, and Bloodstock agent David Ingordo to include weekend stakes contenders in BLC’s Purses for a Purpose initiative. DeVaux and Ingordo have pledged as much as $10,000 of purse winnings from all seven of their horses running in races between opening day and the Kentucky Derby. Of these seven horses, three are running in graded stakes races (a thoroughbred horse race that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association): Vahva (GI Derby City Distaff Stakes), Pipeline (GII Alysheba Stakes) and Medalla Match (GIII Unbridled Sidney Stakes.) “We encourage other owners, trainers, jockeys and bloodstock agents to also find a way to contribute to [the BLC] and the great work it does for our racetrack families,” says Ingordo.

Benefiting The Backside Community

The BLC was “ecstatic” for Sierra Leone to represent the Purses for a Purpose team in the Kentucky Derby. “We’re so fortunate to have Brook Smith advocating for the BLC’s mission as we work directly with the backbone of the horseracing industry,” says Stanley. “Now that the BLC has a horse in the Derby, we hope this gives more exposure to the community making it all happen.”

Peyton Hobson, Communications and Marketing Manager at the BLC emphasizes the importance of Purses for a Purpose. “It connects horse owners to the transformative work we do with Backside workers and their families, who are the backbone of the industry,” says Hobson. “To say we’re excited is an understatement. Not only do we have a horse on our team that is an actual Derby contender, he happens to be the favorite!” This initiative exemplifies the power of not only philanthropy, but also of collective action, to cultivate a better future for the Backside community. Hobson says thanks to Brook and his pledge, “backside workers, and their critical role — in making not just the Derby happen but as the lifeblood of the entire industry — is finally getting talked about.”

Sierra Leone didn’t win the Derby but came in second, that could still benefit the community who make it all possible. And that will be as historic and memorable as the race itself.

Children of the BLC at Camp Bernheim

Photo submitted by Backside Learning Center

Brook T Smith with Sierra Leone

Anne Eberhardt Keogh /Bloodhorse

‘SIX’ COMES TO LOUISVILLE AND TEENS FIND IT MORE THAN JUST THE SONGS

BY ARTS ANGLE VANTAGE

“Six” finally arrived in Louisville last month — just four years after it opened on Broadway and the Covid pandemic quickly forced its temporary hiatus.

It already had a stellar history from its impressive debut in the 2017 Edinburg Festival Fringe to the release of its powerful original studio cast soundtrack the next year. The songs took top spots on UK soundtracks and

US and cast albums charts in the following years.

Then in 2022, after its 2021 Broadway reopening, came the blockbuster album “Six: Live on Opening Night.” With the vocals of the Broadway cast, it premiered in the #1 spot on the Billboard’s Cast Album charts. Moreover, two weeks after its release, it had been streamed more than 3.5 million times.

Artists of ‘Six’ give voice to women who were wronged, and what amazing voices they are

By Amelia

Dykes | Arts Angle Vantage Reporter

OUR LADY OF PROVIDENCE HIGH SCHOOL, CLASS OF 2026

Amelia Dykes (she/her), a sophomore at Our Lady of Providence High School, is on the girls soccer team and manages the track team. She also is a singer at Bella Voce and participates in Providence’s theater arts program. She wants to share the magic of live theater with as many people as possible.

Heartbroken, powerful, full of love — these are some words describing Jane Seymour. Seymour was an important wife of King Henry VIII. She provided the first male heir to the throne and was the “only one he truly loved,” as she sings.

Seymour (Amina Faye) is one of six in “Six,” the touring musical that opened as part of PNC Broadway in Louisville’s season and ran April 9 through 15 at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts.

Faye gave an amazing rendition of Seymour’s “Heart of Stone.” Vocally, this song is based on Adele and Sia, and their iconic ballads. Faye hits every note perfectly. A personal favorite is when late in the song she belted out “Yeah,” sending shivers down my spine. Faye’s deep power and the emotion in her voice showed the character’s anguish because she died and left an orphan son. She shows her caring, quiet, and soft-tempered individuality, unlike the other queens who are outspoken and loud. That is why her song is so powerful: she finally gets to have her moment in the spotlight, literally.

“Six” was written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss when the two were students at Cambridge University. The musical turned “pop sensation”

tells the stories of all the queens who were “divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived.”

Some of the most iconic female pop stars — Beyoncé, Shakira, Lily Allen, Avril Lavigne, Adele, Sia, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Arianna Grande, Britney Spears, Alicia Keys, and Emeli Sande — inspired the writers.

This gorgeously written musical takes you on a journey about the six wives of Henry VIII: Seymour, Catherine of Aragon (Gerianne Pérez), Anne Boleyn (Zan Berube), Anna of Cleves (Terica Marie), Katherine Howard (Aryn Bohannon), and Catherine Parr (Adriana Scalice). Each wife tells of their marriage with Henry VIII as each tries to be the leader of the singing group.

The contest sometimes trumps the storytelling banter. “The queen who was dealt the worst hand… Shall be the one to lead the band,” are some of the quips in between songs.

The popular two songs in “Six” are “Don’t Lose Your Head” and “All You Wanna Do.” Don’t Lose Your Head,” sung by Boleyn (Berube), is based on pop punk alternative star Avril Lavigne and pop star Lily Allen. “All You Wanna Do,” sung

Many teens, including our reviewers, know “Six” through the songs.

But when the “Six” came to Louisville, they experienced “Six” in new ways and in person. At times, it threw them a few surprises. Read their reviews for yourself and find out.

— Elizabeth Kramer, Executive Director, Arts Angle Vantage

by Howard (Bohannon), is based on pop artists Arianna Grande and Britney Spears. Both are super-upbeat songs you can rock out to. Berube and Bohannon showed the emotion at the perfect spots in the song, better elevating the songs’ storytelling. On both songs, the unique lighting mirrored the colors of their clothes. The songs are both different, too. Berube strongly illustrated the character’s confident and cocky attitude. She brings that attitude into her singing. Likewise, Bohannon knows the trauma that Kathrine went through. She takes it and uses it to show that emotion in “All You Wanna Do.” The song focuses on Katherine’s lovers and reveals how much men used her — from her father through Henry. “Don’t Lose Your Head” focuses on Boleyn’s career. She rose to her status from the French court and made it to be queen.

“Six” displays women making their voices heard. The actresses portraying the queens embody the characters. Even the musicians in the band playing on stage were women. That lineup — Sterlyn Termine (bass), Rose Laguana (guitars), Kami Lujan (drums), and Jane Cardona (keyboard/music director) — also made the production unforgettable. The musicians boosted the fun. They chimed in on the banter, even talking to the queens in the background during arguments among the queens. Sometimes during songs, the queens gave them a shout-out and the musicians performed solos. This all made the show scream FEMALE POWER! I know that “Six” will blow the roof off every theater.

Terica Marie as Anna of Cleves (center) in the North American Tour of “Six” (Boleyn Company).

Joan Marcus. Courtesy PNC Broadway in Louisville.

Dazzling vocals, stage tricks, etc., can’t mask the dreadful stories of the king’s ex-wives, and the need to spotlight herstory

By Monica Tanner | Arts Angle Vantage Reporter

MERCY

ACADEMY, CLASS OF 2025

What do the six wives of Henry VIII, a night at the theater, and club lights all have in common? Seemingly, nothing except for the Tony Award-winning musical “Six.” It is certainly the only show where Renaissance monarchs perform as pop princesses, nay, queens. With a synth-pop sound of a Hot 100 Hit, the musical effortlessly blends theater and modern pop, while still paying homage to its classical inspiration.

The queens took the stage and invited the audience to help decide who would be the leader of their newly formed band during the opening night of a six-day run at the Kentucky Center for the Arts as part of PNC Broadway in Louisville’s season. They competed for the title by performing individual songs that focus on the one thing they all share — their lousy ex-husband.

As the queens went along (in chronological order), they told their life stories and explained the trials they faced as Henry’s wife. Catherine of Aragon (Gerianne Pérez) started strong as she performed a Beyoncé style belter about her refusal to step down from the throne. She was followed immediately by her rival, Anne Boleyn (Zan Berube), who took on the persona of a TikTok It-Girl, who “just wants to have some fun.” The show slowed down a bit as Jane Seymour (Amina Faye) sang a heart-wrenching ballad of her devotion.

The energy picked right back up with a

flashy group number and more solos. Anna of Cleves (Terica Marie) got the audience moving with a song about her carefree life in Richmond. Kathrine Howard (Aryn Bohannon) brought a peppy beat, with a dark edge as she recounts the many times she was taken advantage of by powerful men as a child. Finally, Catherine Parr (Adriana Scalice) concluded the competition as she sang a letter to her lost love.

Each solo was enjoyable in its own way, but the truly heavenly moments came when the queens joined forces. With only three group numbers in the whole show, the angelic blend of voices was rare, which made it that much sweeter.

However, their personalities did not blend as harmoniously as their vocals. That made for endless witty banter and petty feuds. Watching them interact felt like watching your favorite episode of a trashy reality show. The rivalry between Catherine of Aragon (Pérez) and Anne Boleyn (Berube) was particularly hilarious, as they even resorted to one-upping each other by tallying miscarriages. Despite their entertaining relationships, the most interesting dynamic was between the queens and the audience. Unlike a traditional show, the cast was fully aware of their spectators and addressed them directly throughout the performance. Anna of Cleves (Marie) was the queen with the most crowd

chemistry. She played the audience into the palm of her hand before she even hit the first chorus. Her over-the-top energy and strong confidence came off in waves, which knocked the stillness right out of the crowd. At every moment, the crowd was going wild for her. Even two songs later, a simple one-liner earned her a gush of rousing applause.

The musical’s infectious energy went beyond the queens themselves. The laser-licious lighting (Tim Deiling) turned Whitney Hall into a nightclub fit for royalty. Pair this with the live band accompanying the queens on stage, and you’re left with a buzzing set unlike any other production.

But under this musical’s fog machines, glitter, colors, and lights, lies an important question: Why is a man defining these women? Catherine Parr (Scalice) pulls this issue into the spotlight and ponders if boiling themselves down to a shared ex-husband was an injustice to their individual attributes.

The queens could leave you to process this revelation on your own. Instead, they provide an indulgent ending where each writes her own happy ending. As idealistic as the closing number was, when the lights came up and the adrenaline faded away, you’re left with the saddening realization that that’s all it was — idealistic. In real life, these women were hated, abused, and even killed.

“Six” forces you to think about how women are described in history and dig deeper into

‘Six’: a harmony of riches that transforms woeful stories into empowering messages

By Lucy Thompson | Arts Angle Vantage Reporter

“Six,” the musical, was so worth seeing, because the storyline, acting, and costumes are so breathtaking.

The musical, with a script, music, and lyrics created by Lucy Moss and Tobey Marlow in 2017, came to the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts as part of PNC Broadway in Louisville’s season from April 9 through 14.

“Six,” is about Henry VIII’s six wives and tells their stories through songs where they compete about who had the most tragic life. But it alters into a theme about empowering

women. In the musical, the wives tear each other down and fight throughout the show instead of holding each other up during their time of need.

The actors had so much talent. The power of their voices was remarkable. The costumes were mind-blowing. I am one who always pays close attention to costumes. I have seen videos of these costumes and been amazed by them. Seeing them in person was a phenomenal experience. The colors, the crystals, and the movement of the costumes perfectly matched each queen’s personality.

Jane Seymour’s costume was stunning. Seymour is historically known for being quiet and her outfit interpreted her personality with darker colors, long sleeves, and a longer skirt.

My favorite queen, Anne of Cleves (Terica Marie), has a story that may be the least tragic out of all the queens. Still, it fascinates me the most. She was the only one who didn’t need Henry to live. She thrived as a single woman in the 1500s in a palace that she happened to own. Henry divorced Anne of Cleves because he disliked her appearance.

the stories that have passed through generations. Not only is “Six” revolutionizing musical theater, but it’s also refocusing on “herstory” one note at a time.

Monica Tanner (she/her), a junior at Mercy Academy, is active in Future Business Leaders of America serving as the treasurer in her region and as a chapter officer. She is an officer of her school’s environmental club, where she works to help make her community more eco-friendly. Her favorite subject is English, where she enjoys analyzing literature and experimenting with her writing.

He claimed she looked better in her portrait. Terica Marie played her perfectly. Her voice, costume, and dancing portrayed Anne of Cleves fantastically. She was energetic and lively. Her voice was so powerful and beautiful. In “Six,” Anne of Cleves is a bold woman, and Tercia Marie embodies that. You could practically see confidence radiate off her while she performed.

The songs, music, and clever lyrics were incredible, particularly in “Don’t Lose Your Head” sung by Anne Boylen (Zan Berube). It is about Anne Boleyn’s life with Henry and how she was beheaded. “Don’t lose your head” is great because of how easy it is to quote, and it uses modern-day language such as “LOL” and “XO.”

The band, a.k.a., The Ladies in Waiting, was extraordinary, and the best part was the band was onstage, unlike many Broadway musicals. In the band, there was a keyboardist (Jane Cardona) who was also the music director, a bassist (Sterlyn Termine), and a guitarist (Rose Laguna) who all did outstanding jobs. I was in complete awe of how perfectly they played.

The lighting designer (Tim Deiling) did a wonderful job. The colors were beautiful, and the lights would change depending on who was singing. If Anne of Cleves was singing the lights would change to red to match the color of her costume, a clever idea. It brightened the musical and made it more fun to watch. The perfect ending pulled everything together in such a smooth-fitting way. The queens realized they did not need to compete and fight each other over who had the most tragic story. They realized that all they needed was each other.

Lucy Thompson (she/her), a sophomore at Presentation Academy, is active in theater and a member of the golf team at her school. In theater, she has participated in set building and prop design. Thompson aspires to study psychology and become a psychologist after high school.

Drenched in pop extravagance, ‘Six’ also has a dark side that lingers

after the traumas are told

By Marielle Treese | Arts Angle Vantage Reporter

ASSUMPTION HIGH SCHOOL, CLASS OF 2027

King Henry VIII never treated any of his wives well. Divorced. Beheaded. Died. Divorced. Beheaded. Survived. Those were the fates of his six wives. Henry certainly gave each of his wife’s trauma when he was married to them, and it definitely shouldn’t be something made into a competition. But what if it was?

“Six” the musical, by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss and directed by Moss and Jamie Armitage, explores the concept of things that shouldn’t be a contest. Trauma is one of these things.

“Six” opened at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts on April 9 and ran through April 14.

The show follows the six wives of King Henry VIII: Catherine of Aragon (Gerianne Pérez), Anne Boleyn (Zan Berube), Jane Seymour (Amina Faye), Anna of Cleves (Terica Marie), Katherine Howard (Aryn Bohannon), and Catherine Parr (Adriana Scalice). What starts as a simple competition to decide which queen should lead the band soon devolves into a contest of which queen had the worst trauma.

The competition was doomed from the beginning because the queens said the deciding factor should be whoever had “the biggest, the firmest, the fullest…load of B.S. from the man who put a ring on it.”

After the song “All You Wanna Do,” the queens get into a heated argument about their experiences as Henry’s wives. There’s yelling, screaming, insults, and mention of amounts of miscarriages. There are tales of manipulation, abuse, and tragedy. All this chaos stems from the first five queens’ attempts to one-up each other.

Catherine Parr (Scalice) interrupts this mess of an argument and calls them out for their ridiculous behavior. Scalice brings the character of Parr to life through her passion during her performance of “I Don’t Need Your Love.” Her facial expressions as well as her tone while singing all portray Parr’s experience of being limited to the wife that survived Henry.  Parr makes the queens realize they are twisting their trauma into a competition.

This realization causes the queens

to find more positive similarities and develop bonds of friendship. This “historemix” ends with the queens claiming their crowning glory, realizing they are much more than one of Henry’s six wives.

The message of “Six” is relevant to today’s society because none of us are perfect. We all have our own traumas and our own glories, and we shouldn’t judge others because of that.

Marielle Treese (she/her), a freshman at Assumption High School, has participated in Assumption’s Rose Theatre Company’s costume construction crew and earned her brown belt in taekwondo with a black stripe (the latter indicates rank achievement). She likes to try new things and expand her areas of expertise. Some interests include K-Pop girl groups, writing, mathematics, and reading books.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Arts Angle Vantage, a nonprofit organization, prepares youth from diverse backgrounds for success by providing them with access to the arts and empowers them to use their voices to create arts journalism that reaches a wider public. LEO Weekly has been a strong partner in this endeavor since 2018.

freewillastrology@freewillastrology.com BrezsnyAstrology@gmail.com

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

Week of April 24

ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19): When my friend Jessalyn first visited Disneyland as a child, she was smitten by its glimmering, unblemished mystery. “It was far more real than real,” she said. “A dream come true.” But after a few hours, her infatuation unraveled. She began to see through the luster. Waiting in long lines to go on the rides exhausted her. The mechanical elephant was broken. The food was unappetizing. The actor impersonating Mickey Mouse shucked his big mouse head and swilled a beer. The days ahead may have resemblances to Jessalyn’s awakening for you. This slow-motion jolt might vex you initially, although I believe it’s a healthy sign. It will lead to a cleansed perspective that’s free of illusion and teeming with clarity.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): *Keizoku wa chikara nari* is a Japanese proverb that means “To continue is power.” I propose you make that your motto for the next four weeks. Everything you need to happen and all the resources you need to attract will come your way as long as your overarching intention is perseverance. This is always a key principle for you Tauruses, but especially now. If you can keep going, if you can overcome your urges to quit your devotions, you will gain a permanent invigoration of your willpower.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Do you believe there are divine beings, animal spirits, and departed ancestors who are willing and able to help us? If not, you may want to skip this horoscope. I won’t be upset if you feel that way. But if you do harbor such views, as I do, I’m pleased to tell you that they will be extra available for you in the coming weeks. Remember one of the key rules about their behavior: They love to be asked for assistance; they adore it when you express your desires for them to bring you specific blessings and insights. Reach out, Gemini! Call on them.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): I’m taking a gamble here as I advise you to experiment with the counsel of visionary poet and painter William Blake (1757–1825). It’s a gamble because I’m asking you to exert a measure of caution as you explore his daring, unruly advice. Be simultaneously prudent and ebullient, Cancerian. Be discerning and wild. Be watchful and experimental. Here are Blake’s directions: 1. The road to excess leads to the palace of wisdom, for we never know what is enough until we know what is more than enough. 2. If the fool would persist in his folly, he would become wise. 3. The pride of the peacock is the glory of God. The lust of the goat is the bounty of God. 4. No bird

soars too high if it soars with its own wings. 5. Exuberance is Beauty.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Cosmic energies are staging a big party in your astrological House of Ambition. It’s a great time to expand and intensify your concepts of what you want to accomplish with your one wild and precious life. You will attract unexpected help as you shed your inhibitions about asking for what you really want. Life will benevolently conspire on your behalf as you dare to get bolder in defining your highest goals. Be audacious, Leo! Be brazen and brave and brilliant! I predict you will be gifted with lucid intuitions about how best to channel your drive for success. You will get feelers from influential people who can help you in your quest for victory. (PS: The phrase “your one wild and precious life” comes from poet Mary Oliver.)

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Is it possible to be too smart for your own good? Maybe, although that won’t be a problem for you anytime soon. However, you may temporarily be too smart for some people who are fixated on conventional and simplistic solutions. You could be too super-brilliant for those who wallow in fear or regard cynicism as a sign of intelligence. But I will not advise you to dumb yourself down, dear Virgo. Instead, I will suggest you be crafty and circumspect. Act agreeable and humble, even as you plot behind the scenes to turn everything upsidedown and inside-out—by which I mean, make it work with more grace and benefit for everyone concerned.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In my fairy tale about your life in the coming weeks and months, you will transform from a crafty sleuth to an eager explorer. You will finish your wrestling matches with tricky angels and wander off to consort with big thinkers and deep feelers. You will finish your yeoman attempts to keep everyone happy in the human zoo and instead indulge your sacred longings for liberation and experimentation. In this fairy tale of your life, Libra, I will play the role of your secret benefactor. I will unleash a steady stream of prayers to bless you with blithe zeal as you relish every heart-opening, brain-cleansing moment of your new chapter.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In the coming months, I will encourage you to keep deepening and refining the art of intimacy. I will rejoice as you learn more and more about how to feel close to people you care for and how to creatively deal with challenges you encounter in your quest to become closer. Dear Scorpio,

I will also cheer you on whenever you dream up innovations to propitiate togetherness. Bonus blessings! If you do all I’m describing, your identity will come into brighter focus. You will know who you are with greater accuracy. Get ready! The coming weeks will offer you novel opportunities to make progress on the themes I’ve mentioned.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You could offer a workshop on the perks of wobbliness. Your anxious ruminations and worried fantasies are so colorful that I almost hesitate to tell you to stop. I’m wondering if this is one of those rare phases when you could take advantage of your so-called negative feelings. Is it possible that lurking just below the uneasiness are sensational revelations about a path to liberation? I’m guessing there are. To pluck these revelations, you must get to the core of the uneasiness.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): During the last 11 months, life has offered you unprecedented opportunities to deepen and ripen your emotional intelligence. You have been vividly invited to grow your wisdom about how to manage and understand your feelings. I trust you have been capitalizing on these glorious teachings. I hope you have honed your skills at tapping into the power and insights provided by your heart and gut. There’s still more time to work on this project, Capricorn. In the coming weeks, seek out breakthroughs that will climax this phase of your destiny.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Naturalist and author Henry David Thoreau declared, “We need the tonic of wildness.” Amen! In my view, you Aquarians especially need this sweet, rugged healing power in the coming weeks. Borrowing more words from Thoreau, I urge you to exult in all that is mysterious, unsurveyed, and unfathomable. Like Thoreau, I hope you will deepen your connection with the natural world because it “it is cheerfully, musically earnest.” Share in his belief that “we must go out and re-ally ourselves to Nature every day. We must take root, send out some little fiber.”

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I have four questions and homework assignments for you, Pisces. 1. Is there a person in your inner circle who is close to ripening a latent talent that would ultimately benefit you? I suspect there is. What can you do to assist them? 2. Is there a pending gift or legacy that you have not yet claimed or activated? I think so. What would be a good first step to get it fully into your life? 3. What half-dormant potency could you call on and use if you were more confident about your ability to wield it? I believe you now have the wherewithal to summon the confidence you need. 4. What wasteful habit could you replace with a positive new habit?

Homework: What’s your favorite subject to fantasize about? Newsletter. FreeWillAstrology.com

Hey Dan: I recently discovered that my on-again/off-again boyfriend of ten years has been using online classifieds to schedule encounters with men. He creates posts when he’s out of town for work and he’s very specific about what he’s looking for. The acts are punitive in nature (but consensual) and he is always on the receiving end of these punitive activities. I wish to note that I am not someone who snoops. Rather, I am the sort of person who notices patterns of behavior and things suddenly come to me when I’m cooking or on a walk. Based on the secular community my boyfriend grew up in, I suspect that his anonymous activities are the result of some early childhood trauma. Based on the activities involved, I believe he was either abused or witnessed abuse while his brain was still developing and these activities — along with his chronic use of pot (on top painkillers and a couple of drinks each day) — are an unhealthy coping mechanism. I don’t judge him for the acts themselves, nor do I judge him for his sexuality. But I am not okay with his lying and cheating and I very much resent his haphazard attitude towards my sexual health. He refuses to talk with me about this and the silence is further eroding my trust, to say nothing of the plans we made for our future together. Since he won’t discuss it, I have no way of knowing if he’s sought help, as he has in the past with other issues. I’ve spoken with one trusted friend about this, but I have otherwise kept it to myself. I love him and that will never change. But now what? –Boyfriend Troubling Secrets

Here’s what you know: something about punitive (“inflicting, involving, or aiming at punishment ”) theatrics makes your boyfriend’s dick hard and he’s been seeking out other men who share his kink for consensual encounters. And here’s what you don’t know: why these punitive activities, whatever they are (spanking? flogging? flossing?), make your boyfriend’s dick hard. Backing up for a second: While you claim to have intuited these facts about your boyfriend — the realization came to you while you were making soup or something — the details you shared are too specific for this to be a mere hunch. It sounds like you suspected something was up and snooped on his computer or his phone. So, while you may not like to think of yourself as the kind of person who snoops, BTS, you are the kind of person who snoops. (The proof is in the snooping.) And snooping is always wrong… except when the person who snooped finds something they had a right to know about,

e.g., massive debts, a secret second family, sexual risk taking that puts the snooper at risk, etc.

So, if your boyfriend is engaging in sex acts that place your health at risk and/ or doing things that violate the spirit of your on-again monogamous commitment, you were right to snoop and you have grounds for going off-again. But was he doing anything that put your health at risk? If spanking and/or flogging and/or some other mystery punishment is all he’s been doing with other men — no sexual activities, just punitive ones — he wasn’t putting you at risk, BTS, and your boyfriend may have rationalized his deceit for that reason. He may also have been reluctant to tell you because he thought you wouldn’t understand… and it’s clear from your reaction that you don’t. You’ve made a huge, pathologizing leap from, “My boyfriend likes being spanked by other men,” to, “My boyfriend must have been sexually abused before his brain was fully formed.” Your boyfriend might have a history of childhood sexual abuse — many men sadly do — but not all kinky men were abused and not all men who were abused are kinky. And while his use of substances is concerning, his substance abuse and his kinks aren’t necessarily linked.

You have a legitimate beef with your boyfriend: He’s been lying to you, BTS, and if his meetups with other men involved more than punitive activities — if spanking and/or flogging was followed up by sucking and/or fucking — he put your health at risk and he owes you an explanation, an apology, and some lab work. If you can keep the conversation focused on what he was doing, BTS, and stop making up shit up about why, he’s likelier to open up to you about the what and the why.

Hey Dan: I broke up with my ex in February after four years together and he didn’t take it very well even though I was as caring about it as possible. It had just become clear to me that we had totally different goals and visions for how we wanted to live our lives. He is coming back to town next week for work — his boss told me —and he’ll be here a week. I want to see him. Should I ask if he would be willing to meet for coffee or something? I want to know how he is doing and what his plans for the future are. I want to know he’s okay. But he refuses to talk to me. Maybe it’s still too soon? What do you think, Dan? Should I reach out or let him be?

–Wishing Him Well

It doesn’t matter what I think, WHW, and it doesn’t matter what you want. If your ex-boyfriend doesn’t want to see you right now, you don’t get to have coffee with him. And since I’m guessing your ex-boyfriend’s refusal to see you wasn’t unprompted — you reached out to him already, he told you to fuck off already — you already know how he feels about seeing you: he’s not into the idea. He might be devastated right now, he might be doing okay — either way, your ex-boyfriend is under no obligation to make you feel better about your decision to end this relationship. If he changes his mind and wants to meet up and talk, you’ll hear from him. In the meantime, WHW, you’re gonna have to respect his expressed wants and needs: he wants you to fuck off, he needs you to leave him alone.

P.S. What the fuck was his boss thinking when he told you your ex was coming to town? That’s not information any employer should be sharing with the exes of their employees!

Hey Dan: I’m a 33-year-old gay man emailing you because I have a kink that I enjoy but have always felt ashamed about. Earth-shattering, right? My kink is called “wet and messy” (WAM) and it involves getting covered head to toe in messy, gloopy substances. People who are into this usually have preferred substances; in no specific order my preferred substances are paint, mud, and pies. People enjoy WAM for a variety of reasons; some people like the humiliation aspect, but I just love the feeling of losing myself in the mess. It’s very primal and very freeing. I’ve done this with a couple of men I met through a website that caters to people who are interested in this, and I’ve even told my long-term boyfriend about it. He took it well and even offered to do it with me, but I shot him down. The problem is I feel ashamed about this on some level. I know it’s harmless, if a little weird, but I can’t shake the feeling of shame that keeps me from enjoying this part of my sexuality. I feel like I’ll be branded a freak forever if my boyfriend sees how much I enjoy this. This feels like as much of a struggle as coming out of the closet was. Any sage words?

–Getting Off On Pies

I’ve talked with a lot of kinky gay men over the years — ahem — and more than one has described kink as a second coming out. That said, gay people who wanna come out to lovers and friends about kink have an advantage over straight people who wanna do the same: experience and perspective. Because telling lovers you’re kinky is a lot

MESSED UP

BY DAN SAVAGE

less scary than telling parents you’re gay; lovers that shame can be replaced, parents who shame are forever. But just as coming out as gay has the power to improve lives and relationships, coming out as kinky has the power to improve love lives and romantic relationships.

And speaking of romantic relationships… Don’t deny yourself the pleasure of exploring your kink with someone who cares about you and don’t deny your boyfriend the pleasure of giving you this pleasure. It doesn’t sound like he offered to indulge you because he doesn’t want you doing this with other guys — he’s not offering to grimly go through the motions to control you — but that he offered because he’s sincerely invested in your pleasure. And if your boyfriend is one of those guys who gets off on getting people off, letting him get you off will get him off too. And sometimes kinks are contagious, GOOP, even the weirder ones: a guy gives his partner’s kink a try and something clicks and before you know it’s his weird kink too.

And your kink isn’t really that weird. While WAM, aka “gunging” and “sploshing,” isn’t my thing, it’s not that hard to wrap my head around it. You find the sensation of paint, mud, and pies running down your skin arousing. Not for me! But easily understood! Additionally, you like being covered in gooey substances because it relieves you — temporarily — from the burden of being yourself. Like a drone covered head-to-toe in rubber or a furry in a mascot costume or woman in Lycra a superhero, you enjoy — from time to time — erasing and/or transforming yourself. In that, you are far from alone.

Look, GOOP, if getting covered in slime gives you joy and doesn’t hurt anyone, take your boyfriend’s yes for an answer! If you could learn to let go of the shame of being a cocksucker, you can let go of the shame of being a wet-and-messy player. Get some tarp, bake some pies, and invite the boyfriend over to play.

Got problems? Yes, you do. Email your a question for the column to mailbox@ savage.love!

Or record your question for the Savage Lovecast right now at savage.love/askdan! Podcasts, columns and more at Savage.Love

Grossman Tuning, 830 South First Street Louisville Ky 40203; 502-583-5111 is seeking to obtain a clear title to a 2014 VW Beetle VIN # 3VWVT7ATXEM602565; Owner Telana Jones, Lien holder Bridgecrest 7300 E. Hampton Ave Suite 101 Mesa, AZ 85209. You have 21 days from the first date of this publication of this legal notice to notify me.

Now Hiring: Executive Director

The Shelby County Community Theatre is looking for its next Executive Director. Salary $30,000 per year, minimum 30 hours per week. A full job description is available at shelbytheatre.org/executivedirector. To apply, send resume and cover letter to sachanp@msn.com.

Pursuant to KRS 376.480, the following abandoned mobile home located at 5 Royal Drive, at Southland Mobile Home Community, Louisville, Kentucky shall be sold by Southland via sealed bid on Friday, May 10, 2024 at 10:00 AM to recover rent, storage and legal fees incurred by the owners of said mobile home. The sealed bids will be accepted at 401 Outer Loop, Louisville, KY 40214. Title to the mobile home is not warranted, subject to prior liens and all sales are final. Seller reserves the right to bid. Terms of sale cash only.

William Wells

Unknown Heirs or Beneficiaries

Unknown Owner(s) or Creditor(s) Year: 1999

Make: Fleet

Model: Reflect VIN: TNFLX26A54072RL12

Located at 5 Royal Drive, at Southland Mobile Home Community

GET CRACKING

BY MICHAEL SCHLOSSBERG

Puzzles Edited by Joel Fagliano

Michael Schlossberg, of Bend, Ore., is a doctor specializing in internal medicine. This is his 11th crossword for the paper, and his fifth Sunday.

Standing between you and the score of a lifetime are the seven locks of this safe. After completing the puzzle, rotate each dial 90 degrees, 180 degrees or 270 degrees to the only other position that forms four valid crossword answers. The new letters in the 12 o’clock (circled) positions will spell out an appropriate exclamation.

ACROSS

1 Staff symbol

6 Items on the backs of some Jeeps

13 Test pilot’s attire

18 Bedridden

20 Creditor, in legalese

21 Champion boxer Errol Jr.

22 Once or twice

23 Like Mary Shelley when she wrote ‘‘Frankenstein’’

24 Marketing expenditure

25 Bearing

26 Natural source of rubber

27 County that’s home to the White Cliffs of Dover

28 Unimpressed

29 Sheet under a tent

30 Sharp pain

31 Major vessel

32 Chinese (bonsai choice)

34 Rhyme for ‘‘away’’ in ‘‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’’

35 Agent Deirdre Beaubeirdre’s org. in ‘‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’’

37 No. on a résumé

38 Ewes’ guys

40 ‘‘Invisible hand’’ subj.

42 Quattro e quattro

44 President during the Mexican-American War

45 Ice-cream shop employee, e.g.

47 Shakespearean misanthrope

51 Small Southwestern birds of prey

53 ‘‘The Harlequin’s Carnival’’ painter

54 Nickname for a British relative

55 Brouhahas

56 Buds

59 Ben who starred in Broadway’s ‘‘Dear Evan Hansen’’

61 Role for Michelle Williams in ‘‘The Fabelmans’’

65 Wordle player’s pride

66 ‘‘Who, me?’’

67 Partner ship?

68 Belief

69 ‘‘____ magic!’’

71 Title pig of kids’ TV

74 Schmear topper

75 Annoying bot

79 They have the Guinness distinction of Longest Running Fan Club for a Group

80 Work like the devil?

84 ‘‘Who, me?’’ response

86 Pixy Stix containers

Carpentry vise

Percival of legend, for one

Mystical Buddhist text

Folder flap

End of a sports movie, often

Advance

(up)

Some four-year degs.

Letters that sound out a sentence

43 Blue-green

44 Hypothesize

46 City on the Arno

48 Taking the place (of)

49 ‘‘Here’s looking at you, kid’’?

50 Like old audiobooks

52 Why some app users check their notifications constantly, for short

56 Several CBS dramas

57 Link letters

58 ____ Major

59 Classroom surprise

60 Passage of a planet across a star, e.g.

62 Noted export of Portugal

63 Common field-trip destinations

64 ‘‘Need You Tonight’’ band, 1987

70 Blubber

72 Stew tidbit

73 E.M.T.’s technique

76 One-named singer on 1998’s ‘‘Ghetto Supastar’’

77 Distracted Boyfriend, e.g.

78 One of Eleven’s powers on ‘‘Stranger Things’’

Bitter-tasting salad ingredient

Fun facts

Sophisticated

Farm machine

French form of ‘‘Stephen’’

Area 51 sighting

‘‘C’mon, you’ll love it!’’

‘‘And .?.?.’’

127 Celebration in late January or early February 128 Tweaks

1 Ascends with one’s hands and feet 2 Escalade, e.g. 3 Blanks’ opposite 4 Shangri-las 5 Hair of the dog 6 ‘‘See ya later’’ 7 Not normal 8 Like beach towns in the winter

Cannes subject 10 Tennis great known as ‘‘the Punisher’’ 11 Former name of the electron 12 Ignore, as a shortcoming 13 Application fig.

Casio rival 15 Shore hazard 16 ‘‘That much is obvious’’ 17 Speeches with an 18-minute limit 19 Channel with on-air fund-raising

Mole, e.g.

Taunt

Shout at an auction

1916 battle site, with ‘‘the’’

81 ____ milk

82 Gift on the seventh day of Christmas

83 Mr. Burns supposedly received the second one ever on ‘‘The Simpsons’’: Abbr.

85 What Tom and Daisy embody in ‘‘The Great Gatsby’’

87 Gift for an aspiring conductor

88 Last name in late-night

89 Ol’ Blue Eyes, e.g.

90 Quadrennial occurrence

94 District attorney turned Batman foe

95 Ethylene gas, to tomatoes

96 Key components

98 Some batteries 99 Ginormous 101 ____ choy 105 Throw in the towel 106 Didn’t save

Appliance that may self-clean

Renaissance instrument

Reader 114 Kind of tradition

117 N.Y.S.E. debut 118 Afore

120 Letters on the Saturn V rocket

121 Protester’s word

Last week’s answers