FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22 THRU MONDAY, OCTOBER 25: POSSESSION AT THE BEACON

COURTESY OF BLEEDING LIGHT FILM GROUP

Woooo boy—it's finally here. The 4K restoration of Andrzej Zulawski's hysterical and disturbing Possession. This weekend, The Beacon in Columbia City hosts four screenings of this hard-to-find psychological horror film, which I wrote about for Unstreamable last year. Here's a quick introduction courtesy of me for the uninitiated:

Mark (Sam Neill), a spy, returns home from a long job to discover his wife Anna (the incredible Isabelle Adjani) wants to separate. It's another man, she tells him. Mark spirals, and the couple starts to fight violently over their child and relationship. But as they slide deeper into the abyss of divorce, it becomes clear that Anna has a much more terrifying and supernatural lover she's been attending to. One with a thirst for blood and her total existence.


Though lead actress Isabelle Adjani won Best Actress in Cannes for her performance, the movie bombed in Europe where the United Kingdom—seeing the film as "harmful"—relegated it to "video nasty" status. And here in the United States, reception of the movie was even worse after distributors lopped off 40 minutes in a last-ditch effort to make the surreal story more palatable. But this new restoration courtesy of Metrograph Pictures will hopefully correct the record and put this deliciously horrific tale of divorce in front of more eyeballs.

Possession plays at The Beacon Friday, October 22 through Monday, October 25 and tickets are $12.50. Masks and proof of vaccination/recent COVID test are required for entry. Also check out Mr. Vampire playing at The Beacon on Sunday, October 24, which Chase Burns wrote about for Unstreamable.


SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23: RAZOR CLAM, EX-FLORIST, CARLARANS, AND SUPERCOZE AT CAFE RACER

If you've yet to get yourself to the newest iteration of Cafe Racer at their Capitol Hill digs, this weekend would be the perfect opportunity to do so. On Saturday, headliner Razor Clam will take the stage for the last time this year, bringing their exuberant stage presence and queer, glam, goth-pop jams to the venue. They've also promised to debut a new music video for their latest single, "Graves." Joining them is a killer lineup of queer Puget Sound talent, including Tacoma's Ex-Florist, whose track ".925" was so sick that filmmaker Danny Denial wrote the musician a role in their post-apocalyptic web series BAZZOOKA. Seattle's CarLarans will also be on deck to play his infectious, danceable brand of hip-hop, with the dreamy SuperCoze rounding out the night.

Razor Clam will headline Cafe Racer on Saturday, October 23. Doors are 8 pm, and it's all-ages until 10 pm, 21+ after. Tickets are $12 presale and $20 at the door (but $5 with the code "GRAVES"). Masks are required when not actively eating or drinking.


NOW THRU SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6: FAYE DRISCOLL'S COME ON IN AT ON THE BOARDS

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COURTESY OF ON THE BOARDS

Last year, On the Boards rocked my little COVID bubble with their presentation of A Thousand Ways, 600 HIGHWAYMEN's intimate and interactive bit of autotheater. In a similar move, for the next couple of weeks the theater will present an adaptation of New York-based choreographer Faye Driscoll's Come on In, an experiential exhibition that invites audience members to "reconceive the body and its limits." Originally presented and co-commissioned by the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, this piece has been specifically adapted to OtB's Merrill Theater.

Come on In is crafted around audio pieces called Guided Choreography for the Living and the Dead that visitors listen to via headset on raised beds inside the space. On OtB's website, Driscoll says that as the audience her voice "they are guided into a private dance and become a collection of slowly moving sculptures. They become my work." Margo Vansynghel over at Crosscut wrote that the performance space looks like "a spa from some uncanny valley." Doesn't that sound nice?

Faye Driscoll's Come on In at the On Boards shows Thursdays-Saturdays until November 6. Tickets are $15-$45 sliding scale. Masks and proof of vaccination/recent COVID test are required for a timed entry.