Page 6 - Boca Club News - February '20

Page 6, Boca Club News

Boca Happenings

African Masquerade Rituals and Their Spiritual Realms

Unmasked at Boca Museum of Art Photography Exhibit

The transformative power of the African masquerade The masks and costumes in these photographs are made
is represented in a mesmerizing new exhibit at the Boca from a wide variety of surprising materials ─ leaves, grass,
Raton Museum of Art, “Phyllis Galembo: Maske,” that will patterned fabrics, burlap sacks, full-bodied crocheted yarns,
be on view through May 31st. This striking photographic colored raffia, quills, shells, and even lizard excrement. All
series of contemporary mask rituals has drawn national and of her photographs are shot as portraits rather than during
international critical acclaim. The large-scale images are the act of ritual. She is allowed to photograph her subjects
nearly life-size and explore spiritual realms with brilliant, at the very moment right before their rituals and festivities
mesmerizing colors. commence.
For more than 30 years, the artist has travelled around the Galembo prefers her colors to be brightly saturated,
world to photograph participants in contemporary masquerade enhancing the spiritual and transformative powers of these
events that range from traditional religious ceremonies to garments. “I never see my subjects out of costume, although
secular celebrations. Her portraits are celebrated by the the masqueraders are always men, often paying homage to
world’s leading fine art photography editors for their stunning women,” adds Galembo.
resonance, setting her work apart from documentary and Galembo was born in 1952 in New York, where she
anthropological studies. They will be shown in concert with continues to live and work. She graduated with a Master
the museum’s historical collection of more than 40 African of Fine Arts from University of Wisconsin at Madison in
tribal artifacts and indigenous masks in the gallery across from 1977, and has been a Professor Emeritus at Albany, State
Galembo’s show, for a complementary perspective. University of New York since 1978. Her photographs
Through her lens, the viewer gains special access to rarely are included in numerous public and private collections,
seen other-worlds, as she captures the raw and sometimes including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New
frightening aspects of ceremonial garb. Masking is a complex, Otoghe-toghe mask costume York Public Library. She is represented by Axis Gallery.
mysterious and profound tradition in which participants Her work has appeared in Tar Magazine, Damn Magazine,
transcend the physical world and enter the spiritual realm. agricultural hardships, land disputes, rites of passage, Photograph, and Harpers. She has been profiled on CNN,
In her vibrant images, Galembo exposes an ornate code of funerals, harvests, moments of gratitude and celebration. NPR Radio and NBC Today. Other collections that feature
political, artistic, theatrical, social, and religious symbolism Galembo’s large-scale portraits in this exhibition capture the her work include: Oceania and the Americas, Photography
and commentary. mask-oriented cultural traditions of Nigeria, Benin, Ghana Study Collection (New York); the Philadelphia Museum of
Ms. Galembo has made over twenty trips to sites of and Sierra Leone. Art; the Houston Museum of Art; the International Center
ritual masquerades, capturing cultural performances with While traveling and embedding herself for long periods for Photography (New York); the British Art Museum;
a subterranean political edge. Her photographs depict the in these societies, Galembo works with local assistants and Yale University; Schomburg Center for Research in Black
physical character, costumes, and rituals of African religious translators. They negotiate the terms with elders, so that Culture, New York Public Library; Polaroid Corporation
practices and their diasporic manifestations in the Caribbean she may be granted permission to make photos of these (Boston); and the Rockefeller Foundation, among many
and Mexico. Galembo’s images reflect both the modern and masqueraders. “The translators often find that gaining others.
ancient worlds. The fifteen portraits by Galembo that were permission from community leaders can sometimes be quite The Museum’s African Collection.
selected for this exhibition reveal the meticulous detail and helpful during these painstaking negotiations,” says Galembo. Complementing Galembo’s exhibition are more than
creative imagination of mask-making. “Once an agreement has been struck, I set my own lighting and 40 African tribal artifacts from the Museum’s collection,
“The tradition of masquerading is universal and timeless, place the subjects in front of a neutral backdrop that enables including headdresses and masks, each pertaining to
and continues today in most cultures, including western the eye to focus on the diversity of materials in each costume.” masquerades and ceremonies.
societies,” says Irvin Lipmann, the executive director of the
Boca Raton Museum of Art. “Bringing together the Galembo
underscores the cross-cultural complexity of meaning and Broadway Bound Musical, “Tovah is
photographs and masks from the Museum’s African collection

purpose. However, what they have in common is their vitality,
The costumes in these photographs are worn in several LEONA!” Starring Tovah Feldshuh
power, and boldness of humanity.”

types of modern-day rituals. They are created to summon
ancestral spirits and deities during a range of events, including at Mizner Park Cultural Center

Editor ........................................................................ Nils A. Shapiro Six-time Tony and Emmy of productions playing everything from three queens of
Photography By ........................................................ Jon Ricco nominee Tovah Feldshuh will Henry VIII and Tallulah Bankhead to Yussel “The Muscle”
return to the Mizner Park Jacobs, nine Jews from birth to death in Hello Muddah,
Cultural Center on Saturday Hello Fadduh! and most recently Holocaust Denier Brenda
Editorial copy appearing herewith is not necessarily the viewpoint of and Sunday, March 28th and Goodsen opposite Ed Asner in The Soap Myth. This summer
Seabreeze Publications of Central Florida. Most editorial copy is created by 29th, for a limited engagement she starred in the world premiere of Wade Dooley’s The
the homeowners and is edited by their appointed editor.
with her Broadway-bound Prompter directed by Scott Schwartz, where she played Irene
musical, “Tovah is LEONA!” Young, a legendary diva making her Broadway comeback
The show, in which Feldshuh assumes the persona of the late after a 40-year absence. Immediately on the heels of The
New York real estate mogul and hotelier Leona Helmsley, Prompter, she filmed Clifford for Paramount Pictures, went
played to sold-out houses in early January. to the Sing-Sing in New Guinea, and flew from there to
As Helmsley, the disgraced doyenne comments and sings Los Angeles to star as Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader
Seabreeze Publications about anything and everything – from her meteoric rise from Ginsburg in the LA Premiere of Jonathan Shapiro’s Sisters-In-
office temp to trophy wife, from wheeler-dealer to hotel Law. She has just completed filming Edith Hagigi’s Bleecker
magnate, to her real estate rival Donald Trump. with Ben Stiller.
Publisher
M. Sean Reid Created by Feldshuh with Director Jeff Harnar and On TV: Deanna Monroe on The Walking Dead, Danielle
Jackie Reid Musical Director James Bassi (and based on The New York Melnick on Law & Order, POTUS Pauline Mackenzie on
Times best-seller by Ransdell Pierson), Leona Helmsley is Salvation, and Naomi Bunch on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, where
Sales given one hour up from Purgatory to “set the record straight Feldshuh can be seen singing the dignified showstopper:
Tom English, Laura Berrio, Bret McCormick !!…..and sing a few show tunes.” She fulfills her dream to “Where’s the Bathroom!” Films include: Kissing Jessica
star in her own cabaret show as she sings for her innocence Stein, (Golden Satellite Award), A Walk on the Moon,
Production Department in a long-awaited re-trial with the audience as her jury. Brewster’s Millions, Just My Luck, Daniel, The Idolmaker, and
Elaine Donholt • Ruth Nekoranec • Katie Heystek “Tovah is LEONA!” features original music by Ron most recently, Ms. Feldshuh’s award-winning performance
Sherry Whalon • Dianne Strout Passaro, lyrics by David Lee, and a book by Alex Lippard and as Prime Minister Golda Meir in Golda’s Balcony has been
Karen Kalisz • Peter Hurth • Rachel Blanchard David Lee. The show is directed by Jeff Harner, and Musical made into a film entitled Golda’s Balcony. The Film has won
Director James Bassi provided the musical arrangements and 20 out of 20 Audience Choice Awards. Her one-woman show,
All rights reserved. Reproduction or utilization of these contents in any additional lyrics. “Tovah is LEONA!,” enjoyed sold-out engagements at 54
form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, including xerography and Tovah Feldshuh is a six-time Emmy and Tony nominee Below in New York and at Feinstein’s at the Nikko in San
photocopying is forbidden without the written permission of the Publisher. Francisco. Feldshuh is thrilled to bring the infamous Leona
The Publisher is not responsible or liable for misinformation or misprints and has been awarded three honorary Doctorates of Humane
herein contained and reserves the right to accept or reject all copy deemed Letters. Additionally, for her theatre work she has won Helmsley direct from Purgatory to sunny Florida, where
unsuitable for publication. four Drama Desks, four Outer Critics Circle Awards, three Leona was once a resident in Palm Beach.
www.seabreezepublications.com Dramalogues, the Obie, the Theatre World, and the Helen Tickets for “Tovah is LEONA!” are on sale now and range
1102 W. Indiantown Rd., Suite 5, Jupiter, FL 33458 Hayes and Lucille Lortel Awards for Best Actress. in price from $39 to $59. Saturday, March 28th, performances
On Broadway: Yentl, Cyrano, Rodgers & Hart, Dreyfus
at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sunday, March 29th, performances at

(561) 746-3244 in Rehearsal, Sarava!, Lend Me a Tenor, Golda’s Balcony, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://
FAX (561) 746-2509 Irena’s Vow, and the show stopping trapeze-swinging Berthe miznerparkculturalcenter.com or by phone at (844) 672-2849.
in Pippin. Off-Broadway and around the country: Dozens Group rates are available.