Bushwick artist moves past breakup issues
By Kevin Duggan This musician has gone pro!
A Bushwick synth-pop
artist will launch her debut
full-length album with two local
shows: at Brooklyn Bazaar on May
31 and at Rough Trade on July 11.
One-woman outfit Pronoun says
that her new record “i’ll show you
stronger,” traces her recovery from
a painful breakup and her evolution
towards facing grander struggles.
“This album is that moment after
you break up, that angry frustrated
moment when you’re over that ‘I
want you back’ feeling. It’s focused
more on that frustration and finding
yourself again,” said the musician,
who goes by Alyse Vellturo
offstage.
Vellturo’s first release, a 2016 fourtrack
collection — titled “There’s no
one new around you,” after a phrase
that dating app Tinder spits out when
you have swiped through all nearby
prospects — laid bare her pain after
a traumatic breakup. It featured vulnerable
lyrics underscored by jangly
guitar riffs, synth-scapes and a
drum machine, some of which she
recorded in one sitting.
During that time, Vellturo’s friend
suggested the unassuming band
name, which she later found fitting
for her independent state of mind.
“Pronouns stand alone, and
that’s kind of what I felt like what
I was doing with the project,” she
said. “They can stand apart from
everything.”
Her new record, out on May 24,
has a more substantial sound. She
40 COURIER LIFE, MAY 24-30, 2019
has added a drummer and a bassist,
which makes for grander tracks,
including the spacious “run” or the
anthem “temporary tantrum.” The
lyrics reflect her progress from sadness
to frustration and anger towards
her former partner, but also deal
with struggles in the music industry,
the current political turmoil, and
trying to find strength, according to
the musician.
“Once you actually get over it,
you realize what other problems
you have,” she said. “There’s so
many different things, there’s politics,
the industry I’m in. I felt used
from the past relationship and very
poorly treated at the end of it. This
music was me trying to pick myself
back up.”
She is already working hard on
her next release, which she will
return to after touring the Eastern
half of the country, said Vellturo.
“I already have a ton of tracks for
the next album, and will work on that
when the tour finishes,” she said.
Pronoun at Brooklyn Bazaar,
sharing the bill with Aaron West
and The Roaring Twenties, as well
as Diva Sweetly 150 Greenpoint
Ave., between Manhattan Avenue
and Franklin Street in Greenpoint.
www.bkbazaar.com. May 31 at 6:30
p.m. $19.50.
At Rough Trade 64 N. Ninth St.,
between Wythe and Kent avenues in
Williamsburg, (718) 388-4111, www.
roughtrade.com. July 11 at 7:30
p.m. $13.
MBy Bill Roundy ake your
plans now
for the
three-day weekend!
The weather
looks great for this
weekend, so I hesitate
to recommend anything
happening inside.
On the other hand, the supply of
tickets to the rock musical “Spring
Awakening,” about a group of randy
19th-century German teens rebelling
against their uptight parents,
is dropping quicker than the main
characters’ inhibitions! Go see
the rock concert-style production
at Park Slope’s Gallery Players
(199 14th St. between Fourth and
Fifth avenues in Park Slope, www.
galleryplayers.com) while you still
can! This weekend, the play runs
at 8 p.m. on Friday and
Saturday nights, and
at 3 p.m. on Sunday
afternoon. Tickets
are $30 (only $20
for seniors and kids,
though this show is
recommended for
those over 18).
On Saturday or
Sunday afternoon, why not
wander down to the pier at the end
of Red Hook? You can take in the
amazing views of New York Harbor
and the Statue of Liberty, and then
step inside the giant warehouse for
the amazing views of the Brooklyn
Waterfront Artists Coalition 499
Van Brunt St., near Reed Street in
Red Hook, www.bwac.org. The
group has three spring shows on
display right now: “Spring! Coiled
and Ready,” the “Recycle” exhibit
of upcycled artwork, and “Wide
Open 10,” a national, juried exhibition.
Admission is free (there is a $5
suggested donation), and it is open
from 1–6 pm on both Saturday and
Sunday.
And Monday is Memorial Day, a
holiday for remembering those who
have died in service to their country.
Honor their sacrifice with a trip
to Bay Ridge, where the the country’s
oldest Memorial Day parade
will step off for the 152nd time.
Grand Marshal and former State
Sen. Marty Golden will lead the
Brooklyn Memorial Day Parade
along Third Avenue from 78th
Street to Marine Avenue, and then
along Fourth Avenue to John Paul
Jones Park at 101st Street, starting
at 11 am. At the park will be a
wreath laying, flag-raising, a performance
of “Taps,” and a 22-gun
cannon salute by the Veteran Corps
of Artillery.
Kings carny
By Aidan Graham They fly through the borough
with the greatest
of ease!
A new show will use live
music, slapstick comedy, and
high-flying acrobatics to take
guests on a journey through
Brooklyn — in Manhattan.
The latest production from
Williamsburg’s Bindlestiff
Family Cirkus, “Brooklyn
Abridged,” swinging into the
Connelly Theater on the distant
isle of Manhattan on May
30, will pay tribute to Kings
County through a spectacular
circus display, said the show’s
co-creator.
“We’re paying homage to
the do-it-yourself circus scene
that has grown out of Brooklyn
over the years, which we were at
the forefront of for a long time,”
said Keith Nelson. “We’re also
paying homage to the interesting
individuals in Brooklyn,
from artists to steel workers, as
well as the diversity that makes
Brooklyn what it is.”
The show will feature jawdropping
acrobatic performances,
said Nelson, including
multiple trapeze acts, a trip up
an unsupported ladder, and a
daring walk across an elevated
slack wire. The daring young
athletes perform against a
backdrop that echoes some of
the Brooklyn’s most notable
landmarks, from its namesake
bridge to the iconic rides of
Coney Island, according to
Nelson.
“The show is based a lot
around the Brooklyn Bridge,”
he said. “It’s really a strong
piece of the show. We also talk
about the 20-or-so people who
died in the construction of the
bridge, so we’re exploring some
darker elements as well.”
Everything about the show is
intertwined with Kings County,
said Nelson, except the theater
hosting to the performance.
“We couldn’t find a space in
Brooklyn,” he said. “Brooklyn
has become more expensive
than Manhattan — and I’m
only half joking.”
Nelson wishes the show
could have debuted in the borough
from which it draws its
inspiration, but says that the
100-seat venue provides a perfect
setting for this dazzling
display.
“It is a really amazing venue.
It’s not quite dilapidated, but it’s
an old theater with a ton of
character,” he said. “It’s also
one of those places that is still
very accessible, both in terms
of geography, and also in that
you’re not walking into this
giant palace. It’s more intimate,
so we can keep ticket prices
lower, and everyone can experience
the art.”
If all goes well throughout
the show’s 11-day run,
Bindlestiff members hope to
find another home to keep the
show swinging.
“We’re hoping to get a longer
run, ideally in Brooklyn,
because that would be more fitting
to do ‘Brooklyn Abridged’
in Brooklyn,” said Nelson. “But
you’ve got to take the show to
whatever venue you can.”
“Brooklyn Abridged” at
the Connelly Theater (220 E.
Fourth St. between Avenue
A and Avenue B in the East
Village in Manhattan, www.
connellytheater.org). May
30–June 9, Wed-Thu at 7 p.m.,
Fri at 8 p.m., Sat; 3 p.m. and 8
p.m., Sun at 3 p.m. $35 ($30 in
advance).
Brooklyn marches out on Memorial Weekend
‘Brooklyn Abridged’ circus
debuts in … Manhattan?
GROOVING ON
Hers: One-woman band Pronoun sings about her post-breakup struggles on her debut
album “i’ll show you stronger,” which she will perform at Brooklyn Bazaar on May
31 and at Rough Trade on July 11. Shervin Lainez
Up and away: Williamsburg’s Bindlestiff Family Cirkus will swing from
ropes and stand on ladders at its Brooklyn-themed circus show, debuting
in Manhattan on May 30. David Lee
/www.connellytheater.org
/www.roughtrade.com
/www.roughtrade.com
/www.galleryplayers.com
/www.galleryplayers.com
/www.bwac.org
/www.bkbazaar.com
/www.connellytheater.org
/www.bkbazaar.com
/roughtrade.com
/galleryplayers.com
/www.bwac.org
/connellytheater.org