New Jersey–born artist and performer Gerard Little (aka Frankie Lymon’s Nephew, Mahogany Plywood, Velvet Johnson, and Mr. Fashion) was ubiquitous on New York City’s Downtown scene from the 1980s until his death from AIDS in 2008. Appearing regularly at venues like Club 57, Pyramid Club, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, Limelight, and the Kitchen, he worked with Ethyl Eichelberger, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, Bill Landis, Peter Kwaloff, Joel Winston, Jacob Burckhardt, and Royston Scott, to name a few. In his early years on stage, Little was virtually the only black male performer in the white-dominated clubs of lower Manhattan. Despite pioneering contributions to the evolution of queer performance, the lack of readily available documentation and commentary on his life and career has left his legacy fragile. Collaborators Burckhardt, Scott, Mimi Gross, Douglas Landau, and Joan Marie Moossy come together to share an afternoon of rare images and videos in remembrance of a scene-stealing New York legend.
Celebrating Mr. Fashion: A Tribute to Performance Artist Gerard Little
Held on Sat, Apr 28, 2018, 1:30 p.m.
MoMA, Floor T2, Theater 2
The Roy and Niuta Titus Theater 2
- This film accompanies Club 57: Film, Performance, and Art in the East Village, 1978–1983.
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