Boney Manilli is a family sitcom dramedy staged in a house with a magical ceiling.
Boney Manilli will be presented as a work in progress, after a 2-week development residency at CAP UCLA. Hosted by Studio Edgar Arceneaux and Vielmetter Los Angeles, the show will stage at the gallery’s north parking lot and consist of an immersive experience for the audience, performed inside of a BBQ party catered by QD’s Double Barrel BBQ.
Supported by the Mike Kelley Foundation and presented in association with UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance, this work in progress presentation takes place during Arceneaux’s solo exhibition “Skinning The Mirror”, shown at Vielmetter from January 29th until March 12th, 2022.
Arceneaux has generated an exclusive series of paintings dedicated specifically to fundraising for the development of the Boney Manilli.
About Boney Manilli:
A nine-cast play, Boney Manilli tells a story about the relationship between Sunny, a playwright, and his mother, Momma. Sunny is trying to direct a play about the infamous pop group duo Milli Vanilli, while struggling to take care of his mother who is slowly dying from dementia. The rest of the family, on their own journey, searches for a missing script written by Momma’s father, Sunny Sr. The legend goes that Sunny Sr. wrote the script for the Disney movie Song of the South, but was never credited for it. They hope to find the script and sue Walt Disney Studios but Momma hid it and can’t remember where. With original music, dance numbers and a BBQ, Boney Manilli is an epic tale traversing 100 years of history, both real and surreal, confronting family trauma and learning to let go.
Boney Manilli is generated at the same time as Arceneaux’s “Skinning the Mirror” paintings and both inspired by the loss of Arceneaux’s mother Merc Marie Arceneaux Sr. to dementia, who was part of the inspiration for both the play and the paintings.
Boney Manilli is produced by Rarara!, the production company for Edgar Arceneaux’s films and live performance work, which started with Arceneaux’s first theater production, Until, Until, Until… in 2015. Rarara! is an interdisciplinary, international ensemble of artists, designers, and performers convened by Artist Edgar Arceneaux and Producer Ratri Anindyajati. Rarara! pushes the boundaries of visual and performing arts practices by telling stories that explore the blurry lines between past and present, history and fantasy.
Booking is required
Please RSVP directly here
The duration of the performance is approximately 30 minutes. The BBQ party is 2 hours in duration. Performance will begin around 7:30pm, we invite you to arrive 30 minutes early to leave time to settle in and grab your food and drinks.
Performance and BBQ will be held outdoors, please arrive with proper attire for the weather
Wearing a mask is required
If you have any questions about this event, please send an email to ratri@beyondentertainment.co