[Image description: a faded rainbow background with glints and sparkle of light. A filmstrip with Pride colors sits behind the title text and a city skyline of the Lehigh Valley. The Bradbury-Sullivan Center and ArtsQuest logo are in the bottom left]
Wednesday, April 17 - 7:00 p.m.
Last Call at Maud's
Located at Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas
1993 | NR | 1 hr 17 min watch trailer
Directed by: Patrick Poirier
Some genuinely wild women take center stage in Paris Poirier’s vivacious and historical documentary about Maud’s; an establishment that had been the longest-running lesbian bar in the United States. This venerable San Francisco establishment opened in 1966, when lesbians were still very much in the closet. Maud’s flourished throughout the 1970s and 1980s, enjoying an international reputation as a meeting place for lesbians and their friends, only to be shut down in 1989 as a result of the community’s shifting priorities.
Provocative personal stories of coming out, sexual politics, and softball are mixed with flashbacks to the Hollywood gay bars of the 1940s and the vice raids of the 1950s. The vintage photos and personal interviews (with Mary Wings, Judy Grahn, Phyllis Lyon, Del Martin, Sally Gearhart, JoAnn Loulan, and Rikki Streicher, to name a few) are an invaluable window into lesbian history.
A witty and informative look at cultural evolution in the making, Last Call at Maud’s salutes and preserves an era in history when bars were the only cultural institutions in the lesbian community.
For more information, visit the SteelStacks film page
[A vintage black and white photo of women posed in a lesbian bar featured in the film. The fashion in the photo is reminiscent of clothing from the 40's to 50's era.]
April 20 - 7:00 p.m.
The People's Joker
Located at Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas
2022 | NR | 1 hr 35 min watch trailer
Directed by: Vera Drew
The screening will be followed by a live Q&A/talkback with Dr. Amy Marvin of Lafayette College and Cinema/Comedy Assistant Sarah Bess.
This revolutionary DIY parody film and hilarious reimagining of the classic autobiographical coming-of-age story follows an unconfident, closeted trans girl as she moves to Gotham City to make it big as a comedian by joining the cast of UCB Live - a government-sanctioned late night sketch show in a world where comedy has been outlawed. As mainstream success eludes our heroine, leading her to unite with a ragtag team of rejects, misfits, and a certain love interest named Mister J, "Joker the Harlequin" is born again as a confident (and psychotic) joker on a collision course with the city's fascist caped crusader. Vats of feminizing chemicals, sexy cartoon interludes, scarecrow psychiatrists, CGI Lorne Michaels, and psychedelic gender dysphoria all play supporting roles. Helmed by writer/director/editor/star Vera Drew and using her own life experiences as a basis for the film, THE PEOPLE'S JOKER is a deeply personal journey that's as much documentary as it is parody.
THE PEOPLE’S JOKER features a superhero-sized cast of celebrated comedic talent in both voice and live action roles behind the vibrant kaleidoscope of characters that lampoon the iconic heroes and villains of the DC comics’ world, featuring cameos from comedy multi-hyphenate Tim Heidecker, award-winning actor Bob Odenkirk, Maria Bamford (Netflix’s Big Mouth, Adult Swim’s Teenage Euthanasia), and Scott Aukerman (Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis co-creator and host of the Comedy Bang! Bang! podcast), with Vera Drew, Lynn Downey (Amazon Prime Video’s Daisy Jones & The Six), Nathan Faustyn (SADDLED), and Kane Distler, in his film debut as Mister J.
For more information, visit the SteelStacks film page
[A person dressed as DC Comic's The Joker is in the bottom left corner. An elongated open mouth, with teeth showing, holds the words "The People's Joker". Date and times are underneath. This is presented by Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas. ]
Sunday, June 9 - 7:00 p.m.
Go Fish (30th Anniversary)
Located at Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas
1994 | R | 1 hr 24 min watch trailer
Directed by: Rose Troche
A romantic tale about finding a soulmate in Chicago's lesbian community, starring Guinevere Turner and V.S. Brodie.
For more information, visit the SteelStacks film page
[A black and white photo of a woman smiling while another woman leans close to her ear.]
Questions? Please email [email protected]