Penny Arcade (born Susana Carmen Ventura, July 15, 1950) is an American
performance art
Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...
ist,
actress
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...
, and
playwright
A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays.
Etymology
The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
based in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. She is known for her comedic wit, forthright delivery, and stage presence. Her performances explore topics such as
gentrification
Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...
, humanity,
woman
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
hood,
LGBT culture
LGBT culture is a culture shared by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. It is sometimes referred to as queer culture (indicating people who are queer), while the term gay culture may be used to mean "LGBT culture" o ...
,
nostalgia
Nostalgia is a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. The word ''nostalgia'' is a learned formation of a Greek language, Greek compound, consisting of (''nóstos''), meaning "homecoming", ...
,
family history
Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their Lineage (anthropology), lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family a ...
, and the life of the outsider. Additionally, Penny Arcade is known for her association with
underground arts and culture.
Early years
Susana Ventura was born in
New Britain, Connecticut
New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately southwest of Hartford. According to 2020 Census, the population of the city is 74,135.
Among the southernmost of the communities encompassed wit ...
, and grew up in a
working class
The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
Italian immigrant family. Her father fell ill from a severe beating he endured at Ellis Island in 1946 and in 1953 he was committed to
Connecticut Valley Hospital in
Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, it is south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated by English settler ...
, where he died 12 years later of a heart attack at age 50.
Arcade and her three siblings were raised by Arcade's mother, who worked as a seamstress in local sweatshops. The family was presided over by her maternal grandparents, both born in the 19th century in a remote Southern Italian village of
Picerno
Picerno is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Potenza, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is bounded by the ''comuni'' of Balvano, Baragiano, Potenza, Ruoti
Ruoti ( Ruotese: )
is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Pot ...
,
Basilicata
it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman)
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...
.
As a child, Arcade did not plan to become a performance artist. In her working-class Italian-American family, there "just wasn't a format for that," she explained.
Of her early social experiences, Arcade described, "I was perceived to be this girl that everyone had slept with when I was 12 -- no one anyone knew, but they had heard."
At age 13, she ran away from home and spent 4 weeks homeless in
Old Saybrook, Connecticut.
During this time, she was brought to juvenile court and sentenced to two years at the Sacred Heart Academy for Wayward Girls, a reform school run by the semi-cloistered
Sisters Of The Good Shepherd
The Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, also known as the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, is a Catholic religious order that was founded in 1835 by Mary Euphrasia Pelletier in Angers, France. The religious sisters belong to a C ...
. It was there that Arcade wrote her first play at age 14. At age 16, Arcade left home and spent the summer of 1967 homeless in
Provincetown, Massachusetts, before ultimately moving to New York City.
Early career
Arcade adopted the name "Penny Arcade" after an LSD trip with her mentor
Jamie Andrews
Jamie Andrews (born 19 September 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for EFL League Two club Grimsby Town, on loan from EFL Championship club West Bromwich Albion.
Club career
Andrews signed his first p ...
,
who took her into his home when she moved to New York. It was Andrews who introduced Arcade to John Vacarro.
Ventura's association with
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
performance began at age 17, when she became a member of John Vaccaro's
Playhouse of the Ridiculous
Theatre of the Ridiculous is a theatrical genre that began in New York City in the 1960s.Bottoms, Stephen J. Chapter 11: "The Play-House of the Ridiculous: Beyond Absurdity". ''Playing Underground: A Critical History of the 1960s Off-Off-Broadway M ...
.
In 1968, she appeared in painter Larry Rivers film T.I.T.S. In 1969, she starred in the
Jackie Curtis
Jackie Curtis (February 19, 1947 – May 15, 1985) was an American actress, writer, singer, and Warhol superstar.
Early life and career
Jackie Curtis was born in New York City to John Holder and Jenevive Uglialoro. She had one sibling, half-br ...
play ''Femme Fatale'' at
La MaMa Etc. with Curtis,
Mary Woronov,
Jayne County and
Patti Smith, followed by a small role in the
Paul Morrisey /
Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...
film, ''
Women in Revolt
''Women in Revolt'' is a 1971 American satirical film produced by Andy Warhol and directed by Paul Morrissey. The film stars Jackie Curtis, Candy Darling, and Holly Woodlawn, three trans women and superstars of Warhol's Factory scene. It also fea ...
''. In 1970, Arcade was featured in her first interview in ''Rags Magazine'', an alternative fashion magazine.
Time in Europe
At age 20, Arcade left New York for Europe, where she lived for a decade.
In 1971, Arcade turned down a role in the London production of Andy Warhol's play ''
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...
'', choosing instead to join Vaccaro and The Playhouse of the Ridiculous in Amsterdam. After eight months in Amsterdam, she moved to the island of
Formentera
Formentera (, ) is the smallest and most southerly island of the Pityusic Islands group (comprising Ibiza and Formentera, as well as various small islets), which belongs to the Balearic Islands autonomous community (Spain). It covers an area of ...
in Spain's Balearic Islands.
She has described her time in Europe as fodder for a "...great and scandalous memoir...drinking with sailors as a bargirl, starting a school for the children of drug smugglers, befriending and being befriended by
Robert Graves
Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celtic ...
at the end of his life... well, it goes on."
Return to New York
Arcade returned to New York City in 1981 to appear in The Playhouse of The Ridiculous's remounting of their 1970 hit ''Night Club'' by
Kenneth Bernard
Kenneth Otis Bernard (May 7, 1930 – August 9, 2020) was an American author, poet, and playwright.
Bernard was born in Brooklyn and raised in Framingham, Massachusetts; he lived his adult life in New York City. He married Elaine Ceil Reiss ...
for LaMama's 20th anniversary at Ellen Stewart's request. She worked with underground theatre artists, including
Jack Smith,
Charles Ludlam
Charles Braun Ludlam (April 12, 1943 – May 28, 1987) was an American actor, director, and playwright.
Biography
Early life
Ludlam was born in Floral Park, New York, the son of Marjorie (née Braun) and Joseph William Ludlam. He was raise ...
, and the founder of The Cockettes and Angels of Light,
Hibiscus, and in the spring of 1982 improvised her first performance piece in the latter's show ''Tinsel Town Tirade'' at
Theater for The New City, receiving her first writer's credit.
In February 1985, Arcade presented her first full-length evening of original improvised work, ''While You Were Out,'' at the Poetry Project, and then presented it at Performance Space 122 in June later that same year. ''While You Were Out'' then moved to University of The Streets in November 1985 and continued to run for an additional four months.
Penny Arcade was featured in 1988 ''Vogue Magazines "People Are Talking About" issue, the first mention of performance art in a national fashion magazine. In the late 1980s, she created a character named
Margo Howard-Howard Margo Howard-Howard (1935 – September 3, 1988) was a New York City drag queen who wrote memoirs titled ''I Was a White Slave in Harlem'' shortly before her death. With a preface by Quentin Crisp, the memoirs, co-written with Abbe Michaels, des ...
, a 50-year-old drag queen with a scandalous past, for her performances. The ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' refers to the character as "patently unbelievable", but in a later article acknowledges that her monologue was "based on real Lower East Side residents." Howard-Howard received an obituary in ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
''.
Premiering in 1990 at Performance Space 122,and running off broadway at The Village Gate 1992-1993 Arcade began touring internationally in 1993 with her most presented show, ''
Bitch! Dyke! Faghag! Whore!
Bitch! Dyke! Faghag! Whore! (or ''B!D!F!W!'') is an internationally toured show by performer Penny Arcade. Like many of her shows, it combines erotic dancing, improvisation, comedy, audience participation, and monologue. Themes include AIDS, ...
'', an opinionated commentary on
sexuality
Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...
and
censorship
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
that features a chorus of professional erotic dancers and strippers which created the international neo performance burlesque movement In 1998 she performed at the first
Gay Shame event at
DUMBA in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
; she appears in the
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...
of the event by Scott Berry, entitled ''Gay Shame '98''.
She co-starred with
Quentin Crisp in the long-running performance/interview piece, ''The Last Will and Testament of Quentin Crisp''
Arcade's 2002 performance ''New York Values'', which also toured abroad, addressed the loss of cultural identity in New York during the
Giuliani Giuliani is an Italian family name, which can refer to:
* Carlo Giuliani, who died during the demonstrations against 2001 G8
* Carlo Giuliani (bishop), died 1663, bishop of Ston
* François Giuliani, (1938–2009) Algerian journalist and publicis ...
years. The
Village Gate marquee in New York is still adorned with her name and the title of her performance piece ''Politics, Sex & Reality'', although the nightclub no longer exists.
Arcade is a co-founder of the
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets.
Traditionally an im ...
Biography Project,"Stemming The Tide Of Cultural Amnesia, wth long time collaborator Steve Zehentner, a video production and
oral history
Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...
that began as a workshop that trains participants in documentary filmmaking and preserves the stories of
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...
artists and activists. profiled individuals have included Judith Malina, Lee Breuer, Tom O'Horgan, Sarah Schulman, Betty Dodson, Quentin Crisp, ], Jayne County,Danny Fields and
Marty Matz
Marty may refer to:
Names
* Marty (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters, also includes stage names
* Marty (surname), a list of people
Places in the United States
* Marty, California, a former settlement
* Marty, Min ...
, among others.
In 2002 Arcade ran for the New York State Assembly as a candidate of the
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...
. She received 1,054 votes out of 32,976 in the 74th Assembly district, losing to incumbent and anti-rent control advocate Steven Sanders.
In January 2011 Arcade had an on-stage spat with performance artist
Ann Liv Young while she was hosting an evening of performances and Young refused to respect the artists who were waiting to take their turn on stage .
In 2012 she took up residence at London's Arcola Theatre for a 22 performance run of her show ''Bitch! Dyke! Faghag! Whore!'' which went on to run for 48 performances in London with 48 standing ovations.
In 2013 Arcade starred along with
Mink Stole in a revival of
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...
one-act play, ''The Mutilated''. The production was directed by Cosmin Chivu with music by Jesse Selengut, and previewed at the eighth annual Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theater Festival in Massachusetts, prior to its six-week run in New York at the
New Ohio Theatre
The New Ohio Theatre is a performance venue in the West Village of Manhattan in New York City. Located at 154 Christopher Street, the theater was established by Robert Lyons (writer), Robert Lyons as the SoHo Think Tank in 1994. After losing the l ...
in the West Village where it was nominated for a Drama League Award as Best Revival.
Personal life
Penny Arcade has been married three times. Her third marriage in 1998 was to singer-writer-composer
Chris Rael
Chris Rael is an eclectic American musician, singer, composer, and songwriter.
He is the founder and leader of Indo-pop band Church of Betty, based in New York City. He has composed, recorded, and produced more than 25 CDs, collaborating with ar ...
, with whom she collaborated artistically. The couple lived together until January 2008. Arcade identifies as bisexual.
Works
Selected works include:
*''While You Were Out'' (1985)
*''Invisible on the Streets'' (1986)
*''Bid for the Big Time'' (1988)
*''Bringing It All Back Home'' (1988)
*''Operating Under The Influence'' (1988)
*''Quiet Night for Sid and Nancy at the Chelsea Hotel'' (1989)
*''True Stories'' (1989)
*''Based on A True Story'' (1990)
*''The Beginning of the End of the World'' (1990)
*''La Miseria'' (1991)
*''State of Grace'' (1991)
*''Bitch Dyke Faghag Whore'' 1990
*''Sunday Tea With Quentin Crisp'' (1993)
*''Love Sex and Sanity'' (1995)
*''An Evening With Penny Arcade And Quentin Crisp'' (1995)
*''Sisi Sings The Blues'' (1996)
*''Bad Reputation'' (1997)
*''The Last Will And Testament Of Quentin Crisp'' (1999)
*''Lady Fest'' (2000)
*''Virtual Arcade Cyber Performance And Interview Show'' (2000)
*''Alive and Kicking'' (2001)
*''Sex. Politics. Reality.'' (2001)
*''New York Values'' (2002)
*''Penny Arcade At The Warhol Museum'' (2002)
*''Artist Survivor'' (2002)
*''Working My Way Down'' (2003)
*''Rebellion Cabaret'' (2004)
*''Escape From The East Village Ny Ny'' (2004)
*''Penny Arcade in Motion'' (2005)
*''Old Queen'' (2009)
*''Longing Lasts Longer'' (2011)
*''The Etiquette Of Death'' (2012)
*''The Girl Who Knew Too Much'' (2013)
References
Further reading
*
doollee.com listing of Penny Arcade's works written for the stage *A
interviewgiven to the newspaper
I/O Gazette in 2018
External links
*
*
Penny Arcade's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arcade, Penny
1950 births
Actresses from New York City
20th-century American dramatists and playwrights
American stage actresses
American film actresses
American LGBT dramatists and playwrights
Living people
Bisexual dramatists and playwrights
LGBT people from Connecticut
Performance art in New York City
American performance artists
Artists from New York City
People from New Britain, Connecticut
American writers of Italian descent
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American women