Narcissister Organ Player at the Film Forum

Last Saturday evening, A&N Salon regular Liz Margolies, visual artist Julie Lindell, April and I attended a screening of Narcissister Organ Player at the Film Forum in Manhattan. I had not heard of Narcissister before seeing the film, but Julie had attended one of her live performances a few years ago and sang her praises. I must admit I was very impressed. Narcissister had received national fame after her appearance on America's Got Talent, and publicized rumors of a brief tryst with Marilyn Manson.

Her skills as an artist are multi-faceted - a trained professional dancer, she has a perfect body and uses it to display hand-sewn costumes which morph into multiple puppets via layering of the fabric. She also constructs stage sets representing the female body, upon which she climbs and displays her gymnastic abilities.

Narcissister with Marilyn Manson

The words "Organ Player" in the title refer to the representations of various bodily organs which appear on the stage sets, and in her own cartoons in which she travels through the body. On stage she falls out of an anus amid pillows of hand-sewn fabric poop. During the show she also

Scene from Narcissister Organ Player

pulls objects from her vagina (i.e., rubber masks, paper signs, etc.) and displays them to the audience.

As you can see from the images, Narcissister keeps her face hidden behind masks and under wigs. The film shared personal details about her relationship with her parents, and her upbringing in white, suburban California as a mixed-race child. Her search for her identity is very much a part of her story.

Catch Narcissister Organ Player if you can. I am looking forward to news of her future projects and continued success.

Narcissister speaking at the Q&A following the screening