that shows a different side of Israel and my own journey of transformation. There have been many stories and memoirs written about what it’s like to be an immigrant in the U.S.; this one is about the immigrant experience in Israel. I did not discuss my views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the memoir and to do so now would be a disservice to my readers. You can’t talk about Israel without getting in bias. I don’t want to infuse misinformation.
WHAT WAS THE HARDEST PART OF WRITING THIS BOOK? Getting feedback from my editor got me thinking more about my experiences, and it was hard to go to that place in my mind. After each round of edits, I thought to myself regarding my editor: “Why are you nagging me?” It hurt each time I had to go back in time and write a take-away — “Why do I have to go deeper? I already told you everything!” I was hiding from myself. I had to peel more layers from myself and I felt so bare. To make it authentic, I had to write it in that 19-year-old voice. You can’t hide your truth. You have to be with your truth. IS THERE A KEY MESSAGE IN YOUR BOOK? The main take-away of this book is that of courage. The character can’t go through any transformation if the writer doesn’t have the courage to write it. The other, deeper message of the book is that of faith, and to continue going through with experiences. There’s a certain level of adaptability that you have to go through and tests you have to go through to see the rainbow on the other side, to reach a better version of yourself. INFO@ PGHC ITY PAP ER.CO M
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TA S T E
DANCE PRIDE {BY STEVE SUCATO}
Moriah Ella Mason
WERE THERE ANY MOMENTS THAT YOU FOUND DIFFICULT TO INCLUDE IN YOUR BOOK? One scene I didn’t explore was with Svetlana, a girl that lived in the same quarters as me. It had a very strong Tom-and-Jerry feel to it. Though I wrote about her in the book, I didn’t include our physical fight. Nobody even knew this fight was happening. She was harboring resentments against me because she couldn’t understand why this privileged American girl would voluntarily come to the army. I felt misunderstood. It was almost like a representation of the Cold War drama between us, the aggression that had built up. But I reached the max word count. It would have been another half of a chapter and when I saw what I was up against, I couldn’t include that.
[DANCE]
The kick-off to the local summer dance season, Pittsburgh PrideFest’s eighth annual free dance showcase, curated by Richard Parsakian, offers a stylistically diverse set of performances by seven artists and troupes. Part of Pittsburgh PrideFest 2016, it takes place on Sun., June 12, on two Downtown stages on Liberty Avenue. Here’s what’s on tap (all times approximate): Sixth Street Stage. Jean-Paul Weaver (2 p.m.) will perform his solo work-in-progress “Madonna Gris.” Set to music by Yo-Yo Ma, Bobby McFerrin and others, the seven-minute solo “examines the history and intersection of queerness and spirituality through the lens of voodoo culture and folklore,” says Weaver. Texture Contemporary Ballet (2:15 p.m.) performs four short repertory works, including: artistic director Alan Obuzor’s solo “Happiness” (2016); Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre dancers Diana Yohe and Corey Bourbonniere’s five-minute duet “If You Don’t Wanna Love Me” (2015), set to music by James Morrison and performed by Bourbonniere and Madeline Kendall; an excerpt from Alexandra Tiso’s “Weight of Living” (2015); and Kelsey Bartman’s “Outro” (2012). STAYCEE PEARL dance project (3 p.m.) performs an excerpt from Pearl’s PLAYGROUND entitled “MINE.” The seven-minute duet to music by Beyoncé recalls Pearl’s memory of her first crush as a child. Dancer/choreographer Moriah Ella Mason (3:10 p.m.) makes her PrideFest debut in a yet-to-be-titled duet she and Sarah Bauer will perform to an original soundtrack created by Mason and J.F. Winkles. The work-in-progress, says Mason, “is inspired by representations of the poet Sappho and what she has come to represent throughout history and our own experiences of poetic sensuality and relationship.” And Trevor Miles | Trevor C. Dance Collective (3:15 p.m.) debut a new version of “To Part,” which the company performed at last month’s newMoves Contemporary Dance Festival. The group work, says Miles, “is about the powerful moment before someone takes their life, and the discussion they have internally.” 10th Street Stage. As in a music concert, slowdanger (4:30 p.m.), a.k.a. Anna Thompson and Taylor Knight, will perform a set of their original songs while improvising dance to them. And concluding the program is the debut performance of LaMar “Honeybee” Williams’ troupe kNOwSHADE (4:45 p.m.), with “kNOwSHADE: The Awakening,” a 10-minute work featuring underground ballroom vogue dance styles.
The best musical since The Lion King.” “
Through Sunday Only! Benedum Center CulturalDistrict.org/Matilda • Box Office at Theater Square
INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
412-456-6666 • Group 10+ Tickets 844-PGH-SHOW (844-744-7469)
PITTSBURGH PRIDEFEST 2016 DANCE SHOWCASE 2-5 p.m., Sun., June 12. Liberty Avenue between Sixth and 10th streets, Downtown. Free. www.pittsburghpride.org +
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