Longing Lasts Longer by Penny Arcade
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What is the premise of “Longing Lasts Longer” and how does it refute nostalgia?
Drama on one.
Sundays at eight p.m. R T A dot IA forward slash drama on one. Drama on one.
Next on Radio 1, Longing Lasts Longer, written and performed by Penny Arcade. And in the words of Penny herself, the show is a refutation of nostalgia. It's a crack at gentrification, a stand up for authenticity, and a kick against mediocrity. And just a note that the play contains adult themes and strong language. This is Longing Lasts Longer. by Penny Arcade.
When I was a little girl And I saw the movie of the fairy tale Snow White? I didn't want to be Snow White. I wanted to be the evil queen. I mean I didn't want to dress like Snow White, all blue and red and flouncy with the ugly white collar. I wanted to dress like the evil queen. I loved her look, didn't you? I mean Snow White was so bland. She was such a boar. Come on, she was a complete control freak. She was all over those dwarves. So what if they were sleepy? So what if they were dopey? So what if they were grumpy? What business of hers was it? And just when I thought I couldn't stand Snow White and her goody goody Snow White shit another second, the evil queen Knocked Snow White out with a poison apple.
Yeah, a a poison apple put Snow White in a coma. And there was Snow White. Deep in a coma, deep in the forest, surrounded by dwarves in a glass coffin. Just like Tilda Swinton. At the Museum of Modern Art. From antiquity, the apple has represented the fruit of knowledge of good and evil. Adam and Eve ate from the apple and sin was born. That's why New York City was called the Big Apple, i.e. Sin city. For hundreds of years, people left their villages and small country towns, seeking their freedom in the city, sanctuary from prying eyes and small town morality. People fled to the city to bask in anonymity and to pursue their pleasure. Because in a puritanical society, pleasure is sin. Therefore, pleasure is a radical value.
People used to come to New York from all over the world and they all wanted to be part of it all. They were inspired and intoxicated by the palpable feeling of freedom in the streets. They wanted to reinvent themselves in the face of that amazing magnetic energy. They wanted to be another log on the pyre that made New York great. Now people come to New York. Just the way they come to Dublin. And they wanna clean it up. They don't feel the need to reinvent themselves, no. They just think that they need to be successful and make a lot of money. And somewhere along the line, they have gotten the idea that they are fine. Just the way they are. Well, they're not fine just the way they are, and everyone knows it.
Even people who just moved to New York two weeks ago can't stand them. Even people visiting New York for the first time this weekend know something has changed in iconic New York. They know that New York has been suburbanized. There is a gentrification that happens to neighborhoods and cities. But there is also a gentrification that happens to ideas. In the past. Івен азфорд інтуар фітр. We brought our cultural history with us. The music hall, the Bohemian Cafe, the Gay Bar, the Jazz and Blues Club, the Used Bookstore, the Hippie Head Shop, the Rock and Roll Bar, the Strip Joint. One authentic culture after another lived in harmony with what had come before and remained distinct, visible, and available to all newcomers.
Yes, the world has always changed. But the change going on in the world right now is different. This is a change that destroys authenticity. This is a change that erases history. This is a change that creates cultural amnesia. And out there The wounded spirit of our cities cry out and we are filled no not with nostalgia. Nostalgia is what they accuse us of when we try to point out what we're losing. No, we are not filled with nostalgia.
How does Penny Arcade use the Snow White story to critique cultural conformity?
We are filled. With longing. I make friends with cities. The way other people make friends with people. Maybe it's because my need for solitude and sanctuary has always been so great. As a child in my immigrant Italian mother's house, even grown up. I was never allowed to close my bedroom door.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the premise of “Longing Lasts Longer” and how does it refute nostalgia?
0:01–6:09
2
How does Penny Arcade use the Snow White story to critique cultural conformity?
6:09–22:42
3
What is the difference between gentrification of neighborhoods and gentrification of ideas?
22:42–28:02
4
How does the show distinguish between nostalgia and longing?
28:02–29:18
5
Why does Penny describe solitude as a personal sanctuary and how does it shape her worldview?
29:18–55:45