Before Night Falls: Film, Poetry, and Drag

Before Night Falls: Poetry, Film, and Drag
Presented in partnership with Flaming Classics

“Before Night Falls: The Poetic Life Of Reinaldo Arenas” commemorates the legacy of the Cuban writer and dissident through poetry, cinema, and performance. The evening begins with an introduction to Arenas’ life and work and a sunset recitation of his words by local poet Legna Rodriguez Iglesias.

As night ascends, there is an open-air screening of the biographical film Before Night Falls, based on Arenas’ posthumous autobiography. The film directed by artist Julian Schnabel and starring Javier Bardem celebrates Arenas’ queer spirit under authoritarian rule. Following the screening, drag artist Bad Papi reinterprets the film through the art of drag.

Legna Rodríguez Iglesias (she/her) (Camagüey, 1984) is a prize-winning Cuban poet, fiction writer, and playwright. She has published widely, including the poetry books Mi pareja calva y yo vamos a tener un hijo (Ediciones Liliputienses, 2019), Miami Century Fox (Akashic Books, 2017), and Transtucé (Editorial Casa Vacía, 2017); the short story collections La mujer que compró el mundo (Editorial Los Libros de La Mujer Rota, 2017) and No sabe/no contesta (Ediciones La Palma, 2015). Spinning Mill, a chapbook of her work, has recently appeared in English translation with CardBoard House Press (2019, trans. Katerina Gonzalez Seligmann). The translation of her novel My Favorite Girlfriend Was a French Bulldog, has been an editorial success, published by McSweeneys and translated by Megan McDowell. She currently lives in Miami where she writes a column for the online journal El Estornudo and Hyprmedia Magazine.

Bad Papi (they/them) is a Cuban drag artist based in Miami who challenges gender norms in the Latine community. They started drag in 2019 as a way to heal from their trauma after an abusive partner who invalidated their gender identity. They have grown into a versatile artist who expresses their drag fluidly while celebrating their Cuban heritage. Bad Papi is an activist and a leader at heart and as such incorporates their activism in their art. They have performed for Wigwood, the Trans Conference, Villain Theatre, Miami Queer Theatre Collective, and more. They will be performing on April’s Queer Fest to support queer survivors of sexual violence as well as at FIU to introduce students to Latine drag.

About Flaming Classics

Flaming Classics electrifies the movie-going experience through a curated film series, pairing films from the queer canon with live performances from local drag artists to create a one-of-a-kind event for South Florida. Infused with a sense of social activism, community building, and fun, the series aspires to entertain and educate.

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