In poetry, compensation refers to the means of balancing missing accents in a line of metrical verse. Sometimes the loss — usually one or more unstressed syllable — is made up in the next line, but it’s more common to find compensation within the original line.
In “Compensation,” Zeinabu irene Davis’ film, the term refers to a poem by early African-American writer Paul Lawrence Dunbar, but it also alludes to the belief that when we lose a sense, the others become heightened, “compensating” for the loss.
Davis’ “Compensation,” which makes its world premiere this weekend at the Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, is bookended by two millennium love stories: one from the early 1900s, the other contemporary. They both involve deaf women and their relationships with hearing men who struggle to communicate with them and make their lives come together. In both stories, which intercut throughout the film, the same two actors play both pairs of the lovers — New York-based artist and theater company director Michelle A. Banks, who is deaf in real life, and local actor John Earl Jelks, who has been a Davis collaborator for about 15 years.
The handsome black and white film, which plays like a silent movie with its ambient soundtrack and ornate title cards, creates a complex and vivid, vintage Chicago using historical and family photos. Music by ragtime pianist Reginald Robinson and African percussionist Atiba Y. Jali underscores the biculturalism that is tackled at different levels in the film: Both couples are “mixed” in that one partner is deaf and the other is hearing; in each case there are class differences; and in each case a dramatic, life-altering event forces a revised look at love, commitment and intimacy.
The film takes a very rare look at black deaf culture, but its scope is broader than that: It’s a window into black history in general, Chicago in particular, and notions of death most especially.
– – –
Remember Malo? Maybe not, but surely “Suavecito,” which crossed over big with a spicy Santana-esque sound way back in the ’70s, is familiar enough: “Never — I never met a girl like you/ in my life . . ./ the way that you hold me in the night/ the way that you make things go right/ suavecito, mi linda . . . la-la-laaaah!” A staple on oldies stations, the easy summer sound of “Suavecito” was a megahit for this scraggly group of San Francisco teenagers, all of them underage when they hit the big time.
More Top Picks Best Balance Ball Chairs For Adults
At the time, they seemed like a Carlos Santana knockoff, especially with Carlos’ younger brother, Jorge, also playing guitar for Malo. But, in fact, their sounds were quite different. Where Santana played rock with a Latin flair, putting its focus pretty squarely on Carlos’ guitar and a 4/4 foundation, Malo turned that equation inside out. Its setup actually followed early salsa much more than rock, with a brazen brass section, multiple vocalists and a piano upfront, almost on par with the guitars. Whereas it would be an exaggeration to call Santana a Latin rock band, it could be argued that Malo was the very first of the breed.
Amazingly, they’ve stayed together, more or less, for more than 25 years. Jorge Santana sits in now and then but founder and lead vocalist Arcelio Garcia Jr. is still in charge, singing “Suavecito,” “Nena” and other sentimental faves.
On March 12, Malo will play in the heart of Little Village, at the Apollo 2000. It is almost guaranteed to sell out, so get your tickets now. Should be great fun.
– – –
When performance artist Lawrence Steger died a couple of weeks ago, both this writer and the Reader published notices that said his memorial would be held at 1 p.m. this Sunday at the HotHouse. In fact, the memorial — which will be much more celebration and performance than wake — begins at 7 p.m., when it’s already dark, and when Larry would have felt much more in his element.
———-
the facts
Saturday, 8 p.m., Sunday, 2 p.m., “Compensation” by Zeinabu irene Davis, Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Columbus and Jackson Drives. Call 312-443-3734. The Film Center is wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, 7 p.m., Lawrence Steger Memorial, HotHouse, 31 E. Balbo Ave. Call 312-362-9707 for more details. HotHouse is wheelchair accessible.
March 12, Malo, doors open 7 p.m.; show time’s 8 p.m., Apollo 2000, 2875 W. Cermak Rd. Call 312-474-5755 for more information.