Boy Cody

Back when artist and musician Cody Critcheloe was a high-school student in Lewisport, Kentucky, he first conceived Ssion, his decade-long project combining punk music and aesthetics with performance art. Now Critcheloe, a Vice blog contributor and Charlotte Street Award winner, has written and directed Boy, a Ssion feature film debuting tonight at a 7:30 screening at Tivoli Cinemas (4050 Pennsylvania, 816-561-5222). There will be a reception for the film from 4 to 6 p.m. at Grand Arts (1819 Grand, 816-421-6887) in the Crossroads District. The film weaves concert footage, music videos, a regular cast of Ssion characters and hundreds of extras into an integrated and typically eclectic glam-punk celebration of the fringe arts. Grand Arts' impressive gallery space is perfectly scaled for the Ssion juggernaut, and the show also features an exhibit of Critcheloe's drawings and Ssion-related photographs. At 2 p.m. Saturday, Critcheloe will be at Grand Arts to talk about the project and the ideas it incorporates.
Thu., Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m., 2009