MEMangan

No one would be surprised or resentful if a performer facing such drastic health issues chose to retreat entirely from public view. It is brave of Dion to reveal this struggle in such a raw and honest manner, and no doubt it will earn her sympathy from the fans she's so afraid to disappoint.

But it was clear to me that worse than this terrible disorder, what hurts her is her loss of identity as a performer. From such a young age, that's all she's known.

We saw a lot of physical therapy in this piece. However, I really wished we saw her in behavioral health therapy too. I think that is also as serious here--her loss of identity.

And as I realized that was the main issue, all I could see in this piece was another performance that she needed to deliver, and I felt uneasy about that. Her anxiety was giving me anxiety. She doesn't need to do this for her fans. It's ok, she can put her feet up, and write, design clothes or shoes or whatever, or paint, and everything else she missed out over the decades. I wish she could lower her perceptions of what she owes people--she doesn't. It's really ok to rest now. She deserves it.

I wish her some peace and ease, so very much.

This is a well-crafted overview of the remarkable and under-appreciated work of a duo with careers of importance and endurance--but that has been consistently discounted and overlooked because of their status as queer women.

Archival footage and historical media coverage help to contextualize the arc of Indigo Girls history. Their evolution as performers and activists is illustrated. Some peeks into their private lives are provided.

It was a lovely tribute to steady performers who picked an unusual path through American popular music, and although it might lack the drama and pathos of the behavior of hair band boys, that's only life after all.

Queer culture over the centuries has rarely been visible and documented. Esther Newton broke down barriers to make that different now. But it took a toll on her at the time.

What a nice look at someone who pushed the academic frontiers on the studies of queerness and society, from someone who was on the front lines at the most pivotal time in the last decades of progress. Still overshadowed by masculine gay culture, drag and lesbian history needs to have room in the discourse. That is only more apparent today on Trans Day of Visibility, where some understanding of the nature of the people defining their own existence is crucial, as the attacks on these vulnerable groups seem to be escalating.

Besides her important work, learning about Esther as a person and her relationships and hobbies was also humanizing and helpful context for her life.

I didn't know her before, or what to expect when I clicked "play" on Kanopy. But it was worth my time.