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Neal Medlyn
BornJerry Neal Medlin[1]
(1975-05-21) May 21, 1975 (age 49)
Palestine, Texas
OccupationPerformance artist, musician
Alma materFrankston High School
Stephen F. Austin University
Period1999–present

Neal Medlyn (born Jerry Neal Medlin on May 21, 1975, in Palestine, Texas) is a New York City-based performance artist and musician. His works include Champagne Jerry,[2] his reenactment of a Beyonce concert DVD, his Pop Star Series[3] of performance pieces, and his work in the variety show, Our Hit Parade.[4] He has appeared on Bridget Everett's Comedy Central special,[5] in the online series People Are Detectives,[6] and in video work by the artist Guy Richards Smit.[7]

Early life

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Medlyn attended school in Palestine, Texas and Frankston, Texas. He studied theater at Kilgore College and worked as an actor at the Texas Shakespeare Festival.[8] He received a bachelor's degree from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1999.[9] He has published personal essays about coming out as bisexual[10] and about how the Gathering of the Juggalos helped him understand his Pentecostal upbringing.[11] His video "East Texas" includes a TV clip of him winning a rap contest at the Tyler Mall as a teenager.

Career

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He performed in punk and noise bands in East Texas and was part of an avant-garde music scene in Nacogdoches, Texas, before moving to Austin, Texas, in 1999. In 2000, he began performing each week at coffee shops, public parks, and hotel rooms in Austin.

In 2001, he moved briefly to Berlin, Germany, and then to New York City.

From 2001 to 2005, he performed at the downtown theaters Surf Reality and Collective:Unconscious. He was named "Mr. Lower East Side" in 2003.[12] In 2005, he had a weekly show at the Apocalypse Lounge bar, where he debuted The Lionel Richie Opera.The Lionel Richie Oper was the first of what became a seven-show series of performances, each built around a different pop star.

In 2004, he co-starred with Karen Finley for a theatrical run and subsequent tour of George and Martha, in which he played George W. Bush to Finley's Martha Stewart.[13]

In 2005, Medlyn became a regular in the show Automatic Vaudeville at Ars Nova, performing alongside VIDS, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Billy Eichner, and the show hosts, Bridget Everett and Kenny Mellman.[14]

Medlyn was cast as a dancer by Adrienne Truscott in they will use the highways in 2000 and appeared in three dances choreographed by David Neumann, including "feedforward". He designed sound for Miguel Gutierrez (choreographer), winning a 2010 Bessie Award as part of the creative team for Gutierrez's "Last Meadow".[15]

The Neal Medlyn Experience Live

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Medlyn reenacted a Beyoncé concert DVD, The Beyoncé Experience Live for the New Museum called The Neal Medlyn Experience Live.[16] The show toured through the United States and Canada and was featured as a part of Gang Dance in New York City.[17]

Our Hit Parade

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Medlyn was one of the co-founders and co-hosts of Our Hit Parade,[18] a monthly top-ten pop music countdown show which ran for five years at Joe's Pub. In 2011, it was named one of Best Cabaret Shows by Time Out New York.

The Pop Star Series

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'The Pop Star Series' comprises seven performance pieces:

  • The Lionel Richie Opera[19] (Apocalypse Lounge, Ars Nova, and tour performances in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Portland, Oregon, Austin, Texas)
  • Coming in the Air Tonight[20] (Galapagos Art Space)
  • Unpronounceable Symbol[21] (PS122)
  • ...Her's a Queen[22] (Dance Theater Workshop, American Realness Festival and tour performances in Portland, Oregon)
  • Brave New Girl[23] (The Chocolate Factory)
  • Wicked Clown Love[24] (The Kitchen and tour performances in Kittery, Maine, Los Angeles, California)
  • King[24] (The Kitchen, American Realness Festival)

The series was presented as part of the American Realness Festival in 2015[25] and as part of the Live Art Festival at Kampnagel in Hamburg Germany in 2014.[26]

In 2015, 53rd State Press published a coffee-table book featuring photos and text of the shows.[26]

Champagne Jerry

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In 2013, Medlyn began performing as the rapper Champagne Jerry at venues including the Brooklyn Academy of Music,[27] The Kitchen,[28] New York Live Arts,[29] Union Pool, and Pianos.[30]

Champagne Jerry was named one of the top ten best performers in New York by Time Out. He was profiled in Rolling Stone,[31] Brooklyn Vegan,[32] and Interview.[33] In 2016, he appeared as the musical guest on The Chris Gethard Show on Fusion TV.

Champagne Jerry's collaborators include Max Tannone, Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz)), Sophia Cleary, Farris Craddock, and Gillian Walsh, who performs as "the Ghost of Champagne Past."

Champagne Jerry has produced two albums: For Real, You Guys and "The Champagne Room". He has posted several videos on YouTube, including one for "Yo Kev" that features Adam Horovitz, Murray Hill, and Bridget Everett.

Personal life

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At age 18, Medlyn married and had a son. The marriage ended in divorce. In 2004, he married author Ada Calhoun,[9] with whom he also has a son, they split in 2022.[34]

References

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  1. ^ "Jerry Medlin". MyHeritage. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  2. ^ "Champagne Jerry". Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  3. ^ "Must Like Loud: Neal Medlyn's Explosive Seven Part Opus". Art F City. February 2, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  4. ^ "Our Hit Parade". Time Out. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  5. ^ "Bridget Everett: Gynecological Wonder". Comedy Central. July 12, 2015. Archived from the original on August 18, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  6. ^ "People Are Detectives". Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  7. ^ "The Grossman- Full Episodes". Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  8. ^ "Will Anybody Ever Love Neal Medlyn?". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  9. ^ a b "Weddings/Celebrations; Ada Schjeldahl, Jerry Medlin". The New York Times. August 22, 2004. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  10. ^ "Come As You Are". Nerve. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  11. ^ "How I found a home with the Juggalos". Salon. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  12. ^ "Murray Joins the Howl". Gay City News. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  13. ^ Isherwood, Charles (September 23, 2004). "He's From the White House, She's From a Clean House". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  14. ^ "From the Basement to Broadway". New York Press. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  15. ^ "Last Meadow (2009)". Miguel Gutierrez (choreographer). Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  16. ^ "Boys Will Be Beyoncé". New York Public Radio. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  17. ^ "WERK: PUT A RING ON MEDLYN". Buddies In Bad Times. February 5, 2010. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  18. ^ "Our Hit Parade". Time Out. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  19. ^ "Neal Medlyn's Lionel Richie Opera". TheaterMania. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  20. ^ "Pencil This In". Gothamist. Archived from the original on November 5, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  21. ^ Rocco, Claudia La (July 11, 2008). "The Ultimate Outsider Under a Purple Umbrella". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  22. ^ "Dance in Review". The New York Times. October 26, 2009. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  23. ^ Kourlas, Gia (October 2010). "One Man's Fascination With Miley, Real and Not". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  24. ^ a b "Neal Medlyn and Kathleen Hanna Talk 'wicked Clown Love'". MTV News. Archived from the original on January 19, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  25. ^ "Pop Star Series, The 2015 Emerald Edition". American Realness. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  26. ^ a b "Live Art Festival 2014 Neal Medlyn: Pop Star Series, VOL 1-6". Kartentelefon. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  27. ^ "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry 2016- Night 1". Impose Magazine. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  28. ^ "Synth Nights: Champagne Jerry, Penis, and Tami Tamaki". The Kitchen. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  29. ^ "Ad-Rock & more playing Champagne Jerry's release shows; Mike D DJing Panorama". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  30. ^ "Say Something Ridiculous – Celebrating With Champagne Jerry". Creative Capital. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  31. ^ "Ad-Rock Plays Ball With Champagne Jerry". Rolling Stone. December 8, 2013. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  32. ^ "Champagne Jerry". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  33. ^ "Inside Champagne Jerry's Champagne Room". Interview. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  34. ^ Calhoun, Ada (March 21, 2023). "An Ode to Arms". Vogue.
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