COVID Vortex Anxiety Opera Kitty Kaleidoscope Disco

by Karen Finley

COVID Vortex Anxiety Opera Kitty Kaleidoscope Disco meditates on the extraordinary time of loss, isolation, and bizarre rituals of the Covid era and its aftermath.

"Yep, she's still got it. . . . Like the most inspiring religious services, 'Covid Vortex Anxiety Opera Kitty Kaleidoscope Disco' ends on an optimistic note, with Finley pivoting from shock and horror at the lives lost, access and control over one's body into hope—for change, peace, courage, love. And art. Always art."—Elisabeth Vincentelli,The New York Times

First performed at sold-out theaters in New York, where the Village Voice compared Karen Finley to Allen Ginsberg and Gregory Corso, this vivid suite of poems invokes a maelstrom of feelings that will make you laugh and cry, sometimes on the same page. In COVID Vortex Anxiety Opera Kitty Kaleidoscope Disco, Finley processes the pandemic in all its complexity—from the collective coping strategies during isolation and loss to the absurd new habits we acquired, from handwashing to wiping down groceries to decorative double masks and zoom dance parties.

The New York City hotspot echoes an earlier AIDS era; that rage and sorrow remain part of the City's DNA. During COVID, tragic historic events such as the police murder of George Floyd and the continued brutality on Black and brown bodies, challenged the nation. Revolution took to the streets. The reversal of Roe v Wade and the criminalizing of trans peoples' bodies, mental health realities, houselessness, essential workers' rights, and social isolation brought desperate conditions. Finley reflects on these traumas, asking how do we employ love despite the hate, to encourage humanity despite proliferating violence?

On the fifth anniversary of the pandemic lockdown, COVID Vortex Anxiety Opera Kitty Kaleidoscope Disco looks back while also looking forward, offering art as salvation, and the deep belief in the power of words, compassion, and humor to transcend the harsh realities of today.

Genres: Poetry

144 pages, Paperback

Published March 4, 2025

About the author

KAREN FINLEYs raw and transgressive performances have long provoked controversy and debate. She has appeared and exhibited her visual art, performances, and plays internationally. The author of many books including A Different Kind of Intimacy , George & Martha , and Shock Treatment , she is a professor at the Tisch School of Art and Public Policy at NYU.

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Reviews

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Karen Finley’s work. I’m so glad that I was able to watch her perform work from this book online on the livestream from City Lights Bookstore, because I could hear her voice in my head as I read this. She has captured so much of Covid here: the fear, the anger, the absurdity, the grief. And I loved her drawings throughout.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This must work better as a performance (it's clearly designed for this purpose) as some of the writing is very, I'm not sure what word I want, "casual" makes it sound unconsidered which isn't what I mean, but basically very vernacular, not trying to be particularly poetic or artistic; that kind of thing would work better with a performance element. But there's a lot about this I liked a lot: she's great at evoking the experience of lockdown, the weird specifics of that time, and especially the feeling of medical risk. The "Put on a Fucking Mask" piece was extremely cathartic for me to read, as someone who still needs to mask everywhere (and wishes others would be more thoughtful about this in certain spaces, namely... doctors' offices!).

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

the back of the book says that this was originally performed in theaters in new york and well....... it shows. the author definitely meant well but it's definitely slam poetry meets theater kid. i don't know. is that mean?

[Evelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A look back in verse at the Covid pandemic and its impact on the lives of the author and others ends in a message of hope for the future.

[Tyler Ookami]

Was interested to see what a newly published book of Karen Finley poems would be when I saw it at the library and new it would be a quick read. Unfortunately confirms my worst suspicions about certain types of artists lapsing into twee liberal self-help tropes as they age, like my two word review for this would be "not helpful". As a big fan of Finley's work from the 80s and 90s, I don't really think there is anything of value here. Still, though, I have a perverse admiration for people with this total lack of self awareness, I think growing up online has caused people to self-censor and it's interesting to read work that exists outside that even if it is quite poor.