Hauschka, Arias & Ratzke, Lily & Madeleine, Reverend Billy, Julia Haltigan and More Set for Joe's Pub, Now thru 5/4
By: BWW News Desk Apr. 22, 2014
Joe's Pub at The Public has announced its upcoming performances, running tomorrow, April 23 through May 4, 2014. Details below!
Wednesday, April 23 at 7:00PM
$12
YO MISS! Teaching Inside the Cultural Divide is an original play written and performed by Judith Sloan and a live band. Sloan, known for her solo performances and her collaboration with Warren Lehrer on the multi-media project Crossing the BLVD, spent 15 years teaching in schools and jails where she encountered and reported on immigration stories, cultural clashes and generation gaps. Fusing the art of theater and music, YO MISS! is a first-person account of an artist navigating a maze of miscommunications and memories, while breaking down the assumptions that divide residents of the same city. Collaborating with rapper Immortal Technique, Sloan remixes her own experiences with those of her students, transforming into a multitude of characters, in this sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always truth-seeking show. Directed by Bob Berky, Sloan's live band includes Frank London (trumpet), Deep Singh (table), Lynn Ligammari (sax), Joell Jackson (beatbox), and Miwi LaLupa (bass).
Wednesday, April 23 at 9:30PM
$12
Nova Social, called "dark, witty and highly danceable synth poppers," by New York Magazine, is led by singer/multi-instrumentalist David Nagler and guitarist/programmer Thom Soriano. The band also features vocalist Xavier (Scissor Sisters, Bright Light Bright Light), pianist Dan Lipton (Sting, Burt Bacharach), a string trio comprised of Tom Chiu, Dana Lyn, and Clara Kennedy, and a rhythm section of Pier Paolo Pappalardo and Konrad Meissner. The NYC-based band comes to Joe's Pub to celebrate the April 22 release of The Patience & Pleasure EP, which features production by David Frank (The System, Chaka Khan, Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera), in addition to the long-awaited release of their lost album Sports Motel on cassette tape.
Thursday, April 24 at 7:30PM
$18
Ryan Montbleau's songs typically need to simmer. In his decade-long career, the gifted singer and his limber band have built their catalog the old-fashioned way, by introducing new songs to their live set, then bending and shaping them over dozens of performances before committing a definitive version to the hard drive. Montbleau's next album, For Higher, is quite literally a departure from those methods. Well-established out of his Northeast roots, the singer threw himself into New Orleans, where everything tends to be slow-cooked, for a few fast-moving days working with Galactic's Ben Ellman. Comprised of originals like the playful stomp of "Deadset" or "Head Above Water," peppered with horns and a few handpicked cover tunes (Bill Withers, Curtis Mayfield, the late Muscle Shoals guitarist Eddie Hinton), the album came together spontaneously. This same intuitive spark is evident on stage.
Thursday, April 24 at 9:30PM
$12
Both grounded and ambitious, Mads Langer worked with not only leading pop producers like Swedish team SeventyEight but also his childhood friends on his new album. That touch of level-headed humanity also finds its ways to Langer's songwriting which center on issues of love, loss, life and death. You sense all along that Langer has become a beloved songwriter because he entered the fray for the best reason - to simply write and play. He explains, "If I was not allowed to play music, I would be desperate beyond my imagination. So, I enjoy every morning I get up and realise I live of my music. Holding the humility and the gratefulness in my hands is very important to me. And as long as I do not compromise with who I am, I feel invulnerable."
Thursdays, April 24 & May 1 at 11:30 PM
$15 in Advance / $20 at Door
Acclaimed East African vocalist and songwriter Somi returns to Joe's Pub for a three week late night residency. She and her band will preview music from her forthcoming album and major label debut The Lagos Music Salon (Sony/Okeh) which will be released this summer. Her NightSPRING residency is inspired by the unfolding season and the magic of the night. Somi's band is Otis Brown III (drums), Toru Dodo (piano/keyboard), Nir Felder (guitar), Michael Olatuja (bass) and Alicia Olatuja (additional vocals).
DANCENOW: CLARE PORTER'S PORTABLES
Friday & Saturday, April 25 & 26 at 7:00PM
$15
Claire Porter is on the move with her new work PORTABLES, a collection of funny and poignant character sketches that leave a lasting, laugh-out-loud impression on audiences across the U.S. and around the globe. PORTABLES is composed by Mary Ellen Childs, performed by Matt Buffalo, Dana Crowe, Misaki Karachi, Claire Porter, Susan Thomasson, Sabatino Verlezza, Soprano Marla Berg and other guests. This presentation is supported by Live Music for Dance, Jody and John Arnhold and The Guggenheim Foundation.
Friday, April 25 at 9:30 PM
SOLD OUT
Volker Bertelmann, the man behind Hauschka, is a Dusseldorf-based pianist and composer from Kreuztal Nordrheinwestfalen, Germany. The story behind Hauschka is not necessarily what you would expect. Although Bertelmann is one of the most recognizable 21st Century proponents of what is known as prepared piano - sound altered by the insertion of alien objects between or upon its strings, hammers and dampers - he was barely aware of the champions of such a practice when he first began his experiments. Even John Cage was a largely unfamiliar name that fateful day when he sat in the studio of his friend Adam Fuest and, frustrated by the sounds he was making, starting placing random objects into
Friday, April 25 at 11:00PM
SOLD OUT
Bright Light Bright Light is the moniker of Welsh-born Rod Thomas, a singer, writer, producer and DJ that NME has called "the boy Robyn in all but name." Drawing influence from the late 80s and early 90s, Rod has crafted a brand of shimmering electro-pop that nods to Depeche Mode, Bjork, Yazoo and Ace of Base. Mixing a love of classic songwriting with a love of the dance floor, Attitude Magazine describes him as "Creator of emotional disco moments that only Kylie or Robyn can normally provide." On this night at Joe's Pub, Bright Light Bright Light offers a special preview of his forthcoming solo piano album Life Is Easy.
Saturday, April 26 at 11:00AM
$10
Gowanus Music Club and Joe's Pub present an all-ages show as the culmination of the rock school's Spring 2014 12-Week Jam (Kids). Seven bands, ages eight through sixteen, will play fifteen minute sets to showcase their talents. The PS140 Contemporary Choir will also perform works from their repertoire. The event promises to be a diverse and fun afternoon for kids and adults alike.
Saturday, April 26 at 9:30 PM
$18
Nelson Mandela's spirit lives on through the Afro-Pop-Jazz music and message of South Africa's Grammy Award-nominated band, Sharon Katz & The Peace Train. The band returns to Joe's Pub on the 20th anniversary of Mandela's election as President. Katz contributed to Mandela's historic efforts to break through the barriers of Apartheid in the early 1990s by taking 150 musicians onboard The Peace Train for a cross-country tour in support of a peaceful transition to democracy. Two decades later, they are still going strong. In fact, a documentary film entitled When Voices Meet is being made about their role in the struggle; a preview will be shown before the concert. Singer-songwriter Kierstin Gray will play an opening set to kick off the night!
Saturday, April 26 at 11:30 PM
SOLD OUT
Somali-Canadian hip-hop artist and philanthropist K'naan wraps up his month-long residency at Joe's Pub. You know him from his collaborations with music greats Nas, Bono, Mos Def and will.I.am from his 2012 LP release Country, God Or The Girl. The grandson of Haji Mohamed, one of Somalia's most famous poets, and nephew of famed Somali singer Magool, the emcee is forging his own musical path through reggae, funk, pop, soul and, above all, hip-hop.
Sunday, April 27 at 7:00 PM
$15
An accomplished playwright and singer-songwriter, Shontina Vernon (known to many in the music world as "Tina") is a dynamic and imaginative storyteller, fusing music, media and poetic narrative in ways that continue to push the hybrid form. Here she presents an evening of live original music, and excerpts from her critically acclaimed solo project, WANTED, a coming of age tale about forgery, fear, and the struggle to belong. "[There is] an undeniable power that pours through her voice and through her movements, an unmistakable passion that-at least on the surface-belies her youth," said SoulTrain.com.
Sunday, April 27 at 9:30 PM
$25
New York City icon Joey Arias and Dutch/German cabaret star Sven Ratzke premiere their new collaborative show Arias & Ratzke. Arias recently guest starred with Ratzke in Amsterdam, and the chemistry between these two world class performers inspired them to create a show together. With music directed by Ratzke's long-time collaborator, jazz pianist Charly Zastrau, Arias & Ratzke covers musical terrain ranging from Brecht and Weill to Lou Reed and The Beatles, with a dash of Shirley Bassey and Billie Holiday for good measure. Expect the unexpected as these peerless improvisers and vocalists engage the audience and each other with a mix of comedy, song and audience interaction.
TRANS FORMATIVE: AN EVENING OF SONGS THAT PROPEL US
Monday, April 28 at 9:30 PM
$30
TRANS Formative is two evenings of song showcasing Downtown's most illustrious performers, produced by vocal coach and teacher Barbara Maier Gustern with Downtown producer and performer Eric L. Schmalenberger. Proceeds will benefit New York Voices, Joe's Pub's artist commissioning program, and the Ali Forney Center.
This second installment will include Penny Arcade, Danny Bacher, Louisa Bradshaw, Seth Bedford,Machine Dazzle Flower, Miss Guy, Benjamin Ickies, John Kelly, Taylor Mac, Nancy Magarill, Julie Atlas Muz, Sofia Rei, Rob Roth, David Sloane, Esq., Sofia Tosello, Vlada Tomova & her Bulgarian Trio. Tammy Faye Starlite and Schmalenberger will serve as emcees.Tuesday, April 29 at 7:00 PM
$15
Peter Bradley Adams was formerly one half of the duo, Eastmountainsouth, signed by Robbie Robertson (of The Band) to DreamWorks Records in 2002. Since then, Peter has released four solo records as well as an EP with his side project, "Down Like Silver". He currently lives in Brooklyn, NY. "Adams is fast developing as a songwriter who both inspires and questions," said Nic Harcourt of The Los Angeles Times Magazine.
BRIDGET EVERETT & THE TENDER MOMENTS
Tuesdays, April 29, May 13 & June 24 at 9:30 PM
$25
Every month, Bridget Everett & The Tender Moments bring their funny yet gut-wrenching and outrageous performance to Joe's Pub. Led by the singing tour-de-force Bridget Everett, "a mouthy, flesh-jiggling early Bette Midler" (The New York Times), the band has sold-out venues nationally and instantly developed a cult-like following with their edgy, sexed-up, punk rock cabaret. Each performance is as explosive as it is unpredictable, welcoming special guests as varied as Fred Armisen, Patti LuPone, Flea, Dan Finnerty, Tonya Pinkins, Marc Shaiman, Erin Markey, Peaches, Neal Medlyn and Jake Shears while fans such as Ben Stiller, Jonah Hill, Andy Cohen and Lily Taylor can be seen laughing hysterically in the audience.
PAUL MULDOON & WAYSIDE SHRINES
Wednesday, April 30 at 7:00 PM
$20
In an evening of poetry and smart rock, the Wayside Shrines play songs with lyrics by Paul Muldoon, a Pulitzer Prize winning poet and Poetry Editor of The New Yorker. The Princeton-based music collective is Muldoon, Ila Couch, Chris Harford, Ray Kubian, Norika Manabe and Nigel Smith. They will be reprising some numbers from The Word on the Street (2013), described by Princeton Magazine as "a life-saving album," as well as new songs from their album in progress.
Wednesday, April 30 at 9:30 PM
$15
Lily & Madeleine is a pair of teenaged sisters who, at a pivotal moment in their lives, wrote an album called The Weight of the Globe. With Madeleine at college and Lily following soon after, both sisters find themselves pulled in two directions-between love for the hometown they'll be leaving and their burgeoning wanderlust. When the sisters began writing together just over a year ago, nobody expected their first song, "In the Middle," a bittersweet and understated melody, to rack up a quarter of a million YouTube views. But the gimmick-free, black & white video grabbed the hearts of a notoriously fast-moving Internet audience.
VALERIE GHENT: MUSE CD RELEASE
Thursday, May 1 at 7:30 PM
$15
Powerhouse recording artist Valerie Ghent brings her deep NYC blues-soul groove and intimate piano ballads to celebrate the release of her latest album, Muse, and her birthday! Ghent's powerful voice, piano chop and "soul-stirring, uplifting songs full of vitality and joy" make every concert unforgettable. An outstanding live performer with a 3 ½ octave vocal range and funky piano style, it is no surprise that she has toured with music legends Ashford & Simpson and Debbie Harry, and shared the stage with artists Dr. Maya Angelou, Defunkt and Billy Preston. Ghent brings an all-star groovalicious band to Joe's Pub and very special surprise guests.
ANI CORDERO: RECORDAR CD RELEASE
Thursday, May 1 at 9:30 PM
$15
Brooklyn-based Ani Cordero is a beloved alternative world music singer and drummer, who set out to re-make an important group of Latin American classic love and protest songs to tell the stories behind their heroic writers from 1930s-1970s. Called Recordar, her latest album is co-produced by the legendary Sergio Dias of Brazil's Os Mutantes, and brings old traditions to new audiences with music from the Nueva Canción movement (Latin American and Iberian folk-inspired and socially-committed music). This special May Day concert will be the world premiere of the album. Cordero introduces these beautiful, historically momentous songs to a newer generation, as well as raising awareness about the significance of political art in social change.
AMANDA MARTINEZ: MAÑANA CD RELEASE
Friday, May 2 at 7:00 PM
$20
Amanda Martinez is a Canadian-based singer-songwriter whose music blends her unique Mexican and South African roots with Flamenco soul. Her songs have appeared on three Putumayo world music collections, including Latin Dreamland and Cafe Latino. Martinez has headlined concerts at the 2011 PanAmerican Games in Guadalajara and the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Her newest album Mañana (released April 22, CEN/Red via Sony Music) is produced by Grammy Award-winner Javier Limón (Buika, Mariza), who praises Martinez as "one of the greatest voices in the world."
THE LIFE & DEATH OF KENYON PHILLIPS
Friday, May 2 at 9:00 PM
$20
The Life & Death of Kenyon Phillips is a 90-minute rock opera that tells the story of the colorful New Yorker's life (and death, since he's executed at the end). In addition to Phillips and The Ladies In Waiting, his all-girl backing band, the cast includes pop culture commentator Michael Musto, Daphne Rubin-Vega, David Cale, Flotilla DeBarge and Chaske Spencer (of The Twilight Saga). Heavily influenced by Max Ophül's Lola Montes, Fellini's 8 1/2, and John Waters's entire film canon, The Life & Death of Kenyon Phillips is a hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking examination of identity, responsibility and truth.
Dubbed "the love child of Luther Vandross and Steven Tyler" by Musto, Phillips is a wildly theatrical singer, songwriter, actor, writer, model, dancer and DJ.
Friday, May 2 at 11:30 PM
$45
Broadway Battles Bullying is a concert to benefit the newly-founded Michael Morones Foundation, which was started to educate communities about youth suicide prevention and the effects of bullying. Scheduled to appear are: Chondra Profit (Disney's The Lion King), Heather Parcells (A Chorus Line Revival, Wonderland), Brian Craft (Avenue Q, Revival of Let My People Come), Anthony Crouchelli (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer National Tour, Step Up 3), Rachel Lorin (E! and Oxygen's The Next Big Thing, Recording Artist), John Ryan Del Bosque (Revival of Let My People Come), Matthew Pritchard (The Spazmatics, Bald Diva) and Alex Bennett(Cabaret). Dougie Meyer & Greg Hoagland will emcee for the evening. Music direction is by Michael James Roy. The band features Max Yassky on drums and Isam Rum on guitar among others.
The Michael Morones Foundation was created following the attempted suicide of 11-year-old North Carolina student Michael Morones. The young boy was severely bullied by his fellow classmates for his love of the My Little Pony TV series. Morones, who attempted to hang himself, was found in time to save his life, but is currently undergoing intensive rehab due to the severity of the brain damage he sustained. He will need ongoing managed care for the rest of his life.
Saturday, May 3 at 7:00 PM
$20
Belter and bad decision expert Tori Scott, a Garland for the Grindr era, returns for another evening of brassy songs and slurred autobiographical stories. As a singer, she's graced the stages of 54 Below, the Laurie Beechman, the Metropolitan Room, and every gay bar on the Eastern Seaboard. As an actress, she's counted to 20 as a singing garbage woman on Sesame Street and dubbed the vocals of a singing hooker on HBO's Cathouse: The Musical. As a woman, she strives every day to be a consummate lady and sometimes wonders if she actually still has a liver or not. If you missed her previous packed shows at the Pub, all is forgiven; just get a ticket, get a drink, and let Scott belt your troubles away.
The show is written by Scott and Adam Hetrick, and directed by Seth Sklar-Heyn, with musical direction by Jesse Kissel.
Saturday, May 3 at 9:00 PM
$15
Known for her dark, absurdist humor and "magnetic diva aggression" (The New York Times), Erin Markey creates a riotous and unexpectedly moving performance about figuring out who you might be. Pop covers and original music score Markey's tales of Midwestern family life and her salvation by Bible-Belt Christians, birthday presents and Ypsilanti strippers. Erin Markey at Joe's Pub is directed by Ben Rimalower (Leslie Kritzer is Patti LuPone at Les Mouches) with musical direction by Tony-nominated Kenny Mellman (The Julie Ruin, Kiki and Herb, Our Hit Parade).
Markey creates comedic performances and original music for stage and video. Major works include Puppy Love: A Stripper's Tail (P.S. 122), The Dardy Family Home Movies by Stephen Sondheim (San Francisco Film Society) and Looking for Limbo (Lincoln Center Director's Lab). She was a featured artist in the critically acclaimed Our Hit Parade show.
Saturday, May 3 at 11:30 PM
$12
Blending intimate vocal performance with the obscure synthetic textures of alt-R&B producer Toulouse, Kiah Victoria emerges from the great city of New York. Having garnered the attention of NYC's Broadway stages (starring in The Lion King as young Nala at age ten), MTV and the world renowned Tisch School of Performing Arts, the powerhouse songstress is steadily building on her young career. After singing her way into a feature in JAY Z's video for "Picasso Baby", Victoria released her second EP Gravitate, which is now available on Spotify and iTunes.
REVEREND BILLY & THE SHOW-STOPPING CHOIR: THE HONEYBEELUJAH! SHOW
Sundays, May 4 - June 22 at 2:00 PM
$15
Reverend Billy & the Stop-Shopping Choir return to Joe's Pub for a two-month residency. What time is this? Time to party before the plague? Or is it more like the 20's between world wars? In 2014, stepping on stage in fire and drought, freak storms and extinction... we feel a strange joy in these first days of apocalypse. We need to rededicate ourselves to the politicizing of survival, pitting our freedom against the financiers of climate change.
The singing-activists return to Joe's after last year's performances in Chase Bank lobbies, and New York jails and courts. In 2013 we were inspired by the extinction and resurrection of the Golden Toad. This year, the Honey Bee is the hero. The presence of the pesticides of "Big Ag" and the struggle by bees to survive, is inspiration for new songs, songs with lots of Bee-atitude, hard-working and sticky sweet. Honeybeelujah!Sunday, May 4 at 7:00 PM
$14
Julia Haltigan's upbringing in NYC's Lower East Side gave her an edgy perspective that has shaped her songwriting and dynamic character today. Growing up in a musically inclined family, she picked up on melodies with a natural ability, nurtured by her father's record collection, which included Lou Reed and Tom Waits. Not only is she merciless like rockers Joan Jet & Wanda Jackson but her sultry voice can melt your heart. Haltigan is able to captivate an audience with stories of her travels around the country and leave you wanting more of her seductive and flirtatious music. Her critically acclaimed album My Green Heart and EP Magneto gained her national recognition. She has shared stages with many amazing singer-songwriters including Judy Collins, The Waterboys, Cory Chisel, Norah Jones and Justin Townes Earle.
Arum Rae, formerly known as White Dress, is a modern day siren. Her ability to transcend style and genre allows her music to complement country, resurrect the soul, feel the blues, and ruin then reinvent rock, through her deeply rooted foundation as a singer-songwriter. When she plays, the room falls silent except for her sultry voice and electric guitar. Often compared to PJ Harvey and Patti Smith, Arum Rae accomplishes a wider range of sound and feel with minimal accompaniment - at most, a drummer and bassist - often playing alone. Rae has worked with everyone from The Black Keys, Peter Bjorn & John, Gary Clark Jr., and The Civil Wars, but she is now primed to take command of her own destiny.
MARA WILSON: WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?
Sunday, May 4 at 9:30 PM
$12
Mara Wilson's What Are You Afraid Of? is about fears, anxieties, phobias, dealing with them, getting through them, and laughing at them. Death, commitment, sock puppets - everyone's afraid of something. Laugh at your fears as host Wilson takes you through the anxieties of performers, comedians and a few of her own. Her guests: Kevin Allison, host of storytelling show and podcast RISK! and a member of The State; Joseph Fink, creator of hit podcast Welcome to Night Vale; and Chris Gethard, comedian and host of The Chris Gethard Show.
Wilson is a recovering former child actor who writes plays, fiction and nonfiction. Her writing has been featured on Cracked.com, Jezebel, Theatermania.com, Yahoo News, BUST, The Huffington Post, and her own site MaraWilsonWritesStuff.com. She has told stories for ASSSSCAT 3000, RISK!, Showgasm, The Story Collider, The Jukebox Show, Tell It: Brooklyn, Funny Story and more. She is currently working on a novel and trying to stop telling everyone about it.
Visit us at joespub.com for a complete list of shows and to buy tickets, or call 212-967-7555, or visit in person at The Public Theater Box Office (1:00-6:00 PM), 425 Lafayette Street, NYC.
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