Salamander Leviathan, Xavier, Alyssa Graham and more are set for performances at Joe's Pub this week. The full lineup includes:
SALAMANDER LEVIATHAN
February 13 at 7:00pm
$12
It's 1890 in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. The loneliest man in the world makes a deal with the Devil: A wife and a family in exchange for his soul. When a beautiful stranger steps off the train, everything seems headed towards happily ever after. But neither the stranger nor the Devil is quite what they seem. A casio-pop grand guignol about the price we pay for love. Salamander Leviathan was written by Krista Knight. The music was composed by David's Pegasus creator Barry Brinegar. The play debuted at UCSD's Baldwin New Play Festival on April 15th, 2011 under the direction of Anthony Luciano.
XAVIER: A VALENTINE’S DAY EVE LADIES OF SOUL TRIBUTE
GUESTS INCLUDE Lady Rizo, SXIP SHIREY, HELOISE (OF THE SAVOIR FAIRE), & Mykal Kilgore
February 13 at 9:30pm
$12 Advance / $15 Door
Xavier and his supporting cadre of talented musical guests will help you get turned on a day early with their salute to soul music's leading ladies. Guests include
Lady Rizo, Sxip Shirey, Deah Harriot,
Celina Carvajal, Andre Springer, Shaquanda Coca Mulatta, Matt Dallow, and
Mykal Kilgore . Boys Choir Of Harlem alumnus Xavier has received uncoerced praise for his vocal skills from some of the biggest names in the business including
Mary J. Blige,
Lena Horne, D’Angelo, TV on the Radio, The Rapture, and Ashford & Simpson. He's also a Diesel U Music Award nominee and his U.K. debut on Virgin Records earned him a top ten hit. Xavier has collaborated on recordings with Scissor Sisters, New Power Generation, Basement Jaxx vocalists Vula & Sharlene,
Stephin Merritt, and
LL Cool J.
ALYSSA GRAHAM
February 14 at 7:30pm
$15
Alyssa Graham has been aiming for authenticity, peeling back the layers on a quest for her truest voice. It’s a road that’s led her to Lock, Stock & Soul, her latest outing and one that bravely dispenses with many of the jazz trappings that flavored Echo, her Sunnyside Records debut. While Echo was focused on travel, it functioned as a musical travelogue, and Lock, Stock & Soul represents coming home, a full circle return to Graham’s longtime musical loves:
Neil Young, Nick Drake,
Bob Dylan and others capable of delivering heartfelt emotion in the simplest of packages. As befits the ’60s and ’70s artists Graham names as touchstones, the approach to recording Lock, Stock & Soul was something of a throwback. Overseen by producer Craig Street, sessions were largely tracked live, with all the musicians gathered in a communal circle. Alyssa brings her act to the Joe’s Pub stage on Valentine’s Day, February 14th.
NEVER SLEEP ALONE A SHOW DESIGNED TO HELP YOU HOOK UP
February 14 at 9:30pm
March 2, 9, 16, 23, & 30 at 11:30pm
$25 Singles / $30 Voyeurs / $75 VIP Singles / $80 VIP Voyeur
Finally, a show designed to help you hook up! Sexual psychologist and music therapist Dr. Alex Schiller brings the hot, the single and the curious together for a night of delirious laughter, awesome music and socio-sensual interaction. Dr. Alex insists that her audience be filled with the sexy and seeking. And she suggests you put your table/seat number, stats and sexual preference in the comments section below. “Single straight males should sit with single straight females, hot gays with hot gays, older rich men with younger drunk women - Why sit with people you find sexually irrelevant?” - Dr. Alex. “Singles” mix in the front and “Voyeurs” watch from the back as the provocative and irreverent Dr. Alex dispenses sex advice from her new book, “Get Laid or Die Trying”, sings re-imagined pop songs and brilliant originals, and leads her audience through a wildly entertaining evening. Willing singles are invited to join Dr. Alex on stage for free champagne and an assisted speed-dating session. The night continues at an exclusive after-party and the secret location is announced at curtain call.
MARKETA IRGLOVA
February 15 at 7:00pm
February 22 at 7:00pm
$15
Marketa Irglova, Academy Award winner and one half of The Swell Season will be performing two intimate shows in support of her recent debut solo record, Anar (ANTI). The setting at Joe's Pub should be the perfect backdrop for the classically trained pianist to perform songs from her catalog which includes songs from the movie and off-Broadway show, Once. She will be joined by a small band for these shows. Irglová collaborates with Glen Hansard of the Irish rock band The Frames, whom she met when he was visiting Valašské Mezi?í?í, and performs with him as The Swell Season. In 2007, she co-starred with Hansard in the indie movie, “Once” written and directed by John Carney. Hansard and Irglová wrote all but one of the songs featured in the film. The movie won the World Cinema Audience Award for a dramatic film at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. Among the songs Irglová wrote with Hansard for Once was “Falling Slowly” which received an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Irglová became the first Czech woman to win an Oscar, and at age 19 she was the youngest person to win an Oscar in a musical category.
Heather Christian & THE ARBORNAUTS CD RELEASE PARTY
February 15 at 9:30pm
$14
Heather Christian is the daughter of a go-go dancer and a blues musician. A disgruntled classical pianist, she and her "Orchestra" (an eclectic assortment of multi-hyphenate musicians) turn Christian's dream-like hymns into a chamber punk collection of stories and meditations. She recently debuted her full length music/movement work "North" at La Mama Etc this year to much critical acclaim. "North manages to combine its poetic imagery and associative narrative into a surprisingly moving event. At the center of it all is the angelic Christian, who delivers a mesmerizing performance that is both intimate and powerful" Backstage Magazine.
Judith Sloan’S YO MISS! TEACHING INSIDE THE CULTURAL DIVIDE
February 16 at 7:30pm
$15
What happens when a performing artist survives a near-fatal car accident and collides with the oncoming traffic of Hip Hop culture? Part documentary, part music, part poetic autobiography, Yo Miss! Teaching Inside the Cultural Divide looks back on
Judith Sloan’s twenty years of teaching in prisons, immigration high schools, and universities. In this sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always truth-seeking performance, Sloan attempts to break down assumptions that divide teacher and student, student and student, one sub-culture from another, and residents of a polyglot city who live in close proximity but come from conflicting worlds. In addition to her work as an educator,
Judith Sloan is an award-winning character actress, oral historian, and radio producer. Fusing the art of theatre and radio, Yo Miss is an eye- and ear-witness account of one artist navigating a maze of miscommunications, memory, and cross-generational dialogues as she finds resilience in the face of tragedy.
LOW CUT CONNIE
February 16 at 9:30pm
$14
Low Cut Connie is true gut-bucket tear-jerkin' rock n roll. In 2011, they were the Rocky Balboa of bands...under-dogging their way into the ring with their raucous brand of throw-down rock. Major critics and national media (like Rolling Stone, NPR, NY Times, Robert Christgau etc.) heaped big sexy praise on their debut record, Get Out the Lotion. "Fresh Air" / NPR chose this collection of sweaty juke joint rockers as one of the Ten Best Albums of 2011. The brainchild of two songwriters from opposite sides of the pond - New Jersey's Adam Weiner and Birmingham, UK's Dan Finnemore - these boys specialize in boozy, swampy, hip-shaking rock n roll. Weiner pounds the piano and howls like a deviant Jersey Jerry Lee, as Finnemore pounds out a sweaty backbeat, and guitarist Neil Duncan reels of classic fire-licks on his Les Paul. The Connies have been blowin' up clubs around New York City and are ready to bring their infectious show to Joe's Pub.
THE FIRST ANNUAL REAL LOVE CONCERT
February 16 at 9:30pm
$14
Hosted by A Mile in My Shoes, The First Annual Real Love Concert celebrates the beauty of our humanity and individuality. Through personal video testimonials and live performances by dynamic singers and spoken-word artists, it highlights the journey to Real Love - a love that can only be found within. Focusing this year on women and the LGBT community, the Real Love Concert was conceived with the belief that focusing on self-love, self-respect and a positive self-image is central to the betterment of society. The concert on February 17th features
Crystal Monee Hall,
David Brian Colbert, Ken Alston, Jr, Shira Erlichman, and Baron.
Lady Rizo: UNESCORTED
February 17 at 9:30pm
March 17 at 9:30pm
April 12 at 9:30pm
$15 Advance / $20 Door
Lady Rizo pays tribute to the premier badass in a gown, Ms.
Nina Simone. Lively selections from Simone's wide anthology of interpretations and originals.Though it is rumored that she is the product of a night of unrestrained indulgence between
Peggy Lee,
Mel Brooks,
Nina Simone,
Dean Martin and
Janis Joplin the truth is
Lady Rizo was raised by theatrical gypsies with the highest show business ethics. When she almost looked of age she rebelled against the comforting, unscrubbed, rustic life and set out for a world of harsh metropolitan sophisticates.The 'Cabaret Superstar' (
New York Magazine) exploded on to the New York stage with a powerful voice and stage charisma that has made audiences take note. As a chanteuse and comedienne revives the cabaret genre by creating vintage arrangements of pop songs from the 80s, 90s and today.
Lady Rizo (nee
Amelia Zirin-Brown) co-created the cult caburlesque spectacular
Lady Rizo and the Assettes in 2005. In January 2010 she won her first Grammy on a duet with acclaimed cellist
Yo-Yo Ma. She also sings and records with multi-platinum recording artist Moby and was nominated for an MVPA for the choreography the video for the single New York, New York featuring
Debbie Harry. A proud recipient of the New York Foundation for the Arts fellowship last year, she has performed her sold out show monthly at Joe's Pub for coming on two years and was just commissioned for the
New York Voices Series in 2011.
MANU DELAGO & CHRISTOPH PEPE AUER
February 17 at 11:30pm
$14
Living Room consists of Björk’s percussionist and Hang player Manu Delago and Austrian Jazz Newcomer of the Year Christoph Pepe Auer. This pioneer duo focuses on exploring the bass clarinet’s huge tonal range and the enchanting sound of the new and magical instrument Hang. Whilst continuously pushing the boundaries within a variety of musical styles, their unusual pairing of instruments creates a highly unique texture of sounds. The first-ever bass clarinet - hang - duo approaches their fresh take on chamber music without any confinements or restrictions, performing original compositions as well as creative arrangements by artists such as The Beatles,
John Cage and Beyonce. Over four million people have seen Living Room push the limits on their instruments on Youtube. Their shows are full of surprise and chance, often having left audiences wonderstruck, bewildered and bemused. Amongst the most peculiar features you can see Christoph Pepe Auer premier his musical invention the Pepephon.
THREE OF HEARTS: A BENEFIT FOR THE FAMILY CENTER
FEATURING BETH ARENTSEN, Mark Anthony LEE, & LINDSEY WILSON
February 18 at 7:00pm
$20
Beth Arentsen,
Mark Anthony Lee, and Lindsey Wilson return to Joe's Pub for an unforgettable evening of song to benefit The Family Center, a NYC-based organization that works to create a more secure present and future for children whose parents have a life-threatening illness by providing comprehensive legal and social services, education, and research. Their work is fueled by the belief that every child deserves an answer to the question: Who Will Take Care of Me? Three of Hearts uses music as a catalyst for raising awareness about socio-cultural concerns in our community while entertaining audiences with some of the best independent musicians and vocalists from different corners of the NYC music scene. Known as the vivacious lead singer of the funk-jazz collective P-1, Beth Arentsen brings her intricate, piano-based stories of love and loss from her critically acclaimed albums, Sap and Nicer, to the Joe's Pub stage while Brooklyn-based multi-instrumentalist Lindsey Wilson enchants with a set of her mellifluous "electrified folk-jazz" melodies. Bridging the two sensibilities is
Mark Anthony Lee, who interprets and illuminates hidden gems from icons of folk, pop, and R&B through his singularly soulful and sophisticated voice.
THE ANNA COPA CABANNA SHOW: LOVE IN SPACE
February 18 at 11:30pm
$15
Australian showgirl Anna Copa Cabanna's Rock and Roll Variety Show draws inspiration from The
Lynda Carter Specials, Solid Gold, The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, and The
Carol Burnett Show!.The Anna Copa Cabanna’s primary goal is transporting the audience to a world of glamor, humor, overly earnest but beautiful dancing, and classic rock and roll! The truth - in a sequin leotard. Along with her lounge/punk band The MG5, Anna breathes new life into classic tunes you love, while her sparkling originals reflect upon New York City's politics, small dogs, F trains, and malnourished boys with her little xylophone and voracious voice.
NOAH & THE MEGAFAUNA WITH SPECIAL GUEST KAT EDMONSON
February 19 at 7:00pm
$14
A stirring amalgamation of dark indie folk, swinging gypsy jazz and big band orchestration threaded together by a series of apocalyptic allegories, Noah and the MegaFauna’s accomplished debut full-length album, Anthems for a Stateless Nation, was released this past fall on Silence Breaks (The Shivers, Kelli Scarr) and this February they visit Joe's Pub for an intimate performance. A clamorous, whiskey-fueled, horn-laden romp, the LP is 10 tracks of nightmare pop, a pre and post-apocalyptic tale of destruction, displacement, wandering, panic and ultimately redemption filtered through a dizzyingly eclectic array of influences spanning history, cultures and music from around the globe. Kat Edmonson will self release her sophomore album Way Down Low on Spinnerette Records April 10. The native Texan makes not only her songwriting debut on the record but also co-produces the album. The album was recorded at the historic Avatar Studio and Capitol Studios with Grammy-winning producer/engineer Al Schmitt (
Ray Charles,
Frank Sinatra,
Sam Cooke) and producer/bassist Danton Boller.
MONK MIX REMIXES & INTERPRETATIONS OF MUSIC BY Meredith Monk (CD RELEASE PARTY)
February 19 at 9:30pm
$15
Come celebrate the release of this highly anticipated double CD, a tribute to pioneer composer/singer/director/choreographer
Meredith Monk. Several of the twenty-five artists from around the world who have contributed to the release offer live performances related to their remixes and interpretations. The line up to date includes DJ Spooky (Executive Producer for the project),
DJ Rekha, Don Byron, John Hollenbeck /
Theo Bleckmann, Rubin Kodheli / North Sky Cello Ensemble, Shodekeh, and Pamela Z. Admission includes a copy of the CD.
Photo: Ben Arons
