Scottie Roche

Shakina Nayfak is a woman blessed with an abundance of talents. She enjoys success as a director, writer, performer, producer, and social activist. Recently she created the critically-acclaimed role of Ava in the Transparent's Musical Finale now streaming on Amazon Prime. She is beloved by fans for her role as Lola on Hulu's Difficult People and has premiered three solo shows at Joe's Pub to sold-out houses. On Saturday, November 9th she brings her one woman show Manifest Pussy back to Joe's Pub. Described as a rock concert/standup special/ritual sacrifice' the show tells the story of Shakina's journey to Thailand for gender confirmation surgery in 2014.

I'm not the type to go in for ghost stories. 'They're not my thing,' I'll tell my friends. 'They're all just the same old reheated dinner,' is what I tell myself and for the most part I think I'm being honest with myself. When I was a kid I was afraid of my own shadow, so Halloween was the holiday I dreaded most in my life. I've grown up. I've conquered my fears. I can sit through House of a Thousand Corpses, Jordan Peele's US, all the Halloween movies without so much as a gasp. As a native New Yorker I'd like to think there's really not much that can scare me at this point in my life. I expected Bowery Boys: Ghost Stories of Old New York to be more fun than fright. But good storytelling is different than a slasher film and it wasn't long before storytellers Tom Meyers and Greg Young had me shook.

Bartholet has crafted an impressive show that balances the dazzling polish of his tall matinee idol vocals with a more bare, witty, open-hearted storytelling, which he brings to bear on the tragic outcomes born of toxic masculinity, such as gun violence, in a brilliant act of what he calls Cabe-RAGE-a portmanteau of cabaret and rage of his own devising. Where his musical performances approach frozen perfection, his spoken words are more real, more honest, less of a production. The show is ambitious, daring, powerful and entertaining.

Death is a cabareta?'a riotous cabaret in Sherry At A Funeral, which just opened its two-night run to a sold-out crowd at Pangea. The show is created by Zachary Clause and Reed Whitney (Whitney also acting as director), performed by Mr. Clause and Courtney Cowart, with musical direction by Karl Saint Lucy. What I love about funerals is the space they afford prying curiosity. You can get away with a lot - a funeral is an event, an opportunity to share information, gossip, as well as reflect and re-ignite long-simmering resentments. As creators Claus and Whitney so breathlessly demonstrate, a funeral is also an invitation to renew bonds to family and celebrate the ecstasies of grief, the Scissor Sisters, Elton John, and Diana Ross. The show invites audiences once more into the world of Clause's alter-ego, Sherry Duval-Covington, as she makes a cabaret of her mother's funeral. If you're unfamiliar with the previous two shows featuring Sherry you'll still enjoy the show but some background will help. Nightclub audiences first met Sherry in is That All There Is? The first show in what Clause calls his a?oeSherry Triptych.a?? In the first show we learn of Sherry's possibly pyromaniacal tendencies a?' We'll never be certain if she started all those fires but we know she's been acquitted on more than one occasion and that's got to count for something! In the second show, Sherry Takes A Holiday, we find her emotionally adrift at sea, but also literally adrift at sea on a a?oepoop cruise,a?? desperate to find a daughter she's quite certain she's never had, but an internet scam has led her to believe she'll find in the Cayman Islands with a few detours like a lesbianic affair with the pianist at the ship's schooner bar. Sherry is that messy friend who is constantly mucking things up but comes from a place of love. She owns her part in her problems even if she doesn't quite know how to navigate them so it's incredibly easy to cheer her on. Whom of us have not been Sherry at one point or another in our lives? She's the person you love in spite of the whirlwinds in their wake. Speaking of creating his beloved character, Claus noted he a?oewanted her to feel like a real human being who's intentions are always good but things blow up in her face. Constantly setting fires and having to figure out how to put them out.a?? Clause relates that Sherry was born of streaming Lifetime original movies at a monthly party he hosted in Williamsburg called a?oeMom Radio,a?? where he invited drag queens to do mom themed performances. On a road trip with co-creator Reed Whitney, Clause decided to riff on his Shelly Duval obsession, adding a hyphenated last name which resulted in the precarious poise of Sherry Duval-Covington. As this most recent show opens, Sherry makes rounds of this solemn occasion, scrutinizing those gathered as she steels herself for her opening remarks. The sounds of a catholic funeral fill the air, accompanied by the clinking of glasses, Sherry welcomes her guests and begins to introduce some of the skeletons in the family closet. Dramatic tension builds when she is forced to suffer sharing the spotlight of grief with her prodigal sister Terry. Cowart delivers a powerhouse performance as the sisters rehash well-rehearsed, reheated family psychodrama. Clause and Cowart match one another with their electrifying acting and chemistry, thrilling the audience as each skeleton out of the family's closet was revealed, articulating the estrangement between the Covington sisters and their mother. The story is grounded by smart funeral fare and underscoring choices by music director Karl Saint Lucy. When we finally learn how Sherry's mother dieda?'no spoilers, sorry, you have to see the show to find outa?' the absurdity of death is bolstered by the majestic strains of a?oeHow Great Thou Art.a?? I appreciate the musical choices which often support the comedy. When Sherry loses the struggle to contain her emotions she launches into a disco for a rendition of Diana Ross's a?oeThe Boss.a?? When she reconciles with Terry we are treated to the gospel transcendence of Florence and the Machine's a?oeThe Dog Days Are Over.a?? Courtney Cowart delivered a thunder-stealing performance as Sherry's sister, Terry. Both Clause and Cowart were stellar. Celebrating the release from the expectations of those around us and the bondage of trying to meet their expectations Sherry at a Funeral is a ridiculously satisfying night of entertainment.

Last month, Gretchen Reinhagen kicked off her monthly residency at Pangea, downtown's destination for alt-cabaret. Reinhagen thrilled the audience with her big voice, soulful music-making, and uproarious comic observations on everything from the Paleo Diet, public transportation, and fraught relationship with the health care industry. On Tuesday, October 15, she returns to Pangea to deliver another evening's entertainment that's sure to tug at the heartstrings and bust guts each in equal measure.