Joe's Pub Announces The Uberbowl, Mike Birbiglia

Joe's Pub at The Public Theater debuted in October 1998 and has quickly became one of New York City's most celebrated and in-demand showcase venues for live music and performance. With its genre-blind booking and vast diversity of interests, the stage at Joe's Pub gives voice to a world of varied and stellar artists.

FEB 5-9
AMY LYNN AND THE GUNSHOW

Saturday, February 5 at 7:30 PM; $12 in advance, $15 at the door

"Sounds as if The Supremes and Janis Joplin were in an orgy and made one hell of a Motown singer out of a white, wavy haired New Yorker." - The Reviewer Mag

Inspired by the sounds of legends like Etta James, Janis Joplin and Dusty Springfield, Amy Lynn has been capturing NYC audiences with her explosive and powerful performances for nearly two years. This female powerhouse has spent her time performing across the country with The USO, gracing the stage of Radio City and touring throughout Europe.

Now with the addition of her brassy band The Gunshow, a nine-piece ensemble led by collaborator and co-founder Alex Hamlin, Amy Lynn is breathing new life into the soul music scene of NYC.

TAJ WEEKES & ADOWA

Saturday, February 5 at 9:30 PM; $14

Taj Weekes is an enigma... on the one hand deeply serious and intensely passionate about his worldviews and on the other hand a gentle and humble man with a quick and easy smile. Driven to inspire conscious thought and provoke discussion through his poignant poetry and lyrics, Weekes says, "I write from the heart and I speak about issues that move me. I believe that's what really matters."

 

Born and raised on the island of St. Lucia, Weekes grew up the youngest of ten children in a musical family. "My musical influences were quite varied, 'cause the radio stations played all kinds of music. There were no formats, so we grew up listening to everything from reggae to calypso to classic rock and classical music."

Taj Weekes and Adowa released their much-anticipated third CD, A Waterlogged Soul Kitchen, in October 2010. Their stunning new release presents a set of fresh reggae songs laced with acoustic strings, guitar, violin and cello, and splashes of soulful harmonica for an album that challenges listeners to redefine common perceptions of reggae and where it's heading as a genre. The group's first two full-length albums are Hope and Doubt and Deidem, which won "Best Reggae Album" at the Just Plain Folks Music Awards and was shortlisted for a Grammy Award.

Always striving to bring awareness to the issues he is passionate about, Weekes founded his charity, They Often Cry Outreach (TOCO), in 2007 to improve the lives of underprivileged children in the Caribbean through sport, enrichment, educational and wellness programs.

 

VALERIE GEFFNER

Saturday, February 5 at 11:30 PM; $15

Valerie Geffner is an eclectic and passionate performer based in NYC; she has recently completed her album "antenna" which she both wrote and produced. A graduate of The Juilliard School, Valerie has a background in theatre, film and tv. Able to engage audiences everywhere, Valerie has been declared "a commanding presence" by the LA Times. She can deliver the classics as effectively as contemporary, pop, and avante garde electronica. Be prepared to ride with her into the future. www.valeriegeffner.com

THE UBERBOWL
Sunday, February 6, Kickoff at 6:25 PM; $100 VIP / $40 gen admin
The Uberbowl After-Party at 10:00 PM; $20
You ask: "What's so special about Superbowl Sunday?"

We counter: "What's the Superbowl?!"

Drama Desk Award winner Bradford Louryk (Christine Jorgensen Reveals, The Erotic Diary of Anne Frank) and Helen Hayes Award nominee Adam Koch invite you to attend THE ÜBERBOWL: a revolutionary alternative to every other Superbowl party in America for the highly selective and the very discriminating.

Like other parties surrounding 2011 Championship game, the evening will feature a big-screen viewing of the match, but the similarities stop there! Instead of the babble of sports experts on the sidelines, The Überbowl will feature hilarious live commentary by a panel of celebrities and culture gurus who have never seen a football game, PLUS the HOLLYWOODBOWL: When Football Goes to the Movies trivia contest with prizes and giveaways, a super-secret surprise half-time show, exclusive confections, gift bags, and MORE!

Panelists include*: Emilie Baltz (author of The Junk Foodie Cookbook), Zachary Booth (FOX's "Damages"), Michael Cyril Creighton (creator and star of "Jack in the Box"), fashion personality Lauren Ezersky ("Behind the Velvet Ropes" and contributor to PAPER Magazine), Roslyn Hart (Shells' Show at Joe's Pub), Paul Johnson-Calderon (CW's "High Society"), Kristen Johnston ("3rd Rock from the Sun," Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me), Joanna Lumley (Patsy Stone from "Absolutely Fabulous"), fashion journo and dandy Patrick McDonald ("Launch My Line"), The Village Voice's Michael Musto, and author and New York Times Critical Shopper Cintra Wilson (Caligula for President, Colors Insulting to Nature). Additional panelists will be announced soon!

AN EVENING OF NEW STORIES WITH MIKE BIRBIGLIA

Tuesday, February 8 at 7:00 PM; $20

Comedian and storyteller Mike Birbiglia workshops his next one man show. The new show includes pieces he has performed on Public Radio International's This American Life.

RYAN SCOTT OLIVER
Monday, February 7 at 7:00 & 9:30 PM; $30
On Feb. 7, 2010, Ryan Scott Oliver and his twisted band return to Joe's Pub to celebrate the release of his first-published songbook the only way they know how: a rock concert to once more burn the place down. And what's more, everybody gets the book-FREE.
The Music+Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver: Volume 1 Release Concerts (at 7pm and 9pm) will star longtime RSO performer-collaborators Alex Brightman, Jay Armstrong Johnson, and Lindsay Mendez, and will also feature guest stars to be announced. The evening will be hosted by the writer.
RSO and his crew appeared at Joe's Pub in May 2009 and January 2010 with runs of Rated RSO. Every performance was sold out well in advance-so don't get left out in the cold and get your ticket today.

ABOUT RSO
Ryan Scott Oliver wrote the music and lyrics for 35mm, Darling (as seen on the 10th season of The Apprentice), and Mrs. Sharp (2008 Richard Rodgers Award Winner, at Playwrights Horizons starring Jane Krakowski, directed by Michael Greif). His work has been seen at Kennedy Center, Joe's Pub, and New York Musical Theatre Festival, and has also been heard Off-Broadway in We the People (TheatreWorksUSA), on the YouTube webseries The Battery's Down ("This is Your Life," et al; CD available through Sh-K-Boom Records), and in cabarets and showcases around the world. He is the recipient of a 2008 Jonathan Larson Grant, the 2007 Harold Adamson Award for Excellence in Lyric Writing (ASCAP), a 2007 Dramatists Guild Fellowship, and more. He is represented by Jessica Amato at the Gersh Agency.

ABOUT THE SONGBOOK
Music+Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver: Volume I is the first songbook by the Richard Rodgers Award-winning new musical theatre writer.

This wide-ranging collection features 20 songs from RSO's musicals Darling, 35mm, Out of My Head, and more, including:
• Twisted rock anthems detailing murderous rampages ("The Ballad of Sara Berry") and scintillating seductions ("When Lily Came")
• Neurotic rants for spastic comedians ("The Plane is Going Down"*) and quirky funnygirls ("A Hypochondriac's Song")
• Avant-garde folk tunes recounting falls from grace ("The Seraph") and bicoastal gay-love affairs ("Halfway")
• Unconventional pop-songs about moving too fast ("On Monday") and not moving at all ("To Do")
• Intricate ballads for teens suffering young love ("The View from Here") and even Peter Pan-syndrome ("Lost Boy")
And many more

Each of these solos, duets, and full-ensemble pieces is complete with vocal line, piano accompaniment and chords. The author has also provided a performer's resource section to help
actors find audition material supported by helpful tips.

A composer-lyricist on the very edge of contemporary musical theatre, Ryan Scott Oliver's songs are perfect for those seeking something genuinely original, and unlike anything you've heard before.
*Music by Eric Day

MIGUEL

Tuesday, February 8 & Wednesday, February 9 at 11:30 PM; $25

It doesn't happen often. But every once in a while a young artist comes along who has the chops, vision, range and creative conviction to change the game. Miguel is among that chosen few.

With the album tracks on his ByStorm/Jive debut, All I Want Is You, Miguel certainly delivers. Through his longtime partnership with LA-based underground stalwarts Fisticuffs, and his visits with veteran boardsmen such as Salaam Remi and Dre & Vidal, Miguel has cooked up a truly genre-bending mélange of sounds. On the same platter, you'll find traces of the Cali avant-garde hip-hop he picked up from his high school homie Blu; the funk, electro and classic rock he borrowed from his crate-digging Mexican-American dad; and the big, rich harmonies of his African-American mom's traditional soul. http://www.officialmiguel.com/

HENRY ROLLINS: 50

Tuesday - Saturday, February 8 - 12 at 9:00 PM; $35
As HENRY ROLLINS approaches the half-century mark, the everyman-of-all-trades is gearing up for a new talking tour simply titled 50. The dates include a special 50th birthday event in HENRY's native Washington, DC on February 13, sandwiched between multiple-night runs at Joe's Pub in New York (February 8-12) and Largo in Los Angeles (February 16-19).

Pre-sales for the New York and Los Angeles shows start today at www.henryrollins.com, and tickets go on sale to the general public Saturday, December 4 at http://www.joespub.com/ and http://largo.laughstub.com/. Additional details about HENRY's Washington, DC birthday event, as well as national tour dates, will be announced soon.

"On February 13th of 2011, I will turn fifty years of age. I can't think of a better way to celebrate this once-in-a-lifetime occasion than by doing some shows," HENRY explains. "Hopefully, I will be able to evince some imperfect pearls of ancient wisdom to the audience, having made it this far."

It's not so much the mere wisdom of age, but the wisdom of experience that audiences are likely to encounter when HENRY takes the stage - whether he's relaying rock n' roll anecdotes, or tackling more serious topics with his distinctive synthesis of anger, amusement, and global perspective. A relentless traveler on an unyielding quest for firsthand knowledge, HENRY's most recent excursion took him across the Pacific to China, North Korea, Mongolia, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan and Vietnam.

"All of these destinations gave me a lot to think about, write about and talk about. Wondering if I knew more about North Korea than my guide in Pyongyang was a strange thing to walk around with all day. To see the lasting effects of Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin, otherwise known as Agent Orange, showing up in children generations later in Hanoi was an eye opener, to say the least," says HENRY. "To leave all that and come back to America with all its unique idiosyncrasies always makes me want to know more. These days, as far as things to pay attention to, be frustrated about and seek to change, a conscientious person is fairly spoiled for choice. You know me, I'll always tell you what I think."

The same curiosity that has led ROLLINS around the globe and far from the beaten path has led him to National Geographic for a pair of distinctly different - but decidedly ‘HENRY' - television projects. On December 14, HENRY joins the National Geographic Channel's flagship series Explorer for the special Born To Rage. The show examines research into the so-called "warrior gene," a single gene found only in men that some scientists think are a possible indicator of violent behavior. In early 2011, HENRY dives into the Snake Underworld on Nat Geo WILD, uncovering a world of snake obsession that goes far beyond his own fascination with the slithering reptiles.

"Who ever thought that I'd get to investigate two of my favorite subjects, anger and snakes, with National Geographic?" HENRY asks. "I have enjoyed partnering with the Nat Geo Channels for an in-depth look at both fascinating topics."

Meanwhile, HENRY continues to do his weekly radio show on L.A.'s revered NPR affiliate KCRW. ROLLINS the writer tracks his travels - and shares his thoughts on politics and the state of the world - in his "Straight Talk Espresso" blog at VanityFair.com, and more recently began contributing a music column to LA Weekly's "West Coast Sound" blog.

For more on Henry Rollins and 50, go to www.henryrollins.com.

DAVID WAX MUSEUM

Wednesday, February 9 at 7:00 PM; $14

David Wax Museum, "one of Boston's hottest new bands" (The Boston Globe), fuses exuberant Mexican roots music with homegrown country, folk and rock to create a unique Mexo-Americana sound. With Latin rhythms, call-and-response hollering, accordion pumping and donkey jawbone rattling, they have won over audiences across the country. After making a splash at this year's Newport Folk Festival, NPR's All Songs Considered featured their performance as one of the highlights of the festival.

TICKETS
Online at joespub.com
Phone 212-967-7555,

In Person At the Public Theater Box Office (1 PM to 6 PM), or at the Joe's Pub Box Office from (6 PM to 10 PM) both located at 425 Lafayette Street, NYC

For table reservations please call 212-539-8778. Purchase of tickets does NOT guarantee a table reservation; you must call to reserve seats. Seating, as well as standing-room, is available only on a first-come, first-served basis for all shows without a dinner reservation. Two drink or $12 food minimum per person is standard.

 

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos

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