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SOMI, Megan Hilty, Gabrielle Hamilton, Mara Wilson, BD Wong & More, Nightly at Joe's Pub, 12/1-11
By: A.A. Cristi Nov. 29, 2016
Beloved jazz songbird Somi returns with a special new work-in-progress called Dreaming Zenzile, detailing the life of legendary activist and singer Miriam Makeba. Dreaming Zenzile is directed by Liesl Tommy, whose most recent works include Eclipsed (at The Public and on Broadway) and Party People (The Public), and stars Somi.
This weekend, the luminous Megan Hilty comes to town with holiday cheer and a holiday album! In fact, we have a whole posse of holiday shows in the pipeline - Tori Scott's Vodka is the Reason for the Season, The Skivvies' annual holiday run (w/ BD Wong, Morgan James, Matt Doyle, Nick Adams + more), The Dan Band and Public Forum's holiday tradition, The Long Christmas Dinner.
See the full December listings for Joe's Pub below!
ADRIENNE TRUSCOTT'S ASKING FOR IT: A ONE-LADY RAPE ABOUT COMEDY
STARRING HER P**** AND LITTLE ELSE!
Thursday, December 1 at 9:30PM
$15
Adrienne Truscott returns with her multi-award winning show Asking For It: A One-Lady Rape About Comedy Starring Her P**** and Little Else! Dressed only from the waist up and the ankles down, she undoes and does-in the rules and rhetoric about rape and comedy and the brilliant, awful or awkward laughs when the two collide. With commentary and 'appearances' from George Carlin, Louis C. K. and Robert De Niro, she takes on ducks, p****-puppets, mini-skirts, rape whistles, Daniel Tosh, Bill Cosby and enough gin and tonics and bad behavior to get a girl in trouble. And because the world keeps turning and giving us new rapists, Truscott will have new material tackling the latest in the news. Decorated in give-it-to-me make-up, this show is light on its feet and easy on the eyes. If she's really asking for it, then we know the 'finale' for this show. Can you make jokes about rape? She plans to, all night long! Even if you tell her to stop. Proceeds from this performance will be donated to Planned Parenthood.
Part of New York Voices
Directed by Liesl Tommy
Featuring: Herve Samb, Toru Dodo, Otis Brown III, Michael Olatuja, Vuyo Sotashe & Kheswa Nonhlanhla
Friday & Saturday, December 2 & 3 at 7:00PM
Sunday, December 4 at 9:30PM
$20
Dreaming Zenzile is a modern jazz opera based on the extraordinary life of South African singer and political activist Miriam Makeba. Performed and written by vocalist and songwriter Somi, Dreaming Zenzile features reinterpretations of Makeba's popular repertoire through the jazz idiom as well as original songs reflecting on Makeba's life journey. This project is largely inspired by Somi's recurring dreams, after the loss of her father, of being in conversation with Makeba. The piece, therefore, is a reflection on both Makeba's biography and of those dreamed conversations. The word "Zenzile" is actually Makeba's true first name, which means "you have done it to yourself" in her native language of Xhosa. In short, this work is meant to be an exposition of the burdens and freedoms that accompany the gift of song. Dreaming Zenzile is a part of the Joe's Pub commissioning program New York Voices.
A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS WITH Megan Hilty
Friday, Saturday & Tuesday, December 2, 3 & 6 at 9:30PM
Sunday & Monday, December 4 & 5 at 7:00PM
$40-45
Megan Hilty returns to Joe's Pub with an intimate evening celebrating the release of her new holiday album, A Merry Little Christmas, which is out now. The set will include classics like "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," "Count Your Blessings" and "The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year," mixed with songs from her career on stage and screen.
PAM ANN: AIR B--CH
Friday & Saturday, December 2 & 3 at Midnight
$30
Pam Ann has owned the skies and violated international airspace for 20 YEARS. Australia's very own First Class air b--ch will be raising a first class glass to 15 years of performing at Joe's Pub and 20 years of being...her! Pam Ann's barbed wit has seen her fly many a risky route and negotiate even the most politically incorrect flight path with her blisteringly funny takes on airlines and aircrew. Nothing is out of reach of her pristine white gloves, strutting up the aisle with a trolley full of beautifully unpredictable, acerbic airline satire. There's not much she hasn't done - from crewing Elton John's private jet at his express request, sharing a stadium stage on tour with Cher, and counting Madonna in her legion of devoted fans worldwide.
REVEREND BILLY & THE STOP SHOPPING CHOIR: GATHER!
Sundays, December 4, 11 & 18 at 2:00PM
$15 Adult / $10 Child, 12 & Under
From labor organizers to natural scientists, 1st Amendment lawyers to anti-pipeline activists, we are exhausted, defeated and afraid of the rifts opening in the culture. Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir invite activists to come together and ask, "What now? Who with? Where? When?" The challenge of starting over again, of finding healing in our activism is the gift we hope to give each other this holiday season but first, we have to Gather! The Stop Shopping Choir is a NYC-based radical performance community, with 50 performers - an array of economic, ethnic, religious, and cultural backgrounds worldwide and a congregation in the thousands. They are wild anti-consumerist gospel shouters and Earth-loving urban activists who have worked on four continents defending community, life and imagination.
Tori Scott: VODKA IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON
Monday, December 5 at 9:30PM
$20
Tori Scott, "the Bette Midler of the new millennium" (Provincetown Magazine), returns with her 3rd annual holiday show, an evening of lingering regret, slurred autobiographical stories, and songs written by other people. The "soul-baring singer and sharp comedian" (Huffington Post) will explores her early childhood fascination with "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" to her time spent as a singing elf for an old folks home. Tori will take you on a shameless journey to celebrate what is truly special about this time of year (Spoiler: It's blackouts). Vodka is the Reason for the Season includes songs by Dolly Parton, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Florence and the Machine, Ella Fitzgerald and more.Vodka is co-written by Scott and her longtime collaborator and enabler Adam Hetrick, directed by Seth Sklar-Heyn and musical direction by Jesse Kissel.
HOUSE OF SPEAKEASY'S SERIOUSLY ENTERTAINING
FEATURING PAUL BEATTY, Richard Cohen, GABRIELLE HAMILTON & LYDIA MILLET
Tuesday, December 6 at 7:00PM
$15-35
Seriously Entertaining, New York's premier literary cabaret series showcasing writers and their passions, is an intellectual roller-coaster of a show. The Wall Street Journal calls it "Think-y entertainment for New York's book-loving crowd," the New York Times says it's "a literary mixtape [with] perfect flow and variety," and CBS Local News adds: "You have never seen a cabaret quite like this.... Hosted by Amanda Foreman and Lucas Wittmann, the lineup includes some of the most brilliant minds in the literary and artistic worlds." The theme for this installment is Aiding & Abetting. Guests are novelist and Man Booker Prize winner Paul Beatty, author and publisher Richard Cohen, memoirist and chef Gabrielle Hamilton and novelist Lydia Millet.
Seriously Entertaining regularly hosts talent such as Margo Jefferson, Amber Tamblyn, John Guare, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, PJ O'Rourke, GRAHAM MOORE, Steven Pinker, Emma Sky and Irvine Welsh. The show asks each writer to riff on a given theme for fifteen minutes only. the show's producer, House of SpeakEasy, is a not-for-profit arts organization dedicated to connecting writers and audiences in innovative and sustaining ways - in classrooms, in the community, and at Joe's Pub.
WOMEN OF LETTERS
FT. Mara Wilson, SOPHIE AUSTER, KAT BURDICK, LISA LUCAS, TARA CLANCY & Celisse Henderson
Wednesday, December 7 at 7:00PM
$20
Every month, New York's best and brightest women gather on stage for Women of Letters to celebrate the lost art of letter writing. Expect laughter, tears, and camaraderie as host Sofija Stefanovic welcomes guests reading "A letter to my surprise". Together on stage for the first time ever are iconic writer and performer Mara Wilson, acclaimed singer-songwriter Sophie Auster, beloved stand-up comedian Kat Burdick, Executive Director at the National Book Foundation Lisa Lucas, revered writer and storyteller Tara Clancy and celebrated singer and actress Celisse Henderson.
Women of Letters veterans include Molly Ringwald, Jean Grae, Megan Amram, Martha Wainwright, Kathleen Turner, Aparna Nancherla, Siri Hustvedt, Edie Falco, Susan Orlean, Emma Straub, Alexis Okeowo, Amanda Palmer, Sonia Manzano, Melissa Auf Der Maur, Bebe Buell, Eileen Myles, Suki Kim, JD Samson, Tavi Gevinson, Stoya, Ophira Eisenberg, Lydia Lunch, Yael Stone, Jena Malone, Lisa Kron and many more.
Proceeds from Women of Letters on December 7th's proceeds will go to the National Book Foundation, which celebrates the best of American literature, expands its audience and enhances the cultural value of great writing in America.
FEATURING BD Wong, Randy Harrison, Morgan James, Nick Adams, Robb Sapp, Leslie McDonel, Steve Rosen, Dani Spieler, Lindsay Nicole Chambers
Wednesday, December 7 at 9:30PM
$35
Broadway's Lauren Molina and Nick Cearley are The Skivvies, the musically thrilling, award-winning, undie-rock, comedy-pop duo who have become the toast of The New York cabaret club scene. Performing stripped-down versions of eclectic covers and wacky holiday mash-ups, The Skivvies literally strip down to their underwear to perform. Grab your spiked eggnog, hurry down the chimney, and settle in for an evening of laughter and holiday cheer in the most outrageous holiday concert of the season! Molina and Cearley welcome BD Wong, Randy Harrison, Morgan James, Nick Adams, Robb Sapp, Leslie McDonel, Steve Rosen, Dani Spieler and Lindsay Nicole Chambers
Friday, December 9 at 7:00PM
$22
What started as a drunken joke for Dan Finnerty singing I Am Woman at a karaoke bar has spiraled out of control into The Dan Band - a cult phenomenon that has garnered rave reviews from The New York Times, The L.A. Times, Rolling Stone, Variety among others, and prompted Entertainment Weekly to dub it "The hottest ticket in Hollywood." Finnerty caught America's attention as the foul-mouthed wedding singer in the box-office smash Old School, performing his now-infamous rendition of Total Eclipse of the Heart, as well as his appearance as the sleazy bat-mitzvah singer in Starsky & Hutch and again as the inappropriate wedding singer in the record breaking hit, The Hangover.
The Dan Band tours nationwide, playing to sold-out crowds from Los Angeles to New York and appearing on TV: The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Ellen, The Late Late Show, Last Call with Carson Daly, Last Comic Standing, the Guys Choice Awards. They caught the attention of Steven Spielberg, who signed on to executive produce Finnerty's one hour concert special "The Dan Band: I Am Woman," directed by McG. The Dan Band has released two albums, "THE Dan Band LIVE, "HO - A Dan Band CHRISTMAS" and is releasing a third album called "The Wedding Album."
THE Martha Graham CRACKER CABARET
Friday, December 9 at 9:30PM
$25
This balls-to-the-wall drag cabaret is hosted by Martha Graham Cracker, who is, perhaps, the world's tallest and hairiest drag queen. Backed by a four-piece live band, Martha Graham Cracker, hailed as "The Drag Queen King" by the Philadelphia Inquirer, performs new arrangements and mashups of songs by artists ranging from Prince and Crowded House to Motley Crue and Nina Simone, and a bit of everything in between.The Martha Graham Cracker Cabaret is intended for mature audiences.
CARRIE NEWCOMER & GARY WALTERS W/ OPENER KAYLYN MARIE
Saturday, December 10 at 7:00PM
$20
Carrie Newcomer is a songwriter, recording artist, performer and educator. She has been described as a "prairie mystic" by the Boston Globe and the Rolling Stone wrote that she "asks all the right questions. The Dallas Morning News called her "the kind of artist whose music makes you stop, think and then say, 'that is so true.'" She has toured with Alison Krauss through Europe and the U.S. Nickel Creek recorded Newcomer's song "I Should've Known Better," on their Grammy Award-winning album This Side. Newcomer has traveled the world - Kenya, India and the Middle East - acting as a cultural ambassador and activist. She was listed as one of 50 most influential folk musicians of the past 50 years by Chicago's WFMT and Boston's WBEZ listed her as one of the most influential folk artists of the last 25 years.
Her latest album is The Beautiful Not Yet (Available Light, September 2016). Newcomer also has 14 national releases on Concord/Rounder Records including: The Geography of Light, The Gathering of Spiritsand Before and After. In 2014 Newcomer also released her first companion book A Permeable Life: Poems and Essays. Over half the songs on The Beautiful Not Yet were created for a spoken word/music collaboration with Parker J. Palmer entitled What We Need is Here: Hope, Hard Times and Human Possibility.
Lyrical-folk-rock singer/songwriter Kaylyn Marie returns to Joe's Pub after releasing her Debut EP Where I Need last year. The NYC-based troubadour's belief in the power of story-telling cultivates her soul-stirring tunes. Though noted for her vocal prowess, candid lyricism, and innate musical sensibility, it is her ability to perform with absolute authenticity that grabs an audience and refuses to let go.
Saturday, December 10 at 9:30PM
Advance $20 / Doors $25
Led by Greek-born singer, film scorer, and composer Magda Giannikou, Banda Magda's songs (sung in 5 different languages) hearken back to the golden age of Brazilian bossa, the best of cinematic arranging, and the lush chic of vintage French pop, all while drawing on the 14-piece ensemble's global background. Live, Banda Magda bursts with humor and quirky sensibility, powered by a unflagging energy. This group of close musical friends turn Giannikou's songs into engaging romps that have won them a spot with Carnegie Hall Musical Explorers Series, as well as performances at discerning venues and festivals such as Webster Hall, Irving Plaza, The Kennedy Center, The Jefferson Center, Celebrate Brooklyn, Jazz al Parque and more. This show will feature music from their album Tigre as well as mid-century classics and traditional music from Mexico, Greece, Brazil, Italy, France, Colombia and Argentina.
BROWN GIRLS BURLESQUE & NUCOMME
Saturday, December 10 at 11:30PM
$20
It's Christmas, Charlie Brown! Tis the season for Nucomme and Brown Girls Burlesque to get the holiday swing dashing with the inspiration Vince Guaraldi's classic score. Riding us through a night of unconventional and sexy holiday tunes will be Chicava HoneyChild and the fabulous burlesque starlets will fill your stockings with joy alright. Performers include HoneyChild, Genie Adagio, Tutu Toussaint and CeCe BrownSuga. The band is Nucomme, Kwame Brandt-Pierce, Stacey Dillard and Gregory Jackson Ramsey Jones.
PUBLIC FORUM: A READING OF THE LONG CHRISTMAS DINNER BY Thornton Wilder
Sunday, December 11 at 7:00PM
$37.50 Member / $75 Non-member
Public Forum's holiday tradition returns, with a brand new cast! Thornton Wilder's beautiful play takes place over one hundred years of Christmas dinners with the Bayard family, where they see triumph & heartbreak, birth & death, and a changing world - while some things, like family and tradition, remain constant. The cast will also feature the return of Wilder's nephew & literary executor, Tappan Wilder.
Sunday, December 11 at 9:30PM
$15
The Spring Standards have been winning over audiences since their debut EP in 2008, a collaboration with Rhett Miller. They have released three independent records, attracting attention from NPR, Spin, Paste, New York Magazine and an ever-growing fan base all over the world. They have performed on Conan O'Brien, NPR's Mountain Stage, eTown, South by Southwest, CMJ and venues all over North America. In 2014, they released their first live album and an accompanying feature-length film, The Spring Standards Live from Delaware is available for purchase through Vimeo OnDemand. They are currently recording a new album.
TICKETS:
ONLINE at joespub.com / PHONE, 10AM-7:00PM, DAILY 212-967-7555
IN PERSON The Public Theater Box Office, 425 Lafayette Street, NYC (Opens daily at 2PM)
NOTE There is a $12 food / two (2) drink minimum per person per show, unless otherwise noted.
ABOUT Joe's Pub AT THE PUBLIC Named for Public Theater founder Joe Papp, Joe's Pub at The Public opened in 1998 and plays a vital role in The Public's mission of supporting young artists while providing established artists with an intimate space to perform and develop new work. Joe's Pub presents the best in live music and performance nightly, continuing its commitment to diversity, production values, community and artistic freedom. The organization also offers unique opportunities like New York Voices, an artist commissioning program that provides musicians the resources and tools needed to develop original theater works. Commissioned artists have included Ethan Lipton, Toshi Reagon, Bridget Everett, Allen Toussaint and more. In 2011, the Pub received a top-to-bottom renovation, leading to improved sightlines, expanded seating capacity and a new menu from acclaimed Chef Andrew Carmellini. With its intimate atmosphere and superior acoustics, Joe's Pub presents talent from all over the world as part of The Public's programming downtown at its Astor Place home, hosting approximately 800 shows and serving over 100,000 audience members annually.
ABOUT The Public Theater The Public Theater, under the leadership of Artistic Director Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Patrick Willingham, is the only theater in New York that produces Shakespeare, the classics, musicals, contemporary, and experimental pieces in equal measure. Eustis has created new community-based initiatives designed to engage audiences like Public Lab, Public Studio, Public Forum, Public Works, and a remount of the Mobile Unit. The Public continues the work of its visionary founder, Joe Papp, by acting as an advocate for the theater as an essential cultural force, and leading and framing dialogue on some of the most important issues of our day. Creating theater for one of the largest and most diverse audience bases in New York City for over 60 years, today the Company engages audiences in a variety of venues-including its landmark downtown home at Astor Place, which houses five theaters and Joe's Pub; the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, home to free Shakespeare in the Park; and the Mobile Unit, which tours productions to underserved audiences throughout New York City's five boroughs. The Public's wide range of programming includes free Shakespeare in the Park, the bedrock of the Company's dedication to making theater accessible to all; Public Works, an expanding initiative that is designed to cultivate new connections and new models of engagement with artists, audiences and the community each year; and audience and artist development initiatives that range from Emerging Writers Group and to the Public Forum series. The Public is located on property owned by the City of New York and receives annual support from The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; and in October 2012 the landmark building downtown at Astor Place was revitalized to physically manifest the Company's core mission of sparking new dialogues and increasing accessibility for artists and audiences, by dramatically opening up the building to the street and community, and transforming the lobby into a public piazza for artists, students, and audiences. The Public is currently represented on Broadway by the Tony Award-winning acclaimed American musicalHamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The Public has received 59 Tony Awards, 168 Obie Awards, 53 Drama Desk Awards, 54 Lortel Awards, 32 Outer Critics Circle Awards, 13 New York Drama Critics Awards, and five Pulitzer Prizes.
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