Bobby Cannavale, D'Arcy Carden, Paul Giamatti, BD Wong, And More To Take Part In Virtual Selected Shorts

For over 30 years, Selected Shorts has united great actors with extraordinary short stories and presented them as captivating literature in performance to enraptured New York audiences, live from the stage at Symphony Space as well as from our hit weekly public radio show.

While Symphony Space is temporarily dark, we have reached out to some of our closest creative friends to bring this iconic series directly from their homes to the homes of literature lovers around the country. These two special, unprecedented events-truly intimate nights that celebrate the power of a great story to transport-are Symphony Space's gift to our live, radio, and podcast audiences in the hopes that we can recreate the joy of being read to-whether performed from stage, or from a screen.

On Wednesday, May 13 with the theme "Best Laid Plans," actors Bobby Cannavale (The Irishman, Medea), Maulik Pancholy (30 Rock, Grand Horizons), Emily Skeggs (Fun Home, When We Rise), and Allison Williams (Get Out, Girls) perform stories that speak to the heart of something we are all collectively experiencing. Stories include works by frequent Selected Shorts' contributor, Aimee Bender; bestselling author of In The Dream House, Carmen Maria Machado; The New Yorker favorite Simon Rich; and recent Barack Obama pick, Jess Walter. The evening is hosted by Maulik Mancholy.

Virtual Selected Shorts returns on Wednesday, May 27 with "Choose Your Own Reality," a decidedly relatable theme for this moment. Actors D'Arcy Carden (The Good Place, Barry), Paul Giamatti (Billions, Sideways), Marin Ireland (Homeland, The Irishman), and BD Wong (Mr. Robot, Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens) connect us with stories by Sherrie Flick, author of the collection Thank Your Lucky Stars; 2012 PEN America Emerging Voices Fellow Nathan Go; sci-fi master Philip K. Dick; and Rachel Yoder, author of the forthcoming novel Nightbitch. BD Wong hosts.

These first-ever prerecorded Selected Shorts performances will be streamed on the Symphony Space YouTube channel on Wednesday May 13 and May 27 from 7:30PM EDT. All information about these events can be found at symphonyspace.org