THE BOOK OF JOB: KNOX COUNTY, OHIO
Who: Bill Murray, Frankie Faison, David Strathairn, Marjolaine Goldsmith, Kathryn Erbe, Nyasha Hatendi, Bryan Doerries, Matthew T. Starr, more
What: Dramatic reading and interactive community discussion
Where: Theater of War Zoom
When: Sunday, December 6, free with RSVP, 4:00
Why: “So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot even unto his crown.” That was only one of many indignities the patient, blessed Job is forced to endure in the Bible as questions of faith and righteousness are brought to bear. How would Job react to 2020? Theater of War has been extremely busy during the pandemic lockdown, presenting dramatic readings of King Lear, Antigone, Oedipus the King, and other classic works, relating them to public health and social justice issues happening around the country today in light of the George Floyd protests and the Covid-19 crisis. On December 6, Bill Murray, Frankie Faison, David Strathairn, Marjolaine Goldsmith, Kathryn Erbe, and Nyasha Hatendi will read from the Book of Job, translated by Stephen Mitchell and directed and adapted by artistic director Bryan Doerries, who will also facilitate a conversation with Mayor Matthew T. Starr of Mount Vernon, Ohio, and other local community leaders in Knox County; Theater of War is in the midst of a yearlong virtual residency at Kenyon College, which is located in Gambier, Ohio. Knox County is named after Henry Knox, an officer in the American Revolution who later served as secretary of war.
EVERY SHUT EYE AIN’T ASLEEP
Who: Elizabeth Alexander, Cornelius Eady, Richard Hamilton, Rachel M. Harper, Aja Monet, Anthony Walton, Philip Schultz
What: Poetry readings in honor of Black Lives Matter
Where: The Writers Studio Zoom webinar
When: Friday, December 4, free with RSVP, 7:00
Why: Founded in 1987 by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Philip Schultz, the Writers Studio is dedicated to helping students discover and nurture their own voice. On December 4 at 7:00, the New York-based organization will honor Black Lives Matter with an all-star reading of works from Every Shut Eye Ain’t Asleep: An Anthology of Poetry by African Americans Since 1945, the 1994 collection edited by Michael S. Harper and Anthony Walton that contains poems by nearly three dozen Black authors, including Derek Walcott, Rita Dove, Gwendolyn Brooks, Ishmael Reed, Sonia Sanchez, and Ralph Dickey. The participants, who will share some of their own poetry as well, include Elizabeth Alexander, Cornelius Eady, Richard Hamilton, Rachel M. Harper, Aja Monet, Walton, and Schultz. (Alexander and Eady are featured in the book.) The program will be streamed live over Zoom; advance RSVP is required.
ELEGIES FOR ANGELS, PUNKS, AND RAGING QUEENS WORLD AIDS DAY BENEFIT
Who: Brooks Ashmanskas, Laura Bell Bundy, Lena Hall, Robin de Jesús, Jay Armstrong Johnson, Nathan Lane, Norm Lewis, Kevin McHale, Jessie Mueller, Cynthia Nixon, Anthony Rapp, Krysta Rodriguez, Seth Rudetsky, JK Simmons, Alysha Umphress, Paul Castree, Richard Chamberlain, Charity Angél Dawson, Fran Drescher, J. Harrison Ghee, Gideon Glick, Lisa Howard, James Monroe Iglehart, Cherry Jones, Francis Jue, Vicki Lewis, Telly Leung, Stanley Wayne Mathis, Eric William Morris, Michael Notardonato, Okieriete Onaodowan, Kirsten Scott, Matthew Scott, Michael James Scott, Evan Todd, Mariand Torres, Michael Xavier, Danny Burstein, Judith Light, Billy Porter, Michael Urie, more
What: Abingdon Theater Company benefit for World AIDS Day
Where: Broadway on Demand
When: Tuesday, December 1, free, 5:00
Why: First produced at the Ohio Theatre in New York City in 1989, composer Janet Hood and lyricist Bill Russell’s Elegies for Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens consists of monologues from the perspective of AIDS victims and songs that explore the reaction of their deaths from friends and family. On World AIDS Day, Broadway on Demand, in conjunction with the Abingdon Theater Company, is hosting a virtual revival of the show, featuring an all-star cast of more than fifty actors, including Brooks Ashmanskas, Lena Hall, Fran Drescher, Nathan Lane, Norm Lewis, Richard Chamberlain, Jessie Mueller, Cynthia Nixon, Anthony Rapp, Krysta Rodriguez, James Monroe Iglehart, Cherry Jones, Seth Rudetsky, and JK Simmons, with special appearances by Danny Burstein, Judith Light, Billy Porter, and Michael Urie. It’s free to stream, although donations are encouraged for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The stories were inspired by the AIDS Memorial Quilt and Edgar Lee Masters’s Spoon River Anthology collection of interrelated free-verse poems and features such songs as “I’m Holding On to You,” “I Don’t Do That Anymore,” “I Don’t Know How to Help You,” and “Celebrate.”
A THOUSAND DREADFUL THINGS: SHAKESPEARE AND THE FEAR OF BLACK VENGEANCE

Ron Cephas Jones (right) will discuss Titus Andronicus in special Shakespeare program from Brooklyn Public Library and the Public Theater (photo by Joan Marcus)
Who: Ron Cephas Jones, Eisa Davis, William Jackson Harper, Raúl Esparza, Jill Lepore, Michael Sexton, Ayanna Thompson, Stephen Greenblatt, Philip Lorenz
What: Digital Shakespeare program
Where: Brooklyn Public Library and the Public Theater
When: Sunday, November 22, free with RSVP, 7:00; Thursday, December 3, free with RSVP, 7:00; Thursday, December 17, free with RSVP, 7:00
Why: Shakespeare readings and discussions have multiplied during the pandemic, with actors and scholars presenting impassioned soliloquies online, followed by fascinating talks about the legacy of the Bard, particularly in this time of Covid-19, isolation, and social and political unrest; Red Bull Theater’s RemarkaBULL Podversations have been especially enlightening, highlighted by scintillating episodes with Chukwudi Iwuji and Patrick Page. Now the Brooklyn Public Library and the Public Theater have teamed up for a free three-part digital voyage into Shakespeare, kicking off November 22 at 7:00 with “A Thousand Dreadful Things: Shakespeare and the Fear of Black Vengeance,” an exploration of Aaron the Moor from Titus Andronicus, with Ron Cephas Jones, who played Aaron at the Public in 2011, William Jackson Harper, and Public Theater Shakespeare scholar in residence Ayanna Thompson, author of Passing Strange: Shakespeare, Race, and Contemporary America. On December 3 at 7:00, “What Is the City but the People? Shakespeare, Art, and Citizenship” features Pulitzer Prize-winning profession Stephen Greenblatt, author of Tyrant: Shakespeare on Politics, and actor and playwright Eisa Davis looking at modern democracy; and on December 17 at 7:00, “Two Monsters of Nature: Lope de Vega and William Shakespeare” links the theater of Lope de Vega and Shakespeare, with readings in Spanish and English by Tony winner Raúl Esparza and commentary by Cornell professor of comparative language Philip Lorenz. All three programs will be moderated by Public Theater Shakespeare Initiative director Michael Sexton and are free with RSVP.
DAVID GODLIS PRESENTS GODLIS STREETS
Who: David Godlis, Luc Sante, Chris Stein, Dave Brolan
What: Virtual book launch
Where: Rizzoli Zoom
When: Thursday, November 19, free with RSVP, 5:00
Why: “As Garry Winogrand said, ‘I photograph to see what things look like photographed.’ This book is what I photographed,” David Godlis explains in his new book, Godlis Streets (Reel Art Press, $39.95, November 2020). I’m used to seeing the ever-cool Godlis and his impressive curly hair every year at the New York Film Festival, snapping away from his seat at front and center, but this year’s event, of course, was virtual, so I will have to settle for catching up with Godlis on Zoom when Rizzoli hosts his book launch on November 19 at 5:00, when Godlis will speak with Reel Art Press music editor Dave Brolan. Godlis is known for his black-and-white documentation of the punk scene, cinema luminaries, and street photos from the 1970s to 1990s, ever since he purchased his first 35mm camera in 1970; his motto is “Better Living Through Photography.” Look out for his photo of an outdoor stand selling “Black Art,” a drawing of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., next to “American Art,” a painting of a clown; a shot of a nun walking past a bus with an ad featuring a naked man and woman on it; and a picture of two women looking askance at him as they pass a peep show. The book includes a foreword by Luc Sante and an afterword by Chris Stein; both Sante and Stein will be part of the launch as well, which is free with RSVP.