soloNOVA ARTS FESTIVAL
Performance Space 122
150 First Ave. at Ninth St.
May 5-22, $20 per performance, $55 passport for any five shows
Festival Pass: $100
After-parties: $10
212-352-3101
www.ps122.org
www.terranovacollective.org
The seventh annual soloNOVA Arts Festival begins this week, featuring eight one-person shows and three late-night after-parties. This year’s lineup ranges from bilingual theatrical cabaret (Karina Casiano’s ROOTLESS: LA NO-NOSTALGIA) and musical comedy (Erin Markey’s PUPPY LOVE: A STRIPPER’S TAIL) to storytelling and song (Shontina Vernon’s WANTED) and dance theater (Jesse Zaritt’s BINDING). Daniel Berkley gets personal delving into his schizophrenia and addictions in REMISSION, Avery Pearson takes on sixteen characters in the thriller MONSTER, Brian McManamon is an odd collector in the Frigid NY favorite IT OR HER, and comedian W. Kamau Bell attacks racism in THE W. KAMAU BELL CURVE: ENDING RACISM IN ABOUT AN HOUR. In addition, there will be three Ones at Eleven after-parties at P.S. 122, highlighting music on May 8, comedy on May 15, and storytelling and spoken word on May 22. And on May 21, terraNOVA Collective will honor Nilaja Sun as soloNOVA Artist of the Year at a benefit with clips, food, drink, and more ($30, 8:00).
SAKURA MATSURI
Brooklyn Botanic Garden
900 Washington Ave. at Eastern Parkway
Saturday, May 1, and Sunday, May 2, $10-$15
718-623-7200
www.bbg.org/sakura2010
There is nothing quite like hanami in Brooklyn, the annual cherry blossom viewing at the botanic garden. More than two hundred flowering Japanese cherry trees are expected to be in bloom this weekend for the Sakura Matsuri, a two-day festival of dance, music, art, workshops, food, workshops, and nature that always attracts large crowds excited to experience the pure beauty of it all. Among this year’s participants are Soh Daiko, Nihon Buyo Classical & Ryukyu Buyo Okinawan Dance, the Spring Street Haiku Group, happyfunsmile, Samurai Sword Soul, poet Enta Kusakabe, Dean Street FOO Dance, Kagero Japanese Gypsy rock, Pokémon voice artist Veronica Taylor, DJ Saiko Mikan, stand-up comic Uncle Yo, woodblock artist April Vollmer, children’s Taiko drummers Genki Daiko Team, Masayo Ishigure and the Miyabi Koto Shamisen Ensemble, and the Japanese Folk Dance Institute of NY. Special events and activities include a Mataro Ningyo dollmaking demonstration, a Sohenry-style tea ceremony, the Manga & Anime Artist Alley, a cosplay fashion show, origami paper folding, ikebana flower arranging, a children’s tattoo parlor, a high tea with the Parasol Society, Japanese hot-pot cooking, bonsai advice for home gardeners, and so much more. It’s really one of the best weekends of the year, a must-see for every New Yorker that will become an annual ritual once you experience its charm.
SARAH SILVERMAN
THE BEDWETTER: STORIES OF COURAGE, REDEMPTION, AND PEE (HarperCollins, April 20, 2010, $19.99)
Tuesday, April 20, Union Square Barnes & Noble, 333 East 17th St., 7:00
Wednesday, April 21, Urban Outfitters SoHo, 628 Broadway, 7:00
Admission: free
www.harpercollins.com
www.sarahblog.comedycentral.com
“What you’re about to read will take the place of every religion’s bible in terms of awesomeness,” Sarah Silverman writes in the midword to her very personal tale, the relentlessly funny THE BEDWETTER: STORIES OF COURAGE, REDEMPTION, AND PEE. She not only revolutionizes the state of literature with the first-ever midword but also writes her own foreword and gets God himself to write the afterword. In the breezy, free-flowing style she has displayed appearing on talk shows, performing stand-up, hosting awards shows, and starring in films (JESUS IS MAGIC) and her own hysterical cable series (THE SARAH SILVERMAN PROGRAM), Silverman delves into her life, from growing up in New Hampshire with a father who encouraged her to curse to her early days in New York City when she discovered the thrills and chills of sex. But it is her serious problem with bedwetting that is at the heart of her story, and she holds nothing back in describing the pain and shame she experienced, even including pages from her diary in which she entered the word “wet” or “dry” depending on how the night went; “I figured keeping the log with my diary might reveal patterns that would help me get to the bottom of this thing,” she writes. “It didn’t.” Silverman shares intimate stories of her family, the tragic loss of a baby brother, the surrender of her virginity, and e-mails between her and her editor discussing the difference between “pee” and “pee-pee.” It’s a terrific read, fast and fresh, like the childlike Silverman herself, with just the right amount of self-deprecating humor, personal reflection, sordid details, and Jewy-ness. Silverman will be holding two New York City events, at the Union Square Barnes & Noble on April 20 and Urban Outfitters in SoHo on April 21. Get there early, as both signings should be mobbed.
INSIDE MEDIA
Edie Falco will discuss Nurse Jackie’s bedside manner and more at the Paley Center
Paley Center for Media
25 West 52nd St. between Fifth & Sixth Aves.
Closed Monday & Tuesday
Suggested contribution: $10 adults, $5 children under fourteen
212-621-6600
www.paleycenter.org
While Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’s and Elvis Mitchell’s “The Black List Project” continues at the Paley Center through May 1, featuring scenes from their third documentary and photographs of a wide range of successful African Americans, the institution formerly known as the Museum of Television and Radio will be hosting a series of very special events, with tickets going very fast. In collaboration with Food for Thought Productions, the Paley Center is in the midst of a three-month series of live staged afternoon readings ($65, followed by a Q&A and a reception); coming up is Arthur Miller’s sister, Joan Copeland, reenacting scenes from her brother’s plays (April 21) and Len Cariou taking on Thornton Wilder and Dorothy Parker (April 26), with future shows dedicated to Tennessee Williams’s IN THE BAR OF A TOKYO HOTEL (May 5) and A. R. Gurney’s LOVE LETTERS (June 17). The cast of THE GOOD WIFE gathers together on April 21 ($25, 6:30), while THE BIG BANG’s Jim Parsons will have the stage all to himself on May 4 ($15, 6:30). On April 26, prima ballerina Cynthia Gregory interviews choreographer Eliot Feld about his career ($25, 7:00), on April 27, actor and photographer Joel Grey will talk about television (don’t forget he was on BUFFY) and more ($35, 6:30), and on April 28, Harry Potter audiobook reader and Broadway star Jim Dale will present “Jim Dale: Still Carrying On,” previewing his new one-man show ($30, 6:30). We’re most excited about “Paging Jackie” ($25, 7:00), in which star Edie Falco and the executive producers behind Showtime’s excellent NURSE JACKIE will screen a sneak-peek episode and take the audience behind the scenes of this unusual, entertaining drama. And looking further ahead, Jimmy Fallon will get into the late-night wars on May 27 ($25, 7:30).
TIM BURTON
Creepy exhibition entrance leads to a treasure trove of Burtonalia (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Museum of Modern Art
West 54th St. between Fifth & Sixth Aves.
Through April 26 (closed Tuesdays; Fridays free from 4:00 to 8:00)
Admission: $20 (includes same-day film screening), advance timed tickets recommended
212-708-9400
www.moma.org
www.timburton.com
twi-ny slideshow
There are only three weeks left in MoMA’s wildly popular Tim Burton retrospective, so you better hurry over if you want to see this vastly entertaining show. (The museum is even extending its hours over the last three days, staying open until 8:45.) More than seven hundred objects are on view, from early sketchbooks and movie models to watercolors and sculpture, from robots and wild short films (Stainboy gets a corridor all to himself!) to costumes and storyboards. It’s a carnival of excess, a virtual wonderland for fans of Burton’s eclecticism. While Burton’s movies are often hit (SWEENEY TODD, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, SLEEPY HOLLOW, ED WOOD) or miss (BIG FISH, PLANET OF THE APES, BATMAN RETURNS), he has developed an often dazzling visual style that is evident throughout the exhibit. Raised in Burbank and currently based in London, Burton seems to have saved everything he has ever done, every idea that came his way, and has included it in the survey, from his early fascination with horror and Vincent Price to his foray into his own fractured fairy tales (just wait till you see the Hansel and Gretel show he made for Disney) and his creative reinvention of stop-motion animation. It’s all here, bringing to life the ecstatic imagination of a crazed genius who’s yet to fully grow up. (which is not necessarily a bad thing).
Mackinnon & Saunders, "General Bonesapart puppet," metal, cloth, resin, foam latex, and silicone, 2005 (photo by twi-ny/mdr, figure courtesy Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.)
Fans of Burton’s movies will have a field day with original drawings, vitrines filled with favorite characters, and a reel of the auteur’s earliest shorts, dating from when he was a teenager. In addition to the exhibit, the film series “Tim Burton and the Lurid Beauty of Monsters” still has several screenings left, including THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN’T DIE (Joseph Green, 1962) on April 8, Tex Avery cartoons on April 9, INVADERS FROM MARS (William Cameron, 1953) on April 16, and 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH (Nathan Juran, 1957) on April 25.
TWI-NY TALK: JON STEWART AND STEPHEN COLBERT
Jon Stewart will get out from behind his desk to star in summer Shakespeare production with Stephen Colbert
THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA
The Daily Show Studios
733 Eleventh Ave. between 51st & 52nd Sts.
July 9-31, free, 8:00
www.thedailyshow.com
www.colbertnation.com
Every Monday through Thursday, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert go back to back, taking on politics and more in their hugely successful Comedy Central programs THE DAILY SHOW and THE COLBERT REPORT. They usually have weekends off, but this summer they will turn Stewart’s Hell’s Kitchen studio into the Globe Theatre as they team up for what promises to be a very different kind of Shakespeare experience.
On Friday and Saturday nights from July 9 through July 31, Emmy winners Stewart and Colbert will star in THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA, rotating in the lead roles of Valentine and Proteus. They will be joined by Samantha Bee as Silvia, Kristen Schaal as Julia, Jason Jones as the Duke of Milan, John Hodgman as Antonio, Wyatt Cenac as Thurio, Lewis Black as Speed, Aasif Mandvi as Eglamour, and John Oliver as Lucetta. It is a bold undertaking for the close-knit team, who are as friendly off camera as they are on.
Stewart and Colbert recently sat down with twi-ny in our Murray Hill offices to discuss just what makes them think they can pull this off.
twi-ny: Of all the Shakespeare plays you could have chosen, why do THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA?
Stephen Colbert: It was really my idea. It’s one of Willie’s earliest plays, maybe his first, and it’s not very good. This way if we suck, we can blame him.
Jon Stewart: I think it’s actually a cry from Stephen that he’s always wanted the eleven o’clock spot ahead of me. By switching roles with me, he gets to pretend it’s like we’re switching our time slots.
Stephen Colbert will show his acting chops this summer in Bard play
twi-ny: Only a few members of the cast have had any acting roles, primarily small parts in modern-day lowbrow comedies. Do you think that could be a problem?
SC: Did anyone know Kevin Kline, Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, or any of those other “Hollywood types” when they first did Shakespeare in the Park? I think the only thing on Pacino’s resume was playing the old guy in those Pepperidge Farm commercials.
JS: Actually, Stephen, they were all pretty famous already, and had done a lot of Broadway and movies.
SC: I rest my case.
twi-ny: What do you hope to gain by this experience?
SC: Well, I’ve won a Grammy, an Emmy, and a Peabody, so I’m going for a Tony this time.
JS: Um, Stephen, we won’t be eligible for the Tonys.
SC: [pauses] Oh, then, money.
JS: We’re not charging admission, Stephen.
SC: It’s free?
JS: Yes, it’s free. Don’t you remember we discussed this?
SC: Yeah, but I didn’t think you were serious. [looks around] Can someone get my agent on the phone?
In addition to continuing their television series and appearing in THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA, Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart are currently preparing for the big-screen remake of the 1969 film THE APRIL FOOLS, playing the roles of Jack Lemmon and Catherine Deneuve, respectively.
THE MATCH GAME LIVE
Host Gene Rayburn and celebrities have fun with double entendres in MATCH GAME
COMEDY BELOW CANAL
92YTribeca
200 Hudson St. at Canal St.
Thursday, March 25, $12, 9:00
212-415-5500
www.92YTribeca.org
One of the most popular game shows of all time, MATCH GAME pitted two contestants against each other, having to guess how a half-dozen pseudocelebrities would fill in the blank of a sentence read by the host; for example: “The Irishman said, ‘I’ll never eat another mushroom. I just found out that leprechauns [blank] in the woods.’” The show experienced its heyday in the mid-1970s, when cerebral host Gene Rayburn built a wry, kinky, hysterical relationship with regular guests Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, and Richard Dawson, along with a changing roster of participants that included Bobby Van, Elaine Joyce, Avery Schreiber, Fannie Flagg, Jaye P. Morgan, Patti Deutsch, Nipsey Russell, Nancy Dussault, Bert Convy, Betty White, Scoey Mitchell, Joyce Bulifant, Jo Ann Pflug, and many others. Every once in a while somebody still tries to resurrect the show, but they can never find the magic of those fabulous 1970s/’80s episodes. Now 92YTribeca is giving it a shot, as part of their Comedy Below Canal series, staging its own version of MATCH GAME tonight, featuring a wacky cast of some of New York City’s strangest and funniest: Voice scribe Michael Musto, NY1 anchor Pat Kiernan, multidisciplinary artist Jessica Delfino, comedians Sara Schaefer and Judy Gold, and the always riotous Frank DeCaro, with musical comic Ben Lerman hosting. Expect some wild, crazy, and very rude antics.
listings
- free summer dance 2010
- free summer movies 2010
- free summer music 2010
- free summer theater 2010
- this week in art
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