this week in music

OKINAWAN VIBES: TRADITIONAL DANCE FROM OKINAW, WITH LIVE MUSIC

Japan Society
333 East 47th St. at First Ave.
Friday, September 18, and Saturday, September 19, $40, 7:30
212-715-1258
www.japansociety.org

As part of its 2015-16 performing arts season, Japan Society is celebrating the history of culture of Okinawa, located in the Ryukyu island chain south of mainland Japan, with the three-month series “Okinawan Vibes.” The festival begins September 18-19 with “Traditional Dance from Okinawa, with Live Music,” copresented with Yokohama Noh Theater. The event features dancers Satoru Arakaki, Sayuri Chibana, Izumi Higa, Kota Kawamitsu, Sonoyo Noha, Yoshikazu Sanabe, and Ayano Yamashiro and musicians Shingo Nakamine, Kazuki Tamashiro, Hiroya Yokome, Hokuto Ikema, Hideo Miyagi, Natsuko Morita, and Satoshi Higa from Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts performing a quartet of court and folk dances from during and immediately after the Ryukyu Kingdom (fifteenth to nineteenth centuries), including the women’s dance onna odori, the masked classical dance shundo, and folk dances known as zo odori; the dancers will be wearing such extravagantly colored costumes as the bingata, the hanagasa, and kasuri kimonos, while the musicians will be playing the taiko, the koto, the sanshin, the kokyu, and the fue. Each evening will be preceded by a lecture led by Dr. James Rhys Edwards and will be followed by a meet-the-artists reception. In addition, Japan Society is hosting an Okinawan dance and music workshop on September 19 ($45, 4:00), in which participants will learn about the karaya dance and sanshin and see an onnagata demonstration. “Okinawan Vibes” continues with Go Takamine’s rarely shown Paradise View on October 2, “Obake Family Day: Experience Japan’s Ghosts & Goblins” on November 1, “Explore Okinawa: Art, Culture, and Cuisine from the Ryukyu Islands” on November 3, the lecture “Okinawa, the Birthplace of Karate” on November 7, and the workshop “Creating Bingata, Okinawa’s Vibrant Textile” on November 8.

AUTUMN MOON FESTIVAL AND MORE

A CELEBRATION OF ASIAN CULTURE
Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden
1000 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island
Saturday, September 19, $8-$10, 12 noon – 4:00 pm
718-425-3504
snug-harbor.org

On September 19, Staten Island’s beautiful Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden will be hosting its sixteenth annual Autumn Moon Festival, an afternoon of special programs celebrating the Asian harvest. Taking place in the Chinese Scholar’s Garden, the festival will include an arts and crafts family workshop, a performance of Rabbit Days and Dumplings by Elena Moon Park and Friends, traditional music and dance, Asian-inspired food, martial arts and Tai Chi demonstrations, calligraphy lessons, and more. In addition, on Saturday and Sunday, Snug Harbor is holding a party for the grand opening of the Staten Island Museum, with games, live music, crafts, science, food, and more; admission for that is free. And finally, on Saturday at 2:00 and 8:00 and Sunday at 2:00, the Harbor Lights Theater Company will be presenting Rent in the Music Hall ($35-$45); the production continues through October 4.

THE WARRIORS CONEY ISLAND REUNION

You can come out and play with the Warriors as many of the actors return to Coney Island for a special reunion on September 13

THE WARRIORS (Walter Hill, 1979)
Surf Pavilion
3029 Stillwell Ave., Coney Island
Sunday, September 13, $20-$25, 10:00 am
surfpavilion.com
www.warriorsmovie.co.uk

In the classic cult film The Warriors, a Coney Island gang has to return home after a disastrous gathering in the Bronx. On September 13, many of the actors from the film will be returning to Coney as well for a special reunion screening taking place at Surf Pavilion on Stillwell Ave., including Michael Beck (Swan), Dorsey Wright (Cleon), David Harris (Cochise), Bryan Tyler (Snow), Thomas G. Waites (Fox), Terry Michos (Vermin), Deborah Van Valkenburgh (Mercy), Jery Hewitt (Furies leader Muson), Apache Ramos (of the Orphans), and others. The film opens at a huge gang meeting in the Bronx (actually shot in Riverside Park), where the Warriors are wrongly accused of having killed Cyrus (Roger Hill), an outspoken leader trying to band all the warring factions together to form one huge force that can take over New York City borough by borough. The Warriors then must make it back to their home turf, Coney Island, with every gang in New York lying in wait for them to pass through their territory. This iconic New York City gang movie is based on Sol Yurick’s novel, which in turn is loosely based on Xenophon’s Anabasis, which told of the ancient Greeks’ retreat from Persia. Beck stars as Swan, who becomes the de-facto leader of the Warriors after Cleon gets taken down early. Battling Swan for control is Ajax (James Remar) and tough-talking Mercy. Serving as a Greek chorus is Lynne (Law & Order) Thigpen as a radio DJ, and, yes, that young woman out too late in Central Park is eventual Oscar winner Mercedes Ruehl.

Among the cartoony gangs of New York who try to stop the Warriors are the roller-skating Punks, the pathetic Orphans, the militaristic Gramercy Riffs, the all-girl Lizzies, the ragtag Rogues, and the inimitable Baseball Furies. Another main character is New York City itself, especially the subway system. Presented by the LSRR Tour and the Village Voice, the special conclave will include autograph signings, meet-and-greets, a cosplay contest, and live performances by the Gotham City Mashers and Sick of It All. If you can’t come out and play-ee-ay on September 13, The Warriors is also having its annual Coney Island Film Festival screening on September 19 at Sideshows by the Seashore ($10, 10:30 pm).

TREE OF CODES

Park Ave. Armory
643 Park Ave. between 66th & 67th Sts.
September 14-21, $30-$90
212-933-5812
armoryonpark.org

Codes are one-to-one correspondences, messages that have been transformed from one communication into another. Tree of Codes, originally presented earlier this summer at the Manchester International Festival, is a seventy-five-minute contemporary ballet that uses light, sound, color, mirrors, and movement in unique ways, transforming Jonathan Safran Foer’s 2010 book, Tree of Codes, into something entirely other. Foer’s book is a work of art that is both a literary narrative and sculptural object; every page of the paperback boasts a different die-cut as surprising word combinations continually reveal themselves. Foer’s three-dimensional story begins with Bruno Schulz’s Street of Crocodiles — which has previously been adapted by the Quay Brothers into a classically creepy stop-motion animation film — and Foer then cut out words to create a whole new tale. British choreographer Wayne McGregor (Infra, Chroma), London-born DJ and music producer Jamie xx (We’re New Here, In Colour), and Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson (“The Collectivity Project” on the High Line, “NYC Waterfalls”) have turned Tree of Codes into a site-specific multidisciplinary performance piece, featuring members of the Paris Opera Ballet and McGregor’s company, that will take place in New York City’s most creative space, the Wade Thompson Drill Hall at the Park Avenue Armory, from September 14 to 21. “At the armory, we are always encouraging artists to push the limits of their specific disciplines. Wayne McGregor, Olafur Eliasson, and Jaime xx are each pioneers in their respective fields, and their collective vision for Tree of Codes asks us to bend our preconceived notions of traditional ballet and also the world around us,” armory president and executive producer Rebecca Robertson said in a statement. The armory has previously hosted work by the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, the Trisha Brown Dance Company, Shen Wei Dance Arts, STREB Extreme Action, Massive Attack, Christian Boltanski, Ann Hamilton, Tom Sachs, Paul McCarthy, Ryoji Ikeda, and many others, who have taken great advantage of the fifty-five-thousand square-foot space. Tree of Codes is likely to do the same.

WORD, ROCK, AND SWORD V: A FESTIVAL EXPLORATION OF WOMEN’S LIVES

Toshi Reagon (l.) and friends will come together for fifth annual festival

Toshi Reagon, Nona Hendryx, and friends will come together for fifth annual festival exploring women’s lives

Multiple venues
September 13-20, free – $25
www.wordrocksword.com

“Word, Rock & Sword” might describe itself as “a festival exploration of women’s lives,” but it also makes clear that “All are welcome” to these eight days of live music, panel discussions, film screenings, yoga, workshops, and other special events, many of which are free and require advance registration because of very limited space. The festival was started by singer-songwriter and activist Toshi Reagon, who explained in a statement, “We struggle in a political climate that still tolerates and actively encourages systemic discrimination against women — from the workplace to the doctor’s office. We witness congressional attacks on funding for Planned Parenthood; the harassment and murder of abortion providers; the denial of access to affordable health care; the constant vulnerability of women and girls to violence and sexual abuse; the daily struggle of women to hold families together in our ailing economy. We will come together to share our gifts and focus our intentions for the twenty-first century.” The fifth annual festival begins September 13 with an Opening Service in a private home with song, poetry, art, storytelling, and silent meditation and continues with such other programs as the discussion “Beyond the Hashtag: Using Art and Technology to Combat the Criminalization of Our Communities,” presented by the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice and the Ford Foundation; “Babies!” with Amy Matthews, which examines the learning experiences of newborns and toddlers; the multisensory anatomy lesson “Sound, Movement, and Mapping Our Bodies” with Matthews and Lydia Mann; Imani Uzuri’s healing creative-expression workshop “Water from the Well”; and “A Musical Celebration of Women’s Lives Year 5” ($20-$25), a concert at (le) poisson rouge with Nona Hendryx, Joan as Police Woman, Martha Redbone, Tamar-kali, SassyBlack, Gina Breedlove, and many more, produced and directed by Reagon and hosted by Karen Williams.

CARNIVAL 2015: ONE CARIBBEAN ONE PEOPLE ONE VOICE

Spectacular costumes are all part of the fun of annual West Indian American Day Carnival on Labor Day in Brooklyn (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

WEST INDIAN AMERICAN DAY CARNIVAL AND PARADE
Eastern Pkwy. from Schenectady Ave. to Grand Army Plaza
Monday, September 7, free, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
718-467-1797
wiadcacarnival.org

Every Labor Day, millions of people line Eastern Parkway, celebrating the city’s best annual parade, the West Indian American Day Carnival, waving flags from such nations as Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, the Cayman Islands, Antigua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Aruba, Curaçao, and many more. The festivities actually begin on September 3, with special events (listed below) every day leading up to the parade. The Labor Day partying commences at 2:00 am with the traditional J’Ouvert Morning, a precarnival procession featuring steel drums and percussion and fabulous, inexpensive masquerade costumes, marching from Grand Army Plaza to Flatbush Ave. and on to Empire Blvd., then to Nostrand Ave. and Linden Blvd. The Parade of Bands begins around 11:00 am, as truckloads of blasting Caribbean music and groups of ornately dressed dancers, costume bands, masqueraders, moko jumbies, and thousands of others bump and grind their way down Eastern Parkway to Grand Army Plaza, participating in one last farewell to the flesh prior to Lent. There will also be local politicians galore, with Sen. Charles Schumer and his ever-present bullhorn doing lots of meeting and greeting. Don’t eat before you go; the great homemade food includes ackee and saltfish, oxtail stew, breadfruit, macaroni pie, curried goat, jerk chicken, fishcakes, rice and peas, and red velvet cake. The farther east you venture, the more closed in it gets; by the time you get near Crown Heights, it could take you half an hour just to cross the street, so take it easy and settle in for a fun, colorful day where you need not hurry. This year’s marshals are Facebook global head of diversity Maxine Williams, U.S. Virgin Islands governor Keith E Mapp, and, TWU Local 100 secretary-treasurer Earl Phillips. Oh, and be prepared to see a whole lotta twerkin’ going on that would make even Miley Cyrus blush; we particularly like when the twerkers get the police involved.

Thursday, September 3
Caribbean Freedom Festival, with KES the Band, RemBunction, Scorpion, Young Devyn, Da Big Show, Mr. Pearly, and more, hosted by Riggo Suave, Barrie Hype, Herbert Holler & the Freedom Party NYC, Milo Miles, Biggie and DJ One Plus, and an Ole MAS carnival characters competition, Brooklyn Museum, $25, 7:00 pm – 1:00 am

Friday, September 4
The Official Stay in School Concert and College Fair, with live music by Mr. Pearly, DJ Super Soca Bass, martial arts demonstrations, a fashion show, spoken word, and more, Brooklyn Museum, free, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Brass Fest, with Ricardo Drue, Lyrikal, Skinny Fabulous, Pressure Busspipe, Preedy, Hypasounds, Ravi B & Karma, Bunji Garlin, Fay-Ann Lyons & the Asylum Vikings, DJ Sounds 4 Life, DJ Back 2 Basics, Foreign Bass, DJ Spice, DJ Renee, Boodoosingh Tassa Drummers, and Kutters Rhythm Section, hosted by Vybezman Redman and MC Wassy, Brooklyn Museum, $55, 8:00 pm – 3:00 am

Saturday, September 5
Junior Carnival Parade, St. John’s Place between Kingston & Brooklyn Aves. to Brooklyn Museum at Washington Ave., 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Steelband Panorama 2015, championship showdown with Pan Sonatas, CASYM, Pantonic, Steel Xplosion, ADLIB, METRO, “D” Radoes, Crossfire Steel Orchestra, Harmony Steel Orchestra, Despers USA, Bench Warmers Rhythm Section, and Brooklyn Steel Orchestra, with music by DJ One Plus, hosted by MC Godfrey Jack and Jemma Jordan, Brooklyn Museum, $45, 8:00 pm – 3:00 am

Sunday, September 6
Diamanche Gras: A Tribute to Yesteryear, with the Mighty Sparrow, King David Rudder, Swallow, Edwin Yearwood, Something Positive Inc., the Sunshine Band, Boodoosingh Tassa Drummers, Sumkinabakanaal Rhythm Section, the Kings and Queens of the MAS Bands, DJ One Plus, and the Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill National Jamaican Patty Eating Contest, hosted by MC Wassy, MC Godfrey Jack, and Jemma Jordan, Brooklyn Museum, $35, 7:00 pm – 1:00 am

OLLABELLE: SPECIAL REUNION SHOW

Who: Ollabelle
What: Special Reunion Show
Where: City Winery, 155 Varick St., 212-608-0555
When: Thursday, September 3, $30-$45, 8:00
Why: We’ve seen NYC folk specialists Ollabelle numerous times over the years, but they went on hiatus in 2012, and it’s been even longer since they toured with their original lineup. So we can’t wait for Amy Helm, Fiona McBain, Byron Isaacs, Tony Leone, Glenn Patscha, and Jimi Zhivago to be back together again on September 3 at City Winery, playing songs from throughout their career, which started in 2001 and includes the albums Ollabelle, Riverside Battle Songs, Before This Time, and Neon Blue Bird. Ollabelle plays the sweet sounds of Americana music, and it should be a joy to listen to them at this one-night-only performance, but you better act fast, because tickets are almost gone.