Who: Hillary Rodham Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Stacey Abrams, Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, Ayanna Pressley, Jennifer Carroll Foy, Chelsea Clinton, Shana Knizhnik, Sam Bagenstos, Margo Schlanger, Jon Batiste, Phoebe Bridgers, Sophia Bush, Kathleen Hanna, Kesha, Margo Price, Resistance Revival Chorus, Aminatou Sow, Michael Stipe, Hayley Williams, Rosario Dawson, Gloria Steinem, Regina King, Chelsea Handler What: Virtual rally celebrating the legacy of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Where:Demand Justice When: Monday, October 12, free with RSVP, 8:00 Why: On her deathbed, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg told her granddaughter, “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.” While there’s nothing legal about such a declaration, it is still deeply meaningful, particularly as the fight to replace her with Amy Coney Barrett begins in earnest on Monday with the start of her confirmation hearings. On Monday night, Demand Justice, “a progressive movement fighting to restore the ideological balance and legitimacy of the federal courts by advocating for reform and vigorously opposing extreme nominees,” is hosting “Honor Her Wish,” an all-star virtual event that asks, “How can you protect RBG’s legacy?” The lineup of those advocating for “No confirmation until inauguration” ranges from politicians and activists to writers and musicians to former RBG law clerks and includes appearances and/or performances by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Stacey Abrams, Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, Jon Batiste, Phoebe Bridgers, Sophia Bush, Kathleen Hanna, Kesha, Margo Price, Resistance Revival Chorus, Michael Stipe, Rosario Dawson, Gloria Steinem, Regina King, and Chelsea Handler, among others. It’s free to RSVP, but donations will be accepted to support the Supreme Court Preservation Fund; Demand Justice also supplies links for you to email your senator and sign a petition. As the organization states, “With the queen of dissent gone, it is our duty to carry the torch Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed to us.”
Alright, alright, alright! Virtual reunions have been all the rage during the pandemic lockdown, from Josh Gad’s “Reunited Apart” YouTube series, which has brought back the casts of such films as Back to the Future, Splash, Ghostbusters, The Goonies, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, to Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley’s daily Stars in the House get-togethers with the casts of Mean Girls, Fun Home, One Day at a Time, Les Misérables, Sweeney Todd, and many others in addition to live reunion readings of plays, all free but with donations encouraged.
Sean Penn recently raised money for CORE, which promotes Covid-19 testing and other community programs, with a celebrity script reading of Fast Times at Ridgmont High with superstars who were not in the movie (Jennifer Aniston, Dane Cook, Morgan Freeman, Jimmy Kimmel, Shia LaBeouf, John Legend, Ray Liotta, Brad Pitt, and Julia Roberts, as well as Penn not as Spicoli). With the election approaching, script readings and reunions have reached a new level as they seek to help flip red states to blue, including a terrific live virtual reading of The Princess Bride (with Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Carol Kane, Chris Sarandon, Mandy Patinkin, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, director Rob Reiner, and others) for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, followed by a Veep reunion, headed by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
On October 11 at 7:30, the original cast of Richard Linklater’s classic 1993 film, Dazed and Confused, will reunite to support the Voto Latino Foundation and the March for Science. The live reading will feature all your favorites: Matthew McConaughey as Wooderson, Ben Affleck as O’Bannion, Parker Posey as Darla, Jason London as Pink, Joey Lauren Adams as Simone, Adam Goldberg as Mike, Anthony Rapp as Tony, Rory Cochrane as Slater, Marissa Ribisi as Cynthia, Cole Hauser as Benny, Deena Martin as Shavonne, Esteban Powell as Carl, Christine Harnos as Kaye, Wiley Wiggins as Mitch, Michelle Burke as Jodi, Mark Vandermeulen as Tommy, Sasha Jenson as Don, Jeremy Fox as Hirschfelder, Christin Hinojosa as Sabrina, Catherine Morris as Julie, and Nicky Katt as Clint. The film has always been a quote lover’s dream, but several of them will take on a new meaning given the state of the country today. Cynthia: “Maybe the ’80s will be, like, radical or something. I figure we’ll be in our twenties and it can’t get worse.” Simone: “You act like you’re so oppressed. You guys are kings of the school. What are you bitching about?” Mike: “I feel like I’m being stalked by a Nazi.” Tony: “Neo-McCarthyism, I like that.” And Ms. Stroud: “Okay, guys, one more thing. This summer when you’re being inundated with all this American bicentennial Fourth Of July brouhaha, don’t forget what you’re celebrating, and that’s the fact that a bunch of slave-owning, aristocratic white males didn’t want to pay their taxes.” Patton Oswalt, who hosted the Princess Bride reunion and moderated the postshow Q&A, will perform the same duties here.
On October 14 at 9:00, another too-cool reunion will be taking place, raising money for the Pennsylvania Democratic Party as it tries to switch the state, which voted for Trump in 2016, to Biden this time around. And once again it will be a quote-laden classic directed by Reiner, the 1984 mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, with Michael McKean (David St. Hubbins), Christopher Guest (Nigel Tufnel), Harry Shearer (Derek Smalls), Reiner (who also played Marty DiBergi), and host and moderator Oswalt. “Democratic enthusiasm in Pennsylvania is already turned up to eleven,” Pennsylvania Democratic Party executive director Jason Henry said in a statement.
Although this one is not a table read, Spinal Tap also still has a relevant take on the U.S. of A. after all these years. St. Hubbins explains, “I believe virtually everything I read, and I think that is what makes me more of a selective human than someone who doesn’t believe anything.” Speaking about a new album cover, St. Hubbins says, “Well, I think it looks like death. It looks like mourning,” to which their manager, Ian Faith (Tony Hendra), responds, “Death sells.” And then there’s this exchange: St. Hubbins: “It’s such a fine line between stupid, and uh . . .” Tufnel: “Clever.” St. Hubbins: “Yeah, and clever.” Tickets for the Dazed and Confused and Spinal Tap reunions are pay-what-you-wish; as we approach the end of the campaign (and maybe the end of our nation), don’t forget these key words from St. Hubbins: “Well, I don’t really think that the end can be assessed as of itself as being the end because what does the end feel like? It’s like saying when you try to extrapolate the end of the universe, you say, if the universe is indeed infinite, then how — what does that mean? How far is all the way, and then if it stops, what’s stopping it, and what’s behind what’s stopping it? So, what’s the end, you know, is my question to you.”
Kate Ladenheim + the RAD Lab’s Babyface is part of Edgecut: Captivity live 3D experience online at NYLA on Saturday
Who: Carrie Sijia Wang, Emily Twines, Theater in Quarantine, Kate Ladenheim + the RAD Lab, Rourou Ye, Sadi Oortmood, Sylvain Souklaye, XUE What: 3D live experience Where:New York Live Arts When: Saturday, October 10, livestream free, interactive experience $7-$20, noon – 5:00 Why: The cutting-edge series EdgeCut is teaming up with New York Live Arts for Captivity, five hours of short performance works, talkbacks, and networking taking place online from noon to 5:00 on October 10. Curated by Heidi Boisvert and Kat Mustatea, the EdgeCut program, which originally convened at the New Museum’s NEW INC incubator for art, tech, and design for in-person presentations, is now seeking to expand and redefine the virtual 3D experience during the pandemic lockdown, exploring the question “How do we create collective experience and transformative gatherings in this moment of ‘a crisis within a crisis’ that speak to transition, change, healing, humanity?” The works, chosen through an open call focusing on captivity, sanity, and humanity, include Kate Ladenheim + the RAD Lab’s Babyface, Rourou Ye’s The Absent Umbra, Theater in Quarantine’s The Neighbor, Carrie Sijia Wang’s The System 2.0, Sadi Oortmood’s Invisible Creativity, Emily Twines’s lookingGlass, Sylvain Souklaye’s Black Breathing, and Xue’s Endless Return Rave. Virtual attendees can roam from room to room and engage with others, but be patient, as there’s a maximum of fifteen at any one time in the Nowhere platform. The full Captivity experience can be accessed with advance tickets of $7 to $20, but they are extremely limited, so act fast; it can also be watched for free via livestream but without the participatory elements.
Who:Suzanne Vega, Gerry Leonard, Jeff Allen, Jason Hart What: Two livestreamed concerts Where:Blue Note Jazz Club online When: Wednesday, October 7, 9:00, and Thursday, October 8, $24, 3:00 Why: Beloved singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega might have been born in California, but she is a true New Yorker, raised in Spanish Harlem. She is celebrating the release of her live album, An Evening of New York Songs and Stories, with two shows that will be livestreamed from the Blue Note in Greenwich Village, where she will perform the full record with guitarist Gerry Leonard, bassist Jeff Allen, and keyboardist Jason Hart. On October 7, the show will begin at 9:00 for US audiences, while the October 8 show will start at 3:00 for overseas fans, although you can watch either or both concerts no matter where you are. The record, which was released on her label, Amanuensis/Cooking Vinyl, on September 11, features sixteen songs from throughout her career, focusing on New York City as a theme, including “Marlene on the Wall,” “Ludlow Street,” “Freeze Tag,” “Tom’s Diner,” “Luka,” “New York Is My Destination,” and “New York Is a Woman” in addition to a cover of Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side.” (Ten years ago, Dutch DJ Ben Liebrand did a mashup of Reed’s underground classic with “Tom’s Diner,” which you can listen to here.) Vega, who has also written her own one-woman biomusical, Carson McCullers Talks About Love, has been a fun presence on social media during the pandemic, doing interviews (she discussed her part in the New Group production of Bob & Carol & Ted & Alicehere) and playing songs and telling stories from her home (check out her Greenwich Village Folk Festival set here), so this full-band show is a don’t-miss opportunity to not just hang out with a New York treasure but fall in love with her, and the city, all over again.
Who: Hosts Thomas Hübl, Dr. Laura Calderón de la Barca, Kosha Joubert, Robin Alfred, and Anna Molitor, and more than forty guests What: Live guided experiences, performances, artist dialogues Where:Collective Trauma Summit When: September 22 – October 1, free with registration Why: It’s been a rough 2020, and it seems to only be getting worse. We could all use a bit of healing, and that’s just what the Collective Trauma Summit seeks to do. The virtual conference runs September 22 through October 1 with ten live events in addition to numerous prerecorded talks and performances, featuring music, poetry, panel discussions, guided experiences, and more with Sharon Salzberg, Priya Parker, Jacqueline Novogratz, Daniel J. Siegel, Melanie Goodchild, Joy Harjo, David Whyte, Marie Howe, Pádraig Ó Tuama, Li-Young Lee, Naomi Shihab Nye, Jami Sieber, Krishna Das, Dr. Srini Pillay, Margaret Wheatley, Yehudit Sasportas, Xiuhtezcatl, and many others. Among the topics are “The Link between Personal Trauma and Collective Trauma,” “How Neuroscience Can Inform Approaches to Trauma Healing,” “How to Become Aware of Unresolved States and Heal Them,” “The Future of Collective Healing Processes and Methods,” “How Communities Can Transform Themselves,” “Practices for Engaging the Wisdom of the Body,” “Working with Inherited Family and Ancestral Trauma,” “Transforming Cycles of Violence and Cultural Trauma,” and “Using Trauma as a Call to Service and Self-Transcendence.” The hosts are Thomas Hübl, Dr. Laura Calderón de la Barca, Kosha Joubert, Robin Alfred, and Anna Molitor. “Trauma is not just a personal experience. It is always embedded in a much wider chain of events and history. Examining our collective trauma is the way to tap into the evolutionary intelligence of humanity,” explains Hübl, the founder of the Academy of Inner Science and author of the forthcoming book Healing Collective Trauma. Admission is free; below are the live events.
Tuesday, September 22, noon
“Awakening to the Nature of Collective Trauma,” with Thomas Hübl, Laura Calderón de la Barca, Robin Alfred, Kosha Joubert, and Anna Molitor, music by Adam Bauer, and poetry by Kim Rosen
Wednesday, September 23, noon
“Uncovering Our Cultural Trauma Conditioning,” with Thomas Hübl, host Robin Alfred, music by Adam Bauer, and poetry by Kim Rosen
Thursday, September 24, noon
“Exploring Our Roots and Ancestral History,” with Thomas Hübl, host Kosha Joubert, music by Adam Bauer, and poetry by Kim Rosen
Friday, September 25, noon
“The Art of Peacemaking: Mediating Conflicts in a Traumatized Field,” with William Ury, host Kosha Joubert, and panelists Ameya Kilara and Claire Hajaj
Saturday, September 26, 1:00
“Collective Healing and Structural Inequality: A Contemplative Walk,” with Thomas Hübl, Angel Acosta, and host Laura Calderón de la Barca
Saturday, September 27, noon
“Poetry as a Gateway to Collective Healing,” with Marie Howe, Pádraig Ó Tuama, and host Anna Molitor
Tuesday, September 29, noon
“The Pocket Project: Activating the Power of Group Coherence,” with Thomas Hübl, Yehudit Sasportas, Kosha Joubert, and Laura Calderón de la Barca
Thursday, October 1, noon
“Climate Crisis: Restoring Our Relationship to the Earth,” with Thomas Hübl, host Kosha Joubert, and music by Adam Bauer
Miscast20 features an exciting roster of theater stars performing just the wrong songs
Who: Norbert Leo Butz, Heather Headley, Rob McClure, Isaac Powell, Robert Fairchild, Joshua Henry, Ingrid Michaelson, Lauren Ridloff, Adrienne Warren, Beanie Feldstein, Leslie Odom Jr., Nicolette Robinson, Phillipa Soo, Jocelyn Bioh, Julianna Margulies, Raúl Esparza, Piper Perabo, Judith Light, Thomas Sadoski, Kenneth Cole, Laura Bell Bundy, Kerry Butler, Harvey Fierstein, Jenn Gambatese, Jackie Hoffman, Kamilah Marshall, Matthew Morrison, Corey Reynolds, Judine Somerville, Shayna Steele, Marissa Jaret Winokur What: Virtual edition of MCC Theater’s annual Miscast gala Where:MCC YouTube channel When: Sunday, September 13, free (donations accepted), preshow 7:45, show 8:00 Why: We’ve all been there: We’re in a theater watching a show when we realize that it’s just not going to work because of a bad casting decision. MCC Theater has been spoofing on that situation with its annual Miscast fundraising galas, in which they purposely match talented performers with the wrong song. On September 13, Miscast20 will go virtual, adding a geographic dimension to the wrongness. Admission is free, though donations will be accepted, with ten percent going to the Mental Health Coalition, which was founded earlier this year by fashion designer and activist Kenneth Cole; MHC’s mission “is to build a like-minded community who will work together to destigmatize all mental health conditions by changing the way people talk about, and care for, their mental health.”
Performing at the event, which will be broadcast for free on YouTube, are Norbert Leo Butz, Heather Headley, Rob McClure, Isaac Powell, Robert Fairchild, Joshua Henry, Ingrid Michaelson, Lauren Ridloff, Adrienne Warren, Beanie Feldstein, Leslie Odom Jr., Nicolette Robinson, and Phillipa Soo; Jocelyn Bioh, Julianna Margulies, Raúl Esparza, Piper Perabo, Judith Light, Thomas Sadoski, and Cole will serve as presenters. There will also be a special reunion appearance by the cast of Hairspray: Laura Bell Bundy, Kerry Butler, Harvey Fierstein, Jenn Gambatese, Jackie Hoffman, Kamilah Marshall, Matthew Morrison, Corey Reynolds, Judine Somerville, Shayna Steele, and Marissa Jaret Winokur. In addition, MCC is hosting an online auction where you can bid on such items as an original costume from A Chorus Line, coaching and mentor sessions with professionals, signed Playbills, wine and dinner tastings and getaways, and MCC memberships.
Special “Table of Silence Project” performance ritual of peace returns for tenth year to Josie Robertson Plaza but can only be viewed virtually (photo courtesy Lincoln Center)
Josie Robertson Plaza, Lincoln Center
65th St. between Broadway & Amsterdam Ave.
Friday, September 11, free, 7:55 – 8:46 am www.tableofsilence.org lincolncenter.org
Every September 11, there are many memorial programs held all over the city, paying tribute to those who were lost on that tragic day while also honoring New York’s endless resiliency. One of the most powerful is Buglisi Dance Theatre’s “Table of Silence Project,” a multicultural public performance ritual for peace that annually features one hundred dancers on Josie Robertson Plaza at Lincoln Center. But it has to be reconfigured this year because of the pandemic lockdown; it will be shown virtually on Facebook and YouTube, as no audience is permitted on the plaza. On Friday morning from 7:55 to 8:46, the time the first plane hit the World Trade Center, BDT, Lincoln Center, and Dance/NYC will present a new, live prologue featuring two dozen socially distanced dancers from BDT, Ailey II, Alison Cook Beatty Dance, Ballet Hispánico’s BHdos, the Juilliard School, Limón Dance Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, and other professional dancers circling Lincoln Center’s Revson Fountain, with original music by electric violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain and spoken-word poetry by Marc Bamuthi Joseph (from the Kennedy Center in DC), with BDT cofounder and principal dancer Terese Capucilli serving as bell master; opening remarks by special guests; an excerpt from Buglisi’s 2001 Requiem, which was choreographed as an immediate response to the attacks; the world premiere of the three-minute film Études by Nel Shelby Productions, highlighting 150 dancers from around the world who recorded their own “Table of Silence” pieces last month; a video of the full 2019 performance; and a call for peace in honor of the tenth anniversary of the work.
“This reimagining is a powerful message for healing as we struggle with the global pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement for racial justice. We honor all those whose lives are impacted by the crises our country is facing,” BDT artistic director Jacqulyn Buglisi said in a statement. “Expressing so much of what makes us human, the project’s message of peace and healing is far-reaching and holds great relevance today, in addition to the 9/11 commemoration. It strives to be a transformative experience that reveals the strength and resilience of our collective society.” This year also includes a meditation variation and live chat that took place on September 6 and can be viewed above. Admission is free but you can donate to the project here.
