Results tagged “performance”

50 Cent doesn't even need to perform anymore, he's spent the summer in the headlines for canceling a Queens show when neighbors became concerned about safety. But now the NY Post reports that the rapper could possibly be attending a picnic in the borough tomorrow, at PS 40.

While performance artist Thoth, beloved by many, awaits his court date in August after getting arrested for "prayforming," the Parks Department has gotten back to us with their somewhat canned comment on the incident. Parks spokesperson Philip Abramson explains:

"There are many spaces in Central Park where unamplified music may be played without a permit. However, the Bethesda Terrace area has been designated a 'quiet zone' for many years. The Parks Department routinely asks musicians and performers to move from Bethesda to other areas of the park such as the Bandshell and Dead Road.

Continue reading "Parks Department Speaks Out on Thoth Arrest"

This Sunday the Bodies of Pyongyang installation was set up outside of St. Mark's Church. The project is by artist Yoonhye Park and features 20 female performers inside of a 70"x70"x70" clear plexiglass cube, all with the aim of bringing awareness to women's issues in North Korea. "These tightly packed schoolgirls try to move about the enclosed cube box expressing their emotional pain and struggle. Red strings symbolizing their dual inner states of suppression and resistance entangle the girls further confining their freedom to move within their already limited and hermetic space." The installation will be back May 2nd (Washington Square) and May 9th (Tompkins Square).

There's good news and bad news in Mayor Bloomberg's latest status update on the city's performance. According to the mandated "Mayor's Management Report" for Fiscal Year 2009, major felony crime decreased 3% during the first four months of the fiscal year (July to October), while homicides rose 10.6% and grand larceny auto also increased, compared to the same time period in 2007. The annual report is an early indicator of how the city will fare this year; here are some other findings:
• Traffic fatalities decreased, from 112 to 102.
• The 311 customer service center received 12% more calls, from 4.78 million to 5.37 million.
• The number of trees planted nearly tripled, to 1,028, due to projects associated with the Million Trees Program. (Only about 999,000 more to meet the goal!)
• Less cacophony? The city received 15,275 noise complaints compared to 19,998 last year.
• The Department of Homeless Services saw an across-the-board increase in single adults and families entering the shelter services system, including an increase of 38% for families with children.
• The number of persons receiving food stamps increased by 18.1%. Among these recipients, the number of non-cash assistance persons receiving food stamps increased 25.8%, reaching an all-time high.
• The number of syphilis cases rose by 30%, reflecting national trends.

In his hugely influential book The Empty Space, universally well-regarded director Peter Brook writes, "I can take any empty space and call it a bare stage. A man walks across this empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all I need for an act of theatre to be engaged." Brook's aesthetic has gone through many permutations since he first burst onto the scene in the '60s with his rigorous and radical interpretations of such plays as Marat/Sade, but his defining characteristic has always been his passion for stripping away excesses to get to the essential.

Following Billy Joel's two-night performance bidding farewell to Shea Stadium, rumors are whirling around who the Yankees might book for their goodbye in November. The Daily News reports that George Steinbrenner is looking to the other The Boss himself, Bruce Springsteen, for the closing ceremony extravaganza--but another rumor is pointing at former Beatle Paul McCartney. If it's true, wouldn't he be turning his back on Shea, where he first played the U.S. 43 years ago (and played again last month with Joel)? The News also notes that "sources close to both rockers weren't aware of any discussions." Can't wait for the Madonna/Lenny Kravitz double-bill rumor! Now that would awkward.

Jack Moelmann is making a name for himself, at least for one night at Radio City Music Hall. 1010Wins says the 67-year-old retired Air Force colonel has always wanted to play the Wurlitzer organ at the venue, which was installed in 1932. On his website he says, "I believe the stage is the largest in the world being some 144 feet wide (a city block)...there are two identical consoles which make up the organ, one on either side of the stage literally a city block apart both of which control the same organ components."

Jen Dunlap, a painter, and Celia Rowlson-Hall, a writer-director-choreographer, decided to combine their many talents for a one-of-a-kind art show. Wanna Come to My Place? will saturate Supreme Trading with their art, performance and everyday life tomorrow night. They even traveled all the way to Coney Island to create a video invite.

Joshua Camp, one part of the band One Ring Zero, will be paying tribute to Charles Ives this weekend, 100 years after his ground-breaking piece Central Park In The Dark -- with his own piece honoring Prospect Park. 8 Prospects is a suite for six musicians and "reflects Brooklyn’s most-loved park and a new century of urban sounds." It will be performed the next two Sundays at Brooklyn's Barbès, and hopefully one day in the park it was written for! This week Camp told us about 8 Prospects, its muse, and Charles Ives.

       

(Le) Poisson Rouge somewhat quietly opened the doors to 158 Bleecker Street a little over a week ago. The renovated space is still undergoing some final touches before their grand opening in September, but they are currently partially open and hosting shows (view the calendar here). The venue has a pretty legendary history, from the press release:

"The Village Gate operated at 158 Bleecker Street from the late '50s until 1993, and played host to icons ranging from John Cage, Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Nina Simone, and Aretha Franklin, to Jimi Hendrix, Allen Ginsberg, Jim Morrison, Timothy Leary, Andy Warhol, and the Velvet Underground. It is this same experimental, genre-bending spirit that (Le) Poisson Rouge hopes to carry forward as it re-opens the doors."

Each summer the Met offers a free outdoor performance, and the one-night-only event is going down in Prospect Park later this evening. Two of the opera world's biggest stars, Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna, will be belting out duets as Ion Marin conducts the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus.

With venues closing down left and right, it's nice to see some opening as well -- especially in Manhattan where most are getting priced out. "(Le) Poisson Rouge is "an 800-capacity multimedia art cabaret founded by musicians on the site of the historic Village Gate." The space, located at 158 Bleecker, will be opening once their ongoing major remodeling work is complete. Right now there are some events booked for June, but they tell us they'll be officially opening in September.

Madonna, who recently stated that NYC gives her the zzz's, was stirring things up in town for an intimate performance last night. Her Madgesty took the Roseland Ballroom stage in front of 2,200 fans, for a show which demanded die-hards wait in line for what turned out to be 60 hours, just for a chance to get into. Fanatics? No. One of them, a Brooklynite, swears, “I’m not fanatical. But I do collect Madonna magazine covers, and I’ve got maybe 170 of them.”

Lots of chefs consider their food to be art, but few artists see their art as food. A new festival called Umami – a Japanese word meaning "savory" or "meaty" – is trying to change all that. The ten day smorgasbord, which started Tuesday, spotlights artists and performers who use food as a medium, and also features culinary events ranging from “water tastings” to a weekend workshop for kids called “Paint With Your Food.” Just what every parent needs!

I'm Not There Nails It We went into seeing I'm Not There yesterday afternoon kind of expecting to hate it, thinking it would be vague and pretentious and a chore to absorb. But boy were we wrong! The movie avoids many annoying biopic clichés, presenting 6 separate, yet surprisingly straightforward stories based on the life of Bob Dylan. While non-linear, the narratives are complete and engrossing. The film is shot beautifully, and needless to say...

THEATER: Eugene O’Neill’s early one-act plays get a rare blast of daylight in The Pioneer, a new production that stages four of his nascent gems plus a whimsical monologue O’Neill wrote from the point of view of his dog. The plays boast O’Neill’s signature assortment of furious, flailing characters that would come to dominate his full-length work. Writing for the Times, Rachel Saltz notes that the plays range from “interesting” to “wonderful” and concludes that...

City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein characterized last year's assessment test scores as "good," but critics say that they represent a lack of progress and a failure of Mayor Bloomberg's efforts to reform city schools. City kids' scores stayed flat on national assessment exams in math and reading, with a slight improvement in 4th graders' math scores and a drop in 8th graders' reading scores. "New York City’s eighth graders have made no significant progress in...

Performance artist and activist Bill Talen, AKA Reverend Billy, has been raising hell in New York City for so long now it’s hard to imagine this town without him. Since first seizing his sidewalk pulpit in the late 90s to combat the Disneyfication of Times Square, the reverend has been consistently down with a host of local and international progressive causes. With the help of his raucous Stop Shopping Gospel Choir, he also puts on a hilarious and inspirational theatrical show. (Not to take anything away from Other Love, his quite moving solo piece.) November will see the release of a documentary concerning the cross-country travels of Reverend Billy and his choir, What Would Jesus Buy?, produced by Morgan Spurlock of Supersize Me fame. Tonight the Reverend brings his righteous lefty heat to Gothamist House; all are invited to come on down and testify.

SPA: FreeNYC tells us that "in honor of their 20th Anniversary, Nina's European Day Spa is offering up some free and discounted treatments!" Get there before 7pm and you'll get a free eyebrow threading or waxing, free mini microdermabrasion, and free hand treatments. Free: it's a beautiful price.

This weekend, you could take a trip back to the 1860s with a visit to Governors Island. It's the Civil War Weekend, and the 119th New York Volunteer Historical Association will "recreate garrison life on Governors Island during the Civil War, portraying officers, soldiers and guards in the Regular Army conducting drills, a guard mount and historic weapons demonstrations." Here's a schedule of events for both Saturday and Sunday:

10:00: Witness the morning calls (sick, breakfast, officers’) at the Garrison and Confederate prisoners being marched to Castle Williams under guard

Continue reading "Civil War Re-Enactment Weekend at Governors Island"

Earth Day may have passed, but there are many ways you can be eco-conscious. Take fashion, for instance. Videographer Kelly Loudenberg gives us a look a few eco-fashion approaches:

Last week, the Emerging Green Builders of New York presented the “Project Earth Day” fashion show, an eco-friendly fashion event celebrating Earth Day. Designs ranged from re-worked used clothing to new clothing made from organic or recycled fibers. Runway designer Amber Nelson said, “We tried to create as little waste as possible. We used old shipping pallets to support the stage which is a 100% recycled surface made out of coke bottles and milk jugs.”

Continue reading "Video of the Day: Fashion, New, Used, & Free"

MUSIC: The Good, the Bad and the Queen play a sold out show at Webster Hall tonight, but before that they're playing a much more intimate show for free at the Apple Store. Not familiar with the band? It's headed up by Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz fame.

, don't subject us to this.

Blogs aren’t just for socially-awkward shut-ins anymore and we’ve got proof: many successful, outgoing theater types maintain weblogs. While they don't get as much glory (or contempt) as their influential music-blog counterparts, they do have their dignity. And there's sometimes drama!

EVENT: Tonight at the Apple Store, the NYC photobloggers get together again. Come check out: Scott Heiferman, Kara Canal, Rebecca Smeyne, Will Sherman, Kamau Mucoki, Boogie and Martin Fuchs.

This week the multiplexes seem practically flooded with new releases, in addition to the good things already out, so much so that Gothamist is starting to fall behind on our movie consumption. But never fear, we shall surely rally. Here's a few suggestions to guide your own weekend viewing.

Michael Showalter has joined the faculty of the Peoples Improv Theater. The PIT is home of the most prestigious professional comedy writing program in the country and has added him as one of the four new teachers to their faculty.

learn more about Appropriate heart attack care "Appropriate heart attack care," "Appropriate heart failure care," and "Appropriate pneumonia care" (there's also, when applicable "Appropriate surgical infection prevention"). One of the big things is to see whether or not the hospital is about the state average for "appropriate heart attack care", which is 93%. The few Manhattan hospitals we looked at did score above 93% - St. Vincent's seemed to have the highest - 98%. But many hospitals scored lower than the state average of 76% for pneumonia care - Bellevue did get an 80%, but Lenox HIll, NY Presbyterian Columbia, NY Presbyterian Cornell, and St. Vincent's scored well below that. It's a cool site - check it out and let us know what you find.

We're sure you're all busy with office parties and hiding from the cold, cold weather. But it's one of the last weekends of 2005, so try to get out there (besides, who knows if we'll have subways after the weekend is over!)

The holidays are upon us. Tomorrow sees the release of two of the more eagerly awaited films of the season, and we haven't even hit Thanksgiving yet! We've been hearing fantastic things about the Johnny Cash biopic ; Phoenix sings all the songs himself. We're not really sure whether that's a plus or not, though, no matter how well he sings.