Results tagged “spaldinggray”

Esquire has a story written by the person who discovered Spalding Gray's body which ends with this quote from Gray's wife, Kathleen Russo: "No, please, do whatever you like. You don't have to be tasteful. This is Spalding Gray. All he ever talked about was his own death."

Three years after his death, Spalding Gray: Stories Left To Tell has opened at Minetta Lane Theater. Running through May 13th, the performance features five actors surrounded by stacks of marble notebooks, similar to those Gray filled in his lifetime (up to 300). Selections from "Swimming to Cambodia," "Monster in a Box" and other monologues are read, but perhaps more insightful and often eerie are his unpublished works. From his last entry (a tape recording from December 18th, 2003): "Everything's in my head now, my timing is all off. Tomorrow is the day I'm going to kill myself."

MOVIE: The 10th Annual New York International Children's Film Festival commences tonight, starting with the US premiere of the French animated film U (which includes unicorns!). A kid-friendly catered reception will take place after the film.

The Phantom of the Opera may be nearing the ripe old age of 18, but most shows in this city don’t even play 18 shows. That doesn’t mean that they’re unworthy, of course – far from it, at least in our book. For instance, there’s Clubbed Thumb’s new production What Then, which (including previews last weekend) has 16 showings at the Ohio Theatre. Written by Rinne Groff and directed by Hal Brooks, who recently got accolades for his work on Thom Paine, this is the story of a dysfunctional family and their attempts to stitch their relationships and psyches back not through therapy but rather through creating and exploring new realities through dreams and drugs. It’s a powerful vision that will leave you questioning your own perception of existence.

If you’re like Gothamist and you enjoy new theatre in small venues (with small ticket prices), theater festivals are unbeatable. If you don’t go to shows much but want to get a taste for what’s out there, again, these gatherings of innovative voices and acting talents are the way to go. In the summer months, festivals arrive thick and fast; the first wave begins this week.

Spalding Gray, who committed suicide in 2004, was a beloved fixture of the downtown theatre scene. He cofounded the Wooster Group in 1977 and turned extraordinarily personal monologue performances into a hypnotizing experience for audiences. One of these, Swimming to Cambodia, became a movie filmed by Jonathan Demme and released in 1987, and it propelled his fame beyond the experimental off-Broadway scene (it’s also just been reissued as a book). But it was his friends and fans from that world who have missed him most, and they’re giving a tribute to him tonight at the Union Square Barnes & Noble, at 7pm. Eric Bogosian, Bob Holman, Reno, Roger Rosenblatt and Kate Valk will read from Gray’s work in this free event. If you ever saw Gray perform, or if you just have enjoyed the innovative avant-garde theatre that he nurtured and refined, you should definitely catch what will undoubtedly be both a sad and loving appreciation.

Lea Thau, Director, The Moth

Reverend Billy, Street Preacher, The Church of Stop Shopping

Andy Horwitz, P.S.122

And the week in full