[note: some, maybe most, of these links may no longer be working, but such is the nature of the digital. hopefully, the url and context are enough to help you find any further information you want. if not, feel free to contact me, and i’ll try to help.]
abril 2025
¡hola, difus@s!
of what i’ve seen these past two months, nyatt school redux stands out as the best (even of the year), a rigorous (and rigorously executed) meta-exploration of memory and media that, in reflecting on experimental theater’s history raised questions about its future. that future looks promising if the barbarians, which was deliriously hilarious (and owed much to the wooster group’s north atlantic and symphony of rats), is any indication. similarly, alix dufresne and etienne lepage’s malaise dans la civilization was as charming and delightful as (their apparent influences) gob squad and wunderbaum often are, if perhaps not quite as incisive as those groups’ best work can be.
mary said what she said was a fine show; huppert’s performance was (as always, really) exceptionally committed, but the production lacked some of the rigor, precision, and magic of wilson’s better work. gigenis was also a solid evening of dance theater (and it was wonderful to see khan working in this idiom), but it left me more satisfied than transported. momo was less than satisfying, the incoherent whole was far less than the sum of its parts (despite some of those parts being quite beautiful, e.g., the section set to glass’ metamorphosis, and the dancers being excellent throughout). anne imhof’s doom: house of hope was made for the art world (and its aspirants) that cares (a LOT) about berghain and balenciaga (and capitulates to the technofeudal modes of contemporary spectatorship)...and that ain’t me. (i’m also completely uninterested in visual / performance artists with no regard for the histories of dance and theater; as spike lee so eloquently put it, “then comes the motherfuckin’ christopher columbus syndrome. you can’t discover this! we been here. you just can’t come and bogart.”)
on screen, what i’ve caught has been more uniformly terrific. no other land was gutting yet essential, and dying was a beautiful, by turns tender and devastating, triptych of portraits. misericordia was so incredibly pervy in every possible way (its relationship to genre, its characters relationships to each other) yet so deeply human/e that i haven’t stopped thinking about it. post tenebras lux was even better now than when i saw it thirteen years ago, and grand tour was further proof that miguel gomes is one of the most interesting directors working today (i keep triangulating it with tabu and the tsugua diaries).
the few concerts i’ve gotten to have also been pretty equally fantastic. justin vivian bond was just the political therapy i needed, st. luke’s in the field’s choir delivered a phenomenal program of pierre de manchicourt, tindersticks are just consummate musicians, and beth gibbons’ encore performance of portishead’s “roads” (after a gorgeous set from her solo albums) was magic.
april’s definitely got a lot on offer that keeps pace with (and might well rival) the better work of the year so far:
film: this month has a full slate of series worth exploring: “drifting through time: focus on lee kang sheng” (featuring some of my favorite tsai ming-liang films), “l.a. rebellion: then and now,” “new directors / new films,” “postcards from the south: the films of bonjour tristesse,” “the people’s history: early films of john sayles,” “women, workers, and whores on film.” among this month’s features of note are 1-800-on-her-own (i listened to a lot of ani difranco in college), 8½, direct action, killer of sheep, m, queens of drama, the shrouds (i really like late cronenberg), and wicked games rimini sparta (despite the polemic, as i’ve been interested in seidl’s work since seeing in the basement).
music: for new music, check out anthony roth costanzo, axiom, caroline shaw and gabriel kahane, chanticleer, julliard’s percussion ensemble, lucine! or “birdshit: a human concerto with string & void,” lukas de clerck, rainbird, and “scars plummet to the corners.” for early and classical music, look into jordi savall and hesperion, julliard historical performance chamber ensembles, les arts florissants, the sebastians & chatham baroque, and tenet. for even more music, consider bridget everett and the tender moments, john grant, and martha wainwright.
performance + theater: i saw my first caryl churchill work at bam years ago, and i’m quite eager to see the group of her plays that the public is presenting (as well as the work inspired by her at torn page). other shows that have my interest piqued include the employees, the last bimbo of the apocalypse (it’s been too long since i’ve seen jack ferver’s work), me-we’s playhouse, organizational strategic consultant, rheology, scammed into love, and the obligation to live. we also have a few festivals / showcases worth exploring: ?!: new works, new york city fringe, and the lighthouse series: round 1.
dance: just between skirball and the joyce, we’ve got a lot of great dance on the calendar, with reggie wilson / fist and heel performance group, daniel léveillé dance, and seán curran company (and work inspired by the camino de santiago!) at the former and trisha brown dance company and a.i.m. by kyle abraham at the latter, and then there’s the 25th anniversary of the la mama moves! dance festival. other shows on my short list are dance theatre of harlem at city center, “innovators and icons i” at nycb, and “sissy” at bac—but there’s even more on offer (see below)!
art: given that may auctions and fairs will have the commercial side of the art world buzzing, most of the shows i’m hoping to catch this month are at museums and non-profits: “abang-guard: makibaka,” “abc no rio 45 years,” “adriana varejão: don’t forget, we come from the tropics,” “elle pérez: the world is always beginning again,” “hiraki sawa: journeys in place,” “saya woolfalk: empathetic universe,” “making home: smithsonian design triennial,” “monstrous beauty: a feminist revision of chinoiserie,” “working knowledge: shared imaginings, new futures,” and “yang fudong: seven intellectuals in a bamboo forest.” there are also a few gallery shows i don’t want to miss: “affinities: anni albers, josef albers, paul klee,” “ida applebroog: you what?”, “joseph kosuth: future memory,” and “robert morris: seeing and space.”
a full calendar follows, and you’re welcome to sign up anyone you’d like for future issues here.
un abrazo,
p
abril / april
3: a celebration of meredith monk (music)
3: anne-sophie mutter, violin; lambert orkis, piano (music)
3: brooklyn maqam ft. nibal malshi x haza party (music)
3: jessie montgomery (music)
3: julliard at zankel hall (music)
3-5: alisa weilerstein, thomas larcher & schumann (music)
3-5: sara mearns (dance)
3-5: zoh amba (music)
3-6: a streetcar named desire (theater)
3-6: beauty and the beast: the musical (theater)
3-6: the elephant man (film)
3-6: the makers’ ensemble short play fest (theater)
3-6: the threepenny opera (theater)
3-7: gregory harrington, emerald strings (music)
3-13: amerikin (theater)
3-13: martha graham (dance)
3-13: new directors / new films (film)
3-13: we had a world (theater)
3-13: wine in the wilderness (theater)
3-14: amm(i)gone (theater)
3-17: claude lelouch (film)
3-20: fight night (theater)
3-20: in two minds (theater)
3-20: new york city fringe (performance, theater)
3-20: scammed into love (theater)
3-26: ghosts (theater)
3-: glass. kill. what if if only. imp. (theater)
3-: humpty dumpty (theater)
3-: i don't trust adults (performance)
3-: irishtown (theater)
3-: purpose (theater)
4: danish string quartet (music)
4: juilliard historical performance chamber music series (music)
4: the arcostrum experience (music)
4: tribute to the slits (music)
4-5: alison cook beatty dance: an evening of modern dance (dance)
4-5: reggie wilson/fist and heel performance group: the reclamation (dance)
4-6: sur (theater)
4-6: swallows (theater)
4-10: women, workers, and whores on film (film)
4-13: angel in the ashes -or- goodness triumphant! (theater)
4-20: the lighthouse series: round 1 (theater)
4-: a nice indian boy (film)
4-: gazer (film)
4-: high art (film)
4-: the hermit of treig (film)
4-: the luckiest man in america (film)
4-: when fall is coming (film)
5: anna thérèse witenberg + dominica greene (dance)
5: wuthering heights (film)
5-: drifting through time: focus on lee kang-sheng (film)
6: alban gerhardt, cello (music)
6: alsarah & the nubatones (music)
6: composer festival (music)
6: les arts florissants (music)
6: megan moore, mezzo-soprano (music)
6: mozart, grieg, fauré, and prokofiev (music)
6: wicked games - rimini sparta (film)
6-9: rogue wave: (my battery is low) and it is getting dark (dance)
7: tina bararian, ogemdi ude, maima, the water spirit (dance)
8: fast forward (dance)
8: hina khuong-huu, violin (music)
8: open performance (dance)
8-11: bridget everett & the tender moments (music)
8-22: catch & release (peep show experiments) with kat sotelo (performance)
8-24: postcards from the south: the films of bonjour tristesse (film)
8-26: ?!: new works 2025 (theater)
9: doric string quartet (music)
9: julia riew: endless in concert (music)
9: mitsuko uchida, piano (music)
9: sonatenabend (music)
9-11: brahms, stravinsky & jessie montgomery (music)
9-12: annie gosfield (music)
9-20: escaped alone [not not not not not enough oxygen] (theater)
9-: mogwai: if the stars had a sound (film)
10: art workers are artists too (performance)
10: boccherini, koechlin, and suk (music)
10: chanticleer (music)
10: ensemble connect (music)
10: julliard string quartet (music)
10: orchestra of st. luke’s (music)
10-13: dance theatre of harlem (dance)
10-17: direct action (film)
10-24: killer of sheep (film)
10-27: cafe resistance (theater)
10-27: the road ahead (theater)
10-: hold me in the water (theater)
10-: la mama moves! 25th anniversary (dance)
11: adam walker, winds (music)
11: jordi savall, viola da gamba & hespèrion xxi (music)
11: lucas debargue (music)
11: mixtape: women in punk (music)
11: sightlines v (film)
11: tony trischka's earljam - a tribute to earl scruggs (music)
11-12: daniel léveillé danse: amour, acide et noix (dance)
11-13: erin morley, soprano; gerald martin moore, piano (music)
11-: goodfellas (film)
11-: syd mead: illustrating the future (film)
11-: that they may face the rising sun (film)
11-: the teacher (film)
11-: the uninvited (film)
12: dancers, buildings and people in the streets reunion (dance)
12: john grant (music)
12: mercury rev (music)
12-: the people's history: early films of john sayles (film)
13: tajouje + al-sit (film)
13: the afro-semitic transcendental repertory orchestra (a.s.t.r.o.) (music)
13: the sebastians & chatham baroque (music)
14: juilliard orchestra conducted by david robertson (music)
14: luna beller-tadiar, shua group, yun lee (dance)
14: music from bayano, a panamanian congo drama (music)
15: neal medlyn has a job (performance)
15: the philadelphia orchestra (music)
15-16: bread & puppet theater (theater)
15-20: bodytraffic (dance)
15-27: macbeth in stride (theater)
15-: il barbiere di sivilgia (music)
15-: rheology (theater)
16: lukas de clerck (music)
16: percussion ensemble (music)
16: sonatenabend (music)
16: yefim bronfman, piano (music)
16-19: william parker (music)
16-20: rainbird (music)
16-24: anonymous was a woman (film)
17: countertenor (music)
17: falsa (music)
17: grupo niche (music)
17: leo botstein and the orchestra now (music)
17: mikael darmanie, piano (music)
17: sonic spectrum iv (music)
17-: buena vista social club (film)
18: clayton stephenson, piano (music)
18: countertenor (music)
18: juilliard historical performance chamber music series (music)
18-19: river l. ramirez: healing is over (performance)
18-19: seán curran company: path and everywhere all the time (dance)
18-20: drama queens (film)
18-24: the innerview (film)
18-: 1-800-on-her-own (film)
18-: barry lyndon (film)
18-: the president's wife (film)
18-: the shrouds (film)
18-: the ugly stepsister (film)
19: bab l'bluz (music)
19: eucademix (yuka honda) & azumi o e (music)
19: the potluck: in concert (performance)
21: paris cullen, johnnie cruise mercer/theredprojectnyc, morgan gregory (dance)
22: open performance (dance)
22: rebecca lane & clara de asís (music)
22-26: uptown rhythm dance festival (music)
22-27: a.i.m. by kyle abraham (dance)
22-29: all balanchine i (dance)
22-: the last bimbo of the apocalypse (theater)
23: boston symphony orchestra (music)
23: brad mehldau, piano (music)
23-24: organizational strategic consultant (performance)
23-26: jad atoui (music)
23-26: spring play i (theater)
23-28: juilliard opera presents poulenc’s "dialogues des carmélites" (music)
24: anna rg: air change per hour (music)
24: blk odyssy (music)
24: boston symphony orchestra (music)
24: erin wagner, mezzo-soprano (music)
24-25: łukasz twarkowski: the employees (theater)
24-26: gateways spring festival (music)
24-26: sissy (dance)
24-27: the trouble with jessica (film)
24-: innovators & icons i (dance)
25: “scars plummet to the corners” (music)
25: axiom (music)
25: caroline shaw, vocals & gabriel kahane, vocals & piano (music)
25: copkiller aka corrupt aka order of death (film)
25: curtis stewart – seasons of change (music)
25: me-wee's playhouse (performance)
25: tenet vocal artists: rosettes (music)
25: yunchan lim, piano (music)
25-27: mozart and the wooden prince (music)
25-27: senior production (dance)
25-: 8 1/2 (film)
25-: april (film)
25-: drop dead city (film)
25-: l.a. rebellion: then and now (film)
25-: withnail and i (film)
26: fauré's piano quintet (music)
26: m (film)
26-27: the films of mark morrisroe (film)
27: gateways music festival orchestra (music)
27-: aida (music)
28: enya kalia creations, rachel:dancers, sacha vega (dance)
28: the met orchestra chamber ensemble (music)
29: assembled visions: peggy ahwesh, joseph cornell, and carolee schneemann (art, film)
29: dorchel haqq: closed mouths don’t get fed (performance)
29: gabriella reyes, soprano; andrés sarre, piano (music)
29: lucine! or "birdshit: a human concerto with string & void" (music)
29-: goddess (theater)
29-: salome (music)
29-: trisha brown dance company (dance)
30: liederabend (music)
30: martha wainwright (music)
30: sarah hennies & tristan kasten-krause: the quiet sun lp release (music)
30-: fay victor (music)
30-: puppetopia 2025 (theater)
30-: the united states vs. ulysses (theater)
30-: wonderful town (theater)