Williamsburg is constantly changing, as evidenced by the recent closings of The Abbey and Rosemary’s Greenpoint Tavern. But some can remember a time before there was a Chase and a Sephora on Bedford Avenue. They even have photographs from back then.
About Cecilia Nowell
Posts by Cecilia Nowell:
What to Watch at the African American Women in Cinema Film Festival
Marsai Martin and Issa Rae in Little.
If you celebrated Black History Month in February and Women’s History Month in March, it seems only appropriate to wrap up the season by attending the 21st annual African American Women in Cinema Film Festival this weekend.
Art This Week: A Model’s Drawings and Feminist Ceramics
(image via Abxy Gallery)
Conversation Derelict
Opening Friday, March 29 at Abxy Gallery, 7 pm. On view through May 15.
If you’re a fashion buff, you might know Corey Wash from when she walked the Gypsy Sport runway last month while pregnant, or perhaps you’re one of over 21,000 people who follow her on Instagram. But Wash is also a prolific visual artist; Conversation Derelict, her latest solo show, opens at ABXY Gallery on the Lower East Side this Friday. Wash prefers to work in a casual, doodle-esque style, layering paint on top of marker and oil pastel to create linework-driven pieces that resemble moments from a contemporary comic. More →
New Yorkers Mark Triangle Shirtwaist Anniversary and Push For Permanent Memorial
(Photos: Cecilia Nowell)
Eight chalk silhouettes cover the sidewalk at the corner of Greene Street and Washington Place. Earlier today, union members, activists, city officials and others gathered outside the landmarked site of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory to honor the 108th anniversary of the historic blaze that revealed abhorrent working conditions but ultimately strengthened the labor movement.
Performance Picks: Cannabis Comedy, Grimm Burlesque Tales, and More
THURSDAY
(image via Brown Privilege Comedy / Facebook)Brown Privilege Comedy
Thursday, March 21 at Friends and Lovers, 8:30 pm: FREE (donation suggested)
The 39th edition of Saurin Choksi and DJ Sareen’s Brown Privilege Comedy returns to Crown Heights bar Friends and Lovers tonight. As always, the show spotlights some of the best comedians of color the city has to offer, with nary a token white person to be found. This time, they’re bringing along Gibran Saleem, Aminah Imani, Ayanna Dookie, Kevin Iso, and Alex English. After all the jokes have concluded, stick around—DJ Sareen takes the stage and the show becomes a dance party. More →
Tags: arlo, Beyond, burlesque, Cloud City, comedy, drag, friends and lovers, Nomad, queer, soho, soho playhouse, Williamsburg
Art This Week: Lines, Cut Paper, and Low-Tech Glitches
thecatamites, Magic Wand, 2016, Video game, Dimensions variable (still) (image via apexart)Dire Jank
Opening Wednesday, March 20 at apexart, 6 pm to 8 pm. On view through May 19.
It’s usually considered good and impressive for something digitally created to look flawless, almost like it wasn’t created by humans to begin with. Usually this process is time-consuming; it almost always involves some sort of expensive software, or equipment, or graduate degrees. Dire Jank, an exhibition of games, videos, and digital art curated by Porpentine Charity Heartscape, celebrates pretty much everything that isn’t that. Pixelated images, old Photo Booth filters, outdated Flash games, glitches, and more are put on a pedestal here, valued more than the glossy, hyper-realistic creations that modern technology can create. More →
Performance Picks: The TEAM, Drippy Dollars, Butch Dionysus
THURSDAY
(photo: Eoin Carey, via the TEAM / Facebook)Anything That Gives Off Light
Now through March 30 at Joe’s Pub, 7 pm (some dates at 9:30 pm): $35
The latest endeavor from theater collective The TEAM—working in collaboration with the National Theater of Scotland and music duo The Bengsons—is staged not in a traditional theater space but the cabaret coziness of Joe’s Pub, inside the Public Theater. Of course, that’s purposeful, considering the show is partially set in a London pub. Amongst pints and whiskeys, two Scottish men and an American woman cross paths and begin a journey that takes them throughout Scotland, America, and the inner workings of the mind, all set to a Scottish-influenced folk-punk score.
FRIDAY
(image via Wet Cash NYC / Facebook)Wet Cash
Friday, March 15 at GG’s Social Trade and Treasure Club, 7:30 pm: $10 suggested donation
Yes, this comedy show to benefit Make the Road NY is named Wet Cash, but it’s probably not the greatest idea to stroll up to the venue (a Bushwick thrift store) and attempt to pay your suggested donation using a bunch of dollars that were once floating in a bucket of water. However, you might end your night with some—the team behind the show will be giving out drippy dollars (which could be a good band name) to a lucky(?) audience member. That’s not the only liquid present, however, there will also be free beer from Braven, and of course, comedy by Dylan Adler, Rachel McCartney, Ben Katzner, David Drake, and host Noah Rocklin.
SATURDAY
(photo: Sandy Honig)Cream Sauce
Saturday, March 16 at The Windjammer, 8 pm:
What is there to say about cream sauce? It is indulgent and sometimes too filling, but it is also good. Those three descriptors could very well also characterize comedian Edy Modica’s play of the same name, coming to Ridgewood’s The Windjammer this Saturday. Fittingly, Modica will be presenting absurd anecdotes of all sorts inspired by the Italian side of her family, with help from fellow performers Brian Fiddyment, Eliza Kimberley, Francesca d’Uva, Rachel Kaly, Chase Montavon, and opener Steve Girard. Expect tales of pasta, funerals, cannoli, and of course, plenty of sauciness.
SUNDAY
Leigh Silverman and Madeleine George (image via NYTW / Facebook)Hurricane Diane
Now through March 24 at New York Theater Workshop, various times: $69 ($25 same-day rush tickets available for young people, artists, and East Village and Lower East Side residents)
The hedonistic, hard-partying Greek god Dionysus has shown up in countless pieces of culture over the years, from the old classics to the name of a record label. Currently, you can find the wine-soaked deity in Madeleine George’s play Hurricane Diane, directed by Leigh Silverman. Rather than a bearded being clutching the traditional grapes and a drinking horn, George’s Dionysus takes the form of Diane, a butch lesbian gardener with a penchant for seducing housewives. Diane is played by actor Becca Blackwell, who describes themself as “someone living both genders,” and according to mythology, it’s likely that the actual Dionysus did too.
Party Like It’s 1398 at These Persian New Year Celebrations
(Photo via Facebook)
The spring festival season has officially begun with carnival and mardi gras celebrations around the world. Fortunately, New Yorkers won’t have to wait until Easter or Holi to welcome the warmer weather; the Persian New Year is just around the corner. This year, Nowruz falls on March 21, but festivities run from March 16 through 25. Celebrate the Vernal Equinox and welcome in 1398 (on the Persian calendar) at one of these parties.
Satisfying Shapes, A Mother-Daughter Show, And More Art This Week
(image via Uprise Art)
Quiet as a Space
Opening reception Thursday, March 14 at 54 Eldridge Street, 6 pm to 8 pm. On view through April 1.
One type of trendy online content today can be found under the label “oddly satisfying.” Paint cutting videos, hands poking indents in spheres of colorful slime, objects fitting perfectly into one another, and so on. Imagery like that can be calming to observe, even if you don’t know exactly why. The work of artist Adrian Kay Wong, an LA dweller bringing his work to the Lower East Side beginning Thursday, has a similar feel to it. Smooth diagonal slashes, even squares, symmetrical curves, and more calming geometry abounds in Wong’s paintings, which are graced with bold colors and landscapes populated with desks, lamps, couches, and flowers. They’re simple, they’re impressive, and they’re definitely satisfying. More →
