National Sawdust

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Turn to the Left, Right: David Bowie Is Everywhere Right Now

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Suit used for the Ziggy Stardust tour. Courtesy of the David Bowie Archive (c) Victoria and Albert Museum.

David Bowie made no secret of his love for New York; he was known for frequenting the Strand and sneaking into movies at the Angelika, spending his final years enjoying all that the city has to offer. Several upcoming events around town will pay tribute to the late, great Starman, who died after a battle with cancer in January 2016. Whether it’s through a gallery exhibition of behind-the-scenes photos from Bowie’s prime, or a themed dance party in Brooklyn, there’s no shortage of ways to show your love and appreciation for Bowie this month. Hang on to yourself.

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Neutral Milk Cabaret, Butts, and More Performance Picks

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WEDNESDAY

(image via Salty Brine’s Living Record Collection / Facebook)

How Strange It Is
Wednesday, February 7 at Pangea, 7:30 pm: $20 advance, $25 doors

You may have first caught wind of this show back in 2016, when it happened at small East Village venue the Red Room. Whether you did or not, Salty Brine’s cabaret that uniquely puts Neutral Milk Hotel’s In The Aeroplane Over The Sea in a WWII setting has been enjoying an encore run at nearby spot Pangea for the past few weeks. The show is part of his longtime “Living Record Collection” project, in which he performs notable albums in their entirety with a conceptual twist. Past endeavors have included a German cabaret Abbey Road, a Prohibition-era She’s So Unusual, and a sentimental, seafaring rendition of Joni Mitchell’s Blue. Tonight will be the last night of this particular creation, so don’t be a “fool” (ha ha, get it, because that is one of the song titles) and get over there. More →

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Sasha Velour on 4/20, The Postmen Move to Bushwick, and More Performance Picks

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THURSDAY

(image via Sasha Velour / Facebook)

Sasha Velour’s Nightgowns
Thursday, April 20 at National Sawdust, 8:30 pm doors, 10 pm show: $18 advance, $22 doors

If you live in Brooklyn and are watching this season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, there’s probably a pretty good chance you’re only a degree or two of separation from some of the queens competing. One of these hometown heroes is Sasha Velour, who has continued to host the unique drag variety show Nightgowns on a regular basis. The show is typically at Bizarre Bushwick, but is making the move to dear old Williamsburg and its funky, classy music hall National Sawdust.

Given that they’re moving to a bigger, swankier space, the lineup is pretty big too. You can see shows after fabulous show from Francesca, Hystée Lauder, Kandy Muse, Olive d’Nightlife, Pearl Harbor, Severely Mame, Scarlet Envy, Untitled Queen, and Vigor Mortis. And hey, it’s 4/20, so there’ll probably be some sort of relevant performance themes going on. More →

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You Look Like You Need This: Free Drinks, PR, and More ‘in the Wake of This Horrible Election’

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National Sawdust (photo: Nicole Disser)

Last night I was at Gowanus venue Littlefield for Election Night Live, a performance event put on by political musical comedy group Political Subversities. The packed house was high-energy and receptive as they watched sharply-crafted musical numbers and sketches about voting, Michelle Obama, phone banking, lesbian feminists, and loving Hillary Clinton “more than I love my labia.” Interspersed throughout were stand-up sets by folks like Reductress associate editor Nicole Silverberg and comedian Aparna Nancherla, mind-reading magic by Vinny DePonto, and others. Pantsuits and political attire were plentiful, and spirits seemed high, if not a bit frantic and anxious.

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South By South Death is the Music-Festival Slasher Musical You Didn’t Know You Needed

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(image via National Sawdust)

(image via National Sawdust)

America is replete with music festivals (especially this summer, New York). There are so many it could make your head spin, causing you to momentarily lose sanity and fall into a killing spree.

That’s not exactly what happens in Jared Saltiel and Toby Singer‘s new musical South By South Death, but it’s close—the show is about a group of friends who head south to attend the infamous “Didgeridoo Music Festival,” conveniently set on a remote island. At the festival, pop star “Ciley Myrus” is headlining, but there’s something darker afoot. Someone in a Myrus mask begins killing everyone and documenting the carnage. Through selfies, of course. As more and more people die, there’s another disaster looming, this one of the natural variety: Hurricane Beyoncé.

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Inside Williamsburg’s Ambitious New-Music Venue, National Sawdust

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(Photo: Nicole Disser)

(Photo: Nicole Disser)

In many ways, Williamsburg’s newest venue couldn’t be more different from the (mostly) defunct DIY show spaces (bar/art-galleries and dingy old warehouses) that once lined the waterfront area. (Cameo, at least, is still here — for another month and a half, anyway). That’s because National Sawdust is a refined concert hall, a serious non-profit institution with powerful and moneyed supporters plus a leadership of established talent tapped directly from the music and art worlds.

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