Local Theatre, Performance Art and Storytelling Festivals: Fall 2019 Arts Roundup

WHAT: A local Queens theatre program putting on a show with this juicy plot line: “Brooke Wyeth returns home to Palm Springs, CA after a six-year absence to celebrate Christmas with her parents, her brother, and her aunt. Brooke announces that she is about to publish a memoir dredging up a pivotal and tragic event in the family history–a wound they don’t want reopened.” Very applicable with the holiday season coming up, no?

WHEN: Friday, October 11 – Sunday, October 13 AND Friday, October 18 – Sunday, October 20
*Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.,  Sunday at 2 p.m.*

WHERE: The Greek Cultural Center (2680 30th St B2, Astoria, NY 11102). Main entrance is down the steps on the right.

WHAT: The classic film Electra, directed by Michael Cacoyannis and starring Irene Papas, will open the second season of the Hellenic Film Society’s Always on Sunday film series showcasing Greek cinema every month at MoMI.

WHEN: Sunday, October 13 at 4 p.m.

WHERE: Museum of the Moving Image (36-01 35th Ave, Astoria, NY 11106)

COST: $15 for adults (use code SUNDAY20 for a 20 percent discount) or free with museum admission

WHAT: A new Noguchi exhibition: a performance-based collaboration with artist Brendan Fernandes (b. 1979), who works at the intersection of dance and the visual arts. Live dancers interact with Noguchi’s sculptures throughout the installation, Noguchi: Body-Space Devices.

WHEN: Saturdays, October 12, 19, and 26

WHERE: The Noguchi Museum (9-01 33rd Rd, Queens, NY 11106)

COST: Museum admission, $10 for adults

WHAT: MoMA PS1 and New York legend Susanne Bartsch are teaming up once again for the eighth annual Halloween Ball. Be transported to the infamous Valley of the Dolls, with outrageous live performances, tableaux vivants, DJs, and the most elaborate costumes in the city. This year’s spectacle is far from child’s play, with the VW Dome dolled up in a kaleidoscopic riot of anarchic sex dolls, candy-popping nurses, and beehived beauties.

WHEN: Friday, October 25, 8 p.m.

WHERE: MoMA PS1 (22-25 Jackson Ave, Long Island City, NY 11101)

COST: $25 (purchase here)

WHAT: Speak Up, Rise Up is a storytelling festival that aims to amplify the voices of communities and people we don’t get to hear from. Through live, personal storytelling, we combine both traditional and non-traditional storytellers on the big stage for curated events that share personal experiences. These shows highlight diversity in subject matter: immigration stories, stories of LGBTQ rights, stories of incarcerated people; and diversity of performers.

WHEN: Friday, October 18 at 7:30pm – Featuring THE STORY COLLIDER / Saturday, October 19 at 9:30pm – Featuring KEVIN ALLISON, SAM MORRISON, CAROLYN CASTIGLIA, VICKI EASTUS, CLAIRE BURNS and more / Saturday, October 19 at 11:00pm – Featuring BECCA BEBERAGGI, NELSON LUGO, JULIE ANN KORPI, CHRISTINE MAGEE, BRYAN BERLIN and more / Sunday, October 20 at 5:00pm – Featuring PAMELA BARSKY, SAMMIE JAMES, TRACEY STARIN, VARA COOPER, EDITH GONZALEZ and more / Sunday, October 20 at 7:00pm – Featuring APARNA NANCHERLA, ANNA ROISMAN, MICHELE CARLO, ADRIEN BEHN, RONNA LEVY and more

WHERE: Q.E.D. (27-16 23rd Avenue Astoria, NY)