a wild project benefit night
Honoring & Celebrating Dael Orlandermsith’s 60th birthday!
with Special Guest Hosts Chi Chi Valenti & Paul Alexander
November 23, 2019
Doors 6:30pm
Performance 7:00PM
Tickets: $60
includes food and drinks!
Proceeds benefit the wild project’s mission to supporting the diverse independent theatre, film, music, dance, visual arts and spoken-word artists of NYC. A space for artists in the East Village/LES to create, experiment and call their home.
Chi Chi Valenti has spent four decades shaping and chronicling New York City’s nightclub demi-monde, from The Mudd Club through her own clubs Jackie 60 and MOTHER and beyond. www.mothernyc.com/empress/
Paul Alexander is most notably known for the 1990’s performance art-dance party Jackie 60 where he honed his vocal emcee and performance skills. Following many solo underground dance singles he gained international success with the dance pop trio The Ones, known for their #1 Dance/#7 Pop hit Flawless.
with performances by:
Set 1:
Elena Alexander is a poet and writer. In 2019, her work can be found in The Body in Language: An Anthology, and The Brooklyn Rail. She received Honorable Mention, The
O. Henry Awards Prize Stories, Best of 1997, and her poem, “How the Lurking” was made into a public poster.
Eszter Balint with David Nagler
Eszter Balint is a singer-songwriter with three critically acclaimed solo albums.
Eszter grew up as an acting member of the avant-garde theater company Squat Theatre, and she has appeared in starring and featured roles in films by Jim Jarmusch, Woody Allen, Steve Buscemi, alongside David Bowie, and in Louis CK’s FX TV show Louie.
Eszter is currently at work on a new show with music co-written with Stew.
John Carlin (actor, songwriter, activist) Recent work: Turn Me Loose (with Joe Morton – NYC, LA, DC). America Is Hard To See (NYC, Edinburgh Fringe), Oklahoma! (Bard Summerscape). A former RCA Recording artist, John is also a proud member of Reverend Billy & The Stop Shopping Choir, with whom he’s traveled to Ferguson, MO., Standing Rock, ND., and toured with Neil Young and Pussy Riot!
Cynthia Carr is the author, most recently, of Fire in the Belly: The Life and Times of David Wojnarowicz. She was an arts writer for The Village Voice from 1984 until 2003
Michael Laurence is the playwright/performer of Hamlet in Bed (Rattlestick and Edinburgh) and Krapp, 39 (Drama Desk nomination, NYC/London/Dublin). Broadway and Off-Bway credits include Talk Radio, Appropriate, Opus, The Few and Dael Orlandersmith’s Horsedreams. Recurring TV: Shades of Blue, Damages, Heartshe Holler, Blacklist. www.michaellaurence.net
Heather Litteer is an actress playwright and poet. She is La MaMa resident actor , Member of Big Art Group and The Jackie Factory. Toured her one woman show Lemonade from NYC to London and back. A Fox Fellow and Howl! Arts Fellowship recipient.”She’s Real, She’s Raw, She’s Sassy”
Romy Nordlinger, Playwright/Actor : Some credits as writer/performer include “PLACES” solo play based on the life of Alla Nazimova @Kennedy Center, Dixon Place, 59E59 & “Lipshtick” @ Dixon Place. Recent TV (Actor) includes FBI & Bull (CBS) Law & Order (NBC). www.romynordlinger.com & www.placestheplay.com
Set 2:
Drunell Gross
Bob Holman
Patricia Spears Jones is a poet and writer whose most recent collection A LUCENT FIRE: New and Selected Poems was a finalist for the Paterson Poetry Prize and she is the 2017 Jackson Poetry Prize winner and author of 9 other poetry publications and editor of two anthologies. Two musical theater works were commissioned and produced by Mabou Mines. Originally from Arkansas, she lives in Brooklyn.
Honor Molloy, playwright and the author of the novel Smarty Girl – Dublin Savage. A former Radcliffe Institute Fellow, she is the recipient of three NYFA Fellowships
Dael Orlandersmith Pulitzer Finalist for her play Yellowman and now currently doing her acclaimed play UNTIL THE FLOOD which premiered at Rattlestick in 2017 and has been done at Goodman /ACT Seattle/ Portland Censtertage and this past Summer at Galway Arts Festival, Edinburgh and at the Arcola Theatre in London and in 2020 will be at the Kirk Douglas Theatre- part of central theatre group in LA, The Arena in DC and Denver Arts Center.
Bina Sharif is an award winning playwright/actor/director and a visual artist. She was nominated for Joseph Jefferson award for best supporting actress at Goodman theater in Chicago. She is the author of 33 produced plays in USA and Abroad.
Edwin Torres is the author of ten books of poetry, including “Xoeteox: the infinite word object,” “Ameriscopia,” and editor of “The Body In Language: An Anthology” published by Counterpath Press. Edwin began his performing life in the East Village and is thrilled to walk these charged streets once again!
Set 3:
David Cale and Matthew Dean Marsh’s first collaboration We’re Only Alive for A Short Amount of Time premiered on the main stage of the Goodman Theatre, Chicago and opened in NYC this past summer at The Public Theater. For We’re Only Alive for A Short Amount of Time Cale and Marsh recently received the 2019 Joseph Jefferson Award for New Work – Musical.
Robbie McCauley
Rome Neal Is the Artistic Theatre Director of the Nuyorican Poets Café theatre program. Mr. Neal received an Obie Grant with Café founder Miguel Algarin for excellence in theatre. Mr. Neal also received two Audelcos for his acting: one for Lead Actor in Gabrielle N. Lane’s “SIGNS,” and one for Solo Performance in his critically acclaimed “MONK,” by Laurence Holder. Neal also received the National Black Theatre Festival’s coveted Lloyd Richards Director’s Award.
Nicky Paraiso is an actor, singer, musician, writer, solo performance artist. He has been a fixture of the NY downtown performance scene for the last four decades. He is Director of Programming for The Club at La MaMa, and Curator for the annual La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival. Nicky’s most recent awards include: 2018 TCG Fox Fellowship for Actors and 2019 (NY Innovative Theatre) Ellen Stewart Award for Stewardship. Nicky’s most recent full-length performance, now my hand is ready for my heart: intimate histories, directed by John Jesurun, was presented at La MaMa in March 2019.
Carl Handcock Rux
Felice Rosser and Nao Hakamada (Faith NYC) of the pioneering soul/reggae/rock group Faith NYC will play intimate acoustic versions of their songs.
Tammy Faye Starlite
Anna Steegmann
Anna S. is a staff writer for The New York City Jazz Record. She teaches writing at the City College of New York.
Plus DJs Mrs. Robinson!!
DJs Mrs. Robinson are Amber Martin and Angela Di Carlo. Aside from being celebrated performing artists, singers and comedians, these two have been spinning records all over the city at such venues as The Ace Hotel, Balthazar, Schillers, Club Cumming, as well as private parties and events for MAC Cosmetics, Hedwig & the Angry Inch on Broadway and The Tony Awards. They can currently be found alongside John Cameron Mitchell DJing the Mattachine Party monthly at Julius Bar
A special thank you to wild project’s advisory board members David Cale, Alan Cumming and Dael Orlandersmith for their continued support of the wild project.