Compiled by Scott Stiffler
Scott@thevillager.com” target=_blank>Scott@thevillager.com
MUSIC
Neil Gaiman
The Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra featuring Neil Gaiman
We’re letting you know now so you can get in line in plenty of time to see science fiction and fantasy cult figure/legend Neil Gaiman — while soaking up some equally credible culture of a different kind. Arts World Financial Center — currently in its 22nd season of presenting free visual and performing arts — presents the Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra featuring Gaiman. The “Coraline” author will almost certainly give new life to Sergei Prokofiev’s children’s classic. Also featured: acclaimed Broadway tenor Jason Danieley in “And Bold to Fall Withal – Henry Hudson in the New World” — a world premiere composition by Knickerbocker founder and conductor Gary S. Fagin. FREE. 7:00 p.m. on Sat., Jan. 16 at World Financial Center Winter Garden (220 Vesey Street). For information, call 212-945-0505. Visit www.artsworldfinancialcenter.com.
THEATER
Photo by Photo credit goes to Cedar.
The insanely talented Hanna Cheek, of “The Pumpkin Pie Show”
HORSE TRADE ENCORES
Some sad artists make a career out of living off the good will generated from their earlier, more successful works. Others with a seemingly endless capacity to create simply forge ahead and never look back. The prolific folks at Horse Trade Theater Group have found a respectable middle ground which just might be reason enough to venture out into the January chill. “Encores” brings back full performances of critically acclaimed shows from the fall. “Hostage Song” is an indie rock musical in which two hostages take refuge in music, memory and each other. “The Pumpkin Pie Show: Commencement” explores the bond formed between three women in the wake of a high school massacre. Radiotheatre’s “Frankenstein” adapts Mary Shelley’s classic for the stage with an original orchestral score and a plethora of sound effects! “Hostage Song” plays Jan. 6 and 11 at 7 p.m. and Jan. 9, 13 at 8 p.m.; “The Pumpkin Pie Show: Commencement” plays Jan 7, 8 at 9 p.m. and Jan. 12 at 7 p.m.; “Frankenstein” plays Jan 7, 8, 10 at 7 p.m. and Jan. 9 at 6 p.m.; all shows are at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th St. btw. 2nd Ave and Bowery). For Tickets ($18), visit www.horseTRADE.info or call 212-868-4444.
Photo by Carol Rosegg
James McMenamin as George and Jennifer Grace as
OUR TOWN
“Our Town” — the Thornton Wilder classic that’s been given nine new lives courtesy of a long-running NYC production by David Cromer, just got granted a tenth. Set to close in February, it’s been extended through (at least) March 14. If you’ve seen the play mentioned on virtually every major Top 10 list from 2009 but have yet to see it, well; “walk, don’t run” seems a bit cliché — but this is one of those rare cases where it seems appropriate. Why are you still reading this? Go buy a ticket! For tickets ($49.50 and $69; $20 for students day of at the box office), call 212-868.4444 or visit www.smarttix.com. At the Barrow Street Theatre (27 Barrow Street at 7th Avenue South).
DANCE
Photo by Julieta Cervantes
“Battle” from Battleworks Dance Company (Jan. 9)
DANCE GOTHAM
Gotham Arts Exchange presents “Dance Gotham” — the annual dance festival dedicated to expanding the boundaries of aesthetics and artistry. From post-modern athleticism to seasoned theatricality, the featured works are sophisticated, witty, wonderfully intelligent and revealing. Even the pickiest of dance patrons will likely be pleased, given that 30 dance companies will be performing over the course of three nights. Jan. 8, 9 and 10; at the Jack H. Skirball Center for the Performing Arts (566 LaGuardia Place, at Washington Square South). For tickets ($10), call 212-352-3101 or 866-811-4111.
ART
Photo courtesy of Electronic Music Foundation
Philips Pavilion from the Brussels 1958 World’s Fair
POèME éLECTRONIQUE
“Poème Électronique” is a virtual reality rendering of the historic multimedia spectacle created by Iannis Xenakis, Edgard Varèse and Le Corbusier for the Philips Pavilion at the Brussels 1958 World’s Fair. This pioneering use of architecture, film, light and music to create a totally immersive experience impressed back then, and promises to dazzle today — when it’s recreated via algorithmic design/computations and presented to through multiple screens and surround sound. This show is the first of a series of live performances (“Iannis Xenakis in New York”) organized around the Drawing Center’s exhibition which opens on Jan. 14 (“Iannis Xenakis: Composer, Architect, Visionary”) — and showcases the work of this revolutionary composer/architect. $1 per person. Jan. 15 at Judson Church (55 Washington Square South). The 15-minute long show will start every 30 minutes on the half hour, beginning at 7:30 p.m. with the last show at 9:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.emfproductions.org or call 888-749-9998. For the full schedule of Iannis Xenakis performances in New York City, visit www.emfproductions.org.
