AWoW – Artists Without Walls

TALENT GALORE at AWoW's SHOWCASE at THE CELL THEATRE, TUESDAY 4/28

“This is a note of thanks to Artists Without Walls for supporting my efforts through pictures and words these past months. I’ve been working as an actor for at least twenty five years now and I’ve never before been involved in anything quite like this. AWoW is a unique blessing. So happy to be a member.” Jack O’Connell, actor, New York

Here’s the lineup for AWoW’s April Showcase:

Vincent Cross, who first performed with AWoW in its show “Rise Up Singing: Women in the Labor Movment,” will be performing at his first Showcase. Vincent will be drawing from the purist of mountains springs to present original urban Americana stories. Said, Vincent, “These will be performed in the high lonesome sound on guitar/banjo.”

Connie Roberts, a County Offaly native, emigrated from Ireland to the U.S. in 1983. She has won many awards for her poetry including the Patrick Kavanagh and the Listowel Writers’ Week awards. She will be reading from her just released debut volume, Little Witness, a collection of poetry inspired by her experiences growing up in an industrial school (orphanage) in Ireland.

Here’s what Jack Silbert, DJWriter at satin wound.com said about singer/songwriter Terry McCarthy. “Terry really turns on the charm on his album, The Charm, with a warm strum and even warmer vocals throughout. With tremendous backing musicians, the record presents a wide variety of sounds, never falling into a folky funk….but the secret weapon is McCarthy’s sharp, melodic songwriting, on Beatlesque tracks such as “Loneliest Boy” and the should-be-a-hit “Just Today.” Terry will be joined by Andy Sandel , Gerry Griffen and Tom Monaghan.

Richard Stillman and guitarist Flip Peters will be performing numbers from Richard’s show,”The Spirit of Vaudeville,” including a tap dancing Charleston played on tenor banjo, a short story that finishes with Richard tap dancing while playing the harmonica & bones while juggling and a novelty ukulele routine. “The Spirit of Vaudeville” won a Best Concert Award at the 2014 United Solo Theater Festival.

Toby Tobias was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa. Toby has immersed himself in all genres of American Music of the last fifty years. His interest in African Rhythms & World Music, coupled with his keen ear for highly intuitive arrangements, has been the hallmark of his writing and performance styles, and he has garnered a strong following of listeners on Long Island and beyond. He will be performing a song called ‘Madiba’, dedicated to the life of Nelson Mandela.

Shu Nakamura, a Japan born – Brooklyn based musician, guitar player, multi-instrument player, composer, singer-song-writer, music producer. Shu moved to NY in 1999, has been a NY music scene layer. He just returned from his 2015 Japan tour with his rock band called “the Ninja Orchestra”. Shu will be performing his original material, as well as teaming up with Niamh Hyland for a tune or two.

The bar opens at 6:45, the show begins around 7:15. Hope to see you at The Cell Theatre, located at 338 W23rd St.

VERA HOAR and MITCH TRAPHAGEN'S PHOTOS from AWoW'S HOLIDAY SHOWCASE at THE CELL THEATRE

Vera Hoar and Mitch Traphagen took some wonderful photos of the Tuesday night Artists Without Walls’ Showcase at The Cell Theatre. The first grouping were taken by Vera and the second by Mitch. The names appear below each photo.

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Joanne Cunningham, Tom Myles, Connie Roberts, Ron Vazzano, Joanna Migdal — **Joanne Cunningham, Tom Myles, Connie Roberts, Ron Vazzano, and Joanna Migdal**

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**Dan Yurkofsky, Terry McCarthy and Noah Hoffeld**

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Nicole Wilson, Yevgeniy Skroznikov, Grainne Duddy, Maureen Farrell, Maire Clements — **Nicole Wilson, Holt McCallany, Grainne Duddy, Maureen Farrell, Maire Clements**

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The following photos were taken by Mitch Traphagen

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**Cara De Silva, Kevin Murphy, Vera Hoar, Michele Traphagen and Joanne Cunningham**

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THIS WEEK'S ARTISTS WITHOUT WALLS' EVENTS

From "Breathing of an Ancestor's Space and Time" — **From “Breathing of an Ancestor’s Space and Time”**

Charles R. Hale will be presenting “Breathing from an Ancestor’s Space and Time,” a series of short films that combine family stories and historical events, including his latest film, which tells the story of his family’s sixteen year old neighbor who was sentenced to die in the electric chair. Lehman College, The Studio Theater, 250 Bedford Blvd, West. Bronx, NY. Thursday, 11/6, 12:30-2.

Serena Jost will be performing at Rockwood Music Hall, 185 Orchard Street, on Nov 6th at 8 pm. Get your tickets asap, just $10 (less than your lunch) and help her pack the joint. For ticket info click here

Niamh Hyland and "Lily Sparks" — **Niamh Hyland and “Lily Sparks”**

Niamh Hyland’s band Lily Sparks will be doing a very special live show for the New York, International Pop Overthrow festival at Bar Matchless (557 Manhattan Ave, Brooklyn), thisThursday Nov 6th, 9:15pm. Have a listen to some tunes www.lilysparks.com

You’re invited into Deni Bonet neighbor’s living room in Uptown NYC for her second International online streaming concert, coming to you LIVE over the Internet via Concert Window. Deni had such a great response last month that she’s doing it again THIS THURSDAY at 9:30 PM! Tune in to to hear brand new tunes from her upcoming instrumental CD, as well as a few old favorites. She might even take requests. Robin Pahlman will be joining her on guitar & it’s just like you’re there in the room with them! Sign up now and get an online reminder when it’s close to showtime. PAY WHAT YOU WANT. You can even wear your pajamas! For details click here.

Irish Arts Center "PoetryFest" — **Irish Arts Center “PoetryFest”**

And beginning next weekend, November 7-9 there’s this special event: In association with Glucksman Ireland House Nyu – and Poetry Ireland, the Irish Arts Center’s sixth annual PoetryFest, which celebrates Ireland and America’s great literary connection by showcasing an unparalleled array of much-published and award-winning poets. The event takes place next weekend, November 7-9th.   The only New York festival of its kind, PoetryFest immerses participants in an intimate and creative atmosphere filled with readings, storytelling, book signings, conversations, and more.

Jenai Huff and Eugene Ruffolo in concert, Friday, November 7 at 7:30pm. Doors open at 6:30pm. It is in Jersey City and only 5 minutes walk away from the PATH train. It is located in the prestigious Paulus Hook area of Jersey City. (Contact Jenai Huff at jenaihuff@hotmail.com or spiralsoundconcert@gmail.com for information or reservations. ) Eugene and Jenai will be performing two sets and introducing new songs there. There will be plenty of delicious treats and wine to accompany the harmonies, the stories and the laughter. Eugene is a highly acclaimed singer/songwriter and session singer from NYC and Jenai who hails from CA, but is now a NYC resident, is an AWOW favorite. There is a lot of information on the Facebook event about the each of them or on the host’s website

Connie Roberts invites all to The 39th Annual National Conference of the American Irish Teachers Association’s Well Versed: A Celebration of Poetry from Ireland and America. With poets Terence Winch, Sean Nevin, and Connie Roberts, musicians Jerry O’Sullivan and Niamh Hyland, and arts journalist Earle Hitchner. 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Saturday, November 8, 2014 Liederkranz, 6 East 87th Street (between Madison Avenue and Fifth Avenue) Special guests include (visiting from Ireland) the Minister for the Diaspora, Jimmy Deenihan, NY Consul General, Barbara Jones and Deputy Consul General, Anna McGillicuddy.

And in the following week, AWoW is happy to announce its first evening at Rockwood Music Hall, Wed, 11/12, 7pm. We’ve assembled a great array of talent: Deni Bonet, Warren Malone, Aisha Badru, Jack O’Connell, Tara O’Grady and Sasha Papernik. Please come out and support these terrific artists. Our goal is to sell out the room and recognize our very talented members. Tickets are $20 but $15 for AWoW members using the code…awwmember. Click here for tickets

JACK O'CONNELL in the DEREK JETER "RE2PECT" COMMERCIAL

Who’s the doorman in the Jordan/Derek Jeter “Re2pect” commercial? None other than friend and Artists Without Walls’ member Jack O’Connell.

BRILLIANT EVENING OF PERFORMANCES at AWoW's SHOWCASE at THE CELL 6/24/14

“How many more amazing things can I say about Artists Without Walls? It’s an amazing community and an incredible lineup of diverse artists. Thank you for the plug on my show and for the major hugs of support. I love these people.” Erin Layton

“Yes! Last night’s Artists Without Walls Showcase was exhilarating as was evidenced by the energy and smiles at The Cell . Thanks for putting together another evening of performances for the memory book.” Marty Plevel

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Honor Molloy began the evening by reading “What’s Taken,” an expressionistic segment that was dropped from her novel Smarty Girl – Dublin Savage. This piece features Noleen O’Feeney and her father trapped in the ruins of her childhood home. Afterwards, someone asked Honor why it was taken out of the book. “Because it was far too abstract for the audience I wanted…but not too abstract for the gang at AWoW.”

: Honor Molloy

The silvery voice of Jenai Huff combined with the critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Eugene Ruffolo in a performance of two original tunes written by Jenai and one by Eugene. Eugene followed with a song written in Italian, which will be part of his next CD scheduled to be released in the fall. His beautiful timbre and romantic language delighted the audience.

From the moment Yvonne Cassidy began to read from her latest novel How Many Letters Are in Goodbye? she held the audience spellbound. Cassidy read the first letter from the novel title, a letter from seventeen-year old Rhea Farrell to her mother, Allison who died when Rhea was only three. Writing from Penn Station, Rhea begins to share with her mother her homeless experience but quickly lapses into questions she has always had, questions she wants her mother to answer. Judging by the book sales at the intermission, the audience members too, were keen to find out the answers to these questions! For anyone who didn’t get their hands on a copy, click here.

A delightful new presence on the music scene in New York has arrived from the heart of Europe, the city of Prague. Martina Fiserova’s humor and energy shone through her music and lit up the room. Her soulful authentic approach delivered an emotional urgency; even a melancholic story felt uplifting. The exciting chord work she does sets her apart from being “just another girl with a guitar.” We need more of these European invasions.

: Martina Fiserova

Dan Yurkofsky premiered two song compositions from his new CD, Hoverhill. The songs, titled “The Time Zone” and “Walking” featured Mr. Yurkofsky’s melodic singing voice and contemplative lyrics. He was deftly accompanied by two fine musicians, Matt Turk on acoustic guitar and Noah Hoffeld on cello . To learn more about Hoverhill, and to hear listening examples from the CD you can click here.

First time performer, Kathleen Bennett Bastis’, opened the second half of the show with an hilarious and “spot on” perspective of internet dating. Kathleen claimed that this was the first time she had been on stage since she performed in Scheherazade in fifth grade; hard to believe given her poise, charm and insouciance. “As always, a terrific evening of great entertainment and talent,” Kathleen said after the show.

Ashley Bell was next and she dazzled all with a stirring rendition of the opera staple, “O Mio Babbino Caro.” She followed up the showstopper with an original composition, which showcased her lower register and displayed another level of her vocal instrument.

: Ashley Bell

Digital poet and recent NYU grad, Allison Fichtelberg dazzled the audience with a spellbinding performance of her epic poem “Scroll.” I am honored to have performed for such a receptive audience and to share the space with such talented artists. That was the first performance I’ve done where I summoned the appropriate chutzpah to make the concluding sword trick work.” (You’ll have to see her perform live to understand that comment.) An absolutely mesmerizing performance.

But Allison wasn’t done for the night. Lyndon Achee, steel drummer and percussionist began with a piece dedicated to his sister Beatrice who died of breast cancer. Lyndon than circulated a bag of instruments—tambourines, maracas, drumsticks and bells–through the audience who accompanied Lyndon in an upbeat tune, which ended with Allison coming back on stage and dancing to the sweet sounds of a steel drum. A wonderful, highly spirited, ending to a great night.

The next Artists Without Walls’ Showcase at The Cell will be on July 22nd at The Cell Theatre, 338 W 23rd St., NYC. For more info on Artists Without Walls write to info@artistswithoutwalls.com

Photos by Mitch Traphagen.

"ON THE TOWN" with ARTISTS WITHOUT WALLS' FRIENDS and MEMBERS: WEEK of 3/23/2014

The Antoinette Montague Quartet with Bobby Sanabria, drums and vocals, Danny Mixon, piano and Lisle Atkinson bass, are appearing today, Sunday, March 23, 2014 at 11am and 1pm at Dorthaan’s Place – Sunday Brunch. New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street, Newark, NJ 07102 973-642-8989Purchase Tickets at www.njpac.org UPDATE: As of Sunday, 8:20am, there are 1o seats remaining for the 11am show and the 1pm show is sold out.

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Artists Without Walls Showcase at The Cell Theatre, 338 W 23rd St., NYC, Wednesday, March 26, 7pm.

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Nadia P Mansoor stars in Burq Off!, an autobiographical one-woman show written and performed by Nadia beginning on March 27, 8pm for four nights, Wednesday through Saturday, at Walker Space, 46 Walker Space, NYC. Click here for tickets

Tara O’Grady, presented by Artists Without Walls, at Rockwood Music Hall, 196 Allen Street, NYC. March 28, 8pm. Doors open at 7:30. For tickets to Tara at Rockwood: event http://www.ticketfly.com/event/478055

THE UCD CHORAL SCHOLARS with SPECIAL GUEST PETER QUINN: SATURDAY MARCH 15

This Saturday, March 15th, 7:30pm, Artists Without Walls will be presenting the University College Dublin Choral Scholars in an event called Sailing Away: Songs of Farewell. The evening will be hosted by Niamh Hyland, a former soloist with the UCD Choral Scholars. “It is an exciting program filled with songs of love, loss, parting, immigration and the sea,” Niamh said of the event, which will take place at the historic St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 346 West 20th St., New York City.

Listen to the Scholars rehearse the “Skye Boat Song.”

St Peter's Episcopal Church — **St Peter’s Episcopal Church**

UCD Choral Scholars is Ireland’s leading collegiate choral ensemble and is embarking on its first tour of the United States. Eighteen high-achieving, gifted students are awarded a scholarship each September by a panel of professional musicians following a competitive selection process. UCD’s repertoire ranges from popular music to the medieval to the contemporary. Their Parting Glass EP quickly moved to #2 on the charts in the Irish World Music category. Parting Glass is a YouTube hit as well, garnering well over 200,000 views.

Listen to the Scholars hit song, “Parting Glass“

We are also pleased to announce that our special guest and Artist Without Walls’ member, historian/author Peter Quinn, will share stories of his family’s immigrant experience. “Peter Quinn is a poet and an historian and one of our finest storytellers,” said National Book Award winner Colum McCann.

Click here to purchase tickets. Tickets for the event are $20.

Net proceeds from the sale of tickets to this event will benefit the Artists Without Walls’ mission, which is to inspire, uplift and unite people and communities of diverse cultures through the pursuit of artistic achievement.

"DARRAH CARR DANCE" at HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY, TUESDAY, FEB 18, 2:15PM

Darrah Carr Dance sources from two genres, traditional Irish step and contemporary modern dance. Darrah pulls in two directions, one toward tradition and another toward innovation, and seeks to create dance in the space between. Dance in Ireland traditionally happened at a crossroads, which is exactly what Darrah has planned for Artists Without Walls’ Showcase at Hofstra University. It’s called, “Dingle Meets Diwali.”

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Darrah Carr, Artistic Director & Choreographer of Darrah Carr Dance, currently teaches at Hofstra University and is doctoral candidate, pursuing a PhD in Dance through Texas Woman’s University. She has been named one of the “Top 40 Under 40“ by The Irish Echo one of the “Top 100 Irish Americans of the Year“ by Irish America Magazine, and one of the “Most Influential Women of 2010“ by The Irish Voice.

Darrah has been active for over fifteen years in both the Irish and modern dance communities as a choreographer, dancer, educator, and writer. In addition to her work as the Artistic Director of Darrah Carr Dance, Darrah has collaborated independently with a number of esteemed artists. She served as the assistant choreographer to Seán Curran for the TONY award winning Broadway musical “James Joyce’s The Dead“ and has set original works on Trinity Irish Dance’s Junior Company, the Nassau Dance Theatre, and the Mise Eire Irish Dancers.

Darrah has had the privilege of performing with many renowned musicians including: Mick Moloney, Natalie MacMaster, Andy Cooney, and Arlo Guthrie & The Vanaver Caravan. Carr has performed on NBC’s “The Today Show,“ and New York 1. She can also be seen tapping away in “The Guru,“ a feature film starring Heather Graham. Carr’s own work is the subject of a New York University Master’s Documentary entitled “Reel Steps“ and she choreographed the film “Right Foot/Left Foot.“

Dancing with Darrah Carr Dance will be Brigid Gillis and Mary Beth Sheehan. Brigid Gillis is a native Long Islander, who started her formal dance training in competitive Irish dance and later explored her passion for modern dance at The College of Brockport SUNY, where she acquired her BFA. Brigid has performed in various professional venues in New York City with Zehnder Dance and Darrah Carr Dance.

Mary Kate Sheehan began her dancing career training in Irish step dancing, ballet, and jazz. She competed in Irish step dancing for over 15 years on the international level, placing in the top 10 in the World. She moved to New York City in 2010 to shift her focus to modern, contemporary, and ballet as a pre-professional trainee at the Joffrey School.

Join us at Hofstra University, Tuesday, February 18, 2:15pm in the Helene Fortunoff Theater located in Monroe Hall. This is a free event sponsored by Hofstra’s Irish Studies Program with a generous grant from the Hofstra Cultural Center.

REVIEW of "RISE UP SINGING: WOMEN IN THE LABOR MOVEMENT"

“Eloquent writing, beautiful voices, charismatic performers who connected with each other — it was an inspired evening.” Justine Blau, author of “Scattered: A Mostly True Memoir,” after attending “Rise Up Singing: Women in the Labor Movement” at Lehman College.

On Tuesday night, The City & Humanities Program, in conjunction with the CUNY Institute of Irish American Studies and the Department of African American Studies at Lehman College, presented writer/creator Charles R. Hale and a brilliant cast of Artists Without Walls’ members in “Rise Up Singing: Women in the Labor Movement” a multi-media event incorporating storytelling, film, photographs and music.

The evening began with Honor Finnegan’s rousing performance of Jack Hardy’s “Aint I A Woman,” a song borne of Sojourner Truth’s speech on gender inequalities. Actor Jack O’Connell followed with an introduction in which he quoted author John Steinbeck: “We learn a great deal about people by listening to their music. Listen to their songs, for into the songs go the anger, fears and frustrations, the hopes and aspirations.”

Throughout American history, activists have adapted the lyrics from spiritual songs and applied them to various causes. Singer Antoinette Montague and pianist Sharp Radway followed a short story, accompanied by photos, of the deadly 1911, New York City, Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, with an inspired rendition of “We Shall Not be Moved,” a American folk song whose lyrics date back to slave era. One-hundred-forty six women, mostly young immigrants, lost their lives at the Triangle factory fire.

A year after the Triangle fire, striking women mill workers in Lawrence, MA were surrounded by the threat of physical harm. They continually sang “Bread and Roses,” a poem written by James Oppenheim, put to music. Honor Finnegan and guitarist Vincent Cross gave rise to the spirit of that event with an intense performance of “Bread and Roses.”

Following the Civil War, racial prejudice kept African American women working in jobs such as cooks, maids and laundresses. Spoken word artist Koro Koroye presented a poem that she wrote, called “The Sickness of Freedom,” which poignantly describes the difficulties faced by African American women, many of whom were slaves and daughters of slaves, in the post Civil War era.

**Antoinette Montague and Sharp Radway**

Woody Guthrie was an American singer-songwriter whose musical legacy includes hundreds of songs about the experiences of the poor and oppressed. Woody’s song “1913 Massacre” is one of the most powerful interpretations of the Calumet, Michigan tragedy in which seventy-three people, mostly striking miners’ children, were trampled to death on a staircase during a Christmas Eve party. Vincent Cross evoked the spirit of Calumet and Woody with a stirring rendition of Woody’s tune.

Women have written a number of “workers” songs. One of them, Diana Jones, performed two songs she’s written, the heartbreakingly tender “Henry Russell’s Last Words,” in which she was beautifully accompanied by violinist Annette Homann, and “I Told the Man.” Each song tells the story of miners trapped hundreds of feet below ground, writing farewell notes to their families.

In the summer of 1968 six miners were trapped for 10 days in a cold, flooded mine in the Appalachian hills of West Virginia. Jeanne Richie wrote a song from a wife’s viewpoint called “West Virginia Mine Disaster.” Honor Finnegan sang and performed from the perspective of a trapped miner’s wife and Jack O’Connell played the trapped miner who describes the horror of the experience. The back and forth between Finnegan and O’Connell was exceptional and one of the evening’s many spectacular performances.

Addie Wyatt, who became the first African American woman to retain a high position in an international union, couldn’t do enough for people. She was born into poverty in Mississippi in 1924 and grew up in Chicago during the depression. When Addie was a child she played piano for her church choir…she even sang with the great gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. Addie’s life was marked by “getting over” indignities such as discrimination and prejudice. Koro’s poem “Praise,” speaks to the pain of Addie’s setbacks but ends triumphantly with the words “I prayed until I got over.” This was a perfect lead-in to final tune of the evening, “How I Got Over,” which was popularized by Mahalia Jackson. Singer Montague, pianist Radway, violinist Homann and Koro combined to create a unique and rousing ending to the show.

Photos by Cat Dwyer.

ARTISTS WITHOUT WALLS' MEMBERS and FRIENDS on the TOWN: WEEK of 11/3/13

Peter Quinn’s Dry Bones, a spellbinding story of an ill-fated OSS mission into the heart of the Eastern front and its consequences more than a decade after the war’s end, is now available. Dry Bones at Amazon

Diana Jones will appear in concert at Hill Country, 30 West 26th, St. NYC on Monday, November 4th, 8:30PM. Tickets $10 in advance, $15 at the door.

Matt Keating will be performing at The Bowery Electric 327 Bowery, NYC on Thursday, Nov 5th, 8:00pm. Tickets are $7. FULL BAND SHOW! Allen Devine-guitar, Jason Mercer-bass, G Wiz-drums

Don Creedon’s new short play The Ledge, starring Irish actor and boxing legend, John Duddy, is being produced by Aching Dogs Theatre Company as part of their annual New York Nuts series. Led by the power-house producer-director, Pamela Scott, and featuring no less than eight new short plays, this promises to be a great evening of original theater.

Hudson Guild Theatre, 441 W 26th St. (between 9th & 10th Ave), New York, NY 10001. November 7-10. Thurs-Sat @ 8:00pm, Sun @ 3:00pm
Tickets $18, Hotel Trades Council Members: Free Reservations recommended: 212-564-6485 (This show is sponsored by the New York Hotel Trades Council AFL-CIO and The Neighborhood Service Council).

Tara O’Grady and her swinging trio will be at Winnie’s Lounge in the Refinery Hotel Tuesday, November 5 from 6-9pm. 63 W. 38 Street.

Violinist Annette Homann will be performing in the musical White Christmas at the Westchester Broadway Theater, 1 Broadway Plaza, Elmsford, NY. The show opens Thursday, Nov 7 . Performances are Wednesdays at 1 pm, Thursdays 1 and 7 pm, Fridays 1 and 7 pm, Saturdays 8 pm, Sundays 1:30 pm and 7 pm

For tickets please visit: http://broadwaytheatre.com Tickets: $54-$80

There will be a festival screening of Subterranean Love by Robert Haufrecht featuring music by Marni Rice and Frank Perowsky at The Big Apple Film Festival in NYC at Tribeca Cinemas, Saturday November 9th at 2:15pm. For Information and tickets here’s the direct link:

http://bigapple.festivalgenius.com/2013/search/Subterranean+Love