TOWN HALL IN ASSOCIATION WITH POMEGRANATE ARTS PRESENTS
TUESDAY DECEMBER 12, 2017
24-DECADE HISTORY: HOLIDAY SAUCE
Conceived, written, performed and directed by
Music Director / Arranger
Costume Designer
MATT RAY MACHINE DAZZLE
Executive Producer Linda Brumbach
Associate Producer Alisa E. Regas
Co-Produced by Pomegranate Arts and Nature’s Darlings
Featuring
Taylor Mac Vocals
Matt Ray
Machine Dazzle
Piano, Vocals, Music Director
Performer, Costume Designer
with
Bernice “Boom Boom” Brooks Drums
Viva DeConcin i Guitar
Antoine Drye Trumpet
Greg Glassman Trumpet
J. Walter Hawkes Trombone
Marika Hughes Cello
Dana Lyn Violin
Gary Wang Bass and
James Tigger! Ferguson Special Guest
Glenn Marla Special Guest
Production
John Torres Lighting Designer
Jimin Brelsford Audio Monitor Engineer
Will Neal Front of House Audio Engineer
Jeremy Lydic Production Manager
Tess James Stage Manager
Rachel Katwan Company Manager
Willa Ellafair Folmar Assistant Company Manager
M.A. PAPPER, Artistic Director, Producer
LARRY ZUCKER, Executive Director
CINDY BYRAM, Publicity
BILL DEHLING, Technical Director
G INA T HOMPSON , Production Coordinator
LEIA-LEE DORAN, Designer
TAYLOR MAC ( Creator/Performer ) (who uses “judy”, lowercase sic, not as a name but as a gender pronoun) is a playwright, actor, singer-songwriter, performance artist, director and producer. “A critical darling of the New York scene” ( New York Magazine ), judy’s work has been performed at New York City’s Lincoln Center, The Public Theatre and Playwrights Horizons, London’s Hackney Empire, Los Angeles’s Royce Hall, Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater, Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre, the Sydney Opera House, Boston’s American Repertory Theatre, Stockholm’s Sodra Theatern, the Spoleto Festival, San Francisco’s Curran Theater and MOMA, and literally hundreds of other theaters, museums, music halls, opera houses, cabarets, and festivals around the globe. Judy is the author of seventeen full-length plays and performance pieces including A 24-Decade History of Popular Music (2017 Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama, Kennedy Prize in Drama), Hir (placed on the top ten theater of 2015 lists of The New York Times, New York Magazine, and Time Out NY; published by North Western University Press and in American Theater Magazine), The Lily’s Revenge (Obie Award), The Walk Across America for Mother Earth (named One of the Best Plays of 2011 by The New York Times), The Young Ladies Of (Chicago’s Jeff Award nomination for best solo), Red Tide Blooming (Ethyl Eichelberger Award), and The Be(a)st of Taylor Mac (Edinburgh Festival’s Herald Angel Award). Recent acting roles include Shen Teh/Shui Ta in The Foundry Theater’s production of Good Person of Szechwan at La Mama and the Public Theater (for which judy received Lucille Lortel and Drama League Award nominations), Puck/Egeus in the Classic Stage Company’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream , the title role in various productions of judy’s play, The Lily’s Revenge , and opposite Mandy Patinkin in the two-man vaudeville, The Last Two People On Earth , directed by Susan Stroman. Mac is currently creating a Dionysia Festival of four original plays (to be premiered separately and eventually performed in repertory), which deal in some way with our cultural polarization and that include: an all-ages play called, The Fre (commissioned by the Children’s Theater Company in Minneapolis, premiere date TBD); a kitchen-sink tragedy named, Hir (which received its world premiere at the Magic Theater in Feb 2014); a dance-theater play, The Bourgeois Oligarch , and a music theatre debate regarding small and large government, set inside an Ezra Pound poem, in the subconscious of Clarence Thomas, during a Supreme Court Hearing. Mac is the recipient of multiple awards including the Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History, Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, a Guggenheim Award, the Herb Alpert Award in Theater, the Peter Zeisler Memorial Award, the Helen Merrill Playwriting Award and an Obie. An alumnus of New Dramatists judy is currently a New York Theater Workshop Usual Suspect and the Resident playwright at the Here Arts Center. Taylor Mac is a 2017 MacArthur Fellow.
MATT RAY (Piano/Vocals/Music Director/Arranger) can be seen in some of New York’s best venues where he performs regularly either fronting his own band, or accompanying some of the city’s most dynamic performers. Recent work includes performing at Carnegie Hall with Kat Edmonson, touring with Reggae legend Burning Spear, music directing The Billie Holiday Project at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, string and piano arrangements for the fifth season finale of Showtime’s Nurse Jackie , performing at Lincoln Center with Joey Arias, shows in Paris and the UK with Mx. Justin Vivian Bond, and monthly gigs at Joe’s Pub with Bridget Everett and the Tender Moments. Other recent work includes performing at the Edinburgh Fringe with Lady Rizo, and touring the world with Taylor Mac’s show A 24-Decade History of Popular Music In addition, Matt music directed and played piano in Taylor Mac’s Obie Award-winning play The Lily’s Revenge at the HERE Arts Center in New York. Matt has released two jazz albums as a leader: We Got It! (2001) and Lost In New York (2006); and one album of original pop/folk material called Songs For the Anonymous (2013). Ray is a co-recipient (with Taylor Mac) of an Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History for A 24-Decade History of Popular Music . www.mattraymusic.com
MACHINE DAZZLE (Performer/Costume Design) (né Matthew Flower) moved to New York City in 1994 after attending The University of Colorado Boulder. Mixing odd jobs by day with art and dance clubs by night erupted in a unique lifestyle grounded in costume and performance art. Machine’s DIY and transgressive nature comes face to face with his conceptualist-as-artist identity; the results can be seen on stages all over the world. Machine has worked with Taylor Mac, Justin Vivian Bond, Joey Arias, Julie Atlas Muz, Big Art Group, The Crystal Ark, The Dazzle Dancers, Pig Iron Theater, Stanley Love Performance Group, and The Pixie Harlots, to name a few.
BERNICE “BOOM BOOM” BROOKS (Drums) is a drummer, producer, teaching artist who has performed and shared the stage with such greats as Tito Puente, Gregory Hines, Patti Labelle, and many Jazz and R&B greats. She was a part of JALC The History of Blues with Marion Cowings and has a national commercial airing, “Five Fine Fillies,” for Bank of America.
VIVA DECONCINI (Electric Guitar) plays guitar like a flaming sword, a screaming train, a ringing bell, and a scratching chicken. She sings like if Freddy Mercury had been a woman. She’s played everywhere from Bonnaroo to Monterey Jazz Fest, and been featured in Guitar Player Magazine. Her last 2 records Rock & Roll Lover and Rhinestones & Rust charted on CMJ.
ANTOINE DRYE (Trumpet) has been a New York-based trumpeter since 1999. During this time, he has worked with an assortment of great artists both locally and abroad. He has toured extensively in Europe, Asia, and the U.S. Drye has been working with Taylor for over two years, including the marathon performance of A 24-Decade History of Popular Music at St. Ann’s Warehouse.
JAMES TIGGER! FERGUSON (Special Guest) “The Godfather of Neo-Boylesque” is a burlesque artist/ actor/dancer who has performed in NYC since 1988 & around the world since 1993. A pioneer in the 90s burlesque renaissance who won the 1st-ever “King of Boylesque” title at Burlesque Hall of Fame in Las Vegas. His act was banned at Rome’s Gay Village. He has recently headlined festivals in Chile, Brazil, Canada & around the U.S. Tigger! has been delighted to work with Taylor for many years.
G LENN M ARLA (Special Guest) has been described as a “Downtown Prophet” and a “obese transvestite in tights.” Glenn is a Brooklyn-based theater artist, writer, art therapist, and beauty pageant queen (Miss LES, Mr. Coney Island). Glenn Marla’s theater work has been described as “Performance art that pushes the envelope without pushing the audience away.” Mx. Marla’s solo work has toured festivals, community centers, galleries, theaters, clubs and universities across the country. Glenn’s new puppet show
Scarcity Freezer: Mothers, Imagination, Food, Puppets debuted at IRT Theater this fall. Glenn is currently participating in St. Anne’s Warehouse puppet lab to develop a new work that will be presented this summer at LABAPALOOZA! After the amazing experience of being a Dandy Minon for A 24 Decade History of Popular Music Glenn is thrilled to again join Taylor Mac and the 24-hour company for Holiday Sauce !
GREG GLASSMAN (Trumpet) has shared the stage and recording studio with some of the greatest voices in jazz, including Clark Terry, Marcus Belgrave, Roswell Rudd, Sheila Jordan, Oliver Lake, Sherman Irby, and John Esposito. He has performed around the world with a diverse array of artists including The Skatalites, Oscar Perez’s Nuevo Comienzo, and Burning Spear. Mr. Glassman’s current focus is his quintet, co-led with Stacy Dillard, which holds a residency of 8 years at Fat Cat in Greenwich Village. They will release a dynamic live recording in 2014.
J. WALTER HAWKES (Trombone) , originally from Pascagoula, MS, is a four time Emmy Award-winning composer/trombonist/ukulele player. J. has been an active performer, composer, and arranger/orchestrator in New York City for two decades. He has played and/or recorded with some people you’ve possibly heard of (Norah Jones, Elvis Costello, Jon Hendricks, John Lithgow), and many more you haven’t. It’s possible that he’s freaked out your kids with the music he’s composed for Wonder Pets , Third & Bird , and Blue’s Clue s as well as other TV cartoony gems. He is now the Musical Director of Peg + Cat , an animated show teaching math concepts to preschoolers on PBS.
MARIKA HUGHES (Cello) is a native New Yorker, a cellist, singer, and has been a storyteller on The Moth. Marika has worked with Whitney Houston, Lou Reed, Anthony Braxton, Stevie Wonder, David, Byrne, Adele, Taylor Mac, Henry Threadgill and D’Angelo among many others. She has performed on The David Letterman and Jimmy Fallon shows as well as Saturday Night Live . For the last 10 years Marika has worked with the NGO Triad Trust, taking her on repeated trips to South Africa and Haiti as a music and self-care educator. She is a master teacher for Young Arts. Marika has self released three albums, The Simplest Thing and Afterlife Music Radio (2011) and New York Nostalgia (2016). She happily leads her band Bottom Heavy and The New String Quartet. Marika lives in the countryside of Kings County.
DANA LYN (Violin) is at home in multiple musical worlds, ranging from classical to folk, contemporary and improvisatory music. She works with a wide variety of artists including Stew and Heidi Rodewald, Irish poet Louis de Paor, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, cellist Hank Roberts, the Elysian Fields, and La Mar Enfortuna, among others. Her compositions have been performed at the Savannah Music Festival, the Kilkenny Arts Festival, the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, Austin’s NMASS, the Stillwater Music Festival and at Carnegie Hall. Dana is also a well-versed fiddle player in the Irish tradition, and is very happy to be playing with Taylor Mac and this fine band of musicians.
GARY WANG (Bass) Bassist originally hails from Boston and San Francisco. Since graduating from Columbia University in 1995, Gary has been living and playing professionally in New York City with artists including Anat Fort, Ben Monder, Michael Leonhart , T.S. Monk, Jon Gordon, Tessa Souter, John McNeil, Matt Wilson, Bill McHenry, Chris Cheek, Brad Shepik, Madeleine Peyroux, Dena DeRose, Donald Fagen, Jon Gordon, Seamus Blake, Kevin Hays, Bill Stewart and Billy Drummond, among many others. Gary has toured the U.S., Europe, Asia and the Americas extensively, and in 2002 was a participant in the U.S. State Dept. Jazz Ambassadors program, performing in several nations of the former Soviet Union. Gary has also been involved in composing and music production, most recently contributing production, overdubbing work to projects by numerous artists, among others, the SF-based band The Invisible Cities, Michael Leonhart, Sam Sadigursky, Goh Nakamura, Andrew Watt and film composer Jeff Grace. Gary also composed and recorded the music for several recent collaborations with choreographer Kakuti Lin.
POMEGRANATE ARTS
For the past twenty years, Pomegranate Arts has worked in close collaboration with a small group of contemporary artists and arts institutions to bring bold and ambitious artistic ideas to fruition. Founder and Director Linda Brumbach, along with managing director Alisa E. Regas produced the Olivier Award-winning revival of Einstein on the Beach , the multi-award winning production of Taylor Mac’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music and the Drama Desk Award-winning production of Charlie Victor Romeo . Since its inception, Pomegranate Arts has produced over 30 major new performing arts productions and tours for Philip Glass, Laurie Anderson, Lucinda Childs, Dan Zanes, London’s Improbable, Sankai Juku, Batsheva, and Bassem Youssef and collaborated on new productions with the Kronos Quartet, Leonard Cohen, Robert Wilson, and Frank Gehry. We hope to continue to build our community of institutions and individuals that are inspired by the artists in our lives who help bring beauty and truth into the world, ask important questions, and take bold risks.
www.pomegranatearts.com info@pomarts.com
Founder and Director
Linda Brumbach
Managing Director, Creative Alisa E. Regas
Business Manager
Associate General Manager
Production Manager
Office Manager/Executive Assistant
Production Assistant
THE TOWN HALL
Adam Thorburn
Rachel Katwan
Jeremy Lydic
Brit Katke
Willa Ellafair Folmar
Town Hall has played an integral part in the electrifying cultural fabric of New York City for 97 years. Founded by a vibrant group of suffragists, The League for Political Education’s fight for the 19th Amendment led them to build a meeting space to educate people on the important issues of the day. Today, it stands as a non-profit national historic landmark, and birthplace and host to countless cultural and musical milestones... Richard Strauss, Isaac Stern, and Ravi Shankar made their US debuts at Town Hall. Marian Anderson gave her first New York recital at Town Hall when many opera houses banned performers of color. Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker debuted bebop to the world at Town Hall. Margaret Sanger was famously hauled offstage and arrested for speaking about birth control at Town Hall; the incident received great publicity which resulted in funding and donations for Sanger’s organization, which would eventually be renamed Planned Parenthood. Nina Simone had her first major concert at Town Hall. Bob Dylan too. Leonard Cohen made his stage debut at Town Hall. America’s Town Meeting of the Air was one of the most celebrated and influential public discussion shows of the twentieth century, often considered the first talk show, and featured guests as diverse as Eleanor Roosevelt, Langston Hughes, Richard Nixon, and Jackie Robinson. Town Hall welcomes thousands of public school children every year who participate in the Town Hall Arts in Education program. Town Hall continues to be a forum for the people—a welcome home of expression, education and exploration. Town Hall is the Hall for All, and The Town Hall Presents is an eclectic season of events and concerts for everyone.
SUSTAINING MEMBERS
Mr. & Mrs. Louis Aidala*
Sofia Annunziata
Sylvia Atkins**
Phyllis Barasch**
Lori Benton
Howard Berman**
Jane Bram*
Patricia Brown & Steve Rifkind*
Collin Burns*
Ralph Buultjens**
Alexander & Karen Callender*
Elinor & Ian Ceresney*
Leona Chanin**
Dr. Stuart Chassen*
Gloria & Irwin Cohen*
Penny & Marvin Cohen*
William Costigan
Trina DasGupta*
Shauna Denkensohn*
Sharon Dunn & Harvey Zirofsky
Robert Dwyer
Betty W. Ellerin*
Robert E. Evanson*
Scott Evenbeck**
Hazel & Russel Fershleiser**
Caryl Field
Carol Foti
Dr. Charlotte Frank & Marvin Leffler**
Matthew Frank**
Michael & Anne Frank-Shapiro*
Adrienne Frosch*
Goldfarb & Fleece**
Dori Fromer & Harley Frank*
Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, PC**
David Fuchs*
Carmen Gaito
Yvette Geary & Robert Astrowsky*
Kathleen Germann
Michele Gerstel
Barbara Gottlieb*
Patricia Green**
Agnes Gund**
Fran & Richard Habib*
Jill & Martin Handelsman*
Priscilla H. Hoffman*
Sandy & Alfred Horowitz*
Fern Hurst & Peter Rubin**
Anne Marie Iannizzi*
Dr. Elizabeth Iannizzi**
Stephen C. Jacobs
Henry Johansson*
Robert Kaufman*
Patti Kenner**
Eric Krasnoff*
Paul Kronish*
John Kuehn
Jacqueline & Bruce Leffler**
Karin & Marc Leffler*
Ivy Beth Lewis, The IV Fund**
Jay L & Robin K. Lewis**
Paul & Florence Rowe Libin**
Erica & Paul Linthorst*
Arthur Loeb Foundation*
Colleen Lynch
Carol Marks & Tom Wirtshafter**
Karl Marquardt
*$500-999 **$1,000 +
Pamela Milam*
Paul Miles**
Andrew Miltenberg**
Nobuko Narita*
Dorinda J. Oliver**
Catherine Patterson
Catherine Randolph*
Rita Robbins**
Rhoda Rothkopf*
Kathleen Rosenberg**
Zita Rosenthal*
Lynda & Robert Safron**
Reshma Saujani
Roberta Schechter*
Roberta Schleicher*
Howard Schliff
Patricia M. & Brian T. Shea**
Victor & Susan Shedlin**
Sumana Setty
Shamina Singh*
Kimberly Smith
Madhu Southworth*
Paige Price & Nevin Steinberg**
Judy & Michael Steinhardt**
Sudeepta Varma
Larry Unger**
George Wein*
Nancy Whitson
Christine Williams
Robert F. Wright**
John Zapolski*
David Zaza
Zegar Family Foundation**
Susan Zohn*
MAJOR GIFTS, CORPORATE, FOUNDATION & GOVERNMENT SUPPORT
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with The City Council. We would like to thank the following foundations, corporations, and government institutions for their support:
The Achelis and Bodman Foundation
The Actors Fund
Affiliated Advisors
Bank of America
Bruce Weber and Nan Bush Foundation
Cohn Foundation
Consolidated Edison Company of New York
Council Member Daniel Garodnick
Daryl and Steven Roth Foundation
Robert Evanson
Ford Foundation
Dr. Charlotte K. Frank
Garber Atlas Fries & Associates
Anne and Gordon Getty Foundation
John Gore/Key Brand Entertainment
William T. Grant Foundation
The Hearst Foundations, Inc.
The Hurst Foundation
Israel Consulate
Jewish Communal Fund
JP Morgan Chase
Jujamcyn Theaters
Edythe Kenner Foundation
Lewis QVC Trust
Local One
S&P Global
Mex-Am Cultural Foundation
Morgan Stanley
Nederlander Organization
Nelson Foundation
Nesenoff & Miltenberg, LLP
New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in Partnership with the City Council
New York State Council on the Arts
Henry Nias Foundation
The Pinkerton Foundation
The Reed Foundation
Pamela and Richard Rubinstein Foundation
Pricewaterhouse Cooper
The Rudin Foundation
The Shubert Foundation
The Shubert Organization, Inc.
John Ben Snow Memorial Trust
Theatre Refreshments
Ticketmaster
Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund
Joyce and George Wein Foundation, Inc.
Wenner Foundation
Zegar Family Foundation
Town Hall has played an integral part in the electrifying cultural fabric of New York City for more than 90 years. A group of Suffragists’ fight for the 19th Amendment led them to build a meeting space to educate people on the important issues of the day. During its construction, the 19th Amendment was passed, and on January 12, 1921 The Town Hall opened its doors and took on a double meaning: as a symbol of the victory sought by its founders, and as a spark for a new, more optimistic climate. In 1921, German composer Richard Strauss performed a series of concerts that cemented the Hall’s reputation as an ideal venue for musical performances. Since, Town Hall has been home to countless musical milestones: The US debuts of Strauss, and Isaac Stern; Marian Anderson’s first New York recital; in 1945, Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker introduced bebop to the world; Bob Dylan’s first major concert in ‘63; and much much more.
Learn more. Visit thetownhall.org/tours
THE TOWN HALL FOUNDATION
The Town Hall’s mission is to provide affordable world-class entertainment by new and established artists to a diverse audience; to inspire the youth of our community to appreciate and participate in the arts at The Town Hall and in schools through our Educational Outreach Program; and to preserve and enhance The Town Hall as a historic landmark venue for the enjoyment and cultural enrichment of generations to come.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
President
Tom M. Wirtshafter
Vice President
Alfred H. Horowitz
Vice President
Bruce S. Leffler
TRUSTEES
Phyllis Putter Barasch
Robert E. Evanson
Anne Frank-Shapiro
Alfred H. Horowitz
Stephen C. Jacobs
Henry Johansson
Ted Lambert
Bruce S. Leffler
Marvin Leffler
Andrew T. Miltenberg
Rita Robbins
Madhu Southworth
Nevin Steinberg
Tom Wirtshafter
Susan Zohn
LIFE TRUSTEES
Leona Chanin
Eugene J.T. Flanagan
Claire G. Miller
Robert F. Wright
THE TOWN HALL STAFF
Executive Director
Lawrence C. Zucker
Artistic Director
M.A. Papper
Director of Administration,
Subscriptions & Membership
Helen Morris
Director of Development
Jacqueline Maddox
Director of Education and Community Outreach
Emma Klauber
Publicist
Cindy Byram
Publicist, Broadway by the Year®
Sam Morris
Treasurer
Andrew T. Miltenberg
Secretary
Phyllis Putter Barasch
President Emeritus
Marvin Leffler
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Kathleen Rosenberg, Chair
Nancy Berman
Shauna Denkensohn
Sandy Horowitz
Fern Hurst
Elizabeth Iannizzi
Claire Miller
Zita Rosenthal
Rhoda Rothkopf
ARTS IN EDUCATION ADVISORY COUNCIL
Dr. Charlotte K. Frank, Chair
Michael Fram
Dr. Sharon Dunn
Gary Hecht
Ernest Logan
Dr. Lisa Mars
Dr. Eloise Messineo
Dr. Pola Rosen
Leona Shapiro
Manuel Urena
George Young
Program Manager
Sara Minisquero
Administrative Assistant
Britni Montalbano
Chief Engineer
Steve Franqui
Box Office Manager
Angel Rodriguez
House Manager
Richard Looney
Technical Director
Bill Dehling
Art & Design
Leia-lee Doran
Digital Media Manager
Alex Koveos
WARNING
The photographing or sound recording of any performance or the possession of any device for such photographing or sound recording inside the theatre without the written permission of the management is prohibited by law. Violators may be punished by ejection and violations may render the offender liable for monetary damages.
FIRE NOTICE
The exit indicated by a red light and sign nearest to the seat you occupy is the shortest route to the street. In the event of fire or other emergency please do not run, WALK TO THAT EXIT. Thoughtless persons annoy patrons and endanger the safety of others by lighting matches or smoking in prohibited areas during the performances and intermissions. This violates a city ordinance and is punishable by law.
DIRECTORY OF THEATRE SERVICES
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES: 212.997.1003
Mon-Fri 9:30 am to 5 pm, for rental & membership info BOX OFFICE: 212.840.2824 Mon-Sat 12 noon to 6pm. 24/7 Recording
TICKETMASTER: 800.982.2787 to charge tickets by phone.online Ticketmaster.com
LOST AND FOUND: 212.997.0113
CELL PHONE POLICY
Cell phones should be silenced prior to the performance as a courtesy to the performers and audience.
Lobby Refreshment by Theatre Refreshment Company of NY
