Join Artists Without Walls for its January Showcase at The Cell, 338 West 23rd Street, Manhattan, Tuesday, January 24th. Presenters include jazz fiddler Michi Fuji, author and lecturer Suzanne Bernier, singer/songwriter Martina Fiserova, artist and singer Maia Nero, writers Billy Barrett and Mike DeLucia, playwright Brendan Connellan and actor Faye Franzini. Charles R. Hale and Niamh J. Hyland are the evenings hosts and emcees.
The doors and the bar open at 6:45. Performances begin at 7:30. This is a free event.
Artists Without Walls’ January Showcase at The Cell Theatre, 338 West 23rd Street, Manhattan, will take place on January 24th. The doors and the bar open at 6:45pm. The presentations begin at 7:30pm. The evenings presenters included playwright Brendan Connellan, actor Faye Franzini, writers Billy Barrett and Suzanne Bernier and musicians Martina Fiserova, Michi Fuji and Maia Nero.
From Sam Edelman’s story “Getting Out of Show Business”
“I totally enjoyed the Showcase. The level of professionalism was captivating, and inspirational…the The Cell is an exceptional venue. Thank you for an enjoyable evening….I plan to be there again soon.” Maia Nero
Sam Adelman opened the evening, reading a humorous piece from his upcoming book “Getting Out of Show Business,” offering an anecdotal account of getting stiffed for cash on an editing job, only to receive a world-famous photograph and a hand shake from Muhammed Ali. This picture was certainly worth a thousand words. A perfect opening to what became a grand evening.
Charles R. Hale’s “Jazz and the City”
Charles R. Hale, one of Artists Without Walls’ cofounders and a Resident Artist at The Cell Theatre, premiered his short film “Jazz and the City: The New York Connection.” The film is a companion piece to his show of the same name, which debuted at The Cell in April. From the best of times to the worst of times, songwriters have captured every corner of New York City through music. Weaving story, sidebars, images and the music of the Gershwins, Jerome Kern, Johnny Mercer, Billy Strayhorn and others, Charles’s film connects New York City through the songs of the composers and performers who lived in the city, through the venues in which the songs were popularized and through his own recollection of New York and song. “Sharp film…and that voice…as usual, great tone and presence.” David Goldman
Almeria Campbell
Actor/singer Almeria Campbell followed with a stirring performance combining her acting and singing skills. “Performing at AWoW was my first time singing (outside of voice lessons ) for an audience in quite some time. It was amazing. The audience, or I should say community, is so supportive.” Despite her concerns, Almeria’s voice was in very fine form, seamlessly incorporating two songs, “His Eye is on the Sparrow” and “Maybe This Time” into her presentation.
Joel Cruz
Joel Cruz, the story teller, will make you cry…and then smile. He’s not just toying with emotions; His songs are borne from his personal story. They pull your heart in all directions the way life does. He takes his time, as if he really wants you to listen and hear. Joel demonstrated his vulnerable side, sharing his most inner thoughts, but the audience loved and appreciated his work. Additionally, it was a joy to see singer/songwriter Martina Fiserova and Joel perform together. They were clearly having a good time! The music was complex– lots of lyrics, yet catchy enough for listeners to sing along. We look forward to more unexpected surprises from Joel Cruz.
Mark Donnelly
Mark Donnelly channeled his inner child with a funny monologue based on his boyhood desire tobe a cowboy and ride the range with Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. But it seems the audience was most impressed with Mark’s father, who stepped up, defended his son, and won the day…and the audience.
David Raleigh and Annette Homann
David Raleigh was joined by Annette Homann for a moving and evocative “Stormy Weather,” a pop standard built around a classic weather metaphor. From the moment Annette’s bow struck her instrument, through the moment David sang, “Don’t know why, there’s no sun up in the sky…stormy weather…” through their last playful notes, the audience was held rapt. A beautiful duet. David closed out the show with a brilliant medley, incorporating tunes by Al Green, Stevie Wonder, George Gershwin and one of David’s tunes, “One Together.” The perfect finishing touch to another sensational evening of diverse talents.
The next Artists Without Walls’s Showcase at The Cell, 338 West 23rd St, NY, is scheduled for Tuesday, July 26. The doors and the bar open at 6:45. The performances begin at 7:30. For more information: info@artistswithoutwalls.com
As Artists Without Walls celebrates its fourth anniversary this month, we’ve asked members to share a few thoughts about their experience with the group. Here’s what singer/songwriter Martina Fiserova wrote:
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Martina Fiserova
I feel really blessed to be an active member of such a wonderful and supportive community as is Artists Without Walls. One of my favorite things about AWoW is the diversity of its members. During one evening you may witness an actor, poet, dancer and musician, from all possible genres, classical or jazz, to edged rockers and original singer/songwriters.
Of course, with AWoW being a New York City based community, just about everyone comes from another place. (I’m from Prague, Czech Republic.) Different backgrounds and ethnicities mix in one room in a very positive and sharing atmosphere. What a great opportunity to create new connections and collaborations! On top of that, there are no age restrictions, and this all adds up to the colorfulness of an AWoW event.
AWoW has featured me at three of its showcases, which take place at the Cell Theatre, located in Chelsea. Every performance at The Cell has helped me greatly. I’ve obtained new fans; have been able to promote my music and upcoming shows, and recently, my brand new CD.
Aside from the regular monthly showcases, AWoW organizes themed events, exhibition openings and presents their artists at venues around the Big Apple.
Thank you, AWoW for helping to keep your members busy.
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Martina Fišerová is a singer, songwriter and lyricist. She accompanies herself on guitar and piano in solo shows and performs with a full band as well. She has collaborated with Impuls, Laco Deczi & his Celula New York, Phishbacher Trio, Jan Kořínek & Groove, Rajnošek Band and many others and supported the Czech rock star singer Kamil Střihavka as his backing vocalist for several years while leading her own original acoustic band Seven Days. At the present time Martina is exploring the New York City scene and has just recently released her new album of original music entitled SHIFT.
This past Thursday, a select crowd, awash in warm yellow light from the small stage at Sid’s Piano Bar in Manhattan, exemplified the name of this organization we’re all so pleased to be a part of. The performers, each revealing what love means to them, dissolved the walls between themselves and the audience and played, instead, to dear friends. The evening became less about the love in each chosen piece than what we all feel for each other as Artists Without Walls keeps bringing us together.
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Martina Fiserova kicked off the night of love laced songs with a beautiful rendition of her song “And Fly” while accompanying herself on guitar. She dedicated the song to the evening’s sponsor Marty Plevel and Marty’s good friend Max Siegel who was also in the audience. Martina then gracefully transitioned to the piano for two additional spellbinding original songs,
Martina Fiserova
“Misunderstanding” and “A Well”. You could hear a pin drop as she tickled the ivories with passion while showing off her vocal range and unique phrasing. To round out her stellar set, she performed, for the first time, in honor of the occasion, a superb rendition of Joni Michell’s “Love,” which was originally released in 1982. As she wrapped up the song with the lyrics “Of faith and hope and love, And of these great three, Love’s the greatest beauty, Love, Love, Love” she set the tone for the evening and had the audience in the palm of her hand.
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Connie Roberts, Liv Mammone and Noah Hoffeld
After accompanying Connie Roberts in her stirring reading of “Raglan Road,” cellist Noah Hoffeld opened his set with an original tribute to David Bowie, for cello and loops. He used the loop pedal to create an atmosphere of mystery and played a moving elegy for his departed hero. He was then joined by a great visiting guitarist, Nathan Finkel from London, who played on two rocking ballads from Noah’s album Play Human– ‘Stay the Same’ and ‘A Woman and a Man.’ Their highly distinct tones were filled with longing.
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Annette Homann
Annette Homann, though unsure of how her act would play out in the confined space of Sid’s, literally leapt from the stage in a whirl of glitter, stomp, and sway. Her “romantic partner” for the evening was a brand new electric violin, which she made wail on Marc O’Connor’s “Caprice No. 1 in A Major” for solo violin, “Feeling Good” and a medley centered around “A Little Party Never Killed Nobody” that had us all grinning to split our faces and a few brave souls on their feet dancing. Annette herself was a dervish of Matrix-like leans and a grin that could have generated the bar’s lights. She filled the room with joy.
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Liv Mammone
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The day after our gathering, Charles Hale told me that he frantically whispered to Niamh Hyland during Annette’s wild joyousness, “Who’s following this?” She answered, “Don’t worry, it’s Liv. We’re covered.” I am still humbled by such faith, especially given that I was so unsure of my place at a performance on the theme of love. I chose a new piece for the occasion, “After Seeing a Facebook Post that Proclaimed ‘Stop Romanticizing People who Hurt You!’” and a piece written for my sister. While I cannot review myself, I saw a woman in the front row clutching her chest and shouting, “Oh my God!” What else can a performer hope for?
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My mentor Connie Roberts then returned to the stage unaccompanied, as always the picture of elegance and refinement as she sparked life into WH Auden’s poem “Funeral Blues” with a slow, steady timbre that allowed each word to hit the listener like its own sharp pain. We poets were, neither of us, certain how to keep the sadness of love from our performance choices, but I am grateful Connie grounded us with this blessing.
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Niamh Hyland
I am never prepared for the voice and stage presence of Niamh Hyland, much less to have to describe it. (It’s very possible that I’ve written and rewritten an ode to this idol of mine that has been sitting around for months…) It is equal parts a warm hearth and a wolf growl. Backed by the expert fingers and almost unfair coolness of guitarist Shu Nakamura, Niamh treated us to Queen’s “Love of my Life,” got us singing with her on “House of the Rising Sun,” and
Shu Nakamura
broke every heart with “Wild Mountain Thyme.” She then quickly decided that all the night’s musicians should return to the stage to lead the crowd in an improvised rendition of Bowie’s “Modern Love.” This, I believe, is what is best about Artists Without Walls. Not only is each voice deeply distinct, but it is the way that we all come together and lift one another. Nothing else exists like it.
“AWoW dips into the magic of New York City each month and unfurls it on the stage for the lucky audience. Huge gratitude to Charles R. Hale and Niamh Hyland who come up with one compelling Showcase after another.” Brendan Connellan
“The artistic directors of Artists Without Walls have helped so many incredibly talented people do remarkable things — they give them a stage in the center of the universe, something only a select few would otherwise see.” Mitch Traphagen
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Justin Colon-Rabinowitz
The evening was off to a great start when native New York poet Justin Colón-Rabinowitz recited his poetry with grace and authority. Justin shared a number of powerful and intimate poems in front of the standing room only audience, many of which spoke about his family members’ emigration from Puerto Rico to New York City, their ephemeral joys and pains, and the resiliency they showed while adapting to life in the borough of the Bronx. Justin will be graduating from Hofstra University’s MFA program in December, 2015, and he will be reading his poetry at the KGB club in Manhattan on Friday night, December 11th.
Justin Poindexter and Tara O’Grady
The very popular–with good reason–Celtic-jazz songstress Tara O’Grady jammed with the extraordinary guitarist Justin Poindexter from the band Silver City Bound (formerly The Amigos) who accompanied Tara on her original blues and folk songs. The pair have collaborated on three of Tara’s cds including “Good Things Come to Those Who Wait” (2011), “A Celt in the Cotton Club” (2013), and most recently, “Irish Bayou” (2015).
Stella Pulo
When Stella Pulo started, the audience started laughing. And they didn’t stop! Stella is quirky, hilarious, entertaining and, at times, poignant. With “Shrimp Shells in Her Cleavage,” she transported the audience to a place where she once was, vacuuming cockroaches and rabbit pellets from the bed of a “Dolly Parton” knock-off. Stella is an wonderful writer and performer, Sophie Kinsella and Tracey Ullman rolled into one.
Faye Franzini and Tue Hoe
When the silence gets thick enough to eat with a spoon, you know something good is happening on stage. Faye Franzini and Tue Hoe bared their own hearts and ripped each other’s in a scene from Brendan Connellan’s “Kill the Bid.” Two people can love each other very much but, sadly, it doesn’t mean they always agree. Wonderful courage from both actors to risk putting it all out there.
Richard Deane
Richard Deane returned to the Artists Without Walls’ stage with an emotionally provocative reading of the opening scene from his novel in progress, “When Yesterday Comes.” His use of poignant atmospherics and straight to the heart exposition pulled the audience into the midst of the dramatic conflict between his vividly constructed characters. Richard’s unabashed exploration into an uncomfortable subject was both captivating and moving.
Martina Fiserova
How does someone who has spoken a different language all their life, write such evocative tunes in their second language? Martina Fiserova, Prague born singer songwriter does just that, delivering heart felt songs in spell binding performances as she did on Friday night. Martina performed a number of songs from her new CD “Shift”, which she is currently promoting. With the support of highly experienced soundman Paul Bevan, Martina captivated the audience; Her music was the evening’s icing on the cake. “Thank you for having the angelic Martina Fišerová on the bill last night – as always, her performance brought me to tears,” said Suzanne Bernier.
The next Artists Without Walls’ Showcase at The Cell Theatre will be on December 22. Hope to see you there for AWoW’s “Holiday Showcase.”
Mitch Traphagen’s photos from Artists Without Walls’ November 2015 Showcase at The Cell Theater in Manhattan. Performers and presenters included Tara OGrady, Stella Pulo, Tue Hoe, Faye Franzini, Richard Deane, Martina Fiserova and Alejandro Colon-Rabinowitz. Produced by AWOW’s artistic directors Charles Hale and Niamh Hyland. www.artistwithoutwalls.com.
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Tue Ho and Faye Fazini
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Justin Colon-Rabinowitz and Connie Roberts
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Justin Poindexter and Tara O’Grady
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Martina Fiserova
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Justin Colon-Rabinowitz
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Tue Ho and Faye Franzini
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Richard Deane
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Stella Pulo and Alison Armstrong
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Tara O’Grady
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Charles R. Hale
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Gary Ryan, Sam Adelman, Pandora Maclean-Hoover, John Moran, Lynnell Herzer, Eric Hoover, Charles R. Hale and Annette Homann
Tara O’Grady is the band leader of a dynamic group of elite NYC jazz musicians who have performed with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Debbie Harry. Her voice is usually compared to Billie Holiday, but she has a distinct sound all her own. The New York born singer-songwriter with Irish roots has four cd releases, and she has appeared in the BBC film Danny Boy – The Ballad That Bewitched the World which was nominated for Best Documentary at the Irish Film & Television Awards in 2014. Her recording of the famous song, Danny Boy, was recently ranked the #6 best selling jazz/blues mp3 in the UK.
Stella Pulo
Stella Pulo is a writer and performer. In 1992 she became the first Australian to be made lifetime member of The Actors Studio. Shrimp Shells in My Cleavage is a collection of stories, each set in a different country where Stella has lived and worked.
Brendan Connellan
A longtime AWOW member, Brendan Connellan has written and staged multiple productions in New York City. Among them, Kill the Bid, Pompa Pompa, Death, Please and Python. He is currently completing two new ones called Gash and Savage and working on his novel.
Tue Hoe
Tue Hoé, who will be performing a scene from Connellan’s play, is originally from Denmark. He has lived and has worked in New York for the past five years since graduating from The William Esper Studio. He has worked both with theater and film in New York as well as Denmark.
Faye Fanzini
Faye Franzini is a New York based Brazilian actress and singer. She studied acting with Bill Esper, at the William Esper Studio and improvisation at the PIT. Faye has been part of various theater, music and improv productions as well as written, directed and acted in some of her own projects.
Justin Colon-Rabinowitz
Poet and novelist Justin Colón-Rabinowitz graduated from Dartmouth College in 2005. He has traveled extensively throughout Spain, the Dominican Republic, and lived in Puerto Rico. Justin will also be reading at the well-known literary space, the KGB, Bar next month as part of Hofstra University’s MFA fall program.
Martina Fiserova
Prague born singer, songwriter and musician Martina Fiserova will be making her fourth appearance at an AWoW Showcase. She would also like to invite readers to her release party and introduce you to her latest CD “Shift”, which stamps her mark on the NYC arts scene, and was created both in Europe and in the USA. “Shift reveals the maturing and development of an artist, who is not looking back” – James Nadal, All About Jazz
Richard Deane
Richard Deane spends his time between New York City and Rhinebeck and has been continuing to work on his novel “When Yesterday Comes” while free lance writing and editing for a periodical financial publication. Richard will be reading a scene from his novel about a young girl with amnesia who finds herself homeless on the streets of the city in the care of a stranger.
The Cell Theatre is located at 338 W23rd St in Manhattan. The doors and the bar open at 6:45. Hope to see you there.
Artists Without Walls’ Showcase at The Cell Theatre, 338 W23rd St. NY, Tuesday, April 28th, 6:45pm.
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Martina Fiserova
Martina Fiserova (singer, guitarist, songwriter) will perform at the Way Station, Brooklyn, on Tuesday April 28th at 10pm, featuring Yuka Kameda (tap dance).
. Great bar, no cover. The address is: 683 Washington Avenue, Prospect Heights.
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Kevin Holohan
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On Wednesday, April 29th at 6:30pm. Kevin Holohan will join Mayra Santos Febres, Kevin, Salar Abdoh with fellow author David Unger to celebrate his winning of Guatemala’s “Miguel Ángel Asturias” National Prize for Literature They will reading a little and chatting about the craft of writing at CUNY’s Center for worker Education (CWE) 25 Broadway, 7th Floor, New York, New York 10004. Admission is Free
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Out by Ten
Susan Seliger’s “Out by Ten: Jilted Lovers, Bad Kids, Dreams, Drums & Desires.” Thursday, April 30, 2015, Spectrum NYC, 121 Ludlow Street, NYC. 7:30-9:30 PM. Open Mic for storytellers & musicians after the featured performers.
$20 admission fee ($18 in advance) includes FREE wine and cheese and cookies. Click here for tickets at Brown Paper Tickets.
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Writers Read
Ed McCann’s “Writers Read” a celebration of the spoken word presents “What We Ate,” at The Cell Theatre in New York City at 2:00PM, Sunday, May 3rd. This live staged reading will feature twelve writers presenting short, original pieces on the theme, and writers and guests will mingle and share light refreshments during intermission.
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Their last three events sold out, and seats are going fast; if you’d like to join them, click here for tickets.
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Stella Pulo
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Stella Pulo’s “Shrimp Shells in My Cleavage” will be performed on May 3rd, 5pm at the School of Visual Arts, 133 West 21st Street, Room 101C, NY and on May 16th, 7pm at 111 Bowery, 4th floor, NY.
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Sasha Papernik
Sasha Papernik will be performing at Rockwood Music Hall, 196 Allen St, NYC, on Sunday, May 3rd, at 6pm with two original bandmates: Kyle Saulnier on bass and Justin Poindexter on guitar. Come join her for an evening of Russian dances and original songs and hear where this whole thing all began….
