Tag Archives: Town Hall

Lila Downs Joins Lineup of The Lantern Tour: Concerts for Migrant and Refugee Families

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Lila Downs is shining a lantern on migrant and refugee rights…

The 49-year-old Mexican singer has been added to the list of artists who will take part in The Lantern Tour: Concerts for Migrant and Refugee Families.

Lila Downs

Downs, a Grammy-winning singer, joins a roster that includes Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Steve Earle.

Proceeds will go to the Women’s Refugee Commission in support of families seeking safety at the United States-Mexico border.

The five-date tour begins at Nashville’s City Winery on October 23 and concludes at New York’s Town Hall on October 28.

Other dates include the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. on October 25; the Scottish Rite Auditorium in Collingswood, New Jersey, on October 26; and Boston’s Orpheum Theater on October 27.

“The Women’s Refugee Commission has been on the front lines in advocating for the safety of women and children,” said Harris in a statement. “Their work is as remarkable as it is critical, especially right now. It is my honor to partner with this incredible organization and to bring my friends along for what I know will be a powerful tour.”

Founded in 1989, the WRC advocates for the rights of women, children and youth displaced by conflict and crisis. The organization has been on the forefront fighting President Donald Trump’s Zero Tolerance policy on the Mexican/U.S. border that has resulted in children being separated from their parents coming over the border.

Funds toward the concerts will go toward ending family separation and detention.

For tickets and more information, go to thelanterntour.org.

Louis C.K. to Perform at This Year’s Stand Up for Heroes

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Louis C.K. is taking a stand…

The 49-year-old Mexican American comedian, actor, writer, producer, director and editor will take part in this year’s Stand Up for Heroes on November 1 at the Theater at Madison Square Garden.

Louis C.K.

Presented by the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival, it will mark the 10th anniversary of the annual event that’s raised more than $33 million for wounded, ill and injured veterans, service members and their families.

Louis C.K. joins an all-star roster that includes Jim Gaffigan, Jerry Seinfeld, Bruce Springsteen and Jon Stewart.

“We look forward to Stand Up for Heroes each year not only because it’s grown into New York’s biggest night of comedy and music, but because a decade of laughter has translated into a lifetime of immeasurable support for our nation’s injured heroes,” said Bob Woodruff, co-founder and ABC News correspondent. “As we commemorate the 15th anniversary of 9/11 and the wars that have followed, it’s important not to lose sight of the fact that a small percentage of our population stood up for us — it’s now our turn to stand up for them.”

Woodruff and wife Lee established the Bob Woodruff Foundation after the then-recently installed co-anchor of ABC News was critically injured in 2006 by a roadside bomb in Iraq. The Woodruffs partnered with the New York Comedy Festival founders Caroline Hirsch and Andrew Fox to stage the first Stand Up for Heroes event in 2007.

“We could not be more proud to partner with the Bob Woodruff Foundation to celebrate such an incredible milestone as the 10-year anniversary of Stand Up for Heroes,” says Caroline Hirsch, Bob Woodruff Foundation board member and founder of the New York Comedy Festival and Carolines on Broadway. “The organization’s remarkable perseverance, passion and contribution to wounded soldiers and their families is outstanding. Nothing would be possible without the time and dedication from all of the performers and supporters of the organization over the years.”\

After its start at New York’s Town Hall and, later, the Beacon Theatre, the event moved to MSG in 2013.

Ramirez Among Several Latinos Taking Part in PBS-Sponsored Conversations at This Year’s TED Talks

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Sara Ramirez is ready for a revolution…

The 39-year-old half-Mexican actress and Grey’s Anatomy star will cohost a PBS-sponsored conversation about the future of teaching at this year’s TED Talks.

Sara Ramirez

TED, the nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, and PBS recently announced a series of live talks, to be filmed at Town Hall this November.

Ramirez’s talks, scheduled for November 1 and 2, will include the participation of former White House chef Sam Kass, educator Sal Khan, How to Raise an Adult author Julie Lythcott‐Haims, The Future Project CEO Andrew Mangino, Punished: Policing the Lives of Black & Latino Boys author Victor Rios, and Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence educator Dena Simmons.

Meanwhile, clinical psychologist Hector Garcia will take part in another PBS-sponsored Ted Talk entitled “War & Peace” on November 3 and 4.

Garcia’s talk will center on soldiers who’ve returned to the United States in the years following the September 11 terrorist attacks.

He’ll be hoined by Girls star and Marine Corps veteran Adam Driver, Oscar nominee Sebastian Junger and ethnographer Simon Sinek.

In another talk, Mexican-American academic, businessman and speaker Juan Enriquez, author of  and Radiolab research director Latif Nasser will discuss the changing world and the future of our planet in a talk entitled “Science & Wonder” on November 5 and 6.

On hand to perform at the events will be Grammy nominees Rufus Wainwright and Angela McCluskey, as well as musicians Paul Cantelon and John “Scarpper” Sneider, and the Brazilian percussion ensemble Harlem Samba.

Each of the programs will be filmed and broadcast as three one-hour specials to premiere on PBS in 2016.

Buika to Perform at This Year’s Blue Note Jazz Festival

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Buika is ready to jazz up one of New York’s most popular events.

The 42-year-old Afro-Spanish torch singer is among the artists set to bring a little Latin sabor to the Blue Note Jazz Festival in June.

Buika

Along with Buika, Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martinez, neo-bossa nova artist Bebel Gilberto, and Latin Grammy-nominee Natalie Cole will also perform at the event.

The month-long festival will feature an increased Latin music presence during its fifth edition due to the addition of a new Blue Note Entertainment venue in Manhattan. The Latin and World music club Subrosa, which has hosted shows since late 2014, will have its official opening April 14-20.

During the Blue Note Festival, Subrosa will host concerts by Martinez, Cuban pianist Alfredo Rodríguez, Latin soul group Fulaso, and The Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra.

Buika, who performs frequently for diverse New York audiences, will play Town Hall, as will Natalie Cole, who will sing cuts from her 2013 Natalie Cole en Español album during another show. Flamenco jazz guitarist Ottmar Liebert, with band Luna Negra, are scheduled for B.B. King’s Blues Club. Gilberto and Latin jazz staple Gato Barbieri will both perform at the Blue Note Jazz Club.

Latin music fans could also be drawn to a concert at Town Hall by Freshlyground. The African collective became known worldwide after collaborating with Shakira on “Waka Waka.” The group will give a concert at B.B. King’s during the Blue Note festival.

Miranda Earns Drama Desk Nod for “Bring It On: The Musical”

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Lin-Manuel Miranda is bringing on another round of recognition for his work on Broadway…

The 33-year-old Puerto Rican composer, lyricist and actor has earned a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Lyrics.

Lin-Manuel Miranda

Miranda, who won three Drama Desk awards, three Tony Awards and a Grammy Award for the hit musical In the Heights, is nominated for the award this year for co-writing the lyrics to Bring It On: The Musical with Amanda Green.

Meanwhile, Lindsay Mendez earned a nod for Outstanding Actress in a Musical for her work on Dogfight; Ruben Santiago-Hudson earned an Outstanding Director of a Play nod for The Piano Lesson; Sergio Trujillo for Outstanding Choreography for Hands on a Hardbody; and César Alvarez for Outstanding Music in a Play
for Good Person of Szechwan.

Winners will be revealed at a special ceremony on May 19 at New York City’s Town Hall.

Here’s a look at the Latino nominees and their competitors:

Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Kate Baldwin, Giant
Stephanie J. Block, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Carolee Carmello, Scandalous
Lindsay Mendez, Dogfight
Donna Murphy, Into the Woods
Laura Osnes, Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella
Jenny Powers, Donnybrook!

Outstanding Director of a Play
Lear Debessonet, Good Person of Szechwan
Sam Gold, Uncle Vanya
Ed Sylvanus Iskandar, Restoration Comedy
Pam MacKinnon, Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Lynne Meadow, The Assembled Parties
Ruben Santiago-Hudson, The Piano Lesson

Outstanding Choreography
Andy Blankenbuehler, Bring It On: The Musical
Warren Carlyle, A Christmas Story: The Musical
Peter Darling, Matilda
Josh Rhodes, Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella
Sergio Trujillo, Hands on a Hardbody
Chet Walker and Gypsy Snider, Pippin

Outstanding Lyrics
Amanda Green, Hands on a Hardbody
Amanda Green and Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bring It On: The Musical
Michael John LaChiusa, Giant
Dave Malloy, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812
Tim Minchin, Matilda
David Rossmer and Steve Rosen, The Other Josh Cohen

Outstanding Music in a Play
César Alvarez with The Lisps, Good Person of Szechwan
Jiří Kadeřábek, Mahir Cetiz and Ana Milosavljevic, Act Before You Speak: The Tragical
History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Glen Kelly, The Nance
Eugene Ma, The Man Who Laughs
Steve Martin, As You Like It
Jane Wang, Strange Tales of Liaozhai