Dear Reader
We’ve reached somewhat of a milestone today. This is the 50th newsletter I’m sending out. I started this on the day the “NY Pause,” our version of the shutdown / quarantine / shelter-in-place / stay-at-home order, started. I think it has been the most consistent thing I’ve done over this time. Sure, I had grand ideas of using this enforced isolation to work on my goals and figure out all those life aims I’d lost sight of, but I’ve found it’s been really hard to focus on the big goals when you’re just trying to make it through each day. The late Irish poet and philosopher John O’Donohue, in his book, To Bless The Space Between Us, said, “Be excessively gentle with yourself.” So, here’s to making it this far!
I give to you, today’s selection of online treats for this Memorial Day weekend:
1. London’s National Theatre is back with another production, available for one week, thanks to its NT Live series. This week it is offering Australian director Benedict Andrews’s 2014 revival of A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams’s 1947 portrait of hard times in the Big Easy, starring Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) as Blanche, Ben Foster (X-Men: The Last Stand) as Stanley and Vanessa Kirby (The Crown) as Stellaaaaa.
2. Staying in the UK, it’s BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend, and one advantage of it not taking place physically is that those of us living outside the country can watch too. Taking place as a weekend-long virtual festival, the likes of Sam Smith, Haim, Dermot Kennedy and more will be performing from their homes and home studios, alongside replays of other memorable performances from Big Weekends gone by.
3. As part of its ongoing CirqueConnect series, Cirque du Soleil is offering an hour-long backstage tour of one of its most spectacular efforts, 2016’s Kurios—Cabinet of Curiosities, 12pm PST / 3pm EST.
On Saturday:
4. Formed in the wake of Trump's inauguration, The Resistance Revival Chorus have been bringing protest songs to the women's revolution, and, throughout the pandemic, have been a voice of perseverance. They will be hosting their tenth social distance-sing showcase, which you can support on Facebook, 6pm PST / 9pm EST.
5. BottleRock the festival in Napa Valley is launching (re)LIVE BottleRock, a concert video series featuring footage of previous headliners. The inaugural stream, which takes place at 3pm PST/ 6pm EST, includes performances by Imagine Dragons, Muse, The Head and the Heart and Tash Sultana.
6. One Earth Live is billed as a a two-day global conscious lifestyle festival that aims to unify under the banner of positivity. Artists, speakers and musicians like John Butler, Michael Franti, FINK and more will be headlining the virtual festival which will take place on Sat and Sun online, at One Earth Live. The lineup includes motivational speakers, Indigenous elders, wellness experts, yoga instructors, youth activists and poets too.
7. Ten years after they disbanded, Australian rockers Powderfinger will reunite for One Night Lonely, a fundraiser for Support Act and Beyond Blue. The virtual gig starts 7pm AEST (5am EST). For sign-up details, visit Powderfinger.com.
On Sunday:
8. The annual National Memory Day Concert that traditionally airs from the West Lawn of the US Capitol is also switching to a virtual event. Among those appearing will be Cynthia Erivo, Renee Fleming, CeCe Winans, Kelli O'Hara, Christopher Jackson, Sam Elliott, Laurence Fishburne and more. Starting at 5pm PST / 8pm EST, the concert will stream on Facebook, YouTube and on PBS.
9. The organizers of Governors Ball, which we would have been going to over the first weekend in June, are inviting us all to an event they’re calling The Sun Still Sets, a special virtual performance featuring RÜFÜS DU SOL, Bob Moses, Snoop Dogg, and Sofi Tukker. 3:30pm PST / 6:30pm EST on their YouTube and Facebook pages.
10. Wu Tang’s RZA and head programmer at the Hollywood Theatre Dan Halsted will provide live commentary during a 36 Chambers special screening of Showgun Assasin. 6:15pm PST / 9:15pm EST.
Thank you for reading! Hope you have as good a weekend as you can during this time. See you back here on Monday!
Stay safe, stay sane
Your neighbour
Nadia