By Roger Costa
@The Center at West Park
The Center at West Park will host a special staged reading of “Hold on to me Darling” in support of the preservation of landmark building West Park Presbyterian Church on 86th Street. Featuring Matt Damon, J. Smith-Cameron, Alec Baldwin, Gretchen Mol, Lucas Hedges, Peter Friedman, and Charles Everett, the event will be followed by a reception.
The staged reading is written by Oscar winner Kenneth Lonergan and directed by Neil Pepe. It follows Clarence “Strings” McCrane, a famous country music star, who returns to his hometown of Beaumont, Tennessee, after his mother’s death. Wracked with grief and an existential crisis, Strings decides to abandon his stardom to live a simple, working-class life. However, he quickly discovers that the consequences of his fame and the realities of his past are impossible to escape, leading to a tragicomedy exploring themes of fame, grief, identity, and the complexities of homecoming.
Monday, October 27 at 6:30pm. INFO: https://www.centeratwestpark.org/
@The Joyce Theater
Rennie Harris returns to The Joyce Theater (175 Eighth Avenue @19th Street) with the Premiere of American Street Dancer, a celebration of the art of street dance. Reflecting on political, social, and economic history through movement, Rennie Harris brings an enthusiastic hybrid of street and tap dance styles to highlight unique forms found across the US: Jitting (Detroit), Footwork (Chicago), and GQ (Philadelphia). American Street Dancer features a live Hip-hop orchestra with a DJ, bucket players, and beatboxers, and an impressive line-up of acclaimed artists such as House of Jit, Creation Global, Akim Funk Buddha, DJ Razor Ramon, Ayodele Casel, and his company, Rennie Harris Puremovement American Street Dance Theater. November 11-16. Tickets start at $17. INFO: https://www.joyce.org/performances/rennie-harris-puremovement-1lsr
@NJPAC
Described as an electrifying and emotionally-charged “cirque meets the passion of Christ”, THE THORN-LIVE is the ultimate faith-based show that revives the sacrifice and mission of the Son of God. Stunningly crafted through dance, martial arts, aerial acrobats and other gravity-defying techniques, the show will immerse the audience in the battle for salvation of all humankind. Wednesday and Thursday, October 29 and 30 at 7pm. Tickets start at $45. INFO: https://www.njpac.org/event/the-thorn-live/
@New York City Center
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Center’s Principal Dance Company and a “vital American cultural ambassador to the world,” returns to the New York City Center (131 West 55th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues) December 3, 2025 – January 4, 2026 for a five-week engagement, which has become a joyous holiday tradition. The milestone season raises the curtain on AILEY’s next era under the leadership of new Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack, the renowned dancer and educator, guided as ever by Alvin Ailey’s pioneering legacy. Ailey’s extraordinary dancers will bring to life five world premieres, repertory favorites, the rapturous blockbuster Grace, and Ailey classics that have inspired and uplifted for decades, including the touchstone of inspiration Revelations. (Photo: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in Ronald K. Brown’s Grace. Photo by Danica Paulos). Tickets start at $45. INFO: https://ailey.org/series/ailey-new-york-city-center
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