Line-Up for 2nd Annual PhysFestNYC, NYC’s Only Festival Dedicated to Physical Theater, January 9–19, 2025
Posted by: Official_Press_Release 11:21 am EST 12/10/24

Broken Box Mime Theater Announces Line-Up for Second Annual PhysFestNYC, New York City's Only Festival Dedicated to Physical Theater, January 9–19, 2025

100+ Artists Over 10 Days Celebrate the Diversity of Physical Theater

Broken Box Mime Theater is proud to announce the complete line-up for the second annual PhysFestNYC , New York City's only festival dedicated to physical theater. Supported by Parallel Exit and LubDub Theatre Co., PhysFestNYC is a community-led festival that celebrates, enriches, and envisions the field of physical theater. Over 100 artists and companies will participate in the 11-day festival with performances, workshops, panels, and community events from practitioners, makers, and companies from all genres of physical theater. Running January 9–19, 2025, PhysFestNYC is hosted by Stella Adler Center for the Arts (65 Broadway, Manhattan) across two theaters, two studios, and a community-gathering space. Tickets are now on sale at www.physfestnyc.org .

The 2025 edition of PhysFestNYC features seventeen unique performances that range from evening-length works with multiple showings to one-off events to split bills that include two to three distinct acts. Highlights include KOAL , part climate-catastrophe, part clown show, this one-woman show for the end of the world is created and performed by Jacinta Yelland and directed by Trey Lyford; MOVE IT!, a cabaret-style evening of circus and physical theatre from Parallel Exit; a best-of collection of original short stories from Broken Box Mime Theater told entirely through movement; The Fluxus Brothers Present: Good Art Bad Art, a collection of scores from the historic Fluxus art movement of the 1960s including George Brecht , Alison Knowles, and Yoko Ono, alongside Fluxus-inspired originals; and It Goes Without Saying, a fun and unflinching look at the life and mimes of Bill Bowers. Performance tickets are $20.

Fifteen one-of-a-kind workshops will also take place throughout PhysFestNYC including fundamentals of clown work, devising, juggling, mask work, mime, and soundscapes. Some of New York City's leading physical theater teachers including Luther Bangert, Quinn Bauriedel, Ellen Ko, Marissa Molnar, Julia Proctor, and Sheriden Thomas, will participate. Workshop tickets are $30.

PhysFestNYC also includes nine free public events, parties, and panels that look at the varied and too-often siloed history of physical theater in the United States along with practical advice on producing and marketing your own show. The goal of these panels, in addition to the workshops and performances, is to create a physical theater festival that opens pathways of communication and opportunities for shared resources, supporting artists in their work and deepening their impact. Moderated by thought leaders and celebrated artists in the field, panels include subjects like Clown: Past, Present, Future; Making Theatre for Kids; and Festival as Collaboration: How it Was Made.

Becky Baumwoll, Artistic Director of Broken Box Mime Theater and Co-Executive Producer of PhysFestNYC, remarked, "The performing arts create spaces for connection, and physical theater has a unique lens on this process by centering what we all have in common: the body. We believe our field should be an extension of this ethos of connection, and PhysFestNYC is a response to that need."

Mark Lonergan, Artistic Director of Parallel Exit and Co-Executive Producer of PhysFestNYC remarked, "As a practitioner of physical theatre in New York City for over 20 years, I've always hoped there would be a festival to highlight this art form in the biggest theatre city in the country. I'm thrilled to be part of the producing team to help elevate physical theatre into the cultural consciousness of our city."

PhysFestNYC runs January 9–19, 2025 at Stella Adler Center for the Arts, which is located at 65 Broadway, 2nd Floor, in the Financial District of Manhattan. Stella Adler Center for the Arts is accessible via the R, W trains at Rector St, 4, 5 trains at Wall St, J, Z trains at Broad St, and the 2, 3 trains at Wall St.

Please visit www.physfestnyc.org for more information.

PhysFestNYC Performance Line-Up

January 10 at 7pm & 8:30pm

MOVE IT! - Parallel Exit's Evening of Circus and Physical Theatre
Mark Lonergan, Artistic Director
Performers: Kyle Driggs, Joel Jeske, Randy Kato, Book Kennison, Logan Kerr, Everett Lonergan, Ermiyas Muluken, Ryan Shinji Murray, AJ Silver, Spencer Novich, and Saffi Watson

Ages 6 and up

MOVE IT! is a cabaret-style evening of circus and physical theatre, featuring some of our favorite artists. Join us for a sneak preview of Parallel Exit's newest circus/physical theatre work performed by Kyle Driggs, Joel Jeske, Ryan Shinji Murray, and Saffi Watson, and enjoy special guests Randy Kato (cyr wheel), Book Kennison (juggling), Logan Kerr (unicycle), Ermiyas Muluken (freestanding ladder), Spencer Novich (eccentric performance), AJ Silver (roping), and newcomer Everett Lonergan (juggling).

January 10 and 11 at 7pm & 8:30pm

KOAL

Created and Performed by Jacinta Yelland
Directed by Trey Lyford

Part climate-catastrophe, part clown show—KOAL is a one-woman show for the end of the world. As wildfires tear through Australia, a baby koala, a coal miner and an Indigenous girl strive to hold onto their homes before all burns and turns to ash. Performed by Jacinta Yelland and directed by Trey Lyford, KOAL takes the audience from laughter to tears as it explores what is lost when your home is erased.

January 11 at 1pm

My Little Eye: A Show about Climate & The Earth

Created and Performed by Broken Box Mime Theater

Follow our speaking emcee (who might be…a caterpillar?!) as she guides us through the mimes' silent stories and interactive games. What is climate change? What big feelings come up around big changes of any kind? Audiences will leave with an activated imagination and a reminder of how powerful we are when we all work together.

January 11 at 7pm & 8:30pm, January 12 at noon

The ALCircle - Curators On Stage

Performances by Akil Apollo Davis, Bill Bowers, Lou Sydel, Margarita Blush, Ran Xia, and Selma Trevino

The Artistic Leadership Circle (ALC) presents an evening of performance excerpts from the team responsible for the creative design of the inaugural PhysFest 2024: Akil Apollo Davis, Bill Bowers, Lou Sydel, Margarita Blush, Ran Xia, and Selma Trevino. This dynamic collage features a kaleidoscope of diverse forms, aesthetics, themes, and approaches that will captivate your senses. So join us in this jubilant celebration of unwavering passion and dedication to the festival, to the exhilarating world of physical theatre, and to the vibrant community that fuels our artistic fire.

January 12 at 4pm & 6:15pm

CHALK

Creator and Performed by Alex Curtis

Directed by Caitlin Ryan O'Connell
Ages 4+

If everything you drew became real, where would your imagination take you? A charismatic clown discovers magic chalk that makes everything he draws come to life in this fantastical one-man show guaranteed to delight audiences of all ages! A non-verbal physical comedy in the style of the great silent-film era comedians, CHALK is a goofy testament to the power of childlike imagination and a moving exploration of the adult search for romantic love and connection. With a perfect mix of play and pathos, CHALK is a whimsical romp guaranteed to "draw you in."

January 12 at 6pm & 7:30pm

New Immigrants
Directed by Dennis Yueh-Yeh Li and Nina Zoie Lam
Performed by Timmy Ong and Shan Y. Chuang

Veni Vidi Vici

Created and Performed by Deborah Kaufmann

This split bill features two distinct shows. New Immigrants consists of two monologues about two international artists' first moments of moving to New York City and their subsequent breakdown living in the city, presented with humor and warmth in a theatrical manner, through acting, movement, and live musical accompaniment. They are excerpted from the Museum Of Chinese in America's street performance Catching Silhouettes.
Embodying true mischief unfettered at maximum strength, Deborah Kaufmann's Mud is not quite human, but she shows us our human charm, frailties, quirks and needs. Kaufmann has taken dance, mask work and clown (circus and theatrical), flavored them with a pinch of bouffon and a hint of Harold and the Purple Crayon" to create this spritely buffoon, Mud.

January 13 at 7pm

EARLY DRAFTS I

Sailors
Directed by Rupert Krüger

now|here
Created by Françoise Voranger, Andrea Nicole Ortiz, Chauncie Parchment, and Maks Turner

The Early Drafts Series features works in development. Sailors tells the story of a ship out to sea for all eternity. However, the crew has no captain, no destination, and no memory of how they got there. Through labor the crew grapple with isolation, shame, and lost boyhood. now|here is a contemporary collage in motion reflecting perceptions of our own humanity. With each vignette, a collage in motion takes shape, forming a dynamic mosaic unveiling the paradoxes of our times and summoning our collective potential.

January 13 at 7pm & 8:30pm

A Good Woman
Created and Performed by Nerissa Tunnessen and Sam Xiao Cody

Dark Secrets and Other Stories
Created and Performed by Nancy Lyon

This split bill features two distinct shows. A Good Woman is an original dance theater and live music work reimagining of the story of the Odyssey's Penelope. In a creative collaboration between two queer femme performers, a dancer and a violinist, and a loom, the work delves deeper into Penelope's inner narrative, untangling relationships to gendered ideals, shame, and pleasure. Dark Secrets is a Mimodrame (a mime play) taking place on a split stage. Using masks, it explores the rivalry between two women and the identical faces they wear in public versus who they are in private. Seasons is a lyrical poem in the elliptical style of Marcel Marceau where a turn represents the passage of time.

January 14 at 7pm & 8:30pm

Goofballs Cabaret
Performed by Dick Monday, Tiffany Riley, Hilary Chaplain, Chet Monday, Lily Monday, Ben Villaseñoror

Goofballs Cabaret features a madcap group of physical comedians and variety performers led by comedy veterans Dick Monday and Tiffany Riley. With comedy at its core, Goofballs Cabaret features eccentric dancing, visual manipulation, musical saw, magic, a songbird from heaven, the fastest tap dancing in lower Manhattan and satirical attacks on the foibles and inconsistencies of the human race.

January 14 at 7pm & 8:30pm

The Fluxus Brothers Present: Good Art Bad Art

The Fluxus Brothers are a famous performance art duo made up of real-life brothers Ben and Mason with their Dada, Morgan. Attend all five senses to a performance art lecture demonstration featuring scores from the historic Fluxus art movement of the 1960s alongside Fluxus-inspired originals by The Fluxus Brothers and their Dada. Vintage Fluxus scores include: "Drip Music" by George Brecht (1959), "Proposition: Make a Salad" by Alison Knowles (1962), "Wall Piece for Orchestra" by Yoko Ono (1962).

January 16 at 1pm

Pat Frisk / Duck
Created and Performed by Joanne Edelmann
Stop, Replay

Created and Performed by Abhirami Rao

This split bill features two distinct shows. Pat Frisk / Duck is a fictional first two nights of female incarceration along with the trajectory of being released. Stop, Replay combines the rich vocabulary of the classical Indian dance Bharatanatyam with poetry, dialogues, and music, to craft a piece adapted from Indian mythology.

January 16 at 7pm

Early Drafts II

Before I Was an Egg I Was a Chicken

The Grim Reaper Presents: DEATH

Uninvisible

Early Drafts II features three works in development. Before I was an egg I was a chicken by Lulu Munteanu is a look into how we view different versions of the self are deeply informed by gender, transition, and absurdity. In The Grim Reaper Presents: DEATH by Ellena and Riley Soloner, join the Angel of Death for an absurd, life affirming(?) show to lift your spirits. Ian Farley's Uninvisible is a one-man show exploring self-discovery and heroism that blends puppetry (object and shadow theatre) with contemporary theatre clown work.

January 16 at 7pm & 8:30pm

A Drag Is Born

Created and Performed by Edu Díaz

In a twist of fate, a man is thrust into the spotlight to become the Queen of the Carnival. With advanced age, abundant body hair, and limited talents, he is an unlikely candidate. Clown and magical realism fuel a nonverbal and whimsical quest accompanied by delightful music and colorful outfits, conveying a hopeful message: it's never too late to embrace yourself. A Drag Is Born is a multi-awarded celebration of Queer discovery created and performed by Edu Díaz, a Fulbright-awarded artist from The Canary Islands.

January 17 & 18 at 7pm & 8:30pm

Broken Box Mime Theater

Broken Box Mime (BKBX) presents a best-of collection of original short stories told entirely through movement. Set to rich lighting and a heart-thumping soundtrack, our narratives range from realistic to metaphorical, heart-wrenching to hilarious, and cinematic to intimate, held together by a dedication to the empowered imagination and the collective artistic voice of our diverse company. Based in NYC and founded in 2011, BKBX reimagines French pantomime through the lens of contemporary US-American theater.

January 17 & 18 at 7pm & 8:30pm

The Triple Empathy Problem
Here is Siya
Do You Still Believe?

This split bill features three distinct shows. Noah Ortega's The Triple Empathy Problem considers how neurodiverse folks of all sorts navigate interactions with neurotypical folks within autonomous socio-cultural systems. Here is Siya by Joey Antonio is movement-based theater that merges ASL and dance, offering a multi-sensory experience that transcends sound. Noel Olson's Do You Still Believe? takes place in a world that exists in the liminal space between the club and the church: Saturday night into Sunday morning.

January 18 & 19 at 1pm

Please Ship This Wet Gift

Created and performed by Marta Mozelle MacRostie

Please Ship This Wet Gift is one clown's presentation about terrible feelings, and provides an opportunity for family audiences to laugh together about feeling bad. Everyone can go home when she thinks you're prepared. This original work uses drawing, audience suggestions, made-up songs, puppetry, and cardboard sharks to explore dealing with the things in life that are unfair, scary, sad, and just really annoying.

January 18 at 4pm

It Goes Without Saying

Created and Performed by Bill Bowers

Ages 13+

Join us for this fun and unflinching look at the life and mimes of Bill Bowers. It Goes Without Saying takes the audience on a scenic tour of Bill's life thus far: from growing up gay in the wilds of Montana, his outrageous jobs as a performer, studying with Marcel Marceau, and the whirlwind of working on Broadway. Bill observes the incredible power that silence can wield - whether on stage, between family members, among neighbors, or when we are alone. Bill talks (yes, talks) with sensitivity, precision, and constant humor about a life lived out loud.

Please visit www.physfestnyc.org for updates and more information.

About the PhysFestNYC Teams

K8 August (technical director | they/them) has hidden out in downtown New York City theater spaces, turning things on and off for the past two decades. When not turning lights on and off, running xlr, or screwing set pieces together, they're often found spelunking in tech closets muttering. Currently they are playing around in St. Louis, building things, and accidentally occasionally teaching the next generation of engineers & architects the art of crap-entry. Favorite past projects include but are not limited to PhysFest NYC 2024, TUSSAUD/ANTOINETTE, Devil in a Box, a sex thing (or, a bunch of liberals getting uptight about the sociopolitical implications of their desires), and Basil Twist's Puppet Parlor. They currently sit on the board of Broken Box Mime, (the best Mime production company ever!) They have a profound enjoyment of waffles.

Becky Baumwoll (producer | she/her) is an NYC-based artist and founding Artistic Director of Broken Box. Becky has directed projects small and large, from a US premiere of a Georgian play with Red Lab Productions to a Samsung Commercial all about hands. Onstage, Becky has worked regionally and Off-Broadway as an actor with words. She currently works as a consultant with Arts Action Research, supporting arts leaders to strengthen their organizations by grounding their administration in the artistic process. Becky is a teaching artist with BKBX, Arts Ignite, and the International Rescue Committee. She is a 2020 BRIClab artist, 2021 International Teaching Artist Collective Innovator, and 2021 NYC Women's Fund grantee.

Alverneq Lindsay (producer | she/her) is a creative producer, performer, and arts advocate based in Brooklyn, NY. With a diverse background in supporting artists across various disciplines, she has worked as a Producer at The Movement Theatre Company, The Bushwick Starr, The Public Theater (Richard III, A Raisin in the Sun, Dark Disabled Stories, Hamlet), and with independent artists including nicHi douglas (Public Displays of (self) Affection, Lincoln Center). She is an alum of WP Theater's 2022-2024 Producing Lab. Passionate about enhancing arts access for both artists and audiences, she's worked as an artistic curator at Little Island and the New Victory Theater. As an independent producer, Alverneq creates spaces that foster community by encouraging emotional vulnerability and a sense of play. She's driven by her belief that the arts can cultivate empathy and inspire us to reimagine our future. She is excited to join the PhysFestNYC team as a Co-Producer for the 2025 festival and looks forward to celebrating the wide range of physical theater artists right here in NYC.

Mark Lonergan (producer | he/him) is a New York-based director/creator, and the Artistic Director of Parallel Exit, a three-time Drama Desk Award nominee for Unique Theatrical Experience. With Parallel Exit, he has created many original and award-winning works of physical theatre. Mark's work has been seen in theatres and festivals in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia. In New York City, he has presented work at Lincoln Center, BAM, The New Victory Theater, 59E59 Theaters, Symphony Space, and the Guggenheim Museum. He recently directed EXIT which toured across Germany. Mark was the Guest Director for three productions of The Big Apple Circus, each a New York Times Critic's Pick. Mark was the Physical Comedy Consultant for Tony winner Christian Borle in the City Center Encores production of Me And My Girl. He was also the Creative Director for Vermont's celebrated Circus Smirkus for five seasons.

About Broken Box Mime Theater

Broken Box Mime Theater (BKBX) is a collaborative theater company that performs original work entirely through movement. Our mission is to activate the imaginations of our audiences, contemporize the art of mime, and remind us all of the power of simple storytelling. Based in NYC and founded in 2011, our version of "mime, redefined" blends techniques of French pantomime, cinema, performance art, and contemporary theater. The 19 artists who call BKBX their artistic home believe in making innovative, provocative theater that erases the spoken language barrier and champions the power of simplicity in performance. More at www.brokenboxmime.com

About Parallel Exit

Parallel Exit is a three-time Drama Desk nominated physical theatre company based in New York City, dedicated to creating compelling stories that are family-friendly, cultivating art that speaks to a culturally boundless audience of any age. Productions have received both local and international praise for their inventiveness, energy, and originality, with presentations at such esteemed venues as Lincoln Center, BAM, The New Victory Theater, 59E59 Theaters, and Symphony Space in New York; the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the UK (winning a Spirit of the Fringe Award); and festivals in the U.S., Canada, Poland, Spain, Austria, and Japan. Following an extended German tour in partnership with GOP Variety Arts Theatre Circuit, Parallel Exit served as the powerhouse behind Big Apple Circus' critically-acclaimed The Grand Tour and 40th Anniversary— launching the company's explorations into the art form of circus.

About LubDub Theatre Co

LubDub Theatre Co is an NYC-based company of artists animating stories of science, magic, and myth, with a particular focus on climate emergency and earthly repair. LubDub creates ambitious, athletic work at the intersections of new writing, music, movement, and immersive performance. The company works in many different modes including writer-driven new play development, movement-driven ensemble devising, and research-driven adaptation. Collaboration is the core of every phase of LubDub's creative process. LubDub was formed in 2015 by an ensemble of ten company members working in theater, magic, and dance. The company has since expanded into an evolving ecosystem of multidisciplinary artists based around the world. LubDub's core artistic leadership is Caitlin Nasema Cassidy and Geoff Kanick (Co-Artistic Directors), Robert Duffley (Company Dramaturg), and Miranda Rose Hall (Company Playwright).

About Stella Adler Center for the Arts

Established in 1949, the studio was founded upon Stella's belief in the supreme seriousness of art, both its cultural significance and its power to affect social change. For 70 years, the studio has enriched every part of American culture, training many brilliant artists including actors Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro, Elaine Stritch, Benicio del Toro, Warren Beatty, choreographers Alvin Ailey and Jerome Robbins, playwright Horton Foote and director Peter Bogdanovich.

Today the Stella Adler Studio extends the tradition rooted in Stella's ideals. The Studio uses the power of theater to contribute to positive social transformation, employs craft and art in service to communities and trains highly skilled actors who understand their role as the voice of the people. The studio's mission is to create an environment that nurtures theater artists and audiences who value humanity, their own and others, as their first priority while providing art and education to the greater community.
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