Featuring Performances by Amber Iman, Gavin Creel, Sasha Allen, Jo Lampert, Whitney White, Ayodele Casel, and More
Starting At 4:00pm At Hudson River Park’s Pier 76
Free and Open to the Public
25-Week-Long Festival Helped Shepherd the Return of Live Performance with More Than 300 Performances by 634 Artists Throughout New York City’s Five Boroughs and All Across New York State
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced NY PopsUp, which helped usher live performance back to the Empire State, will reach its triumphant conclusion on Saturday, August 7 at 4:00 PM. The final event in this statewide, multi-month cultural catalyst, taking place at Hudson River Park’s Pier 76, will feature performances by Broadway superstar Amber Iman, Tony Award® winner Gavin Creel, Sasha Allen, Jo Lampert, Obie Award® winner Whitney White, Hoofer Award® winner Ayodele Casel, and more.
To sign up for the FREE event, please click HERE.
The event will also be live streamed on the festival’s Instagram feed: @NYPopsUp.
«The arts are synonymous with New York, but for more than a year our community of world-class artists and entertainers were sidelined as live performances were shuttered,» Governor Cuomo said. «Through NY PopsUp, we were able to share the unparalleled experience of live entertainment with communities all across the state, while supporting New York’s arts professionals with events and venues designed to promote social distancing. As this initiative winds down, the state continues to build back better and I’m grateful to all the New Yorkers who participated and helped to make this a success.»
With events in every borough in New York City and all across the state, NY PopsUp will have presented original performances for a total of 25 weeks, employing 634 artists across 300 performances. In addition to re-opening Broadway on April 3, 2021, NY PopsUp played in churches, parks, squares, subway stations, libraries and street corners. Coordinated in lockstep with state public health officials to create and manage COVID safety guidelines, these new protocols will now be used for live performance throughout New York State.
NY PopsUp, the statewide initiative first announced by the Governor as part of his 2021 State of the State address, was designed to celebrate and reinvigorate the arts. With its inaugural performance for frontline workers at the Jacob Javits Center on February 20, 2021, the festival has served as a beacon of hope for New York residents and arts professionals across the world who had endured nearly a full year of darkness. The series of events was intended to revitalize the spirit and well-being of New York citizens with the energy of live performance, while jumpstarting New York’s live entertainment sector. This was all done in coordination with the New York State Council on the Arts and Empire State Development.
The programming for NY PopsUp was curated by stage director Zack Winokur, in partnership with a hand-selected council of artistic advisors who represent the diversity of New York’s dynamic performing arts scene and artistic communities.
Mr. Winokur commented, «For those of us who believe deeply in the power and import of live performance, this festival was more than a passion; it was a calling. I am so grateful to our brilliant and endlessly resourceful family of artistic advisors, as well as every single participating artist we employed. I’m also grateful to the incredible people of this state, who reimbursed us for every ounce of enthusiasm we put into this festival with their own.»
The council of artistic advisors, who collaborated and co-curated NY PopsUp, is comprised of a unique group of New York’s premier artistic visionaries, all hailing from different disciplinary backgrounds and each a leader in their own field. These advisors were charged with inviting other artists to join the NY PopsUp community. The artists they engaged, in turn, engaged their own networks, ultimately populating the festival with the broadest, most diverse coalition of performers ever united around a single mission.
The council includes renowned choreographer and MacArthur Fellow, Kyle Abraham; Academy Award-winning and three-time Grammy Award nominated jazz musician, Jon Batiste; choreographer and Hoofer Award-winning tap dancer Ayodele Casel; Grammy Award nominated singer, actor, and international opera star, Anthony Roth Costanzo; the playwright of Slave Play, the most Tony Award nominated play in history, Jeremy O. Harris; Award-winning director and choreographer Raja Feather Kelly; Tony Award-winning set designer Mimi Lien; the legendary nine-time Grammy Award-winning musician, Wynton Marsalis; two-time National Book Critics Circle Award-winning poet, essayist, and playwright, Claudia Rankine; Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist, Cécile McLorin Salvant; leading member of the Punch Brothers and four-time Grammy Award winner, Chris Thile; and acclaimed director and musician, Whitney White.
Events produced by NY PopsUp took place in subways, street corners, parks, Broadway Theaters, churches, libraries, museums, and included the following artists: Oreste Abrantes Kidd, Joseph Aguilar, Summer Ainsworth, Sasha Allen, Basie Allen, Laurie Anderson, Tamika Anthony, Hector Aponte, Tyler Ashley, Taina Asili, Saint Aubyn, Calvin (CEE) Bagby, Kaylee Barahona, Tatiana Barber, Cemiyon Barber, Darius Barnes, Jamie Barton, Morgan Bassichis, Jainardo Bastista, Jon Batiste, Maria Bauman, Jean Baylor, Torya Beard, Hamilton Berry, Mx Justin Vivian Bond, Lloyd Boyd, Robby Boyer, Broadway Inspirational Voices, Aaron Brockett, Brian Harlan Brooks, ShaQUAnna Brown, Dorian Bryant, Kalik Burwell, Alexandra Campbell, Douglas Campos, Maxi Canion, Tomoe Carr, Cebo Carr, Elijah Carter, Ayodele Casel, Amanda Castro, Noah Catala, Fortunado «Lucky» Cerutti, Duan Chappel, Janet Charleston, Alexander Chee, Dusty Childers, Lamell Clemons, JaiQuinn Coleman, Elvis Collado, Deandre Cousley, Cakes da Killa, Nicole Daisy, Michael Daves, Charity Dawson, Ama Dente, Angela DiCarlo, Khalif Diouf, Antoine Dolberry, Zachary Downer, Ron Dukes, Latoya Duncan, Jamie Dzandu, Emily Edwards, Scott Eichholz, Jerome Ellis, Quaba Venza Ernest, Ulises Estevez, Kayla Farrish, Mariposa Fernandez, David Flores, T’ai Freedom Ford, Byrell Forrest, Sullivan Fortner, Jasmine Freeman, Mario Frisaura, Thomas Fucaloro, Naomi Funaki, Nicholas Ryan Gant, Savion Glover, Courtney Goffney, Matthew Gonzalez, Shakier Gordon, Brenden Gotham, Brandon Gray, Molly Hager, Crystal Monee Hall, Jordan Hall, Wesley H. Halsey, Spencer Hamlin, Dorchel Haqq, Shawntele Harper, Jacquelin Harris, Nicolette Hart, Alex Haskins, Maxfield Haynes, Jasmine Hearn, Takao Heisho, Marguerite Hemmings, Eduardo Hernandez, Tyneshia Hill, Curtis Holland, Jackson Howard, Helen Zhibing Huang, Dava Huesca, Joselia Hughes, Eleanor Hullihan, Orlando Hunter, Gabe Hyman, Joe Iconis, Amber Iman, Charlene Incarnate, Jon Ingle, Rashidah Ismaili, Baruch Israel, Aisha Jackson, Cynthia Jackson, Marcus Paul James, Russell Janzen, Melody Johnson, Kellie Johnson, Wonza Johnson, Jade Jones, Kina Kamara, Aaron Keeney, Ashley Kendall, Emily King, Daniel King, Savannah Knoop, Matthias Gunther Kodat, Nouhoum Koita, Elizabeth Koke, Athena Kokoronis, Cori Kresge, Lake Street Dive, Jo Lampert, Loni Landon, Joseph Landon, Nathan Lane, Greg Lau, Lazour Brothers, Amy Leon, Norm Lewis, Heather Litteer, Deborah Lohse, Jahtiek Long, Mariah Lopez, Aaron Loux, Rasheed Lucas, Soraya Lundy, Andre Malcolm, Jorge Maldonado, Sheila Maldonado, Jarvis Manning Jr, John Manzari, Lauren Marcus, Rebecca Margolick, MJ Markovitz, Amber Martin, Andriniki Mattis, Pablo Mayor, Lina McBride, Anastacia McCleskey, Mishonna McCottry, Janelle McDermoth, Nerita McFarlane, Paloma McGregor, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Sara Mearns, Jodi Melnick, Taylor Melton, Matthew Mendoza, Bryan Meritt, Yoaldri Messina, Missing Element, Kizzy Mitchell, Rashaun Mitchell, Ty Mitchell, Marielys Molina, Camilo Ernesto Molina, Chalvar Monteiro, Armani Moore, Annilea Murphy, Pete Nater, Mina Nishimura, Tomás Urayoán Noel, Darnell Norman, Jannina Norpoth, Adjua Gargi Nzinga Greaves, Shane O’Neill, Hakeem Olayinka, Christina Olivares, Kali Oliver, Tru Osborne, Ladan Osman, Kassa Overall, Theodore Owen, Alethea Pace, Ricky Pak, Jill Pangallo, Kimie Parker, Asante Parker, Burdette Parks, Aramie Payton, Zach Pearson, Logan Pedon, Sarah Naima Penniman, Ash Phan, Alia Pierre, Darnell Pittman, Keeara Powell, Joya Powell, Sam Pratt, Omar Pride, Brontez Purnell, Katy Pyle, Noel Quiñones, Adam R, Davon Rainey, River L. Ramirez, Camille Rankine, Davon Redmond, Elliot Reed, Jon-Michael Reese, Bushra Rehman, Resistance Revival Chorus, Nick Revel, Jonathan Rhodes, Brandon Richards, Silas Riener, José A. Rivera, Quinn Roberts, Jade Robertson, William Rodriguez, Bruno Alexander Rodriguez, Juhanna Rogers, Omar Roman de Jesus, Martell Ruffin, Judith Salinas-Glover, Bobby Sanabria Multiverse Big Band, Joshua Sanders, Cameron L. Schenandoah, Alexandria Shiner, Xavier Smith, Pamela Sneed, Paul Soileau, Vuyo Sotashe, Vuyolwethu Sotashe, Samantha Spies, Taylor Stanley, Brian Starke, Max Steele, Curtis Steward, Kent Streed, Moses Sumney, Chris Thile, Chris Thomas, Brooke D. Thomas, Aaron Thomas, ThugPop, Nathaniel Trice, DJ Truemaster, Mac Twinning, Ricarrdo Valentine, Ryan Vasquez, Yazmin Morales Vicente, Nicole Von Arx, Saxton Jay Walker, Christian Warner, Amadi Washington, Daniel Watts, Emily Wells, Kristin Wetherington-Hamilton, Dorien Williams, Christopher Williams, Errol Wilson, Nat Wilson, Maddy Wright, Corey Wright, Fran Yardley, and Christopher Yoon.
Locations of NY PopsUp included such iconic venues such as: The Javits Center, Garth Fagan Dance Company (Rochester), Queens Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Bronx Museum, Central Park, Basilica Hudson, The Africa Center, Astoria Park, The Oculus, The St. James Theatre (Broadway), Albee Square, The Broadway Theatre (Broadway), East River Amphitheater, McCarren Park, Fort Tryon Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Fort Greene Park, Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden, Woodstock Public Library, Union Square, Empire State Plaza, Petit Branch Library (Syracuse), St. John the Divine, Battery Park, Coney Island, Pioneer Park (Cooperstown), Prospect Park, MoMA PS1, Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute (Utica), and Hudson River Park’s Pier 76.