BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | As the COVID-19 pandemic set in, the entertainment industry had to adapt. First it was TV specials featuring celebrities crying into their webcams. Then it was TV shows that were rushed back into production with the cast of cops and lawyers all wearing masks. In the near future, we will be […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | It’s the sunny Saturday afternoon of Oct. 10, and Chelsea is filled with people enjoying the kind of warm fall day we’ll be seeing less and less of. What’s more, with COVID-19 restrictions loosening, there are plenty of shoppers and pedestrians on the street at this time of day. This isn’t […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Among the fringe benefits of being a journalist in New York City is the opportunity to attend industry conventions, with full access to things the general public doesn’t get to experience. My last con was February 2020’s Toy Fair, at the Javits Center. Most of the companies I spoke to said […]
BY CHARLI BATTERSBY | It will be impossible for me to review Disclosure objectively, because it is a resoundingly authentic documentary about transgender actors in the film and TV industry. And, when I’m not working as a writer, I’m an actress. The performers interviewed in Disclosure include Laverne Cox, Candis Cayne, MJ Rodriguez, and others, […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Once a year, the Jacob Javits Center is transformed into a giant toy box for Toy Fair New York. Alas, children cannot attend. It is reserved only for members of the toy industry (and lucky kids who parents work in the toy business). We infiltrated this wonderland for a look at […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Nutcracker season is just barely over, and a new bevy of ballet is swooping down on New York, with feathery wings. There are productions of Swan Lake in the months ahead, and leading the flock this weekend is the Shanghai Ballet’s 80-dancer-strong Grand Swan Lake. Derek Dean directed and staged the […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | If you sill have a few nuts to crack in 2020, the Immersive Nutcracker Cocktail Fête is running through Jan. 26. Attendees find themselves as guests at a Christmas party, where they will mingle with Clara and her family. There is virtually no dancing—but there is a scripted show about a […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | New York City has, without a doubt, entered the point of real estate inflation where storefronts are so expensive that retailers can’t justify signing a year-round lease, but clever marketing juggernauts can profit from temporary pop-ups that offer live experiences which build brand awareness, but don’t need to turn a long-term […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Balletomanes tend to roll their eyes at The Nutcracker Suite—but because it takes place during a Christmas party, no one can resist the allure of this seasonal classic. Some people even see it multiple times a year. New York City has more productions of it than you can shake a candy […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | When Slava’s Snowshow first came to New York, back in 2004, American culture had little representation of clowning outside of Pennywise from It, and the new interpretation of The Joker from latest Batman movie. How times have changed in the last 15 years… Slava Polunin, the creator of Snowshow, hails from […]