New York City AIDS Memorial Live Arts 2023
Overview
In the spring and summer of 2023, the New York City AIDS Memorial launched its first full season of free, public arts and cultural programming. Organized alongside artist, musician, and curator Nick Hallett, the seasonal slate activated the Memorial as a dynamic living site of memory, creative energy, and cross-generational dialogue. By presenting performance, dance, poetry, and experimental music, the series contextualized the histories of HIV/AIDS through both historical and contemporary voices, examining themes of joy, mourning, advocacy, and collective resilience.
Project Context & Curatorial Role
As Executive Director, Commissioner, and Producer alongside Curator Nick Hallett, I led the organizational strategy, institutional co-presentations, and production for the seasonal series, opening the site up as an outdoor stage for performance rooted in response to the epidemic.
John Bernd Variations: Open Rehearsal (May 18): Co-presented with Danspace Project, choreographers Ishmael Houston-Jones and Miguel Gutierrez led a public open rehearsal re-examining the work of influential choreographer John Bernd (1953–1988). Performed alongside dancers Raha Behnam, Toni Carlson, Alvaro Gonzalez, Charles Gowin, Kris Lee, Johnnie Cruise Mercer, and Alex Rodabaugh, the project reanimated Bernd's choreographic lineage at the Memorial.
Weavers of the Daisy Chain Gang Chorus: Ties That Bond (June 10): Artists Peter Cramer and Jack Waters partnered with experimental music group NYOBS to present a collaborative performance combining choral voice, soundscapes, and queer performance traditions.
Head Back, Eyes to Sky (June 29): Featuring poet and activist Pamela Sneed alongside musicians Mazz Swift and Natalie Greffel, this evening of spoken word, violin, and vocal improvisation explored themes of grief, freedom, and transcendent survival.
Role: Commissioner/Producer, with Nick Hallett, Curator
Date: May 18—June 29, 2023
Location: New York City AIDS Memorial, New York, NY
Photography: Avery Brunkus, Benjamin Chertoff
