Judson Memorial Church to Host A BIG BANG BENEFIT Festival

On February 5-6, Judson Memorial Church will host A Big Bang Benefit, a two-night festival of live readings, music, and communal dinners celebrating the church's 133-year tradition of supporting bold, artist-driven work in downtown New York.

Each evening features two live readings of new plays and screenplays, with a shared community dinner with musical performances in between. The lineup includes new work by Rachel Bonds, Susanna Fogel, C.A. Johnson, and Michael Mitnik, with direction by Lonny Price and Mike Donahue. Actors scheduled to appear include Ephraim Birney, Julia Chan, Michael Cyril Creighton, Ira Glass, Ari Graynor, Jeff Hiller, Nate Miller, and Gayle Rankin, with additional artists to be announced. Ava Delaney and Nev Sings will be featured as musical guests.

The event is produced by Jonathan Caren, Serena Berman, Hayley Jonsen Watkins, Michelle Vera, and Layomi Oloritun, raising funds for Judson Commons, the church's secular arts and justice arm, which supports artist-centered programming such as The Big Bang: Works in Progress.

"Judson has always been a place where artists and neighbors sit at the same table," said Caren, founder of The Big Bang series. "This benefit is about keeping that tradition alive-sharing new work, good food, and real conversation in a space that's been doing this for over a century."

The Big Bang is a free monthly cold-reading series at Judson Memorial Church featuring excerpts of works in progress, open casting sign-ups, and a rotating musical guest. Since launching in fall 2024, it has become a regular gathering point for playwrights, screenwriters, actors, and audiences across the city.

Judson Memorial Church has a long history of supporting downtown artists, from Sam Shepard and María Irene Fornés to more recent collaborators including Heather Christian, Isaac Oliver, and Whitney White. Through Judson Commons, the church continues to provide space, resources, and institutional backing for experimental, justice-minded, and community-rooted art.