QUEER HISTORY: CHANTEYS AND SAILORS Event Set For South Street Seaport Museum

The South Street Seaport Museum will present the next installment of its ongoing series exploring the history of queer life in Lower Manhattan with Queer History: Chanteys and Sailors. The event will take place on Sunday, April 19, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. in the first-floor gallery of the A.A. Thomson & Co. building at 213 Water Street. Admission is free, with advance reservations required.

The program will feature a performance by the Ranzo Boys, a New York City-based trans maritime folk duo. Combining music and storytelling, the event will examine lesser-known queer narratives from the Golden Age of Sail, including references to Walt Whitman and accounts of sailors who used life at sea as a means of gender transition.

Blending folk traditions, sea chanteys, and cabaret-style storytelling, the performance will explore both historical and contemporary queer communities connected to maritime culture. The event is structured as a hybrid of concert and historical presentation.

About the Artists

The Ranzo Boys—Lafayette Matthews and Jules Peiperl—have performed together since 2013. Their work focuses on traditional folk music, including English harmonies, Appalachian ballads, and sea chanteys, with an emphasis on inclusivity and queer reinterpretation of the repertoire.

Museum Access

Admission to the event includes access to the museum’s historic ships and exhibition galleries from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors can board the 1885 tall ship Wavertree and the 1908 lightship Ambrose Lightship at Pier 16, as well as explore exhibitions at Schermerhorn Row and the Maritime City installation at A.A. Thomson & Co.

About South Street Seaport Museum