Lady Fest 2018 Will Play The Tank 8/16-9/1

The Tank (Meghan Finn and Rosalind Grush, Artistic Directors) will present their third annual Lady Fest, featuring new work by some of the most exciting lady-identified artists in New York City, in celebration of womanhood and the female voice, in all its glory. Lady Fest 2018 will run August 16-September 1 in both the 56-seat and 98-seat theaters at The Tank (312 West 36th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues). Tickets ($0-$20) may be purchased in advance at www.thetanknyc.org.

MAINSTAGE

Red Emma & The Mad Monk

Written by Alexis Roblan, Directed by Katie Lindsay, Music by Teresa Lotz

August 16-September 1 $20

In the first few months of 2017, 12 year-old Addison has a lot of questions about the world and very little parental supervision. Her best (imaginary) friend is a turn-of-the-19th-century Russian mystic, and her favorite pastime is fighting with deploables on the internet. But when Addison starts to learn about another turn-of-the-century Russian -- the American immigrant and Anarchist, Emma Goldman -- she begins questioning the meaning of political action and just how far we should go to fight oppressive systems. Mystics, anarchists, and snowflakes swirl in this new Russo-American cabaret-style musical about Emma Goldman, Rasputin, and a 12-year-old American girl who is obsessed with both of them and cant get off Twitter.

The Chaos Invocation

Created & Performed by The Daughters Collective

Thursday, August 16 @ 9:30pm $12

The Daughters Collective presents The Chaos Invocation, an immersive ritual to invoke the sultry, sweltering energy of summer's end.

Jumping From Rooftops and Other Ways to Cure Depression

Book, Music & Lyrics by Star Johnson; Directed by Rachael Murray

Friday, August 17 @ 7pm $12

A one woman, folk-soul musical loosely inspired by the true story of Nayla Kidd, an African American Columbia University student who, amidst the pressures of Ivy League life, dropped out of school, went into hiding and became a missing person.

Jubilee Debtors Club

Created by Elizabeth Wautlet & Andres Peyrot

Saturday, August 18 & Sunday, August 19 @ 7pm $15

As Liza leads you through a journey of self-help seminars and wacky last-ditch solutions in an effort to get out of the red, debt becomes more than dollars and cents. It's the currency of love and forgiveness. Both heart-wrenching and hilarious, Jubilee Debtors Club is a refreshing, original and darkly comic performance that talks about dad, Deuteronomy, baseball cards, raspberry tart ... and asks us to reevaluate what we owe and to whom.

Reefher: A storytelling show about lighting up, getting high, and everything in between

Presented by Bunt Cake and Pussyweed

Sunday, August 19 @ 7pm $15

Women, trans, and non-binary storytellers share their most compelling, bizarre, and remarkable experiences from a time they were high.

Kings

Created by Sam Kaseta

Monday, August 20 @ 7pm $14

Kings is a show about history, masculinity, and why they're both ridiculous. An exercise in braggadocio, a disputation of the great man theory of history, a rock concept album, and most importantly a PARTY, this show uses drag to parody historical heroism and to give everyone else a chance to wear the pants. Hosted by Leo Tolstoy, Kings is a drag king cabaret experience for the ages! Part of the Tank's Tank-aret series and LadyFest 2018.

Goodhomeliving

Written by Lindsey Leonard; Directed by Rachel Levens

Tuesday, August 21 @ 7pm $10

DIY your life with the help of longtime lifestyle blogger Lindsey Leonard and her blog goodhomeliving.tumblr.com.

The Raving Jaynes

Created & Performed by Jamie Graham & Amy Larimer

Tuesday, August 21 @ 9:30pm $12

The Raving Jaynes (Jamie Graham & Amy Larimer) mix dance, improv, and physical theater to tell entirely improvised stories. Nothing is choreographed! Nothing is scripted! They've been called the "real deal: sharp, witty, gorgeous, and utterly unique." (Dance Enthusiast). Super special guest La Dynasty will be singing, rapping and spinning her way through an improvised sound score built of tracks from fellow female artists.

SOFT&STARK

Created by Caitlin Adams

Wednesday, August 22 @ 9:30pm $15

SOFT&STARK is an ethereal atmosphere following the strength, interconnectivity, and consistent conviction held within the space of 3 female-identified bodies. Performed by Kristyn Arch, Maggie Beutner, Kelsey Greenway, Kelsey Lanceta, and Lir Katz, the dancers live amidst oppositional qualitative natures that land them in static images reminiscent of classical portraiture. The tension of this vacillation from familiarity and stillness to discomfort and disorientation encourages amnesia surrounding the subtle and explicit violence present in our pasts.

The Boehner Sisters

Written & Performed by Rosa Palmeri & Natalie Rich, Directed by Ivey Lowe

August 22-25 $12

Not one year after Budapest's most well attended and evenly tied sporting event of 2017, reigning strongwoman champions Zofia and Zorka Boehner have joined forces to take on the scraggly remains of America's vaudeville circuit in a marvelous display of Hungarian strength and brassy charm. You can expect iron bending, anchor chucking, chain snapping, and a bit of song 'n dance...all accompanied by a world-renowned trombonist. These #GirlsWhoLift and their handsome 'bonist will perform a highly dangerous, recently legal feat of boom and bang. Witness its premiere, right here in the Big Apple.

Live Big Girl

Presented by A Live Big Project, Directed by Peggy Robles Alvarado

Sunday, August 26 @ 7pm $20

It began as an idea, 3 poets writing together to share their experiences of living in a body that is not celebrated in their culture. It is the taking back of their bodies from the mouths of critics. This idea resulted in the creation of Live Big Girl.

DEVELOPMENTAL READINGS

There Are 43 Stages of Grieving

Written by Micharne Cloughley

Saturday, August 18 @ 3pm FREE

There Are 43 Stages of Grieving tells the story of a robot who is pregnant, and dying. Robots are not supposed to be able to get pregnant, and yet, our robot Taya is pregnant. As a result, she is also dying. With nothing left to lose Taya decommissions herself, and arrives, as a complete stranger, in the apartment of Anne, a human. Anne is also dying. Taya thought it would be a good way to spend their final days together. Anne, who is initially resistant, agrees. So Taya moves in. The question of what Taya is pregnant with, and who will look after it, means they can't sit around and eat cheese all day. The future may change many things about humankind, but feelings, comfort eating, irrationality, flawed technology, and unconditional love persist spectacularly.

Year of the Monkey

Written by Mara Thomas, Directed by Caitlin Wells

Presented by The Delta Boys

Sunday, August 19 @ 3pm FREE

Delta Boys is a nonhierarchical company fresh outta the South that's currently developing a new work with playwright Mara Thomas for a full production at The Tank in spring of 2019. Tentatively titled Year of the Monkey, this devised play is a surreal horror show centered on a squadron of warriors who use feminine intuition/rage/rituals/nature power to wage war against the patriarchy--in the jungle--in 1968. Think Audre Lorde and Clarissa Pinkola Estés do Apocalypse Now.

Diving for Walt (or Under the Sea)

Presented by Paint Theatre

Written by Gillian Beth Durkee, Directed by Zoe Clayton

Saturday, August 25 @ 3pm $5

Thousands of years in the future, in the sea over what used to be Florida, two deep-sea divers discover what remains of Disney World. But what will they do with this exciting and powerful discovery? What follows is an exploration of ambition and legacy - all under the watchful eye of a very shy sea monster.

Interruptions (or The Play for Rosie's Women)

Written & Directed by Tatiana Kouguell-Hoell

Saturday, August 25 @ 3pm $10

Joanna is a young woman recently incarcerated on Rikers Island, despite her surroundings she tries to keep a positive attitude, especially when her sister, Sage, comes to visit her. Mouly is a college senior going through a horrible break-up. Her best friend Lola tries to support her, but heartbreak and first love are about to test their friendship. The stage is split between Mouly's dorm room and Rose M. Singers (Rosie's) correctional facility on Rikers Island as we discover how the lives of all four women are intertwined and connected.

Ladybug and The Kingfisher

Written by Madison Pollack; Directed by Jenna Rossman

Sunday, August 26 @ 3pm FREE

A ladybug falls in love with a bird. Nature is not in favor of this. Ladybug and the Kingfisher is a fable with music that explores the many dangers of falling in love and which asks why we put ourselves through it over and over and over again.

The Tank is a non-profit arts presenter serving emerging artists engaged in the pursuit of new ideas and forms of expression. We serve over 2,000 artists every year in over 400 performances, and work across all disciplines, including theater, comedy, dance, film, music, public affairs, and storytelling. Our goal is to foster an environment of inclusiveness and remove the burden of cost from the creation of new work for artists launching their careers and experimenting within their art form. The heart of our services is providing free performance space in our 98 seat proscenium and 56 seat blackbox that we operate in Manhattan, and we also offer a suite of other services such as free rehearsal space, promotional support, artist fees, and much more. We keep ticket prices affordable and view our work as democratic, opening up both the creation and attendance of the arts to all.

Past Tank produced-work includes Drama Desk-nominated productions Ada/Ava (2016), youarenowhere (2016), The Paper Hat Game (2017), the ephemera trilogy (2017), and The Hunger Artist (2018), as well as New York Times Critics' Pick The Offending Gesture by Mac Wellman, directed by Meghan Finn (2016). Since its founding in 2003, artists who have come through The Tank include Alex Timbers, Amy Herzog, Lucy Alibar, Mike Daisey, Reggie Watts, Kyle Abraham, Andrew Bujalski, We Are Scientists, and tens of thousands of others. www.thetanknyc.org