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BROOKLYN WEEKLY, JUNE 16, 2019
ALWAYS REMEMBER: Sunset Park artist Adrián Viajero
Román organized a candlelight vigil to honor those who
deid during Hurricane Maria and its aftermath.
FIDDLER
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PARADE
train’s closure, they each
moved closer to the J and
M trains, only for Gov. Andrew
Cuomo to announce
the cancelation of the Lpocalypse
in January.
In their retelling of the
1964 musical, Tevye —
played by Belsky, who dons
an untamed beard and a
raspy Russian-Jewish accent
— is a wannabe social
media infl uencer, working
as the superintendent for
a couple of apartments in
trendy Williamsburg. He
and his platonic roommate
Golde, along with several
other tenants, including actors
portraying the hip band
Haim, consider moving due
to the impending L-train
shutdown, then are evicted
when the landlord hears
that well-heeled employees
of Amazon will soon be moving
to the neighborhood.
Just as the characters
fi nish plans to scatter to distant
neighborhoods, the allpowerful
Tsar Cuomo announces
the subway closure
averted, and the characters
spin conspiracy theories
that real-estate developers
knew about the last-minute
rescue far in advance.
Belsky discussed similar
theories with her friends,
as condos sprouted up near
her former Bushwick apartment
in the months before
governor’s announcement.
“I was living off the
DeKalb L stop and huge
condos were going up and
I was thinking, ‘Don’t they
know about the L-train
shutdown?’ ” Belsky said.
She and Stokoski say
they want to stage the discussions
they were having
with friends about the
shutdown, to show how
real people talked about
the event, beyond the
news cycles and social
media debates.
“We like to make shows
that talk in the way we
talk,” she said. “You see the
news takes and the Twitter
hot takes, but you don’t
see how people talk among
themselves.”
“Fiddler on the Rooftop
Bar” at the Bell House 149
Seventh St. between Second
and Third avenues in Gowanus,
(718) 643–6510, www.
thebellhouseny.com. Jun.
18 at 7:30 p.m. $15.
the precession drumming
traditional Puerto Rican
rhythms while participants
behind them sang
and danced.
“It was great. It’s so
much better that it’s offi cial
now,” said Lisa, who has attended
the parade since
she was in high school.
This year, she went with
her son, Ethan. “I go every
year to try to keep the culture
and show the kids.”
Mixed with lighthearted
celebration were speeches
by activist groups, such as
Cancel the Debt, which advocates
for the forgiveness
of Puerto Rico’s $72 million
defi cit. Several other
grassroots organizations
that support LGBT rights,
Puerto Rico’s independence,
and anti-rezoning efforts
in Sunset Park helped
spice up the festivities.
But as the parade
wound down, the mood
turned somber. At the end
of the precession, paradegoers
arrived at an altar
in Sunset Park commemorating
the 4,645 people who
died in Hurricane Maria
in 2017.
“The parade is about
celebrating our culture
and our pride, but it’s also
to remember those who
came before us,” said the
altar’s artist, Adrián Viajero
Román. “The vigil is
to balance our mind state
and our energy.”
As the sun set, attendees
“lit” thousands of electric
candles to remember each
victim of the hurricane.
Some mourners brought
photos of their loved ones
that they propped up on
the altar beside Román’s
photos of Puerto Rico.
“It’s like losing a family
member,” Román said
about his decision to build
the altar. “You celebrate
their life, but you also do
something to remember
them always.”
SISTER ACT: The writers of “Fiddler on the Rooftop Bar,” have
moved the 1964 musical to modern-day Williamsburg, with Tevye
as a wannabe social media star, and his three daughters (pictured)
as the California sibling act Haim. Jennifer Walkowiak
PARTY TIME: Thousands came out for the 5th Annual Sunset Park Puerto Rican Parade and Festival
in Sunset Park. Photos by Trey Pentecost Continued from page 1
Continued from page 1
STAR AND STRIPES: Six-year-olds Saul Dominguez, and
Ethan James, celebrate during the parade.
A SOMBER NIGHT: Jason Corley of
Queens lights a candle during the
vigil.
MARCHING DOWN THE STREET:
Paradegoers fl ood the streets.
/thebellhouseny.com