This kitten has claws.
Public Theatre hosts one-of-a-kind
show as a part of NY PopsUp
BY BOB KRASNER
Sunday’s extravagant seven-hour presentation
on the steps of the Public Theatre, sponsored
by NY PopsUp, wasn’t supposed to be quite so
momentous.
“Originally,” Justin Vivian Bond tells us, “It was only
supposed to be me and the band on the roof of the Parkside
Lounge, but that didn’t work out.” Bond approached
the Public, where she frequently performs at Joe’s Pub
and they agreed to turn the front steps into a stage.
Bond then turned into a curator, a role she has inhabited
before – notably for the Spiegel Tent at Bard – as
NY PopsUp decided to make a day of it, giving Bond
free reign to choose the performers.
“I was thrilled that they let me do a whole afternoon,
” Bond relates. “I wanted to get people I knew and loved
and give them the opportunity to perform there.”
“I never thought I’d perform at the Public,” admits
Celeste. “I am so grateful to Viv for asking me. It was
a one-of-a-kind experience.” For the multi-talented
Heather Litteer, who performed her spoken-word piece
PHOTOS BY BOB KRASNER
‘Manhattan’ with keyboard accompaniment by Paul
Wallfi sch,
“It was like a magical family picnic. Everything
aligned for the fi rst time in a long time,” she continued.
“Performing on the steps of the Public, I felt that
there were ghosts and angels surrounding us. Viv did
such a wonderful job putting everyone together. It was
electrifying.”
The performers covered a lot of territory, from drag
to comedy to opera to poetry to Christeene who is, well,
Christeene.
“Christeeneis my new favorite rock star: feral, ferocious
and sublime!” exclaims author Julie Turley, echoing
the opinions of many others, including her 19-year-old
daughter Stella. “Christeene and Justin Vivian Bond
were my favorites because they both had great presence
and important things to say, which was to connect
witheach other, get off our phones, and treateach other
better. And to love ourselves,” said Stella.
Bond, who handled the MC duties as well, couldn’t
have been happier with how it all worked out. “It was
mind-blowing!” she says. “Everyone brought their ‘A’
game, every performance was fully realized. It made
me appreciate how brilliant everyone was. ” Continuing,
she notes that the whole day was “stress-free and fun”,
giving credit to the NY PopsUp staff for being, simply,
“the best.”
Bond certainly brought her ‘A’ game, but then, she
always does. Closing out the day with her regular
musicians – Matt Ray, Nath Ann Carrera and Claudia
Chopek – her mix of covers and originals culminated
in a moment of transcendence during Bowie’s ‘Rock
and Roll Suicide’. Not the tune that you might expect to
uplift, but hearing Vivian proclaim, “No love, you’re not
alone” over and over felt like a group hug.
The Dauphine (Tyler Ashley) and Charlene
Incarnate performed a lip-sync tour-de-force.
Julie Turley, who was there for the entire day, summed
it up like this: “I’ve been buying tickets at Joe’s Pub
for years to see Justin Vivian Bond perform shows that
embrace history and community with incredible style,
so I knew that an outdoor, all-day event curated by Viv
would be spectacular. And it was.”
Most of what you need to know about Justin Vivian
Bond can be found atwww.justinvivianbond.com/ She
can be followed on Instagram at @mxviv
NY PopsUp is atwww.nypopsup.com/and on Instagram
at @nypopsup
Waiting in the wings: Xavier Smith, Lady Bunny,
Christeene and Horrorchata.
10 July 15, 2021 Schneps Media
/atwww.justinvivianbond.com
/and
