Photo Credit: Ariane Laezza
JOE’S PUB PRESENTS LIZA PAUL & BAHIA WATSON’S MASHUP ting!
SEPTEMBER 15-17, 2022
PART OF THE 2022-23 NEW YORK VOICES ARTIST COMMISSION PROGRAM
Joe’s Pub is thrilled to present the U.S. debut of MASHUP ting!,an island-kissed circus cabaret directed and performed by Liza Paul and Bahia Watson, on September 15-17. Part of New York Voices, the artist commissioning arm of Joe’s Pub, the show is a cabaret-sized iteration of Paul and Watson’s larger stage production MASHUP PON DI ROAD, which had its premiere in Toronto, ON in July 2022. A bashment (a type of dancehall music) variety show of sorts, MASHUP ting! is a joyful rebellion that is punk rock in spirit and island in vibe. Watson wants their audiences to “look out at what was once an ordinary world on the brink of implosion and see another possibility. I want people to leave feeling themselves, and feeling good,” said Watson. Tickets are on sale now here.
Fusing irreverent humor with clever cultural critique, MASHUP ting! pokes fun at the constraints of the patriarchy, the expectations of womanhood, and the end of the world as we know it. Through a series of fast-paced vignettes and catchy original songs, Paul and Watson [rum] punch up at the ruling class, giving their audiences a funhouse mirror look at the sheer absurdity of the oppressive world. For these two hilarious and wildly smart artists, the path to liberation sparkles with laughter. They invite audiences to “come one, come all. Mek we get unruly.”
“We want to bring some joy and lightness and play to people,” says Paul. “We’ve all had an especially rough ride the past couple of years; we could all use a moment to free up ourselves and have fun!” Watson adds, “All the music and comedy and characters are spun around to create a portal for people to enter our universe and exit feeling freer than when they came. That’s the intention.”
Produced by Paul Watson Productions, MASHUP ting! costumes are by Toronto-raised Mriga Kapadiya and Amrit Kumar of NorBlack NorWhite.
New York Voices is Joe’s Pub at The Public’s artist commissioning program. As part of The Public Theater’s long history of cultivating the country’s most celebrated artists, this program supports the creation of new works by critically-acclaimed musicians and performers. New York Voices encourages artists to explore their storytelling, narratives, and songwriting processes and includes a variety of developmental and practical resources. Each commission culminates with a run of live shows on the Joe’s Pub stage. The program successfully connects artists with their contemporaries and significantly expands their abilities to reach wider audiences. Many of the commissioned works have toured nationally and internationally. The 2022/2023 commissions are by Bahia Watson & Liza Paul, Chris Pattishall & Vuyo Sotashe, Daniel J. Watts & Nick Blaemire, Sunny Jain, and treya lam.
New York Voices is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Our audience policy requires complete COVID-19 vaccination by the date of attendance for access into the facility, theaters, and restaurant. Please read the full policy here.
JOE’S PUB, a program of the Public Theater, was named for Public Theater founder Joseph Papp. Since it opened in 1998, Joe’s Pub has played a vital role in The Public’s mission of supporting artists at all stages of their careers with an intimate space to perform and develop new work. Joe’s Pub presents the best in live music and performance nightly, continuing its commitment to diversity, production values, community, and artistic freedom. In addition to one-night-only concerts and multi-night engagements, Joe’s Pub is home to the annual Habibi Festival, which hosts artists representing contemporary and traditional music of the SWANA (Southwest Asia/North Africa) region, and The Vanguard Award & Residency, a yearlong curation series that celebrates the career, and community, of a prolific and influential artist—including Nona Hendryx, Judy Collins, Laurie Anderson, and Barbara Maier Gustern. With its intimate atmosphere and superior acoustics, Joe’s Pub presents over 700 shows featuring artists from all over the world and hosts over 100,000 audience members annually. Beyond public performances, Joe’s Pub also leads artist development programs like New York Voices,a commissioning program that helps musicians develop new performance projects, and Joe’s Pub Working Group, an artist-led development and collaboration cohort. Current commissioned artists include Daniel J. Watts & Nick Blaemire, Liza Paul & Bahia Watson, Sunny Jain, Vuyo Sotashe & Chris Pattishall, and treya lam. Joe’s Pub is supported in part by an American Rescue Plan Act grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support general operating expenses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PAUL WATSON PRODUCTIONS – Founded by Liza Paul and Bahia Watson, Paul Watson Productions is a force dedicated to creating politically conscious work that doesn’t take itself too seriously. pomme is french for apple, their first collaboration and international sensation, was simultaneously a Caribbean and vaudevillian exploration of the absurdity of women’s lives, from Toronto to London to the too-tight crotch of the pants. Paul Watson Productions is a company in residence with Why Not Theatre’s SHARE programming platform.
Connect with Joe’s Pub
www.publictheater.org/programs/joes-pub
www.youtube.com/user/joespubNY
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