Dead Ladies Show NYC #41
About this Event
ABOUT THIS EVENT
It’s July in New York. You deserve air-conditioning, a drink, and three women who knew how to make a scene. Join us for the Dead Ladies Show NYC on Thursday, July 30. There will be journalism, philanthropy, séances, scandal, and at least one alleged stint as a circus equestrienne. In other words, a perfectly ordinary evening with the Dead Ladies.
DETAILS
Date: Thursday, July 30
Time: 7–9 pm (doors open at 6:50)
Location: The Private Curtain
85 E 4th St., New York, NY 10003, 1st floor
If you’re new here: the Dead Ladies Show began in Berlin and has since gone international, celebrating remarkable women of the past through live storytelling. Each show features three presenters who dig into the lives of bold, brilliant, and sometimes scandalous women who deserve to be remembered and toasted. Think history class with better lighting and a functioning bar.
Questions? (Ex: Can I bring snacks? How do I get in on this sweet, sweet presenter action?) See FAQs below!
Yours truly,
Sheila
P.S. We’re charging a modest cover to keep the lights on and the mic working — if that’s a barrier, email us and we’ll make it work. Tickets purchased online are $10 plus fees; at the door, $15.
THE LADIES
NELLIE BLY (1864–1922) was the investigative journalist who turned stunt reporting into an art form. Born Elizabeth Cochrane, she talked her way into an insane asylum on Blackwell's Island to expose its abuses from the inside, then talked her way around the entire globe in 72 days, beating Jules Verne's fictional Phileas Fogg by 8 days. She turned herself into a national sensation in the process. She didn't just report the news, she became it. Then she used that fame to keep digging into labor conditions, corrupt politicians, and anything else the powerful would rather have kept quiet.
HELEN CLAY FRICK (1888–1984) was an American philanthropist and art collector who established what would become today’s Frick Art Research Library. The daughter of robber baron Henry Clay Frick and his wife Adelaide Howard Childs, Miss Frick grew up in Victorian-era Pittsburgh in their 23-room home, Clayton. During her life she contributed her time, wealth and resources to the betterment of humanity through the arts, as well as causes like The American Red Cross, public land donations, and organizations that improved the quality of life of young, working-class girls.
MADAME HELENA BLAVATSKY (1831–1891) — Mystic, charlatan, or something in between, Blavatsky was one of the most infamous, and incorrigible, women of the 19th century. Born in Russia, with a storied past nobody can verify that may or may not involve stints as a circus equestrienne or an opera singer's mistress, and unverified trips to Tibet and Nepal, she redefined the 19th century occult as the founder of the magically-inclined Theosophical Society — which not only shaped the (so-called) "East-meets-West" element of contemporary New Age culture in the United States, but also had a surprising afterlife as an integral part of the Indian nationalist movement.
THE PRESENTERS
COLLEEN VAUGHN is a lover of pickles, ice cream and taking down the patriarchy. Living in Harlem, she loves running around town with her friends, exploring new food and trying to become friends with people who own boats.
SHARON SPELL is a Moth StorySLAM winner, award-winning screenwriter, comedian and former Clayton docent who never, ever went into the house unsupervised. You can find her on Substack at Sharon Spell and on socials @sharonspell.
TARA ISABELLA BURTON is the author of ‘Self-Made: Creating Our Identities from Da Vinci to the Kardashians,’ ‘Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World,’ and three novels, most recently ‘Here in Avalon.’ She blogs on art, magic, enchantment, faith and technology at her Substack, The Lost Word.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 12.51
