Brooklyn College is opening its stages to the public this October as part of a brand-new, monthlong performing arts festival spanning City University of New York campuses across all five boroughs. The lineup includes a free chamber recital devoted to Johannes Brahms and a full production of María Irene Fornés's drama Fefu and Her Friends, giving Brooklyn audiences two very different nights out without leaving Midwood.
The college will host music and theater performances as part of the new CUNY Stages Festival, according to BKReader, which describes the broader festival as a monthlong celebration of performing arts at CUNY campuses across the five boroughs. The citywide initiative spans CUNY's 14 campuses and folds in classical music and contemporary theater in Brooklyn alongside dance, film, live music and family entertainment happening elsewhere in the city, the outlet reports.
A Free Night of Brahms at the Tow Center
On October 20, Brooklyn College will host a free chamber recital built around the music of Johannes Brahms, per the same BKReader report. The performance is set for the Leonard and Clare Tow Center for the Performing Arts at 2900 Bedford Ave. The recital will feature Brahms's Liebeslieder Waltzes, Op. 52 and Op. 65, according to Brooklyn College, with soprano Christine Cornell, mezzo-soprano Margaret Dobbins, tenor Patrick Silk and bass George Baolin performing alongside pianists Jay Simon Abrera and William Rayment.
Brooklyn College's venue page lists Malcolm Merriweather and Ursula Oppens as directors of the performance. The Tow Center itself, which features three major theaters, flexible event space, and state-of-the-art sound and lighting equipment according to Brooklyn College Tickets, is positioned as a campus hub where rentals and ticketed programs directly support the programmatic mission of Brooklyn College and its students and artists.
Fornés Drama Takes the Don Buchwald Stage
Just a few days after the recital, Brooklyn College's theater program turns to Fefu and Her Friends by María Irene Fornés, staged at the Don Buchwald Theater and directed by Ran Xia, the bkreader report notes. The play follows a group of women whose conversations reveal personal struggles and the effects of gender expectations, a premise that has made it a staple of experimental American theater.
Performances are scheduled for October 23, 24, 26, 27 and 28, including a matinee on October 24, the report states. Together, the recital and the play give Brooklyn College two distinct entries in a festival that spans everything from intimate chamber music to full-length drama.
A Five-Borough Festival With Many Free Events
Brooklyn College's offerings are part of a much larger citywide push. The new CUNY Stages Festival is taking place throughout October, bringing performances to CUNY's performing arts venues in all five boroughs, according to BronxMama. The festival includes everything from experimental theater and dance to concerts, circus performances and family shows, with many events free or offered at affordable prices, the outlet reports.
Beyond Brooklyn, CUNY venues in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens will also host theater, music, dance, film and family programming throughout the month, per the same BronxMama account. In the Bronx specifically, the lineup includes the children's stage show Plim Plim, the musical Quarter Rican about identity and gentrification, a Lehman Center concert from Aida Cuevas with mariachi group Flor de Toloache, a 60th-anniversary concert from Joe Bataan at Hostos Center, and an evening of modern dance from the Paul Taylor Dance Company. Manhattan's contribution includes the annual PRELUDE Festival of experimental theater and performance, which ran October 7–10 at the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center.
As with much of the festival, admission policies and prices vary by performance, and BKReader notes that many CUNY Stages events are free and open to the public even as specifics differ show to show. Brooklyn residents can find event details, ticket information and registration requirements at cunystages.org, and attendees are encouraged to check that site for the latest schedule and availability before heading out.
