Best of 2026
You might think mid-February is a tad early to put out a best of the year list, but doesn't it kind of feel like it's been 12 months already? Don't we need to celebrate joy wherever we can find it? 2026 has been so
A new kind of citywide, a gift idea or two, and what we can learn from libraries
Y'all. What a roller coaster trip of a time to be alive. Hope you are holding on to the safety bar and have some buddies with you. I'll be supporting artist Leslie Cuyjet with an upcoming presentation at BAM, December 3-7. If you're in
Fringe season! a few solo shows in the spotlight
Last night I went to the Whole Shebang to see Jungeun Kim and Lu Donovan share some current projects and research. Both artists performed solo in the very intimate, cozy space of Shebang (I counted 13 of us in the audience), and I was reminded of how wonderfully brave it
It is simply not nice.
I have been doing volunteer shifts doing court observing as masked ICE agents are snatching immigrants when they come to court for mandatory immigration court appointments. Volunteers help distribute information about immigrants’ rights, collect emergency contact information so we can let someone know if they are detained, and try to
Serenades at City Hall
This is an extra Philadelphia-heavy edition, because all of a sudden there are a ton of exciting events all clustered together happening here! And still no centralized place to find out about them, as far as I can tell, so please enjoy this cobbled together attempt to spread the word.
Scaling up instead of shrinking
It's likely you've heard about the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) withdrawing project grants that had already been awarded, which happened Friday, May 2. Many, if not most, of the NEA's staff members have resigned, including the three hardworking and dedicated (and stylish)
Links Hall eulogy
Links Hall is a small performing arts venue in Chicago that has been a vital home for independent artists for the last 45 years or so. Last week the organization announced that they would be closing at the end of June due to ongoing financial troubles. When I heard the
Heading south
Next week I’ll be traveling to Louisiana doing what I’m calling a roadtrip residency. Will probably share more about what’s behind that residency in a future newsletter but for now, I just wanted to share a few things my pre-trip research has turned up, both horrifying and
News wrangling + time capsule from 10 years ago ⏳
Woof, with so much news flooding the pipelines this week, I know I'm not alone in feeling just a mite overwhelmed. As a result, I'm going to share a half-dozen things I read on the internet this week that made me laugh, gave me a deeper
Rehearsal for shock
Hello! I know we're all up in arms about nonsense at the Kennedy Center and changes at the National Endowment for the Arts, and I have a few opinions too, but for this week, just keeping it mostly local. BigKid spotlight Last week I got to drop by
Only sisterly affection
After the democracy-in-free-fall week we've had, this newsletter is only going to lift up a few moments of Philadelphia joy amongst the chaos. I think there is an overabundance of toxic positivity in our field, but also?, celebrating a few wins or refuges or window cats has its
Soul balm and an old quilt
The week felt full of horrors, small and large. A former student trying to update their passport and finding that there are now only two gender options. An immediate freeze on all foreign aid. The National Gallery of Art closing its Office of Belonging and Inclusion. A parade of jokers