Global MacDowell

January 23, 2020 @ 6:30 p.m. Musical Theater
Flying Over Sunset, a New Musical

It’s 1957, before Timothy Leary hit the scene, when Cary Grant, Clare Boothe Luce, and Aldous Huxley gather at a beautiful beach house overlooking the Pacific to embark on an acid trip together. That’s the story at the center of the new musical, Flying Over Sunset, written and directed by James Lapine with music by Tom Kitt and lyrics by Michael Korie. These three MacDowell Fellows were featured during a musical salon featuring performances and conversation about a work scheduled to premier in March at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater.

February 29, 2020 @ 4 p.m. Poetry Page Meets Stage: The Crossover

Urban Word NYC, in partnership with MacDowell, presents MacDowell Fellow and award-winning poet John Murillo with emerging poets from Urban Word NYC, Jennifer Martinez and James Lherisson. An evening of reading and conversation between teen poets and esteemed literary figures followed by a Q&A. Evening Host: MacDowell Fellow, board member, and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Vijay Seshadri.

***March 12, 2020 @ 6 p.m. Latinx Jazz Composers Aruán Ortiz and João Luiz: From Contemporary Chamber Music to Avant-Garde Jazz***

***MacDowell/NYC will be canceling and re-scheduling our evening of music with Aruán Ortiz and João Luiz, at our Chelsea Space this Thursday, March 12, 2020. We regret any inconvenience. We will be in touch when we have a new date set for the concert. Thanks for understanding.***

MacDowell board member and Fellow Tania León and board member Terrance McKnight co-curate an acoustic evening that offers a multilayered look into the Latin American/American musical influences and connections of Aruán Ortiz and João Luiz from Brasil Guitar Duo for an evening of music and conversation with MacDowell composers.

May 11, 2020 @ 6:30 p.m. Musical Adaptation

The Seat of Our Pants: inspired by Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth

Composer, librettist, lyricist, and MacDowell Fellow Ethan Lipton created his new adaptation of The Skin of Our Teeth at MacDowell for the Public Theater. In The Seat of Our Pants, Lipton re-imagines the most iconic of American plays – originally penned by MacDowell Fellow Thornton Wilder – in musical form. How does a play from the classic canon “sing”? Be among the first to hear the songs and join a conversation with Lipton and director Leigh Silverman. A TBA special guest star artist will read from Wilder’s original play.

July 1, 2020 - August 23, 2020 Summer of Music Campaign

While we cannot gather, we still plan to celebrate the legacy of music composition at MacDowell with our Summer of Music campaign, a series of virtual musical events and content featuring our MacDowell Fellows. Anyone who donates $20 or more to this campaign will receive an "at-home picnic basket" in the mail with recipes from the MacDowell kitchen, illustrations of flowers that bloom on our grounds in August, and more!

Our first free and open to the public event, EVENSONG a premiere by JJJJJerome Ellis + a conversation with Fellow and Board Chairman Nell Painter was held on July 22nd at 7:30pm via Instagram Live. Learn more via the buttons below!

Our next event will be Sunday, August 9th at 8pm - MacDowell Medalist Rosanne Cash and MacDowell Board and 2020 Selection Committee Member Terrance McKnight in conversation on The Folk Show with host Kate McNally on NHPR. Tune in live via radio or stream online here

September 9, 2020 @ 7 p.m. Celebrating Women Writers
Emerging Voices: An Evening with Chelsea Bieker and Monica Sok - Debut women writers supported by MacDowell and The Rona Jaffe Foundation

MacDowell NYC is hosting an evening in celebration of our 10-year partnership with The Rona Jaffe Foundation. The permanently endowed Rona Jaffe Foundation Fellowship was established in 2008, and each year it supports a MacDowell residency and a stipend for an emerging woman writer. This event is also part of the Foundation’s annual Writers’ Awards Celebration Week running from September 9-11, 2020.

Debut writers Chelsea Bieker (Rona Jaffe Award 2018, MacDowell Fellow 2014), author of the novel Godshot (Catapult, 2020), and poet Monica Sok (Rona Jaffe Foundation/ MacDowell Fellow 2016), author of A Nail the Evening Hangs On (Copper Canyon Press, 2020), will join us for a reading and conversation about their new works. Q&A and reception will follow. Books will be available for sale! This event is free and open to the public, however a reservation is required. Please reserve your ticket here.

October 1, 2020 – (Time TBA) Journalism Panel
The Art of Journalism: The Virtues of Bias

Join us for this evening of incisive conversation with MacDowell Fellows who work in investigative and long-form narrative journalism. In this era of the 30-second soundbite and relative truth, in-depth reporting and groundbreaking nonfiction writing are more important than ever. This special evening will be curated by MacDowell board member and Virginia Quarterly Review Editor Paul Reyes.

October 19, 2020 @ 6:30 p.m. Fundraiser
MacDowell's Virtual National Benefit

MacDowell’s signature fundraiser held in New York City will now be virtual. Each year, this glittering event showcases the range and depth of work from MacDowell Fellows.

Sunday, August 8th, 2021 Medal Day in Peterborough,NH

Join art lovers from around the region and around the country at our most anticipated event of the year on the lush MacDowell grounds to celebrate the achievements of leading voices in American culture. This event is free and open to the public. This year, the Edward MacDowell Medal will be awarded to a composer and singer-songwriter, Rosanne Cash.

For more information, ticketing questions, or to become a sponsor please email events@macdowell.org or call 212-535-9690