Full disclosure: Mary Houlihan and I used to carpool. The guest star on “Difficult People” and I would be shuttled to Brookside Middle School by my neighbor’s mom, but it was always a mystery whether or not Mary would join us on a given school day. Hers was the last house on our carpool journey, and — after a few car honks — Mary emerged, or didn’t. I was always grateful for the mornings she did. Even then, she had a stupefyingly offbeat wit — generous but dry, subdued but bonkers. Chipper as we were bitter with her tardiness, Mary would enter the car and chime, “Good morning, friends.”
We once shared a commute; we now share a neighborhood. Houlihan embodies the best parts of Greenpoint in her life and career — she builds community, as with her Three Chickies musical improv series, and maintains a signature self-awareness, even as careers (and neighborhoods) change. I’m happy to have caught up and discussed the comedy scene with the sly wizard behind “Learn To Paint With Mary Houlihan!“.
Greenpointers: How long have you been in Greenpoint? Mary Houlihan: About six years. When I first moved here I lived off the Myrtle/Willoughby G stop in Bed-Stuy, then I moved to a big building that flooded in Hurricane Sandy after living there for just a month. Then I moved in with my parents in New Jersey. Then I moved to a green house off Calyer Street, then I lived near Grandma Roses, and now I’m in my current location. I’ve moved a lot.
The neighborhood’s treated you well? It’s treated me well, me likely. It’s quiet. It’s hidden but not insane.
Sunday, September 16th, 2018 (12-7pm)another piece of North Brooklyn history will be bustling with music, fun activities, design, and craftsmanship as we host our first ever Indie Makers Market inside BIBA of Williamsburg (110 Kent Ave). From frozen treats made with upcycled plant based materials, custom handcrafted guitars, ethereal essential oil blends, to tiny terrarium jewelry, and more, we can’t wait to showcase the high quality unique creations by our top 20 curated pick of local makers. FREE to enter!! RSVP Here!!
WEDNESDAY 9/12
♦ The Pantsuit Party: The September Issue @ Muchmore’s (2 Havemeyer St.), 6pm, FREE, donations encouraged, THML theater company hosts a night of networking, cocktails, guest presentations and a chance to show your stuff during the open mic portion More Info ^ Big Words, Etc: A Reading & Fundraiser for Raices @ 61 Local (61 Bergen St.), 6pm, $5 suggested, More Info ♦ Design & Research Seminar: On Peers, Superpowers and Cyborgs. @ A/D/O (29 Norman Avenue), 6:30pm, $10, Featuring Neil Harbisson, a Cyborg Artist who listens to colors through an antenna implanted in his skull, Buy Tix * Trivia Night 1 Year Anniversary!!!! @ Archestratus Books and Foods (160 Huron St.), 8pm, FREE, Join our News Editor for Trivia! Tonight’s game marks a year of Trivia at Archestratus! Win food, drinks, cookies, or a full meal and bragging rights! More Info
THURSDAY 9/13
♦ Art Opening: Simon Linnert @ Brouwerij Lane (78 Greenpoint Ave.) 7pm, FREE, Photography. More Info ♫ Best Worst Talent Show! @ The House of Yes (2 Wyckoff Avenue) 7pm, FREE, More Info ♦ Art Hole Presents: Femme du Soir @ Rubulad (Location w/ RSVP), 7:30pm, $10, Enjoy some drinks and get your doodle on with a live figure model, more infoContinue reading →
# Pasta Fresca Plate @ Archestratus (160 Huron St.), 7pm, $20, RSVP ☺Funhouse Comedy@ Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer), 8pm, FREE, More info ♫ On Rotation Wednesdays @ Rose Gold (96 Morgan Ave), 10pm, FREE,Wednesdays in May crews from record shops around the city bring their collections and curate the sounds of the evening. More Info
THURSDAY 5/10
♦ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with a Brandy Alexander @ Videology (308 Bedford Ave.), 6:45pm, $24, Buy Tix ♦ The Art Party @ House of Vans (25 Franklin St.), 7pm, $50, Buy Tix ♦ Screening of Saving Jamaica Bay @Kings County Brewers Collective (381 Troutman St), 7pm, FREE, A documentary screening hosted by Kingsland Wildflowers, More Info ♦ Art Opening: Not Enough Blood @ Brouwerij Lane (78 Greenpoint Ave), 7pm, FREE, Original Art by Andy Fletcher, More Info ☺ LOLOLpalooza @ Threes (113 Franklin St.), 8pm, $5, Music Comedy acts will range from folk punk to freestyle hiphop to piano torch songs, More Info ♦ Not an Ending at All @ Triskelion Arts (106 Calyer), 8pm, $18, An evening-length work which explores the homes we build for the spirits that haunt us, Buy TixContinue reading →
♫ Fonema Consort // Charmaine Lee, solo @Arete Venue and Gallery (67 West St. #103), 7:30pm, $10,Chicago-based ensemble Fonema Consort will perform four new works for electronics, two voices, clarinet and trombone, Buy Tix ♫ Bit Brigade performs “The Legend of Zelda”, Double Ferrari, Cheap Dinosaurs @St. Vitus (1120 Manhattan Ave.), 7:30pm, $12-15, Buy Tix * Trivia Night @Archestratus (160 Huron St.), 8pm, FREE, Join our News Editor for Trivia at Archestratus! There will be food! There will be beer! Get your game on RSVP ♫ Los Perros/The Stance/Les Frappes (Sweden) + MORE! @ Brooklyn Bazaar (150 Greenpoint Avenue), 8pm, $8, More Info
THURSDAY 4/26
♦ Talking Trash screening @City Reliquary (370 Metropolitan Ave), 6pm, $5, Throwing out the Big Apple, More Info ♫ Open Mic Night @New Women Space (188 Woodpoint Road) 7pm, $10, New Women Space’s first community open mic Buy Tix ☺ The Mess @The Brick (579 Metropolitan Avenue), 8pm, $10, part solo show, part variety show part of Brooklyn Comedy Collective, More Info ♫ Hard Pass, Mean Girls (TX), Granddad (MN), Fear Not Ourselves Alone @Brooklyn Bazaar (150 Greenpoint Ave.), 8pm, $10, RSVP ♫ Minus the Bear @ Warsaw (261 Driggs Ave), 8pm, $30, Buy TixContinue reading →
Our Gardens of the Galaxy Spring Market is Getting Ready to Blast Off! Spring may not yet have fully sprung but we’re bringing fresh life, warmth, and out of this world local vendors to the Greenpoint Loft on 67 West Street for Greenpointers’ Gardens of the Galaxy Spring Market. We’ll be blasting off on Sunday, April 22 and staying in orbit from 1 to 7pm. Join your fellow space gardeners and RSVP on Facebook. More deets here.
WEDNESDAY 4/11
^Letters in the Dirt @The Brick (579 Metropolitan Avenue), 7pm, $20, This play places its audience face-to-face with the insightful Aiyana Jones— a seven-year-old girl fatally shot by police in 2010 during a botched raid in Detroit, now a symbol within the Movement for Black Lives. Buy Tix ♫ Full Frontal Female Fronted @Our Wicked Lady (153 Morgan Ave) 8pm, $5, Buy Tix ♫ Grand St. Stompers: 20s Jazz @Radegast (113 N 3rd St.), 9pm, FREE, Grab some German food & drink and join the quintet for dancing, listening, and hanging, More Info ☺ Freshly Baked: Cookies and Comedy @ The Knitting Factory (361 Metropolitan Avenue), 9pm, FREE, rotating lineup, surprise special guests and homemade baked goods, More Info
THURSDAY 4/12
* Economic Development Committee Mtg — Community Board 1 @ CB1 District Office (435 Graham Avenue), 6:30pm, FREE, More Info * Cacao Ceremony & Reiki Experience @Anima Mundi Herbals (35 Noble Street), 7pm, $40, Are you ready to cultivate a deep loving sensation within your heart? Are you ready to deepen your loving relationship with yourself and others? Buy Tix # Pasta Fresca Plate! @Archestratus (160 Huron St.), 7pm, $20,Archestratus is very excited to kick off a new weekly dinner gathering! A relaxed evening of fresh, homemade pasta from a pasta-making Chef + Friend of Archie’s, RSVP ♫ Abraham Brody & Trys Keturiose: Ancestors @National Sawdust (80 N 6th St.), 7pm, $20, Buy tix ♫ PULP FICTION LIVE performed by The Last Nites @ The Knitting Factory (361 Metropolitan Avenue), 8pm, $12-15, Buy TixContinue reading →
Shared Living, Better Living @ADO (29 Norman Ave), 6:30pm, FREE, A lively panel discussion about the challenges and opportunities presented by shared living, More Info ♦ Paint Nite @ Sick Willie (174 Meserole Ave), 7pm, $65, Our Social Painting Instructor guides you step-by-step through the featured painting in about two hours. Buy Tix ^ Okoyomon / Hamilton / Hodson @Spoonbill Series (99 Montrose Ave), 7pm, FREE, A reading curated by Coco Fitterman, More info * TRIVIA NIGHT @ Archestratus (160 Huron St.), 8pm, FREE, Trivia with our news editor! Expect categories to be various, beer innumerable, arancine aplenty, RSVP
THURSDAY 3/29
# Passover Seder Potluck @The Park Church Co-op (129 Russell St), 6pm, FREE, More Info. Blending Herbal Smokes @Catland (987 Flushing Ave), 7pm, $20,In this workshop we will discuss the various herbs which are safe to be burnt and inhaled to manifest our highest intentions, Buy Tix ☺ New Comedy Project With Greenport Harbor Brewing @ The New Work Project (97 North 10th St), 7:30 pm, $10, Comedians you’ve seen on Comedy Central, Conan, MTV & more join us at The New Work Project for a night of comedy and free refreshments provided by Greenport Harbor Brewing, Buy tix ♫ The Rocket Queens (GNR Tribute), Wildstreet, FerreTT @ St. Vitus (1120 Manhattan Avenue), 7:30pm, $8-12, Buy tix ♦ Gentrification Express Screening @Sunview Luncheonette (221 Nassau Ave), 7:30pm, FREE,”Gentrification Express: Breaking Down the BQX” and other short films, More Info
The Exponential Festival is back again this January 2018, bringing a diverse collection of experimental and indie theatre, performance, dance and art to North Brooklyn and beyond. The last two weeks of the fest are happening right now, with these unique performances happening right here in our ‘hood this weekend and next week at varying times. We’ve listed all the remaining local performances below, and you can check out the rest of the fest’s calendar here.
VITAL JOINT | 109 Meserole Street Dandy Be Good, Jan 17-20, 24-27 @ 8pm, RSVP to [email protected] — Dandy Be Good is a site specific interactive performance and a sexy, queer, underground cabaret! Dynamic host GJ is teaming up with a marvelous array of performers to bring you a fantastic bouquet of storytelling.Continue reading →
♦ New Paintings by Self-Indulgence @ South 4th Bar (90 South 4th St), 6pm, FREE, All new paintings by Self-Indulgence featuring the writing styles of lengendary graffiti artist OUI, More info # Sex on Stage: Creative Activism Dinner @ New Women Space (188 Woodpoint Rd), 7pm, by Donation, Community potluck discussion with feminist activists who are using the performing arts to educate the public about sexuality, Buy tix * Royal Headache @ House of Vans (25 Franklin St), 7pm, FREE, Hell yeah good times and rad new memories with Sheer Mag, Downtown Boys, RSVP
THURSDAY 7/13
♫ Spain-Brooklyn Music Series @ Nowadays (56-06 Cooper Ave), 6pm, $15, A celebration of the best independent music from Spain and Brooklyn with El Guincho, Extraperlo, Noia and Turnbull Green (DJ set), Buy tix # Pizza Night @ Archestratus (160 Huron St), 7pm, $2, Pick up to ten of twenty available toppings to create the personal pizza of your dreams! $18 per pie day-of ($2 to RSVP). We have gluten-free crusts, too! RSVP * Resist: Learning from the Young Lords at [email protected]@UnionDocs (322 Union Ave), 7:30pm, $10, Approaching questions of how the Young Lords fight for economic, racial and social justice has changed in the present day. Discuss how the community based in the Southside of Williamsburg views and continues their work today, Buy tix ^ Lips, Teeth, Tongue: An Evening of Food Sex Lit @ The William Vale Hotel (111 North 12th St), 8pm, by Donation, Salacious evening of readings to tickle your tongue, your brain and your funny bone. From New York’s seductive burlesque performers to its hungry food editors, our readers are experts in the sensory pleasures of taste, More info ♫ Panorama x Working Women @ Black Flamingo (168 Borinquen Pl), 10pm, FREE, With Gene Tellem b2b Lis Dalton and Barbie Bertisch. Chance to win a pair of 3-Day VIP passes to Panorama with RSVP plus a pair of passes will be given out at the show, RSVP Continue reading →
“[porto]” at The Bushwick Starr. Photo by Marina McClure.
It serves pickled pomegranate, fried chickpea, and grilled sage.
No, it’s not the organic/gluten-free/farm-to-table market down the street; it’s the rustic gastropub in The Bushwick Starr’s (207 Starr St.) new play [porto] —though based on Brooklyn’s artisanal food scene trends, these bites might soon appear on your go-to bar’s menu. And like those snacks, the play is a concoction of the satirical, savory, and flat-out strange.
[porto] is part of this year’s (and the second annual) Exponential Festival, a theatrical series promoting works created in New York and performed in Brooklyn. Kate Benson’s funny, meandering, and world-premiere play centers on Porto, a young woman for whom the hipness of Brooklyn’s cultural and foodie offerings has perhaps grown dull.
Curt James (foreground) and Josh Krebs in “Cymbeline” at The Brick
Cymbeline is tonally ambiguous, dramaturgically elusive. This is no weakness of Shakespeare’s so-called tragedy, but it stands out in being one that ends in reunions and discoveries instead of wars and death while featuring beheaded characters and disguised lovers. It’s no wonder, then, that critics have long debated whether Cymbeline is drama, romance, comedy, or something in between. Perhaps Shakespeare was pushing genres out and contemporary storytelling, with its mix of laughter and catharsis, forward. Regardless of category, Stay Awake! Theatre’s production of Cymbeline at The Brick (575 Metropolitan Ave.) in Williamsburg is firm in its footing thanks to its minimalist approach and rather strong performances. Continue reading →
♦ The Pantsuit Party: The September Issue @ Muchmore’s (2 Havemeyer St.), 6pm, FREE, donations encouraged, THML theater company hosts a night of networking, cocktails, guest presentations and a chance to show your stuff during the open mic portion 
THURSDAY 5/10
THURSDAY 4/26
THURSDAY 4/12
WEDNESDAY 3/28
THURSDAY 3/29
FRIDAY 3/30 
WEDNESDAY 7/12
THURSDAY 7/13
