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Features, reported pieces, fiction, and other clips I have had featured in various publications.
Published by TheBody, September 13, 2023
Toni Blackman is a rapper, writer, poet, and performer. She also holds the unique honor of being the first official U.S. hip-hop ambassador—someone sent by the State Department into communities around the globe to engage in cross-cultural performance and collaboration.
Published by FanSided, July 5, 2022
The Sports for Climate Action Framework is supposed to encourage action and accountability on climate change from the sports world. But is it enough?
The sports industry isn’t often singled out as a major contributor to climate change. When searching for sources of global warming, we tend to think of more obvious sectors like transportation and electricity. But keeping sports running requires a collection of other industries, each with their own carbon footprint.
Published by InStyle, January 14, 2021
I'm sorry, but you can't have my copy of 200 Cigarettes.
It isn't personal. In fact, one of my best friends once offered to buy it from me, and I told her the same thing that I am telling you : Absolutely not, get out of my apartment.
It's not the money that I am worried about, although a used DVD of the film is currently selling for $265 on eBay. And it isn't the movie's highly elusive status that concerns me, although it isn't available for rent or on any streaming platforms and never shows up on TV.
Until they weren't.
Published by InStyle, December 8, 2020
My first bedroom in New York City was so small that it couldn't fit a door. Legally, it wasn't a bedroom at all, just the front end of a friend's living room in a tiny first-floor apartment in the heart of the West Village. My window was parallel to the sidewalk, and sometimes as I got dressed, I would wind up face to face with a grinning stranger.
Published by Brooklyn Magazine, December 7, 2020
As March had barely gotten underway, Eric Demby was early to the realization that everyday life was about to change irrevocably. But due to some quick thinking—and nimble pivoting—over the past nine months, he has been able to ensure the survival of the marketplace staples Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg, both of which he co-founded, through a brutal year.
Published by Inside Out Tattoo Magazine, March 27, 2019
I have come to believe that making a regrettable tattoo choice is truly just part of living your best life. It means that for a brief moment in time you felt something so strongly that the idea of ever changing your mind about it seemed impossible.
But unlike other choices made in a vacuum of blissful ignorance, like a perm or blue contact lenses, tattoos are forever. You can’t grow them out or take them off. And who among us can say that something super important from a decade ago holds the same level of importance for them today?
Published by Culture Magazine, January 16, 2019
Sohail Zandi, the 34-year-old chef and co-owner of Brushland Eating House in Bovina, N.Y., did not attend culinary school. Instead, he earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and attended graduate school for political science. But in between classes, he struck up a side hustle in New York City’s restaurant world.
Published by Inside Out Tattoo Magazine, June 21, 2019
The world of tattoos is forever evolving and, as a result, artists and tattoo lovers are constantly looking for new ways to push boundaries. It should come as no surprise that this also includes tattooing new parts of the human body, and with every square inch of skin tried and tested, some are turning to new surfaces as a canvas. One of those surfaces is fingernails.
Published by Artsy, October 2018
Art is often the unsung hero of music festival season. Less attention-grabbing than the headliners and less click-baity than the fashion trends, the horizon-breaking installations, colorful murals, and kinetic sculptures that dot concert landscapes tend to play a backseat role. But as anyone who has been to a music festival knows, it is the art that transforms a patch of dirt and grass into a place that feels light years away from a nearby parking lot or a surrounding city.
Published by Culture Magazine, April 30, 2018
While a popular menu item in many parts of the world, lamb is not a common order in the United States. In fact, the average American consumes less than a pound of the protein per year, compared to nearly 200 pounds of beef, pork, and chicken. Why? Some blame World War II, during which it is said that American soldiers ate a great deal of mutton. As a result, the men returned to the States with an aversion to the gamy meat, associated it with lamb, and passed the distaste on to their families.
When I had a slice of American cheese in my hand, all was right with the world. It was summertime and I had spent the day swimming in a friend’s pool. At the barbecue, each child was handed an individually wrapped cheese slice to place on a hamburger. I had never seen cheese like this before. It was so orange it practically glowed. It was smooth and lacked condensation, even in the hot sun. I ate one slice, and then asked for another, savoring each salty bite, tonguing the gummy stuff on the back of my teeth.
One of New York City’s most iconic Christmas traditions just got a high-tech makeover.
The stars of Radio City Music Hall’s Christmas Spectacular have always been and continue to be the famous Rockettes dancers, but this year audiences will be treated to an extra layer of excitement: a modern overhaul of the production in the form of updated technology and enhanced digital elements.
“We’ve expanded upon the existing projections to create a wholly immersive experience for our fans from the first row to the third mezzanine,” said Larry Sedwick, senior vice president of production for the Christmas Spectacular. “It was just a great challenge, and we are very excited about the results.”
It was after dark when my husband and I arrived at Mystic Lodge. We followed a string of illuminated bulbs along the side of a small house and into a large valley at the base of the hills, the moon offering just enough light for us to make our way. We had no idea what to expect from the promise of a tipi stay; we had spent most of the car ride tossing out guesses for what the experience might hold. Upon entering the tipi and lighting some candles, we took in the welcoming feel — an inviting bed stacked with warm blankets, a wood-burning stove, brightly colored throw pillows, and all sorts of eclectic details.
The Glen Wilde is one of those unique properties that triggers memories of my childhood. The communal bonfire makes me think of balmy summer nights at sleepaway camp. The collective undertone reminds me of light-hearted vacations with family and friends, and the wooden bungalows take me back to days spent glued to the television set watching Dirty Dancing or Meatballs over and over (and over again).
While the Glen Wilde has only been operational for two seasons, the property has a history of welcoming city visitors like myself to relax and stay awhile. Originally built in the 1940s, the colony sits on 11 private acres in the quiet hamlet of Mountain Dale, NY, just 90 minutes from the George Washington Bridge. Set in an area of the Catskills once nicknamed the “Borscht Belt,” The Glen Wilde was one of many mid-century bungalow colonies utilized as a seasonal destination for weary city dwellers. Millions of Jewish families traveled up each summer to swap the sweltering heat for clear lakes and fresh mountain air. Children roamed freely and safely, potlucks were a nightly ritual, and everyone enjoyed dressing up for evening entertainment. When air travel became more attainable, the area’s tourist industry declined, and today many of the old colonies around Sullivan County have since fallen into decay.
We are just four months into the New Year and already the 2016 concert lineup reads like a time traveler's wish list. An insane number of bands have announced their decision to reunite, producing new music and booking new dates while putting aside old feuds, statements of permanent partings and solo side projects. Long-separated bands like Guns N’ Roses, LCD Soundsystem, Ween and At The Drive In have all begun touring, while other groups like NWA and The Spice Girls have been hinting at a potential reunion.
But are we satisfied? Quite the contrary—all of these reunions have left us thirsty for more! Here are 8 bands we wish would drop what they are doing and reunite for our own selfish listening pleasures.
The 2016 Academy Award season has been riddled with controversy over what many see as a severe lack of diversity. Hashtags have been born and boycotts have been announced, all leading to a promised overhaul in the Oscar voting policies and pool. But the Academy Awards are no stranger to controversy. From wacky acceptance speeches to possible assaults, this show has seen more than its share of memorable moments, and here are 7 that stand out the most.
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, which means you can’t so much as buy a carton of milk without being bombarded by cheesy paper hearts and crappy love songs. Every restaurant is booked and every movie seat filled and all you can think to do is hide under the covers until the morning comes. But instead of giving up on Cupid’s birthday, get in on the fun with your own anti-Valentine’s day playlist—one that is so badass it actually rips the petals off all those overpriced roses. So pull your head out from under your pillow and put on those headphones or, better yet, turn your speaker way up and rock out to 10 great bitter, angry, sappy and ultimately empowering anti-love songs.
The Sofar rules are something we could all live by: Good music, good people keeping quiet during the sets and a good living room. It happens to the best of us: You are at a show and the person behind you is talking, that guy in front of you is on his phone, you are so far away from the stage that you can’t even tell who is playing and you are too embarrassed to ask your friends if that was the headliner or the second act. Take comfort, you are not alone.
No need for a destination wedding — these venues will make your special day feel one-of-a-kind.
When it comes to weddings, big cities can be just as expensive as destination weddings. But what if you didn’t have to go far to find a one-of-a-kind event?
Couples seeking to host a unique event need only take a short drive from the Northeast's three big cities to find a venue that boasts the perfect rustic ambiance, in charming towns their guests can explore.
Here are six spots sure to make your special day even more memorable.
Chris Evans may be known for his roles in movies like “Captain America” and “Snowpiercer,” but the actor recently took a turn behind the camera, diverging from his leading man title to direct and produce the upcoming romance film, “Before We Go.” It is Evans’ directorial debut, and probably not the last film we will see helmed by the actor. Yet Evans is hardly the first artist to jump from one focus to another. Many famous actors, photographers, painters, dancers and musicians have done the same, taking a seat in the director’s chair with spectacular and highly successful results. Here are five of the best and brightest.
A few weeks ago we took a look at current exhibits in museums and other cultural institutions in and around New York, and suggested that whiling the day away gazing at art while soaking up free air conditioning just might be one the best ways to tough out a heat wave. Well, the heat wave is here, and we want to amend that list and add one more exhibit that we left off the first time around, now, with musical guest.
Published by The New York Daily News
It’s not unusual to see shoppers at Arthur Avenue Retail Market do a double take when passing by the newly opened Bronx Beer Hall.
Surrounded by Italian-American vendors peddling dried meats, spices, oils and produce, the hall stands in stark contrast to where it’s located. With a bar made from reclaimed wood, beer served in Mason jars, and six flat-screen televisions circling the seating area, the Bronx Beer Hall appears to have dropped in accidentally from Manhattan or north Brooklyn.
Though we’re fans (and publishers) of neighborhood guides and lists of where to eat right now, we also recognize that they tend to follow trends and overlook neighborhood gems. To that end, we’ve started a new series called Neighborhood Expert in which we chat with a longtime local for the scoop on their favorite spots and their take on how the area has changed.
Name: Mauricio Lorence
Neighborhood: Clinton Hill
How long have you been in Clinton Hill?
It is going to be 41 years—it has been a long time. When my family first immigrated to New York from Panama, we lived in Bed-Stuy for two years. And I spent about 20 years in Park Slope. But I moved to Clinton Hill when I was about 29–30 years old. My mother, brother, sister-in-law—we bought a brownstone.
When you think of street dance, Park Avenue is not usually the street that comes to mind. But choreographer Reggie “Regg Roc” Gray and director Peter Sellars are making the posh Upper East Side artery the place to see one of the city’s most exciting displays of physical expression with their new show,FLEXN, which opened at the Park Avenue Armory yesterday. For the next 10 days they will attempt to add a different type of cred to a street style phenomenon that up to now has had to rely on venues like subway cars and the steps of Union Square Park in order to attract an audience.
FLEXN centers around a street dance form called “flexing”—or “flexin” or “flexN”—a style pioneered by Gray that combines rhythmic movement and contortion. The form emerged from Jamaican dance halls and Brooklyn reggae clubs that were popular in the ’90s. Evolving over time, flexing hit the streets and began to gain traction around 2005, finding a home in dance circles all over the world.
They were on the road for two hours before the rain came.
Emma had changed her clothes in the back seat as they exited Manhattan, folding her bloody dress tightly before shoving it into a Wendy’s take-out bag. When they stopped for gas, Roman got her the bathroom key, and she rinsed the blood from her hair.
“It wasn’t so bad in there, actually,” she said when she got back into the car. “Gas station bathrooms are never that bad. I mean I wouldn’t eat sushi off the floor. But I think they make it worse in the movies, you know? They make it look worse than it really is.”
The power of this story is enhanced by us not knowing what happened before the story starts—why Emma’s dress and her hair are so bloody. I don’t really want you to tell me what happened, but I’m curious: Do you know the details or was that off-screen violence vague and troubling in your mind as well when you were writing this?
As I started writing the story I had a vague notion of what happened off-screen, but not a specific one. I knew that Emma was the one controlling the situation, that she was less disturbed by what had happened, while Roman was reeling from the incident. I like the idea that it could have been either one of them who committed the act of violence, but that Emma was the one in control of it all with the blood on her hands. It was troubling to me, even as the writer, and I liked that.
Published by Broadwayworld.com, June 2010
Academy Award-nominee Michael McKean is currently starring in the role of ‘The Stage Manager' in David Cromer's acclaimed production of Thornton Wilder's Our Town, at the Barrow Street Theatre.
Mr. McKean previously appeared on the New York stage in Superior Donuts, The Pajama Game, The Homecoming, Hairspray and Accomplice (Theatre World Award) on Broadway; and Woody Allen's A Second Hand Memory Off-Broadway.
Published by The New York Daily News
Hot diggity dog — the gourmet wiener craze is still going strong!
Unlike the pizza slice, the sandwich or even the hamburger, the hot dog has taken its time jumping onto the haute cuisine bandwagon.
Generally reserved for a summer backyard barbecue or the ballgame, this simple meat and bun meal is finally making a name for itself in the uber-trendy food scenes of the East Village and lower East Side.
The latest addition to the haute dog scene is Los Perros Locos, a South American joint adding new culinary flair to Allen St. Owner Alex Mitow takes cues from the South Beach post-bar scene.
Published by Broadwayworld.com
This past week actress Jennifer Carpenter sat down with Broadwayworld to discuss her role in the Off-Broadway show, Gruesome Playground Injuries.