South Street Seaport Museum expands its virtual sea chantey programming with the first installment of the Sea Songs and Sea Lives webinar series Sing in Rhyme, Work in Time: Sea Chanteys and Workers Voices, hosted by Bonnie Milner, Deirdre Murtha and other special guests on Thursday, February 18, 2021 at 7pm ET. Register for the free event at https://southstreetseaportmuseum.org/rhyme.
Join the Seaport Museum and special guests for a musical exploration of sea chanteys, including their role in the work of sailing tall ships, their varied origins, and the difference between chanteys and other maritime songs. Attendees will hear examples of many types of chanteys and will be invited to sing along. A short Q&A will follow, along with resources for building repertoire and finding opportunities to sing.
“Icons on Inspiration”
In place of its usual winter gala, the L.A. Phil presents this virtual fundraiser featuring Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel in one-on-one conversations with Julie Andrews, Natalie Portman, Katy Perry, Common, Colombian singer-songwriter Carlos Vives and pianist Yuja Wang. The evening also includes a selection of socially distanced musical performances filmed recently at the Hollywood Bowl. Premieres at 6 p.m. Saturday; on demand through March 6. Free; donations accepted. laphil.com
“Terezin: Children of the Holocaust”
A filmed version of playwright Anna Smulowitz’s fact-based drama premieres, centered on six young people at the Nazi concentration camp in what is now the Czech Republic. A Q&A with the cast follows; for ages 12 and up. $25. 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday. terezin.eventcube.io
Mercury
Mercury’s lobbying and public affairs firm, which is headed by Michael McKeon, boasts more than 30 media relations professionals in its New York office. The growing media relations team is led by former Bloomberg spokesperson John Gallagher, managing director and former National Action Network communications lead Rachel Noerdlinger, former Fox News producer Dan Bank and former Associated Press chief White House correspondent Ben Feller. Mercury, which represents a wide variety of clients, has a national presence that is bolstered by former New York Post reporter Stefan Friedman, who leads the media relations practice on the West Coast.
Other key employees: Beth DeFalco, Karen Mustiga, Kim Winston, John Tomlin, Djenny Passé, Shannan Siemens, Eric Bloom
Et tu, Gale?
For opponents of two towers proposed in the South Street Seaport Historic District, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer’s endorsement of the $1.4 billion project Tuesday must have seemed like a betrayal.
For fans of residential development, it was a promising sign that the controversial project will get the go-ahead and that 2021 might be a turning point for builders.
Brewer has for ages sided against developers pitching outsize buildings, but she urged the Landmarks Preservation Commission to approve the Howard Hughes Corporation’s application for 250 Water Street.
She was among dozens of New Yorkers to testify at a hearing before the commission, which is charged with ensuring the appropriateness of architecture in historic districts.
Manhattan: We were disappointed to read your knee-jerk editorial (“Keep building,” Dec. 26) supporting the inappropriate, out-of-scale, and quite likely illegal 470-foot towers proposed by the Howard Hughes Corporation for the South Street Seaport Historic District. The design has nothing to do with the area’s historic architecture; there is more to appropriateness than a brick facade.