Open Call: NIC Kay

A Black person wearing a crocheted two-piece bathing suit with a yellow daisy design and a brown teddy bear costume head wades in the shallows of an ocean along a beach. They carry a bundle of brown fabric swaddled in their arms. — NIC Kay, *todays gon be a good day, respectfully*, 2022. Photo: Nir Arieli. Courtesy the artist.

Tickets

Admission to Open Call events is free with a ticket reservation. Tickets will be available later this year. For updates, join our mailing list.

Shed members receive early access to tickets. Become a member today.

About this commission

In NIC Kay’s must have character, two performers—a mascot and a drag performer—engage in a duet, staggering through The Shed’s public spaces throughout the day. As they move, the duo engages in a nonverbal dialogue about motivation and desire. The performance is a snapshot of performers facing their anxieties around entertaining, and restless audiences eager to escape the world of the pandemic and other crises.

must have character includes performances on August 1 and 2 and a public program on August 3. Check back for more details.

Creative Team

Photo: June Canedo de Souza.

NIC Kay

NIC Kay is a performer, dancer, conceptual choreographer, and all-around artist who uses creative movement, performing arts history, and performance art theory to explore relationality and yearning. Their work has been presented nationally and internationally. They are currently an artist-in-residence at the Stone Quarry Art Hill Park in Cazenovia, New York.

Gabriele Christian (they/them), a.k.a. Eartha Kunt, is a Harlem-raised, Oakland-based antidisciplinary conceptual artist and descendent of stolen folk. Their work has been commissioned transnationally and internationally. They are a founding member of Bay Area performance collectives and land projects: RUPTURE (NEFA Awardees 2023, Watermill Center Artists-in-Residence 2024), OYSTERKNIFE, and BlaQyard.

Location and Dates

August 1 – 3

The Shed is located at 545 West 30th Street, between 10th and 11th Avenues. View The Shed on a map.

For information about accessibility and arriving at The Shed, visit our Accessibility page.

Accessibility

Seating

The Shed’s Griffin Theater has accessible seating. Please contact us in advance to discuss your needs and available options by emailing accessibility@theshed.org or calling (646) 455-3949.

Assistive Listening

Visitors may check out assistive listening devices at the entrance to the theater. A driver’s license will be held to check out the device.

Purchasing Tickets

The Shed’s online ticketing system includes the option to submit accommodation requests beyond the access points detailed here.

Contact Us

For questions or other requests, visit the Accessibility page, email accessibility@theshed.org, or call (646) 455-3494.

Open Call Read more about “Open Call ” All details for “Open Call ”

SUMMER 2024

New art for New York

Open Call: Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre

JUN 20 – 22

Open Call: Kyle Dacuyan

JUN 27 – 29

Open Call: Garrett Zuercher

JUL 11 – 13

Open Call: Cain Coleman

JUL 18 – 20

Open Call: Asia Stewart

JUL 25 – 27

Open Call: NIC Kay

AUG 1 – 3

Open Call: Nile Harris

AUG 9 – 10

Open Call: Kayla Hamilton

AUG 15 – 17

Thank you to our partners

The Sponsor of Open Call is

Support for Open Call is generously provided by

Additional support for Open Call is provided by The Wescustogo Foundation and Jody and John Arnhold | Arnhold Foundation.

The creation of new work at The Shed is generously supported by the Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Commissioning Fund and the Shed Commissioners. Major support for live productions at The Shed is provided by the Charina Endowment Fund, with additional support from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

The Shed is connected by