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Chelsea Manning Will Headline Politically-Charged New Yorker Festival
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Sep 5, 2017
Modified Sep 5, 2017
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Sep 5, 2017
Modified Sep 5, 2017
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The 2017 New Yorker Festival comes to venues across the city next month, bringing with it a diverse lineup of "talks" (and a few performances) from cultural and political luminaries like Chelsea Manning, Kumail Nanjiani, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Ava DuVernay.
The annual three-day gathering skews more political than previous festivals, according to New Yorker Editor David Remnick, with the addition of voices like former U.S. attorney for Manhattan turned podcaster Preet Bharara and Senator Al Franken. There's also be a panel called "All The President's Reporters," where a host of reporters from the Times, the Washington Post, and the New Yorker will discuss covering national politics.
"I don’t think it would be possible for us to have a New Yorker Festival that wasn’t political, considering what an intensely political time we’ve been living in,” Remnick told the Times. “I think we’re living in a unique moment of emergency.”
In addition to the politicos, some of the magazine's favorite fiction writers—including Sherman Alexie, Colson Whitehead, and Jennifer Egan (whose highly anticipated new novel Manhattan Beach comes out three days before the festival)—will share their perspective on this unique moment. Artist Ai Weiwei will talk about the forthcoming debut of his largest public art installation to date, “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors." And filmmaker Sofia Coppola will be interviewed by Richard Brody, one of the New Yorker's film critics.
Music-wise, Laura Marling will talk with John Seabrook at Gramercy Theatre, and Carly Rae Jepsen will chat with Amanda Petrusich, before performing live at SIR Stage37 on October 6. Comedians Seth Meyers, Kumail Nanjiani, and Hasan Minhaj will add a bit of levity to the festival, while Andy Borowitz will moderate something called Post-Trump stress disorder.
The festival runs from October 6th through October 8th, and tickets—which typically sell out pretty fast—go on sale this Friday, September 8th. See the full schedule of speakers here.
Tagged
ai weiwei
ava duvernay
Carly Rae Jepsen
chelsea manning
Hasan Minha colson whitehead
Hasan Minhaj
jennifer egan
kumail nanjiani
new yorker
new yorker festival
sherman alexie
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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