[Full Disclosure: I am a current employee of the Kennedy Center. Any opinions expressed in this piece are my own personal views and do not represent that of the Center, its management, or its staff.]
I've had the incredible privilege of getting paid to present and watch amazing performances. The fact that I can also share these exact performances with you is even better! As I look back on my six years at Millennium Stage, I want to highlight some of the shows that I have loved and have meant a lot to me. Artists, if your particular show is not here, please know this list was very hard for me to put together. I've helped present over 1,700 performances here, and I love so many of them.
In no particular order:
Meena's Dream
This show stood out to me pretty early on in my tenure. Millennium Stage doesn't present theater often. Theatrical works are often longer than an hour, or require more production and setup than we can usually provide. Even though I was unfamiliar with much of the culture in the story, it was still easy to understand. The message is still very relatable, we all have to fight the Worry Machine.
Artist Link: Anu Yadav
Tim Mislock
This show was also very synergetic in a way that isn't accessed often. Tim Mislock was part of the band in the national tour of Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the time, and performed this in-between his matinee and evening performances in the Eisenhower Theater. This seems like a no-brainer, invite visiting talent to perform for an hour on Millennium Stage, but this was the only occurrence during my tenure (the exception being the annual Alvin Ailey Dance Company's Revelations class). We regularly feature in-house groups, but it would be cool/interesting to see more touring talent.
Artist Link: Tim Mislock
BOOMscat
Artist Link: BOOMscat
Merry TubaChristmas
The event was originally conceived by Harvey Phillips in 1974 to shine a light and celebrate this under-appreciated large brass family. After 48 years, it has helped create a players community and given the tuba family a moment to shine in the spotlight.
It's so zany. I love it.
Artist Link: TUBACHRISTMAS
What a show. The Kennedy Center has presented musicals that feature the art of drag, like Kinky Boots and La Cage Aux Folles. This was really its first authentic drag show, exclusively focused on the art of drag, so it meant a lot to everyone involved. It featured drag queens and kings from the local DC scene. Hosted and organized by D.C. drag legend Shi-Queeta Lee, Shi-Queeta has been performing in drag since the mid-1980's and was the first drag queen to be invited to perform at the White House. This show also showcases Riley Knoxx, one of the best Beyoncé impersonators around. She has since gone on to have an exciting career, including appearing in Taylor Swift's "You Need to Calm Down" music video.
Top Notch is our annual b-boy and b-girl battle tournament we present in collaboration with Words Beats and Life Inc. The physical talent and artistry on display is so amazing. The video above is just of the finals, the preliminaries and other levels make it an all-day event.
Thanks a million to Sesame Street Workshop and the Kennedy Center for permission to share this portion of the December 7, 2019 Millennium Stage "Honors Week Tribute: Sesame Street Singalong"!
Deborah Bond
Solomon Howard "The Grinch Song"
Soloman Howard. That's all.
I've been lucky to see him perform on quite a few occasions. 2015's Appomattox, 2016's Ring Cycle, 2017 in a surprise-appearance performance with BANDALOOP and FLEXN during the JFK Centennial Open House Celebration, and 2019 during the REACH Opening Festival. His bass voice is unbelievable, booming, and beautiful. What a presence. And his speaking voice is right there too!
This clip is not a full show, nor is it a show during my tenure. However, once I viewed it, I knew it was instantly one of my favorites.
Artist Link: Soloman Howard
Gamer Symphony Orchestra
This show was a culmination moment. A lot of passionate people worked towards bringing shows to the Center that showcased the intersection between arts and gaming. They have all since departed for other endeavors. Hopefully, this intersection can be approached again in the future. There is really something exciting there.
I say this with full love and appreciation: we have some amazing dorks in our stagehand cadre, and they took full advantage of the moment in terms of the lighting. Imitating Tetris on the light towers was amazing. My own dorky heart was thrilled to the brim that day.
This show was also part of the annual Direct Current festival. The festival highlighted new, exploratory, contemporary arts and artists. The Millennium Stage threw out all the stops in the artists presented. It's an absolute trip of the strange and exciting. Any show that was part of the festival, I highly recommend checking out.
Artist Link: Gamer Symphony Orchestra
Kids Opera Company
This show blew my mind. A 3rd grade class from Stedwick Elementary School wrote, composed, built, rehearsed, and performed their own opera. Their teacher, Mary Ruth McGinn, uses the opera creation as "a vehicle for learning everything that all third graders must learn." Every subject can be worked in. It's phenomenal. I would have loved to have been taught this way in school.
We had the honor of presenting 2-3 iterations of the kids opera company over my tenure. While we only get to see the final product, it's still an inspiring experience loading in the show and adapting it onto our stage. Students get to shadow our stagehands and learn how professionals create live performances. Everyone is so gung-ho, welcoming, and amazing. It's exciting to have a front row seat in impacting and inspiring the next generation of arts makers and lovers. And it all comes with a meaningful message.
A Drag Salute to Divas and Devos
Millennium Stage is really unique. Because we aren't worried about selling tickets, we can spotlight untraditional performance genres. We can present shows that other venues might turn away because its appeal is unproven, or deemed to be unpopular. Millennium Stage can truly be a celebration of everyone, for everyone. I'm glad the Kennedy Center has this program. It needs this sort of program.
Since this performance, Millennium Stage has presented at least one drag show a year (2020 being the exception). Drag is becoming more and more mainstream, and its exciting to watch its rise to power.
Artist Link: Shi-Queeta Lee (and a news article)
Artist Link: Riley Knoxx
Top Notch
This annual event makes my list for many personal reasons. When I first started interning at the Kennedy Center, I really hadn't had much exposure to Hip Hop. I grew up in a white suburban bubble, and never tried to look into the art form. I thought Hip Hop was only a dance style, and rapping was its own separate thing. This show and the events we presented alongside it in the WBLFest really opened my eyes to what Hip Hop is. Rapping and dancing are only parts of a larger-encompassing culture. The Kennedy Center Education Department has a great guide to Hip Hop Culture, I recommend you check it out.
Another reason. Top Notch always had a lot of moving parts, so it had lots of stressful moments. One year, I was definitely feeling it. I made one mistake that triggered a major downward emotional spiral in me. Looking back, the mistake wasn't a big deal, it was just the straw that broke the camel's back. The next year, there was a lot of staff turnover. My new supervisor had just started and was learning the ropes. I really needed to step up for this festival. And I did. I walked away feeling like I redeemed myself from the previous year. I felt like I was finally starting to ride the bicycle of my job without the training wheels. It was a great feeling.
Like drag, Hip Hop Culture was initially brought to the Kennedy Center through Millennium Stage. It is truly a success story, having become its own established genre with an exclusive programming director (Shout out to Simone Eccleston!!). I'm so proud of the work that has brought it here, and excited for what the future holds for it.
Artist Link: Words Beats & Life Inc
Sesame Street Singalong
For many years, Millennium Stage held an Honors tribute week ahead of the Kennedy Center Honors performance gala. In 2019, Sesame Street was honored, and so we had a tribute singalong show! It was really sweet, brought back memories of really great songs I had heard and sang in my childhood. The show also had actual appearances from Abby Cadabby and Cookie Monster! I was freaking out. My childhood, alive on my stage. (Well, Abby was after my time, but I was at least aware of her addition. I digress.)
I consider my announcement to this performance the peak of my Kennedy Center career. I got to be rolled out in a trash can and pop out wearing an Oscar the Grouch onesie. The idea was all mine. It was so much fun, honoring Sesame Street in my own way. And who else can say they did something this cool at a National Cultural Center?
In the agreement with Sesame Street, the Kennedy Center was allowed to livestream the show, but had to remove it once the performance was over. Which is all fine, Sesame Street is protecting their intellectual property. However, I later asked and was granted permission to post my announcement of that show, and can luckily share it with you!:
Artist Link: Sesame Street Workshop
Well, that's the 10! Because I couldn't bear to not include these, here are the honorable mentions:
(Amazing, heartfelt stories)
Dhaka Brakha
(artist link)(those hats! Also, awesome unique sound with great harmonies)
Deborah Bond
Sweet Heaven Kings
Tag, Rag, and Bobtail
(This one was a show I personally programmed, marrying my previous job at Colonial Williamsburg with my current one at the KC.)
We are so lucky to have Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center. It is taken for granted by its free entry, its regularity, its size. But I truly think it is the heart and soul of what a national cultural center should be – showcasing the creativity, the diversity, the passion, the artistry, the humanity of the world, in a space that doesn’t discriminate race, class, or accessibility. It’s open to all, for all, by all. For anyone who hasn't checked out Millennium Stage, you are truly missing out.
I've really loved this stage. It's opened up my worldview and has showed me so much of the beauty of the human spirit. It's going to be hard to find a job that tops this.
Bonus KC Non-Millennium Stage Videos I've Enjoyed:
Dancers Rappel off Roof of The Kennedy Center - BANDALOOP (BANDALOOP is amazing. This was a segment of their show during the JFK Centennial Open House Celebration)
"The King and I" visits the Kennedy Center! (really good specialized ad specifically made for and by the Kennedy Center. Wish they did more of these!)
Now More Than Ever: A Film by Ezra Hurwitz (beautiful cinematography, beautiful dancing, beautiful dancers, beautiful locations)
Thanks to Diana Ezerins, Garth Ross, Bobby Hunter, Allen Brooks, Margot Pien, and Risikat Okedeyi. These individuals collaborated, influenced, relationship-cultivated, and/or programmed nearly all of the shows on this list.
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