Ric Burns News

The Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan's ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York, announces its full lineup of films for its 12th annual festival, which will run March 31 through April 6. Tickets go on sale March 4, and can be purchased at ny.reelabilities.org. View the festival trailer here: https://bit.ly/2wwjG8B

Organizers of the 2019 GI Film Festival San Diego announce this year's lineup which promises to fulfill the expectations of film lovers -- a schedule of features, shorts, documentaries and narratives which portray the untold and underrepresented stories of America's military through film.

World-renowned moral philosopher/author Peter Singer and Chuck Morrongiello, the director of the horror film AMITYVILLE: MT. MISERY ROAD, are Tom Needham's special guests this Thursday at 6 pm on WUSB's THE SOUNDS OF FILM.

Last night, WNET hosted its annual WNET Gala, to celebrate artists and honor patrons of the American arts community in gratitude of their continued support of emerging creatives. A who's who of stars and patrons gathered at the Plaza Hotel Monday evening to shine a spotlight on seven 2019 honorees for their contributions to the arts including two-time Tony Award-winning actor Nathan Lane, American opera singer Renee Fleming, CEO of AMC Networks Josh Sapan, artistic director and CEO of Ballet Hispanico Eduardo Vilaro, and philanthropists Jody and John Arnhold of the Arnhold Foundation, recognizing them for their outstanding work in the arts, media, and philanthropy.

The New-York Historical Society held their annual History Makers Gala on November 6 at 583 Park in New York. This year's honorees included New-York Historical Trustee Dr. H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang, who received the New-York Historical Society Medal of Merit for Public Engagement; Harry Potter editor Arthur A. Levine, who received the New-York Historical Society Distinguished Service Award; and world-renowned entertainer and celebrated Harry Potter audiobook voice actor Jim Dale, who received the 2018 History Makers Award in recognition of the exhibition Harry Potter: A History of Magic, now on view at New-York Historical.

Glimmerglass Film Days will explore the theme “Passages” in Cooperstown November 8-12.  A program of Otsego 2000, Film Days features 32 films, 26 filmmakers and special guests, panels, receptions with local food and drink, a companion art exhibit, a pop-up bookstore, a free film for kids, and guided hikes.   

AN AMERICAN SOLDIER--music by Huang Ruo and libretto by David Henry Hwang, directed by Matthew Ozawa--opened at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL) on June 3. The opera asks the powerful question: What does it mean to be an American? It is based on the true story of a young Chinese American, who enlisted in the Army during the war in Afghanistan and became victim of military hazing that led to his suicide. The artists spoke about the creation of the piece at the Guggenheim Museum's Works & Process series.

 In the context of ongoing national debates over immigration, the timely new two-hour documentary The Chinese Exclusion Act, from Emmy® Award winning documentary filmmakers Ric Burns and Li-Shin Yu, will debut as a special presentation of the award-winning PBS television series American Experience on Tuesday, May 29 2018 at 8:00-10:00 PM ET. The film is narrated by actor Hoon Lee (Banshee).

On May 6th, 1882 – on the eve of the greatest wave of immigration in American history – President Chester A. Arthur signed into law a unique piece of federal legislation.  Called the Chinese Exclusion Act, it singled out by name and race a single nationality for special treatment: making it illegal for Chinese laborers to enter America on pain of imprisonment and for Chinese nationals ever to become citizens of the United States.  

One of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century, Arthur Miller created such celebrated works as 'Death of a Salesman' and 'The Crucible,' which continue to move audiences around the world today. He also made headlines for being targeted by the House Un-American Activities Committee at the height of the McCarthy Era and entering into a tumultuous marriage with Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe.

The new music ensemble, International Street Cannibals (ISC), presents "The Easily Satisfied Lover" - an evening of vocal works from the period of early modernism, which turns its lens on archaic male narratives of romance and reframes them through the voice and sensibility of a 21st century woman. Central to the evening is the performance of Arnold Schoenberg's monodrama, Pierrot Lunaire, op. 21 (1912) - a fantastical setting of 21 poems by Belgian symbolist poet Albert Giraud and freely translated in German by Otto Erich Hartleben. The program is a creation of soprano Ariadne Greif, Los Angeles-based director Gray Palmer, and ISC's founder/director Dan Barrett. It features conducting by maestro Christopher Lyndon-Gee; film footage by Swiss-Japanese filmmaker Caroline Mariko Stucky, especially created for this performance; and technical direction and stage management by Tyler Learned.

PBS will broadcast documentary film THE CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT on Tuesday, May 29th at 8:00 p.m. ET. This deeply American story – about immigration and national identity, civil rights and human justice; about how we define who can be an American, and what being an American means, is directed by Emmy-winning Directors Ric Burns and Li-Shin Yu. 

The New Group has announced four productions for its 2017-2018 Season.

FREE to the public! Westport Community Theatre is presenting an original workshop production of a new play, Rise and Fall, by noted media personality and former Westport resident, Eric Burns. Rise and Fall takes place on March 10th at 8 pm; the one-night staged reading is part of the theatre's ETC staged reading series.

City Winery Chicago, 1200 W. Randolph Street, announces Micky Dolenz, vocalist/drummer from The Monkees, the fifth annual interactive Downtown Freedom Seder, Chicago's own Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and more.

New-York Historical Society (170 Central Park West New York, NY 10024) has announced its winter exhibitions and programs, December 2015 - January 2016. Scroll down for details!

TED, the nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, and PBS just launched the first ever TED TALKS LIVE, a six-night speaker event featuring TED Talks, short films and performances at The Town Hall (123 West 43rd Street) in New York's famed Theater District.

TED, the nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, and PBS have announced additional participants for the first ever TED TALKS LIVE, a six-night speaker event featuring TED Talks, short films and performances at The Town Hall (123 West 43rd Street) in New York's famed Theater District.

The Smithsonian and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will present the History Film Forum, a free four-day exploration of history on the screen, at the National Museum of American History Nov. 19 22.

THIRTEEN's American Masters series teams up with Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Ric Burns to co-produce a new documentary about American Ballet Theatre (ABT) in honor of its 75th anniversary.