Music fans and technophiles alike will want to experience this one of a kind evening that features new music, technology, poetry, and visual elements in The Apollo’s new stages at The Victoria. Experience the world of improvised jazz like never before as four-time Grammy nominee and Apollo New Works artist Stefon Harris shares his groundbreaking new technology that blends artificial intelligence with live performance featuring Harris’ band Blackout.
“The standout vibraphonist of his generation.”
— The New Yorker
Stefon Harris & Blackout is a part of The Apollo’s New Works initiative and Winter 2024 season.
Apollo New Works is generously supported by the Ford Foundation with additional funding from The Mellon Foundation and Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
The Apollo New Works initiative expands upon The Apollo’s mission to support the creation of new work by Black artists. The multidisciplinary emerging and established artists who the organization has commissioned and provided space, time, and resources will create, develop, and present work across The Apollo stages, including The Apollo’s Victoria Theater, which will serve as the main incubation space.
This concert will take place at The Apollo Stages at The Victoria Theater located at 233 W. 125th Street, Third Floor (between Adam Clayton Powell & Frederick Douglass Blvd).
Please Note: Late seating is not permitted to ensure minimal disruption to the performers and fellow audience members. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
Please contact The Apollo Box office at [email protected] or (212) 531-5305 if any other special assistance is required for your visit.
Stefon Harris & Blackout
Stefon Harris – Creative Director, Vibraphone, Marimba, and AI
Casey Benjamin – Saxophone, Aerophone, and Vocoder
Christian Sands – Piano
James Francies – Keyboards and AI
Dezron Douglas – Bass
Terreon Gully – Drums
Special Guests
Christie Dashiell – Vocalist
Dwayne Clark – Spoken Word Artist
Dr. Guthrie Ramsey – Moderator/Scholar
Visual and AI Development Team
Kevin Jiang – Lead Engineer
Max Shirokawa – Machine Learning Engineer
Xuelong Mu – Live Visuals Director
Alexander Baumann – Visual Artist
Robert Ruth – Visual Artist
1st Performance: 4 PM EST
2nd Performance: 8 PM EST
Runtime: Appx 90 minutes
TWO PERFORMANCES:
1st Performance: 4pm
2nd Performance: 8pm
Address:
233 W. 125th Street,
Third Floor
New York, NY 10027
Music fans and technophiles alike will want to experience this one of a kind evening that features new music, technology, poetry, and visual elements in The Apollo’s new stages at The Victoria. Experience the world of improvised jazz like never before as four-time Grammy nominee and Apollo New Works artist Stefon Harris shares his groundbreaking new technology that blends artificial intelligence with live performance featuring Harris’ band Blackout.
“The standout vibraphonist of his generation.”
— The New Yorker
Stefon Harris & Blackout is a part of The Apollo’s New Works initiative and Winter 2024 season.
Apollo New Works is generously supported by the Ford Foundation with additional funding from The Mellon Foundation and Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
The Apollo New Works initiative expands upon The Apollo’s mission to support the creation of new work by Black artists. The multidisciplinary emerging and established artists who the organization has commissioned and provided space, time, and resources will create, develop, and present work across The Apollo stages, including The Apollo’s Victoria Theater, which will serve as the main incubation space.
This concert will take place at The Apollo Stages at The Victoria Theater located at 233 W. 125th Street, Third Floor (between Adam Clayton Powell & Frederick Douglass Blvd).
Please Note: Late seating is not permitted to ensure minimal disruption to the performers and fellow audience members. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
Please contact The Apollo Box office at [email protected] or (212) 531-5305 if any other special assistance is required for your visit.
Stefon Harris & Blackout
Stefon Harris – Creative Director, Vibraphone, Marimba, and AI
Casey Benjamin – Saxophone, Aerophone, and Vocoder
Christian Sands – Piano
James Francies – Keyboards and AI
Dezron Douglas – Bass
Terreon Gully – Drums
Special Guests
Christie Dashiell – Vocalist
Dwayne Clark – Spoken Word Artist
Dr. Guthrie Ramsey – Moderator/Scholar
Visual and AI Development Team
Kevin Jiang – Lead Engineer
Max Shirokawa – Machine Learning Engineer
Xuelong Mu – Live Visuals Director
Alexander Baumann – Visual Artist
Robert Ruth – Visual Artist
1st Performance: 4 PM EST
2nd Performance: 8 PM EST
Runtime: Appx 90 minutes
TWO PERFORMANCES:
1st Performance: 4pm
2nd Performance: 8pm
Address:
233 W. 125th Street,
Third Floor
New York, NY 10027
The Nuyorican Poets Cafe presents the Grand Slam of 2024 a spoken word extravaganza hosted by Tony McPherson with sounds by DJ Luna Rosa. After eleven months of weekly slam winners competing every Final Friday the time has come for one poet to be named the Grand Slam Champion and win $1,000, a produced show in the new building and potential spot on our 2025 national slam team.
The Nuyorican Poets Cafe is a nonprofit organization rooted in the legacy of spoken word truth-telling. Founded by Puerto Rican /Afro Caribbean poets and visionaries, we honor this sacred history by creating an accessible forum for developing poetic theatrical, musical, and visual media works in the spirit of downtown New York subculture and experimentalism. Since closing our building for a major renovation, we have taken our programming offsite at different locations throughout NYC, the country, and the world. We are happy to bring the 2024 Grand Slam to the Apollo Stages at The Victoria.
The Apollo is proud to present Loss, produced by The Theatre Centre, at the Under The Radar Festival.
Loss brings an intergenerational family story to life through a stunning blend of live music, video, and powerful storytelling. Created by the Canadian visionary Ian Kamau and his father, famed documentarian Roger McTair, this multimedia performance dives deep into grief, healing, and the strength of community.
This isn’t just a show—it’s a journey that will move your spirit and spark conversations. Don’t miss your chance to witness the future of theater, where every moment pulls you deeper into an immersive, emotional experience.
The Apollo celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Black women-led theatrical dance company and social activism ensemble, Urban Bush Women with a stunning visual exhibition in the Laura and Frank Baker Gallery. With special pop-up performances on select dates, Lineage Legacy and Liberation: An Examination of Urban Bush Women’s Art-Making and Community Organizing Praxis contains rare photographs, performance footage, manuscripts, costumes and memorabilia from the groundbreaking ensemble’s 40-year history.
Curators:
UBW Co-Artistic Directors Mame Diarra Spies & Chanon Judson and Pia Monique Murray
Curatorial Consultant:
Laura Steward
Producers:
Jonathan D. Secor & Pia Monique Murray
Presented in Partnership with Urban Bush Women
ABOUT URBAN BUSH WOMEN:
Urban Bush Women is a groundbreaking Black women-led theatrical dance company and social activism ensemble, founded in 1984 by visionary choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar as an engine and an amplifier for the unheard stories of Black Women+. Today, under the artistic leadership of Chanon Judson and Mame Diarra Speis, UBW combines revolutionary performance, deep-healing community engagement, and ancestral knowledge from the African diaspora into a cultural force that is urgent, forward-looking, and essential.
UBW embraces the power of radical storytelling to activate social change. Whether creating genre-defying work for the stage, guiding the development of Black Women+ choreographers and producers, organizing for justice through art-making, or inspiring leaders across generations, UBW is an innovator, operating at the vanguard.
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1974 classic film Claudine and the life of the late James Earl Jones at The Apollo Stages at The Victoria, in partnership with the Harlem Festival of Culture Foundation.
Experience the powerful performances of Diahann Carroll and James Earl Jones in this timeless story of resilience, love, and community. Claudine tells the tale of a strong-willed single mother raising six children in Harlem, whose budding romance with a charismatic garbage collector is tested by the struggles of life within an oppressive system.
This annual event from WNYC and the Apollo Theater will explore Dr. King’s enduring legacy through the lens of belonging, reflecting on his vision for a just and inclusive society. Through powerful conversations with prominent public intellectuals, community and faith leaders, authors and artists, we will ponder democracy and civil rights under a second Trump administration. Join us for this inspiring tribute as we honor Dr. King’s dream and engage in a timely dialogue on the ongoing project of forging an equitable society.
Apollo Education invites the community to join this year’s MLK Young Changemakers event, honoring Dr. King’s powerful legacy in a modern context. MLK Young Changemakers is a series of conversations in recognition of Dr. King’s impact and the National Youth Day of Service where local and national youth leaders will explore how environmental and food justice impact our lives and communities.
Join Apollo Education for a full-day Professional Learning Workshop to explore the digital learning hub, Apollo Stories. This online resource of educator-created materials sparks critical thinking in students and ignites thought-provoking discussions on justice, culture, and identity.
Led by The Apollo Stories team, educators will receive expert guidance on integrating and adapting the free lessons featured on the platform into their classroom curricula. Gain hands-on facilitation experience, feedback, and dive into engaging, practical, classroom-ready activities.
Presented in partnership with Bob Sumner (producer of Def Comedy Jam, creator of Laff Mobb on Aspire), the Apollo Comedy Club celebrates these rich comedic roots with an evening of comedy on the Apollo’s Stages at the Victoria to serve as a late-night hotspot featuring the best emerging talent in comedy today.
The Apollo has a long history of launching the careers of countless legendary artists and performers in a variety of genres, including comedy. Comedic legends Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx, Monique, Jamie Foxx and Jackie Mabley (a.k.a. Moms) have all delighted audiences from the Apollo stage.
Falling on the heels of Valentine’s Day, the singer, songwriter and poet known as sahn has taken pen to paper to create an introspective musical love letter that covers the elements of loss, renewal and everlasting love. sahn delivers a powerful evening of smokey, jazz-infused, songs and stories from her debut album “the mornings”.
Embark on a vibrant journey through the cultural traditions of Africa, the Caribbean, and other areas of the Black Diaspora with School Day Live: Jump Up Jamboree!
Master of Song and Apollo Legend, Luther Vandross is one of the most important voices of all time. On this night, his greatest hits are effortlessly covered with classics such as “Never Too Much”, “A House Is Not a Home”, “So Amazing” and more. It’s a night like no other with no stop to love!
The Apollo’s Dining with the Divas is a powerful, annual fundraiser celebrating bold and extraordinary women from diverse industries who inspire and uplift. This special luncheon gathers over 350 guests for an afternoon of networking, sisterhood and empowerment.
Proceeds will benefit The Apollo’s year-round education, community, and performing arts programs, impacting tens of thousands of students and families in New York City and beyond.
Accessibility
The Apollo is here for everyone. Artists, audiences, and all supporters should be able to experience The Apollo fully and in a way that is comfortable for them.
The Apollo has taken comprehensive steps to ensure that entrances, seating, restrooms, and more are as accessible and compliant as possible. Learn more about accessibility options and support services that might be right for you.
All persons and bags are subject to search. Bags that have passed inspection must fit comfortably under your seat. Oversized bags are prohibited.
No outside food or beverage. Accommodations are made for patrons with medical needs. Please email access@apollotheater.org or call the box office at (212) 531-5305 for assistance.
