Bassist and composer James Ilgenfritz (2011 AIR) returns to ISSUE, joined by Joe McPhee and AC Diamond for their first performance as a trio. This event marks a new shared context for three artists deeply invested in improvisation as a mode of inquiry.
ISSUE presents the premiere of three audiovisual compositions by Matt Mottel (2010 AIR). These works bring Mottel’s distinct artistic sensibility into dialogue with formative figures in his life and in New York’s avant-garde, tracing a lineage that is both deeply personal and central to ISSUE’s history.
Monarch Butterfly by rocío sánchez (2026 AIR) features Melissa Almaguer (tap dance and percussion) and Kenneth Jiménez (double bass). Together, the trio explores the elusive monarch’s migratory journey through sound and movement, with each instrument articulating distinct states of motion.
Isabella Thorpe-Woods presents "Envelop/e," her second program as ISSUE’s 2026 Suzanne Fiol Curatorial Fellow. Bringing together choreographers Jade Manns and Ella Dawn W-S for site-specific duets, they navigate presence and absence, repetition and rupture, and the tension between inherited geometries and shifting landscapes.
"Spiriting Off" is a new solo work by luthier Webb Crawford (2026 AIR) for electric guitar, tenor banjo, and five-string banjo.
ISSUE closes the summer season with the return of Matana Roberts (2009 AIR). Opening the evening, Ben Vida (2013 AIR) will perform music from his 2026 release, "Oblivion Seekers" with vocalist Sara Magenheimer.
Phantom Orbit is an immersive performance by 2025 Artist-In-Residence Qiujiang Levi Lu. Staged within an 18-speaker dome at NYU Brooklyn’s “The Garage” space, it is presented in partnership with Harvestworks.
ISSUE is pleased to present 2025 Artist-In-Residence Zosha Warpeha’s second commission "Ballad & Air" featuring Henry Birdsey performing on bagpipes.
MATA presents its 27th annual MATA Festival, this year in partnership with ISSUE Project Room at the limited capacity 22 Boerum Pl. theater. Featuring four concerts across four nights, this year’s festival explores the concept of INTERGALACTIC INFINITY: Music Between Spaces.
Suzanne Fiol Curatorial Fellowship 2025
2025 Suzanne Fiol Curatorial Fellow Kenneth Jiménez presents Umbral, a multisensory event that centers on the visionary Costa Rican performer Wendy Chinchilla Araya. With live score by percussionist Carlo Costa and violinist Sabrina Salamone.
ISSUE is proud to present a release event for Bored Giant Engine Sputter, the latest EP by Axine M, out this May via anno records. Featuring a new work by choreographer Amelia Heintzelman.
Distant Pairs Series
ISSUE and Time Based are pleased to stream a new collaboration between composer Oleksii Podat and Suzanne Thorpe as part of ongoing activations of the Distant Pairs Series. Throughout May 2025, ISSUE and Time Based will co-present three digital commissions uniting artists based in Kyiv and New York.
Distant Pairs Series
ISSUE and Time Based are pleased to stream a new collaboration between multi-instrumentalist Eden Girma and film composer Maryana Klochko as part of ongoing activations of the Distant Pairs Series. Throughout May 2025, ISSUE and Time Based will co-present three digital commissions uniting artists based in Kyiv and New York.
Distant Pairs Series
Saturday, May 10th, at 8pm ISSUE hosts a live conversation between NYC-based Distant Pairs artists Eden Girma, Madison Greenstone & Suzanne Thorpe at the 22 Boerum Pl. theater.