The Lupine Series is a community concert series dedicated to sharing the gift of New York City musicians with the broader community. Founded by Alphabet City residents Marybeth and Jonah Bobo, the concert series began as an effort to program more musical events in the treasured community gardens in their neighborhood. Follow at @lupine.series for updates and information about all events!

KESSELGARTEN

Gardens, immigrants & unruly public space

Two film programs AUGUST 23rd & SEPTEMBER 10th (rain date September 13th) at 8pm

KESSELGARTEN: Yiddish slang for any noisy, chaotic, confusing situation or “ruckus.” It originates from the Eastern-European-accented pronunciation of “Castle Garden”, America’s first official immigrant depot, located on the southern tip of Manhattan from 1855 to 1890.

KESSELGARTEN is screening series that probes the relationships between immigrant communities and green, unruly urban spaces, here in NYC, and interrogates the definition of a garden: both as a serene place for communion with nature, and as a public space of encounter, contest, labor & urban reclamation, spaces that are continuously remade by their communities.

Thursday, September 10 - American Stories: Food, Family and Philosophy (1989) by Chantal Akerman

Chantal Akerman’s rarely screened film, was shot on overgrown vacant lots along the East River, in which Jewish legends of the downtown avant-garde (like Judith Malina, founder of the Living Theater) recite first-person accounts of the hardship of Ellis Island-era immigrants. A makeshift outdoor restaurant is set up, jokes are told & stories continue. Their retelling of the experiences of an earlier generation creates a spectral feeling, almost though they are inhabited by ghosts of their own families. Today the film is doubly spectral; not only does it conjure the resilience and humor of our immigrant forebears, but it brings back the old waterfront itself, land that has since beenpaved over and gentrified beyond recognition. 

Organized by Zoe Beloff and Mina Mattes in collaboration with Matt Mckinzie and the Film-Maker’s Co-op. In conjunction with Zoe’s exhibition, Life Forgotten at City Lore,  with support from LMCC and the New York State Council for the Arts.

NORA BALABAN began her musical career in 1980, singing with the rock band, Pop Decay. The band performed regularly at CBGB’s, Max’s Kansas City and other NYC underground clubs.

In 1982, Nora relocated to San Francisco, beginning a musical journey that would influence her life long musical career. She first joined the band “Mapenzi”, a ten-piece “Zimbabwe Style” dance band, recording and performing with them for three years as their marimba player and singer. She then began composing pop songs based on African marimba grooves and this led to the formation of her band “Fuzz Factor”, a pop rock band fusing African marimbas with rock and roll. It was during this period that Nora heard the sound of the Timbila (Mozambique’s national xylophone). She became obsessed with this sound and after searching for recordings in record stores and radio stations she realized that she would have to travel to Africa in order to locate the source of this music.

In 1996 Nora returned to NYC. Soon after returning she was invited to travel to Ghana to study Gyil (Ghanaian xylophone), with Bernard Woma of the Ghana National Dance Ensemble. She spent two months in intensive study with Bernard and then traveled to Zimbabwe for ten months to study with Mbira Master Tute Chigamba and his family. She took daily lessons and performed at ceremonies and various functions with the family, solidifying her playing and understanding of the instruments and culture. Nora crossed the border to Mozambique several times during this trip to learn about the Timbila. This is when she met and began her study with the great master Venancio Mbande. She has returned to Zimbabwe and Mozambique several times over the last ten years to continue her music studies.

During her trips to Africa Nora began to collect beautiful instruments and crafts and upon returning to NYC she realized that many musicians expressed an interest in purchasing these instruments. She opened a store called “Tribal Soundz” and began selling these African treasures. This led to her sponsoring world music instrument workshops, concerts and events at the store.

Presently Nora continues to teach Mbira privately and in group workshops. She organizes workshops and concerts for many of Zimbabwe’s visiting Mbira Masters. She performs with her group “Timbila” an “Afrodelic Xylo Pop Band” with Banning Eyre. She composes the music for the band, plays Timbila, Mbira and sings. In addition Nora performs with Mbira NYC.

Via MbiraNYC

THE BOWERY: From tap dance & vaudeville to skid row and punk rock

An Illustrated talk by author David Mulkins

Native American trail, Dutch farm road, free Black homesteads, and Washington’s march route during the British evacuation, Bowery became the main street of immigrants & the working class. NYC’s 1st entertainment district, it has seminal links to tap dance, vaudeville, Yiddish theater, Stephen Foster, Irving Berlin, Harry Houdini, and modern tattooing. It later became an iconic skid row, but reemerged and helped foster Abstract Expressionism, Beat literature, Free Jazz, and punk rock. Special guest: Ramona Baker (ragtime pianist)

The event in this series previously scheduled for August 27th is now scheduled for September 15th, due to rain. Hope to see you then!

Join EunYoung Sebazco at 6th & B Garden in Manhattan as Dasi returns for a public autumn gathering.

Branches, soil, and native seeds form an open outdoor sanctuary where the community is invited to slow down and connect. Throughout the day, a tea ceremony, tea tastings, and a community engagement table offer different ways to participate, each one a small act of care for the present moment.

We invite neighbors and friends to slow down, share tea traditions, and take part in a collective experience.

FREE event! All are welcome!

Meet EunYoung Sebazco:

EunYoung Sebazco is a New York–based artist working at the intersection of ecology, ritual, and public space. Through plants, photography, and site-specific installation, she creates moments of pause, inviting audiences to experience the city as a living, breathing environment.

Trained in landscape architecture and horticulture, she works with layered, living materials to cultivate connections between human presence and the natural world. The Japanese tea ceremony is the heartbeat of her practice, extending into ceramics, floral design, and landscape interventions. Her work asks viewers to become co-creators, slowing down, paying attention, and recognizing the quiet life that surrounds them.

More about Dasi 다시 · Again here.

This event has been rescheduled from the original date to October 17th due to rain.