EVENTS

Restorative Performance 2025 Fall Cohort - 4 Monthly Sessions

Registration is now open for Ara McGlamery's FALL COHORT+** - a monthly in-person, therapeutic performance workshop (Sept/Oct/Nov/Dec) that can promise to help you lift burdens and push through blocks that may be hindering your way forward.  Making art that speaks to your experiences is a way to gently hold and reconsider who we are and who we might like to be. Together, in our small group, we will RE-STORY and REFRAME the rigid stories that bind us, we will RE-DIRECT and REVITALIZE stuck energy, clearing the blockage with movement, music, art, theater, performance, and joy. Whether your blockage is career, relationships, purpose, sense of self, or shedding old patterns that no longer serve, RESTORATIVE PERFORMANCE can RENEW your vision and RESTORE your passion. 

What's the scoop?

Once monthly, Saturdays, 2 hours: 11-1pm EST in-person @BechdelProject, Brooklyn NY

Sep 20: Improv and Embodiment with Ara and Maya
Using improv as our guide, we’ll begin our inner journey starting from the outside in.  Somatic and auditory explorations prepare us for improvisation to see what spontaneity and our bodies have to say about ways we can move forward out of stuckness.

Oct 18: Monologues and Parts Work with Ara and Ann
After improv, themes emerge, stories are revealed.  Ann and Ara, using IFS parts work, will guide us in developing monologues based on our experiences and parts.

Nov 15: Scenework and Psychodrama with Ara and Alex
After monologues, comes scenework.  After we work on ourselves, we work with others.  Alex and Ara will guide us in psychodrama exercises that will continue to illuminate our journeys and explore our place in our own lives and those around us.

Dec 6: Performance & Party! Free with registration!
This free performance day is a culmination of the work that has been done both individually and as a group.  Monologues and scenes, dance, movement, improvisation, art, photography, filmmaking, storytelling, any performance medium that you’d like to share, both original and interpreted work, solo or group, creating a memorable evening of performances that will resonate and restore.

Now more than ever, we need restorative practices that nourish our bodies, minds, and spirits.  Please join us for 1 or all of the sessions and begin your creative explorations this Fall!

**The + in Fall Cohort+ is the chance to create future cohorts with other like-minded performers.  Part of the mission of RESTORATIVE PERFORMANCE is build community networks of creative people who come together to share work and ideas and commune with others who want to learn and grow as artists and people.

Coffee's On Us - A Third Space Pop-Up and Open Office Hours

Thanks for a great Summer! 

Fall Dates Coming Soon.

Coffee’s On Us is a free community space pop-up designed to offer women and gender expansive people a warm, welcoming environment to gather, work, and connect. It's also a time to participate in Bechdel Project open office hours - we're available to meet, talk about your work, and share information about our programming. 

My Body, My Voice Day of Performance and Activism in New York City

October 25, 2025

A powerful coalition of advocates, artists, and community members will come together for the inaugural My Body, My Voice - Day of Performance and Activism Festival, a vibrant event dedicated to celebrating and protecting reproductive freedom. The festival, set to take place on Saturday,October 25th at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center in Long Island City, promises a day of impactful performances, insightful discussions, and community building, all in support of reproductive rights.

The festival's highlight will be a NYC premiere performance of Pavement Kingdom: a clinic escort play, by acclaimed playwright Courtney Bailey. This open-access, free-to-perform solo play delves into the vital and often challenging work of clinic escorts. The play follows "Charon," a clinic escort in the Midwest who helps patients safely navigate past protestors while using her solitary time in the "pavement kingdom" to work on her comedy routine. Written after more than three years of Bailey's own experience volunteering as a clinic escort at Planned Parenthood, the play offers a unique and vital perspective on the front lines of reproductive healthcare.

The Bechdel Project's production of Pavement Kingdom is a cornerstone of their Interstate Initiative, a powerful program aimed at addressing the challenges faced by women, non-binary individuals, and underrepresented genders in states where their rights are actively being suppressed. Originally funded by the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis, this production exemplifies the Bechdel Project's commendable effort to amplify voices from outside of New York City, especially from areas with limited support for feminist artists. Providing time and space in the Bechdel Project studios for accepted projects not only supports the advancement of feminist artists' work but also facilitates the sharing of their perspectives with New York audiences, fostering a more comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by individuals in various regions. The Bechdel Project also facilitates professional connections to New York City industry and provides professional development opportunities for creative teams from outside of New York City, offering crucial support to feminist storytellers.

The Bechdel Project's Pavement Kingdom features the original team that created the piece, with direction by Rachel Tibbetts, Marcy Wiegert performing as "Charon," stage management by Celeste Genevieve Gardner, and production management by Jim Bernatowicz.

"We are thrilled to bring Pavement Kingdom to the stage as part of this critical festival," says Courtney Bailey. "The play aims to foster empathy and understanding for the often-unseen heroes of reproductive access and to spark meaningful conversations about the challenges and triumphs within this space."

In addition to the theatrical performance, the festival will feature Songs for Safe Access, a unique concert experience presenting original folk music from local singer-songwriters and selections from award-winning new musicals. This intimate evening of music, storytelling, and solidarity for reproductive justice will see proceeds supporting The Brigid Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to helping people across the country who must travel long distances to access safe abortion care. Attendees can also participate in engaging panel discussions with experts and activists, providing valuable insights into the current landscape of reproductive rights and pathways for advocacy.

The Reproductive Rights Festival will also host a diverse array of tabling organizations, offering resources, information, and opportunities for direct action.

"The Reproductive Rights Festival is more than just an event; it's a testament to the power of collective action and artistic expression in the fight for bodily autonomy," says Maria Aparo, Co-Creative Director of Bechdel Project. "In a time when reproductive rights are under attack, we aim to create a space for education, empowerment, and solidarity, reminding everyone that access to comprehensive reproductive healthcare is a fundamental human right.