Description

Masks are encouraged and appreciated, but not mandatory for this event.

In honor of the centennial of renowned writer and activist Grace Paley, Selected Shorts pays tribute to her enduring legacy with an evening of classic tales curated from her Collected Stories, a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist. Fellow National Book Award finalist and bestselling author Lauren Groff (Matrix) leads a cast of actors and admirers in celebrating Paley’s unmatched talent for illuminating the real world through fiction, poetry, and essay. With performances by Justin Bartha (National Treasure), Joanna Gleason (The Bite), Jackie Hoffman (Only Murders in the Building), Adina Verson (Only Murders in the Building), and Rita Wolf (A Delicate Balance).

“A writer like Paley comes along and brightens language up again, takes it aside and gives it a pep talk, sends it back renewed, so it can do its job, which is to wake us up.” -George Saunders

Real-time captioning (CART) will be available in our theater for patrons with hearing loss, deafness, different language and learning needs, and anyone whose experience will be enhanced by CART. To access CART on your individual smartphone or tablet, please visit bit.ly/SymphonySpace_Captions.

There will not be a book signing at this event.

Selected Shorts is produced by Symphony Space and broadcast on more than 130 stations around the country. The series began in 1985 and enjoys sold-out performances to this day. Selected Shorts was conceived with a simple premise: take great stories by well-known and emerging writers and have them performed by terrific actors of stage and screen. Featuring stories around a lively theme, the favorite works of a guest author, or a special collaboration, each Selected Shorts event is a unique night of literature in performance.

Recent readers include Ellen Burstyn, Kate Walsh, Bebe Neuwirth, Claire Danes, Michael Shannon, Kyle Maclachlan, LeVar Burton, Jane Curtin, Danielle Brooks, Cynthia Nixon, Rainn Wilson, Holly Hunter, Hugh Dancy, Joan Allen, Josh Radnor, Tony Shalhoub, Maggie Gyllenhaal, BD Wong and more.

Actors subject to change. Casting and special guests will be announced on our website. Please check back for up-to-date information.

There will not be an intermission at this event.