IDEAS CITY Festival presented by the New Museum

Every other year, the New Museum, Manhattan's museum solely dedicated to contemporary art, celebrates a meeting of the cultural and urban minds with their IDEAS CITY Festival. This year's theme, "The Invisible City", was inspired by the Italo Calvino novel Invisible Cities and included a series of thought-provoking talks, solutions, and unique ideas in the quest to bring light to the otherwise unseen.

On the first day of the festival, the IDEAS CITY Conference included world-renowned visionaries' takes on the theme through a series of keynotes, panels, in-depth discussions, and screenings at Cooper Union's Great Hall. Speakers included political activist Lawrence Lessig, Micah White of Occupy Wall Street fame, and a mayoral panel with Annise Parker (Houston), Carmen Yulín Cruz (San Juan), and Svante Myrick (Ithaca) to name a few. The Conference concluded with a keynote from Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, The Honorable Julián Castro.

Day two utilized NoLIta's Old St. Patrick's Cathedral Basilica and Aula (aka "the old gym"). In the Basilica, the Municipal Art Society, Architizer: Pitching the City presented five original projects representing the next big idea for cities, followed by a late-night screening of The Dent by Basim Magdy. In the Aula, a Performative Conference in Nine Acts ensued with an unforgettable opening by Jordi Enrich Jorba wherein guests entered through a repurposed hot-air balloon. The night commenced with Bob Holman emceeing an evening of spoken word by artists like Penny Arcade, dance battles by Battlefest, and immersive video and sound installations by Ursula Scherrer.

Empire was honored to partner in the Museum's third year of the Conference and first-ever Performative Conference. Empire's support included technical and stage management of both the Cooper Union's Great Hall and St. Patrick's Cathedral, oversight of set design and construction, sound, lighting, video playback and technical direction. Empire also managed talent logistics for Friday's event and creative support.

IDEAS CITY is a showcase example of Empire's capability to act as a partner on all types and sizes of programs, including multiple-day festivals.

For more information on IDEAS CITY, visit www.ideas-city.org.

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