Joseph Keckler is a vocalist, writer, songwriter and performance artist based in NYC. He is widely acclaimed for his rich, versatile 3+ octave voice and sharp wit. His compelling performances combine humor, autobiography, and classical themes from a unique perspective. He will present an evening of wild miniature operas and stories about contemporary life, haunted torch songs, and narratives infused with humor and longing. His work often combines autobiography, humor, and classical themes. He has been featured on BBC America and WNYC Soundcheck and has appeared at Lincoln Center, Art Basel Miami, SXSW, Centre Pompidou, and many other venues. He will be Houston for an event for Prototype 180 / Innovation Territories, at which he will perform a new work (date TBA at the performance on the 5th). He has received a Creative Capital, NYFA Fellowship, Franklin Furnace grant, and Village Voice Award for “Best Downtown Performance Artist.” He is currently finishing an album of music. His book, Dragon at the Edge of a Flat World was published by Turtle Point Press in 2017, and is available at Brazos Bookstore.

– Arrive 6:30 PM (you can order drinks and food)
– Performance Starts 7:30 PM
-Introduction by Mary Ellen Carroll

“Shatters the conventional boundaries of classical singing… The sensibility of a magician, a trickster’s dark humor and a formidable musical and literary erudition. Major vocal talent.” — Stephen Holden, The New York Times

“Riveting and beautifully absurd, Keckler singlehandedly has the power and chops to legitimately modernize a dying art form.” – The Huffington Post

“Tantalizing… dynamic… with magnetism and poise is so high that he seems to have been born onstage.” – The Village Voice

“Larynx-defying range”– Ben Brantley, The New York Times

“Charismatic, with a smoky, resonant baritone. He can get laughs from an audience merely by laughing.”– Zachary Woolfe, The New York Times

“A swoony performance”– Variety

“Sexy and certain”– The New Yorker

“Dazzling!”– Paper

“A super presence comparable to no one I’ve seen”– James Gavin, author of Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne and Deep in a Dream: The Long Night of Chet Baker

“Fucking amazing”– Amy Schumer

“Keckler is unusual among his milieu… he’s a performer who can actually sing, in a thrillingly deep, bass baritone multi-octave voice that occasionally veers into a soulful falsetto” — Interview Magazine

“Captivating”– Artforum

“The real deal and I can’t recommend anyone more.” -BlackBook Magazine

“Tall and striking, imagine a more calmly coiffed Edward Scissorhands… quietly charming and bright.”– Claudia La Rocco, The New York Times

“One of the finest performances in years… an unmatched range, endless and flawless. The intimacy of Jeff Buckley with the swagger of Freddie Mercury.” – Alternative Blog Netherlands

“Gifted…Rare as hen’s teeth.” — Manhattan User’s Guide

“His timing is impeccable, his wit is sharp… Keckler himself is the masterpiece”– Brooklyn Rail

“Extraordinary range, richness and malleability, as he sings from low baritone to glass-shattering falsetto.” –The Irish Times

“Although this writer and performer can flip styles as though responding to a switch, take on myriad voices, and draw on an extensive musical repertoire, his vocal skills are just one aspect of this gifted storyteller…. disarmingly articulate.” -Backstage

“Sensual, cathartic, overwrought and deeply philosophical, his psychotic twists and turns can bring his audience either to tears (from laughter) or to a numbed silence.” -New York Press

josephkeckler.com
prototype180.org

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