New York Public Radio Announces Initial Fall Programming for The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space

Featuring musical performances, cultural and civic conversations, crafting sessions and trivia nights with WNYC and WQXR talent

New York, NY – September 10, 2026  New York Public Radio announced today the initial line-up for fall programming in The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, NYPR’s street level studio and live cultural events center. The season includes the return of beloved programming including All Of It’s “Broadway on the Radio” series and intimate concerts from WQXR, along with a series of brand-new events ranging from civic conversations, current events quizzes, and opportunities for hands-on artistic exploration, all led by your favorite WNYC hosts.

“Our fall season uplifts NYPR’s core commitments to journalism and culture—two essential pillars of a healthy democracy,” said Christy Tanner, President and CEO of New York Public Radio. “Journalism helps us understand the world we share, and culture gives us opportunities to experience that world together. The Greene Space has always served as a powerful expression of these ideals, as a space where New Yorkers can come together in person to experience thoughtful conversation and new ideas, as well as inspiring music and theater.”

Season highlights include the launch of “Democracy Dialogues,” a series examining the state of democracy and the essential roles that journalism, free expression and an informed public play in sustaining it; the return of “Broadway on the Radio,” the live performance series from “All Of It with Alison Stewart;” and performances from acclaimed classical musicians hosted by WQXR. Throughout the fall, audiences will also be able to join WNYC’s talented hosts and reporters for live conversations, film screenings, trivia contests and craft nights.

“For over 100 years, WNYC has strived to create a community with our listeners on the air. Now, our work in The Greene Space offers a place for WNYC fans and friends to gather to meet face-to-face,” said Emily Botein, Head of WNYC Studios. “Our programming this fall season will inform and test your news knowledge; inspire and move your heart; and jumpstart your creative juices in new ways.” 

These live events are an expansion of NYPR’s commitment to community programming, bringing the best of New York City out of the studio for engaged, community-focused programs that offer intimate access to the city’s newsmakers, journalists and artistic communities.

More details about these events can be found below. For tickets, please visit www.wnyc.org/events.

Lead philanthropic support for The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space is provided by The Jerome L. Greene Foundation. Additional support for The Greene Space comes from the Howard Gilman Foundation and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

New York Public Radio launches the Democracy Dialogues, a new live event series examining the state of democracy and the essential roles that journalism, free expression and an informed public play in sustaining it.

This inaugural event will include two conversations. The first will feature New York Public Radio’s President & CEO Christy Tanner and Adela Raz, Director of Princeton University’s Afghanistan Policy Lab, the last ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United States and the first woman to serve as Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the United Nation. The second will be a discussion with S. Mitra Kalita, co-founder of URL Media, and Rebecca Blumenstein, President of Editorial, NBC News, and co-author of “The Last Free Women: A Daring Escape from Afghanistan and Coming of Age in America.”

Join President and CEO Christy Tanner at New York Public Radio’s The Greene Space for a live segment broadcast during All Things Considered with the creative leaders of NYC’s iconic center of excellence for multiplatform public service with local heart and global impact. During a fireside chat with Fast Company news editor Christopher Zara, Christy will share why now is the moment to invest in a new era of democracy — where journalism and creativity thrive, facts unite us, and power answers to the people.

The in-person audience is limited to attendees of Fast Company’s Innovation Festival. The conversation will be streamed live on WNYC’s YouTube for the general public.

Broadway on the Radio’s Fall 2026 season kicks off with this year’s Tony winner for Best Musical! The stars of Broadway’s “Schmigadoon” join Alison Stewart live in The Greene Space at WNYC. The event will include performances and discussion with the cast and creative team, including Ann Harada, Brad Oscar, Maulik Pancholy and Jennifer Simard.

Welcome to Schmigadoon — the magical town where every day is a musical. Everybody has a song for everything, and the only bridge out of town leads nowhere. When one couple accidentally wanders in, they discover the only escape is finding true love — which may or may not be with each other.

OCTOBER

The new American cast of Broadway’s “Operation Mincemeat” joins Alison Stewart live in The Greene Space at WNYC. The event will include performances and discussion with Brandon Contreras, Jessi Kirtley, Amanda Jill Robinson, Jeff Kready, and Julia Knitel.

Here’s the score: the year is 1943, and right now we’re losing the war. Luckily, we’re about to gamble all our futures on a stolen corpse. “Singin’ in the Rain” meets “Strangers on a Train,” “Operation Mincemeat” is the fast-paced, hilarious and unbelievable true story of the twisted secret mission that won us World War II.

Brian Lehrer leads special guests in a multi-round quiz of news oddities for the ultimate prize – bragging rights. Between rounds, lucky members of the audience can take on 10-question quizzes and compete for prizes. Members of the audience will also be challenged to a 21-questions-style guess-who, which will unveil the identity of a special surprise interview guest.

Maria Ressa, the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner and one of the world’s most prominent advocates for journalism as a bulwark of democracy, joins Christy Tanner and Brian Lehrer for the second Democracy Dialogues conversation. Ressa will discuss understanding, defending and rebuilding democracy in the age of AI. 

Ressa is the co-founder and CEO of Rappler, the Philippines’ independent news organization targeted by the government for its investigative reporting, and is the author of the new book “The Fight Back: A Citizen’s Guide to Standing Up to Dictators.” 

NOVEMBER

The New York Times has called Igor Levit one of the “most important artists of his generation;” The New Yorker describes him as a pianist “like no other.”

Levit visits The Greene Space for an intimate evening discussing his career, life, and new record label, No Silence, launched in partnership with Sony Classical.

The event takes place just days after the release of the first three recordings on No Silence, featuring works by Satie, Beethoven, and Schoenberg interpreted by Levit. Levit will perform selections from his recordings during the evening.

Pain is one of the oldest problems humans have ever tried to solve. We’ve chewed leaves, smoked opium, invented anesthesia… and yet, until recently, we didn’t really understand how pain actually works. In this show, we follow an epic discovery journey involving giant squids, people who feel no pain and others who feel far too much to uncover the literal microscopic gates in our nerves that let pain signals through, and what it might mean for us if we can simply close them.

Gripping tales of the human body, live with “Radiolab,” hosted by “Radiolab” correspondent Dr. Avir Mitra and Senior Correspondent Molly Webster.

This series of live podcasts explores the weird, wonderful, and often grotesque mysteries of the human body. By taking audience members along a journey into questions we have about our own bodies, a visceral experience is guaranteed.

Over 35 years ago, a film called “Chameleon Street” won the Sundance Jury Prize but then fell into relative obscurity. Over subsequent years, the film found its audience, drawing comparisons to seminal works on the subject of race, like Ralph Ellison’s “Invisible Man” and was even sampled by the hip-hop duo Black Star. New Yorker film critic Richard Brody has long been a champion of the film and its charismatic writer-director-star Wendell B. Harris, Jr. On November 6th, Brody and Harris will join a rare screening of the film, followed by a Q&A hosted by New Yorker Radio Hour’s Adam Howard. This “overlooked masterpiece” is ripe for rediscovery and its themes of race and class are as prescient as ever.

From works by famous artists like Pablo Picasso to the ubiquitous junk journals found on Instagram, the art of collage has evolved to become an easily accessible way to express creativity and preserve memories. Join experts and hobbyists alike to learn more about this art form and try your hand at making your own piece.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of “Chicago” on Broadway, the show’s stars join Alison Stewart live in The Greene Space at WNYC. The event will include performances and discussion about the long-running hit musical. Cast and creative guests to be announced.

Set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s, “Chicago” is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her. Desperate to avoid conviction, she dupes the public, the media and her rival cellmate, Velma Kelly, by hiring Chicago’s slickest criminal lawyer to transform her malicious crime into a barrage of sensational headlines, the likes of which might just as easily be ripped from today’s tabloids.

MTA Chair Janno Lieber joins WNYC’s “On The Way” for an in-depth conversation on the country’s largest mass transit system. Lieber is the 14th person to run the transit agency, but only the fourth person to hold the job for more than five years. He joins WNYC transportation and infrastructure editor Clayton Guse in The Greene Space to discuss what the transit agency means to New York and the future of the transportation networks used by millions of people every day.

DECEMBER

The stars of Broadway’s Tony Award-winning new musical “The Lost Boys” join Alison Stewart live in The Greene Space at WNYC. The event will include performances and discussion about the latest Tony-winner for Best Musical. Cast and creative guests to be announced.

Welcome to Santa Carla. Perfect weather. Beautiful beaches. And a charming boardwalk…as long as you ignore all the “missing” posters.

When Lucy (Tony Award winner Shoshana Bean) and her teenage sons Michael and Sam move to town in desperate need of a fresh start, they soon uncover the darker side of this sunny coastal community. While Lucy tries to piece her family’s life back together, Michael keeps pulling away in search of belonging. As he finds connection with a local rock band and its charismatic leader, his younger brother Sam comes face-to-face with a startling reality: When night falls, Michael’s new friends are even more dangerous than they first appeared.

Put some jingle in your kringle and join us in the Greene Space for an afternoon of music and merriment. The WQXR hosts will introduce a variety of musical guests to celebrate the season. Members of the Abyssinian Baptist Church will perform as well as others to be announced.