With conversations on sexual misconduct and violence against women dominating the media, it’s clear that gender equality is still a distant goal. Unfortunately, data shows that the gender gap is widening—the World Economic Forums’ Global Gender Gap Report estimates that it will take 217 years to reach gender parity across the world. International Women’s Day has been observed for the past 100 years and this year’s observance is more pertinent that ever considering the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, as well as the election of Donald Trump, who has been accused of sexual assault and harassment by over 15 women since the 1980s. International Women’s Day 2018 will take place on March 8th with a campaign theme titled “#PressforProgress.” Performances, rallies and celebrations for International Women’s Day are held around the world (search for your city HERE), and we’ve rounded up a selection of the best.
NEW YORK
Pussycat Painting Party
March 8th @ 7 – 10pm
New York City Bah’ai Center, 53 East 11th Street
Tickets: $20, purchase HERE
Inspired by Judy Chicago’s 1979 feminist piece “The Dinner Party,” guests of the Pussycat Painting Party will paint their own plates signifying what it means to be a woman today. The event will feature musical and spoken word performances, as well as refreshments.
“(Hotel) XX” at SPRING/BREAK Art Show
March 7th – 12th, 11am – 6pm daily
Opening reception: March 6th, 6 – 9pm
4 Times Square (Entrance at 140 West 43rd Street)
Tickets: $15 – $50, purchase HERE
If art fairs are your thing, stop by this year’s SPRING/BREAK Art Show, themed “Stranger Comes to Town.” “(Hotel) XX,” curated by Indira Cesarine for The Untitled Space, is one of this year’s SPRING/BREAK special projects. Presenting the work of 24 female-identifying artists exploring sexuality, fear and fantasy, the show is an immersive installation of a retro hotel room in which every visual component is a piece of art.
Women Who Do: Inspiring the Next Generation of Boss Ladies
March 8th @ 6 – 9pm
The Williamsburg Hotel, 96 Wythe Avenue
Tickets: $3, all proceeds donated to CATALYST, a global nonprofit organization that builds better workplaces for women. Purchase HERE.
Don’t miss Women Who Do, an inspiring panel discussion focused on mentoring young women. Panelists include Cindy DiPrima (CAP Beauty), Heather Anderson (New York Pilates) and Alex Fine (Dame Products), with more to be announced in the coming days. In addition to the discussion, guests can bring their favorite jacket or jeans to personalize at the Unemployed Denim station.
Salon sYmphoNY
March 8th @ 7:30pm
Dixon Place, 161A Chrystie Street
Tickets: $17, purchase HERE
Dixon Place will celebrate female artists from past and present with a multi-disciplinary program of performances by New York-based women artists representing more than 25 countries. Working with The OPTimistiks theatre collective, Salon sYmphoNY 2018 will be collaborating for its 7th consecutive year with the League of Professional Theatre Women and their International Committee, as well as dozens of other independent artists from all disciplines.
LOS ANGELES
Queenfest
March 7th @ 7:30 – 9pm
Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd.
Tickets: $15, purchase HERE
In honor of International Women’s Day, Bootleg Theatre presents Queenfest, a variety show benefiting charity. Performances will include musical comedy by BO$$ Lady, the Sapphire Sisters, LEX the Lexicon Artist, and Nals & Tess; stand-up performances by Kari Assad, Rebecca Greenberg, Alysia Brown, Danielle Perez, and Dalia Malek; and slam poetry by Jaynese Poole, Giovannie Espiritu, and Helena Doub. Last year, the event raised over $500 for Planned Parenthood and the Los Angeles LGBT Center—hopefully, they’ll beat that number this year!
PRESS FOR PROGRESS: MashUp’s International Women’s Day Celebration
March 8th @ 7 – 10pm
MashUp Contemporary Dance Company, 2926 Gilroy Street
Tickets: $10, purchase HERE
MashUp Contemporary Dance Company presents an International Women’s Day festival featuring free classes during the day (from 10am to 4:15pm) and an evening showcase of live dance and musical performances.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Women in the Arts: Pop-Up Gallery and Happy Hour
March 8th @ 6:30 – 10pm
L2 Lounge & Events Venue, 3315 Cady’s Alley Northwest
Tickets: Free, more info HERE
Celebrate women and the arts in D.C. this International Women’s Day with a night of drinks, music and local art at L2 Lounge.
LONDON
Black SuperSheroes
March 8th – 12th @ 12 – 7pm GMT
A-side B-side Gallery, 352 Mare Street, London E8 1HR
Tickets: Free
A-side B-side Gallery presents Black SuperSheroes, an art exhibition imagining much-loved female film characters, from Wonder Woman to Mary Poppins, as women of color. The show aims to expose young girls to inclusivity and female empowerment. Preview night will feature games (winners can take home a print!) and family-friendly activities.
Harper’s Bazaar Celebrates International Women’s Day
March 8th @ 6 – 10pm
Hotel Café Royal, 68 Regent Street, London W1
Tickets: £120, join the waiting list HERE
Join Harper’s Bazaar for an intimate dinner in celebration of International Women’s Day, held in partnership with Chanel. Guests will be treated to a champagne-and-canapé reception followed by a three-course dinner paired with wine. The meal will feature inspirational talks from the Turner Prize-winning artist Gillian Wearing, whose statue of the suffragist Millicent Fawcett will be unveiled in Parliament Square this spring; Caroline Criado Perez, who campaigned for Jane Austen’s likeness to feature on the £10 note; Detective Superintendent Tor Garnett, the co-founder of Police Now; and Bazaar’s editor-in-chief Justine Picardie.
Women-ish
March 8th @ 6pm
Hoxton Hall, 130 Hoxton St, London N1 6SH
Tickets: £3, purchase HERE
Don’t miss Women-ish, a live panel discussion tackling pressing issues such as feminism, consent and this year’s International Women’s Day theme, #PressforProgress. Speakers include Natasha Bishop, founder of The Pants Project; South London born actress and writer Thea Gajic; and Immediate Theatre, an activist theater company that works to expand access to the arts. The night will also feature special performances from Oriana Jemide and Yazmin Belo.
Leftover Women
March 11th @ 7pm
The Cockpit, Gateforth Street, London NW8 8EH
Tickets: £7.50 online, £10 at the door, purchase HERE
This night of talks and performances will delve into the issue of misogyny and sexual violence in China, a country that dubs any unmarried woman over 27-years-old a “leftover woman.” The evening will begin with an installation and performance by Li Maizi, one of China’s ‘Feminist Five’ who were arrested and detained for 37 days for campaigning against sexual harassment on International Women’s Day in China in March 2015. Li will share her experiences of being held in a detention centre and provide a detailed view of feminist activism in China. vaChina, a UK-based Chinese feminist group, will then perform excerpts from a play developed in the style of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, in which personal views are shared on the gender issues in Chinese society. A cabaret featuring contributions from a diverse range of performers and artists will close the evening.
