VCNY offers a variety of events, from lowkey Schmoozes, to career discussions with Vassar alum leaders in various industries, to stage performances featuring Vassar alums, to museum visits curated by Vassar alums and more. Make sure you’re on our list to be the first to know!
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Upcoming
The Surgeon and Her Daughters: Play and Talkback
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Theatre 154
Join the Vassar Club of New York at 7:00 p.m. ET at a performance of The Surgeon and Her Daughters by Chris Gabo, a 21st-century Les Misérables set in the shadows of the American Dream produced by Heather Cohn ’03. The performance will be followed by a 20-minute Q&A with the cast and crew.
💵 A limited number of discounted seats are available to VCNY for $30 each. Discount not valid on Tier 1 pricing.
🎟️ Purchase tickets directly through the theater using the link and code on the registration page to receive the discounted price of $30.*
* If you have difficulty securing a discounted ticket, please contact Heather Cohn.
About the Show:
The Surgeon and Her Daughters is an epic and intimate play about family, grief, and how we stay afloat amidst seemingly insurmountable odds. Diving unflinchingly into the “melting pot” that is New York City, the play explores the slipperiness of truth and justice, the thorniness of honor and redemption, and the sensation of being a crab at the bottom of the barrel.
Run Time: 2 hours (with intermission), followed by 20-minute talkback
Heather Cohn ’03 (Executive Producer, Colt Coeur) is a producer, director, fundraiser, ensemble artist and activist. She has served as Executive Producer with Colt Coeur since 2023. She co-founded Flux Theatre Ensemble in 2006 and with Flux has produced over 30 full productions, including 18 world premieres, directing a third of them, and helped nurture and guide countless artists in the creation and development of new work. Prior to joining Colt Coeur, Heather served as the Executive Director for En Garde Arts, a site-specific Off-Broadway theatre, where she produced several large-scale site-specific projects. She has also worked with Epic Theatre Ensemble, New York Theatre Workshop, The Pearl Theatre, Theatre Communications Group, and Disney Theatrical. Heather has served on several not-for-profit boards including the League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW). She is a graduate of Vassar College, where she majored in Latin American Studies and spent time living in Cuba and Chile. And most importantly, she’s a proud mom to Mercena.
Adrienne Campbell-Holt (Director, Founding Artistic Director, Colt Coeur) is an award-winning NYC-based director and choreographer and the Founding Artistic Director of Colt Coeur. Recent: Satellites by Erin Breznitsky (Dorset Theatre Festival), World Premieres: Still (Sheen Center, Colt Coeur at DR2, NYC & Dorset Theatre Festival, VT), Finn by Chris Dimond, Michaek Kooman and Chris Nee, choreographed by Billy Bustamente (Kennedy Center, Helen Hayes nom.), Dodi & Diana by Kareem Fahmy (Colt Coeur at HERE), Afterwords, by Emily Kaczmarek, music & lyrics by Zoe Sarnak, choreographed by Ebony Williams (5th Avenue Theater, Heileman & Haver Award for Best New Musical), (NY premiere of) Eureka Day by Jonathan Spector (Colt Coeur), Other World by Hunter Bell, Jeff Bowen & Ann McNamee, choreography by Karla Puno Garcia (Delaware Theatre Company, BroadwayWorld Award for Best New Musical), We Are Among Us by Stephen Belber (City Theater, Pittsburgh), Hatef**k, by Rehana Lew Mirza (WP/Colt Coeur), Joan by Stephen Belber (Colt Coeur), Downstairs by Theresa Rebeck starring Tyne and Tim Daly (Primary Stages), Dry Land by Ruby Rae Spiegel (Colt Coeur), Seven Minutes in Heaven by Steven Levenson (Colt Coeur). Currently developing work with Jaclyn Backhaus & Jonatha Brooke (Tempus). Associate Director of Dear Evan Hansen (OBC). Lucille Lortel Visionary Director Award, “25 Women to Watch on Broadway.”
Accessibility: Theatre 154 is a wheelchair accessible venue. When you arrive at 154 Christopher Street you will use the elevator in the lobby to go down to the ground floor. Take a left out of the elevator and the theater will be on your left. There is a ramp from the theatre lobby to the audience seating. Rows A & AA are on the ground level of the theater. Rows B-F are on elevated risers that require the use of stairs.
If you have accessibility needs, please reach out to us at [email protected]
Past
The 14th Annual Fall Fête: Devils and Angels
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Lotos Club, New York, NY
Step into a world where halos meet horns. Enjoy an evening of heavenly cocktails, devilishly good hors d’oeuvres, ethereal entertainment, and the kind of lively conversation only Vassar alums can conjure.
Thursday, November 20, 2025
7:00–10:00 p.m. ET
The Lotos Club
5 East 66th Street
(Btwn. 5th Ave. and Madison Ave.)
New York, NY 10065
Tickets include entry to the Fête, hors d’oeuvres, and open bar.
$50 Class of 2025
$75 Classes of 2021–2024
$100 General Admission
Please RSVP by Friday, November 14
If you have questions about ticket pricing and sponsorship, please reach out to [email protected].
Attire:
Festive attire. Celestial whites, fiery reds, and all-black attire are encouraged.
Accessibility:
The Lotos Club is wheelchair accessible. There are four small stairs to the front door. However, the venue is wheelchair accessible. A ramp is available upon request.
Event Sponsorship:
These special tickets allow us to create a more inclusive environment by offering discounted tickets to the newest members of our Vassar alum family—the classes of the last five years and, in particular, the class of 2025!
VCNY Legends Host | $5,000+
Main Gate Host | $5,000
Brewer Sponsor | $2,500
Miscellany Sponsor | $1,000
Vassar Devils & Angels Sponsor | $500
Poughkeepsie Patron | $250
Author Talk: Yona Zeldis McDonough ’79 discusses One of Them
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Join the Vassar Club of New York in-person and online at 6:30 p.m. ET, when we will welcome Yona Zeldis McDonough ’79 (nom de plume Kitty Zeldis) and discuss her latest book, One of Them. Lynn Janovsky ’86 will lead the discussion.
This will be a hybrid event, meeting in-person (wheelchair accessible) and via Zoom. The in-person event will take place at the Sony Office near Madison Square Park. Specific directions and/or Zoom information will be provided to those who register.
Space is limited for the in-person meeting. Register early and no later than October 22.
One of Them is a story of secrets, friendship and betrayal between two young women at Vassar in the years after World War II.
Anne Bishop seems like a typical Vassar sophomore—one of a popular group of privileged WASP friends. None of the girls in her circle has any idea that she’s Jewish, or that her real first name is Miriam. Pretending to be a Gentile has made life easier—as Anne, she no longer suffers the snubs, snide remarks, and daily restrictions Jews face. She enjoys her college life of teas, late-night conversations, and mixers. She turns a blind eye to the casual anti-Semitism that flourishes among her friends and classmates—after all, it’s no longer directed at her.
But her secret life is threatened when she becomes fascinated by a girl not in her crowd. Delia Goldhush is sophisticated, stylish, brilliant, and unashamedly Jewish—and seems not to care that she’s an outcast among the other students. Knowing that her growing closeness with Delia would be social suicide if it were discovered, Anne keeps their friendship quiet. Delia seems to understand—until a cruelty on Anne’s part drives them apart and sends them scattering to other corners of the world, alone and together.
Yona Kitty Zeldis McDonough ’79
Born in Chadera, Israel, Kitty Zeldis is the pseudonym for an award-winning author of nine novels and over forty books for children. Her essays, articles and short fiction have been published in many national and literary publications. She is also the Fiction Editor of Lilith Magazine. Zeldis lives in Brooklyn, NY. For more on Kitty Zeldis, visit her on Facebook and Instagram.
One of Them is available at your local bookstore, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and Amazon.
VCNJ x VCNY—Fall Foliage Hike & Lunch in Princeton
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Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park Trail
Join VCNJ and VCNY for a joint fall hike along the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park Trail in Princeton, New Jersey.
We’ll meet in Princeton at 11:00 a.m. ET for a 1.5 hour walk through scenic fall foliage, followed by a lunch together at the Italian restaurant Metro North in Princeton.
We will be accompanied by local legend and renaissance man, Steve Hiltner, conservationist, botanist, jazz musician, actor, and president and founder of the Herrontown Woods Preserve in Princeton.
This is a family-friendly event! The towpath is flat and beginner-friendly. Wear walking shoes and dress for the weather.
Lunch for purchase will follow the hike at approximately 1:00 p.m. (We will start and end at Alexander Street).
🚆 Taking the train from NYC?
Meet the group at 8:45 a.m. at the NJ Transit Concourse in Penn Station.
Purchase your ticket for the NEC New Jersey Transit train to Princeton Junction
The train to Princeton Junction will leave at approximately 9/9:15 a.m. (updated train time will be emailed to those who register).
After arriving at Princeton Junction, we will then take the PRIN train (also called the “Dinky”) to Princeton (the transfer time is only 5 minutes).
From Princeton, we will meet up with the other hikers for a short walk, or carpool, to the trailhead at Alexander Rd.
🚗 Driving yourself?
At 11:00 a.m., we will meet in the parking lot across from the Princeton Canoe & Kayak Rental shop (483 Alexander St, Princeton, NJ 08540) in Turning Basin Park on Alexander Street.
Registration closes on Sunday, September 28.
Volunteer with God’s Love We Deliver
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God’s Love We Deliver, 166 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY
Sign up to volunteer with the Vassar Club of New York and God’s Love We Deliver from 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. ET.
The mission of God’s Love We Deliver is to improve the health and well-being of people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other serious illnesses by alleviating hunger and malnutrition. We will work as a group in their kitchen on a variety of tasks with the guidance of their on-staff chefs. Tasks may include chopping onions, peeling potatoes, ladling soup, or packaging meals.
We request that all volunteers are at least 18 years old.
Registration: Please register directly with God’s Love We Deliver by September 13. Each volunteer must create an individual account to guarantee a spot and ensure entry to the building day of.
Register through GLWD: https://glwd.volunteerhub.com/vv2/lp/vassarclubofnewyork/event/483932ce-8550-4bfd-951f-219d780ebdd6
Space is limited—don’t wait to sign up. Spots reserved for VCNY that are unclaimed will be released back to the general public one week before our shift.
General information:
LOCATION: God’s Love We Deliver is located in SoHo at 166 Avenue of the Americas, which you can get to by taking the C or E to Spring or the 1 to Houston. The entrance is on the corner of Spring and 6th Avenue.
SECURITY PROTOCOL: Volunteers will be required to present a valid photo ID each time upon entering any of the buildings. The ID must be a physical copy with a photo of the individual, no phone photos of the ID will be permitted. Volunteers will be provided with an identification label at check-in, which must be worn at all times while on premises
DRESS CODE: Clothing must completely cover shoulders, armpits, knees, and toes. Long sleeves must be pushed above your elbows while working with food. All hair must be fully covered in the kitchen and we provide hair nets. Hats may be worn providing all hair is covered, including ponytails and bangs. Please remove bracelets, watches, chunky rings, dangly earrings etc.
ARRIVAL: Please arrive 15 minutes prior to the scheduled shift time to get settled, put belongings away, etc. so we can begin orientation on time.
ACCOMMODATIONS: There is a volunteer lounge with lockers where volunteers set their own combination and can lock away any personal belongings while volunteering. Complimentary coffee and tea and sometimes snacks are provided, and there is a vending machine with snacks for purchase.
Plainclothes film screening and talkback
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e-flux, 172 Classon Ave, Brooklyn
Join the Vassar Club of New York at 7:00 p.m. ET for an exclusive screening of Plainclothes followed by a talkback with the film’s director Carmen Emmi and intimacy coordinator Joey Massa, moderated by Ash Cook [Hoyle] ’18 and hosted by Hallie Ayres ’18.
The film will run for an hour and 35 minutes, followed by a 25-minute talkback.
Tickets are $18.61. Please RSVP by September 14.
About Plainclothes:
A promising undercover agent assigned to lure and arrest gay men defies professional orders when he falls in love with a target. Winner of the US Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble Cast at the Sundance Film Festival.
Joey Baseil Massa is a filmmaker and intimacy coordinator with experience in theatre, film and television. They trained with Theatrical Intimacy Education and are a Guiding Faculty member with the organization. Recent TV credits include: Law & Order: SVU (NBC), American Sports Story (FX), and A League of Their Own (Amazon Studios), and recent film credits include Plainclothes, Babes and Tendaberry. Joey’s background is in sexual violence prevention education work and work surrounding supporting survivors. They volunteer as a sexual assault and domestic violence crisis advocate in emergency rooms across NYC.
Ash Cook [Hoyle] ’18 is a features Programmer at the Sundance Film Festival where he focuses on both fiction, nonfiction, and Midnight. Ash is currently serving as the Guest Festival Director of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, the first and largest Jewish film festival in the world. He sits on the Advisory Board of the Los Angeles Festival of Movies and has also worked as the Director of Programming of Damn These Heels Film Festival, run by the Utah Film Center, as well as a Senior Programmer at Outfest Los Angeles and a Programmer at Palm Springs Shorts Fest. Ash is a 2021 Project Involve Fellow on Film Independent’s programming track and has also been involved in programming NewFest NY, Sun Valley Film Festival, Overlook Film Festival, and AFI Fest and worked in production at ABC, Mssng Peces, and The Annoyance Theater. Ash is originally from Philadelphia, PA and holds a dual degree in Film & English from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY.
Hallie Ayres ’18 is a writer, researcher, and curator living in New York. She served as co-curator of Cosmos Cinema, the 14th Shanghai Biennale (November 2023–March 2024), and is currently co-curator of Séance: Technology of the Spirit, the 13th Seoul Mediacity Biennale (August–November 2025). Her writing has been published in e-flux Criticism, e-flux Journal, e-flux Education, Southwest Contemporary, NerveMeter, and Railing Codex, among other venues. She has held research fellowships at the Center for Arts, Design, and Social Research, Boston, and at the Institute of the Cosmos, where she edited Cosmic Bulletin 2021, and has delivered talks at the Academy of Fine Arts, Prague; the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum; Dia:Chelsea, New York; KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin; Ca’ Foscari University of Venice; Institute for Critical Inquiry, Berlin; National Center for Art Research, Tokyo; Offprint Book Fair, London; Vancouver Art Book Fair; the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, Lubbock; Power Station of Art, Shanghai; and Seoul Museum of Art. She holds a graduate certificate in Land Arts of the American West from Texas Tech University. In addition, she has produced a number of experimental films and has coordinated exhibitions and projects around the globe. She works as Associate Director of e-flux, where she occasionally guest curates film screenings and is Managing Director of e-flux Index.
*Accessibility Information*
Two flights of stairs lead up to the building’s front entrance at 172 Classon Avenue.
For elevator access, please RSVP to [email protected]. The building has a freight elevator nearest to 180 Classon Ave (garage door) leading into the e-flux office space. A ramp is available for steps within the space.
e-flux has an ADA-compliant bathroom with no steps between the event space and this bathroom.
Welcome to NYC, Class of 2025! – Young Alum Happy Hour
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Houston Hall, 222 W Houston St, New York, NY
Welcome to New York—we’re so glad you’re here! 🎉
Join the Vassar Club of New York’s Young Alums Committee for a happy hour to celebrate the Class of 2025 and anyone new to NYC. Whether you’re fresh off the graduation stage or just arrived in the city, come raise a glass with fellow young alums and start building your Vassar network in the big city!
We’ll be gathering from 6:00–8:00 p.m. ET at Houston Hall in the historic West Village. Food and drinks will be available for purchase.
The closest subway stations are:
1 to Houston Street
A/C/E to Spring Street
Houston Hall is wheelchair-accessible.
Tag us @VCNY and #VCNY to share your NYC debut!
Questions? Contact Maya Sterling; [email protected].