Published by New Jersey Stage
originally published: 04/25/2022
(RED BANK, NJ) -- TEDxAsburyPark presents JOY – an experience featuring TED talks and performances where we will explore JOY in ideas. JOY, which takes place Saturday, April 30 at Two River Theater, will feature a theatrical lineup of expert speakers, comics, musicians, performers, and artists who will share inspiring stories and ideas. The event starts at 1:00pm.
To serve up the most Joy, the event is focusing on the “E” in TED, which is Entertainment. This year’s event will feature three surprise comedy acts, a surprise band, surprise food and beverage, as well as a stunning line up of TED TALK speakers. The 2022 speakers are creators focused on food, music, painting, writing, film, documentaries, storytelling, acting, improvisation, and making global refugees feel at home in the USA. Purchase tickets and see the full line-up of speakers here. Tickets for TEDxAsbury Park are available for purchase online.
Brian Smiga, TEDxAsburyPark Founder, said: “Since 2013 we’ve built an audience and a team who have followed us through the tri-city region: Brookdale, Red Bank, Pollak, at the Paramount in Asbury Park at 1000 guests in 2017-2019. On April 30th, we’re returning to sell out the newly renovated Two River Theater in Red Bank. Entertainment, laughter, tears of passion, ideas worth spreading, and several surprises, all starting at 1pm.”
JOY 2022 Speakers
David Burke 2:30pm - Food is Joy. Monmouth native David Burke (Red Horse Rumson, Drifthouse Sea Bright) has created 18 award-winning restaurants around the globe. As a high school wrestler, he got his start in a local cooking class, and became determined to become a global top chef. Follow his story, in Food is Joy.
David Cieri - B-Side/Ourselves. David Cieri, composer for many films by Ken Burns and others, will compose and perform his original musical overture for Joy, and share with us about how he gets unstuck in his creative process.
Siobhan Fallon Hogan - Film as Community. Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Rumson/Ireland resident, became unstuck in her pro acting career by conceiving, writing, producing, directing and funding two impactful films based on what large communities most cared about.
Erin Maguire - Joy Drought. Montclair resident and national comic and actress, Erin Maguire navigates the entire event with her funny co-hosting and guidance, then wraps it up along with our COVID experience in the Joy Drought.
Roger Mannix - Play Your Way to Joy. Actor Roger Manix, turned entrepreneur, has taught improv and acting at Stanford and at the Fortune 1000, now he shows us how to bring acting and improvisation to work to be more successful.
Michelle Mitchell - OGs. Returning TEDxAsbury speaker, documentarian/journalist Michele Mitchell, is bringing to life the “original gangsters” or the outlaw originators of the Cannabis movement in the West before it was legal.
Edafe Okporo - Home Is Joy. Edafe Okporo is a persecuted Nigerian refugee who has arrived “home” in the USA by publishing his new book Asylum, working with Afghan refugees, getting his MBA at NYU and getting married. He shares how refugees can integrate and feel at home and fully productive in the US.
Atoosa Rubenstein - Leaving it All to Have it All. Atoosa Rubenstein, an Iranian immigrant, became the youngest editor at Hearst and transformed several magazines, then she left it all, in order to come to grips with her deeper, inner story, that now powers her joy.
Jim Watt, Antonie Drye & Mike Noordzy - 1000 Watts. Asbury artist, architect and producer, Jim Watt & jazz artist, Antoine Drye, will paint to live jazz in a project to support jazz musicians called 1000 Watts.
Rebecca Barry - The Joy of Death. Rebecca Barry is the bestselling author of Recipes for a Beautiful Life: A Memoir in Stories and Later, at the Bar: A Novel in Stories, a New York Times Notable Book, and cofounder of magazine Fresh Dirt. A notable MOTH storyteller she shares about Finding Joy in Death.
PLUS 3 surprise comedy acts and 1 surprise band
COVID-19 Health and Safety Information - The safety of our patrons, staff and artists is our number one priority. As such, all audience members over the age of five will be required to show proof of a full COVID-19 vaccination and wear masks while inside the theater building. Exceptions are only made for patrons eating and/or drinking in designated areas within one hour prior to showtime or for special events.
Two River Theater is located at 21 Bridge Avenue in Red Bank, New Jersey.
TEDxAsburyPark is a non-profit organization dedicated to ideas worth spreading, and the discovery of smart ideas, people and neighbors on the Jersey shore. This independent TEDx event is operated under license from TED.
EVENT PREVIEWS
37th Annual Manayunk Arts Festival to Take Place June 27-28, 2026
(PHILADELPHIA, PA) -- Manayunk Development Corporation is excited to celebrate the 37th Annual Manayunk Arts Festival on Saturday, June 27, 2026 from 11:00am to 7:00pm and Sunday, June 28, 2026 from 11:00am to 5:00pm. The tradition of being the tri-state area's largest outdoor juried art festival - and the largest in Pennsylvania - will continue as Main Street hosts approximately 300 different local and nationally known artists and crafters.
Carteret's Independence Day Festival to feature country star Walker Hayes
(CARTERET, NJ) -- One of New Jersey's most popular Independence Day Festivals will take place in Carteret's Civic Center Park (100 Cooke Avenue) from 6:00pm to midnight on Friday, July 3, 2026 in celebration of America's 250th birthday.
Bergen County presents 3rd Annual Star-Spangled Spectacular
(RIDGEFIELD PARK, NJ) -- County Executive Jim Tedesco, the County Board of Commissioners, and the Bergen 250 Initiative are excited to announce that Bergen County's 3rd Annual Star-Spangled Spectacular will return July 4, 2026 at Overpeck County Park. All are invited to attend this patriotic afternoon of family fun which will include live music, children's activities, over 20 food trucks, a beer and wine garden, carnival attractions, and stunning fireworks to conclude the evening over Overpeck Creek.
Washington Crossing Historic Park Launches Community-Wide Call to Support Expanded Independence Day Celebration in America's 250th Anniversary Year
(WASHINGTON CROSSING, PA) -- Washington Crossing Historic Park (WCHP) in Pennsylvania plans to host an expanded Independence Day Celebration on Saturday, July 4, 2026 from 4:00pm to 9:30pm featuring immersive living history experiences, family-friendly activities, live music, and the return of fireworks over the Delaware River. Designed as a community-wide celebration of America250, the event is intended to create a meaningful space for residents and visitors to commemorate this historic milestone year. Please note: Admission is required; registration is recommended only for the 4:00pm ‐ 8:00pm Living History Program. The evening concert and fireworks are free and open to the public; no registration is required to attend those portions of the event.
Passage Theatre Company presents 3rd Annual Word on Front festival
(TRENTON, NJ) -- Passage Theatre Company's third annual Word on Front event is set to be its biggest yet. In celebration of the United States of America's 250th Anniversary, the company is presenting Word on Front 250, three consecutive weekends of a variety of live arts from June 26 to July 12, 2026. This festival of spoken word, music, and solo performance will celebrate the untold and underrepresented stories of America.
SOPAC presents Stewart Copeland: Have I Said Too Much? on July 16th
(SOUTH ORANGE, NJ) -- Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stewart Copeland brings his first American spoken-word tour (Have I Said Too Much?) to the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) on Thursday, July 16, 2026 at 7:30pm. Copeland is the founding drummer of The Police and one of rock's most inventive forces.
Centenary Stage Company Announces Lineup for SUMMERFEST 2026
(HACKETTSTOWN, NJ) -- Centenary Stage Company's SUMMERFEST 2026 is set to take center stage in the Lackland Performing Arts Center with four productions running through the summer months. SUMMERFEST will feature, A Taste of Ireland presented by Pace Live, The Wedding Singer, Four Sticks: The Music of Led Zeppelin, and Maltby & Shire's Closer Than Ever.
Hallmark Stars Take the Stage at The Carteret PAC on July 22nd during First-Time Multi-City Tour Experience Hallmark Stars Live
(CARTERET, NJ) -- Hallmark and Gershwin Entertainment are proud to announce Hallmark Stars Live presented by Michaels, a new live tour kicking off at URSB Carteret Performing Arts and Events Center on Wednesday, July 22, 2026 at 7:30pm where some of the network's most beloved stars step off screen and onto the stage. Hosted by fan-favorite Nikki DeLoach (A Grand Ole Opry Christmas), the tour will feature Hallmark mainstays for a night where the cameras are off – and the stories keep rolling.
Hallmark Stars Live comes to MPAC on July 26th
(MORRISTOWN, NJ) -- Hallmark Stars Live presented by Michaels, is a new live tour kicking off this summer where some of the network's most beloved stars step off screen and onto the stage. Hosted by fan-favorite Nikki DeLoach (A Grand Ole Opry Christmas), the tour will feature Hallmark mainstays for a night where the cameras are off – and the stories keep rolling. The tour comes to Mayo Performing Arts Center (MPAC) on Sunday, July 26, 2026 at 7:00pm.
FEATURED EVENTS
