Ben Freeman

Last Thursday’s songs you can touch @recessgrove ft. the gorgeous @whoisjernie @danisundream and @cloveronthemic was the birth of something new that I’m very excited to share with you. That’s Interesting! (@thatsinteresting.studio ) is the name of my new platform for the wide variety of creative events that I love to host. Ever since college, designing experiences that enable the artist inside each person to come out and play has been the throughline of the work that has mattered most to me. Late last year I realized it was time to start hosting these events under a wider conceptual umbrella that just my own name. That’s Interesting! is a curio shop of creative experiences & studio for the playful practice of attention. Some of the kinds of events you can expect to find when you come: 🐣 Interactive performances (music, theatre, hybrid) 🐣 Participatory art parties 🐣 Workshops, salons, and one-day ensemble experiences I see That’s Interesting! as part of the attention activism movement, recognizing the exploitation of human attention as a critical issue of our time, and creating spaces to practice an alternative to the endless mind-numb of the endless scroll (with gratitude to @schoolofattention among others for this framing). That’s Interesting! is a place to use your attention with intention, and to bring conscious curiosity to the artful beauty of the world around us. Above all, That’s Interesting! is a place where I truly hope you’ll always be moved to say…that’s interesting! It feels good to be giving a name to something that’s been an important thread in my life for a long time. Follow the brand-new IG account @thatsinteresting.studio (how often do you get to get in on the ground floor like that?) and RSVP to our next event, the TASK Party at @fabriksocialspaces Dumbo next Friday, February 6. Link in bio. Stay interesting!! b.free #nyccommunity #communitybuilders #participatoryart

Take 5 minutes today to go to my YouTube channel and watch the @nprmusic Tiny Desk version of Henrietta’s Treasures. I love it, I’m proud of it, and I think you’ll love it too. You’ll find it at the link in my bio. This is a song about the bonds that form between older women who own vintage stores and queer people, as we try on costumes to figure out who we really are. I am deeply grateful to the following folks for making this video possible — and so fun and easy to make: @mia.friedman_ @benemmerich.music @gestaltsjournal @whoisjernie @actorfiesta @freddyourlove @empire.stage And, of course, Henrietta herself. Channel your inner Henrietta Wear the wildest thing Your heart will thank you for it Love b.free #tinydesk #tinydeskcontest #tinydeskconcert #singersongwriters #vintagestore

A fun and funky cover for your feed 🙌🚨 Full vid on Youtube in @benandavi bio!! 🔗 Lead Vocal: @jessumanoff Lead Vocal: @bshatteredbfree Arr. Production, Keys, BGVs: @benemmerich.music Drums, BGVs, Mixer: @yourcousinavi Bass: @cat.bark.er Guitar: @thefunkyhassid Engineer: @peterenriquezmusic Video: @mia.friedman_ Recorded Live at @shortstackny #music #funk #cover #billwithers #brooklynmusic

Join the next That’s Interesting! experience on Tuesday, May 19 at @fabriksocialspaces in Tribeca. Part seminar and part immersive art experience, The Play Principle is an interactive inquiry into what it means for play to be a spiritual practice and a form of attention activism. Expert serious silliness, duh Tickets are $15 (or $10 for Fabrik members). Link to get your ticket is in the bio! See ya there 😈 #play #attentionactivism #nyccommunity lol

Join me at @townofhumorville this week for a world premiere interactive performance tonight, personalized ritual play on Friday at noon, or a phoneless walk on Sunday! RSVP to all at the link in my bio. @jesterofthepeace @thatsinteresting.studio

Join me at @townofhumorville next week for some one of a kind immersive creative play! HumorVille is a one-room tourist attraction for the heart created by my friend @jesterofthepeace and one of my favorite places on earth. I’m delighted to be one of its inaugural artists in residence. MONDAY, MAY 4 & FRIDAY, MAY 8 🎨 Personalized Ritual Play Got a big question about your life? You know, like the WTF are we all doing here variety? Bring it to HumorVille! In the course of your 2 hour personalized ritual play session, you’ll receive curious, reflective listening and will be guided through designing your own mini-ritual using the attractions and tools of HumorVille. Could a trip to the marriage bureau be of assistance in addressing your question? What about the elections board? As @jesterofthepeace likes to say, you can only do it right at HumorVille! JUST FOUR SLOTS AVAILABLE! (And one is already taken — sign up for yours today!) 5/4: 12:30-2:30 and 3:30-5:30pm 5/8: 12:30-2:30 (avail) and 4-6pm (sold out) Tickets: sliding scale $60-120 WEDNESDAY, MAY 6 🎤 Can We Talk? Conversations about Sex, Spirituality, and the Attention Economy Doors at 7pm, performance at 7:30pm Tickets: $20 What do you desire? And how does being plugged into the attention economy shape how you relate to that desire? Join HumorVille artist in residence Ben Freeman and @thatsinteresting.studio for a world premiere interactive reading of essays about gay sex, spirituality, and the attention economy. You’ll hear some of these short essays as well as original music and be guided through making meaning of them using the tools and attractions of HumorVille. Let’s talk about sex, baby 😘 Doors at 7pm, performance at 7:30 Tickets: $20 SUNDAY, MAY 10 📔 Paper Altars: a scrapbooking workshop Come unwind from the weekend and set intentions for the week ahead. Bring a scrapbook and some things you find beautiful, sacred, funny, or interesting. We’ll provide the rest. 6-9pm, tickets by donation Cover Photo by beautiful @fchau04 💜 HumorVille photos ft. Wonderful @supportivestagemom You’re next! Tickets available on HumorVille site — or send me a DM!

If you knew me between the ages of about 7 and 22, “theatre kid” probably would have been the top line item in your understanding of me and what I cared about. In my adult life acting has mostly played a background role, in part because my unfolding artistic journey has taken me other places, and in part because I was afraid to give auditioning a serious try until now. The last two weekends I had the joy of being back onstage with a ferociously funny and very sweet cast of misfits in @outplaynyc ’s THE HOMOSEXUALS, by @ajaggedlittlephil . I! Fucking! Loved it!!! I felt at ease, in flow, and free of the (psychological) drama that made acting feel cluttered and constraining by the time I stopped pursuing it in my 20s. It couldn’t have been a more perfect first show back. I’m grateful to @christophercbasile @davidjosephbaldwin , the cast, and the whole OUT/PLAY team for making this such a joyful experience. Now I’m on the prowl for more 😈😈😈 cast me!! 😘 Photos by @lipyanskiy_photo

Things to do at a TASK party: ✈️ learn to fly 🔎 publish your findings 🎩 wear a lil hat 🥸 make a lil puppet 🚗 go for a spin Beep beep! RSVP for 4/15 now or die 💀 Jk #nyccommunity #publicart #whimsy #letsplay

Ain’t it fun living in the real world? That’s what TASK Parties are all about: living in the real world of life as a giant improvisation. The structure is simple: write a task, put it in a common pool, pick one, make it happen. Everything that happens in between and as a result — the effervescence, doubt, hyperfocus, diversion, whimsy, and moments of sublime beauty — that is the real world. Ain’t it fun? Join us April 15. RSVP by Luma at link in bio. A co-pro of @thatsinteresting.studio @townofhumorville @fabriksocialspaces TASK Parties are always FREE! #communitybuilders #participatoryart #artisforeveryone

At the last TASK Party… …someone made a doo-woo group called The Nasty Tangerines. Duh! What will happen at the next TASK Party on April 15? Be there and we’ll see! RSVP link in bio. @jesterofthepeace @townofhumorville @fabriksocialspaces @thatsinteresting.studio TASK was invented by @oliver_herring_ !

🔔PROGRAM ALERT 🔔 The Fool’s Seder Wednesday, March 25, 2026 6:30pm ET Online* This year the first night of Passover falls on April Fools’ Day. What does our collective liberation story sound like from the Fool’s perspective? Join ritual team member @bshatteredbfree , founder of @thatsinteresting.studio — a studio for the playful practice of attention — for an interactive exploration and practical ideas for your Seder from the irreverent perspective of the Fool on Zoom. *link sent upon registration 🔗 REGISTER via the CALENDAR LINK in bio or visit labshul.org/calendar #labshul #passover #passover5786