Earthalujah! Reverend Billy & The Church of Stop Shopping: A Conversation with William Talen and Savitri D

What began as a televangelist parody twenty-five years ago has grown into a radical performance community of international renown, the Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping. Whether taking the stage at Burning Man, performing at Zuccotti Park, or opening for Neil Young, Reverend Billy and his choir have become widely recognized prophetic voices questioning the gods of the market. William Talen (aka Reverend Billy) will be joined by his long-time collaborator Savitri D, the artistic director of the Stop Shopping Choir. In recent years they have worked together on building a new community in New York City known as Earth Church. The character of Reverend Billy was developed in the mid 1990s by actor and playwright, William Talen. An artist and activist, Savitri D is the director of Reverend Billy and The Church of Stop Shopping and has led direct action and organizing campaigns against corporations, institutions, and injustice all over the world. This event is the second in the series “Reverent Irreverence: Parody, Religion, and Contemporary Politics,” sponsored by the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics.