Trey Anastasio Announces The Beacon Jams

Trey Anastasio and MSG Entertainment present The Beacon Jams, an eight-week virtual residency to be streamed for free exclusively on Twitch, live from New York City’s historic Beacon Theatre every Friday at 8:00 pm ET from October 9 through November 27. The Beacon Jams performances will have no live audience and will feature acoustic and electric performances as well as home audience interaction, alongside an array of surprises. All proceeds from The Beacon Jams donations will benefit Phish’s long-running non-profit, the WaterWheel Foundation, and its new Divided Sky Fund (DSF). The proceeds will be used to deliver help to those affected by addiction and help further plans to open a treatment center in Vermont. To watch The Beacon Jams, go to: https://www.twitch.tv/treyanastasio.

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Trey Anastasio at the Beacon Theatre (Photo: Angela Cranford/MSG Photos)

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“When we thought about playing the Beacon, I was reminded of the meaning of the word,” Anastasio says. “A beacon is a beam of light, often from a lighthouse, which sends it out to sailors who are lost at sea and all alone. They look for the beacon and it guides them home.

“Sometimes gifts come wrapped in strange packages. A lot of this is thanks to Twitch and our friends and family at MSG Entertainment. When the idea to do these benefits was born, everybody at MSG Entertainment jumped in and partnered with us and the Divided Sky Fund, which is very kind of them. This is an opportunity for forward motion.”

“We’re thrilled to be able to partner with Trey on this very special and first-ever virtual residency at the Beacon Theatre to benefit two immensely important causes – the Divided Sky Fund and the WaterWheel Foundation,” said Darren Pfeffer, executive vice president, MSG Entertainment. “As we navigate the live music scene through this socially distant world, we couldn’t think of a more natural way to bring live music to so many fans for such a great cause. Trey’s connection not only with the Beacon Theatre, but with all our venues over the years, including Madison Square Garden, The Chicago Theatre, and Radio City Music Hall, have made this unique concept a perfect partnership.”

“We could not be more excited to be part of this amazing partnership with Trey Anastasio and MSG Entertainment to help raise donations for such worthy causes,” said Will Farrell-Green, Head of Music Content at Twitch. “Twitch offers the same intimate experience that artists and their audiences have come to expect from live shows. Over the course of this virtual residency, fans of Trey and Phish will be able to attend performances from anywhere in the world, while feeling like they are right in the front row of the Beacon.”

The WaterWheel Foundation was created by Phish in 1997 to oversee the band’s charitable endeavors. The Foundation raises money primarily through its Touring Division, partnering with local non-profits in communities Phish visits on tour and with national organizations during times of need. The Foundation has donated millions of dollars to hundreds of non-profits. The Divided Sky Fund will focus on delivering quality care and compassionate treatment for those suffering from addiction. Fans will be encouraged to donate throughout the eight-week event; net proceeds from merchandise sales during The Beacon Jams will go directly to the DSF.

“I’ve been sober for 13 years,” Anastasio says, “It’s a great blessing in my life. We started talking about the idea of a treatment center about a year ago. I was worried that the project would get derailed because of the pandemic but it didn’t – it actually picked up steam; things are really rolling along now. The Beacon Jams emerged as a way to raise money for it while also allowing me to play for the fans again.”

The Beacon Jams Twitch stream is brought to you in partnership with Relix Magazine.

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ABOUT TREY ANASTASIO:

Over the past three decades, composer/guitarist/vocalist Trey Anastasio has forged a multi-faceted career, winning acclaim in rock, classical and theatrical circles. He is a founding member of Phish, one of today’s most successful and innovative rock bands. In the summer of 2017, Phish completed a residency at the world-renowned Madison Square Garden in New York – an unprecedented 13-night run known as The Baker’s Dozen. Phish’s total number of performances at the famed arena currently sits at 64.

Anastasio has received GRAMMY® Award nominations for his recordings with Phish and for his solo work. He also received a Best Original Score TONY® Award nomination for the Broadway musical Hands on a Hardbody. In the summer of 2015, Anastasio joined the surviving four members of the Grateful Dead that celebrated the band’s 50^th anniversary and served as their farewell shows.

Anastasio has performed his original compositions with numerous symphonies. The New York Times hailed his Carnegie Hall performance with the New York Philharmonic as “that rarest of rarities, a classical-rock hybrid that might please partisans from both constituencies.” In 2019, Anastasio released his 14^th solo album, Ghosts of the Forest, which Rolling Stone wrote was “built around psychedelic guitar liftoffs, ambitious arrangements and extremely personal lyrics.” 2019 also saw the Tribeca Film Festival world premiere and acclaimed theatrical release of Between Me and My Mind, an intimate feature-length documentary chronicling Anastasio’s life and music.

2020 has seen the summer releases of Lonely Trip, conceived and recorded in isolation at Anastasio’s home studio (aka Rubber Jungle) during the peak of New York City’s COVID-19 crisis, as well as Trey Anastasio Band’s Burn It Down, a 15-track live collection recorded during the explosive eight-piece band’s January 2020 tour. Phish released Sigma Oasis in April, and in August, Anastasio made history as the first guest to perform in-studio on any late-night TV show since lockdown began in mid-March by joining The Roots for a performance of Lonely Trip’s “I Never Needed You Like This Before” on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

ABOUT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN ENTERTAINMENT CORP.:

Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (MSG Entertainment) is a leader in live entertainment experiences. The Company presents or hosts a broad array of events in its diverse collection of venues: New York’s Madison Square Garden, Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall and Beacon Theatre; and The Chicago Theatre. MSG Entertainment is also building a new state-of-the-art venue in Las Vegas, MSG Sphere at The Venetian, and has announced plans to build a second MSG Sphere in London, pending necessary approvals. In addition, the Company features the original production – the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes – and through Boston Calling Events, produces the Boston Calling Music Festival. Also under the MSG Entertainment umbrella is Tao Group Hospitality, with entertainment dining and nightlife brands including Tao, Marquee, Lavo, Avenue, Beauty & Essex and Cathédrale. More information is available at www.msgentertainment.com.

ABOUT TWITCH:

Launched in 2011, Twitch is a global community that comes together each day to create multiplayer entertainment: unique, live, unpredictable experiences created by the interactions of millions. It brings the joy of co-op to everything, from casual gaming and world-class esports to anime marathons, music, and art streams. Twitch also hosts TwitchCon, the biggest community event of the year, where tens of thousands of people come together to celebrate and connect with others who share their interests and passions. We’re always live at Twitch. Stay up to date on all things Twitch on Twitter and on our blog.

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