Reverend Billy and the Life After Shopping Gospel Choir October 10, 2010

Performance artist Bill Talen is "Reverend Billy" (Bill Talen) a revivalist preacher who leads the Church of Stop Shopping, a 50-person activist performance group based in New York City, led by Reverend Billy and Savitri D. Using the form of a revival meeting, on sidewalks and in chain stores, Reverend Billy and his gospel choir exhort consumers to abandon the products of large corporations and mass media. The group also preaches a broader message of economic justice and anti-militarism, protesting sweatshops and the Iraq War. Though it continues its street theatre activities, the Church has also appeared on stage and has toured internationally.