The best things to do in NYC this week

To kick off Harry Styles’ 15-night “Love on Tour” New York residency at Madison Square Garden, there are going to be housewarming parties at Chelsea Market’s Makers Studio on August 20, August 21, and September 21. NYC-based fans and ‘Stylers’ traveling to the city for the concert are all invited to hang out before the show, enjoy a special menu of Harry-themed food and drink offerings, and take all the photo opps they want. Chelsea Market’s vendors have put together a special collection of themed offerings for fans to enjoy while they hang out before, during, or after the concerts, from Eroda fish tacos at Los Mariscos, Cherry gelato at L’Arte del Gelato and Golden doughnuts at Doughnuttery. It runs from 5 to 9pm on these dates and is free to attend.

Comedians from HBO, Netflix, Late Night, Just for Laughs, and others will join hosts Andrew Barlow (hot bartender) and Justin Catchens (tattoo double for The King of Staten Island starring Pete Davidson) at this good stand-up show on Thursday (7pm). The line-up includes Natasha Vaynblat (The Tonight Show), Dan Yang (Secret Family), Caitlin Peluffo (Colbert) and Ismael Loutfi (Comedy Central). Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door at Caveat.

Brooklyn vinyl lovers are in luck because the Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Library has just opened a Vinyl Lending Library to its cardholders, giving them access to 400 albums spanning genres (hip-hop, pop, classical, country, show tunes and more) that they can listen to on-site as well as borrow for up to three weeks. You just need your library card. Listening stations can be found on the first floor. To celebrate the opening of its collection to the public, the library is putting on performances from Daisy the Great (Kelley Nicole Dugan and Mina Walker), a Brooklyn-based indie-pop duo, and DJ AG on Tuesday at 11am. BPL will also host “August Lunch Beats” in the lobby of Central Lobby where staff will spin records during the noon hour on August 11, 18, and 25. DJ Face Control will spin at 7pm on August 30.

NYC Glamping is offering stays in converted shipping containers that have been placed at 1 Oak Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, otherwise known as Skyline Drive-In. The drive-in is known for its incredible views of the skyline and now it’s open to guests who book a stay. Each container is comprised of a comfortable, cozy room with air conditioning, Wi-Fi and a bathroom with a shower, and has sweeping, unobstructed views of the city and the river. Each stay comes with free admission to the Skyline Drive-In movies and is within walking distance to Transmitter Park and several local restaurants and Greenpoint attractions. Normally this kind of waterfront access and prime location comes at a hefty price.

The free annual Battery Dance Festival, formerly known as the Downtown Dance Festival, takes place outdoors at Robert F. Wagner Park, in front of the sparkling New York Harbor. For its 41st edition this year, it is offering both in-person and streaming options. The lineup includes multiple U.S. or world premieres, and the participating companies include visiting groups from Singapore, Spain, Denmark, the Netherlands and Canada. The first seven shows are general admission, but reservations are required for the 6pm finale on August 20 (which is held indoors at the Schimmel Center). 

The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is set for two free concerts on August 18 and 19 at Lincoln Center as part of its “Freedom Tour,” which includes recent refugees of the war, members of orchestras in other parts of Europe, and the leading musicians of Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, and Odesa. There will be an outdoor reception following the August 18 performance to connect with the artists, too. During the shows, you’ll hear Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov’s Seventh Symphony and Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2, with Ukrainian virtuoso Anna Fedorova. Leading Ukrainian soprano Liudmyla Monastyrska will perform the great aria “Abscheulicher!” from Beethoven’s Fidelio, a paean to humanity and peace in the face of violence and cruelty. Tickets are free, but donations are encouraged to organizations supporting the resettlement of Ukrainians, such as Welcome.US.

Dorothy Parker, who has two gins named after her, is getting the royal treatment at the New York Distilling Company, on August 17. From 6 to 9pm, help honor her legacy and love of cocktails by ordering from a new martini menu curated by the Shanty’s bar director, Marissa Mazzotta, featuring Dorothy Parker New York Gin and Dorothy Parker Rose Petal Gin. There will also be a full oyster bar in partnership with Billion Oyster Project and tours of the distillery hosted by Production Manager and Dorothy Parker Gin distiller, Hannah Toale. Guests who attend in period dress of the 1920s and 30s will also be rewarded with a souvenir flask of Dorothy Parker Gin.

See the sun rise over New York City in celebration of World Photography Day, August 19, from 5:15 to 8am, when you can capture the most stunning sunrise photos from 1,100 feet in the air. Professional photographers from B&H Photo will be on hand to help you and there will be light pastries and coffee on site. Guests will be automatically entered into a sweepstakes to win prizes from the photography company. Tickets to the event are $89 and include free admission to the Fotografiska Museum of Photography between August 19-21. What a picture perfect morning!

One of the biggest concerts of the summer is at Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage this week. Head out on August 20 and 21 for a show featuring powerful voices in indie rock: Sharon Van Etten, Angel Olsen, and Julien Baker (with Special Guest Spencer). Van Etten and Olsen are expected to perform their soaring duet “Like I Used To.” Tickets start at $55.50.

Enjoy an evening of great American operatic works by American opera composers at Wollman Rink this Monday at 7pm featuring performances by extraordinary artists from the New York City Opera, including Tatev Baroyan, Lisa Chavez, Mark Delavan, Kristin Sampson, and Victor Starsky. The program for the evening will include selections from The Ballad of Baby Doe, Susannah, Emmeline, Stonewall, The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, Sweeney Todd, and Trouble in Tahiti. Tickets are just $15.

When the work day is over, switch to your dancing shoes and head down to The Seaport. On Wednesdays through August, Seaport Dance Nights will offer beginner and advanced dancers a floor to dance on. These nights will start with a 45-minute dance lesson led by top instructors from the Emmanuel Pierre-Antoine Dance Studio, followed by a 45-minute dance party with music from top DJs and bands. The schedule is as follows:

August 10: Country Dance Night—learn country two-step and try some line dances. Don’t forget to bring your hat!
August 17: Wednesday Night Fever—learn to boogie down to retro and modern disco tunes. Then, channel your inner John Travolta and enter a disco dance competition.
August 24: Learn to dance the upbeat, energetic, magnificent swing, and enjoy the infectious music.
August 31: Latin Night—move those hips while learning salsa, bachata, and merengue and dance the night away under the stars.

Harlem’s historic community’s rich artistic heritage on full display during this “week” that is actually 10 days of live events celebrating the people, arts, culture and food of Harlem. Themed around “Inspiration, Impact, and Legacy,’ the first week will include a salute to Harlem luminaries, featured musical performances, virtual dance parties, livestreams and cornerstone events such as the Percy Sutton Harlem 5K Run/Anti-Gun Violence Health Walk, and A Great Day in Harlem. This year’s celebration will also commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the NBA, legendary Rucker Park and Harlem inductees into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, a teen takeover of the Apollo Theater, Great Jazz on the Great Hill in Central Park and more.

Harlem’s Uptown Night Market will return under the Arches of Harlem on Thursday, from 4pm to 10pm. The large-scale open-air market is a monthly event designed to support local makers, artisans and performers, with new participants slated to join throughout the season. When patronizing the Uptown Night Market will host vendors including Downeast Lobstah, Tacos El Guero, HangryDog, Treat Yourself Jerk, Mama Silog, Arepa Baby, and The Bronx Burger Company, Booze Scoops, Twister Cakes, Butta’s Bakery, Sam’s Fried Ice Cream, and Maryland Chicken, to name just a few. To amp up your appetite, apparel, art, jewelry and more will be available to shop from local vendors including Eastside Creations, Akijo Designs, Dejha B Coloring, ForTheCultureNY LLC, Harlem Hoopz, Moon Sage & Soul, Ariance Jewelry, and Everything Brand LLC.

Rockaway Beach's annual outdoor dance festival returns with another free, sandy offering. This year's edition celebrates the natural-world inspirations of the late Trisha Brown with a program that includes multiple early Brown works—staged along the shore from Beach 97th Street to Beach 110th Street, with audiences following the dancers from site to site—and concludes with 1980's Opal Loop (1980), the first piece from her Unstable Molecular Structure cycle. An afterparty follows at the Rockaway Hotel. (Beach Sessions and Rockaway Film Festival also present, as a companion piece, a screening of Philip Glass and Robert Wilson's long 1976 experimental opera Einstein on the Beach on Friday, August 19, at 7:30pm, at the outdoor Arverne Cinema.) 

Did you know that Coney Island was once home to a popular space-themed attraction with a giant rocket dubbed Astroland Park?

This year actually marks the 60th anniversary of Astroland Park’s 1962 opening (the attraction closed due to financial reasons back in 2008) and, to mark the occasion, the Coney Island History Project is debuting a new exhibit by Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park exploring the park’s and object’s history.

The free exhibit consists of informational panels that the non-profit organization has installed all throughout Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park in an effort to educate visitors on the subject.

Among the facts you'll learn when exploring: although it debuted on Coney Island in the early 1960s, Astroland Park’s rocket moved around a lot and was even installed on the roof of the then-iconic, now-late restaurant Gregory & Paul’s on the boardwalk. The rocket was eventually donated to the city but, unfortunately, was left unattended and damaged throughout the years. 

In 2014, Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park and the Coney Island History Project were able to rescue the rocket and move it back to Coney Island right by the famous Wonder Wheel.

The exhibit is on view now through October 30 during park hours (Noon-10pm on weekdays and noon-11:30pm on weekends through Labor Day).

MoMA PS1's Warm Up is taking a new form this year as Summer Fridays! Each Friday, there will be DJ sets in the museum’s Long Island City courtyard, from new performers to veteran acts from Warm Up, and access to exhibitions and outdoor installations as well as specialty cocktails and bites from Mina’s.

Opening through August 28 by the plaza on Broadway between 32nd and 33rd Streets, this custom-built installation is a 120-foot-long walk-through experience featuring a variety of sections, each one “an immersive and abstract take on New York, its people and its culture,” according to an official press release. Visitors will kick-start their experience descending a giant slide that will catapult them into an ocean of 500,000 translucent balls. Talk about a unique ball pit. Other standout moments include a peek at the “glitterball dome” consisting of 100 shimmering disco balls suspended from the ceiling, a sight inspired by the city’s iconic Studio 54. A rotating cast of DJs and MCs will take the stage by the dome, so participants will actually get to catch live musical acts throughout the day as well. Finally, although we'd like not to think about the colder months for a few more weeks, the "winter in the city" space will be filled with snowballs, snowmen and—believe it or not—actual powder that you'll get to touch with your bare hands.

Artshack Cafe offers everything on its menu on ceramic pieces made in-house. What’s more, according to an official statement by the cafe, patrons are asked to “help reduce waste by bringing their own cups.” Looking for a coffee to-go? Expect it served in a ceramic to-go cup. The cafe is part of Artshack Brooklyn, a community-based ceramics studio that offers both free and subsidized programming for adults and children alike. In addition to not using single-use products, standout features of the Bed-Stuy cafe at 1129 Bedford Avenue by Monroe Street include an anti-racism library and a number of chairs shaped like bunnies that will make anyone’s selected orders from chef Silvia Barban’s menu taste that much better.

Summer Streets is back for 2022! And while New Yorkers have benefited from bonus pedestrian zones with the city’s Open Streets program (thanks for something, pandemic), Summer Streets is the epic Manhattan tradition that opens up miles of thoroughfares for walkers, runners, bicyclists and people-watchers of all ages. You won’t want to miss the complimentary rest stops which normally include fitness classes, a dog park, arts and crafts workshops, plus walking tours that explore NYC parks and some of the most beautiful NYC buildings. This is truly one of the best NYC events in August! And did we mention it’s free? No RSVP or tickets are necessary, just come and enjoy all that the wide-open outdoor space of the city has to offer. You may begin to rethink why we even need cars on Park Ave. at all. 

The Queens Craft Brigade is back in time for its five year anniversary market in Astoria, Queens. The independent, queer-owned market brings together talented makers exclusively from around the borough and has created monthly curated events featuring artwork, jewelry, fashion, crafts, and more at Katch Astoria. This time, vendors include Camille at the Wheel, Paige’s Candle Co, Cissy’s Art Cafe, Lilasuds, Caryn Cast, Kate Durkin, Paulina Pizza, and more.

A new exhibit at the Jewish Museum presents a pivotal three-year period in the history of art and culture in New York City 1962-1964, when the world was rapidly changing. Across two floors, the immersive exhibition presents more than 180 works of art, including painting, sculpture, photography, and film, alongside fashion, design, dance, poetry, and ephemera.

During the timeframe explored in this exhibition, events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (1963) and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (1963) all took place, changing the social and political landscape of New York City and the nation. “A generation of New York-based painters, sculptors, dancers, filmmakers, and poets rose to prominence, incorporating material directly from their urban surroundings and producing works that were as rich and complex as the city itself.”

“New York: 1962-1964” is the last project conceived and curated by Germano Celant, the renowned art historian, critic, and curator who passed away in 2020.

ArtsDistrict Brooklyn, also referred to as AD/BK, is a new immersive arts venue set opening in Greenpoint at 25 Franklin Street this week on Thursday. To celebrate the opening of the venue, sure to become part and parcel of New York's larger devotion to all things experiential, AD/BK will host the U.S. premiere of Limitless AI, a 70-minute show that first debuted at the Atelier des Lumières museum in Paris. Two other shows will be mounted on premise simultaneously: Flight and Séance. Both created by London-based company Darkfield, the two immersive, audio experiences will be presented in complete darkness inside customized 40-foot shipping containers. How cool?

New York City Restaurant Week actually comes twice a year, in summer and in winter, and each edition lasts for about a month. Restaurants curate their menus and produce prix-fixe selections for brunch, lunch, dinner and sometimes all three. (Saturdays are excluded, so only regular menu prices apply at that time.) Reservations for Summer Restaurant Week 2022 open on July 6. Bookings are available from July 18 to August 21. That's nearly five weeks to choose from oodles of NYC classics and recent culinary additions at $30, 45 and $60.

See up-and-coming artists for free at The Shed this summer including a series of live performance works in The Griffin Theater and the interdisciplinary space Level 4 Overlook. Don’t miss:

● Niall Jones’ “a n  u n r e a l” that imagines how one space can exist within another in the blurred terrain between performance and installation. (July 21 – 23)
● JJJJJerome Ellis’ “BENEDICTION,” a concert imagining what Black ancestors witnessed in the landscapes of Virginia. (July 28 – 30)
● Benjamin Akio Kimitch’s “In Tiger Hands,” an original production that challenges assumptions about the relationship of East Asian art forms to American contemporary dance. (August 4 – 6)
● z tye’s “The Available Bodies” that builds on an ongoing performance series born from artist z tye’s reaction to the growing number of trans/gender-non-conforming fatalities in America. (August 11 – 13)
● Justin Hicks’s songs from “Outside” tell stories and musings from hikes throughout the city and beyond and unpack how “nature” lives in Black bodies and minds. (August 18 – 20)
● “Kinetic Light: Wired” is an immersive contemporary aerial dance experience of sound, light, and movement that traces the fine line between “us” and “them” while exploring the gender, race, and disability stories of barbed wire. (August 25
– 27)

Each one is free to view!

After months of speculation, HAGS—a new restaurant marketed as “by and for queer people”—will officially open for business at 163 First Avenue between 10th and 11th Streets in the East Village on July 20. Occupying the space that was last home to David Chang’s Fuku, HAGS will offer a pretty straightforward menu that’s split into three. Diners can select the $145 vegan option, the $155 omnivore menu or the tasting menu for $215.

ImageNation Cinema Foundation’s 20th ImageNation Outdoors Festival is back July 9-September 18 with free film screenings about Harlem and music in outdoor venues

This year's theme is "The Soul of Harlem" and highlights include films by local directors such as the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect directed by Harlem-resident Tommy Leisl (July 9); Forty Year-Old Version by Harlem’s own Radha Blank (August 27); a talkback and special advance screening of Stanley Nelson’s Becoming Frederick Douglass (September 10).  There will also be a Soul Train tribute with Shaka King’s Academy-Award winner Judas and the Black Messiah (August 11th, Marcus Garvey Park) with live music, DJ and Soul Train Line; the debut of African Redemption: The Life and Legacy of Marcus Garvey on Garvey’s birthday in collaboration with Jazz Mobile (August 17, Marcus Garvey Park); a screening of West Side Story (July 10) and Encanto (August 7) with drive-in and open seating at East River Plaza Mall; a Kids Night Out screening of Encanto at Bronx Terminal Market (July 22); 20th Anniversary Throwback Thursday screenings of Brown Sugar and Drumline at Von King Park in Brooklyn; and Black Anime Con (August 28) with cosplay, an anime market, fusion food, and more at Von King Park.
 

Get a closer look at more than 60 kimonos at the Met Museum that will show how these traditional Japanese garments transformed over their history. Across the gallery, these gorgeous kimonos will be paired along with Western garments, Japanese paintings, prints, and decorative art objects in thematic and chronological order, from the costumes worn for Japan’s traditional forms of theater, Noh and Kyōgen, to the western-influence of the second half of the 20th century.

Join Josh Johnson (Comedy Central's The Daily Show), Lucas Connolly (Comedy Central), and Brittany Cardwell (Drule, New York Comedy Fest) for stacked lineups of top comics from NYC and beyond every Wednesday at 7:30pm. Past comedians have been Aparna Nancherla (Bojack Horseman), Frank Conniff (Mystery Science Theatre), & Judah Friedlander (30 Rock), plus you can enjoy free beer from 7:30 to 8pm and there's a pizza raffle if you RSVP. What's not to love? Show up to Two Boots Williamsburg for the show.

Now through October 31, Governors Island's historic Soissons Landing and its bars and restaurants will be open late every night of the week. Previously, the last ferry off the island typically left before the sun set. The area will be open until 10pm Sunday through Thursday, and until 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays so that visitors can enjoy delicious food and drink from Island Oyster, Taco Vista and Gitano Island, and stay later at QC NY Spa.

MoMA has reunited the six paintings, ceramic and three sculptures that Matisse depicted in his 1911 "The Red Studio" painting for the first time in over 100 years! Matisse painted a large canvas to depict his studio in the outskirts of Paris that was filled with his paintings and sculptures, furniture, and decorative objects. These objects have been saved and are finally back together since they left the studio. Created between 1898 and 1911, these objects range from familiar paintings, such as "Young Sailor (II)" (1906) to lesser-known works such as "Corsica, The Old Mill" (1898) and other objects.

Spend the night dancing under the stars to Fleur Seule Latin Big Band at Tavern on the Green this Thursday (6-10pm)! Led by "La Rubia de la Salsa,” you will be dining and dancing to classic tunes of Hector Lavoe, Celia Cruz, Ruben Blades, Marc Anthony, and many more. Admission to the event is $35 and includes one drink ticket. There's also the option to add on dinner for $125 (includes a three-course Pre-Fixe menu and one drink ticket, plus reserved seating for this ticket is guaranteed).

Head to Lincoln Square's Dante Park for lunch, Wednesdays from noon to 1:30pm through August, for charming outdoor performances from the Lincoln Square Business Improvement District. It all kicks off with the Gabriele Tranchina Band (July 6), followed by the Greg Skaff Trio (July 13), the Darrell Green Quartet (July 20), the Luke Franco Quartet (July 27), the George Gray Jazz Coalition (August 3), The Professors (August 10), the KJ Denhert Jazz Project (August 17), the Mala Waldron Quartet  (August 24) and the Eric Person Quartet  (August 31).

Descend into The Django (l2 6th Avenue, The Roxy Hotel, Cellar Level) and you’ll feel like you’ve entered another world. The subterranean jazz club, with its vaulted ceilings and exposed brick walls, was modeled after the boîtes of Paris. The venue consists of two cocktail bars, an open dining space, and a stage for live performances with a state-of-the-art sound system. The Django offers a full dinner menu and handcrafted cocktails, all partnered with a brilliant entertainment lineup. Check out the schedule here.

You can bike and booze on this cruise—it’s cycleboats! NYC Cycleboats is back in New York Harbor this summer with the only boat you can drink and cycle on in the city’s waters. You and your crew can sign up (individually starting at $39 or $649 for the whole boat) for a 90-minute, boozed-up jaunt across the water. It’s completely BYOB so you can enjoy the beer, wine or hard seltzer of your choice (there’s ice, water coolers and cup holders on board) and take a seat on your respective pedal stations. You move your legs like you would on a bike and with your collective power, you help move the boat.

Superstorm Sandy devastated New York City, destroying homes and businesses, but it also flooded the New York Aquarium so badly that parts of it have been closed to the public for the past decade. Now, after completely rebuilding these galleries with help from FEMA, New York State and New York City, NY Aquarium is finally reopening in full—you can see all of it—"Spineless," the PlayQuarium, "Ocean Wonders: Sharks!" Glover’s Reef, the Conservation Hall, the Sea Cliffs, the Aquatheater, the Seaside Café and more—in full.

"The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do" is a new 12,000-square-foot exhibition at the Museum of Jewish Heritage that features over 750 original objects and survivor testimonies from the cultural center's own collection. 

In an effort to educate folks of all ages and backgrounds about the horrific events that led to the possibility of the Holocaust even happening, the exhibit is, according to an official press release, "rooted in the objects donated by survivors and their families, many of whom settled in New York and nearby places." 

"The title of our new exhibition speaks to our institution's very reason for being," says Museum president and CEO Jack Kliger. "Antisemitism and fascism are again on the rise throughout the world. Right here in New York, we have witnessed not only a surge in antisemitism but an uptick in violence and harassment targeting many marginalized groups. The time to speak out and act is upon us, and it is urgent. We hope 'The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do' will educate and inspire our visitors and honor those who perished in the Holocaust, whose memories are a blessing."

You reserve tickets for the permanent exhibition right here.

Governors Island continues to be the hottest destination in New York this season, with a new beach club dubbed Gitano Island officially staking its claim in the area. The effort follows the Tulum-inspired tropical jungle restaurant, Gitano Garden of Love, which operated four successful seasons smack-dab in the middle of SoHo in Manhattan. The new venue on Governors Island has opened and taken over 27,000-square-feet of space on the island, right next to the ferry terminal overlooking the Manhattan skyline. 

Sputnik Yoga is offering free yoga and meditation classes to make wellness and mindfulness more accessible to all. Classes will be on select Wednesdays from 5:30pm to 6:30pm at Oculus Plaza, contingent on the weather. Bring your own yoga mat or blanket. 

NYC has been invaded by an army of zombies with an exhibit spotlighting AMC Networks' The Walking Dead. Open as of June 25 at the Museum of the Moving Image, "Living with The Walking Dead" features original costumes and props, concept art, storyboards, scripts and prosthetic makeup material that highlight the show’s origins, production and impact. It'll also has multiple screening series and public events over a six-month span for those interested in the show and learning more about behind the scenes. All in all, there are 500 objects including more than 300 props and production materials to see.

New Yorkers taking walks on the High Line will be treated to a pretty cool kinetic public piece of art set to take up residence at 24th Street through May 2023. "Windy," by Moroccan artist Meriem Bennani, is a 9-foot-tall structure made of about 200 black stacked foam discs that constantly rotate at different speeds and sequences. Think of it as a tornado that you can actually observe without the fear.

Grab your friends for a free outdoor dance party in Hudson Yards' Bella Abzug Park. The Mobile Mondays crew and friends are back with classic hits that shaped NYC club culture, spanning Funk, Soul, Hip Hop, House, Disco, Latin and more produced by Rebecca Lynn. The event is in partnership with Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance Business Improvement District (HYHK) and open to everybody. DJs include Operator Emz, Joey Carvello, Natasha Diggs, Just Blaze, Misbehavior and $$$ Mike.

The Museum of Modern Art is hosting a horror film screening series now through September 5 with more than 100 features and a selection of short films.

Set in the museum’s Titus Theaters in the Black Family Film Center will have weekly themes— Slasher, Horror of Place, the Undead, Creatures, Folk Tales, Women Make Horror, Body Horror, Eco Horror, Messaging Race, and Messaging Gender—that show how the genre expresses our society's lurking fears and anxieties.

The exhibition features films from 19 countries, including genre benchmarks from the U.S., Europe, and Asia, starting with Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) and spanning the 1970s into the 1990s; 21st-century films from emerging voices in Guatemala, Ireland, Iran, Laos, Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, and Zambia; and a focused look at emerging independent women filmmakers making horror over the last decade.

Tickets to individual showings must be reserved in advance.

As we enter the most sweltering days of summer, Rockefeller Center is offering a new, fun way to cool off. Its newest art installation, "Changing Spaces" by Jeppe Hein is effectively a water fountain with jets that spray up from the ground, allowing passersby to walk in and out and get soaked if they so desire. The water-based, social sculpture, which was unveiled at the Center's Plaza on June 22, is made up of four circles with enclosing "walls" of water that shoot up from the ground randomly and merge together, dividing the water pavilion into smaller spaces within it.

Brooklyn Public Library is back with its annual plaza concert series and Cinema Ephemera, a weekly visual playlist of art, music, and archival footage projected onto the facade of the iconic Central Library at Grand Army Plaza. On select Wednesday evenings throughout the summer, BPL will welcome Brooklynites with live outdoor concerts at 7pm on the plaza at the Central Library, followed by screenings of concert films, short artist videos, historical footage, and more starting at 9pm, with a new playlist each week. Performances are from the likes of Rimarkable, the Met Opera, and more. These events are free to the public. You can see the full line-up here.

It seems like we're living through the summer of the mini-golf. Beautiful Williamsburg hotel The William Vale just launched a new bespoke, nine-hole mini-golf course dubbed VALE(mini)GOLF. For $15 per round ($10 for kids 12 and younger), guests will get to play on the new course on Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon through 9pm and Fridays and Sundays from 11am through 9pm. Bonus points: $1 of each player's admission fee will be donated to the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York City (NAMI-NYC). The organization has actually partnered with the hotel to launch the new endeavor.

Let this upcoming summer forever be (unofficially) remembered as the season of the roller rink. Following the arrival of a groovy roller skating rink at Rockefeller Center, Central Park has launched a similar, new immersive, musical and theatrical experience at its own Wollman Rink. The ongoing happening is officially dubbed The DiscOasis and it will stay put through October 1. 

On Saturday, June 25, the Strand celebrated its 95th year as the largest independent bookstore in New York City and made an improvement unseen since its 1927 opening. The legendary bookstore near Union Square teamed up with Brooklyn Roasting Co. to add an in-shop coffeehouse. The new coffee counter offers limited seating, with beverages in mugs to linger over, as well as to-go coffees for those who want something to sip while browsing the stacks. The menu includes a seasonal blend of hot coffee ($3- $4), plus espresso drinks, chai and matcha. For summer, iced blueberry or iced lemon espresso spritzers are also offered. 

There's nothing more "summer in NYC" than taking in a movie in the great outdoors, under the hardly-seen stars and set to the humming soundtrack of the city. Looking to see a new movie any night of the week? We've got them all listed here.

La Marchande is a permanent resident of the newly opened Wall Street Hotel. It aims to apply a lighter touch than conventionally expected French fare, incorporating ingredients less typically seen in the cuisine. Its opening menu includes a roster of raw bar items, seafood towers, wok-roasted eggplant, duck breast carpaccio and crispy sweetbreads with toasted rice powder, smoked raisins and fennel. Dry-brined chicken, lamb prime rib and grilled lobster are among the entrées. Large format orders of dover sole and hanger steak can be plated for up to three. And a pandan-coconut gâteau, dulcey mille-feuille, Japanese cheesecake and assortment of French cookies are available for dessert. The wine list includes 120 bottles with a French bent.

Insects are misunderstood but a new macro photography exhibition at AMNH hopes to change that. Photographer Levon Biss has photographed 40 endangered species (selected from specimens in the Museum’s world-class research collection), which will be shown as large-format photographs as large as 4.5 by 8 feet in the Akeley Gallery and the adjacent East Galleria.

Some of the extinct and endangered specimens are more than 100 years old but are almost brought back to life through the photos that show their extreme detail and intricate features, including the well-known monarch butterfly and the nine-spotted ladybug to the remote Lord Howe Island stick insect of Australia (thought to be extinct for most of the 20th century until a tiny population was discovered and bred in captivity starting in 2003.) Each photograph in Extinct and Endangered took about three weeks to create from up to 10,000 individual images shot using special lenses.

“We are delighted to showcase Levon Biss’s breathtaking photographs to engage, inspire, and educate our visitors about the critical need to conserve these glorious and diverse animals which, though small, are essential to Earth’s complex ecosystems,” said Ellen V. Futter, President of the American Museum of Natural History.  “We look forward to further educating about insects when we open the spectacular Solomon Family Insectarium next year as part of the Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation, which will also feature Biss’s stunning photography.” 

Most New Yorkers know that Fraunces Tavern is the site of General George Washington’s famous farewell to his officers at the end of the American Revolution, but most don't realize it was also home to the nation’s first executive governmental building that housed three offices of the Confederation Congress. To recreate what that was like, Fraunces Tavern has a new exhibit (open as of June 22) that recreates the Department of Foreign Affairs' office based on a cashbook that detailed the purchases for the department. The exhibit features about 60 objects, most of which are authentic to the period and many of which have never before been on public display, including tables, chairs, desks, maps, newspapers and other items. Its visitors will learn about the diplomatic, military and financial challenges that all three departments faced after the Revolutionary War and how those challenges affected the formation of the U.S. Constitution. Fraunces Tavern is offering $1 admission on opening day, June 22.

A new New-York Historical Society exhibit commemorates the 50th anniversary of "Title IX," an addition to the Education Amendments Act of 1972 that banned discrimination based on sex in education programs or activities that receive federal assistance. From now through September 4, you can see how activists and lawmakers helped secure the advantages of education for all students. On view in the Joyce B. Cowin Women’s History Gallery, the exhibition immerses visitors in the spaces shaped most profoundly by the legislation and highlights the crucial work of activists in demanding that their institutions and government live up to the law’s promises.

Brooklyn brewery Talea Beer Co. opened its first taproom in Williamsburg in early 2021, two years after it went from an idea to “the only exclusively female-founded brewery in NYC” by co-owners LeAnn Darland and Tara Hankinson. The duo set out to create “easy to love” beers that “cater to the palettes of both craft beer newcomers and connoisseurs.” Their light, bright, airy space quickly became a local favorite for its fruit-forward brews and seasonal suds. Talea just expanded south with a new spot in Cobble Hill. Conveniently located about one minute from the F and G trains at Bergen Street, Talea 2.0’s new space is a similarly lofty affair. Its now-familiar font adorns a brick facade punctuated by pink and yellow and a couple of rows of tidy tables are out on the sidewalk. 

If you've been in Brooklyn, you've seen that iconic "stained glass" water tower next to the BQE and another inside Brooklyn Bridge Park—you can't miss them: the sculptures' vibrant panes both reflect and color the city around them, especially at night when they light from within. Two more of these incredible pieces, which are by Brooklyn artist Tom Fruin, are now at the Seaport to honor the 10-year anniversary of the artist's famous Brooklyn landmark "Watertower" that is visible from Pier 17.

"Life in the Abstract" is a new exhibition of large-scale sculptures by artist Wyatt Kahn that has landed inside City Hall Park. Passersby will notice seven vibrant rust-red Cor-Ten steel artworks that combine elements of geometric abstraction with playful "ready-made" objects from everyday life. Translation: one the monuments depicts a pair of glasses just hanging out on an imaginary shape while another one is a massive comb resting on another undefined piece. According to an official press release, "Parade" is the largest of the seven sculptures included in the installation and it weighs almost 3,300 pounds while measuring over 15 feet wide. The other pieces are named "Untitled," "Umbrella," "Painting the Painter," "Morning," "Sideways Curl" and "The Friends."

If you're looking to cool off at some place other than the best public pools and the top hotel and rooftop pools in NYC, consider a visit to Roosevelt Island, where the annual Pop Up Pool Party installation just debuted by the body of water. As is the case every year, the floor mural lives at Manhattan Park, an 8.5-acre luxury waterfront rental community that tasks a different creative with coming up with a design for the space annually. This year's chosen artist, Hratch Arbach, also had to abide by a theme: sustainability.

Swingers NoMad, a "crazy mini-golf course" and entertainment complex straight from London, just opened and has three nine-hole golf courses across 23,000 square feet under 20-foot-high ceilings. "Crazy golf" is a British spin on mini-golf, but it's for a 21-and-over audience since craft cocktails are served by caddies on the course, and at Swingers NoMad, there will be six cocktail bars with signature classic cocktails from London and D.C., as well as 12 cocktails created specifically for Swingers NoMad, private rooms you can rent, an opulent clubhouse and four gourmet street food vendors—Sauce Pizzeria, Miznon, Fonda and Mah Ze Dahr Bakery.

Art from some of the top African-American artists in the comic book industry is now on view at the Society of Illustrators until October 29. The exhibit is co-curated by journalist and writer Karama Horne ("Marvel’s Protectors of Wakanda: A History and Training Manual of the Dora Milaje") and artist/writer Shawn Martinbrough ("How to Draw Noir Comics: The Art and Technique of Visual Storytelling," "Thief of Thieves," and "Red Hood"), whose work will be featured along with over sixteen other talented artists. It'll showcase both independent and mainstream creators, such as Dawud Anyabwile, founder of the landmark Brotherman Comics, the longest-running, independently published American Black comic book and Eisner Award-winning, DC Comics and Marvel artist Denys Cowan, co-founder of Milestone Media. Also featured are Eisner Award-winning artists Afua Richardson ("Black Panther World of Wakanda," HBO’s Lovecraft Country), Alitha Martinez ("Batgirl," "World of Wakanda") and John Jennings (Octavia Butler’s "Parable of the Sower"), as well as veteran artists Larry Stroman ("Alien Legion," "X-Factor") and Darryl Banks ("Green Lantern") and more.

Returning on Wednesday, BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! shows take place at the beautiful bandshell in Prospect Park, a scenic amphitheater surrounded by trees. Catching one of these gigs is guaranteed to be a highlight of your summer show-going season, whether you're seeing a buzzy indie-rock band, a classic soul or funk group, or one of the best hip-hop artists around. Saxophonist, producer, and composer Kamasi Washington will kick things off on June 8 and he'll be followed by artists such as Phoebe Bridgers (ticketed), Erykah Badu (ticketed), Kamasi Washington, Vic Mensa, Davido (ticketed), Yemi Alade, Maxi Priest, Chicano Batman, Fantastic Negrito, Crumb, Fonseca, John Cameron Mitchell, Kronos Quartet and Sam Green, The Beths, Khruangbin (ticketed) and more.

NYC’s famed Dominique Ansel Bakery, known all over the globe for its trompe-l'œil desserts, released its “Around the World” pastry collection, created to evoke destinations near and far. The new line includes six realistic interpretations of foods inspired by varied locales rendered in all manner of magnificent ingredients. The collection is only available at Dominique Ansel Bakery in Soho until July 21. See the full list of goodies here.

As of this week, the Lincoln Center plaza is among NYC's coolest outdoor music venues, not only because of forthcoming concerts and dance events but because its disco ball is massive. The 10-foot-wide disco ball weighs 1,300 pounds and yes, it actually spins. The disco ball is at the center of "The Oasis," now the city's largest dance floor, where there will be tons of free dances, concerts and performances throughout the summer as part of Lincoln Center's "Summer for the City" program that runs through August 14. Click through to see what's happening this week.

A massive retrospective of William Klein's work featuring nearly 300 works including photographs, paintings, films, photo books, and other media from his expansive and boundary-pushing six-decade career will be on view at ICP until September 12. 

It's the first one of its kind in the U.S. in over a generation—Klein was primarily known as a street or fashion photographer but he was an artist of many mediums. The show will explore his life and career through a kind of timeline showing his development as an artist in wildly inventive photographic studies of New York, Rome, Paris, Moscow, and Tokyo to bold and witty fashion photographs; from cameraless abstract photography to iconic celebrity portraits; from excerpts of documentary films about Muhammad Ali, Eldridge Cleaver, and the Pan-African Festival of Algiers to scripted films about the beauty industry, imperialism, and consumer culture.

"This exhibition at ICP is a homecoming of sorts for Klein, who was born in upper Manhattan in 1928 and began his photography career on our city’s streets,” said ICP Director David Little. “He then became a truly international artist, living most of his life in Paris and capturing the unique character of global cities in his renowned photobooks. Klein is a living legend of image-making, and ICP is honored to celebrate a prodigious career that influenced and inspired generations.”

Every Tuesday through the summer, Canary Club and Baby Shower Comedy are bringing live comedy shows to New York’s Lower East Side. There will be two live stand-up comedy shows at the Canary Club’s lounge, with seatings at 7pm and 8:30pm, featuring top NYC comedians as seen on Netflix, HBO, Comedy Central, and more. Tickets are available on Resy and Eventbrite.

The Rooftop Cinema Club is one of our favorite things to do in the city come summer. Delightful drinks, delicious food, beautiful views, the sort of breeze you can only experience on a rooftop in Manhattan and a range of classic and new movies? Sign us up. The schedule for this summer's Rooftop Cinema Club in midtown—at 60 West 37th Street, on the third floor of the Embassy Suits by Hilton New York Manhattan Times Square—is officially out and it's looking stacked. In addition to the range of productions that will be screened, patrons will get to order from a full food and bar menu while enjoying the show on a state-of-the-art LED screen that allows for multiple movie times a day (family-friendly screening will happen before 4:30pm!). 

Last year, popular speakeasy destination PDT opened Tropicale, an outdoor offshoot that New Yorkers happily flocked to. This summer, the bar revisits the al fresco concept with Calle San Marcos, a seasonal pop-up serving agave-forward craft cocktails and hot dog chef collaborations with Crif Dogs (where the original destination is hidden) in honor of PDT's 15th anniversary. Just like last year, the pop-up will take over part of St. Marks Place in the East Village, right outside Crif Dogs, where folks will get to order specialty cocktails concocted by PDT owner Jeff Bell and bartender Victor Lopez. The new imbibing menu is actually inspired by Lopez's hometown of Puebla, in Mexico and the game of loteria (think of it as a Mexican bingo). 

Putting Green, an 18-hole course on a 15,000-square-foot tiered deck on the North Williamsburg riverfront has reopened at the former Con Edison site that now belongs to developer Two Trees. The course aims to serve two purposes—one, to provide a fun time to New Yorkers, and two, to teach them about climate change, green and blue infrastructure, animal habitats, energy, and emissions. Each hole offers up a different scene—hole 1 is "Down the drain," showing how litter and debris get washed down storm drains and into waterways. Hole 2, "Whale Fall Feast," shows what happens when a whale dies and sinks to the bottom of the ocean. Hole 15, is "The Big Oyster" by you guessed it, the Billion Oyster Project. Other holes feature polar bears, a windmill, a cow, and a depiction of sea-level rise. 

Local brewery, Other Half, will be setting a bar and serving beer while Mom & Icepops will be selling popsicles!

The newly opened Vinyl Steakhouse is named for its dual conceits: music and meat. Musical memorabilia factors into the decor. Vintage-style show posters line the walls, prints depict Run-DMC, Debbie Harry and the Beastie Boys and shelves are filled with album sleeves. And, beyond those show tunes, expect to hear full sides from among the 2,000-plus records collected by sommelier-owner Kevin Flannery, who operates the restaurant with his somm wife Sofia. Steak, of course, factors significantly into the opening menu, including an 8- or 10-ounce filet mignon, ribeye, New York strip and dry aged porterhouse for two. Classic steakhouse sides like mac and cheese (this one truffled), creamed spinach (turned carbonara with pancetta, parm and egg yolk) and a potato pavé piled with bacon, chives, gouda and jalapeño are also available. 

The Seaport's summer concert series under the stars will feature more than 60 shows including from artists like Simple Plan, Sum 41, The Offspring, Pusha T, Elvis Costello & The Imposters, Blondie, DEVO, Deftones, The Head and the Heart, Flogging Molly, Bikini Kill, Mayday Parade, Jason Mraz, Rise Against, The Used, Dashboard Confessional, Franz Ferdinand, Jason Isbell and more.

Prepare to take a walk inside your brain when visiting "Life of a Neuron," ARTECHOUSE's latest immersive exhibition opening inside Chelsea Market on May 14. The show, mounted in collaboration with the Society for Neuroscience, took three years to create—and for good reason. Neuroscientists and artists came together to reconstruct a human neuron from the prefrontal cortex, which anchors the exhibit and will help visitors follow the development of an "average" brain from pre-birth to death. That's no small feat. Diluting a vast amount of complicated information into digestible bits understandable by the average non-scientist, the exhibit will showcase artistic renditions of a brain at the cellular level.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute is back with part two of this year’s flagship exhibition “In America” with “An Anthology of Fashion,” and the new iteration of the show is an even more expansive look at what has defined American fashion over the years. It is a visually splendid tour through hundreds of years of this country’s history told through clothes designed and worn by its citizens. Building on last year’s spartan, intellectually rigorous presentation of garments categorized by the expression of various themes, this year’s show explodes across most of the American Wing of the museum. To help guide your visit to the blockbuster exhibition here are five things you’ll want to look out for...

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's new "Date Nights" will give visitors an opportunity to become acquainted with artwork with informal drop-in gallery chats, the chance to listen in on gorgeous live music and sip on yummy cocktails. These "Date Nights" will be held every Friday and Saturday night in the American Wing Café from 5pm to 9pm. Make it a night out with The Met's buy-one-get-one drink special and snack on light bites in the American Wing Café. More details can be found at metmuseum.org/datenight. There's literally no excuse not to go—the date nights come with museum admission, which is always pay-what-you-wish for New York State residents and NY, NJ, and CT students with valid ID. And this time, advance tickets are not required. 

On select Friday nights from April to October, the Intrepid Museum opens its doors for free (tickets are usually $33), allowing visitors can explore the Museum and enjoy free after-hours programming. This month, visitors can head to the Space Shuttle Pavilion for a special presentation from "Astronautica: Voices of Women in Space"—a work of music, voice, and video by women composers that was based on the words of women astronauts and includes videos taken by the astronauts while onboard space shuttles. Museum educators will also be on hand with demonstrations and hands-on activities and local astronomers will be on the flight deck with high-powered telescopes to help visitors navigate the night sky and answer questions about astronomy and stargazing. Guests are welcome to bring their own binoculars or look through the telescopes of the experts. (There will be no access to the Submarine Growler or Concorde during Free Fridays and last entry is 8:30pm). Check the program schedule at intrepidmuseum.org.

Baylander Steel Beach is many things: an aircraft carrier turned restaurant, a floating dining and drinking destination, the smallest aircraft carrier in the world (it's 133 feet long) and an absolute must-visit during the spring and summertime. After first launching in July of 2020, the former US Navy helicopter landing trainer is back for the 2022 season beginning Thursday, April 28 at its usual location: the West Harlem Piers in Upper Manhattan at 125th Street. Boasting a 4,000-square-foot outdoor deck, the bar-slash-eatery was peppered with picnic tables on both the upper and lower decks in previous years—we expect this year's setup to look the same. In addition to delicious seafood and the sort of fare that delights bar goers and settles a drinking stomach (lobster rolls, tater tots, fish and chips), patrons can look forward to a slew of nautical themed cocktails, including the Mermaid Potion (Empress gin, Rockey's botanical liqueur, Fever Tree elderflower tonic and lemon), the Pirates' Punch (Captain Morgan spiced rum, mandarin and pomegranate liqueurs, pineapple and fresh citrus juices) and the on-the-nose Boat Fashioned (Bulleit bourbon, blood orange vermouth, burlesque bitters).

If you have ever wanted to get inside an artist's head and understand where they were coming from, "Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure" will be the closest thing you'll experience to that. This major exhibition, opening Saturday, April 9, at the Starrett-Lehigh Building in Chelsea, has an advantage that many other shows do not have—it was organized and curated by Basquiat's family (with famed architect David Adjaye and design firm Pentagram), who have done a painstaking job of showing both the famous artist's intimate side and his genius. The exhibit, which features more than 200 rarely seen works, isn't merely Basquiat's work hung on walls, it immerses viewers in creatively designed spaces to give a sense of place and context. It's broken up into distinct and vibrant categories—"1960," "KINGS COUNTY," "WORLD FAMOUS," "IDEAL" "ART GALLERY,"  "PALLADIUM," and "PLACE JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT"—that viewers can float through. Basquiat's work is front and center of it all, but certain highlights make his work come alive as if it had just been painted. Visitors can take another step to fully immerse themselves by scanning a Spotify code to access a playlist of music the artist listened to.

The days of ice skating at Rockefeller Center are over—a groovy roller skating rink is opening in its place this April with live DJs, concerts and performances as well as lessons. Flipper's Roller Boogie Palace, an iconic West Hollywood roller rink that became a "mecca of uninhibited fun," will operate a new roller rink between April 15 through October, according to Rock Center's owner, Tishman Speyer. The rink, which will be designed by Bureau Betak, will be smaller than the traditional ice rink at Rockefeller Center. Instead of keeping that size, it'll have space for the public to watch the skaters at rinkside from tables and chairs and from the Esplanades and Plaza on the upper level.

April is always crunch time on Broadway, as shows rush to open in time to qualify for the Tony Awards in June. But this year, the density of Broadway openings is especially crushing: When the smoke clears on April 28, the last official date for Tonys eligibility, 15 news shows will have opened in April, including 10 shows in the last 12-day stretch alone. All of these shows are already in previews or will be starting next week. Some may turn out to be among the best shows on Broadway. Others may…not. Stay tuned for Time Out's reviews of all of them. Meanwhile, here's a guide to what's coming down the Street...

An immersive experience with massive, ultra-realistic dinosaurs that takes place on the grounds of the Bronx Zoo is back!

Dinosaur Safari asks visitors to the zoo to traverse a path filled with 52 life-sized dinos and pterosaurs through a wooded area, where they will see the largest flying animal to ever live (the Quetzalcoatlus) and, of course, the Tyrannosaurus rex and the vegetarian Omeisaurus that stretches an impressive 60 feet long. When it first opened in 2019, it was a ride that used shuttles to introduce people to the dinos. Now, it's a 1/4 mile-long walk-through experience with 52 dinos rather than 40.

To make things as realistic as possible, the Bronx Zoo teamed up with a paleontologist from the American Museum of Natural History—Don Lessem even served as an advisor on the original Jurassic Park! The experience is topped off with an ADA-accessible fossil dig area for kids to play in, plus some additional dino-themed activities around the zoo. All ages. 

The Whitney Biennial has been a long time coming. Originally meant to open in 2021, the 80th edition combines three years of planning as well as 63 artists and collectives to present an event that has been described as both "dynamic" and timely by its curators. "Whitney Biennial 2022: Quiet as It’s Kept," which opens April 6, is broken up into two experiences on the fifth and sixth floors of the Meatpacking District building. Each one presents a completely different atmosphere—on the sixth floor is a cavernous, labyrinth-like gallery, and on the fifth floor is an open and airy room where works are displayed together. The exhibition mimics the range of emotions we felt during the past two years, from fear and pain to joy and hope, and everything in between. Artworks—even walls—will change and performance will "animate" the galleries and objects. The changing nature of the exhibition reflects these uncertain times.

Hospitality company Gerber Group opened Daphne earlier this month as a complement to the hotel's rooftop bar, The Crown, and New Yorkers have been flocking to it ever since. Upon entering the massive 2,500-square-foot space, patrons are pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful silk pink flower installation by art studio Floratorium. Dazzling disco balls also permeate the premises, calling back to a time when the dance club you frequented was just as important as where your apartment was located. In addition to clubs' signature bottle service, the bartenders at Daphne can serve some remarkable cocktails that range from the classic to modern interpretations of the form. For every dirty martini, old fashioned and margarita there is an Aphrodite (Malfy gin, fortified wine, pomegranate and fresh lemon), Lite My Fire (Patron silver tequila, ginger liqueur, fresh lime and flamed rosemary) and Cider Car (Hennessy, apple cider and apricot liqueur), among other options. 

Looking for a treat? Head to Ample Hills' Gowanus Scoop Shop rooftop for a comedy show hosted by Savannah DesOrmeaux (X Change Rate) and Jenny Gorelick (NY Comedy Festival) featuring a heavily female, queer, and non-binary line-up every Friday. Pizza and ice cream will be available for purchase at the show.

Ladies take over Route 66 Smokehouse and Comedy Club on Wednesdays. Hosted by Alia Janine, the show features a heavy female line-up featuring some of today's top and up and coming comedians! Past and upcoming comedians include Janeane Garofalo, Usama Siddiquee, Chanel Omari, Dan Soder, Francesca Fiorentini, and Chanel Ali. Food and drink specials are offered all night and there's a party afterward! Each ticket comes with one drink.

As musical comedians, Rebecca Vigil and Evan Kaufman have played just about every room in NYC, and at their beloved monthly show, they play your heartstrings. Watch as the manically inventive duo interviews a couple in the audience live about how they met, then spins their love story into an epic, totally-improvised musical extravaganza. 

If you loved the music and cool jazz scene in Disney and Pixar's movie Soul, you'll want to make a beeline to The National Jazz Museum in Harlem, which has been transformed into the film's Half Note jazz club. Showcasing incredible artifacts from major players in Harlem's jazz scene, including Duke Ellington’s white grand piano, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis' tenor saxophone, a player piano and a working 78rpm Victrola, "The Soul of Jazz: An American Adventure" highlights the many different cultures and creators who influenced this genre.

The luxurious Italian wellness spa QC NY has opened to the public, bringing the elegance and rejuvenation of a European spa to Governors Island, but with New York City flavor. It's immediately clear when you enter the spa that it was made to feel like home. From its cozy reception area decorated with custom-made furniture from Italy to its welcoming relaxation spaces with plush leather chairs and massive pillows you can sprawl out on, it feels like you're staying at a retreat with New York Harbor views. Since it's on the edge of the island, a short walk from Soissons Landing, looking out the windows offers gorgeous blue water views and glimpses of the city skyline. Because of its layout, the spa feels secluded from the rest of the island. Click through to read more about the new spa.

Once a week, after closing time, 10 people convene at the city’s oldest magic shop, Tannen’s, for a cozy evening of prestidigitation by the young and engaging Noah Levine. The shelves are crammed with quirky devices; there's a file cabinet behind the counter, a mock elephant in the corner and bins of individual trick instructions in plastic covers, like comic books or sheet music. The charm of Levine's show is in how well it fits the environment of this magic-geek chamber of secrets. As he maneuvers cards, eggs, cups and balls with aplomb, he talks shop, larding his patter with tributes to routines like the Stencel Aces and the Vernon Boat Trick—heirlooms of his trade that he gently polishes and displays for our amazement.

Head to the Museum of the City of New York to see 100 photographs selected from the more than 1,000 images recently gifted to the Museum by the Joy of Giving Something (JGS), a non-profit organization dedicated to the photographic arts. Images range from documentary-style to quirky and from architectural to atmospheric. “Celebrating the City” features works by more than 30 creators new to the MCNY collection, including multiple images from Helen Levitt’s dynamic and celebrated street photography; Sylvia Plachy’s playful and eccentric examination of the people, animals, and moments of NYC; and Michael Spano’s slice-of-life city shots spanning the 1990s and 2000s. Other key figures in 20th-century photography are incorporated into the show, including Ilse Bing, Bruce Davidson, Mitch Epstein, Elliott Erwitt, Robert Frank, William Kline, Saul Leiter, Alfred Stieglitz, Rosalind Solomon, and Paul Strand, to name a few—all capturing indelible, sometimes implausible, intimate, and often incredible moments of the city. You'll even see a llama in Times Square, fireworks over the Brooklyn Bridge, polar bears playing in a pool at the zoo as well as subways, skylines, shadows, and stolen moments.

Starting March 4, MoMA and UNIQLO are offering free admission to NYC residents on the first Friday of every month from 4 to 8pm. On these days, you'll get to explore the museum during extended hours and enjoy its second-floor café and Museum store. UNIQLO NYC Nights are part of the two organization's decade-long partnership. You won't want to miss MoMA's upcoming exhibits "Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme: May amnesia never kiss us on the mouth" (Apr 23–Jun 26) and "Henri Matisse: The Red Studio" (May 1–Sep 10).

Kinky’s Dessert Bar, at 181 Orchard Street, is decked out in very explicit decor—a ton of sexually provocative posters and magazine covers adorn the walls and an upstairs seating area—the two-floor destination will function as both a bar serving drinks and desserts and, eventually, an event space. In addition to racy waffles, patrons will revel in a menu filled with all sorts of cookies and cupcakes. Yes, the treats are just as delicious as they are visually entertaining. (We tried them!) Standouts include the oatmeal raisin cookie Lick Me, the So Anxious vanilla cupcake made with creamy vanilla buttercream, the I Like it Rough (a red velvet cupcake topped with cream cheese frosting) and the Beg for More Banana—a waffle filled with homemade banana pudding and glazed with a banana cream. In a funny gimmick, customers can choose their waffle to be a dicky or a va-jayjay.

Comedy Nite Live is a new weekly stand-up comedy showthat features new comedians every week on Thursdays at 9pm at RPM Underground. Past comedians have included Usama Siddique, Zach Zimmerman, Jocelyn Chia, Derek Gaines, Robby Slowik and Kareem Green among others. What's cool is that the $5 ticket price includes an hour of free private-room karaoke after the show.

Just in time for Black History Month, the New-York Historical Society is bringing Frederick Douglass’ vision of freedom, citizenship and equal rights to life in a new ongoing special installation. A range of artifacts and documents illustrate Douglass’ vision, including illustrations from the popular press of the time and scrapbooks of articles by or about Douglass compiled by his sons that also documented his work to usher in a more just country. Visitors will also see speech excerpt from his contemporary, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, who raises the question of gender in step with Douglass’ ideas about racial equality. Political cartoons and a copy of an editorial that Douglass wrote about Chinese immigrants’ right to belong in the U.S. in the Chinese American newspaper are also on view.

There's a lot to say about new Lower East Side cocktail bar Sally Can Wait—starting with the story behind the name, which is an ode to co-owner Matt Friedlander's dog, Sally. Sally Can Wait seeks to marry the culinary worlds of Latin and Jewish cuisines—a task that's rarely been attempted before. The food offerings immediately call out to both fares. Take the grilled mahi mahi Reuben, for example, which is a Cuban version of the classic Jewish sandwich (pastrami spice, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, house Russian dressing). The classic Cubano is also worth splitting (roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, house pickles, yellow mustard) after an order of the oh-so-Jewish latkes, served with sour cream, pickled onion and Fuji apple compote. The cocktails are outstanding as well—which doesn't surprise us considering that Friedlander used to be the general manager at Grand Banks, and co-owner Zak Snyder was the bar manager at Analogue. The two worked at a slew of other New York City nightlife staples as well.

Every Monday evening, you can enjoy Prohibition-era cocktails and live jazz channeling the spirit and energy of the Harlem Renaissance at Sugar Monk. You'll have your pick of Prohibition and Pre-Prohibition cocktails (Sidecar, Clover Club, Bijou, French 75, The Boothby, The Bee's Knees, Hanky Panky and others) to sip on while Max Bessesen and his trio play on from 8 to 10pm. There's no cover, just make a reservation on Resy.

Sesh Comedy is the only BYOB comedy club in NYC and features comics from Comedy Central, HBO, Colbert, Netflix, Amazon, and others. It's "Comedy Cellar if the Comedy Cellar was $10 and when you arrived they handed you a free drink!" That's right, you get a free alcoholic drink with your ticket (if you're 21 or older). BYOB is also encouraged.

On Location Tours is once again offering its popular On Location Tours Sex and the City Hotspots Tour as both a public and private sightseeing experience. This bus tour highlights several famous NYC buildings and locations featured in the series Sex and the City, all from the comfort of a heated bus this winter.

On the tour, you'll see Greenwich Village, the Meatpacking District, and SoHo and its one-of-a-kind boutiques, department stores and designer shops with tour guides who are local New York City actresses excited to share facts along with fun trivia questions about the buildings and locations.

Each tour guest will also receive a free Magnolia Bakery cupcake (and those over 21 can sip discounted cosmos at the famous NYC bar ONieal’s). 

Public tours run several times a week, including Fridays and Saturdays at 3pm. Private tours are offered daily, and a limo buyout option is available.

A high-end destination has opened at the South Street Seaport, combining a love for singalongs with delicious tabletop grills. Upstairs at Ssäm Bar is Momofuku's latest restaurant, this one located at Pier 17 (89 South Street, to be precise), on the second floor of Momofuku Ssäm Bar. While overlooking the East River, you'll get to sing your heart out to your favorite karaoke songs in one of two private rooms (each one accommodates up to 10 people) where you'll also get to order from the entire Asian-influenced menu. And because there is no karaoke without cocktails, here's a bit about that: from the Psycho Beach Party (mezcal, cynar, passionfruit, pineapple and blood orange) to the Toki Hot Toddy (Suntory Toki whisky, genmaicha tea and lemon) and the Suit & Chair (chai-infused rum, rockey's liqueur, ginger, salted plum and a chinotto float), you probably never have had such high-end drinks while screaming your lungs out to Prince's "Purple Rain." 

The Public hotel (formally known as “PUBLIC”) first opened on the Lower East Side in 2017 and hasn’t stopped opening since. Its post pandemic-restriction relaunch in June included a Peruvian-inspired restaurant called Popular (POPULAR), the adjacent Cantina & Pisco Bar (CANTINA & PISCO BAR) and a rooftop (THE ROOF). Now, the hotel adds a jazzy cocktail lounge to its cruiseship-like variety with Bar Chrystie (. . . you get the idea). Bar Chrystie, located on the hotel’s lobby level, aims to evoke “1920s Hollywood glamour,” which is rude, because NYC had the '20s, too. To ice that burn it is also “celebrating New York City’s legendary cocktail culture,” according to press materials. But it is also, “inspired by Bar Hemingway at the Hôtel Ritz Paris and Harry’s Bar in Venice,” so I guess if there’s ever been a place than this is it. Bar Chrystie is adorned with un-chandeliered chandeliers, bright night sky-blue banquettes, a Baccarat candelabra and “metal orbs." Its opening menu includes a robust and detailed cocktail list including classics and signature offerings, wine, beer, cider and a complement of Champagne. Snacks like truffle flatbread, croquettes and warm roasted olives are also available.

A new audio tour by the Brooklyn Public Library seeks to explore the lives of the characters and authors that call the borough home in fiction and in real life. From Patti Smith to Biggie Smalls, Howard Zinn to Tanwi Nandini Islam, the guide covers a total of 16 writers over eight miles of Brooklyn. You can also expect to stop at important public libraries the likes of Washington Irving and Clinton Hill, which, according to an official press release, "played an important role in the lives of the featured author[s]." Expect the entire tour, which can virtually start off from anywhere in Brooklyn, to take at least two hours to complete, depending on how many stops you wish to make along the way.

Overthrow Hospitality—the group behind New York favorites Amor y Amargo, Ladybird and Death and Co., among others—has just debuted an attention-grabbing champagne and absinthe bar in the East Village that is inspired by... hell. Café de L’Enfer, which literally translates to "hell cafe" from the French, opened earlier this month and the decor is just as striking as the cocktails, developed by mixologist Sother Teague. The destination, which calls out to the famous Victorian-era Cabaret de l'Enfer in Paris, is filled with touches of the underworld. Expect skulls, deep red booths and ogre-like statues to adorn the dark space, located directly above Amor y Amargo. Think of Café de L’Enfer as a year-round Halloween extravaganza.

Lower East Side darling Meow Parlour, the famous cat cafe where New Yorkers get to play with adoptable cats while sipping coffee and munching on sweets, has finally reopened following an 18-month-long, pandemic-fueled closure. Now in "soft relaunch mode," the space at 46 Hester Street is welcoming guests with reservations on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am through 7pm. You can schedule your visit on the official website right here.