The best things to do in NYC this weekend

The 15th Annual Juneteenth NY Festival gathers thousands of attendees in Brooklyn for a vibrant celebration of rich culture through music, dance, sports clinics, history, vendors, and families. This year, it will happen over June 13-19.

Events include an awards ceremony honoring 21 New York men for their impact in the community, a restaurant crawl, free festival with local vendors, a parade, a fashion show, raffles, and a virtual summit.

This year's theme is "Unveiled: Understanding the Journey from Our Roots," as event organizers encourage attendee to explore the Black community's profound history and ongoing journey toward liberation and empowerment.

651 ARTS, a place to "create and experience art that is led by, centers, and celebrates Black voices," is back with its fourth annual Juneteenth celebration, once again in collaboration with the popular outdoor music concert series The Soapbox Presents. Taking over The Plaza at 300 Ashland Place in Downtown Brooklyn on Saturday, June 15, the event's 2024 theme is “Individual Expression” and will feature a series of musical performances, spoken word, dance workshops and other special experiences throughout the day. It's free to get in; reserve a ticket here.

Additionally, Brooklyn Pop-up will curate a marketplace experience for the day composed of Black-owned businesses and Black vendors and artisans.

Head to the Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn on Saturday, June 15, for the third annual Juneteenth Food Festival hosted with Black-Owned Brooklyn. This year's lineup will feature 42 local food vendors and artisans, dance workshops, double-dutch performances, cooking demos, book signings and more in a vibrant celebration of Black food and culture. Dine on dishes like South Carolina barbecue, Senegalese thiebou jen, Jamaican jerk chicken tacos, vegan soul-food dishes with a Puerto Rican twist and more.

After you're done eating, check out a marketplace of apparel, accessories, records and books—all from Black brands. You can also enjoy an all-day house music set by the Brooklyn-based Soul Summit DJ collective and other cultural performances.  

Prepare to get schooled on NYC queer history by drag queen Alotta McGriddles on a boozy trolley tour this Pride Month. 

For Pride Month, the New York City AIDS Memorial will use the power of art to engage in remembrance and reflection with a series of works and performances created in response to AIDS. Head to the memorial in Greenwich Village on Saturday, June 15 for "A Remembrance," an afternoon of written work, performance, music, and art curated by multidisciplinary artist Alex Stadler.

The event includes:
● A spoken-word performance by aAliy A. Muhammad in conversation with the poetry of Melvin Dixon
● Untold Elegy, a chamber music work composed by Kinan Abou-afach and performed by the Bergamot Quartet with mezzo-soprano Elisa Sutherland
● A staged reading of The Simplest Thing by Cookie Mueller with Tony and Emmy Award-nominated actor Jessica Hecht
● A performance by the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus will sing I Stop Somewhere, Waiting For You

The program invites all to remember a friend, a family member, a loved one, a mentor, or a hero, or to honor an activist, organization, ally, or noteworthy community member.

To celebrate Juneteenth, Blacklist NYC—a group that creates community "through elevated social experiences"—will host a special Buy Black Marketplace at Pier 57's Living Room space in Chelsea on Saturday, June 15. From 1pm to 6pm, the recreational center at 25 Eleventh Ave. will welcome a variety of artists, vendors, and makers to sell their wares at a pop-up market, with the goal of supporting and elevating creators and entrepreneurs of color in New York City. Stock up on cool jewelry, art prints, small-batch beverages, sweet treats and more.

Though free to attend, you can RSVP at the Blacklist NYC website.

Attention veggievores: the Bronx's first-ever vegan food expo is expanding! After several years at the Andrew Freedman Home, the Bronx Vegan Bazaar will make its grand summertime debut at Fordham Plaza on Saturday, June 15, with a lineup of vegan food vendors, a bustling marketplace and live entertainment throughout. 

From noon to 6pm on every third Saturday this summer until October, the vibrant bazaar—which is a collaboration between MASC Hospitality Group (MHG) and the Fordham Plaza Project—will turn the public square into a food-lover’s dream, with 25 local chefs and vendors doling out a diverse array of vegan dishes.

On the docket, find tasty stuff like dairy-free cheesecakes from Culiraw Inc, Mexican-style street hot dogs from Perros Locos NYC, Caribbean grub from RastaRant, refreshing beverages from HighaJuice and Aguas Frescas Tlaxcalita, and more.

You can register for the event on the Bronx Vegan Bazaar website. 

Frigid New York hosts this annual showcase of subversive LGBTQ+ comedy, storytelling, short film and theater, running June 13-July 3 as part of Pride Month.

Queerly aims to provide a space for queer artists who’ve rarely or never seen their identities portrayed on stage to be able to represent themselves and tell their stories their way. This year, in light of the barrage of anti-trans legislation across the country, the festival is prioritizing work by or featuring trans artists. Here's the full schedule.

Root on 2024 Tony Award nominees like Hell's Kitchen, Stereophonic, Suffs, Water for Elephants and The Outsiders at this award-show watch party at Q.E.D. Held at the Astoria-based performance venue (27-16 23rd Avenue) and presented by the fat-positive nonprofit Broadway Bods, the theater-lovers bash will showcase some of the org's members in musical performances—don't worry, it's only during commercial breaks—along with fun Broadway-themed trivia. (Yes, that means prizes.)

Head over at 7:30pm on Sunday, June 16 to take in red-carpet arrivals and enjoy a pre-show hangout before the Tonys begin. 

For women who love and admire women and femmes, head to the Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg for Sapphic Factory, a queer party that has hosted icons of the queer community like MUNA, Chappell Roan, Phoebe Bridgers, Kim Petras and more. This edition of Sapphic Factory: Queer Joy Party is on Saturday, June 15.

Their events put an emphasis on freedom and of course, lots and lots of dancing. They're also donating $1 from each ticket sale to the LGBT National Help Center. 

This free outdoor French film festival is back with a sports-themed lineup in honor of the Olympics in Paris this summer. The festival is hosted by Villa Albertine, and this year’s edition features 11 French films with English subtitles across Manhattan and Brooklyn parks. Expect a mix of classic and contemporary movies, all on the theme of “Sports on Film.”

Here's the 2024 schedule:

— June 14, Washington Square Park: The Odyssey by Jérôme Salle
— June 21, Transmitter Park, Brooklyn: My Donkey, My Lover & I by Caroline Vignal
— June 28, J. Hood Wright Park: The Triplets of Belleville by Sylvain Chomet
— July 5, Seward Park: Marinette by Virginie Verrier
— July 12, Seward Park: Air of Paris by Marcel Carné
— July 19, Riverside Park, Pier I: Les Cinq Tulipes Rouges by Jean Stelli – U.S. premiere
— July 26, Riverside Park, Pier I: The Golden Ball by Cheik Doukouré
— Sept. 6, McGolrick Park, Brooklyn: Racetime by Benoît Godbout
— TBA, Ride Above by Christian Duguay

All screenings will be subtitled in English, free and open to the public. Screenings begin at sunset. Here's more about each film and exact show locations.

If you're a Gaga stan, get ready for the listening party that will end all listening parties. Playing her biggest hits from The Fame, A Star Is Born soundtrack, ARTPOP, and more, this free listening event at Olly Olly Market is going to provide guaranteed three-hour catharsis for all the Little Monsters in town. 

The festivities take place on Friday, June 14 in Chelsea. 

In celebration of Juneteenth, The Unsung Collective—a Harlem-based music collective devoted to celebrating stories of the Black experience—will perform a free and open-to-the-public concert at The Forum at Columbia University (601 West 125th Street) on Friday, June 14 at 6pm.

Part of Columbia's Culture on the Corner, an initiative aiming to celebrate and explore the vibrant tapestry of the neighborhood, the performance will offer an immersive experience of classical music and storytelling, and will showcase the voices of world-renowned soprano Janinah Burnett and baritone Phillip Bullock. Advance registration is encouraged, and seating is first-come, first-served.

The Tribeca Festival in 2024 is back with must-see 103 local indie features, documentaries, foreign films, the latest from big-name talent and the greatest from up-and-coming filmmakers. 

This edition of the festival reflects Tribeca Festival’s “activist roots” and showcases films that “speak to today’s political moment and inform voters ahead of the upcoming election.”

The 23rd annual Tribeca Film Festival will take place across Manhattan from June 5-16, 2024. Venues include The Beacon Theater, the OKX Theater at BMCC TPAC, Pier 57, Spring Studios “the Official Hub of Tribeca Festival,” SVA Theater, Village East by Angelika, and AMC 19th St. East 6. Buy tickets at the official festival website; prices range from $60 to $1,350 depending on the time and day and the number of days you want to attend. 

Tap your toes and enjoy the music at the 13th Annual Blue Note Jazz Festival, with performances running from June 1 through early July. The festival pops up at major venues across NYC including Sony Hall, Town Hall, Brooklyn Bowl, and SummerStage in Central Park. 

This year's performances include: Wynton Marsalis performing a residency at the Blue Note; Yo La Tengo with the Sun Ra Arkestra at Sony Hall; Ghostface Killah with The Soul Rebels at the Blue Note; Antibalas with Hailu Mergia at Sony Hall; Jazz Is Dead at Sony Hall; Bombino with Etran De L'Air at Sony Hall; and Os Mutantes at Brooklyn Bowl. Plus, see sets from Andra Day, Corinne Bailey Rae, Ozomatli, Soulive, Victor Wooten and many more. 

Here's the full lineup with ticketing info. 

Photoville is back for its 13th year of bringing local and international photography to every borough. Expect nearly 90 outdoor, free-of-charge photography exhibits and family-friendly public programs across the city, running June 1-16.

The festival features Photoville’s signature shipping container exhibitions, clustering open-air viewing opportunities in what’s become known as the Photoville Village in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Other events run in all five boroughs.

Activities include an Opening Night Party, Safety 101 for Visual Journalists, a Brooklyn Bridge Street Photography Walk, and an Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classroom. Exhibit highlights inlude portraits documenting the lives of homeless LGBTQIA+ youth in NYC, a multimedia installation celebrating a century of WNYC, an a pictorial encyclopedia of NYC theater since 1979.

Usher in Father's Day with a big-band extravaganza at Birdland Jazz, featuring Svetlana and her expert ensemble of musicians. (Past performers have included the likes of  Jason Marshall, Nicole Glover, Willerm Delisfort, Curtis Nowosad, Wayne Tucker and Anthony Hervey, among others.) 

On Sunday, June 16 at 5:30pm, take dad to the West 44nd Street lounge to for a night of music and family, with a dynamic set of timeless big-band classics, arrangements of movie soundtracks and uplifting originals meant to delight both jazz aficionados and novices alike. 

Lincoln Center is gearing up to launch the third annual Summer for the City festival. From June 12 through August 10, New Yorkers will get to attend over 200 free or choose-what-you-pay events that span a variety of topics, genres and  locations.

You can read through the entire calendar right here but standouts include virtual reality experience The Dream Machine, which features five distinct game-like interactive performances; a night of opera and drag with two superstar queens from RuPaul's Drag Race, Monét X Change and Sapphira Cristál; and a silent disco night as part of India Week with DJ Rajuju Brown. 

Sometimes you’ll feel very tall, sometimes very small, and sometimes in awe of it all at this new New York Botanical Garden exhibit that celebrates the magic of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. With a variety of botanical and artistic exhibitions throughout the Bronx garden’s 250 acres, “Wonderland: Curious Nature” encourages visitors to get “curiouser and curiouser” around every turn. 

See a massive white (well, actually green) rabbit made entirely of plants; explore an enchanting English garden with delightfully weird flora; climb through a rabbit hole; hang out in a house made of mycelium bricks; and much more at this sprawling exhibition. Wonderland: Curious Nature runs through October 27, 2024, and will evolve with each season.

Though it's now more than 150 years since the first publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, the delightful story with its heroic protagonist feels just as fresh as ever—especially at New York Botanical Garden with its enchanting scientific and artistic twist on the story. 

If you’re a movie buff, or just so happen to really enjoy Robert De Niro’s overall vibe, the Tribeca Festival is capping off with a tribute to the legendary actor and producer. 

From June 14-16, the Festival is hosting De Niro Con, which will include set recreations, costume exhibits, behind-the-scenes chats, screenings, and anything that could be tangentially related to De Niro—you'll find it all there.

The three-day festival will also include the De Niro Is an Icon: An Exhibit & Immersive Film, a career-spanning gallery that features more than 300 curated items from De Niro's personal collection, including annotated scripts, rare photos, props, and other film-related memorabilia from the 80-year-old’s illustrious career. You can get your tickets to De Niro Con here.

There’s an upside to Shakespeare in the Park’s hiatus this summer: The Public Theater has recommitted to bringing the Bard to all New Yorkers by reviving last season’s The Comedy of Errors and touring the show to all five boroughs for free.

This Mobile Unit production requires no tickets: Just show up to one of the show’s many outdoor locations and enjoy an irrepressible ensemble performing Shakespeare's romp of multiple mistaken identities. This adaptation, created by director Rebecca Martínez and composer Julián Mesri, is presented in one song-filled act, delivered in two languages. Don't worry about losing the plot: The joyful arc is easy to follow, and while you may miss a few punchlines if you don’t speak Spanish, a touch of befuddlement adds to the fun.

New York Classical Theatre's Stephen Burdman directs a two-hour outdoor production that combines both parts of Shakespeare's Henry IV story, in which the feckless heir to the English throne falls in with a mendacious tosspot. Ian Antal plays Prince Hal and John Michalski is the expansive Sir John Falstaff. The productiom kicks off in Central Park (June 11–30) before moving east to Carl Schurz Park (July 2–7) and south to Battery Park (July 9–14).

Bryant Park's Picnic Performances will bring the best of NYC to the stage, including the New York City Opera, Jalopy Theatre, Carnegie Hall, the Harlem Chamber Players, and the American Symphony Orchestra.

Best of all, all 25 performances are free and open to the public. Many performances will be livestreamed for free on Bryant Park’s social media channels and website in case you can’t make it in person.

The lineup includes The Late Show with Stephen Colbert bandleader Louis Cato; trumpeter Steven Bernstein playing the music of James Bond with Arturo O’Farrill and The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra; the NYC premiere of Ghanaian highlife band Gyedu-Bly Ambolley; Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE dance company; South African world pop star Thandiswa Mazwai and many more.

You can set your watch by how reliably awesome the annual BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival is. All BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! shows take place at the beautiful bandshell in Prospect Park, a scenic amphitheater surrounded by trees.

Events run through August 24, 2024. This year’s genre-crossing lineup includes performances by: trailblazing punk-ska vets Fishbone; four-time Grammy winner Meshell Ndegeocello; rising Afrobeat star Seun Kuti; reggae stars Lila Ike and Jesse Royal; Belgian dance sensations Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul; retro soul ensemble Thee Sacred Souls; and Sinkane. You'll also get to see a host of vital emerging acts like Ambar Lucid; Adi Oasis; Black Belt Eagle Scout; and Talibah Safiya.

As always, the majority of BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Offerings are free. Some benefit gigs, however, require tickets. Get more info here. 

It's a pickle-lover's paradise: for two weeks, 2 Rivington Street will transform into a wonderland of half-sours, bread-and-butters, dilly cukes, cute cornichons and good ol' gherkins. Yes, Grillo's Pickles is back for their second annual pickle-themed pop-up on the Lower East Side, adding some vinegary pep to your summertime proceedings from Friday, June 7 through Saturday, June 22. 

From 11am to 7pm every day, the Boston-based brand will be hosting its Grillo’s Pickle World event featuring free food, limited-edition pickle merch, collaborations and more. 

A powerful new art project on Governors Island brings empty pill bottles out from their cramped cabinets and into the light. Called Meditations on Medication: The Pill Bottle Project, this ever-evolving community installation will be constructed on weekends all summer—and all are invited to contribute.

The project is the brainchild of Alyson Vega, an artist with Fountain House Gallery who wants to spark conversation around medication, routine, recycling, plastic waste, insurance and accessibility. 

To donate bottles, see the artwork, and lend a hand in creating it, head to Governors Island on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 11am-5pm now through August 11. Find the setup at Nolan Park #8B. It's free to enter.

Alec Baldwin played the title role, opposite Angela Bassett, in Shakespeare in the Park's 1998 production of Macbeth, in which a nobleman and his wife descend into a nightmare of disquiet after planning their monarch's murder. A quarter-century later, he revisits the Scottish play as the co-director—with his longtime friend, the 90-year-old Actors Studio veteran Geoffrey Horne—of Shakespeare Downtown's free production in the suitable environs of the Battery's 19th-century fort, Castle Clinton. Alfredo Diaz and Billie Andersson play the blood-soaked couple. (Seating is first come, first served; tickets can be claimed starting at 5:45pm on the day of performance.)

Little Island, the beautiful 2.4-acre elevated park that sits above the Hudson River on Manhattan's west side, is offering a lineup of star-studded performances this summer. Performances will kick off on June 1 and close out on September 22, spanning the realms of music, dance, theater, opera, comedy, jazz, pop and funk. 

Just as exciting is the debut of The Glade, a brand new cocktail lounge opening on the island that will be offering a selection of beers, wines, cocktails and mocktails to be enjoyed anywhere throughout the park.

Queens Rising, an organization that celebrates Queens' diverse arts scene, is back this year with a series of unique performances and exhibitions in collaboration with local organizations that showcase the borough's richness. This year's collaborators include A Better Jamaica, Center for the Women of New York, Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, Louis Armstrong House Museum, MoMA PS1, Queens Museum, Theatre Beyond Broadway, Urban Vegan Roots and many more.

This year, Queens Rising is launching "Queens Scene," a performance series that will highlight local talent across Flushing Town Hall, Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, the Queens Botanical Gardens and Terraza 7. Although the performers haven't been announced yet, they will take on different stages on Saturday, June 1; Friday, June 14; Wednesday, June 19; and Saturday, June 29. 

On June 8, Queens Rising will take over the Queens Night Market where several of the artists from the organization's roster will perform from 4pm till midnight. Visit Queens Rising's website for more information. 

Pride is not just about partying—it's also about learning. If you've ever wondered about the queer and trans history of one of the most iconic stretches of NYC, take one of these tours in June. Three tours throughout Pride Month will guide you through a 90-minute, 1.24-mile walk across Central Park through the lens of the LGBTQ community.

The tour will include information on New York City icons who had some connection to the park, including Emma Stebbins, Fitz-Greene Halleck, and architect Bruce Kelly. Tours will be offered on Saturday, June 8; Sunday, June 23; and Friday, June 28, all starting at 11am. 

The dual meaning of the word ‘firebrand’ – a champion of radical change and a piece of burning wood – overlap nicely in this conventional but compelling snapshot of the life of Katherine Parr (Alicia Vikander), the sixth and final wife of Henry VIII. Infused with a modernity that’s all the rage in revisionist period dramas, her progressive streak and nuggety courage will either see her bringing Protestantism to the land or strapped to a stake and warming the courtyard of Hampton Court. 

See it in theaters as of June 14.

Sparky, kaleidoscopic and boldly honest about the tougher side of growing up, Inside Out 2 is Pixar’s most profound and moving movie since, well, Inside Out. Kudos, of course, to Turning Red, with which it’d make a perfect puberty prep double bill, but this cerebral coming-of-age adventure feels like the studio rediscovering its mojo and putting it to dazzling use. 

It kicks off with a quick catch-up to reintroduce the five anthropomorphised emotions who control the now 13-year-old San Francisco high-schooler Riley. There’s the upbeat Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), morose Sadness (Phyllis Smith), nervy Fear (Tony Hale replacing Bill Hader), snarky Disgust (Liza Lapira taking over from Mindy Kaling) and the volcanic Anger (Lewis Black). They’re the basic set of emotions who now harmoniously collaborate over a sci-fi console to help her navigate late childhood. 

See it in cinemas worldwide June 14.

The glitz and glamour and hedonism and heartbreak of Moulin Rouge are coming to the Museum of Broadway for a special exhibit celebrating the 10-time Tony Award-winning Best Musical. 

The new exhibit, created exclusively for The Museum of Broadway, invites fans to step into the glamorous underworld of Belle Époque Paris. “Moulin Rouge! The Musical: Spectacular, Spectacular” runs through September 8, 2024; it’s included with museum admission.

Expect to see dazzling costumes while learning how costumers transformed sketches and swatches into eye-catching gowns and bodices fit for the Sparkling Diamond herself. You'll also see set installations—and even get a chance to sit on Satine’s luxe chaise lounge. Before you go, leave your personal mark on a heart-themed wall. 

Ever wanted to touch one of the dresses at the Met? Or how about smell it? At last, now's your chance. 

The museum's new exhibit, "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion," takes a multi-sensory approach allowing visitors to smell, touch, and hear the clothing, not just look at it. With more than 200 garments from the 1600s to today, the exhibition is the largest and most ambitious in the Costume Institute's history in terms of range and scope.

Here are five things to expect from the exhibit, which is on view through September 2.

In the resonant words of A$AP Rocky, "The nails, the kilts, the pretty-boy swag, the pearls—I think it's just being comfortable. I just express myself with fashion, and what's fly is fly." What's fly is "Ice Cold: An Exhibition of Hip-Hop Jewelry" at the American Museum of Natural History, a new show that features dozens of incredible necklaces, rings, watches, chains, and more worn by some of the biggest names in music.

A few highlights include T-Pain's Big Ass Chain necklace, Ghostface Killah's eagle arm band, Nicki Minaj's Barbie pendant, Beyoncé's nail rings, Cardi B's nipple covers, and Slick Rick's crown. While the pieces are a sight to behold up-close, the exhibit carries a much deeper meaning, especially as New York City wraps up its 50 years of hip-hop celebrations.

See the exhibit now at the American Museum of Natural History with general admission, which is pay-as-you-wish for New Yorkers. Find it in the Mignone Halls of Gems and Minerals on the first floor.

The populist classicists of Smith Street Stage return to Brooklyn's Carroll Park with a modern twist on the Bard's hectic romantic comedy, in which a king and his lords forswear love for scholarship only to be dragged back into the game by visiting French maidens. In this version, directed by Raquel Chavez, the abstinence plot is reframed into a reality-TV gimmick, and their retreat is imaged as "part The Bachelor Villa de la Vina Mansion and part Love Island." No reservations are needed for this free outdoor staging. 

Summer on the Hudson, a program run by the Riverside Park Conservancy and NYC Parks for the past two decades is back bigger than ever before with new programming and more than 300 free events, including some in West Harlem and Washington Heights for the first time ever. 

As usual, expect a ton of artists and musicians to participate in the extravaganza, which is free to the public and hinges heavily on all things wellness. Plus, silent disco sessions, movies under the stars, sunset yoga classes, and a Black Birders Week.

This year, Silent Disco sessions at Pier I in Riverside Park South, the Irish Dance Festival, the West Side County Fair and Movies Under the Stars will make a comeback while the uptown expansion will bring with it novel events. These include movie screenings on the Hudson waterfront at 145th Street every Thursday in August, sunset yoga classes and a Black Birders Week hosted alongside NYC Audubon.

Turns out, pickleball was not just a passing fad.

Doubling down on the popularity of the sport, CityPickle's 14-court pickleball installation is back at Central Park's Wollman Rink. The experience offers players of all skill levels the chance to reserve courts or partake in open play sessions between 8am and 9pm daily. 

Take your movie-going experience to the next level this summer at Rooftop Cinema Club. The experience offers a chance to watch a movie on a Midtown rooftop with vegan popcorn, classic theater candy, and craft cocktails.

This season's rooftop movie schedule includes classics like When Harry Met Sally, Dirty Dancing, Grease, Mean Girls, Clueless, and so much more. Also expect special programming for Star Wars day, AAPI Heritage Month, Black Music Month, and Pride Month. Plus, it’s adding a Saturday Cereal Club and Mimosas & Muffins Sundays. Get tickets here.

Following a slew of pop-ups and stand-alone exhibits, elusive England-based street artist Banksy is getting the New York City museum treatment: The Banksy Museum has debuted at 277 Canal Street by Broadway. 

The space will display over 160 works by the artist—from his instantly recognizable street art to studio pieces, videos and animated visuals—making this "the largest display of Banksy work ever seen in a single setting."

Tickets for the museum are available right here.

These statues of people who are torn apart and frozen in time are commanding attention in Manhattan. "Travelers" is a series of figurative sculptures by renowned artist Bruno Catalano, and they definitely deserve a look—and a second or third look, too. Find them in Murray Hill along Park Avenue between 34th and 38th streets.

Each sculpture depicts a person who looks like they’re stalled mid-step, perhaps caught between the past and the present. Their bodies are broken apart at the torso, evoking the scars, complex identities, shadowy areas of each person’s self-image. Though the sculptures are depicted in motion, we don’t know where they started and where they’re going. Each one—like all of us—carries their baggage with them.  

An exhibition that pays homage to New Yorkers who creates spaces for queer and trans people throughout the years, What did it feel to be there?: 12 Portraits from The Addresses Project features a selection of twelve portraits from photographer Riya Lerner. Notably, the exhibition also includes a vinyl wallpaper designed by Gwen Shockey from scanned lesbian and queer party and bar flyers from the mid-1900s through the early 2000s. The gallery will be on view through June 30, 2024 on Fridays from 2pm-6pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from 12pm-6pm. 

See it at City Lore Gallery on the Lower East Side.

One of the most anticipated events at the Met is their annual Roof Garden Commission, an art series in which the New York institution chooses one artist to use the coveted space as their canvas. 

This year’s commission sends a playful yet extremely poignant and timely message about children who find themselves in war zones. The exhibition, titled Abetare, is on view through October 27; it's included with general admission.

The artist, Petrit Halilaj, was born in war-torn Kosovo in 1986 and had to flee his home during the Yugoslav Wars in 1998. He lived with his family in a refugee camp in Serbia for a year, where he drew pictures of war scenes that he had witnessed back home. The sculptures on the roof were inspired by doodles Halilaj found at the school he attended in Runk, Kosovo before it was demolished in 2010.

Screaming and crying girls. Innumerable hotel rooms. Nonstop camera flashes. A group of four Liverpudlian guys in the middle of it all. Beatlemania made an indelible mark on history and on our lives.

Sir Paul McCartney, the group’s bassist and one of two lead singers, is showcasing more than 250 of his own photographs that illustrate the intensity of this historical moment, but also the quiet, personal moments unseen by millions of fans in “Paul McCartney Photographs 1963–64: Eyes of the Storm” at the Brooklyn Museum. The show is open through August 18.

Torch & Crown Brewing Company's summertime pop-up is back at Union Square Pavilion. This year it returns not only with locally brewed beers but also a slate of events and programming to the open-air NYC Parks’ concession venue in Union Square Park.

Along with new and returning draft options (from their flagship Almont Famous to crisp lagers like Tenement), the beer garden will feature a revamped food menu this season, overseen by Executive Chef Michael Citarella—expect bar-food staples like homemade pizza, fried chicken sandwiches, and burgers. The seasonal venue will feature both indoor and outdoor dining, so you can enjoy beers and bites rain or shine. 

Need a laugh? The Second City—the renowned comedy club with locations in Chicago and Toronto—just opened in Brooklyn, and you will definitely laugh out loud there. The New York City venue, which opened on the legendary club’s 65th anniversary, offers hilarious live comedy every single night of the week.

The club has debuted "The Second City Presents The Mainstage Revue 1: Ruthless Acts of Kindness," a completely original NYC revue, which has been created in conversation with the audience over the last ten-weeks.

Some of the funniest names in comedy got their start at Second City. Just a few Second City alumni include: Bill Murray, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Amber Ruffin, Keegan-Michael Key, Chris Farley, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, and Aidy Bryant. You might just see the next comedy star on this stage.

The venue offers sketch shows and improv performances, along with a great restaurant and no drink minimums in a beautiful venue. Tickets start at $39.

Are you a preservationist nerd? (Guilty!) Then head to the Museum of the City of New York’s new exhibition, which offers a behind-the-scenes look at the conservation of one of the museum’s prized possessions: Samuel Bell Waugh’s monumental, 170-year-old painting, The Bay and Harbor of New York.

The exhibition explores the piece’s significance as one of the earliest depictions of immigration to the United States and welcomes the public to witness the preservation firsthand, gaining insight into the care and techniques needed to safeguard such a historical artifact. Conservator Gary McGowan will be on site, actively working on the painting in the gallery on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and visitors themselves will get the chance to interact with a variety of hands-on activities. It's on view through October 13.

There’s only one constant in New York City: Change. A new exhibit at the New-York Historical Society explores the rapid development of the city and what’s been left behind. 

The exhibit, titled Lost New York, transports viewers to a time when pigs roamed the streets, shopping was a radical act, and New Yorkers used to brave polluted waters for a swim. The exhibition also documents long-gone landmarks like the original Penn Station, Met Opera House, Chinese Theater, and Croton Reservoir. See it at the Upper West Side museum now through September 29. 

Lost New York is included with museum admission ($24/adult). Or check it on during pay-as-you-wish Friday evenings, which will expand 5-8pm with live vintage music and specialty "lost" cocktails during the spring and summer months. Friday night activities continue through early summer. 

Smorgasburg, the food bazaar spectacular, is back for 2024 with dozens of great local vendors across three locations.

In fact, with more than 70 vendors, it's the largest Smorgasburg lineup since 2018! Vendors this year will serve up fragrant Ethiopian stews, Hawaii-style street comforts, explosive pani puri, potato puff poutine, and lots more.

Smorgasburg WTC runs on Fridays; Williamsburg is on Saturdays; and Prospect Park is on Sundays. Each location is open from 11am-6pm and operates weekly through October. 

Hudson Classical Theater Company, formerly known as Hudson Warehouse, begins its 2024 summer season at Riverside Park with a free alfresco revival of Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield's wacky sketch-comedy compression of Shakespeare's oeuvre, performed by three actors at a madcap pace. Susane Lee, who directed the show in 2013, is at the reins again.

Watermark Bar has transformed into the tropically-themed Watermark Beach. Expect a full season of fun at Watermark Beach, which will be gussied up for the warm weather with Instagram-ready tiki decor, seasonal drinks and twinkling lights for when the party stretches into the nighttime hours.

And this summer, the al fresco experience will introduce new cabanas and a curated new cocktail program, in addition to large-format Cooler Packages, which will allow guests to have their canned and bottled drinks ready on ice as they visit. 

The Rooftop at Pier 17 is planning a packed summer of musical performances with more than 60 outdoor shows. The panoramic views, the chill vibe, and the stellar acoustics make it a truly special spot to see a show. 

The sixth Summer Concert Series on The Rooftop at Pier 17 features more than 60 artists in genres from rap (Isaiah Rashad) to rock (Social Distortion) to electronic (Electric Callboy) and more. Plus, there are several bands on the roster that will make Millennials swoon with nostalgia (like Taking Back Sunday, Something Corporate, Two Door Cinema Club, and Mayday Parade). Get tickets here.  

Poster House, the country's first museum dedicated entirely to the global history of posters, turns its lens on its hometown for its latest exhibit. "Wonder City of the World: New York City Travel Posters," highlights 80 works that capture NYC's landmarks in vibrant color and detail. 

The exhibit explores how New York City was represented to thousands of travelers, immigrants, and tourists during the 20th century. A 19th century marketing strategy coined the phrase "Wonder City," and it appeared in dozens of newspaper and magazine advertisements, as well as articles, postcards and souvenir booklets. New York’s massive growth during this time ultimately led to the creation of more travel posters than were designed for any other city in the world. The images included scenes of the city as seen from the water, from the ground, and, eventually, from the air. 

The show was curated by Nicholas D. Lowry, and it's on view through September 8.

Eat your way through Japan without ever leaving New York City at JAPAN Fes, the massive foodie festival, which is back and bigger than ever for 2024. The organization is hosting 30 outdoor events this year stretching through November in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. Event organizers say it's the largest Japanese food festival in the world, attracting 300,000 visitors and featuring 1,000 vendors every year.

Expect dishes including takoyaki, ramen, matcha sweets, yakisoba, karaage, okonomiyaki, and lots more. They're even hosting a ramen contest and a konamon contest this year to crown the best of the bunch. Vendors hail from New York City, as well as other states and other countries. 

Here's the full list of dates and neighborhoods.

Grand Bazaar is one of NYC’s oldest and largest marketplaces where you can buy vintage treasures, antiques, clothing and more goodies from more than 100 local merchants. Photographers, jewelers and furniture designers sell their best on Sundays between 10am and 5pm on the Upper West Side (77th Street at Columbus Avenue). 

Each week offers a different theme, from featuring women-owned businesses to focusing on handmade items to spotlighting international wares. The market runs both indoors and outdoors each week all year long.

Think bugs are creepy? Think again. That's the message of IMAGINARI, an immersive art and science experience in Manhattan. 

The year-long exhibition called The Insect World shows just how cool—and important—bugs actually are. You’ll get to walk through fields of 6-foot flowers, come face-to-face with Picasso bug artwork, and see a mantis partying under a disco ball. Larger-than-life ladybug sculptures dot the floor, and 200 faux monarch butterflies perch on a 12-foot cherry blossom tree. It all adds up to an important message of environmental stewardship. Tickets are on sale now for $36; the all-ages exhibition will be on view for one year.

One of New York City's largest celebrations of Chinese food, culture and heritage is back, and it's firing up an even bigger calendar of events for 2024. After Dragon Fest’s successful run in 2023, where it attracted 200,000 attendees across five events, the festival is back with an expanded lineup of 16 events across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. 

Attendees can explore culinary traditions from nearly every province of China, with over 100 different Chinese dishes on offer, from slurp-ready soup dumplings to sugar-coated chestnuts, lotus root sandwiches to grilled cold noodles. Among the 2024 food vendors are Haidilao, Maobao, Na Tart, Jixiang BBQ, and dim sum classic Nom Wah.

Check all the dates and locations here.

Check out the Bronx Brewery's free ongoing artist series at Hudson Yards, which is bringing the works of world renowned artist Shiro to Manhattan for two months. The works on display explore New York's urban history through an aesthetic technique that mixes Japanese artistry with New York graffitti styles to create something completely unique. 

See the free exhibit through June 21. 

“We choose to go to the Moon,” President John F. Kennedy’s voice booms through speakers welcoming visitors to the massive new Space Race-themed exhibit at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. With archival speeches, historic documents, and incredible space equipment, the exhibit whisks visitors back to the 1960s, an era when humanity first ventured into the unknown. 

"Apollo: When We Went to the Moon" is now open at the Intrepid Museum (that's the gigantic aircraft carrier in Hell's Kitchen along the Hudson River) through September 2. At 9,000 square feet, it's the largest temporary exhibit in the museum's history. Tickets are inlcluded with museum admission.

It's another election year, and once again, women's rights are on the ballot. What would the suffragists who fought for women's right to vote say to us now, a century later?

Shaina Taub, the powerhouse writer of Suffs, a musical coming to Broadway this spring, answers that question with a lyric: “Keep marching. Keep marching on.” It’s a line from the finale of the show, which she produced with support from former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai. The show has now made its Broadway Debut at the Music Box Theatre.

Digital art and poetry will combine for a dive into Afrocentricity and Afrofuturism at this new immersive exhibit in Chelsea. "Aṣẹ: Afro Frequencies" is now open at ARTECHOUSE and runs all summer.

The digital art exhibition promises a "vibrant reflection upon the past, present, and future of the Black experience." It's told through the perspective of London-based Afro-surrealist digital artist Vince Fraser alongside evocative poetry by ursula rucker.

Both artists worked to honor the legacy, struggles, and complexities of the Black experience in their work. Even the exhibition's title, "Aṣẹ" stems from a powerful mantra, affirmation, and philosophical belief held by the Yoruba people of West Africa, meaning "so will it be." (By the way, that's pronounced as AH-shay.)

Art nerds can’t wait until the Whitney Biennial, which happens every two years. It’s always a gigantic showcase of some of the coolest, newest, and most provocative art at a big New York City museum. It’s the Whitney Museum of American Art’s landmark exhibition series and the longest-running survey of American Art, on view through August 11.

This year, the Biennial is themed “Even Better Than The Real Thing” and features the work of 71 artists and collectives. It does a lot in this iteration. The survey examines rapidly advancing technologies and machine learning tools; the body and subjectivity as it pertains to queer identity, body sovereignty, motherhood, the aging body, and the trans body; material agency and the use of unstable media; and lots more.

Overarching is the focus on “the real,” an extremely present topic these days with the onslaught of incorrect ChatGPT answers, horrifying deep fakes and art made by AI. 

The Brooklyn Museum isn’t just a world-class spot to experience art—it’s also a great place to shop, thanks to its partnership with Brooklyn Pop-Up. Every month, the museum plays host to a weekend artisan market stocked with local vendors offering one-of-a-kind, handmade artwork, contemporary and upcycled fashion, wellness and apothecary goods, homewares and more.

The market's outdoor season is now underway. Plus, every Saturday, you can find Brooklyn Pop-Up’s artisans bazaar in Fort Greene along DeKalb Avenue between South Oxford and Washington Avenue, a neighborhood favorite boasting 30-plus local designers, makers and artisans weekly.

For more than a century, the Statue of Liberty has offered inspiration as a beacon of freedom, equality, and democracy. And for just as long, she has also served as an inspiration for tattoo artists. 

A new exhibit at City Reliquary, a jewel box of a museum in Brooklyn's Williamsburg neighborhood, features vintage State of Liberty tattoos. As the first show devoted to Lady Liberty ink, it also traces tattooing history in NYC since the 1800s. "Liberty the Tattooed Lady: The Great Bartholdi Statue as Depicted in Tattooing" is now open through January 12, 2025.

The exhibition spotlights antique flash, vintage photographs, drawings, and other ephemera that show how Lady Liberty has been a popular subject in tattooing for as long as she’s stood in New York Harbor. You'll even get to see vintage tattoo art that's never been on display before.

See some of Broadway's most famous shows through fresh eyes at this new exhibit at the Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. The exhibition showcases lenticular prints, which appear to animate as you move around. 

"Reanimating Theater: The Photography of Friedman-Abeles," runs through September 25, 2024. It brings to life photographs by Friedman-Abeles Studio of some of Broadway's most beloved productions from 1954-1970, like West Side Story, Camelot, and Bye, Bye Birdie. 

The Rubin Museum, that legendary building in Chelsea that has housed the largest collection of Himalayan art in the world for two decades, is permanently closing its physical space later this year. As sad as this is for New York’s culture scene, New Yorkers at least get to enjoy the museum until October, and you should definitely plan to make the most of it until then. 

The museum’s last exhibit, “Reimagine: Himalayan Art Now,” will be an appropriate, forward-looking nod to 32 contemporary artists from the Himalayas and the Asian diaspora whose work will be shown in dialogue with objects from the museum’s existing collection.

The will continue all the way through the museum's physical closing on October 6. Expect to see 32 new commissions and work across mediums, including painting, sculpture, sound, video, performance and more.

Featuring 60 works from The Met's collection, this exhibition traces the history and transformation of product photography, and delves into the techniques and messaging that brands have used throughout time. The photos include an ad for Panama hats in 1916, lipstick from the 1940s, shoes from the 1950s, and so much more.

"The Real Thing: Unpackaging Product Photography" is on view through August 4.

The author and illustrator who ignited our childhood imaginations with tales of cuddly bunnies, mischievous squirrels and daring ducks is getting a well-deserved spotlight in NYC.

The wholesome and beautiful works of beloved children’s author and land conservationist Beatrix Potter are now on view at The Morgan Library & Museum through June 9.

“Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature” is the most darling show in the city right now. The exhibition even features a delightful recreation of Potter’s home that you can actually sit and read in. 

At a time when only 11% of acquisitions at U.S. museums are created by female-identifying artists, the Brooklyn Museum's Center for Feminist Art is displaying 48 emerging and established women photographers. 

The exhibit showcases photographs from artists born in or working from Europe, including Vanessa Beecroft, Carolle Bénitah, and Silvia Rosi. Everything in the exhibit was made after the year 2000 and focuses on issues of migration, the legacies of nationalism in Europe, and the male gaze as a patriarchal power structure. See it through July 7.

The Harlem Renaissance had an indisputable impact on American culture, but chances are that you probably didn’t spend much time learning about it in school. That’s because, even though it shaped global literature, music, and art, Black Americans’ historical contributions have been systematically erased or gone unacknowledged for centuries.

A groundbreaking exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art hopes to be a part of rectifying the erasure and celebrating Black artists and intellectuals.

"The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism" presents 160 works by Black artists from the Harlem Renaissance and delves into many different aspects of the movement, mostly through the lens of paintings and sculpture. You can get your tickets here. 

Puttery is a new, adults-only mini-golf and nightlife destination that just opened at 446 West 14th Street by Washington Street in the Meatpacking District and is backed by, among others, Irish professional golfer Rory McIlroy.

The first location of its kind in New York, Puttery spans 24,000 square feet over five levels that feature an underground lounge and a total of three bars, including a rooftop one that will be open year-round (yes, there will be heat lamps on site). 

There’s a lot of good to see at this Manhattan subway stop. 

Two years after opening the subterranean bar Nothing Really Matters, hospitality professional Adrien Gallo continues building his subway station empire, opening See No Evil Pizza last week on the concourse level of the downtown-bound 1 train station at 50th Street and Broadway—a space that once housed a Dunkin’. It joins his Tiny Dancer Coffee on the same concourse.

“I basically transformed a subway station that was super neglected to a destination spot in the middle of Times Square,” Gallo tells Time Out New York.  

Find See No Evil Pizza is located on the concourse level of the downtown-bound 1 train station at 50th Street and Broadway. It is open for pop-ins and Resy reservations Monday-Saturday from 5pm-midnight. 

Deep-dive into the works of American ceramist and painter Toshiko Takaezu with this retrospective and monograph at the Noguchi Museum in Queens through July 28, 2024.

The first nationally touring retrospective of Takaezu’s work in twenty years, Toshiko Takaezu: Worlds Within will feature about 200 pieces from private and public collections around the country, including her rarely-seen acrylic paintings and weavings, ceramic sculptures including her signature “closed forms,” Moons, Garden Seats, Trees, and select works from her late masterpiece, the Star Series. 

Following its presentation at The Noguchi Museum, the exhibition—which is organized with assistance from the Toshiko Takaezu Foundation and the Takaezu family—will travel to several additional venues across the United States.

This is more than your garden-variety art exhibition–None Whatsoever: Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection is, yes, a tranquil display of Zen Buddhist artwork. But it will also feature in-gallery activities like meditation sessions, calligraphy workshops, a tea ceremony demonstration and an ikebana (floral arrangement) workshop.

Spanning over 400 years and drawn from the Gitter-Yelen Collection, the exhibit explores the origins of Zen Buddhism through more than 50 works by Buddhist painter-monks, including the 18th-century master Hakuin Ekaku. You can check out the show now through Sunday, June 16 at the Japan Society. 

"Giants," the Brooklyn Museum's latest exhibition, fits its name in many facets. First of all, the show relies on the art collection of two titans in the music industry, Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz (Kasseem Dean). Much of the artwork itself is massive, taking over major swaths of the museum. The exhibition features artists who have made and continue to make a significant impact on the art world and contemporary culture.

Finally, and most importantly, the exhibit encourages big conversations that celebrate Blackness, critique society, and imagine a collective future. "Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys" runs through July 7, 2024. The show features 98 artworks by Black American, African, and African diasporic artists including Gordon Parks, Kehinde Wiley, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mickalene Thomas, Hassan Hajjaj, Barkley L. Hendricks, Lorna Simpson, and Amy Sherald. 

"The Deans consider all of the artists in the show as giants. They have these very strong relationships with the artists that they collect. It's not about transaction. It's about being stewards and advocates and supporters of these artists," Brooklyn Museum curator Kimberli Gant told Time Out New York.

Mercer Labs, Museum of Art and Technology, a new immersive museum is now open. It's the brainchild of Roy Nachum, the artist behind Rihanna’s famous 2016 “Anti” album cover, and his business partner Michael Cayre, a real estate developer. 

The 36,000-square-foot space is located at 21 Dey Street, inside the bank building that used to be part of the now-nextdoor Century 21. It's filled with room after room of immersive fun.

The first of 15 experiences, for example, will take you through a giant room equipped with 26-foot-high projectors that blast a series of images all around that will have you feel like you've just taken a swim inside the sorts of motifs that Nachum explores throughout his work. You will quite literally land inside his art pieces.

In another room, which is being branded as one of only three 4D sound studios in the world, guests are asked to wear a blindfold and lay on the floor to properly enjoy the sounds blasting out of the 36 speakers that are embedded under the elevated floor.

The Harlem Renaissance changed the trajectory of American culture, and no other artist encapsulates the spirit of that era better than poet Langston Hughes. He wrote unapologetically about Black life at a time when segregation was law and few Black artists were allowed into the American cultural zeitgeist.

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is honoring Hughes and his friendship with photographer, filmmaker, and U.S. Foreign Service Officer Griffith J. Davis in its exhibit "The Ways of Langston Hughes." The free exhibit at the Schomburg Center's Latimer Gallery in Harlem will include photographs of Hughes and Davis, who met in Atlanta, as well as more of Hughes' friendships through letters, artwork and other memorabilia.

Taking over the Asia Society through August 11, 2024, this immersive photography and video exhibition will bring together the works of more than 50 photographers and video artists from China and around the world to visualize the causes and consequences of the climate crisis.

The show—which will take attendees from deep within coal mines to the melting glaciers of the greater Himalaya—is co-curated by photographer Susan Meiselas and international exhibition designer Jeroen de Vries, and led by Orville Schell, Asia Society Vice President and Arthur Ross Director of the Center on U.S.-China Relations.

Along with the artworks themselves, the exhibition will feature a series of speaker events, performances, films and more throughout the run of the exhibition. 

Nicholas Sparks's bestselling 1996 novel, which inspired a popular 2004 movie, is now also the source of an original musical by indie singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson and playwright Bekah Brunstetter. The show charts a romance that begins in the 1940s, and the central is played—in different chapters of their story—by Maryann Plunkett, Dorian Harewood, Joy Woods, Ryan Vasquez, Jordan Tyson and John Cardoza; the supporting cast includes Andréa Burns.

The production, directed by Michael Greif and Schele Williams, arrives on Broadway after a well-received 2022 run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.

Weaving is one of the oldest art forms in human history, dating back more than 10,000 years, but you can see the ancient craft from a news perspective in this new exhibition at the Met. Now through June 16, textiles from four modern practitioners—Anni Albers, Sheila Hicks, Lenore Tawney and Olga de Amaral—will be showcased alongside pieces by Andean artists from the first millennium BCE to the 16th century.

Weaving Abstraction in Ancient and Modern Art will feature more than 50 works, curated by Iria Candela (Estrellita B. Brodsky Curator of Latin American Art in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art) and Joanne Pillsbury (Andrall E.Pearson Curator of the Arts of the Ancient Americas in The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing).

Head to a beloved West Village music shop for a banging musical comedy blowout every Friday night. This variety show mixes music, comedy, and characters with apperances by Stephen Sihelnik (NY Comedy Festival), Natan Badalov (Adult Swim), Alexander Payne (Netflix), and surprise guests.

Fun fact: The event's set in New York's oldest continually-run music and record store, Music Inn World Instruments. It's been in operation since 1958 and has been heavily featured in the first two seasons of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel."

Show up early, save a seat and BYOB: You're in for a party.

In her first solo museum exhibition, sculptor Auriea Harvey will bring her net-based interactives and augmented reality sculptures to the Museum of the Moving Image through June. Titled Auriea Harvey: My Veins Are the Wires, My Body Is Your Keyboard, the showcase will highlight a collection of more than 40 works from Harvey’s nearly four-decade career, including oversized playable projections of her video games, intricate 3D-printed pieces and even early works plucked from her handbound sketchbooks. 

Regina Harsanyi, the Museum’s Associate Curator of Media Arts who organized the exhibition, notes: “Auriea Harvey has persistently reimagined and redefined the creative boundaries of networked technologies for more than three decades. She possesses a remarkable sensitivity to how the digital revolution of the 1990s spawned a societal shift in the way humans connect.”

After two years of outdoor play, Carreau Club, the nation’s first pétanque bar has expanded with an indoor location with more space to get your game on while sipping a drink.

The new indoor venue is now open at Brooklyn's Industry City. For the uninitiated, pétanque (pronounced puh-TONK) is a bocce-ball style French boules sport gaining popularity in the U.S., starting here in NYC.

Carreau Club operates primarily as a walk-in pétanque club and reservations are not required. But you can book a court in advance for a single party or multiple courts for larger groups. Reservations cost $50/court/hour.

Plus, every Friday, there's a free petanque tournament for all levels called the Mix and Match Tournament. Just show up before sign-ups at 7 and bring your A-game. The winner gets a free T-shirt. 

A pastel-hued floral mural with a feminist message is the newest addition to the High Line. Titled “Thank You Darling,” this mural by Dutch artist Lily van der Stokker celebrates the playful, feminine realm often overlooked or derided in our culture. 

"Van der Stokker’s work, which she has referred to as 'feminist conceptual pop art,' is undeniably joyful and positive. However, it often simultaneously speaks to weighty themes—aging, health, and, more generally, the lived experience of being a woman within patriarchal structures," a press release from High Line Art explains.

Her installation for the High Line continues this practice for a wide public audience, offering a sweet expression of gratitude to the millions of passersby and inhabitants of nearby buildings. Find the words THANK YOU DARLiNG (with that capitalization) on the side of a building adjacent to the High Line at 22nd Street.

With the word "darling" styled in bright yellow bubble letters, the mural seems to reach out to personally thank every single person who sees it. Check it out through November 2024.

"What a pleasure to lift Lily van der Stokker's cheerful message to the New York City skyline," said Cecilia Alemani, the Donald R. Mullen Director and Chief Curator of High Line Art. "We hope her work brings visitors and New Yorkers alike a feeling of joy and appreciation."

The vibrant, ornate stained glass windows inside Manhattan's historic churches always create a dazzling spectacle. But now, a new long-term art display inspired by those rich colors has unfurled inside the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Morningside Heights—the world's largest Gothic cathedral. 

Titled "Divine Pathways," the monumental art installation is made up of more than 1,100 lengths of blue, red and gold fabric. Each ribbon measures 75 feet in length (approximately seven stories high). Combined, they are almost 16 miles long—that's longer than the island of Manhattan!  

St. John the Divine is open daily for self-guided sightseeing tours with a $15/adult admission fee; timed tickets are recommended. "Divine Pathways" will be on view through June 2024. 

Beautiful, buoyant, beguiling bubbles are coming back to the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI) in Queens as of Friday, November 17. The beloved bubbles exhibit, which has been closed for five years, will return bigger, better and bubblier than ever.

The Big Bubble Experiment encourages kids of all ages to experiment and discover through the joy of playing with bubbles. That includes blowing, stretching, popping and looking closely to see what happens at each move. 

The exhibit features 10 stations, each one with different tools and methods for exploring bubble solution.

Majestic, incredible elephants are getting the spotlight in a new exhibit at The American Museum of Natural History. "The Secret World of Elephants" showcases both modern and ancient elephants, offering visitors a chance to see a full-scale model of a woolly mammoth, learn about what elephants eat, touch an elephant's tooth, listen to elephant calls and more.

The exhibition is now open in the museum’s LeFrak Family Gallery. An additional ticket is required to visit the exhibit; museum members can visit for free.

In New York City, it can be hard to find an apartment with a nice bathtub you'd actually want to soak in. Heck, it can be hard to find an apartment where the shower isn't in a closet in the living room (ahem, this $1.25 million StreetEasy listing).

But now cosmetics company LUSH is solving that very New York problem with a new book-a-bath service just launched this week. In addition to indulgent baths, LUSH Spa Lexington also offers massage treatments and facials, creating a calming oasis near hectic midtown. Find the newly opened spa on the Upper East Side at Lexington Avenue and East 61st Street.

Given the fact that LUSH invented the bath bomb, they’re pros when it comes to bathing. For the book-a-bath experience, head through the store and climb the stairs to the spa. Inside a petite pink-and-white bathroom, a clawfoot tub beckons. Before your bath, a staff member will prepare the water with a Snow Fairy bath bomb, which creates glittery pastel pink water. Plus, they’ll offer a fresh face mask tailored for your skin, a curated playlist and a cup of vegan hot chocolate. 

When Jack Kliger, President & CEO of the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in Battery Park City, and his team started working on a new kid-friendly exhibit about the Holocaust almost four years ago, they could not have imagined the chaotic world order that the show was eventually going to premiere in.

"Courage to Act: Rescue in Denmark" tells the story of the Danish Rescue, when citizens of the European country came together to usher nearly 7,000 Jews to safety and away from concentration camps during World War II.

Can cow manure be turned into casings for loudspeakers and lamps? MoMA’s latest exhibition says “yes.”

“Life Cycles: The Materials of Contemporary Design” is now open on the museum’s street-level gallery. The exhibit explores the ways designers can repurpose the materials around us to extend their life cycle and promote environmental preservation. Approximately 80 pieces will be on display, including bricks made from crop waste and fungi mycelium and panels made from corn husks. 

The exhibition, curated by Paola Antonelli, will be on display until July 7, 2024.

Wild Captives, the nation’s first female- and LGBTQ-owned archery studio, is now open. It's a place where everyone can "be their own superhero." The studio in Brooklyn’s Industry City offers empowering and fun hour-long introduction to archery classes every weekend for $45/person. 

Each intro class includes a chance to learn about different parts of the bow and safety requirements. After the lesson, each participant gets a chance to shoot the bow trying to pop a balloon pinned onto the bullseye. Intro-to-archery classes are available each Friday, Saturday and Sunday, bookable online for anyone over age 12.

America’s first Black popular music icon is getting his due with a massive new center that houses a 60,000-piece collection and a venue for live music, lectures and screenings.

NYC’s Louis Armstrong House Museum has now opened its new facility, the Louis Armstrong Center—and it’s a big deal!

The space acts as a permanent home for the 60,000-piece Louis Armstrong Archive (the world’s largest for a jazz musician containing photos, recordings, manuscripts, letters & mementos) and a 75-seat venue for performances, lectures, films, and educational experiences.

The Center and the historic house are now open to the public Thursdays through Saturdays. Tickets can be purchased at louisarmstronghouse.org. Tours have limited capacity, so book in advance.

The phrase “women’s work” is often used derisively to indicate labor that’s seen as “less than,” but a new exhibit at New-York Historical Society reclaims that phrase. Aptly titled "Women's Work," the show chronicles the history of women's contributions to labor and how those efforts are both inherently political and essential to American society. 

The exhibit features dozens of objects in the museum's collection from indenture documents to medical kits to military uniforms. With items ranging from the 1740s to today, the show celebrates the strides society has made in equality while not shying away from highlighting the gender-based inequalities that persist today.

It's on view thorugh August 18, 2024. 

Muggles, take note: You won’t need to travel through Platform 9¾ to get to Hogwarts. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is right here in New York City for a limited time.

The touring show, “Harry Potter: The Exhibition,” is now open in Herald Square, and it’s going transport you. Through the use of dramatic lighting, set design, interactive technology and even scent, the exhibit will make you feel like you are actually there—in Hagrid’s hut, in potions class, dining in the Great Hall, learning how to fight the dark arts, fighting the Battle of Hogwarts and more.

Tickets are on sale now, starting at $29 for adults.

On a typical visit to the Museum of Modern Art, crowds surround the most precious paintings, and it can be tough to squeeze your way in for a photo, let alone to admire the artwork’s brushstrokes. But now, thanks to these new exclusive tours by GetYourGuide, you can get in before the museum opens for a guided tour of amazing artwork. 

The new MoMA Before Hours Tour with Art Expert is available now; tickets are on sale here for $99/person. Few New York City experiences compare to the absolute thrill of gazing at famed works of art uninterrupted for as long as you like.  

With a full restaurant, craft cocktails, comfy reclining seats and even more bells and whistles, this new movie theater in Hell's Kitchen elevates the movie-going experience. LOOK Dine-in Cinemas is now open in VIA 57 West, the pyramid-shaped building located at West 57th Street and 11th Avenue. 

With a 15-year lease, LOOK's operating in a 25,000-square-foot venue that used to house Landmark cinema until it closed in 2020. This is the company's first New York City location. At this fancy theater, you can relax in a heated seat while ordering dinner directly to your seat in the theater. 

Many museums start with some kind of orientation, like a map or remarks from a docent. But not The House of Cannabis (a.k.a. THC NYC), the new weed museum now open in Soho. Instead, this museum starts, quite fittingly, with a trippy “Disorientation Room.”

While the museum boasts plenty of mind-bending multi-sensory bells and whistles, it also showcases art, highlights science and confronts the social justice issues baked into cannabis prosecution. The museum, the first of its kind at this scale, packs every inch of its four-story, 25,000-square-foot space at 427 Broadway with fascinating facts and delightful immersive experiences fit to entertain both tokers and non-smokers alike. Tickets ($35/adult) are on sale here.

Find your latest read at The Free Black Women’s Library, a new free library in Brooklyn's Bed-Stuy neighborhood, which also serves as a social art project, a reading room, a co-working space and a community gathering center. The library "celebrates the brilliance, diversity and imagination of Black women and Black non-binary authors." All 5,000 books in the library's collection are written by Black women and non-binary authors.

Here's how it works: Anybody can visit the space to read, work or hang out. If you want to take a book home, simply bring a book written by a Black woman or Black non-binary author, and you can trade. Whether you decide to bring the book back after you're done reading or keep it for your collection is up to you.

The library is currently open four days per week (Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday) at 226 Marcus Garvey Boulevard. In addition to offering a space to read or work, the library has also hosts a book club, art shows and workshops on topics like writing, drawing, poetry, painting and sewing. All are welcome. 

Peek inside this new, teeny-tiny shop in Harlem to find some fun gifts for someone on your list or for yourself.

MoonLab 42 measures in at just under 5 feet wide, but the store manages to house zines, books, records, incense, prints, candles, decorative objects, ceramics, jewelry, accessories, clothing and more. “It feels like a Mary Poppins bag,” Ruso Margishvili, the concept store’s co-owner tells us.

On a typical tour of Manhattan, the big tourist attractions—Times Square, the Empire State Building, Central Park—get all the attention. But on these new walking tours by a local author, you'll see fascinating historical sites that you won't find in a typical guidebook. 

K. Krombie's Purefinder tours, "Death in New York," "The Psychiatric History of New York" and "Hell Gate," explore the city's darker side through meticulously researched and theatrically presented historical narratives.

Each tour covers about 2.5 miles in about two-and-a-half hours. “Death in New York” and “The Psychiatric History of New York” are offered weekly, while “Hell Gate” is offered twice per month. Tours cost $32-$34 per person; you can book one here.

From amazing costumes to Broadway history to fun photo opps, this long-awaited new museum is a must-see for theater buffs.  

You can expect the new museum to highlight over 500 individual productions from the 1700s all the way to the present. 

Among the standout offerings will also be a special exhibit dubbed "The Making of a Broadway Show," which honors the on- and off-stage community that helps bring plays and musicals to life multiple times a week.