Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > FRIDAY/ SEPTEMBER 27, 2019

“We search the internet everyday looking for the very best of What’s Happening, primarily on Manhattan’s WestSide, so that you don’t have to.” We make it as easy as 1-2-3.

For future NYC Events, check the tab above:  “September NYC Events”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all over town, all through the month.

OR to make your own after dinner plans TONIGHT, see the tab above;  “LiveMusic.”

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Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do This:

Andrea McArdle and Donna McKechnie Celebrate Sondheim & Hamlisch (Sept. 26-28)
Feinstein’s/54 Below / 7PM, $50+
“After a brilliant career as one of the all-time great Broadway dancers, McKechnie has refocused her energies on singing; McArdle has a performanent place in our hearts for her performance as the big-belting moppet in Annie. Now the two troupers team up for a salute to Stephen Sondheim and Marvin Hamlisch. Expect songs from Company and A Chorus Line—McKechnie was in the original casts of both—as well as Follies, A Little Night Music, They’re Playing Our Song and more.” (TONY)

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7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)

>> New York Burlesque Festival
>> “Our Sinatra.”
>> AYODELE CASEL AND ARTURO O’FARRILL
>> New York City Ballet
>> The Affordable Art Fair
>> Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb: Brooklyn & Beyond
>> Square Dance
You may want to look at previous days posts for events that continue through today.

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Music, Dance, Performing Art

New York Burlesque Festival (Sept.26-29)
Multiple locations / Four-day VIP passes are $155; individual ticket prices vary
“The 17th Annual New York Burlesque Festival is a celebration of sequins and skin. With shows all over the city — including a Premiere Party at Brooklyn Bowl and a showcase at Sony Hall — you can get a hit of glamour every night of the weekend. On Sunday, dress up in your Oscar best to attend the Golden Pasties awards at Le Poisson Rouge. There’ll be live performances, incredible gowns, and (of course) an awards show with categories like “Positively Perfect Posterior” and “Most Likely to Win RuPaul’s Drag Race.” (thrillist)

“Our Sinatra.”
Spend a night with Ol’ Blue Eyes
Birdland / 9:45pm, $20
“Ol’ Blue Eyes is back at Birdland’s 20th anniversary of “Our Sinatra.” The original cast will reunite to play more than 50 of Frank Sinatra’s greatest hits like “All or Nothing at All” and “Fly Me to the Moon.” Since the show’s inception in 1999, they’ve played over 1,500 shows in New York and on national tours. Seating is first come, first served, so get there early to get a good view of the Chairmans of the Board.” (thrillist)

AYODELE CASEL AND ARTURO O’FARRILL (through Sept. 29).
at the Joyce Theater / 7:30PM, $
“O’Farrill, a jazz pianist and composer who has won multiple Grammys, is celebrated for his performances of, and contributions to, Afro-Latin music. Casel — “a spectacular tap artist,” according to The New York Times dance critic Gia Kourlas — also draws from her African-American and Puerto Rican roots in her dancing. Given their shared cultural background and artistic focus, the two are a natural team. Their collaboration, which debuts at the Joyce on Tuesday and features live music and a squad of stellar dancers, explores the relationship between tap, jazz and Afro-Latin culture through various musical and dance styles.” (NYT)

New York City Ballet (thru Oct.13)
NYS Theater, Lincoln Center / 3PM, $35
“Performances of Balanchine’s treasured triptych “Jewels” continue on Friday and Saturday, followed on Sunday and Tuesday by a program pairing Mr. B with the acclaimed British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon. Wednesday brings an all-Balanchine program of “Valse Fantaisie,” “Kammermusik No. 2” and “Union Jack.” On Thursday, City Ballet hosts its eighth Fall Fashion Gala, which features new works from the principal dancer Lauren Lovette and the former soloist Edwaard Liang, and costumes by Zac Posen and Anna Sui. Rounding out the evening is the Balanchine classic “Symphony in C.” (NYT)

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Smart Stuff / Other NYC EventS

The Affordable Art Fair (Sept. 26-29)
Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 W. 18th St./ 12-6PM, $18
“When you visit Affordable Art Fair NYC you’ll find an inspiring and friendly atmosphere where you can browse thousands of original contemporary paintings, sculptures, photographs and prints showcased by 74 local, national and international galleries. With contemporary artwork by over 400 established artists and rising stars, and price points ranging from $100-$10,000 – there is something to suit every taste and wallet whether you are a first-time art buyer or a seasoned collector” (cityguide)

Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb: Brooklyn & Beyond
Aperture Gallery and Bookstore, 547 W. 27th St., 4th Floor / 7PM, FREE
“Photographer couple Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb, creators of 19 books between them, give an artist talk on their forthcoming Aperture book, Brooklyn: The City Within, with images of the borough they’ve called home for 20 years.” (ThoughtGallery)

Square Dance
Go square dancing in the middle of Manhattan
Bryant Park / 5-10pm, FREE
“Bryant Park’s eighth annual square dance is back with dancing lessons, live music, cornhole competitions, mechanical bull riding, trick-roping and lassoing instruction and free cowboy hats to the first 1,000 attendees.” (amNY)

Continuing Events

HARLEM COMEDY FESTIVAL (Sept. 22-29)
at various locations
“There’s more to stand-up in Harlem than the long-running amateur night at the Apollo Theater, as this celebration aims to demonstrate in the coming week at places such as Under Bar and the Chipped Cup. The preliminary rounds of the festival’s contest for aspiring stand-ups will be held from Monday to Wednesday, culminating with the finale on Sept. 29 at Harlem Nights. Other shows, meanwhile, will feature proven headliners such as Tony Woods.” (NYT-Sean L. McCarthy)

New York Oyster Week (thru Sept.29)
Multiple venues
“Whether you love to slurp them straight out of the shell or just happen to appreciate their role in the ocean’s ecosystem, Oyster Week has an event for you. The week kicks off with a fundraiser for the Billion Oyster Project and their plan to replenish the oyster population in New York harbor by 2035 at Pier A Harbor House, mingle with oyster experts while tasting signature bites and enjoying premium cocktails. Other events include a SHUCKeasy pairing oysters with cocktails, a rare showcase of Mexican oysters and Oystoberfest with all-you-can-drink Radeberger beer.” (TONY)

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COMING SOON (WFUV)

9/27 Graham Nash, Town Hall
9/27-28, 10/1-2,4 Tedeschi Trucks Band, Beacon Theatre
9/28 “Live From Here” with Chris Thile, Town Hall
9/28 Joseph, Webster Hall
9/30 Debbie Harry, Town Hall
9/30-10/1 Built To Spill, Webster Hall
10/1-2 Maggie Rogers, Radio City Music Hall
10/2 Mason Jennings, Sony Hall
10/2 Built To Spill, Music Hall of Williamsburg

♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, plus dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.
♦ NYCity, with a population of  8.6 million, had a record 65 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2019 – the ninth consecutive year. BUT quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just earlier on the day of performance.

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WHAT’S ON VIEW
These are My Fave Special Exhibitions @ MUSEUMS / Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue
(See the New York Times Arts Section for listings of all museum exhibitions,
and also see the expanded reviews of these exhibitions)

‘SCENES FROM THE COLLECTION’

“After a surgical renovation to its grand pile on Fifth Avenue, the Jewish Museum has reopened its third-floor galleries with a rethought and refreshed display of its permanent collection, which intermingles modern and contemporary art, by Jews and gentiles alike — Mark Rothko, Lee Krasner, Nan Goldin, Cindy Sherman, and the excellent young Nigerian draftswoman Ruby Onyinyechi Amanze — with 4,000 years of Judaica. The works are shown in a nimble, non-chronological suite of galleries, and some of its century-spanning juxtapositions are bracing; others feel reductive, even dilletantish. But always, the Jewish Museum conceives of art and religion as interlocking elements of a story of civilization, commendably open to new influences and new interpretations.” (Farago) 212-423-3200, thejewishmuseum.org

Museum of the City of New York

NY AT ITS CORE (ongoing)
“Ten years in the making, New York at Its Core tells the compelling story of New York’s rise from a striving Dutch village to today’s “Capital of the World.” The exhibition captures the human energy that drove New York to become a city like no other and a subject of fascination the world over. Entertaining, inspiring, important, and at times bemusing, New York City “big personalities,” including Alexander Hamilton, Walt Whitman, Boss Tweed, Emma Goldman, JP Morgan, Fiorello La Guardia, Jane Jacobs, Jay-Z, and dozens more, parade through the exhibition. Visitors will also learn the stories of lesser-known New York personalities, like Lenape chieftain Penhawitz and Italian immigrant Susie Rocco. Even animals like the horse, the pig, the beaver, and the oyster, which played pivotal roles in the economy and daily life of New York, get their moment in the historical spotlight. Occupying the entire first floor in three interactive galleries (Port City, 1609-1898, World City, 1898-2012, and Future City Lab) New York at Its Core is shaped by four themes: money, density, diversity, and creativity. Together, they provide a lens for examining the character of the city, and underlie the modern global metropolis we know today. mcny.org” (NYCity Guide)

and you should be sure to check out these special exhibitions at that little museum on Fifth Ave., The Metropolitan Museum of Art
(open 7 days /week, AND always Pay What You Wish for NewYorkers)

“In Praise of Painting” (thru Oct.4, 2020)

“How great are the Met’s holdings in the Dutch golden age? Very. This long-term installation rings the lower level of the Lehman Wing with scores of lesser-known gems from the mid-seventeenth century, many of them rarely on view before, amid masterworks by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Hals, and Ruisdael. The period, vivified here, began in 1648, when the end of the Eighty Years’ War with Spain brought a boom in wealth and morale, expressed by genre paintings that exalt the national ideal of gezelligheid—social warmth, comfort, belonging. A key figure was Gerard ter Borch, who had travelled widely and worked at the court of Philip IV, in company with Velázquez. Ter Borch’s lustrous, ineffably witty domestic scenes inspired a generation of masters, notably Vermeer, whose genius rather eclipsed his elder’s. The pictures often star ter Borch’s younger sister Gesina, preening in satins or enigmatically musing. Herself a painter, she is cutely funny-looking—pointy nose, weak chin—and desperately lovable. There’s much to be said for a world with such a family in it.” (Peter Schjeldahl, NewYorker)

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Museum Mile is a section of Fifth Avenue which contains one of the densest displays of culture in the world. Eight museums can be found along this section of Fifth Avenue:
• 105th Street – El Museo del Barrio (closed Sun-Mon)*
• 103rd Street – Museum of the City of New York (open 7 days /week)
•  92nd Street – The Jewish Museum (closed Wed) (Sat FREE) (Thu 5-8 PWYW)
•  91st Street  –  Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (open 7 days /week)
•  89th Street –  National Academy Museum (closed Mon-Tue)
•  88th Street –  Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (closed Thu) (Sat 6-8 PWYW)
•  86th Street –  Neue Galerie New York (closed Tue-Wed) (Fri 6-8 FREE)
Last, but certainly not least, America’s premier museum
•  82nd Street – The Metropolitan Museum of Art (open 7 days /week)*
*always Pay What You Wish (PWYW) for NewYorkers

Although technically not part of the Museum Mile, the Frick Collection (closed Mon) (Wed 2-6pm PWYW; First Friday each month (exc Jan+Sep) 6-9pm FREE) on the corner of 70th St. and Fifth Avenue and the The Morgan Library & Museum (closed Mon) (Fri 7-9 FREE) on Madison Ave and 37th St are also located near Fifth Ave.
Now plan your own museum crawl (info on hours & admission updated June 2, 2015).
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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar dated 09/25 and 09/23.
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Bonus Live Music  – NYC Jazz Clubs:
Many consider NYCity the Jazz capital of the world. My favorite Jazz Clubs, all on Manhattan’s WestSide, feature top talent every night of the week.
Hit the Hot Link and check out who is playing tonight:

Greenwich Village:
(4 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 178 7th Ave. So., villagevanguard.com, 212-255-4037 (1st 8:30)
Blue Note – 131 W3rd St. nr 6th ave. bluenotejazz.com, 212-475-8592 (1st set 8pm)
55 Bar – basement @55 Christopher St. nr 7th ave.S. 55bar.com, 212-929-9883 (1st 7pm)
Mezzrow – basement @ 163 W10th St. nr 7th Ave. mezzrow.com,646-476-4346 (1st 8)
Smalls – basement @ 183 W10th St. smallslive.com, 646-476-4346 (1st set 7:30pm)
The Stone at The New School – 55 w13 St. (btw 6/5 ave) – thestonenyc.com (8:30PM)

Outside Greenwich Village:
Dizzy’s Club – Broadway @ 60th St. — jazz.org/dizzys / 212-258-9595 (1st set 7:30pm)
Birdland – 315 W44th St.(btw 8/9ave) — birdlandjazz.com / 212-581-3080 (1st 8:30pm)
Smoke Jazz Club – 2751 Broadway nr.106th St. — smokejazz.com/ 212-864-6662 (7pm)
Jazz Standard – 116 E27 St. (btw Park/Lex) – jazzstandard.com – (1st set 7:30)

For a comprehensive list of the best places to hear All Types of Live Music in Manhattan see the tab above “LiveMusic.”

In Memoriam:
Caffe Vivaldi – 32 Jones St. nr Bleecker St. — caffevivaldi.com / 212-691-7538 (1st 7pm)
a classic, old jazz club in the Village, Caffe V often surprised with a wonderfully eclectic lineup. It was my favorite spot for an evening of listening enjoyment and discovery.
Alas, Caffe V is no more, another victim of a rapacious NYC landlord. Owner Ishrat fought the good fight and Caffe V will be sorely missed.
Cornelia Street Cafe – UG, 29 Cornelia St. corneliastreetcafe.com, 212-989-9319
And more recently we have lost Cornelia Street Cafe. After 41 years, it too became another victim of an unreasonable rent increase.

I MEMORIALIZE THESE TWO WONDERFUL CLUBS AS A WARNING.
WE HAVE TO WORK HARDER TO SAVE THESE SPECIAL PLACES.

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