Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > THURSDAY/ FEBRUARY 06, 2020

“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:  “February 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:

Corey Harris
Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway / MM
“According to some misbegotten tradition, a bluesman must die—preferably penniless, ideally unheard—before he can be designated a genius. The singer and guitarist Corey Harris took a more expeditious route, nabbing a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007. With a background that winds through Colorado and Bates College, Harris steers away from mimicking old-time grit; rather, he gently tweaks the music, interjecting sounds gleaned from the Caribbean, Mali, and beyond as he molds his blues from the diaspora as well as the Delta.” (Jay Ruttenberg, NewYorker)

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7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> RAVI COLTRANE
>> New York City Ballet
>> Telegraph Quartet
>> Agrippina
>> Dee Dee Bridgewater
>> TAYLA PARX
>> “No Stopping Us Now: The Adventures of Older Women in American History” by Gail Collins

You may want to look at previous days posts for events that continue through today.

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Music, Dance, Performing Arts

RAVI COLTRANE (Feb. 4-9)
at Jazz Standard / 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.; $30
“Coltrane has released just one leadership album in the past decade, but he’s kept a busy and diverse itinerary as a bandleader in live scenarios. If recording devices have been running, there ought to be enough material by now for a boxed set of live recordings from his past 10 years, full of various bands and projects. The band this saxophonist will bring to New York in the coming week is new, and if the personnel is any indication it suggests an interest in tacking to the center of a certain musical tradition, with help from musicians whose hometowns all boast rich, nurturing jazz histories: the pianist Orrin Evans, from Philadelphia; the bassist Bob Hurst, from Detroit; and the drummer Jeff Watts, known as Tain, from Pittsburgh. (Allan Mednard, a New Yorker, will fill the drum chair from Tuesday to Feb. 6.)” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

New York City Ballet (through March 1)
NYS Theater, Lincoln Center / 7:30PM, $35+
“The coming week brings a potpourri of programs: The “New Combinations” bill on Friday and Tuesday pairs Jerome Robbins’s “Opus 19/The Dreamer” (1979) with Christopher Wheeldon’s “Polyphonia” (2001), Justin Peck’s “Bright” and Alexei Ratmansky’s new work, “Voices.” The Saturday and Sunday matinees highlight collaborations between Balanchine and Stravinsky, while the performances on Saturday evening and Wednesday juxtapose Balanchine with Peck in two slightly different mixes. The program on Feb. 6 again includes Balanchine (“Haieff Divertimento” and “Episodes”) and Peck (the lovely “Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes”) along with Robbins (“Concertino”).” (NYT-Brian Schaefer)

Telegraph Quartet
Atrium @ Lincoln Center / 7:30PM, FREE
“The Telegraph Quartet is known for its “soulfulness, tonal beauty and intelligent attention to detail” (San Francisco Chronicle). For this free, hour-long program, the ensemble highlights the dashing “Lobkowitz” F-major Quartet by Haydn, the final quartet written by this master of the form. Britten’s atmospheric String Quartet No. 2 pays tribute to another great English composer, Henry Purcell.”

The Metropolitan Opera
Agrippina (next Feb.9, 3PM)
Metropolitan Opera House / 7:30 PM, $30+
“Handel’s tale of intrigue and impropriety in ancient Rome receives its first Met performances, with star mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato as the controlling, power-hungry Agrippina and Harry Bicket conducting. Sir David McVicar’s production ingeniously reframes the action of this black comedy about the abuse of power to “the present,” where it should loudly resonate. The all-star cast features mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey as Agrippina’s son and future emperor Nerone, soprano Brenda Rae as the seductive Poppea, countertenor Iestyn Davies as the ambitious officer Ottone, and bass Matthew Rose as the weary emperor Claudius.”

Dee Dee Bridgewater (Feb. 5-9)
Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St./ 8 and 10:30 p.m.; $30-$45
“There’s little that the vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater can’t wrap her inclusive sensibilities around. On her most recent album, “Memphis . . . Yes, I’m Ready,” the venerated performer takes on R. & B. and gospel material associated with the Southern region she originally called home. True to form, the ever-game Bridgewater grabs this repertoire by the throat and doesn’t let go until it gleefully surrenders to her ardor.” (Steve Futterman, NewYorker)

Elsewhere, but this just might be worth the detour:

TAYLA PARX
at Baby’s All Right / 7 p.m.; $18
“Though not a household name, this Texan has already left her mark on pop music as a co-writer of numerous Hot 100 hits, including Ariana Grande’s record-smashing 2018 single, “Thank U, Next.” Now, like her fellow writers-turned-singers Jessie J and Julia Michaels, Parx is attempting to harness her own star power and break down barriers between the studio and the stage. She formally introduced her solo project last spring with “We Need to Talk,” a debut record laden with playful pop melody and R&B swagger. After opening for Lizzo at Brooklyn Steel in May, Parx returns to New York for an intimate headlining show in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.” (NYT-OLIVIA HORN)

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Smart Stuff / Other NYC EventS
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

“No Stopping Us Now: The Adventures of Older Women in American History” by Gail Collins
The National Arts Club, 15 Gramercy Park S./ 8PM, FREE
“Beloved New York Times columnist Gail Collins brings her sharp wit and insightful analysis to her book on women and aging in America. With characteristic verve, she takes us from the early colonists to heroines like Sojourner Truth, who was in her 60s when she became one of the country’s most famous abolitionists, and on to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It’s a story of undeniable, if hardly steady, progress.

Collins, who has received a George Polk Award for commentary, among many other honors, will appear in conversation with Julie Just, a former editor at The New York Times’ Op-Ed Page and now a senior editor at The New York Review of Books.”

Continuing Events

NYC Restaurant Week (Jan.21—Feb.9)

A celebration of NYC’s most fabulous pastime: dining out. With hundreds of restaurants throughout the City rolling out special prix-fixe menus for a limited time, this is your chance to revel without a cause.

Restaurants offer a minimum of three choices for appetizers and three choices for entrées at lunch ($26). Restaurants offer a minimum of three choices for appetizers, three choices for entrées and at least two desserts at dinner ($42). Several restaurants may also offer drink specials, supplemental items and other à la carte options for an additional price.
2-course lunch $26 | 3-course dinner $42

NYC Broadway Week (Jan.21-Feb.9)
“There’s nothing like live theater—and no place for it like Broadway. NYC Broadway Week invites you to experience the magic firsthand with 2-for-1 tickets to some of the most spectacular performances on stage right now.”

AND

NYC Must-See Week (Jan.21-Feb.9)
“It may be impossible to do it all in New York City—but trying is the fun part. During NYC Must-See Week, enjoy 2-for-1 tickets to many of the iconic experiences right in our backyard, including attractions, museums, tours and performing arts.”

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COMING SOON (WFUV)

2/6 Calexico and Iron & Wine, Webster Hall
2/6 The Lone Bellow, Rockwood Music Hall
2/6 City Winery Presents The Exile Follies, The Cutting Room
2/6 Bonny Light Horseman, Rough Trade
2/7 Mayer Hawthorne, Music Hall of Williamsburg
2/7 The Lone Bellow, Rough Trade NYC
2/7 Tanya Tucker, The Town Hall
2/7-8 Richard Thompson, Symphony Space
2/8 Michael Kiwanuka, Terminal 5
2/8 They Might Be Giants, Bowery Ballroom
2/8 Live From Here w/Andrew Bird, Bedouine, Sarah Jarosz, The Town Hall
2/9 Aztec Two-Step, City Vineyard
2/10 EOB (Ed O’Brien of Radiohead), (le) Poisson Rouge
2/11 Richard Julian, Rockwood Music Hall Stage 1
2/12 The Heavy, Webster Hall
2/12 James Maddock, Rockwood Music Hall
2/12 Joe Pug, Rough Trade

♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, plus dates and times, as schedules are subject to change. Always wise to double-check before heading out.
♦ 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 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)

“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)

“Making Marvels”  (through March 1)

“This immense exhibition features a trove of impossibly opulent European objects from the mid-sixteenth to the eighteenth century, showcasing the scientific theories and technologies of the time—as well as the wealth of royal collectors. The parade of curiosities begins with “The Imser Clock,” ca. 1554-61, which astounded the imperial court of Ferdinand I with its representation of planetary positions. A projected montage of closeup footage shows the complex, gilded timepiece in action, ticking and chiming as its mechanical figurines rotate. (The show, which might otherwise be weighed down by its abundance of inert filigree, is enlivened by beautifully produced videos like this one.) Presented among the automata, astrolabes, and spring-powered models of the universe are wonders of the natural world. The astonishing Dresden Green, the world’s largest diamond of its kind, was acquired by August III of Poland, in 1722, and later set in a fantastic ornament for a hat. The Kunstkammer treasures on view may have been primarily intended to entertain, and, indeed, delightfully garish works like the South German “Automaton Clock in the Form of Diana on Her Chariot,” ca. 1610—which shot tiny arrows as part of an aristocratic drinking game—still do.” (Johanna Fateman, 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 02/04 and 02/02.
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