Pre Covid-19 we searched the internet everyday looking for the very best of What’s Happening, primarily on Manhattan’s WestSide, so that you didn’t have to.” We made it as easy as 1-2-3.
Covid-19 has required some changes. First of all, some very important information:
“There are multiple websites, disappearing slots and even attempts to game the system. Here’s our guide to what you have to do to get a dose in your arm.”
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Earlier today we covered March NYC weekend event info. Scroll down the site to find it. Now, how about some more useful NYC information.
1. Best Things to do in NYC This Weekend – TONY
“Looking for the best things to do in NYC this weekend? Whether you’re the group planner searching for more things to do in NYC today, or you have no plans yet, here are some ideas to add to your list for this weekend. Check out the Spotlight on Orchids show at New York Botanical Garden, take a Winter Sound Walk at Brooklyn’s botanic garden, see a trippy new show at ARTECHOUSE or head out for some amazing art around the city.”
Here are just a few ideas:
a. A trippy new show at ARTECHOUSE
News Art
“Geometric Properties: An Immersive Audio-Visual Journey Through Fractal Dimensions,” is the first solo exhibition of Dutch artist Julius Horsthuis’ work to come to NYC. Previously, his work has been featured in Manchester by the Sea and through collaborations with musical artists like ODESZA, Meshuggah and Birds of Paradise. He uses fractals to create alternate science fiction-like realities using visual art and motion graphics, and they are a real trip, to say the least. The digital art destination on Manhattan’s west side (it’s literally located in Chelsea Market’s former boiler room) is opening the new show on March 1, and it will be on view through September 6. If you want to stop by and check out the endless geometric iterations and fractional dimensions for yourself—you frickin’ fractal freak you—tickets cost $24 for adults and $17 for children. (Pro tip: New York and New Jersey residents receive a $5 discount on tickets on weekdays.)
b. Sea Chanteys and Maritime Music Live Sing-Along
Music Online, Until Apr 4 2021
If you want to get in on the trend (And why not? It may be a while until your next adventure on the high seas) the South Street Museum has made it easy for you with a monthly sea-music event called “Sea Chanteys and Maritime Music.” The event is the original NYC shanty singalong, and it features members of The New York Packet singing songs round-robin from living rooms, kitchens and other spaces across the city.
Each online singalong also includes a virtual trip to the South Street Seaport Museum where you can check out links from the song selections to items in the museum’s collection. Best of all, since you can do it from the comfort of your couch, you don’t even need to find your land legs! The next one is on Sunday!
c. Syndicated Sidewalk Cinema
Things to do Syndicated, East Williamsburg Until Mar 31 2021
Do you miss going to the movies? Syndicated Brooklyn, the theater/kitchen/bar mashup, is showing films outside on a 14-foot-wide white screen on its brick facade to customers ordering drinks and food (from its crowd-pleasing wings and seasoned popcorn to the new Pink Flamingo made with Mezcal, fresh watermelon juice, ginger syrup and lemon). Don’t worry, seats are covered and heated, so showings are only canceled in extreme weather.
Syndicated has some “house rules:” There are no tickets—seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Everyone must social distance, too.
Syndicated’s managing partner Tim Chung said he and his staff decided to move screenings outside because it “became clear that we were not going to be able to have people in our space, both our bar and our theater for some time.”
“Since indoor dining and moviegoing feels so uncertain right now, why not try to maximize the outdoor space that we are currently allowed to use? A lot of our customers have been expressing how much they’ve missed coming to the movies here and so we wanted to try and give them the next best thing,” he added.
Most films will play twice: 5:30 and 8pm. You’ll want to follow along on Instagram to keep up with what’s going on.
The calendar is as follows:
March 8: That Thing You Do!
March 9: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
March 10: Josie and the Pussycats
March 11: Almost Famous
March 12: Freaky
March 13: Possessor
March 14: The Invisible Man
March 15-16: Ammonite
March 17: The Luck of the Irish
March 18-21: Promising Young Woman
March 22: The Straight Story
March 23: The Elephant Man
March 24: Twin Peaks Fire Walk With me
March 25: Lost Highway
March 26: Mulholland Dr.
March 27: Dune
March 28: Blue Velvet
March 29: First Cow
March 30: The Assistant
March 31: Never Rarely Sometimes Always
d. Spotlight on Orchids at NYBG
Things to do New York Botanical Garden, The Bronx Until Apr 4 2021
The New York Botanical Garden is forgoing its Orchid Show this year but is doing a limited Spotlight on Orchids across select galleries of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, including intimate displays of orchids in brilliant white and striking colors set against the foliage of aroids, ferns, and bromeliads—planted as they might be found in nature and blending gracefully with their surroundings, NYBG says. You’ll get to discover unusual orchids and artful floral creations by Botanical Garden horticulturists that combine expressive orchids with rocks, tree trunks, vines, and other found materials.
NYBG’s Orchid Show will return in 2022. Until then, you can purchase a Garden Pass + Conservatory ticket, which includes access to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory and outdoor gardens and collections.
e. Winter Sound Works at Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Things to do Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Prospect Park Until May 9 2021
Get your zen on at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden which has launched a new series of winter nature walks and sound works in the Garden—site-specific original compositions and audio walks for visitors to experience at their own pace. As part of the Art in the Garden series, BBG is showcasing three works from January through May: Gelsey Bell and Joseph White’s “Meander,” Ben Rubin and Brian House’s “Terminal Moraine,” and a reprisal of Michael Gordon’s “loved.”
f. 30 Years of House Party
The Apollo is celebrating 30 Years of House Party in a virtual evening featuring performances, conversations and highlights from the musical and comedy cult classics House Party (1990) and House Party 2 (1991) on Saturday, February 27 at 7pm. R&B/hip-hop group Full Force, Lisa Lisa, and DJ Wiz will perform and some of the film’s key players including Kid ‘N Play, A.J. Johnson; Darryl “Chill” Mitchell; writer and director Reginald Hudlin; producer Warrington Hudlin, and other special guests will make appearances and have a conversation about the films. This ultimate 90s throwback is a celebration of a pivotal moment in Black cinema and hip-hop history, the Apollo says. Tickets for the event are $15.
=============================================================================Following up our master list of 160 secrets of New York City, we bring to you 160 hidden gems of New York City! Every one of these hidden gems are places for you to discover. Some show the uniqueness and quaintness of New York City’s architecture, others reveal the infrastructure that supports New York or the history hidden in plain sight. Some are simply off-the-beaten path. All, we believe, are hidden gems in their own right. The majority are publicly accessible although some only on limited occasions. Some come from our book about the secrets of Brooklyn, but this list covers all five boroughs of the city. Many others come from the archives of Untapped New York and some come from exciting user-generated submissions on our Facebook page (thank you!).untappedcities.com
50 Awesome Things To Do In NYC This March
March has only just begun and we’re already getting a taste of spring!
The peek of gorgeous weather we experienced this week has inspired us to make all those plans we’ve been holding out on, and there’s plenty to do this month as it is.
From a new spin on the Annual Orchid Show to epic weekend brunches, here are 50 awesome things to do in March!” (secretnyc.co)
============================================================================The 25 best cheap eats in NYC – TONY
“Eat for $10 or less at the best restaurants with cheap eats in NYC
UPDATE, October 29 2020: Dining out in New York City has never been so different than this year and it’s not only because restaurants had to shut down their dining rooms for more than six months. The current crisis has put a renewed focus on more affordable food options, whether you’re scarfing down tacos from a food truck or ordering dumplings from a mom-and-pop business in Chinatown. At Time Out New York, we’ve done the homework for you in discovering dishes, old and new, that are all $10 or under.
The hefty prices at many New York restaurants can at times make the dining scene feel like it’s only for the elite. But some of the best restaurants in NYC still serve affordable bites for $10 or less. Dining on a budget in New York doesn’t have to feel like a constraint with our picks for jerk chicken, Sicilian-style pizza, creative veggie burgers, underground buffets, Cuban bakeries and more.”
=============================================================================Movie theaters reopen Friday in NYC: What you need to know
“Despite the state giving the green light for movie theaters to reopen on Friday, seeing a flick on the big screen may still have a different look and feel amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last week that New York City movie theaters will be able to reopen March 5 at 25% capacity with no more than 50 people per screening across the state. And both chain and mom-and-pop movie house owners have gotten busy preparing to welcome moviegoers back to the theaters after nearly a year hiatus.” (silive,com)
Where to Find 15 Soothing Cups of Hot Chocolate in NYC
“From frothy, milky cups to dark and dense versions, here’s where to order the city’s most popular hot chocolate
Many New Yorkers are still limiting themselves to outdoor dining, which all adds up to one thing: There’s never been a better time to indulge in a steaming, creamy, decadent mug of hot chocolate. Thankfully, the city is overflowing with delicious cups available everywhere from coffee shops and cafes to chocolate boutiques, bakeries, and even ice cream parlors.” – ny.eater.com
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11 things we can actually look forward to in NYC in 2021 – TONY
New unmissable parks, exhibits, and programs are promised for 2021.
“2020 was supposed to be our year, but after a global pandemic and subsequent shutdowns, things took a turn. On the upside, next year will now be chock full of even more good things we missed out on over the last 12 months.
From landmark exhibitions at New York City’s best cultural institutions to the opening of new parks and programs, there’s a lot to look forward to in the city in 2021.“
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New York magazine is biweekly these days and every issue has a wonderful section, “The Culture Pages,” which includes a “To Do” list – 25 things to see, hear, watch, and read. Here are my favorites from the current issue (Mar.3-17), PLUS some worthy ongoing events.
Art
Lucas Michael: Transcriptions
A new kind of Rorschach inkblot.
Argentina-born artist Lucas Michael gives us nebulous painted, patterned, stained, and splattered scrims that look like cobwebs, comic diagrams, secret writing, spirit drawings, or the fossilized footsteps of ancient insects. These gray and black and white configurations — visual elixirs of contemplation and pleasure — slow down time and suspend viewers in wonderful lost reveries. —Jerry Saltz
Fierman, 127 Henry Street, through March 14.
Winter of Discontent
One of the best galleries in the world.
Witness this group exhibition centered on our extended season in a hell of political, social, and cosmic upheaval. True to this gallery, all is not dark and none of the work is obvious. See, instead, a multitude of ways that good artists embody their times and even point to ways through them. —J.S.
303 Gallery, 555 West 21st Street, through April 1.
Theater
Ludic Proxy: Fukushima
Ready player one.
As used in Aya Ogawa’s 2015 play, “ludic proxy” refers to the ersatz sense of knowing a place when you have only ever visited it via video game. Six years ago, Ogawa’s play was structurally adventurous — polling the audience for directions, trying to create the slippery sense of falling down the internet rabbit hole. Now, Japan Society and PlayCo bring back a section of the work, reimagined by Ogawa for the “live virtual” that we all inhabit. —Helen Shaw
japansociety.org/performingarts, livestream March 6, 7, and 11; available on demand March 12 to 26.
Three Sisters
British theatre.
Set in Lagos, 1967, the National Theatre’s adaptation of Chekhov’s Three Sisters, written by Barber Shop Chronicles playwright Inua Ellams, was first staged in December 2019. Unlike other U.K. streamed performances, this production is available to rent for a three-day period, so there’s no need to scramble with the time difference. —Ailbhe Malone
National Theatre at Home, ntathome.com, through November 30.
Classical Music
Julia Bullock
A century-spanning program.
In a deeply personal program, presented by the San Francisco Symphony, soprano Julia Bullock extracts a dozen entries from her musical biography, including works by Hildegard von Bingen, Nina Simone, and Elizabeth Ogonek. —Justin Davidson
sfsymphonyplus.org, March 11.
Anthony McGill
The sounds of a movement.
This year’s necessary emphasis on small groups and soloists has brought us the concert as personal history. The charismatic principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic returns to the Met museum with a program that’s distinctively him: clarinet quintets by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Richard Danielpour, plus Adolphus Hailstork’s brief and intimate clarinet solo Three Smiles for Tracey. Catalyst Quartet joins. —J.D.
metmuseum.org, March 9.
Opera
Wagner’s Ring
A festival celebrating The Ring of the Nibelung.
The San Francisco Opera’s 2018 Der Ring des Nibelungen makes the leap online. Francesca Zambello’s directorial conceit attracted attention at the time, mapping Wagner’s mythological world onto American history. But it was the music-making that provoked envy from those who missed it. —Justin Davidson
sfopera.com/opera-is-on/ringfestival, March 5 to 30.
*This article appears in the February 15, 2021, issue of New York Magazine. Subscribe Now!
NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide 