The 2009 UTAC Guide to New York City
THE 2009 UTAC NEW YORK TRIP Organizers: SHERRY WANG ANNIE TSE ASAD RAZA Special thanks to HANNAH LAN *** UTAC GUIDE TO NEW YORK by ASAD RAZA Guest Articles by HANNAH LAN ALEX ALTON Front Cover by RISA KUSUMOTO Back Cover By ANNIE TSE I love cities. I experience in them the same sort of sensation that one might experience in the woods – this deep connection to a vast network of life in all its nitty gritty chaotic detail. This is how I feel about cities. And in this regard I find New York to be the city of cities – perhaps the greatest of all cities in the world. New York is, far more than Paris could ever be, the city of light. The sheer amount of activity and liveliness here is staggering. I remember the first time I visited New York; the very first day - which happened to be the middle of the week - I ended up in a subterranean jazz bar in Greenwich Village. The opening act finished playing their set at midnight and then suddenly a whole crowd of people – who did not look like tourists - appeared in the bar – at 1 a.m. – in the middle week – to hear the main act perform – who went on for another 2 hours. I remembered stumbling back to the hotel thinking to myself – this really is the greatest city in the world. As someone who loves cities, I am really curious – why is New York what it is? How did it get to be what it has become? Why has so much of modern culture and history transpired on its streets? How can so many many people thrive here? How do people afford to live here? Why do so many major companies move their headquarters here when it is so expensive? How does the city support 8 million people in 81 fully developed neighbourhoods and still afford to provide 24 hour subways and free ferry rides to the island? Really, how this gargantuan mass of a city forms, survives and thrives is a mystery to me. But it is a mystery I will gladly experience again and again. I’m hooked on this city. A lot of well-meaning friends have asked why we’re making a guide to NYC. After all, there are hundreds available in bookstores, the net and in the city itself. Well, this is our guide to New York – mine and my friends and fellow UTAC execs. These are a list of places we went to and loved and a list of places we definitely want to visit this year. We’re sharing it with you in hopes that you will love these places as well and perhaps begin to feel towards the city the same sense of awe and attachment that many of us in UTAC feel. Before I leave you to the guide, I’d like to thank my amazing team – Sherry Wang and Annie Tse who really came together to make this trip happen smoothly. I’d also like to the irreplaceable Hannah Lan, former president of UTAC and organizer of the New York Trips past, for advising me (often over endless cups of coffee) on how to put together, run and (hopefully) pull off this trip. I would’ve made way too many mistakes without her. I’d also like to finally, thank Prof. Lora Carney for her continued support, encouragement and her invaluable contributions to the UTAC New York Guide. On behalf of Annie, Sherry and myself, please do enjoy your stay in New York. Stay safe, have fun (you will) and see you on Sunday. Sincerely, Asad Raza
Thank You to TANYA MARS and WILL KWAN for their suggestions A Special Thank You to LORA CARNEY for her invaluable help, support, advice, editing and suggestions *** All images used in this guide are licensed under Creative Commons and are free in the public domain. Support Creative Commons – it may save your life. *** The University of Toronto Arts Collective (UTAC) is UTSC’s oldest student arts club – dedicating to pouring art and creativity into every crack and corner in the school. utacmail@gmail.com
NEW YORK CITY BASICS Transportation Subways are the fastest for long distances. They go everywhere (714 miles of track) and many tracks are 24 hrs. A single ride on the subway or bus is $2. Put $7 or more on your MetroCard, and you get a 15% bonus (e.g., $20 + $23, or one extra trip and a dollar balance). For safety, choose middle subway cars and cars that are well occupied, and use designated waiting areas in off hours. Take cabs at night. Note that more than one subway line may run on a particular track, and there are both express and local trains to and from some stops. Within five minutes of the hostel you can catch: 1. 2. 3. 4.
the A, C, and E lines at Eighth Avenue and 14th Street the C and E lines at Eighth and 23rd the 1, 2, 3, and 9 at Seventh Avenue and 14th Street the 1 and 9 at Seventh and 23rd
Buses are great for shorter distances and of course you can see the sights from them. The buses have a transfer system like Toronto’s, and transfers between subway and bus are free.
Our hostel Chelsea International Hostel, is in the Chelsea district of midtown Manhattan, at 251 West 20th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues, phone 212-647-0010. There is an Internet cafe on site, and subway and bus maps are available at the office. There's a police station across the street. You can buy good takeout food and groceries nearby at the Chelsea Whole Foods Market, 250 Seventh Ave. at 25th Street, and nice breakfasts at Toasties Deli at 214 Seventh Ave. Please note that by noon on Sunday, you must be waiting outside the hostel, where the bus will pick us up. If you wish, you may check out of the hostel early Sunday morning and leave your bag in one of the inexpensive lockers in the storage area, to which the staff will direct you. Papers To find events and activities in New York In New York, you can pick up the Village Voice – the city’s oldest and most venerable alternative weekly. Their music (especially jazz) listings are stellar. Another good source of info is Time Out New York which has developed a decent repertoire of arts and music listings. Finally, the Friday New York Times (see inside for their Weekender) is an excellent excellent resource for all things, art, film, broadway/offbroadway and music related. The Thursday New York Sun also has good arts reviews. Money As of Wednesday, May 6, the exchange rate for CAD to USD is 1.00 USD = 1.17 CAD. It’s generally never recommended that you carry a large amount of cash with you, but it also isn’t wise to leave money at the hotel. Fortunately, most banks are on the INTERAC network, so you can use an ATM machine to withdraw US funds (which will then be charged in CAD at the exchange rate the day the bank applies he charge). There are also branches of TD Bank in New York so, you might even avoid ATM fees.
Walking is one of the great pleasures in Manhattan, and it’s sometimes the quickest way to get places. A walking tip from Fielding's New York Agenda: it takes about fifteen minutes to walk ten blocks north or south. Walking ten blocks east or west takes about45 minutes. Our hostel is a nice half hour walk from Greenwich Village, for instance. When walking, be alert, and look like you know where you’re going. Keep your purse carefully clasped or your wallet well hidden in a front pocket, be discreet with cameras, and be especially wary of pickpockets in crowds and in tourist areas such Neighbourhoods as Times Square. New York is divided into almost 81 neighbourhoods – many of which have a Things to avoid: Central Park at night; looking lost or confused; using lonely or badly lit streets. Taxis are bright yellow if licensed (use those only), available if the roof light is on, and allowed to carry up to four people (but there are some five-passenger cabs). It's a cheap ride for four: they cost an initial $2.50 whatever the number of passengers, plus 40 cents per fifth of a mile (4 blocks), 40 cents for every minute of waiting time, a surcharge of $1.00 from 4 to 8 p.m. weekdays, and 50 cents extra after 8 p.m. A 15 20% tip is standard.
distinct character and histories. We won’t into too much detail but some of the big ones are: Upper East Side is the area east of Central Park Midtown: from Central Park South (also called 59th Street) down to about 40th Street. Chelsea: Between West 14-34 and 7th to the river Greenwich Village is the area east and west of Washington Square, bounded, more or less, by 14th Street on the north and Houston on the south SoHo: area bounded by Broadway, Canal, Sixth Ave. and Houston. Chinatown: on the streets west of Chatham Square (Canal Street subway stop). The major streets are Mulberry, Mott and Pell Lower Manhattan: the southern tip of the island, include the Financial District. ** Maps are available both at the hotel and in the subway
Museums Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET) Price: Adults $ 20 (suggested!), groups of 10 or more ($10), Timing: Thursday: 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m, Friday and Saturday: 9:30 a.m.–9:00 pm Address: 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, 212-535-7710 The MET. What can we say about the MET. Well, we could throw some facts – it was created in 1872, currently has an area of over 2 million sq. ft (!) and contains some 2 million works of art (!!). Its collections spans over 5000 years containing everything from original impressionist paintings (including some 37 works by Monet alone), to full scale Egyptian tombs, Chinese and Japanese art (include Hokusai’s Great Wave) and the Frank Lloyd Wright Architecture Wing. The MET was founded as a ‘guardian of arts and culture for the public’ and throughout its history, it’s been as elitist, classical and traditional as museums come. That said, it’s a one of a kind experience. Largely considered impossible to see in one day, some people spend their entire vacations going to the MET. We’ll leave that to you. The Met presents many special exhibitions at any one time in addition to its vast permanent collection. Currently, you can see “Living Line: Selected Indian Drawings from the Subhash Kapoor Gift.” The NY Times reviewer calls this an “almost supernaturally beautiful exhibition… The art of drawing does not get much better than this.” Also, there is a major book sale at the second-floor shop.
Guggenheim Museum (New York) Price: Adults $18, Students and Seniors (65 years +) with valid ID $15, discounts for groups of 10 or more ($10) Timing: Thursday: Closed, Friday: 10 a.m.–7:45 p.m., Saturday: 10 a.m.–5:45 p.m Address: 1071 5th Avenue (at 89th Street), 212 423 3500 To me, seeing Frank Lloyd Wright’s Guggenheim Museum was one of the most stunning experiences in New York City. There is something profoundly moving, disorienting and unreal about this beautiful building. What’s so strange about Wright’s spiraling, peeling masterpiece is that it seems completely normal – as if it’s just supposed to be a building! There are many museums in the world with unique architecture (just look at Leibskind’s Crystal for the ROM) but unlike the Crystal (or Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain), Wright’s Guggenheim Museum doesn’t seem to make anything of the fact that it’s an unreal structure. The buildings in Disneyland seem unreal but Wright’s building doesn’t seem like it’s supposed to be unreal. Yet it is. It doesn’t try to say anything special or odd– it just is special AND odd. It doesn’t express its strangeness, but somehow, deeply from some inside that manifests itself on its surface, it’s truly a strange building. I’m not sure if I’m able to express clearly how I feel about the Guggenheim Museum. See it, or pass by it if you don’t want to see stellar works by Salvador Dali, Marc Chagall (heart), Wasily Kandinsky and Paul Cezzanne inside. You certainly won’t forget it.
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) Price: Adults $20, Seniors $16, Students $12, Free on Friday 4:00 to 8:00 pm Timing: Thursday 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m.,Friday 10:30 a.m.– 8:00 p.m., Saturday till 5:30 p.m. Address: 11 West 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth avenues. OK here we go – MOMA – big, bad, too cool for you (but will let you look), has more Picassos than Picasso’s basement. MOMA is expensive and super elite but contains works that you may have only previously seen in textbooks. Aside from havingroom after room of Picassos, the original works by Marcel Duchamp (original - lol), Claude Monet’s Waterlillies (yeah all three) and one of this reviewer’s favorite paintings of all time - Van Gogh’s ‘The Postman’, MOMA was recently renovated (and expensified) by the Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi who, despite never having designed outside Japan, beat out the some of world’s greatest architects to win the competition to design this hip granddaddy of an art museum. Currently on in the upper floors: a big messy retrospective of the German artist Martin Kippenberger.
Frick Collection Price: $15 adults; $5 students Timing: Thu, Fri, Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Address: 1 East 70th Street, 212-288-0700
Neue Galerie Price: General $15, Students and seniors $10 Timing: Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Address: 1048 Fifth Avenue (at 86th Street), 212.628.6200 The Neue Galerie is pretty new – having been opened in 2001. Ronald Lauder – the son of Estee Lauder (no less) with a specific focus on artwork by German and Austrian artists. While it seems strange to focus on the Austrian/German region when museums like the MET or MOMA show hundreds of artworks from Europe, Herr Lauder’s narrow focus doesn’t have to be yours. The artists exhibited here are brilliant and amazing. They just happen to be German or Austrian. The museum contains the one of best collections of artist Egon Schiele and its centre piece is a $135 million dollar painting by Gustav Klimt - Portrait of Adele BlochBauer – which at the time of purchase by the museum, was the single largest amount ever paid for a painting. Current show: “Brücke: the Birth of Expressionism in Dresden and Berlin, 1905-1913.” The most famous of this group of young, rowdy artists are featured, and it’s rare to see much Brücke work in one place.
The Frick Collection is beautiful medium sized museum that was formerly home of a ruthless multi-millionaire industrialist named Henry Clay Frick. Frick had the reputation of being ‘the most hated man in America’ (largely) due to his brutal treatment of workers who went on strike at his factories and was almost assassinated by the famous anarchists Emma Goldman and Alex Berkman (who shot him three times at point blank range). The Frick mansion was built in 1914 by Thomas Hastings (who also designed the Façade for the New York Public Library) at a cost of 5 million dollars (at that time!). It was designed to house Frick’s enormous collection of art and is considered today to be one of the finest collections of major European artists such El Greco, Vermeer, Rembrandt. Despite Frick’s general dislike for the public, today, for $5 (if you’re a student), you can see gorgeous work by Vermeer as well Holbein the Younger’s famous portrait of Sir Thomas More. As a side note, the Frick Museum was the inspiration for the Avengers Mansion (from the TV show).
Whitney Museum of American Art Price: Adults: $15, Senior citizens and Students with valid ID: $10, discount for group tours (adults $10.00 per person, Students are $6.00 per person) Timing: Thursday 11 am–6 p.m., Friday: 1–9 p.m. (6–9 p.m. PWYC), Saturday 11 am–6 p.m. Address: 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street, (212) 570-3600 The Whitney Museum was started by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney – who was an artist and sculptor and just happened to be the great granddaughter of New York’s most prominent tycoon, Cornelius Vanderbilt I. While student artists can only smile at the thought of being an artist and coming from a billionaire family, Gertrude Whitney, to her credit, created the Whitney museum to represent those artists who were ignored by the mainstream (see the MET) museums and galleries (Interestingly, Whitney created the museum after the MET turned down her offer of 700 works she had collected). To this day, the museum’s focus is on avantgarde and specifically American artists – most of whom Gertrude Whitney connected with personally to collect. Today it contains over 8,000 major works including work from Edward Hopper (of Nighthawks fame), Alex Calder, Mark Rothko and Pop Artists such as Andy Warhol.
Museum of Arts and Design Price: General $15, Students/Seniors $12, Thurs. 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. (PWYC) Timing: Thurs. 11:00 am to 9:00 p.m., Friday, Saturday 11:00 am to 6:00 p.m. Address: 2 COLUMBUS CIRCLE, 212.299.7777 The museum of arts and design is New York’s preeminent collection of objects, dedicated to design in jewelry, pottery and furniture. Known as MAD – it’s interesting that the design museum itself was site of huge controversy over the design of its building. The gallery moved to its current location on 2 Columbus Circle in 2008 – moving into the site of Edward Durell Stone’s beautiful building for what was once the Gallery of Modern Art. Shortly after moving in, the MAD directors announced their decision to take apart and alter the original building, creating a huge public outcry from architects, critics, professors and writers in New York. The directors went ahead with the alteration, replacing the original building with a modernist design by Brad Cloepfil but whatever argument they had for respecting artistic integrity went down the drain when it was revealed that they altered Mr Cloepfil’s design as well – over his objections. By connecting some of his design’s vertical strips with a line of windows they created the giant letters ‘HI’ on the façade of the building. Critics responded by claiming it’s probably Mr Stone’s ghost that was saying hello from the grave. Well, haunted exteriors aside, the museum does host a huge collection of beautiful and haunting masterpieces and showcases the works of famous designers from around the world such as its current exhibit of radiators designed by Karim Rashid.
New Museum of Contemporary Art Price: General Admission: $12, Seniors: $10, Students: $8 , Free on Thursday 7 - 9 Timing: Thu, Fri 12-9 PM, Sat 12-6 PM Address: 235 Bowery, 212.219.1222 Ok here’s the big cheese! The dealio that makes New York Simply What It Is to Artists. The New Museum of Contemporary Art is a stunning building designed by Tokyo based architects SANAA. The museum is specifically focused in presenting the works of underrecognized artists and hosts some of most cutting edge art work in the city. Currently, its hosting an exhibit called ‘Younger Than Jesus: 50 artists from 25 countries all under 33’ as well as an awesome show by Ugo Rondinone called: Hell Yes!
P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Centre Price: $5.00 suggested donation; $2.00 for students ($free w/ MOMA admission) Timing: Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Address: 22-25 Jackson Ave at the intersection of 46th Ave, Long Island City, NY, (718) 784-2084 The P.S.1 Contemporary Arts Centre is one of New York’s most prestigious and influential art spaces. A large complex in Brooklyn that used to be an abandoned warehouse, it was converted by Alanna Heiss into a space solely dedicated to cutting edge contemporary art. Today it is a huge collection of galleries, arts studios, spaces and music venues that is affiliated with MOMA. Its focus is on large scale, site specific work and installation arts. Every year P.S.1 hosts YAP! - The Young Architect’s Program - which commissions young architects to redesign its courtyard. P.S.1 is really a one of kind space for even a city like New York and should be high on the lists of anyone coming to New York to see great art work. Among the current shows is “Leandro Erlich: Swimming Pool:” the Argentine artist has created a wonderful illusion by constructing a full-size swimming pool in the gallery’s two-level space.
Art in General Price: N/A Timing: Thursday, Friday, Saturday 12-6 PM Address: 79 Walker Street #6, 212 219 0473 Of all the museums reviewed here, Art in General seems most interesting to this reviewer. Designed to be designed by the artist who are showing there at a given time, the entire gallery and space changes to meet the needs of the artist. The current show at Art In General is Impermanent Collections – a collaboration between AiG and ‘Adopt an Art’ American Museum of Natural History Price: (Suggested) Adults: $15.00, Senior/Student with ID: $11.00 Timing: Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 10:00 a.m.–5:45 p.m. Address: 79th Street and Central Park West, (212) 769-5100 And here we are – the grand daddy of all North American Museums. The legendary American Museum of Natural History is one of the largest and definitely the most celebrated museums in North America. Don’t even pretend like you’ve never heard of it. The stories connected with this place are legendary. Its full of old school archeologists running around the world collecting dinosaur bones and artifacts (one of their staff archaeologists - Roy Chapman Andrews, was the inspiration for Indiana Jones) and world renowned research departments (their former staff anthropologist Margaret Mead remains mandatory reading for Anthropology departments around the world). With collections that have inspired more movies and books than the Bible (exaggeration – sorry), the American Museum of Natural History is one of those places, (alarmingly common in New York), that are destinations in themselves for people all across North America.
Rose Centre for Earth and Space / Hayden Planetarium Central Park West and 79th Street (Part of the American Museum of Natural History/Same Hours) Part of the museum of natural history (admission, excluding the shows, is included with admission to the museum); the Rose Centre may be one of the most beautiful planetariums in North America. Designed by James Polshek, the Rose Centre is a gorgeous six storey glass and steel cube with a planetarium that seems to float and lights up at night. The main attractions here are mind blowing space and light shows that show the Big Bang and other cosmic phenomena. This year, The Rose Centre is presenting a special light show about music called ‘Sonic Vision’. Mixed by Moby, the show will feature with breathtaking visuals of imaginary dreamscapes and space. The show runs at 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm (except on Friday May 8) and costs $15.
Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum Price: General Admission $15.00, Senior Citizens and Students with I.D.: $10.00 Timing: Thursday, Friday: 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday: 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Address: 2 East 91st Street, 212.849.8400. The other big daddy when it comes to design is The Cooper-Hewitt Musuem. Dedicated to beautiful made objects, and formerly the mansion of Andrew Carnegie, the museum contains more than 250,000 objects ranging from Han Dynasty objects to the present and also houses the National Design Library which contains 70,000 volumes. It also hosts National Design Week which draws attention to the impact of design in our daily lives. Currently showing: the internationally famous artist Shahzia Sikander presents, as guest curator, a personal selection from the Cooper-Hewitt’s collection.
The Studio Museum in Harlem Price: Adults $7.00 (Suggested donation), Seniors and students (with valid id) $3.00 Timing: Thursday, Friday 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM, Saturday 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Address: 144 West 125th Street, New York, New York, 212.864.4500 The studio Museum of Harlem is a gallery focused on black artists and work inspired by black culture. The museum has an excellent mandate towards free culture – often offering free downloads of music composed by artists on their website. Currently, it is exhibiting a show by the American Performance artist Kalup Linzy [pictured – this is supposed to be hilarious show!]. The Studio Museum also hosts StudioSound where the museums invites musicians, producers and musical innovators to create original compositions inspired by the works on view. This year, as part of StudioSound, the artist Guillermo E. Brown has created ‘crack unicorns’.
The Drawing Center Price: N/A Timing: Thursday, Friday, 10 AM – 6 PM; Saturday, 11 AM – 6 PM Address: 35 Wooster Street, New York, 212-219-2166 Located in SOHO, The Drawing Center is an interesting museum dedicated solely to the exhibition of drawings. Currently, they are hosting two exhibits – one by the lat great surrealist artist Unica Zürn and the other – very interestingly – called FAX – where artists from around the world fax in drawings through the gallery’s working fax machine (their website has a hilarious faxed version of the Mona Lisa).
Brooklyn Museum Price: (Suggested) $10; Students with Valid ID: $6 Timing: Thursday, Friday 10 am -5 pm, Saturday 11 am – 6pm Address: 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, (718) 638-5000 So totally worth the trip over the bridge. The Brooklyn Museum places a heavy emphasis on education and audience engagement, and their didactic panels definitely show a greater interest in being inclusive of varying learning styles. The museum pays special attention to discussing the cultural signific-ances that their collections hold, making the visitor experience distinctly different from traditional museum canons of communication. Among the current special exhibitions you might like to check out “Reflections on the Electric Mirror: New Feminist Video,” featuring up-to-the minute approaches to video art “from humor to intense revelation.” By Hannah Lan
Art Galleries A list of shows, exhibits, and openings for the dates of May 7 - May 10. All galleries are free, unless otherwise noted.
Japan Society Price: $10; students $8; FREE on Fridays 6 – 9 p.m. Timing: Thu 11 am-6 pm, Fri 11 am-9 pm, Sat 11 am - 5 pm Address: 333 East 47th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues (close to the UN) Featuring: KRAZY! The Delirious World of Anime + Manga + Video Games.
Apex Art Timing: Thursday, Friday and Saturday 11 - 6 pm Address: 291 Church Street (two blocks south of the Canal Street subway station), 212 431 5270, Apex Art is an entirely independent arts museum / exhibition space that features alternative, unique and cutting edge work by both artists and those who traditionally wouldn’t be considered artists (sorry MOMA). Take for example its current (amazing) art exhibition: I am Art - An Expression of the Visual & Artistic Process of Plastic Surgery – which is show curated by plastic surgeons featuring their work. Ending on May 9th, the exhibit is super high on this reviewers list, but be forewarned, it may not be for everyone (especially if you don’t like the sight of blood).
David Zwirner Gallery Timing: Address: 519, 525, 533 West 19th Street (Chelsea) Featuring: RIO by Adel Abdessemed
Haunch of Venison Timing: 10 am – 6 pm Address: 1230 Avenue of the Americas (Between 48th and 49th Street) Featuring: Enrico Castellani
Artists Space Timing: 12 pm – 6 pm Address: 38 Greene Street, 3rd Floor Featuring: Saul Becker: Nature Preserves, Ilana Halperin: Physical Geology, Francesco Simeti: Volatili
Marian Goodman Gallery Timing: 10 am – 6 pm Address: 24th West 57th Street Feat.: Yang Fudong: East of Que Village, Anri Sala: Purchase not by Moonlight
Alexander Gray Associates Timing: 11 am – 6 pm Address: 526 West 26 Street #1019 Featuring: Paul Ramírez Jonas: Sound Installation
Derek Eller Gallery Timing: 11 am –6 pm Address: 615 West 27th Street Featuring: André Ethier: Heading South
Participant Inc Timing: 12 pm – 7 pm Address: 253 East Houston Street Featuring: Michelle Handelman: Dorian (VIDEO)
Reena Spaulings Fine Art Timing: 12 am –6 pm Address: 165 East Broadway Featuring: JUTTA KOETHER: Lux Interior
Elizabeth Dee Gallery Timing: 10 am – 6 pm Address: 545 West 20th Street New York, NY 10011 Featuring: Ryan Trecartin and Lizzie Fitch: The Abouthting
Yvon Lambert Gallery Timing: 10 am – 6 pm Address: 550 West 21st Street Featuring: Group Show: Espèces d'Espaces
Metro Pictures Timing: 10 am – 6 pm Address: 519 West 24th Street Featuring: Robert Longo: Surrendering the Absolutes
Gardens Central Park From 59th St. (S) to 110th St.(N) and from 5th Ave.(E) to 8th Ave.(W) Perhaps one of the most famous public parks in the world, what’s probably most shocking about Central Park, which has an area of 843 acres (3.4 km2) and covers 6% of Manhattan, is that it is entirely man made. Designed by Frederick Olmstead and Calvert Vaux – the park has been and has remained a remarkable scene of quiet tranquility in the middle of a city that never sleeps. There are hundreds of things to see in Central Park – from the Conservatory Gardens to 29 different sculptures (including an awesome one of Alice In the Wonderland). Things to definitely check out here are the old school carasol (still functioning – costs $2 per ride), the Boathouse restaurant (see review) and the Jacqueline Onassis Resevoir where Jackie Kennedy jogged every day. As a side note (especially interesting to this reviewer), Central Park also has its own genus – never mind species! – of centipede – called Nannarrup hoffmani.
Brooklyn Botanical Gardens Address: 900 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, 718-623-7200 Timing: Thur, Fri: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. , Sat: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Price: Adults $8, Seniors (65+) $4, Students w/ valid IDs $4
Prospect Park, Brooklyn Adjacent to Brooklyn Botanical Gardens If you are making a trip to the Brooklyn Museum anyway, plan your walk to coincide with some of the trails in Prospect Park. It’s a peaceful and relaxing change from the hustle and bustle of Manhattan
This is the ultimate garden to visit while in New York (and a definite on this reviewer’s list). Famed for its myriad gardens within a garden format, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, is an astounding 52 acres - 210km2 – filled with gorgeous flowers, plants and gardens. Of part-icular note are the 200 sakura (cherry flower) trees (which may have already blossomed out) and the stunning – seriously stunning (see pic-ture above) - Hill and Pond Garden designed by Takeo Shiota - and The Fragrance Garden – where visitors are encouraged to rub the fragrant or pleasingly textured leaves of the plants between their fingers. It should be noted that the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens are approximately 25 minutes away by train from Mid Town Manhattan.
Cool Places to Hang Out New York Public Library Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street Designed by Carrere and Hastings and completed in 1911, the main branch of the New York Public Library is Beux-Arts masterpiece. With marble block walls that are three feet thick, the building is a stunning example of early New York Architecture. Worth visiting are the gorgeous main reading room, where some of America’s greatest writers have researched and written their books, together with the seven floors of stacks – the main branch is centre of one the largest lending library systems in North America and one of the largest research libraries in the world.
Prada Store (designed by Rem Koolhas) 575 Broadway, at Prince St. (SoHo)
Rockefeller Centre Between 48th & 51st Streets and Fifth Avenue & Seventh Avenue. Not to be confused with Jay-Z’s home, the Rockefeller Centre is a complex of 19 buildings – the largest privately held building complex in the world – that was developed and built by John D. Rockerfeller. Its made up of NYC’s first major modernist skyscrapers and was the first commercial property to include integrated public art (including Paul Manship’s now famous bronze sculptures and work by Isamu Noguchi). The Rockefeller Centre is the site of many famous New York Landmarks such as Radio City Music Hall, NBC S tudios and Saturday Night Live studios (in the GE Building). The building complex is also the site of a famous art controversy when the famous Mexican artist Diego Riviera was commissioned by Rockefeller’s son to paint a mural in the main floor. Offended by the Riviera’s depiction of Lenin and Russian May Day images in the mural, Rockefeller paid the great artist and eventually tore down the paintings.
One of the coolest things about high (or semi high if you were on the Harvard New York Trip) fashion is its willing intersections between art and commerce. Fashion designers often cite and support (and sometime outright collaborate) with ‘high’ artists (no not that, though maybe). Case in point are the Prada stores – each of which have been designed by a leading, internationally renowned architect. The stunning Prada Store in Tokyo was designed by Herzog & Meuron (one of this reviewer’s favorites firms) who also designed the Olympic stadium in Beijing. The Prada store in New York is no different,designed the legendary, big kahuna of modern architecture Rem Koolhas, who also, strangely, designed a high profile building in Beijing – the CCTV Tower (one this reviewer’s favorite buildings). Moral of the story is: get involved in Prada and you’ll end up making something in China (zing!). Anyhow, definitely check out the store and if your income tax returns are back, buy something?
United Nations (Secretariat Building) 760 United Nations Plaza The United Nations secretariat building is beautiful looking skyscraper (if you find skyscrapers beautiful – I do) designed by the late, great French architect Le Corbusier. It is interestingly, international territory and doesn’t follow New York City building codes. While you can’t gamble here (Powell!), it is worth seeing - the building is a stunning example of Le Corbusier’ s work and its adjoining complex, designed through a collaboration between architects around the world, contains a number of artworks, including a stained glass by Marc Chagall and a cool giant sculpture of a twisted gun by Carl Frederik.
Chelsea Hotel West 23rd Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues The Chelsea Hotel is a legendary hotel, central the modern American art and popular culture - in that a huge tonne of seminal writers, musicians, thinkers, artists, and film directors of our time have lived here - often for long periods of time (some of them to point of even in dying in Chelsea Hotel room). Surprisingly, it still isn’t so expensive to stay here - about $159 a night ~ similar to any Marriot or Hilton - but to give you idea; Mark Twain, Arthur C. Clarke (who wrote 2001: Space Odyssey while at Chelsea), William S. Burroughs, Leonard Cohen( who wrote Chelsea Hotel #2 about his time with Janis Joplin), Tennessee Williams, Jack Kerouac (who wrote On the Road here), Robert Oppenheimer(the physicist behind the Manhattan Project and the nuclear bomb), Jean-Paul Sartre, Stanley Kubrick, Patti Smith, Bob Dylan (who wrote a number of songs about living at Chelsea), Madonna, Robert Mapplethorpe and Henri Cartier-Bresson; have all lived, at varying lengths, at the Chelsea. Its one of those places, filled with artwork by its esteemed clientele that remains an amazing reminder of just how close one is to history in New York City
The Brooklyn Bridge
The Earth Room (DIA), 141 Wooster Street, The Broken Mile (DIA), 393 West Broadway Thursday, Friday, Saturday: noon to 6 p.m. (Closed from 3:00 P.M. to 3:30 P.M.) Free These two installations projects have been on long-term view to the public since 1980 and 979 and now are both finally closing in June 2009 (!). Both are installation works by the artist Walter De Marias (Of ‘Lightening Fields’ fame). Sponsored by the DIA Arts Foundation, one of New York City’s most interesting arts institutes (and an inspiration to UTAC), the installations are better experienced than described but to give you an idea, for works by ‘The Earth Room’ De Marias filled the entire floor of a room of an office building with 2 feet of dirt - that has now been there since 1980. For ‘Broken Mile’, the artist has literally done that – broken up a mile’s work of steel rods into a serene quiet installation. Definitely recommended.
I’m fairly comfortable declaring my total nerdgasm for engineering and so the Brooklyn Bridge is a definite on my list of places to visit in New York City. This masterpiece of design was completed in 1883 by Emily Roebling – the daughter of the original enginer John Roebling (who was killed during its construction) - and was the longest suspension bridge in the world at the time of its completion. Since then, it inspired generations of photographers, architects and even poets such as Walt Whitman (who seeing it being completed, declared it ‘the best, most effective medicine my soul has yet partake’ and eventually wrote ‘Crossing Brooklyn Ferry about it) and Jack Kerouac (who wrote the beautiful ‘Brooklyn Bridge Blues). In its early years, there was a rumor that the bridge was unsafe but it was quickly quelled by PT Barnum who ran a whole caravan of elephants over the bridge to prove its safety (and prove how awesome his circus was). The engineers’ prescient design has proved itself over decades and the bridge remains one of the most beautiful structures in the world.
Food General Kossar Bialys 367 Grand Street, 877-4-BIALYS Kossar’s Bialy is New York’s oldest bialy store – having started in 1936 and was even the source of a book by a New York Times Food Critic. Ok. So what’s a Bialy? The pictures we saw on Google Images don’t make so much sense, but what it s eems like is that bialy is bagel without the hole. Instead of a hole they have slight depression which is filled with different sort of ingredients. Bialy’s are a traditional Polish Jewish food and once flourished in New York City with Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants. If tasting the past doesn’t go well with your coffee, you can still enjoy Kossar’s Bagels – which are some of the city’s best.
Guss Pickles 85 Orchard St. near. Broome St., 212-334-3616 Pickles may not be an actual food to some people, but as anyone whose come to this reviewer’s house and opened the fridge can attest, they are to me. And as a pickle aficionado, I’m really looking forward to eating at Guss’ Pickles which has been in the business of fermenting cucumbers since 1910. Most of us grocery store types will be used to their ‘half sour’ variety – but the truly adventurous (ahem) should try the ‘full sour’ pickles which apparently has no competitor in the city.
Grand Central Terminal 87 E 42nd Street When you have 500,000 people pass through your doors every day, you better have some food. Well, Grand Central, has more than just food. It has a has a large number of food stores such as The Hot & Crusty Bakery, Joe the Art of Coffee (voted New York's best coffee by many magazines) and Junior's (steakhouse). It also the legendary Grand Central Oyster bar – if that’s your sort of thing and Michael Jordan’s Steak House (which much to our disappointment doesn’t serve steaks in the shape of a basketball or have 23 different kinds of seasonings - total waste of endorsement).
Bakeries City Bakery 3 West 18th Street, footsteps from 5th Avenue. 212-366-1414. A highly popular sweet and savory bakery – that is always packed at lunch – one of City Bakery’s most famous dishes are the Pretzel Croissant and it’s hot Chocolate (which they claim is the most drunk hot chocolate in New York since 1990). Try to find out why but you may end up validating that fact. Sigh, the genius of good marketing.
Clinton Street Bakery Company 4 Clinton Street (btw. East Houston & Stanton), 646-602-6263 A great little bakery (only 32 seats) which also serves as full restaurant – the Clinton street Bakery serves everything from awesome muffins to some of the best brunch food and burgers in New York.
Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory 1 Water St., Brooklyn, NY Like Grimaldi’s Pizza, The Brooklyn Ice cream factory is located just off the Brooklyn Bridge, in Brooklyn and is located inside an old rejigged fireboat house. They carry only eight flavors but each flavor is an amazing concoction, created by ice cream perfectionists (take THAT high school guidance counselor!). The sauces are all created next door and they’re such perfectionists that apparently (as of 2008), don’t carry fudge sauce - because they cant perfect it yet.
Café Angelique 49 Grove St (At Bleecker St) This is another one of those places we discovered totally by accident – on our way somewhere else. The atmosphere of this cafe is awesome – so relaxed, quiet and beautiful. We stopped for espressos – and were blown away by how good they were. This year, we’re back for revenge as we were unable to attack the gorgeous selection of cakes that line the wall of this wonderful cafe.
Ess-a-Bagel 359 1st Avenue, 212-260-2252 or 831 3rd Avenue, 212-980-1010 So you’re in New York and you’re (obviously) looking for bagels. Yes? Right? Bagels, like Pastrami, Ruebens, giant pretzels, pushy pedestrians and expensive real state are New York essentials and few places do them as well as Ess-a-Bagel. Definitely try the whitefish salad on a bagel or do like me and wander around the streets, working your way through a baker’s dozen of these holey delights.
Murrays Bagels 500 Avenue of the Americas, (212) 462-2830 Here comes competition! Murray’s bagel is another beloved and phenomenal bagel place, this time in Greenwich Village. Started by a former vice-president at Merill Lynch, who quit the financial markets to get closer to his stomach, the proprietor of Murray’s Bagels prepares all the ingredients in the bagel (down to the salt water) himself using old school methods taught to him by his father (the eponymous Murray). The bagels are so good, you’ll want wipe your mouth your MBA.
Delis Katz Delicatessan 205 E. Houston St., 212-254-2246 Ok! Ok! It may be getting redundant, but here’s another New York legend. Started in 1888, Katz’s Deli is the grandfather of New York Delis. Presidents have eaten here. Movie stars eat here. Movies are shot here (Meg Ryan’s famous bit of uhm acting in ‘Harry met Sally’ was shot here). Yet it remains an simple, old school deli with amazing hand carved smoked meat sand-wiches, frankfurters and pickles. It’s moderately priced ($14 for a sandwich) but going and ordering here is a quintessential New York experience. Eisenberg’s Coffee Shop 174 5th Ave, (Btwn 22nd & 23rd St), (212) 675-5096 Im sort of tired of saying the word legendary in this guide – but here we are – another legend. Eisenberg’s Coffee Shop serves, straight up some of the best breakfast and lunch food in the city and has been in business since the dawn of time and still with the same waitresses. Try the egg-cream (its better than its sounds) and the corned beef Rueben.
Carnegie Deli 854 Seventh Avenue, at 55th Street, (800) 334-5606 One of the most famous deli’s in the United States (they even have a wikipedia entry) – this primarily kosher deli has been frequented by reporters and comedians since 1933. Their motto is “If you can finish your meal, we’ve done something wrong” and for good reason. Most of the smoked meat sandwiches are 1lb and the cheesecake slices are over 1lb. Definitely eat here if you’re into the whole deli experience – complete with super surly and gruff waiters.
Pizza Lombardi’s (Pizza) 32 Spring St., (at Mott St.), 212-941-7994 Ok and here’s the real deal – the old school of all school. Lombardi's bakery dates to 1898 and is the place where New York’s Pizza was invented more than 100 years ago. To this day, the pizzeria uses the same oven and the pizza’s are obviously, incredible. Must be eaten to be believed! (Though you should avoid that slice of Hawaiian that’s been lying there since the invention days – that was an experiment that went - and stayed wrong).
Grimaldi’s Pizza 19 Old Fulton St. under the Brooklyn Bridge Another super popular pizza joint, located just at the end of the Brooklyn Bridge (on the Brooklyn side) is Grimaldi’s Pizza. The place has been in business for a very long time and the owners, who still run the joint were friends of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin et al. They only create traditional Italian style pizzas and apparently use really an amazing cheese (not including the connection to Sinatra).
Difara Pizza 1424 Ave. J, Brooklyn, NY at E. 15th St, 718-258-1367 This is a remarkable pizza joint, even by New York’s standards. Its run by an old man named Domenico De Marco who personally makes every single pizza himself – as he has been for 40 years. Apparently, Signor De Marco takes a seriously long time making these one of kind pizzas, fussing over each one until he deems it good enough to hand over to you - but good things come to those who wait. The artichoke pizza slice here is legendary.
Koronet Pizzeria 2848 Broadway (between Cathedral Pkwy and 110th St) A single slice of pizza at koronet is bigger than most small pizzas at other pizzarieas. They serve it to you on a cafeteria tray which isn’t even really big enough. While it might not be the most exquisite pizza it definitely hits the spot. At 3 dollars you would be hard pressed to beat the value if your uptown. By Alex Alton
Restaurants The Boathouse at Central Park Center of Central Park, just a short stroll from Fifth Avenue and 72nd Street. Make your inner Blair Waldorf proud and schedule a weekend brunch visit to this infamous Central Park restaurant for the true Upper East Side experience. In addition to serving delectable food (albeit food that may be a bit pricey for a struggling student artist), the Boathouse offers fantastic panoramic views of the Lake, surrounding trees, and Manhattan skyscrapers while wining and dining with the blue bloods of the City. Afterwards, why not try renting a boat for an hour or two and row your way around the Lake to work off that extra serving of hollandaise sauce you asked for on your eggs benny? Note, its extremely extremely packed all of the time, and be ready for a 2.5 hour wait if you don't have reservations. By Hannah Lan The Bitter End 147 Bleecker Street (between Thompson and LaGuardia), 212-673-7030 We discovered this entirely by accident, on our last day in New York the last time we were here and it was one of the happiest accidents of the trip. The Bitter End is New York’s oldest surviving rock clubs and the number of legendary musicians and entertainers who got their start here is amazing (you can see the whole list on their website www.bitterend.com). It seems likely a fairly normal looking bar but to give you an idea, Bob Dylan, Tori Amos, Tracy Chap.m.an, Bill Cosby, Billy Crystal, Neil Diamond, Sarah McLachlan, Billy Joel, Jay Leno, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Woody Allen, Etta James and Norah Jones all played at the Bitter End at beginning of their careers. Egg 135 North 5th Street, Brooklyn, 718 302 5151 Even though I still don’t really get the whole Williamsburg-hipster thing (Toronto West End could totally beat it anyday!), I have to admit I liked Egg a lot when I was in the area. Literally a hole-in-the-wall, Egg is more famous for its breakfast/brunch fare than other items. All ingredients used are fresh, local and/or organic. Paired with cheap prices, beware of the lines of wayfarer-wearing, bearded ruffians in skinny pants on weekends! By Hannah Lan Cafe Habana (in NOLITA) 17 Prince St., at Elizabeth St., 212-625-2002 If you’re hungry in the NoLita neighbourhood, definitely check out this awesome, cramped and boisterous old school diner/restaurant specializing in Mexican and South American food.
Shopping
Century 21 Timing: 7:45 am – 9:30 pm Address: 22 Cortlandt Street (between Church and Broadway), 212-227-9092 This place keeps getting suggested to us whenever we ask about where to shop in New York and every-thing we read about this place seems only to confirm its popularity. This is the discount brand names store that Winners can never be (loser!). An old converted bank, with tons of aisles, apparently, this place is so packed on weekends that it’s been discouraged for claustrophobics. Everything from Armani ties to shoes, bags and dresses are for sale at up to 75% off, so um, knock yourself out (though apparently someone else will gladly do so to get that Coach handbag). To get a (hilarious) idea of what its like, check out the reviews in www.yelp.com/biz/century-21-new-york when you get home.
Beacon’s Closet Timing; 12pm-9pm Address: 88 n. 11th st., btwn. Berry and Wythe, Brooklyn Beacon’s Closet in Williamsburg holds a treasure trove of vintage/designer clothing in extremely good condition. The online store alone shows a number of designer finds for the price of drinks and a meal for two at the Victory Café. The best part about the store is that it works on the concept of a clothing exchange, and regularly buy used items from your hands in exchange for 35% cash or a credit towards anything in the store for 55% of the price they will sell your item at. The popularity of the store has generated a large volume of pre-sorted clothing that is regularly donated to not for profit organizations in addition to regular cash donations to local charities. By Hannah Lan
Uniqlo Timing; 10am-9pm Address: 546 Broadway, and by extension SoHo/NoLita SoHo and NoLita are definitely areas that I would go to for chic and forward looking fashion pieces to enhance your wardrobe. 5th Avenue is great for all of your big budget designer needs, but this area is brimming with fashion statements that go outside of the box and have a more contemporary design-based aesthetic. There are a lot of newly established labels that set up shop here, and the trick is to keep your eye out for the stores that may just be on the 4th floor of a brownstone with only a hanging sign on the street to guide you. A huge 3story Uniqlo store between Spring and Prince St. remains the Japanese brand’s sole North American location and sells great staple pieces with a quirk. Check out the instore deals – when I was there last year jeans were 50% off in a variety of really flattering fits. By Hannah Lan
Printed Matter Timing: Thursday - Saturday 11 AM - 7 PM Address: 195 10th Avenue at 22nd Street, 212 925 0325 We’ve covered regular museums, science museums and even photography museums here, but how about that favorite form (of mine), printed material. Printed Matter is the world's largest organization dedicated to the promotion of publications made by artists. I love how they state themselves as a ‘for profit’ organization – designed by artists to sell their books, zines and comics. Their library contains over 15,000 books and 5,000 zines and hosts the legendary ‘Conceptual Comics’ collections (curated by AA Bronson). This year, Thurston Moore, guitarist for Sonic Youth and one-time Printed Matter employee, is one of the guest curators and will be showcasing works (for purchase).
Superhero Supply Store 372 Fifth Ave. Brooklyn NY This kitchy shop is a little far away from other notable tourist hot spots in Manhattan and its appeal tends towards a younger demographic or at least younger at heart. But if you ever had superhero daydreams as a child or even still harbour such flights of fancy it might be worth checking out. They sell capes, grappling hooks, utility belts (new and vintage), masks, tights, deflector bracelets, bottles of chaos and anti-gravity, secret identity kits, and more. And the best part is that the proceeds go to a non-profit charitable organization that provides free drop-in tutoring, after-school workshops, in-schools tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications. By Alex Alton
Music BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC (BAM) 30 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn Founded in 1861, BAM is one of the city’s most eminent center for progressive and avant garde performing arts May 7
(Theater) The Merchant of Venice, BAM Harvey Theater, 7:30 PM (Artist Talks) Propeller on The Merchant of Venice (post show) (Cinema) Autumn Tale (Conte d’automne) with Le Lion volatile, BAM Rose Cinemas, 4:30, 6:50, 9:30pm (Exhibitions) Leo Villareal: Stars (Ongoing) (Music) ETHEL with Gutbucket: The Monsters’ Ship (La Nave De Los Monstruos), 8 PM
May 8
(Theater) The Merchant of Venice, BAM Harvey Theater, 7:30 PM (Cinema) Le Garcu, BAM Rose Cinemasm, 4:30, 9:40pm (Music), Jade Simmons, BAMcafé , 9:30pm
May 9
(Theater) The Merchant of Venice, BAM Harvey Theater, 3:00 PM (Cinema) The Company, BAM Rose Cinemas, 6:50pm (Cinema) After the Rehearsal (Efter repetitionen), BAM Rose Cinemas, 4:30, 9:15pm (Music) Femi Shiri, BAMcafé, 9:30pm
CARNEGIE HALL 57th Street and Seventh Avenue The legendary Carnegie Hall, one of New York’s largest buildings built entirely of masonry (no frame) is as prestigious as a music venue as it gets. May 7 – 10 (8:00 PM) - Mahler’s Symphony No 4 conducted by Pierre Boulez (yeah that Pierre Boulez), $43 - $136
JULLIARD SCHOOL 60 Lincoln Center Plaza I love coming to the Julliard School to listen to music. One of North America’s most prestigious music and performance schools (with a 6.44% application acceptance), some of the world’s greatest musicians have learnt and played here. Listed below are a series of recitals where you can catch these people FOR FREE before you have fork over $50 dollars to hear them. May 7
Christine Lamprea and Hannah Sloane, Cellos, Morse Hall, 6:00 PM Jiayan Sun and Xin Tong, Pianos, Paul Hall, 6:00 PM Allegra Lilly, Harp, Paul Hall, 8:00 PM Double Vision VIII, Room 309, 8:00 PM
May 8
Dina Nesterenko, Violin, Paul Hall, 6:00 PM Ben Capps, Cello, Morse Hall, 6:00 PM William Shakespeare: Othello, Stephanie P. McClelland Drama Theater, 8:00 PM Allison Leiah Job, Double Bass, Paul Hall, 8:00 PM
May 9
William Shakespeare: Othello, Stephanie P. McClelland Drama Theater, 2:00 PM William Shakespeare: Love's Labour's Lost, Stephanie P. McClelland Drama Theater, 8:00 PM Joshua Firer, Bassoon, Morse Hall, 8:30 PM Michael Brown, Composition, Paul Hall, 8:30 PM
LINCOLN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS 70 Lincoln Center Plaza Ah the Lincoln Centre! A 16.3 acre complex made up 12 arts organizations (including the Julliard school above) – this is the place to get your culture fix in New York. Listed below are some of the events happening in the different centres. Be forewarned, you need quite a bit of good luck to find all the spaces – I couldn’t find a map of complex anywhere. If you’re heart set on seeing an event, go early. Lincoln Centre for Performing Arts: Film Society of Lincoln Center / Walter Reade Theater May 07, 2:15 PM Red Psalm / Még kér a nép May 07, 4:15 PM Silence and Cry / Csend és kiáltás May 07, 6:00 PM The Round-Up / Szegénylegények May 07, 8:00 PM, Wham! Bam! Islam! May 09, 8:30 PM Lock Out
Avery Fisher Hall May 07, 7:30 PM , New York Philharmonic, Mahler's Symphony No. 1, May 08, 8:00 PM , New York Philharmonic, Mahler's Symphony No. 1 Metropolitan Opera House May 07, 6:00 PM, Ring Cycle 3 / Wagner (prod. Otto Schenk, cond. James Levine) May 08, 8:00 PM, Il Trovatore / Verdi May 09, 12:30 PM, La Cenerentola (Cinderalla)
New York City Ballet (David H. Koch Theater) May 07, 8:00 PM, Balanchine/Preljocaj, Mozart/Divertimento No. 15: (Classical) For Divertimento No. 15 May 08, 8:00 PM Balanchine/Preljocaj, ‘The Four Temperaments’ / La Stravaganza / Chaconne: May 9, 2:30 PM Balanchine/Ratmansky, Scotch Symphony / Tarantella / Monumentum pro Gesualdo / Movements for Piano and Orchestra May 9, 8:00 PM All Balanchine
Listings Issue Project Room 232 3rd St., Brooklyn, NY 11231, 718-330-0313 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, Glenn Branca
The Jazz Gallery 290 Hudson St, between Dominick and Spring Sts, Soho (212-242-1063) Fri, Sat 9pm, 10:30pm, Positive Catastrophe
Roseland Ballroom 239 W. 52nd St., New York, NY 10019, 212-247-0200 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, Franz Ferdinand Fri., May 8, 7:00pm, 'No Fear Energy Music Tour'
Stanton Public 17 Stanton St., New York, NY 10002, 212-677-5555 Thursday, 9:00pm Know Your Product Friday, 10:00pm Control!
Village Vanguard 178 Seventh Ave South, between Perry and W 11th Sts, West Village (212-255-4037) Thu, Fri, Sat May 7,8,9, 11:00pm, Brad Mehldau Trio
Public Assembly 70 North 6th St, between Kent and Wythe Aves, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-384-4586) Friday, 10:00pm, Flashing Lights Thu., May 7, 9:00pm, Japandroid Fri., May 8, 8:00pm, 'Brooklynola' Sat., May 9, 8:00pm, Public Assembly Thu, May 7 9pm, The Beets
Monkey Town 58 N 3rd St., Brooklyn, NY 11211, 718-384-1369 Thu., May 7, 10:30pm, Dunes+Effi Briest Fri., May 8, 11:00pm, Trans-Love Energies Sat., May 9, 7:30pm, Muvi+Phila7 B.B. King Blues Club & Grill 237 W 42nd St., New York, NY 10036, 212-997-4144 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, Boyz II Men Mercury Lounge 217 E Houston St., New York, NY 10002, 212-260-4700 Thu., May 7, 7:30pm, Cut Off Your Hands+the So-So Glos Fri., May 8, 8:30pm, Mike Watt & the Missingmen Sat., May 9, 7:00pm, Adam Ezra Group+Field Theory The Stone Avenue C at East 2nd Street, New York, NY 10009 Thu., May 7, 10:00pm, The Demian Richardson Quartet Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, Joe McPhee & Jay Rosen Duo Fri., May 8, 8:00pm, Cooper-Moore's Second Spring Acoustic-Electric Trio Sat., May 9, 8:00pm, Lucky Dragons Sat., May 9, 10:00pm, Pauline Oliveros Birdland 315 W 44th St, between Eighth and Ninth Aves, Midtown West (212-581-3080) Friday, 5:15pm, Birdland Big Band Thu, Fri, Sat., 11:00pm, David Murray Quartet Mehanata Bulgarian Bar 113 Ludlow, New York, NY 10002, 212-625-0981 Thursday, 9:00pm DJ Hutz Friday, 9:00pm Grand Masters of Gypsy Music Friday, 10:00pm Bulgarian Chalga Party Friday, 11:00pm DJ Poodlecannon
Union Pool 484 Union Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11211, 718-609-0484 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, Extra Life+Nat Baldwin+Rain Machine Fri., May 8, 8:00pm, 'Voodoo Funk Party' Sat., May 9, 8:00pm, Big Business+Tweakbird Music Hall of Williamsburg 66 N 6th St., Brooklyn, NY 11211, 718-486-5400 Thu., May 7, 9:00pm, Fischerspooner Fri., May 8, 9:00pm, Ben Harper & Relentless7 Sat., May 9, 9:00pm, Ghost+Magik Markers Pianos 158 Ludlow St., New York, NY 10002, 212-505-3733 Thu., May 7, 7:00pm, Gigi Fouquet+Eleanor Whitmore+the Prigs+Alexis Thursday, 11:00pm, Broken Keys Thursday, 10:00pm, Fleetweek Fri., May 8, 8:00pm,Matamoros+Mamarazzi+Thought Sat., May 9, 9:00pm, Dirty Excuse+Hooray for Goodbye+GSX+Vero Webster Hall 125 E 11th St., New York, NY 10003, 212-353-1600 Thu., May 7, 6:00pm, Junior Boys, Bryan Scary & the Shredding Tears+ the Heavenly States, Trouble Andrew Fri., May 8, 7:00pm, Fischerspooner Sat., May 9, 7:00pm, The Crystal Method Sat., May 9, 7:00pm , OFFONOFF+Orange Tulip Conspiracy+Jerseyband Bowery Ballroom Thu., May 7, 7:00pm Lydia+Owl City+Swimming with Dolphins Lit Lounge 93 Second Ave, between 5th and 6th Sts, East Village (212-777-7987) Thu., May 7, 9:00pm, Manawi Thorn etc. Thu, May 7, 11:00pm, NC-17 Fri, May 8, 10pm, pow wow!
Cleopatra's Needle 2485 Broadway, New York, NY 10025, 212-769-6969 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm Masami Ishikawa Trio
Arlene's Grocery 95 Stanton St., New York, NY 10002, 212-358-1633 Fri., May 8, 7:00pm, Cyclone+Playboys of the Western World+the Afterbangs
Canal Room 285 W Broadway, New York, NY 10013, 212-941-8100 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm Meiko+Cory Chisel & the Wandering Sons Friday, 11:00pm, Freedom Party
The Lovin' Cup Cafe 93 N. 6th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211, 718-302-1180 Fri., May 8, 8:00pm, Cymbals Eat Guitars+Japandroids+Drink Up Buttercup
Drom 85 Ave. A, New York, NY 10009,(212) 777-1157 Thu., May 7, 7:30pm NAKANAKA Nokia Theatre Times Square 1515 Broadway, New York, NY 10036, 212-930-1950 Thu., May 7, 8:00pm, UB40 Fri., May 8, 8:30pm, The Tragically Hip (le) poisson rouge 158 Bleecker St., New York, NY 10012,212-796-0741 Thu., May 7, 10:00pm, Wale Thursday, 11:00pm, ?uestlove's the FANtastic Fri., May 8, 11:30pm, Celebration+Psychic Ills Fri., May 8, 7:30pm, Christopher Tignor Sat., May 9, 9:00pm, Crooked Disco S.O.B.'s 204 Varick St., New York, NY 10014, 212-243-4940 Thu., July 17, 7:00pm, Basement Bhangra Rose Live Music 345 Grand St., Brooklyn, NY 11211,718-599-0069 Thu., January 24, 10:00pm, 'Brooklyn Freestyle Sessions' Cielo 18 Little W 12th St., New York, NY 10014, 212-645-5700 Thursday, 10:00pm, Dance.Here.Now.
The Market Hotel 1142 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11221 Fri., May 8, 9:00pm, Magnet City Kids+Prince Rama of Ayodha+Truman Peyote Ibeam 168 7th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215 Fri., May 8, 9:00pm, Pink Brown+Blood Vision St. George Theatre 35 Hyatt St, at Central Ave, Staten Island (Other) (718-442-2900) Thu, May 7, 8:00 pm, The B-52’s + The 88 Rodeo Bar 375 Third Ave, at 27th St, Gramercy/Flatiron (212-683-6500) Thu 10pm, The Chandler Travis Philharmonic Sycamore 1118 Coretlyou Rd, between Stratford and Westminster Rds, Flatbush, Brooklyn (347-240-5850) Thu 8:30pm, Chris Brokaw with Dave Lerner The Kitchen 512 W 19th St, between Tenth and Eleventh Aves, Chelsea (212-255-5793) Fri–Sat 8pm, Elliott Sharp: Binibon Cornelia Street Cafe 29 Cornelia St, between Bleecker and W 4th Sts, West Village (212-989-9319) Thu 8:30pm, Gnu Vox: Theo Bleckmann and Ben Monder + Cyminology
Southpaw 125 Fifth Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11215, 718-230-0236 Fri., May 8, 8:00pm, ‘Friday Night Fever' Sat., May 9, 10:00pm, Dub Is a Weapon+Majestic Twinsound
Blue Note 131 W 3rd St, between MacDougal St and Sixth Ave, Greenwich Village (212-475-8592) Fri–Sun 8pm, 10:30pm, James Carter with John Medeski, Adam Rogers, Christian McBride and Joey Baron
The Delancey 168 Delancey, New York, NY 10002, 212-254-9920 Thursday, 8:30pm, 'Small Beast Music Salon'
Galapagos Art Space 16 Main St, at Water St, Dumbo, Brooklyn (718-222-8500) Fri 10pm, Undiscovered Islands with Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society
Love 40 W 8th St., New York, NY 10011, 212-477-5683 Fri., May 8, 9:30pm, CassetteNYC 2 Year Anniversary Sat., May 9, 10:00pm, DJ Harvey
United Palace Theatre 4140 Broadway, at 175th St, Washington Heights (212-685-1414) Sat 8pm, Ismael Miranda’s 40 Years in Music
Bell House 149 7th St., Brooklyn, NY 11215 , 718-643-6510 Fri., May 8, 7:30pm, Crystal Stilts+Blank Dogs+Religious Knives
University of Toronto Arts Collective, 2009