The best things to do in NYC this weekend

This year's Gov Ball is set to take place from June 6 to 8 at Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Festival alumnus Tyler, The Creator will kick things off on Friday night alongside a slew of other acts, including Benson Boone, The Beaches, Tyla and T-Pain.

Pop star Olivia Rodrigo is set to be the headliner on Saturday, when the likes of Feid, Glasshouse, Marina and The Garden will also perform. Irish singer-songwriter Hozier will then wrap it all up on Sunday night. Glass Animals, Mt. Joy, Mark Ambor and Snow Wife are some of the other artists scheduled to take the stage on the last day of the festival. Tickets start at $179.

If your weekend plans don’t already include a brass band, flower-making and hand-rolled ice cream—all under the glow of a Hudson River sunset—Wave Hill is about to change that.

From Thursday, June 5 through Sunday, June 8, the Bronx’s beloved public garden is throwing itself a 60th anniversary bash that’s anything but stuffy. Over four packed days, the 28-acre estate will be abloom with live music, interactive workshops, storytelling, open-air cocktails and the kind of family programming that makes kids and grown-ups equally giddy.

Strap in, NYC. The world’s fastest sailboats are skimming into town for a waterfront spectacle like no other. SailGP, the globe-hopping, wind-powered championship often dubbed “Formula 1 on water,” drops anchor at Governors Island on June 7 and 8 for the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix, a two-day summer launch party disguised as a sailing race.

Twelve national teams will face off in a blur of spray and speed aboard identical F50 foiling catamarans—sleek, high-tech vessels that fly across the water at over 60mph (that’s faster than the wind, if you’re keeping score). Unlike traditional regattas, SailGP brings the action right up to shore, with grandstand seating giving fans front-row views just yards from the course.

Whether you're a sailing buff or just here for the vibes, this is one NYC weekend you don’t want to miss. Tickets to the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix are available at SailGP.com/NewYork.

This summer, the New York Botanical Garden invites New Yorkers to step into the world of Vincent van Gogh—not through a frame on a museum wall, but through fields of sunflowers, sweeping bursts of color and sculptural still lifes that bloom around you. Van Gogh’s Flowers, on view through October 26, transforms the Garden’s 250 acres into a kaleidoscopic celebration of the artist’s lifelong obsession with nature.

This isn’t just a flower show. The exhibition brings Van Gogh’s expressive canvases off the wall and into the wild, pairing his iconic works with contemporary interpretations and living installations.

Whether you’re a lifelong Van Gogh fan, an avid gardener or just looking for a dose of color and calm, Van Gogh’s Flowers offers a lush, unforgettable journey into the mind of an artist who saw beauty in every petal.

Tap your toes and enjoy the music at the 14th Annual Blue Note Jazz Festival, with performances running through July 2. The festival pops up at major venues across NYC including Sony Hall, Town Hall, National Sawdust, and SummerStage in Central Park. 

This year's performances include: Santigold, Rosali, Brandee Younger, Emily King, Saba, Mohini Dey, Willie Nile, Jesus Molina, and The World Famous Harlem Gospel Choir. Also hear tributes to the Buena Vista Social Club, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles and much more.

Here's the full lineup with ticketing info. 

You can set your watch by how reliably awesome the annual BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival is. All BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! shows take place at the beautiful bandshell in Prospect Park, a scenic amphitheater surrounded by trees. Catching one of these gigs is guaranteed to be a highlight of your summer show-going season, no matter what musical genre genre you're into.

This year's lineup highlights "the diverse cultures that make Brooklyn a global music hub, featuring artists whose work transcends borders and celebrates the exchange of ideas," event organizers say. Here's a full listing of all the shows.

The dates for BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! are June 7 to August 16, 2025.

Giant puppets, reggaeton bands, salsa dancers, and floats will take over Fifth Avenue in Manhattan this Sunday for the National Puerto Rican Day Parade. More than a million people typically participate in and attend the parade, making it the largest demonstration of cultural pride in the nation. An iconic institution for over half a century, the parade seeks to raise awareness of Puerto Rican culture and history and highlight the community’s contributions to the world. 

The parade is on Sunday, June 8, 2025, and kicks off at 11am. The parade route typically marches along Fifth Avenue from 44th Street to 79th Street in Manhattan.

Now returning for a third year, the initiative is coming back this June, continuing to promote Hispanic and Latin cuisine across the diaspora.  

Latin Restaurant Week is coming back to New York City from June 6 to June 20. For over two weeks, 15 bars and restaurants across New York City and New Jersey will be participating in the festivities, offering delectable specials from prix fixe menus to discounted deals. 

Check out the Latin Restaurant Week website for more information. Buen provecho!  

Shop 'til you drop at FAD Market, a curated fashion, art and design pop-up marketplace, which is back for 2025. Expect to see your favorite makers plus brand new creatives to help you live smarter, gift better and support local businesses. 

FAD—which stands for Fashion, Art and Design—takes over different venues with a horde of independent vendors and creators. Admission is free and dogs are welcome!

This weekend, on June 8, the market pops up at Open Streets on Montague.

The official marker of summer is back. And, yes, we mean drinking outside.

Torch & Crown Brewing Company has taken over part of Union Square Park for its summertime pop-up: Torch & Crown Beer Garden. For its third season in a row, the brewery is bringing its lineup of locally-made beers and bites to the square now through early November. Commandeering the historic Union Square Pavilion and the square surrounding it, the indoor-outdoor space welcomes all (even dogs!) to enjoy the festivities no matter the weather. The seasonal venue is the brewery's only offshoot outside of its operation in SoHo.  

Just when you thought summer nightlife in New York had peaked, Tao Group Hospitality is taking it way higher. Literally.

The legendary nightlife brand behind Marquee is launching Marquee Skydeck, a pop-up party series perched 1,100 feet above Manhattan at Edge, the city’s highest indoor/outdoor observation deck. Every Friday and Saturday through September, the 21-plus series will feature headlining DJs, sky-high energy and panoramic views more jaw-dropping than current NYC rent prices.

Tickets are on sale now at MarqueeNY.com, with DJ lineups and surprises still to come.

On this in-person walking tour, dig into the secrets of Lower Manhattan: a treasure trove of mysteries, obscurities, and hidden history waiting to be unearthed. Discover the lesser-known backstory, hidden gems, and untold secrets of this neighborhood. Whether you're an NYC local or a visitor, you'll learn lots about the city's time under Dutch rule, revolutionary history, and incredible works of art. Without ever leaving Manhattan, this tour will transport you to Ireland, Germany, and the Netherlands.

Time Out's very own Things to Do Editor Rossilynne Culgan will serve as your guide. Your $35 ticket includes the 90-minute walking tour and a signed copy of Culgan's book "Secret New York City: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure." Books can be personalized upon request.

Register here for tours on Saturday, June 7; Saturday, June 21; Sunday, June 22; Saturday, July 12; Saturday, August 2; and Saturday, September 6.

Jean Smart (Hacks) moves to extend her recent cultural dominance into relatively uncharted territory for her—the Broadway stage—as a rural Louisiana woman with a secret in this darkly comic one-woman play by the writer, actor and erstwhile CBS News correspondent Jamie Wax.

The production is Smart's first Broadway role since her Tony-nominated turn in the 2000 revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner; prior to that, her only Broadway credit was a brief turn as Marlene Dietrich in the 1981 bioplay Piaf. Sarna Lapine (Sunday in the Park with George) directs the world premiere. 

Coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the artist’s death, the Metropolitan Museum of Art's new exhibition Sargent and Paris features approximately 100 works of art from the titular creator John Singer Sargent. It's the largest international exhibition of Sargent’s work since 1998. The sprawling exhibition spans his arrival in Paris in 1874 as a talented 18-year-old art student through the mid-1880s, when his infamous portrait Madame X (1883-1884) scandalized Parisian salons.

On view through August 2, the retrospective will include paintings, watercolors, drawings and numerous preparatory sketches, which will be displayed alongside select portraits of Parisiennes by Sargent’s contemporaries.

A sun-soaked dream – okay, nightmare – of a midnight movie, this Australian survival horror asks the question: what if Steve Irwin was basically the devil?

The answer would probably look a lot like Jai Courtney’s shark dive owner Tucker, a brawny bogan who takes backpackers and tourists onto his rusty old boat to enthusiastically introduce them to the bull sharks, makos and great whites that swim off the Gold Coast.

It takes a steady hand to pull off a horror film as outlandish as Dangerous Animals – a movie, lest we forget, that is literally about dangerous animals – but the film has pulled off something slick and confident here. It’ll keep horror fans out of the water for years. 

Dangerous Animals premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. It’s in US cinemas June 6.

Nordic traditions meet the New York art scene at this exciting new exhibition at Scandinavia House. On view through Saturday, August 2, Nordic Echoes–Tradition in Contemporary Art brings together 55 works by 24 contemporary artists who reinterpret and evolve Nordic folk traditions in the U.S. The exhibition will also be accompanied by a slate of artist talks, workshops, films and live music.

With featured artists including Bill Amundson, Talon Cavender-Wilson, Maeve Gathje, Ketil "K.J." Groven, Jess Hirsch, Gene and Lucy Tokheim, among others, the exhibition explores how Nordic heritage has been reshaped by generations living in the Upper Midwest. From Robin Carlson’s reinterpretation of the Norwegian skinnfeld as a full-sized buffalo hide to Lisa Wiitala’s ryijy (Finnish pile rugs) honoring local berries to Talon Wilson’s metalwork bridging his training in Swedish blacksmithing with his Dakota lineage, the show reveals how traditional techniques have endured and remained vibrant in the present, rather than exist as static relics of the past.

A lush Korean forest is now growing in the Meatpacking District—figuratively at least. "The Forest Within," an immersive exhibition, is open for free at Genesis House through June 29. 

With a focus on wellness, none other than wellness guru and goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow put her personal stamp on the experience. She helped to design and develop the exhibition with renowned floral designer Jeff Leatham. Paltrow even narrates the journey, which follows a tiger through a flourishing sanctuary reminiscent of the Sobaek Mountains.

"The Forest Within" is on view now through June 29. It's free to visit with no reservations required. Find it at Genesis House (40A 10th Ave. in the Meatpacking District). 

What does it mean to be American? That's the question a new immersive art exhibition in Manhattan seeks to answer. 

Called "Path of Liberty: That Which Unites US," this installation takes over six acres in Midtown East with massive screens sharing the voices of 50 Americans from across the nation. You'll hear their thoughts on democracy, liberty, freedom and unity. Path of Liberty is free to visit with reservations available here. The exhibition opens as America approaches the 250th anniversary of its founding, which will be celebrated in 2026.  

Find "Path of Liberty: That Which Unites US" on Manhattan’s East Side from 38th to 41st Street along First Avenue. It's open free of charge every Thursday through Saturday from 8-11pm.

If there was ever a reason to trek to Times Square, this is it: a massive, 12-foot tall bronze sculpture of a young woman by figurative artist Thomas J. Price was just installed in the area, on the north side of Duffy Square on Broadway and 46th Street facing 47th Street. It will be on display through June 17.

The public art piece is part of a series called "Grounded in the Stars," which "confronts preconceived notions of identity and representation," according to Times Square's website. 

Anchored by a wide base, the woman in Grounded with the Stars invites passersby to gawk and engage—standing in stark contrast to Duffy Square’s two other permanent statues, both of men. Unlike those, she wears everyday clothes, her stance a subtle nod to Michelangelo’s David.

Haters look away now because Wes Anderson’s twelfth film, The Phoenician Scheme, offers everything we’ve come to expect from cinema’s most meticulous auteur: quirky dialogue, plaid-and-stripe costumes, and a roster of cameos arranged as carefully as one of his colour palettes. He’s a director whose visual artistry and hyper-stylised, analogue worlds are celebrated from the Pompidou in Paris to London’s Design Museum, why would we expect him to change his immaculate spots at this stage?

Here, Anderson doubles down on the vignette structures of The French Dispatch – not everyone’s glass of pastis – while giving his pack a shuffle. Watching this Anderson extravaganza is like assembling a meticulously detailed puzzle: at times frustrating, but deeply rewarding when the full picture comes together. 

The Phoenician Scheme premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. It's in theaters now.

On Sunday mornings at 11am in Manhattan, GatherNYC creates the community and spiritual nourishment of a religious service, but the focus here is music. All are welcome at these hour-long performances of classical music by celebrated local artists. Coffee and pastries are included in the ticket price.

These upcoming events are held at the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) in Columbus Circle. Shows are scheduled through June 2025. Here’s what’s on the calendar:

• June 8: Orpheus and Boyd Meets Girl

We're calling it: Spaghett is the drink of the summer. And no, it has nothing to do with spaghetti—though with pepperoni martinis trending, maybe we’re onto something. 

This humble three-ingredient bev consists of Miller High Life, an Italian apéritif and a squirt of lemon juice. Think of it as a more affordable take on an Aperol Spritz, originally created by Reed Cahill of Wet City Brewery in Baltimore. It’s light, fruity, slightly tart and made effervescent by the Champagne of Beers. It tastes like a beach day in a bottle. And in this economy, it might just be the summer savior we need. 

Intrigued? You’re in luck. Join Miller High Life and Brooklyn’s own Faccia Brutto Spirits for their Spaghett Crawl this Sunday in Bushwick. The sip-and-stroll kicks off at 2pm at Three Diamond Door, heads to Vacations Bar at 3:15pm and wraps with a 20-minute jaunt to The Anchored Inn starting at 5pm. The beertail will be $7 at each spot. 

Your Friday commute through Times Square might get a little... spinny this summer.

That’s because SPIN Midtown, the legendary ping pong social club known for mixing paddles with party vibes, is setting up shop right in the center of the city, offering free outdoor ping pong every Friday from 4 to 7 pm all summer long. And yes, everything’s included: paddles, balls, tables, and a neon-soaked, skyscraper-lined backdrop that’s hard to beat.

The pop-up takes place smack in the middle of the Times Square pedestrian plaza, between 46th and 50th Streets, transforming the tourist crossroads into a full-on ping pong playground. The weekly series runs through Friday, August 29.

This thriller "from the world of John Wick" has been a long time in the making: over three years since its leading lady was announced and eight since the script was first optioned following reshoots and reports that franchise creator Chad Stahelski took an active hand alongside director Len Wiseman. Happily, it emerges at last with enough inventive action to stand alongside its murderous predecessors, and makes Ana de Armas into a likeable assassin hero—a phrase that makes more sense in her killer-filled world than our own.

It helps that de Armas, like Keanu Reeves, makes a convincing ass-kicker: not invincible and prone to error, as befits a beginner, but formidable when she sets her sights on a target. Where Wick is reluctantly returning to the fray, wounded by loss and grief, she’s all eagerness and rash enthusiasm, and must learn restraint. Well, some restraint. There are still flamethrowers to be fired up, after all, and idyllic mountain villages entirely peopled with murderers to be cleared out. This is a John Wick spinoff, after all.  

See it in theaters now.

After a four-year renovation, The Metropolitan Museum of Art has reopened its galleries dedicated to the arts of Africa, the Ancient Americas and Oceania. These historic galleries, housed within the Michael C. Rockefeller Wing, are packed with 1,800 artworks spanning five continents and hundreds of cultures. 

Inside the galleries, you’ll find several objects on view for the first time, including new acquisitions of contemporary African works and new commissions by Indigenous artists for the Oceania galleries. Also don’t miss a gallery dedicated to light-sensitive ancient Andean textiles, which is the first of its kind in the United States. 

If you’ve ever walked down a Harlem block or past Fulton Street and thought, “Damn, that’s a look,” you already understand the heart of “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s razor-sharp spring exhibition that puts the precision, politics and poetry of Black menswear on full, unapologetic display. Let’s just say it: this is one of the Met’s coolest shows in years.

When in need of a mental break, get yourself to Madison Square Park to walk along a new meditative spiral pathway aptly dubbed "Gardens of Renewal." Located across the park’s Redbud and Sparrow Lawns, the new path is a beautifully landscaped spiral that invites reflection while highlighting the political urgency of the climate crisis.

As visitors walk through, they’ll encounter a planting palette made up of increasingly rare—and nearly disappearing—native species. Artist Lily Kwong (you may remember her from her gorgeous orchid show a few years ago) collaborated with the Madison Square Park Conservancy to create the destination, which will be accessible through Labor Day. 

While most art exhibits in New York City keep you at a distance, the Museum of Modern Art invites you to get closer at its new Hilma af Klint exhibit, “What Stands Behind the Flowers.”

These 46 drawings, which are incredibly intricate and show every petal, every fuzzy stem and every color she observed in nature around her studio, were created in 1919 and 1920—more than a decade after her breakout as an artist. In each drawing, you’ll find the date af Klint observed the plant, its scientific and common name and its spiritual qualities. Sometimes there are even drawings of living beings like a bee or an ant, for example. Because her art is so intricate in this collection, it’s important to get as close as you can.

Enjoy an afternoon tea amongst the flowers. In partnership with the New York Botanical Garden and its Van Gogh's Flowers exhibit, The Peninsula New York is holding an afternoon tea series that will be adorned with floral arrangements and present edible floral themed sweet and savory creations.

Expect sweet confections like scones served with a whimsical chocolate paintbrush, along with edible flower creations such as a chocolate and honey Sunflower, vanilla and custard Cherry Blossom, and a blueberry and almond sponge Lavender. Savory selections will feature “Potted Plants” with truffle dip, porcini soil, and lemon, along with a decadent Sunflower Seed Foie Gras on brioche and a Maine Lobster Roll. The menu is paired with a curated selection of fine floral teas and a glass of Peninsula Private Label Champagne.

Those who book the tea will get one ticket to the NYBG's exhibit. Book now for tea between 3 and 6pm on Tuesdays through Saturdays, through June 28. It's $135+ per person. Visit OpenTable or call The Peninsula New York at 212-903-3918 for reservations.

There’s a sculpture on the High Line right now that’s causing some folks to question the content of their Instagram feeds. Mika Rottenberg’s “Foot Fountain (pink)” sits in all its weird glory at the 30th Street entrance, sputtering out water from its rather phallic top.

“Foot Fountain (pink)” is a giant pink foot and lower leg that stands 10 feet tall and is peppered with tongues that stick out of lipsticked mouths. Its toenails are splashed with red nail polish, too. But the real kicker is the sculpture’s function: the working sprinkler on top can be activated by moving a set of pedals nearby, surprising or delighting passersby.

Rooftop Cinema Club takes movie-going to a whole new level—literally. This rooftop film series at a midtown skyscraper offers stunning views and an impressive lineup of films. 

In addition to the movie magic, the venue also offers movie snacks, a full bar and cute photo opps. This season features movies that will appeal to ‘90s kids, a Grease sing-along, Pride films, Wine Wednesdays and lots more. Here’s the full list of what’s coming to Rooftop Cinema Club’s big screen.

The foxtrot, lindy hop, salsa, hustle and vogue all have roots in New York City, whether they were born here, shaped here or popularized in the city’s clubs. A new exhibit at Museum of the City of New York turns the museum into a dance floor as it digs into the fascinating history and important role of these dances and more.

“Urban Stomp: Dreams & Defiance on the Dance Floor” celebrates 200 years of social dance in New York City. It highlights the city’s dance floors as sites for connection, creativity and joyful rebellion. You’ll get to see everything from 1800s-era ball gowns to Louis Armstrong’s trumpet to Celia Cruz’s shoes to Big Daddy Kane’s outfits. Plus, digital screens throughout the exhibition offer dance lessons—and it’s nearly impossible not to move your body when the music starts.

Grab your dancing shoes, and go see it now through February 22, 2026 in East Harlem.

One of the best live music venues in the city has announced its summer concerts schedule. Here's what's coming to the Rooftop at Pier 17 in the next month:

June 5 – Russell Dickerson
June 7 – Jack’s Mannequin
June 14 – Reggae Fest Blaze
June 25 – James Arthur
June 29 – 311

You can purchase tickets here or in-person at at the AXS Box Office at Pier 17.

The Brooklyn Flea's newest flea market returns to the underpass of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway along Meeker Avenue between Union and Lorimer Avenues. Every Sunday from 10am to 5pm, peruse a trunk-style market where vendors sell vintage finds, cool collectibles, and handmade goods right out of their cars, with a lineup curated by the people behind the beloved and renown Brooklyn Flea.

Along with being a great spot to hunt for hidden gems, the BQ Flea is also a perfect weekend stop for good local food and a lackback community vibe.

It’s hard to get good food on the cheap, but for ten years, Queens Night Market has prided itself on offering the city’s best eats for just $5-6.

Ranked one of the best food festivals in the U.S., the festival runs on Saturday nights through the spring and summer at the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. The foodie festival runs on Saturday nights through the summer at the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. 

There will also be other items sale besides food, including vintage apparel, handmade jewelry, ceramic products, locally produced art pieces, crochet toys, stationery, and much more.

With all of their colors, characters and over-the-top theatrics, carnivals and circuses have unsurprisingly served as artistic inspiration for centuries. And this spring, all of that under-the-big-top fun is fueling a subversive new exhibition, Carnival, curated by artist Joe Coleman and on view at Jeffrey Deitch's 18 Wooster Street gallery through June 28. The artists featured in the show—including Derrick Adamas, Jane Dickson, Mu Pan, Mr. Gorgeous, Walton Ford, KAWS and more—engage with themes of spectacle, expression and rebellion through their works.

"In this show, I explore the many forms that this expression takes—from the amazing banners produced for side shows and crime shows, the spectacular costumes of the burlesque house, the Mardi Gras, and the art parade," said Coleman. 

Midtown’s Garment District has been home to creativity and invention for decades and, now it's home to a massive metal sculpture that seems to be "growing" out of the cement.

Titled "New York Roots," the installation by Steve Tobin is the Garment District Alliance's latest public exhibit on the Broadway plazas between 39th and 40th Streets and 40th and 41st Streets. Seven sculptures invite you to weave in an out of their roots and "reflect on relationships, families and communities coming together for a shared purpose—just as roots intertwine to strengthen a tree," per the Alliance. 

See it through February 2026.

Portraits of American First Ladies typically don't tell us much about the personality of the person. Maybe we can see a steely determination in her eyes or get a sense of her style, but we don’t learn much about who she is. Amy Sherald’s portrait of Michelle Obama changed all of that by focusing on the essence of the subject.

You can now see this iconic portrait and many other renowned works by Sherald in a new exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art located in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The exhibition, titled “Amy Sherald: American Sublime” is open through August 10, 2025. With nearly 50 paintings, it’s the most comprehensive exhibition of the American artist’s work, which includes a portrait of Breonna Taylor, as well as paintings that center everyday Black Americans. 

The Folio Society will mark nearly 80 years of extraordinary art and illustration with The Art of Folio, a landmark exhibition at the Society of Illustrators' Museum of Illustration. It's the first time Folio has brought its archive and artistry to NYC in this way, celebrating nearly eight decades of exceptional book art with works from 91 celebrated illustrators including Yuko Shimizu, Sam Weber, the Balbusso twins, Jamaal Barber, and Omar Rayyan.

At the heart of the show is a centennial tribute to The Great Gatsby, with Shimizu's newly illustrated edition having debuted this spring. Spanning multiple genres—from sci-fi to YA to contemporary classics—the exhibit will offer a rich narrative of how illustration continues to evolve in the publishing world.

It's free to visit through July 12 at Society of Illustrators on the Upper East Side (Lexington and 63rd). 

Even if you don't know how to play music, it’s practically impossible not to reach out and strum or pluck the strings when an instrument appears in front of you—or at the very least, expect that a musician will appear to play it. That’s what makes these new abstract artworks by Jennie C. Jones so mind-bending. 

Three massive instrument sculptures now sit on the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s rooftop in Jones’ latest work titled “Ensemble.” But only one of the instruments makes sound when it’s activated by the wind. The other two don’t make sound at all, even though they’re capable of doing so. That's exactly the point. Instead, their potential for sound and the tension between dormancy and activation is where they hold power. Go see these cool sculptures on the Met’s gorgeous rooftop through October 19.

Step into the vibrant world of Lorenzo Homar, a pioneering printmaker, poster designer, calligrapher, painter, illustrator, caricaturist, and theatrical set designer. Homar's poster work is the subject of an exhibit at Poster House titled "Puerto Rico in Print: The Posters of Lorenzo Homar" on view through September 7, 2025. 

Es-pranza Humphrey, assistant curator of collections at Poster House, describes Homar as "the father of the Puerto Rican poster." Homar was active from the 1950s through the 1990s, and few artists equal his impact and influence as a teacher of poster design and printmaking in Latin America.

His work reflected the complex history of Puerto Rico, encompassing elements of Taíno, Spanish, and African cultures as well as the rising tensions between tradition and modernity under the Luis Muñoz Marín government.

If you're a diehard fan of seeing Tom Cruise hanging dangerously off of a cliff or out of a helicopter or from the side of a skyscraper, this is the museum exhibit for you.

Now through December 14, Museum of the Moving Image (MoMI) in Astoria is celebrating the pop-culture phenomenon that is the Mission: Impossible film franchise with Mission: Impossible—Story and Spectacle, an exhibition that immerses visitors in the remarkable stunts and key dramatic moments of the decade-spanning series. Sections of the exhibition will be devoted to each film in the series, spotlighting each title's mind-boggling stuntwork and action sequences as well as behind-the-scenes content of how it all came together onscreen. 

The team behind the lovely, Tony-winning musical The Band's Visit—book writer Itamar Moses, composer David Yazbek and director David Cromer, now joined by songwriter Erik Della Penna—reunites to tell the very weird story of Elmer McCurdy: a Wild West outlaw whose corpse toured the country for decades as a side-show mummy.

The show's Off Broadway premiere last year earned it multiple prizes, includes the Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Musical; the cast for the Broadway transfer has not yet been announced.

The Signature gives Hadestown a run for its money with a different reworking of the classic Greek myth of underworld journeys: Sarah Ruhl's 2003 drama, which shifts the story's emphasis from Orpheus's disastrous restrospection to focus on Eurydice's relationship with her dead father.

Famous daughter Maya Hawke plays the title role, joined by Brian d'Arcy James, Caleb Eberhardt and T. Ryder Smith in the other principal roles and a trio of three-named actors—Maria Elena Ramirez, David Ryan Smith and Jon Norman Schneider—as the chorus of stones.

Smorgasburg, the food bazaar spectacular, is back with dozens of great local vendors across three locations. Smorgasburg WTC runs on Fridays; Williamsburg is on Saturdays; and Prospect Park is on Sundays. Each location is open weekly through October. 

For its 15th year of outdoor food and fun, Smorgasburg will showcase more than 70 vendors. The food festival will be filled with fragrant Ethiopian stews, Hawaii-style street comforts, explosive pani puri, potato puff poutine and lots more.

Ahead of The Handmaid’s Tale finale, The Paley Museum in midtown is hosting an immersive exhibit featuring the costumes, artifacts and props from the Emmy Award-winning show. See it through Sunday, June 8.

At the Paley Museum, “The Legacy of The Handmaid’s Tale: June’s Evolution from Handmaid to Rebel” will put you face-to-face with its costumes, including June's iconic red handmaid’s dress, cloak and white winged bonnet and Serena Joy Waterford’s haunting teal dress, as well as costumes worn by other pivotal characters. You’ll also get to see Commander Waterford’s Scrabble board, Nichole’s doll from Nick, June’s Boston map and June’s terrifying Handmaid muzzle.

Forget the 14-hour flight from NYC to Tokyo, you can now discover the tastes of Japan with just a short subway ride to JAPAN Fes. The massive annual food festival just announced its 2025 dates, and the schedule is packed with events.

The organization is hosting nearly 30 outdoor events in NYC this year. What used to be just a summertime festival is now a year-round celebration across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. Event organizers say it's the largest Japanese food festival in the world, attracting 300,000 visitors and featuring 1,000 vendors every year.

Here are the upcoming dates: June 7 in Midtown West; June 15 in Park Slope.

Explore the overlap between abstract art, weaving, craft, and fashion at this MoMA exhibit. "Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction" delves into the dynamic intersections between weaving and abstraction. See 150 works in a range of mediums—from textiles and basketry to painting, drawing, sculpture, and media works.

The exhibition seeks to challenge long-held notions of the weave as a function of textile alone, exploring the many forms both warp and weft have taken when explored by abstract artists over the past 100 years.

It's on view through September 13, 2025.

It's the surest sign of warmest weather ahead: Luna Park in Coney Island is now open. For 2025, you can expect new arcade games, renovated retail outlets, and a new patio at Salt & Sizzle. Luna Park will also offer expanded hours.

The Brooklyn Museum is celebrating a big birthday. As the museum turns 200, it’s marking the occasion with a sprawling exhibition that celebrates the museum's history, showcases artists from the borough and highlights new gifts in the collection. The massive show highlights hundreds of paintings, sculptures, and photographs pulled from the impressive museum’s full collection of 140,000 items. 

“Breaking the Mold: Brooklyn Museum at 200” is now open through February 22, 2026.

It's hard to imagine now in our globalized world, but many of the young American soldiers who headed onto massive ships like the USS Intrepid during World War II had never even seen the ocean before. They’d soon be navigating the Pacific, launching planes off of aircraft carriers and battling Axis enemies. 

Now, the stories of those military members are on display in a new permanent exhibit at the Intrepid Museum, the historic aircraft carrier docked along the Hudson River in Hell’s Kitchen, which served from 1943 to 1974. The new 10,000-square-foot exhibit includes 50 never-before-seen artifacts, crew member oral histories, videos and photos showcasing the ship's history.

Plus, you’ll get to see the museum’s newest WWII aircraft acquisition, a legendary fighter-bomber called the FG-1D Corsair. Planes just like it often flew off of Intrepid’s flight deck during the war.

The spectacularly designed stage prequel to Stranger Things expands the universe of the popular Netflix show with an original story set in the late 1950s.

The play depicts the early years of central series characters including Joyce Maldonaldo, Jim Hopper, Bob Newby and Dr. Martin Brenner; playwright Kate Trefry, a longtime staff writer for the TV version, has devised the story with series creators Matt and Ross Duffer and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child playwright Jack Thorne. 

The Roundabout teams up with "Escape" artist Rupert Holmes (The Mystery of Edwin Drood) for a boldly jazzy adaptation of The Pirates of Penzance, the best-known show by the Victorian operetta masters W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan: a romp that bustles with sweet-hearted pirates, bumbling cops and pretty young lasses, now reset in New Orleans.

Scott Ellis directs a power cast that includes, on the outlaw side, Ramin Karimloo as the Pirate King, Nicholas Barasch as his naive apprentice and RuPaul's Drag Race champion Jinkx Monsoon as the slatternly Ruth; and, on the side of the law, the justly beloved David Hyde Pierce as the Major General, Samantha Williams as his fetching daughter and Preston Truman Boyd as the Sergeant of Police.

Josefina López's 1990 play, about a Latina teenager torn between her family's garment factory and her college dreams, has already been the basis of the 2002 film that introduced the world to America Fererra. Now playwrights Lisa Loomer (Living Out) and Nell Benjamin (Legally Blonde) adapt it into a musical with music and lyrics by Joy Huerta (of the Mexican pop duo Jesse & Joy) and Benjamin Velez.

Following a warmly received 2023 premiere at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the show is moving to Broadway under the guiding eye of director-choreographer Sergio Trujillo (Ain't Too Proud).

On the heels of his Tony-winning performance in last season's Merrily We Roll Along, Broadway sweetie Jonathan Groff returns to star as pop and nightclub star Bobby Darin, who peaked in the late 1950s with such hits as "Dream Lover," "Beyond the Sea" and "Mack the Knife."

Alex Timbers (Moulin Rouge!) directs an immersive production at Circle in the Square, with a cast that features Michele Pawk, John Treacy Egan and Caesar Samayoa. The hits are strung together through an original book by Warren Leight (Side Man) and comic essayist Isaac Oliver (Intimacy Idiot).

Tucked away on Bridge Street in an old factory basement, this two-story playscape for kids and adults contains ample room for fun, including laser tag, mini-bowling and arcade games.

Laser tag games are comprised of three 10-15-minute matches, where you bob and weave around rustic columns and obstacles Area 53 has set up. Across an hour-and-a-half, you and your friends will be giggling and screaming as you "shoot" each other's guns to gain points. It's not for the faint of heart—running to avoid lasers is a workout, but a super fun one. We'd recommend checking out its "After Dark" laser tag and mini-bowling for those 18+ on Thursday nights.

Area 53's mini-bowling allows for up to six people to knock down pins across 25 minutes and its arcade has traditional games, from basketball shooting games to racing games and claw machines. 

If space is looking pretty good to you right now, there’s a chance to escape to the wide expanse even if only for an hour. INTER, the experiential, multi-sensory museum in Soho, has been reimagined to be an immersive intergalactic adventure.

From the creative minds behind the Museum of Ice Cream and photography center Fotografiska, INTER, inside the old First National City Bank of New York, first opened in a beta version in November 2022 but officially opened in May 2023, with abstract digital art of images evoking natural phenomena like earth, fire and water, its own floral tunnel, an infinity room and a water installation.

But now, it has more than 10 immersive exhibits using light, sound and digital projection to transport you to another galaxy.

While her ertswhile Succession brother Kieran Culkin gets down and dirty in Glengarry Glen Ross a few streets away, Sarah Snook takes a walk on the Wilde side in a solo adaptation of Oscar W.'s fanciful Victorian gothic novel about the ultimate demon twink. Snook plays more than 25 characters in a production helmed by adapter-director Kip Williams; her performance in the West End, which our London critic called "astonishing", earned her a 2024 Olivier Award.

The nuclear industry can be a complicated topic to understand, but a new exhibit at Poster House in the Flatiron District will help. "Fallout: Atoms for War & Peace" explores the global development of the nuclear industry through poster art that promoted and protested its use through the second half of the twentieth century. 

In a series of 60 posters, the exhibit digs into how scientists around the world developed the nuclear bomb and nuclear power stations following World War II. It also looks at how the development of nuclear energy led to the threat of nuclear war and—later—the development of harnessing nuclear energy for peace as an inexpensive electricity source.

A few highlights of the show include the entirety of Erik Nitsche's iconic General Dynamics series which promoted President Eisenhower’s slogan "Atoms for Peace" in six languages. Also featured are numerous anti-nuclear protest posters by the celebrated British designer Peter Kennard. 

See it through September 7, 2025.  

You can head to Central Park to see Shakespeare in the Park's Twelfth Night in August, courtesy of the Public Theater. First, though, the Public is taking Shakespeare to you as its Mobile Unit travels through all five boroughs with a stripped-down and musicalized version of Shakespeare's war-of-the-sexes comedy Much Ado About Nothing, in which sparks fly between a pair of witty enemies who clearly have the hots for each other.

This accessible Latin-flavored version, which incorporates some Spanish, represents the third straight Mobile Unit collaboration between director Rebecca Martinez and songwriter Julian Mesri; Nathan M. Ramsey and Keren Lugo play the squabbling wits. The tour wends its way through the city; a full schedule is on the Public's website.

If you were alive in the late 1990s, you probably remember the ubiquitous 1997 album Buena Vista Social Club, which reunited elderly musicians to recreate the atmosphere and songs of a Havana nightspot before the Cuban Revolution.

This original musical by Marco Ramirez—directed by Saheem Ali and choreographed gorgeously by Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck—brings their story to Broadway, in slightly fictionalized form, after a highly enjoyable debut at the Atlantic last year. This lively celebration of Cuban music offers an irresistable tropical getaway.

The New Yorker, one of the most revered New York-based publications in the country, is officially turning 100 years old, and the New York Public Library is stepping in to celebrate the occasion.

The library has debuted a new exhibit titled “A Century of The New Yorker” showcasing the magazine's history from its 1925 launch to the present, highlighting the stories and ideas that have defined it throughout the years. The exhibition will be mounted for a full year.

Attendees will have the opportunity to view old covers, rare manuscripts, photographs, founding documents and, of course, an archive of cartoon art that defines the magazine's aesthetic. 

Lewis Carroll's trippy Alice in Wonderland books have inspired many theatrical spectacles, but Company XIV's seductive Queen of Hearts is a singular sexcess: a transporting fusion of haute burlesque, circus, dance and song. Your fall down the glamorous rabbit hole begins upon entering the troupe's louche Bushwick lair, where scantily clad server-performers slink about in flattering red lighting.

A cursory knowledge of the source material will help you make sense of the show’s three-act cavalcade of Alice-inspired routines, as our blue-haired heroine embarks on an NC-17 coming-of-age journey under the guidance of the White Rabbit.

The show runs on weekends this spring.

Having taken the U.K. by storm in productions about the country, culminating in a well-received foray into the West End, this scrappy musical comedy about a wacky real-life British spy operation in World War II now invades New York City. The entire original company of five re-ups for the Broadway production: co-authors David Cumming, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts—who wrote the show with Felix Hagan, their comrade in the comedy troupe SpitLip—as well as Claire-Marie Hall and Olivier Award winner Jak Malone. Robert Hastie directs the military mayhem. 

How is she? Ever since it was confirmed that Audra McDonald would star in the latest revival of Gypsy, Broadway fans have speculated about how Audra would be as Mama Rose—or, more nervously, whether Audra could be Mama Rose, the implacable stage mother who sacrifices everything to make her two daughters into stars. So let’s get that question out of the way up front. How is Audra as Rose? She’s a revelation. 

So, too, is the rest of George C. Wolfe’s deeply intelligent and beautifully mounted production, which comes as a happy surprise.

Depending on what you learned in high school history class, you might be surprised to discover that Brooklyn—an area firmly in the northern Union states—actually has significant ties to slavery. A new exhibit coming to the borough digs into that painful history.

Titled "Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn," the exhibit is now open at the Center for Brooklyn History. While there are few firsthand testimonies from enslaved people in Brooklyn, the exhibit offers clues to what they endured. It also sheds light on the often-overlooked narratives of enslaved individuals in Kings County and the generational legacies of inequality. The exhibit is free to visit through August 30 in the center's Fransioli Gallery.

Expect to see archival documents, rare personal accounts from enslaved Brooklynites and artwork that helps visitors visualize this period in Brooklyn's development. The exhibit also delves into genealogy and celebrates the work of family historians, researchers, and artists who trace their roots through this difficult past.

Want to feel like you can practically defy gravity? You can do just that at Lush Spa with their Wicked-themed book-a-bath experience. 

In partnership with Universal Studios, the Upper East Side spa is completely decked out with Wicked vibes. There's vivid green and glimmering gold decor, including taper candles and even wallpaper that says Oz. During the bath, you’ll get to enjoy a pink-and-green bath bomb, a soap shaped like the Emerald City, and a cleanser picked for your skin type. Instrumental versions of the Wicked soundtrack will play while you relax in the tub. 

It's bookable now for $75 with appointments through late 2025.

In the 1950 film masterpiece Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood glamour is a dead-end street. Stalled there with no one coming to find her—except perhaps to use her car—is Norma Desmond: a former silent-screen goddess who is now all but forgotten. Secluded and deluded, she haunts her own house and plots her grand return to the pictures; blinded by the spotlight in her mind, she is unaware that what she imagines to be a hungry audience out there in the dark is really just the dark.

As the Revolutionary War came to a close, British Loyalists and soldiers evacuated the colonies in droves. But the evacuation was more complicated for Black Loyalists, some of whom joined the British cause in response to offers of freedom. 

In 1783, the new government formed a special committee to review the eligibility of some Black Loyalists to evacuate with the British Army, and that committee met at Fraunces Tavern in Lower Manhattan. A new permanent exhibit at the Fraunces Tavern Museum explores this important moment in history. 

The exhibition first opened last year, and officials are now moving it to a larger permanent gallery within the museum. The new space will offer a chance to include recent new discoveries of significant information concerning the identities of individuals participating in the Birch Trials and their inclusion in the Book of Negroes.

This fascinating 90-minute tour introduces you to all the secrets of the 200-year-old Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral. Enter areas off-limits to the public, including the Henry Erban Organ, the cemeteries, and top it all off with an exclusive walk-through of the Catacombs themselves.

Even better, you will experience the whole tour by candlelight (romantic, if you ignore the dead bodies part). This unique and historic site serves as the final resting place for many prominent New Yorkers, including the Delmonico Family, General Thomas Eckert (a confidant of Abraham Lincoln), Honest John Kelly of Tammany Hall and the first resident Bishop of New York, Bishop John Connolly. 

On October 27, 1904, New Yorkers dressed in their finest clothing and hosted dinner parties to celebrate the big news of the year. After four years of messy, sometimes controversial construction, a subway had opened in New York City. Officials didn't know if people would show up for its debut, but more than 100,000 people descended beneath the ground that evening to traverse the system's 9 miles and 28 stations. The next day, a Sunday, more than 1 million people showed up on the subway's first full open day. 

It may not seem like a big deal to us now, but the subway was revolutionary—and it still is. A fascinating new exhibit at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn digs into the history and the future of our underground rail system. Titled "The Subway Is...," the exhibition brings together artifacts, photos, multimedia installations, old advertisements, train models and more to tell the story of our city's subway system. 

Pieces Bar has been a West Village staple for more than three decades. And for 18 years of that tenure, the historic spot has played host to one of New York City’s best bingo nights.

Every Sunday, guests can enjoy Happy Hour Drag Bingo hosted by drag queen Chaka Khanvict, with seating starting at 5pm and the game starting at 6pm. Grab your game board—$5 for a single, $10 for a page of four or $20 for three sheets of four boards for the best chances to win big—and play for amazing prizes like tickets for two to the Broadway Comedy Club, merchandise from Absolut Vodka and Andrew Christian, and a VIP Pieces Card, which gets you a free drink every day for a month.

Speaking of drinks, happy-hour specials include $6 margaritas, mimosas, bellinis and Bloody Mary, plus $8 Long Island Iced Teas from 2pm to 8pm.

Pop on over to American Dream in East Rutherford, New Jersey for an immersive experience dedicated to bubbles. This surreal and colorful world promises to delight all ages with themed rooms, fantastic landscapes, and VR tech. 

Bubble Planet promises to challenge imagination, amaze with the magic of science, and unleash the inner child in all. Expect to see oversized bubbles, balloons, and more in this sensory playground.

When Robert A. Caro's The Power Broker was first published 50 years ago, the book's release was met with great anticipation. Excerpts in The New Yorker gained lots of attention—including from the biography's subject, NYC government official Robert Moses, who described the deeply researched book as "venomous." Even so, it was impossible to predict whether a 700,000-word biography would resonate with readers. 

The book quickly earned acclaim, winning the Pulitzer Prize and finding a home on bookshelves across America, especially among New Yorkers. Now, five decades later, the monumental work still resonates for its look at NYC’s past and the lessons it holds for our future. The book and its tenacious author are the subject of a new exhibit at The New-York Historical titled “Robert Caro’s The Power Broker at 50." See it at the Upper West Side museum through August 3, 2025. 

Coming off two successive Oscar nominations for acting in film, Colman Domingo returns to his stage roots as the co-author—with director Patricia McGregor—of a biodrama that examines a pivotal night in the life of the pioneering Black recording artist and TV star Nat "King" Cole. Dulé Hill (The West Wing) plays Cole and Daniel J. Watts (Tina) plays Sammy Davis Jr.; the ace supporting cast includes Krystal Joy Brown, Kenita Miller, Kathy Fitzgerald, Christopher Ryan Grant, Ruby Lewis, Elliott Mattox, Mekhi Richardson and Walter Russell III. Cole standards such as “Nature Boy,” “Smile” and “Unforgettable" are newly arranged by musical supervisor John McDaniel, and Edgar Godineaux and Jared Grimes step in as the choreographers.

Fancy gowns and celebrity outfits are no strangers to museum collections. But the everyday clothing found in closets across America typically gets overlooked by fashion exhibits.

A new show coming to The New York Historical, titled "Real Clothes, Real Lives: 200 Years of What Women Wore,” changes that. The newly announced exhibit will feature everyday women’s clothing from the past two centuries, including a well-worn Depression-era house dress, a college girl’s psychedelic micro mini, and an Abercrombie & Fitch wool suit bought off-the-rack in NYC in 1917 that was remade into a Relief uniform worn behind enemy lines in France. See the exhibition through June 22, 2025.

Start your weekend off right at Time Out Market New York’s stunning rooftop! Friday Night Vibes gets the party going on the fifth floor at 7pm with tunes from DJ Stretch (on the first and third Friday of every month) and DJ Price Is Right (on the second and fourth Friday).

Dance the night away with specialty cocktails from the Market’s awesome bar and grab bites from one of two dozen kitchens including, Jacob’s Pickles, Bark Barbecue and Wayla. Enjoy it all to the incredible views of the East River, the NYC skyline and the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges. 

This sprawling 16,000-square-foot space in Bushwick, designed to double as a concert venue and nightclub for up to 1,200 people, is the city’s first new wooden roller skating rink in over a decade.

Xanadu is decorated with a giant black-and-white photo of a group of young Black skaters taken over 40 years ago, a model for the energy in the room today. There’s also a rinkside bar, serving drinks with names like Skaterade and Purple Rain with direct sightlines of all the action on the wood. And in the bathroom, a surprise DJ spins a soundtrack for patrons to dance to as they wash their hands, a cheeky setup Kataria calls, “Club Flush.”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Beautiful, buoyant, beguiling bubbles are back at the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI) in Queens. The beloved bubbles exhibit, which had been closed for five years, has returned bigger, better and bubblier than ever.

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

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

"How you doin'?" If you read that in Joey Tribbiani's voice, then you've got to get yourself to "The FRIENDS Experience: The One in New York City." The immersive, walk-through experience in the Flatiron District features photo ops, props from the show, and Easter eggs at every turn.

There’s a chance to pose with the "Pivot" couch, a backdrop that looks like the Vegas chapel, and a photo opp with Phoebe’s grandma's taxi. You can even pose on top of Pat the Dog, snap a photo with the giant poking device and take a selfie in Monica's apartment. Using high-quality cameras, staff take photos at each spot, which you can purchase at the end. But staff will also take free photos with your cell phone if you ask. 

It's not just a selfie museum, though. There's a fascinating display featuring the show's costume designer Debra McGuire where you'll learn about her sartorial choices for each character. Another exhibit spotlights artist Burton Morris, whose Pop art pieces decorate Central Perk. Other display cases feature set designs, signed scripts and a statement from the show's producers, Marta Kauffman and David Crane.

Here's our full review.

There's a reason Chamber Magic has remained a staple in NYC's magic scene for more than two decades: It dazzles, show after show, with tricks that'll still leave you awestruck days later. 

The charming Steve Cohen, billed as the Millionaires’ Magician, conjures high-class parlor magic in the marble-columned Madison Room at the swank Lotte New York Palace. Dress to be impressed (cocktail attire is required); tickets start at $125, with an option to pay more for meet-and-greet time and extra tricks with Cohen after the show. If you've come to see a classic-style magic act, you get what you pay for.

Sporting a tuxedo and bright rust hair, the magician delivers routines that he has buffed to a patent-leather gleam: In addition to his signature act—"Think-a-Drink," involving a kettle that pours liquids by request—highlights include a lulu of levitation trick and a card-trick finale that leaves you feeling like, well, a million bucks.

The name really says it all: Make bonsai in a bar! These teeny tiny trees are the definition of "happy little trees." 

The pros from Bonsai Bar will teach you the fundamental skills and techniques behind the art of bonsai while you sip your drink and have some fun with your friends. The teachers will also help you as you pot, prune and design your very own bonsai tree. 

Bonsai Bar events pop up all over the city at locations like Brooklyn Brewery, the Bronx Brewery and SingleCut Beersmiths Queens Taproom.

If you're not a paint-and-sip kind of person, try Act & Sip, a beer-fueled acting workshop in an Off-Broadway Theater with expert instructors. They pair students off with partners and hand over the pages to a scene from a well-known iconic NYC sitcom or movie, offering tips along the way to help performers conquer stage fright and discover their inner actor.

This event is perfect for bachelorette parties, after-work outings, or just a fun night with friends to get on stage with a little help from liquid courage. You don't need any experience, but you must be 21 or older and BYOB.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The New York Public Library dug through its expansive and centuries-spanning archive to stage an impressive free exhibition filled with cultural artifacts. "The Polonsky Exhibition of New York Public Library’s Treasures" spans 4,000 years of history and includes a wide range of history-making pieces, including the only surviving letter from Christoper Columbus announcing his “discovery” of the Americas to King Ferdinand’s court and the first Gutenberg Bible brought over to the Americas.

New treasures were just added to the exhibit this fall, including a signed, first edition copy of "Passing" by Nella Larsen, a selection of manuscript pages from "The Waste Land" by T.S. Eliot, and a miniature early 19th-century Qur’an, produced in Turkey.

Part visual splendor, part olfactory wonder and part ooey-gooey sensory fun, Sloomoo Institute’s slime museum re-opened this fall after a renovation. This captivating playground welcomes all ages to its home in SoHo—or “SooHoo,” in Sloomoo parlance (see what they did there?).

Here are five things not to miss at Sloomoo, including a chance to get slimed and a DIY slime making activity.

A bucolic 1920s English country golf club is on its way to NYC's concrete jungle! But with a twist. Swingers NoMad, a "crazy mini-golf course" and entertainment complex straight from London brought with it three nine-hole golf courses across 23,000 square feet under 20-foot-high ceilings.

"Crazy golf" is a British spin on mini-golf, but it's for a 21-and-over audience since craft cocktails are served by caddies on the course. Plus, there are plenty of food options to pair with your drinks.

The Brooklyn Flea is undoubtedly one of the most popular flea markets to hit in NYC if you're looking for the best selection of throwback wares and records, which you certainly wouldn’t find in just any vintage clothing store or record store in the city.

The food selection is also top-notch since the creators also operate one of the city’s best food markets: Smorgasburg. 

The Brooklyn Flea DUMBO is now open for the season. Brooklyn Flea also operates in Chelsea year-round on Saturdays and Sundays.

It's not every day that a new nightclub opens in New York City, especially one that harkens back to an old sort of New York—when nightclubs were the city's premiere destinations for some after-hours fun. That's why Daphne, a new subterranean spot under Hotel 50 Bowery in Chinatown, is so special. 

Upon entering the massive 2,500-square-foot space, patrons are pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful silk pink flower installation by art studio Floratorium. Dazzling disco balls also permeate the premises, calling back to a time when the dance club you frequented was just as important as where your apartment was located. 

Every Saturday night, two piano men battle it out to prove who is truly the master of all 88 keys, with a playlist decided entirely by the audience. Whether you’re in the mood for Billy Joel, Christina Aguilera or current chart toppers, these pianists are up for the challenge. But they expect you to do your part by singing along, but from home. Grab a ticket and request songs in advance.

Every day, our staffers are eating, drinking, partying, gigging and generally appreciating their way throughout this fair town of ours. Which makes pinning down the most essential New York activities kinda…tough. We need to include the classics, naturally—art museums in NYC, stellar New York attractions, killer bars and restaurants in NYC—but also spotlight the more recent or little-known gems that we truly love. Consider the below your NYC Bible.