new york art week: new york’s art week brings artists and galleries from around the world for a packed week of art fairs throughout the city. while tickets to many of them are out of the skint’s price range, here are five that are free and one that’s under $20:
► thru 5/10: ether in midtown (free) >>
► thru 5/11: salon zürcher in greenwich village (free) >>
► 5/7-11: fridge art fair in chelsea (free) >>
► 5/8-11 conductor art fair in gowanus (free) >>
► 5/9-11: clio art fair in chelsea (free) >>
► 5/9-11: the other art fair in gowanus ($18) >>

tuesday

thru 11/28: beyond the pages: a literary series at brookfield place: meet authors and influencers, join a book club, and select a free book to take home, during this new literary series at brookfield place. the series kicks of 5/6 at 6pm with a booktok panel discussion on ultimate beach reads featuring morgan pager, sera wright, krystal lang, and amanda spivack. free admission. >>

thru september: tsq live: times square hosts over 80 free, open-air events through september, with live music, dj sets, dance workshops, and more every tuesday thru friday evening. this year’s lineup includes presenters like ailey extension, carnegie hall citywide, elsewhere, jazz at lincoln center, the 2025 neurodivergent tour, and many others. this week: dj contrad taylor (tues 5pm), dingonek street band (weds 5pm), a west african dance class (thurs 5pm), and singer-songwriter adam melchor (fri 6pm). >>

thru 8/26 (tuesdays at 7pm): sunset meditation at socrates sculpture park: mindful astoria brings its annual sunset mindfulness meditation sessions back to socrates sculpture park (lic). all experience levels are welcome to practice mindful breathing, mindful movement, and loving-kindness meditation. byo mat, blanket, or cushion. free admission. >>

thru 6/1 (wednesdays thru sundays): ‘inflation’ art show: the locker room celebrates the opening of its new tribeca location with ‘inflation,’ a group exhibition featuring a range of balloon-inspired, inflatable, and air-filled works that probe themes of value, spectacle, fragility, and collapse. opening reception 5/6 7-9pm. free admission. >>

tues 5-8pm: sva print slam 21: pick up one-of-a-kind books, prints, zines, and more at this end-of-semester show and sale from sva risolab students—where every dollar goes straight to the artists. risolab (chelsea). free admission (rsvp requuired). >>

tues 6pm: miller theater’s pop-up concert series: the columbia university school of the arts’s musical happy hour returns for a new season of hour-long concerts where the audience is permitted to sit onstage with the performers and enjoy a free drink. tonight: jack quartet premieres violinist austin wulliman’s album, escape rites. columbia university’s miller theatre (morningside heights), free admission. >>

tues 7pm: what my father and i don’t talk about: editor michele filgate presents what my father and i don’t talk about, a collection of essays from 16 writers breaking the silence around the complex—and often fraught—relationships we have with our fathers. contributors jiordan castle, jaquira díaz, and isle mcelroy join filgate and moderator hannah bae for readings and discussion on this follow up to 2020’s what my mother and i don’t talk about. books are magic montague street (brooklyn heights), $10 admission includes a store gift card, $30 ticket option includes a copy of the book. >>

tues 7-10pm: elsewhere rootop show: head to elsewhere’s rooftop for their summer soft launch, featuring bands supertaste and scotch mist with dj noah prebish. rain or shine (the show will move indoors in the event of dangerous weather). elsewhere (bushwick), free with rsvp ($10 for guaranteed entry). >>

sponsored

AMERICAN SING-SONG PRESENTS: HOLE!

Presented, conceived & performed by American Sing-Song (A.S.S), a musical theater collective of 2 queerdos (Jake Brasch & Nadja Leonhard-Hooper) who write & perform epic, impossible musicals that can (& should) only exist in your mind.

HOLE! is a musical about a strict religious sect in Nebraska who wear butt plugs at all times. In a world where pulling your plug spells certain death, 2 young men who are definitely not in love embark on an epic mission to discover life outside their cult. Along the way, they find themselves, each other & the true meaning of HOLE.

Playing live this Saturday, May 10th, 7:30pm at The Bell House. Catch it before it conquers Edinburgh Fringe!

Special offer for the skint readers:
Save $10 with promo code PLUG10 (Click “Unlock” and use code to display discounted tickets)
GET TICKETS NOW!

American Sing-Song Presents: HOLE!
Directed by RJ Tolan

May 10th, Doors at 7pm, Show at 7:30pm
The Bell House
149 7th St., Brooklyn

wednesday

weds thru 5/31: 32nd new york african film festival: featuring 50 contemporary and classic films from africa and its diaspora, the 32nd nyaf highlights the power of cinematic storytelling in navigating the challenges of displacement, environmental shifts, and political change while celebrating the enduring influence of african culture across the globe. the africa center (east harlem), st. nicholas park (harlem), film at lincoln center (uws), maysles documentary center (harlem), brooklyn academy of music (fort greene), and library for arts + culture (fort greene). various prices. >>

weds + thurs (wednesdays + thursdays thru 5/15; 6pm dance lesson, 7-8:30pm live music and dance): dance party at bryant park: meet at the bryant park fountain for the 11th annual outdoor dance party series, featuring six themed evenings of motown, afrofusion, bachata and merengue, and brazilian samba and forró. this week: bachata tradicional and merengue with mayra bello y orquesta (wednesday) and afrofusion with gentleman brawlers featuring nkumu katalay (thursday). all experience levels are welcome. free admission. >>

weds: free krispy kreme: krispy kreme sweetens the lead-up to the real id deadline with free original glazed doughnuts at participating locations. no id needed, and no purchase required. >>

weds 6pm (wednesdays thru 6/25): sunset yoga at battery park: wind down with a waterfront view at battery park’s sunset yoga sessions. all levels welcome. byo mat. free admission. >>

weds 7pm: doctors without boundaries: real-life er doctor aaron bola hosts a comedy show where standups with a tendency towards t.m.i. tell stories about their weirdest diagnoses, and the docs give a detailed breakdown of the history of each condition and what people diagnosed with it should know. audience members can even ask their own embarrassing medical questions via a ‘no co-pay’ question box. featuring kate sisk, claire sattler, kenice mobley, and michael abber. caveat (les), $16.70 with promo code ‘resident’ (reg. $24-25). >>

weds 7:30pm (weather permitting): free outdoor movie: the goonies at henry m. jackson playground (les). >>

weds 7:30pm: the parlor reading series: the parlor, an interdisciplinary, community-based reading series, hosts its spring installment at the brooklyn artery (flatbush/ditmas park). books and drinks will be available for purchase. free (suggested donation $10). >>

weds 7:30pm: awkward teenage years: laugh and reminisce as storytellers relive their joys and traumas for your entertainment. hosted by will clegg, and featuring jameer pond, hunter gardner, calvin cato, christopher connolly, and ann chun. under st. marks (east village), $1-15 sliding scale admission. >>

weds 7:30pm: carnegie hill concerts new-music chamber music series: the carnegie hill concerts series presents an evening of new chamber music written by randal despommier, ben rosenblum, andrea casarrubios, marc migó, and cyrus von hochstetter. church of the advent hope (carnegie hill), choose-what-you-pay admission ($5 min). >>

weds 8pm: the moth storyslam: the popular community-based open mic storytelling competition, where anyone can share a five-minute tale based on the evening’s theme to an attentive audience, returns to the bell house (gowanus). tonight’s theme: ‘small world.’ $19.65. >>

weds 8pm: gen z vs millennials gameshow: two pairs of comics compete in a series of challenges to see which gen rules. hosted by bobby hickey and annabeth mann. c’mon everybody (bed-stuy), $12.36 (ticket proceeds will benefit the transgender law center). >>

thursday

thurs thru 5/25: molière in the park – the imaginary invalid: molière in the park returns to lefrak center at lakeside in prospect park with 20 performances of molière’s comedy-ballet the imaginary invalid, featuring live original cello music and starring tony and olivier award nominee sahr ngaujah (fela!, moulin rouge!). free admission, except for a benefit on 5/12. note: the organization just had its nea grant cancelled by the trump administration, so donations are welcome. >>

thurs thru 5/25: 24th annual estrogenius festival: manhattan theatre source presents three weeks of experimental performance, dance, theater, music, and poetry by women, trans and gender non-conforming artists at judson church, the cell theater, under st. marks, and downtown art theater. sliding scale admission starting at $5. >>

thurs thru 5/18: regina opera: la traviata: brooklyn’s regina opera presents a fully-staged performance of verdi’s la traviata at our lady of perpetual help auditorium (sunset park). the performance, sung in italian with english supertitles, will be presented with sets, lights, costumes, and orchestra accompaniment. free open dress rehearsal 5/8; 5/10-18 performances are $25 general, $20 seniors/students. >>

thurs-sat (7:30pm): new york classical players: season finale: the new york classical players wraps its 15th concert season with a program that premieres louis karchin’s the four seasons of bernini and george meyer’s triple concerto for two violins and viola alongside mozart’s violin concerto no. 3 and haydn’s symphony no. 49. flushing town hall (thurs), church of st. luke + st. matthew in clinton hill (fri), and w83 auditorium in the uws (sat). free admission (donations welcome). >>

thurs 4-10pm: (thursdays thru 10/9): uptown night market: previously a monthly event, west harlem’s open-air food festival expands to weekly starting tonight. 12th avenue and west 132nd street, free admission (pay-as-you-go). >>

thurs 7pm: a very 90s literary event: author and journalist ross benes discusses his new book, 1999: the year low culture conquered america and kickstarted our bizarre times, at kgb bar (east village). free admission. >>

thurs 7pm: the dead ladies show nyc: celebrate deceased dames from history who accomplished extraordinary feats against all odds at the dead ladies show. each show features three (or so) presenters championing the lives and legacies of often-overlooked icons, inviting the audience to rediscover their remarkable stories. the private curtain at kgb (les), $10 adv, $15 door. >>

thurs 7:30pm (weather permitting): free outdoor movie: barbie at chelsea green park (chelsea). >>

thurs 8pm (monthly): savage! comedy show: savage comedy returns to logan’s run in park slope. hosted by lizzie martinez, melissa rocha, nonye brown-west, and chloé chunha, tonight’s show includes standup by esther chen (hbo), kenice mobley (fallon), daryn passarello (the new yorker), mark gregory (apple tv), joanna briley (the today show). (bonus: rsvp for a chance to win a free drink. free admission. >>

thurs 8pm doors: landline comedy at wild east brewing co.: landline comedy serves up pints of hoppy humor straight from the barrel cellar at wild east brewing co. (gowanus). tonight’s lineup includes liz miele (after midnight), matt wayne (comedy central), henry sir (comedy central), yvette segan (don’t tell comedy), michael harrison (nbc), and david louis (netflix is a joke). hosted by andre medrano. bonus: rsvp for a chance to win a free drink. free admission. >>

thurs 8:30pm doors (monthly): comedy ugly: a comedy strip show: comedians reveal more than just punchlines at comedy ugly, a standup show where performers remove an article of clothing between jokes. featuring: khalil walker, cooper kim, and kaitlyn bailey. hosted by alysia hush, marisa riley, and kim dinaro. easy lover (east williamsburg), $10. >>

thurs 8:30pm: the assignment improv: paris adkins and bill dipiero’s experimental improv show the assignment celebrates its one-year anniversary at ucb (east village). guest performers include chris gethard, abra tabak, and many others. $10 adv, $15 day of. >>

ongoing

our roundup of 50+ ongoing events and attractions: rooftop cinema club, summer on the hudson, the met fifth ave’s new roof garden commission, brooklyn cyclones baseball season, bargemusic, and more. >>

stay safe and healthy
– the skint