tuesday
thru 3/29: the friend opening with naomi watts, scott mcghee, and david siegel: angelika new york (soho) hosts a series of opening week screenings of the friend, starring naomi watts and bill murray, followed by q+a with watts, writers-directors scott mcghee + david siegel, and bing the great dane following select showings. $19 general, $17.50 seniors. >>
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, bassoonist, conductor, and member of the international contemporary ensemble rebekah heller performs a program of new music for bassoon choir by composers from the african diaspora. columbia university’s miller theatre (morningside heights), free admission. >>
tues 6:40pm: the penguin lessons with steve coogan: star steve coogan will be in-person for q+a following a screening of peter cattaneo’s the penguin lessons at angelika new york (soho). $19 general, $17.50 seniors. >>
tues 7pm (monthly): we love a theme: a storytelling show: a lineup of performers tell funny, heartwarming, and cringe-inducing tales at tonight’s ‘destiny’ edition of bailey swilley’s monthly storytelling show. featuring kenice mobley, robin bady, jamie brickhouse, and gabe mollica. pete’s candy store (williamsburg), free ($5 suggested donation). >>
tues 7:30pm: cellar rat: my life in the restaurant underbelly with hannah selinger: james beard award-nominated lifestyle writer hannah selinger launches cellar rat, a tell-all about her rise and fall working in nyc’s fine dining scene—featuring encounters with bobby flay, david chang, christina tosi, and more. selinger will read from and discuss the book with sommelier andré hueston mack, founder of maison noir wines and rye + sons, followed by a wine reception. greenlight bookstore (fort greene), free admission. >>
tues 7:30pm: something old, something new, something blue: good things come in threes at the something old, something new, something blue stand-up show, where comedians are required to include an old joke, a new joke, and a dirty joke in their sets. hosted by caitlin reese (hbo), and featuring shenuque tissera, eeland stribling, hilary campbell, nick hopping, and deanne smith. q.e.d. (astoria), $15. >>
sponsored
Villa Albertine, the French Institute for Culture and Education, kicks off Night of Ideas in New York City on March 27 at 7pm. This annual event — an engaging marathon of debates, performances, readings, and more — brings together influential thinkers, civil society leaders, artists, decision makers, and the public for late-night discussions on pivotal global issues.
Exploring the global theme “Common Ground,” the event will bring together leading French and American intellectuals — including philosophers Nadia Yala Kisukidi and Nancy Fraser, and historian Pierre Singaravélou and political scientist James M. Lindsay — for an evening of French-American dialogues. Discussions will focus on the global rise of empires, the evolution of contemporary solidarities in France and the U.S., and the challenges facing both democracies today. The evening will also feature performances by notable artists including Alvin Ailey’s principal dancer, Yannick Lebrun, live music from Peter Matson & Friends, and a cocktail reception.
Since 2016, Night of Ideas has been held in over 100 countries and 300 cities worldwide. This year, Night of Ideas returns to 25 U.S. cities. More than 10,000 attendees and 500 French and American participants are expected nationwide.
Learn more and register at https://nightofideas.org/
wednesday
weds + fri (7:30pm): american songbook: poly styrene: lincoln center’s latest american songbook season, curated by tamar-kali and kathleen hanna, highlights women and nonbinary musicians who have shaped the modern landscape of music and performance, driving conversations on gender, identity, and empowerment. this week’s programming celebrates punk icon and x-ray specs frontwoman poly styrene with a screening of paul sng and celeste bell’s 2021 documentary, poly styrene: i am a cliché (weds), and a tribute concert on friday. lincoln center’s david rubenstein atrium (uws), free admission. >>
weds 7pm: how to travel the world on $75 a day with matt kepnes: travel writer matt kepnes (nomadic matt) shares tips and hacks on how to travel cheaper, longer, and smarter at a launch event for his updated guide, how to travel the world on $75 a day, at the rare book room at strand bookstore (union square). $5 admission, $25.17 ticket option includes a copy of the book. >>
weds 7pm: letters + sodas: lic reading series: writer lana schwartz (build your own romantic comedy) brings together comedians and writers for a night of standup, humor pieces, fiction, and essay readings at the greats of craft (lic). featuring aimée lutkin (the lonely hunter), josh nasser (comedy central), pat cassels (full frontal with samantha bee), lillian stone (the new yorker), ginny hogan (the cut), and ash diggs (don’t tell comedy). $5. >>
weds 7pm (monthly): not in my backyard! a political comedy roundtable (fka two beers in): a panel of opinionated nyc comedians, journalists, and politicians debate the local issues causing drama in your neighborhood’s facebook group. each show will include a ‘public comment period’ where audience members are encouraged to give their own hot takes. hosted by cody lindquist (our cartoon president) and charlie todd (improv everywhere), with guests alise morales (go touch grass), jamie stelter (mornings on 1), and rollie williams (climate town). ucb (east village), $10 adv, $15 day of. >>
sponsored: weds 7pm, 9:30pm: elizabeth bougerol at joe’s pub: hot sardines co-creator and ‘stylish and tenacious’ (paste) frontwoman elizabeth bougerol is capping a decade with her ‘potent and assured’ (the new york times) little big band, performances from montreal to newport, 70 million spotify streams, a sold-out 2024 carnegie hall debut, and their 30th show at joe’s pub. now in her first solo project, elizabeth examines the hunger that drove her to ditch her midtown cubicle and chase the joy of re-imagining classics by the likes of billie holiday, the platters, and peggy lee. featuring the dulcetones. joe’s pub at the public theater (noho / east village), $30 (inclusive of service fee) / $42 at the door. there is a 2 drink or 1 food item minimum, per person, during every show at joe’s pub. >>
weds 7:30pm: power suit comedy cabaret: mariah oxley (buzzfeed) and rebecca weiser (reductress) present a comedy cabaret send up of #girboss culture, playfully exploring themes of feminism and capitalism while dispensing demented business advice. tonight’s show includes audrey black, divya gunasekaran, charlie flynn, isa medina, james azzaretti, jenny gorelick, and julia wendt. club cumming (east village), $12 adv, $15 day of. >>
weds 7:30pm: we have fun: a stand-up show: hosts zach sims and dan wilbur bring the fun-ny to young ethel’s (park slope), with stand-up by negin farsad (npr), pedro salinas (hbo), brendan fitzgibbons (comedy central), james mwuara, and ben callahan. free admission. >>
weds 7:30pm: miss woman presents: sex and the city lip synced: drag queen miss woman the woman takes on carrie, miranda, charlotte, and samantha in a one-woman, full-episode lip-sync of sex and the city—season 1, episode 11, ‘the drought.’ c’mon everybody (bed-stuy), $15 adv, $18 day of. >>
weds 7:30pm: 8 in show dance series: 8 emerging + established choreographers of various dance forms showcase new, short works at the quarterly ‘8 in show’ dance series, curated by sangeeta yesley. dixon place (les), $19-22 general, $17-20 students/seniors/idnyc. >>
weds 8pm: ambush comedy show: the ambush comedy show takes over stefano’s tattoo studio in williamsburg for a night of jabs and jokes, featuring chloe radcliffe (comedy central), dave ross (comedy central), jared waters (cracked), and alon elian. free admission. >>
thursday
thurs 6pm: cults like us: author and culture journalist jane borden presents her latest book, cults like us: why doomsday thinking drives america, an examination into why the eccentric doomsday beliefs of our puritan founders still drive american culture today. in conversation with comedian chris gethard at housing works bookstore (soho). free admission. >>
thurs 6:30pm: elie mystal and christina greer: bad law: justice correspondent and author elie mystal (allow me to retort: a black guy’s guide to the constitution) returns with bad law, a takedown of 10 of the worst laws still on the books today. covering everything from abortion and immigration to voting rights and religious freedom, he’ll dive into the legal and political stakes in conversation with christina greer, author and associate professor of political science at fordham university, at center for brooklyn history. free admission. >>
thurs 6:30pm: winging it: an open mic night at lofty pigeon books: share your script, your poem, your music, your jokes, or just your support at this open mic night held at kensington’s lofty pigeon books, hosted by the comedian, performer, author, and new yorker cartoonist emily flake. light refreshments will be served, and attendees will save 10% on store purchases. free admission. >>
sponsored: thurs 7-11pm: night of ideas: villa albertine, the french institute for culture and education, kicks off night of ideas in new york city. this annual event — an engaging marathon of debates, performances, readings, and more — brings together influential thinkers, civil society leaders, artists, decision makers, and the public for late-night discussions on pivotal global issues centered this year’s theme, ‘common ground.’ villa albertine (ues), free admission. >>
thurs 7pm: annie karni + luke broadwater + maggie haberman: mad house: congressional correspondents for the new york times annie karni and luke broadwater discuss their new book, mad house: how donald trump, maga mean girls, a former used car salesman, a florida nepo baby, and a man with rats in his walls broke congress, with nyt pulitzer-prize-winning white house correspondent maggie haberman at strand bookstore (union square). $10 admission, $39.15 ticket option includes a copy of the book. >>
thurs 7pm: limousine reading series: hear new readings from writers at the limousine reading series, hosted by heather akumiah and leah abrams at berry park (williamsburg). featuring jena da, andrew lipstein, josé sanchez, felicia reich, and jes tom. $5. >>
thurs 7pm: risk! blind spots: hear guests tell true stories they never thought they’d share in public at kevin allison’srisk! show. tonight’s show includes storytellers mike kovacs, tata sherise, and yossi rosenberg, plus a mini-story slam featuring short stories told by selected audience members. caveat (les), save 20% with promo code ‘riskfriend’ >>
thurs 7pm (monthly): golden spiral comedy show: at mindy raf and katie compa’s golden spiral comedy show, stand-up set lengths follow the fibonacci sequence (5, 8, 13, and 21 minutes each). tonight’s show at whiskey cellar nyc (east village) includes guests jason salmon (comedy central), max higgins (talk show), chanel ali (mtv), and jenn wehrung. advance ticket purchase includes a raffle ticket for a free drink. a limited number of tickets are available for $7.18 with promo code ‘skintspiral’ (reg. $10.38+). >>
thurs 7:30pm: gummy worm comedy show + party: sarah adelman and alex murdoch host a night of standup comedy and dancing downstairs at early terrible (les). featuring mohanad elshieky, martin urbano, max fine, and j.j. matisse. $12. >>
thurs 7:30pm: kevin geeks out about sidekicks: comedian kevin maher, emily menez, and a lineup of pop-culture aficionados return with a multi-media variety show celebrating sidekicks from tv and movie history. nitehawk cinema (prospect park), $18. >>
thurs 8pm doors: landline comedy at wild east brewing co.: get hoppy at the barrel cellar at wild east brewing co. (gowanus), which is hosting a stand-up comedy show featuring sets by kate strobel, jim search, hollie harper, nick fierro, micah walsh, and paige smith-hogan. hosted by andre medrano. bonus: rsvp for a chance to win a free drink. free admission. >>
thurs 10pm: planet yes: gaga night: lady gaga tunes take over house of yes (bushwick) in a high-energy celebration of her new album, mayhem. free admission with rsvp, $10 otherwise. >>
ongoing
our roundup of 25+ ongoing events and attractions: nick cave amalgams and graphts (ends 3/29), weegee: society of the spectacle (ends 5/5), and more. >>
stay safe and healthy
– the skint
