tuesday

thru 9/1: the metropolitan opera summer hd festival: the met’s 16th summer hd festival features free outdoor screenings of the company’s live in hd opera series productions. held at lincoln center’s josie robertson plaza with seating for 2,500, screenings are rain or shine, but will be canceled in the event of thunder, lightning, or high wind. >>

tues various times (weather permitting): free outdoor movies:
battle of the sexes at the rooftop at pier 17 (lower manhattan) >>
big hero 6 at cadman plaza park (brooklyn heights) >>
la la land at bella abzug park (hell’s kitchen) >>
teenage mutant ninja turtles: mutant mayhem and ocean’s 8 at domino park (williamsburg) >>

tues 7pm (monthly): we love a theme: a storytelling show: a lineup of performers tell funny, heartwarming, and cringe-inducing tales at bailey swilley’s monthly storytelling show. tonight’s ‘burned’ theme features calvin cato, adam selbst, wes hazard, and carly ciarrochi. pete’s candy store (williamsburg), free ($5 suggested donation). >>

tues 8pm: live band karaoke at arlene’s grocery: choose from a wide assortment of rock and pop songs and take the stage with your very own live band (nakatomi5) backing you up at arlene’s grocery (les). $10 adv, $15 day-of. >>

wednesday

weds various times (weather permitting): free outdoor movies:
sponsored :bringing up baby at parklife (gowanus). note: food/drink purchase required. >>
mamma mia! at pier i at riverside park south (uws) >>
miss congeniality at prospect park (prospect park) >>
summer of soul at tompkins square park (les) >>
wish at courtney callender playground (harlem) >>

weds 7pm (quarterly): reading 101: writers alexis nowicki and maria robins-somerville debut reading 101, a new literary series at night club 101 (east village). each event features five readers across genres sharing five-minute excerpts, followed by a dj set and party. tonight’s edition features novelists kevin nguyen (mỹ documents) and stuart pennebaker (ghost fish), essayist emmeline clein (dead weight: essays on hunger and harm), and poets mike lala and sarah haeckel. free admission. >>

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 nicole beckley (mcsweeney’s), chris ritter (npr), orli matlow (reductress), alise morales (go touch grass), jonathan appel (the new yorker), and vikrant sunderlal (bodega comedy). $5. >>

weds 7pm doors: summerstage: morgan freeman’s symphonic blues experience: go on a journey though the history of the delta blues as morgan freeman’s symphonic blues experience blends live blues and orchestral performances with narration filmed on location at morgan freeman’s ground zero blues club in mississippi. rumsey playfield in central park, free admission. >>

weds 7:30pm: we have fun: a stand-up show: hosts zach sims and dan wilbur team up to bring the fun-ny to young ethel’s (south slope), with stand-up by dave ross (comedy central), ali o’neil (worthless clowns), rob cantrell (last comic standing), and josh rabin (all-star super show). free admission. >>

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: ‘gumption.’ $19.65. >>

weds 8pm: constellation prize: an astrology-based comedy game show: stand-up meets the stars at constellation prize, a show where comedians perform short three-minute sets—then a panel of astrologers try to guess their zodiac sign. an open mic follows. hosted by obo gilmore. starr bar (bushwick), free admission. >>

weds 8pm doors (rescheduled from 8/20): rooftop films presents: the popular rooftop films series, one of the word’s longest-running and largest outdoor showcases for indie film, returns for its 29th season. tonight: elizabeth lo’s mistress dispeller, followed by an afterparty. the old american can factory (gowanus), $20. >>

thursday

thurs thru 9/4: jaws 50th anniversary screenings: stephen spielberg’s 1975 blockbuster resurfaces for its 50th anniversary, with screenings in 4k, digital 3d, and imax. various locations and prices. >>

thurs thru sun: 16th annual nyc unicycle festival: the new york city unicycle festival rolls back into town for four days of one-wheeled fun. this year’s fest kicks off with long-distance rides on thursday and friday, then pulls up to hudson river park’s pier 76 (midtown west) on saturday and sunday with a learn-to-ride area for newbies, exhibitions, and games like unicycle basketball and hockey. free admission. >>

thurs + fri (7pm + 10pm): abolish everything: a fast-paced, low-stakes comedy debate show: comedians roast their pet peeves, a panel of improvisers grills them with questions, and the audience decides what gets abolished. hosted by chandler dean (the new yorker, mcsweeney’s). note: all shows will be taped for nebula. $15.67 with promo code ‘abolishtheskint’ (reg. $26+). >>

thurs various times (weather permitting): free outdoor movies:
in the heights at 145th st and the hudson in riverside park (west harlem) >>
pretty in pink at brooklyn bridge park’s pier 1 harbor view lawn >>
soul train tribute: we want the funk at marcus garvey park (east harlem) >>
wicked at restoration west plaza (bed-stuy) >>

thurs 7pm: the story of co₂ is the story of everything: science journalist peter brannen (the ends of the world) presents his new book, the story of co₂ is the story of everything, an exploration of how carbon dioxide made the earth, shaped human history, and now holds our future in the balance. powerhouse arena (dumbo), $5 admission includes a store gift certificate, $37 ticket option includes a copy of the book. >>

thurs 7pm (season finale): the queens jazz trail concert series: inspired by the queens jazz trail map highlighting the homes of jazz legends, the annual the queens jazz trail concert series presents seven free jazz concerts in queens parks. tonight: grammy-winning, 14-member mingus big band at archie spigner park in jamaica, queens. >>

thurs 7:30pm: stef dag + friends: comedian and writer stef dag (hot + single dating show, vogue) hosts a comedy hang at union hall (park slope), featuring guests sahib singh (@sahibcantsingh), elle orlando, (@_elleorlando_), jon rudnitsky (stealing pulp fiction), and sean millei. $12 adv, $15 door. >>

thurs 9:15pm: shouting at the screen: watch a film from the world of 70’s-era blaxploitation and black cult cinema accompanied by drinking games and mst3k-style commentary from hosts wyatt cenac (problem areas) and donwill (webby award-winner, the almanac of rap). nitehawk cinema (prospect park), $18. >>

ongoing

our roundup of 70+ ongoing events: free shakespeare in the park, snl ticket lottery, friday night fireworks in coney island, and more. >>

stay safe and healthy
– the skint