By Tracy Zwick

Welcome to UWS Weekend, a curated list of five events and activities to enliven your summer weekends. It will include a mix of exhibitions, performances, podcasts, print, and other cultural content — a real Rag-bag of experiences I’ve enjoyed or am excited to explore. Since I’ll be making the selections, here’s a little about me. I’m an Upper West Sider of 25 years, a journalist, a mom, an art historian, a former lawyer, and a lady you might’ve seen being pulled through Riverside Park by a labradoodle named Gary. I love working in New York’s art world, but I also grab every chance I get to explore all corners of the cultural wonderland that is the Upper West Side. I’m excited to share the best of it with WSR readers. 

Friday, May 31 ~ Sunday, June 2, 2024

Exhibition: Ice Cold: An Exhibition of Hip-Hop Jewelry

Trace the history of hip-hop through the “drip” (expensive jewelry) of its most renowned practitioners at the American Museum of Natural History. You can’t miss Slick Rick’s Crown; it’s in the central display case in the small gallery within the Mignone Hall of Gems and Minerals. Don’t miss Pharell Williams’s nearby ruby and diamond “grill” sets (teeth jewelry), or the exhibition playlist. I took my sister and teen and tween nephews, who loved it as much as they loved Shake Shack, which is conveniently located just across Columbus Avenue at West 77th Street.  

Theater: Uncle Vanya

Native Upper West Sider Lila Neugebauer directs Steve Carrell in a new translation of the Checkhov classic at Lincoln Center Theater for two more weeks, through June 16th. Try to win last-minute lottery tickets here.

Walk: Dendro Lab

Take a walk through Central Park with the Upper West Side’s own naturalist, educator, and tree-whisperer, Carey Russell. Learn to identify native maples, sweetgum, sycamore and sassafras along with local oak and beech trees. Fun for all ages, all weekend, and just $18. I wished I’d brought a pad and pencil for notes and sketches. Learn from my mistake.

Read: The Athletic’s French Open Coverage

Longtime Upper West Sider and new-ish Morningsider Heightser Matthew Futterman is the savviest tennis writer around. As usual, he’s in Paris covering the French Open for The New York Times’s The Athletic. So as usual, I’ll be awaiting his dispatches as the tournament rolls into its final week.  

Listen: Speaking Soundly

David Krauss, principal trumpet at the Metropolitan Opera, has lived and worked all along the Upper West Side, from Lincoln Center in the West 60s to the Manhattan School of Music on Claremont Avenue and 122nd Street. In his podcast, he takes listeners backstage at the Met for candid conversations with everyone from conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin to singer-songwriter Regina Spektor. You needn’t be a professional musician to enjoy these conversations, like his recent one with New York Times food columnist and classically trained violinist Kenji López-Alt. They touch on Kenji’s viral recipe for reverse-seared steak and discuss the rewards of practice, whether in cooking, music, or anything else. 

David gave us some insight into what his weekend holds:

“Normally, my Saturdays start at 9 a.m. teaching four hours at Juilliard before running across the street to the Metropolitan Opera to perform in a matinee and/or evening performance. This weekend I only have a matinee performance of Puccini’s grand opera Turandot (which is so amazing to be a part of), and no teaching or Sunday performance, so I’m looking forward to staying home and doing nothing with my family.”

If you have suggestions for future UWS Weekend coverage, please email: info@westsiderag.com 

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