By Tracy Zwick
October 24th through 26th
Get Ready for Halloween!
Halloween’s officially not till next Friday, a week from today, but the UWS celebrations are well underway, with plenty of spooky options this weekend.
The Cathedral of St. John the Divine hosts its Halloween Extravaganza tonight from 7 to 9 p.m., featuring a showing of “The Phantom of the Opera” in celebration of the film’s 100th anniversary. Live organ accompaniment will be provided by Tim Brumfield, and there’ll be ghosts and goblins from Mettawee River Theater Company processing through the audience and out into the night at the film’s conclusion.
On Saturday, a slew of local public schools have Halloween-themed fairs for the whole family that also raise funds for these neighborhood elementary schools. P.S. 9 hosts its “Halloween Hop” from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on West 84th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus avenues, with a haunted house, crafts, games and food options. P.S. 87’s annual Harvest Fest takes place from 1 to 4 p.m. in the school yard on West 78th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus avenues, and offers a maze, games, food and Halloween treats. P.S. 166 also holds its annual “Falloween” celebration tomorrow from 12 to 5 p.m. with bouncy castles, arts and crafts and a haunted house, on West 89th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus avenues.
The New Yorker Festival: Friday to Sunday, October 24th to 26th; lineup, venues and tickets at this link.
One of the premiere literary and cultural events of the year takes place this weekend, and features plenty of UWSers. The storied magazine’s editor-in-chief, UWSer David Remnick, will host conversations with Salman Rushdie and Jon Stewart. The magazine’s executive editor, UWSer Daniel Zalewski, will moderate a panel on “The Art of the Profile” with staff writers Larissa MacFarquhar, Rebecca Mead, Ian Parker, Kelefah Sanneh, and Michael Schulman this Sunday. Other weekend events include talks and performances with Sarah Jessica Parker, Noah Baumbach, Danny Meyer, Lucy Dacus, Rufus Wainwright, Zadie Smith, Demi Moore, Padma Lakshmi, St. Vincent, Garth Greenwell, and many, many more.
Lincoln Center’s “Open House”: Sunday, Oct. 26th from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., campus-wide at Lincoln Center between West 62nd and 66th streets, between Columbus and Amsterdam avenues. Free
A full, free day of creativity, community and performances for all ages takes place Sunday at Lincoln Center. An outdoor circus, a participatory choir led by Jeanine Tesori, a storytelling workshop with the Metropolitan Opera, costume and puppet-making stations, experiences with NYC Ballet, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and more will run throughout the day. Costume-wearing is encouraged!
Jewish Museum: 1109 5th Ave. at East 92nd Street; open Thursday to Monday from 11 to 6 p.m., with late hours on Thursdays. Tickets start at $10
This superb museum just across town on Fifth Avenue near East 92nd Street is debuting its renewed and reimagined collection galleries starting this weekend, along with a brand-new learning center, and the first U.S. museum exhibition to focus on the early works of artist Anish Kapoor. The show includes striking pigment sculptures, together with works on paper and sketchbooks. I saw it earlier this week. It’s terrific!
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Join your local community on Sundays at 3pm to practice meditation out of doors in Central Park near the West 100th Street entrance. We practice mostly in the Buddhist tradition with both experienced practitioners and those new to meditation welcome. Freely offered to the community. RSVP to Kalyana.Mitta4747@gmail.com
Don’t sleep on the premiere of the 58th season of Bach Vespers at Holy Trinity, Sunday, October 26 at 5:00 p.m. Anthony Trecek-King, resident Conductor of the Handel and Haydn Society, makes his Bach Vespers debut in this service featuring “Nun danket alle Gott” along with works by Telemann, Buxtehude, and spirituals arranged by Trecek-King himself. Holy Trinity, 51-53 Central Park West, FREE. No tickets required.
Early voting begins today, 10-25.
In case anyone is into that sort of thing.